Note 80 — G

Marriage rules. 4. Marriage of two sisters is permitted. Difference of belief is no bar to intermarriage. Generally polygamy is permitted only when the first wife is barren or unfit through some infirmity or disease for household work. When there are two wives, the senior enjoys more respect than the junior, who, however, naturally receives more of the affection of her husband. Unless serious quarrels arise, the wives live in the same house. There is no fixed age for the marriage of males, but girls are almost always married before puberty, when they are about nine or ten years old. The marriage negotiations are carried out by the village barber and the family priest. The marriage is void in the absence of the consent of the father or other legal guardian. No physical defect subsequently ascertained can annul a marriage, and divorce is prohibited. Bastards or the offspring of illicit connections are known as Dasa,80 and are not admitted to full caste rights, and do not inherit. As a rule they follow the tribe of the father, and only in very rare cases that of the mother. Not only are illegitimate children excluded from inheritance, but they are not admitted to the domestic meals or to tribal feasts. Illicit connections involve the excommunication of both parties. Widow-marriage and the levirate are both prohibited.