Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 208, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 September 1911 — WEDDED FOR ONE YEAR ONLY [ARTICLE]

WEDDED FOR ONE YEAR ONLY

People of Eifel District in Germany Arrange Trial Marriages at '• Annual Fairs. The ancient custom of holding fairs for selecting brides and Bridegrooms Dn trial still exists in some villages of the Eifel district of Germany. On the day of the fair the young men and women Who have been notified stand in groups on adjacent hillocks, their names being inscribed on a roll in the possession of the fair officials, who sit round a table between the groups. The ages of the young men are stated on the roll, but not those of the girls. Males are then called forward by name in the order of their ages, the oldest coming first, and one of the girls is called to meet him; if neither . objects the young woman is presented with a wedding ring, and the couple are declared duly wedded for a year on approval. At the end of the year they may separate and each is free to marry again; or if they are not Quite sure whether they will be happy they can arrange to separate for a day or two before the next fair, and then be wedded again for another year. If a couple remain together over the year the marriage becomes binding for life, or if any family is born the union Is also valid for life. If a maiden refuses the first man she is supposed to marry the next offered to her; but this rule is not rigidly enforced now, though, formerly the names of candidates were taken haphazard by the head man of the community, who did not put up with nonsense about maidenly coyness. Nowadays it is generally arranged beforehand to call together only those couples who have been courting The system has worked with good results tor centuries and will probably last some while yet, until the farming districts become crowded with factories and towns.—Tit-Bits.