OCR Text |
Show London, June 15-Among the graves', questions of imperial leg si tion, which ars ptessing for consideration, and which must be dealt witli in the near future, is that of infant marriages and polygamy in India. A peculiarly revolting case of juvenile polygamy has just been brought to the attention ol the government, govern-ment, in which an eminent Brahiiiinliving in Bengal, compelled his s;x aunts, eight sisters and four daughters all to be married mar-ried together to a boy nine years of age. The eldest of the eighteen brides was more than filty years old, and the young-ist young-ist was scarcely three months old, aud was brought to the wedding wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a brass salver. It is allirmed that this case is by no nivalis extraordinary, and that hun dreds of mariiages eqully outrageous are oceurring every year among tiie Kulin Brahmins. The chief difficulty is that the mat riage customs are pan cf the Brahmins' Brah-mins' religious system; and that to inteifere with them would therefore be most bittetly resented; still it is delieved that moral consideration will soon compel com-pel lCngland to take the matter up. That a boy nine years old should be married Hi eighteen wives.nH of one family, fami-ly, in three generations and ranging from three months lo lift v years in age, is an a n iziug state of affiirs for the British empiie in the year 1S90, |