Everlasting Pearl | Page 6

a few days before that date, some of the guests
began to arrive, each one bringing a present of some garment, or hair
flowers, shoes, etc. for the bride. A present of 120 lbs. of pork, 60 lbs.
of fish, 12 chickens, and a good supply of expensive vegetables had
been sent by the young man, and the guests, with many of whom
luxuries were rare, set themselves to enjoy the good things.
The evening before the wedding the middleman arrived with the bridal
chair, which was covered all around with red cloth, and embroidered in
gay colours. Now the feasting began in real earnest. The pipers struck
up their usual melody, and with each hour the excitement grew.
The following morning the trousseau had to be packed, but the bride
had nothing to do with it. She did not rise from her bed at all. Her
breakfast was brought to her by one of her relatives, and she was
exhorted to eat heartily, as that would be her last meal till the following
morning. Towards dinner-time she was coaxed to get up, but she
persistently refused to do so, and began bemoaning her fate, in having
to leave her parents and her own home to go to strangers. Every now
and again the mother joined in the wailing, and the relatives stood
round them crying, trying in vain to comfort them. After dinner the
bride was again urged to get up, but maidenly modesty and her
dutifulness to her parents still forbade her to obey. No one should have
any reason to say that she was anxious to go. She wanted to show how

loath she was to leave her parents, and every one was praising her, and
saying that such a dutiful daughter would make a filial daughter-in-law.
But even the most ardent filial piety could not put off the hour of
separation much longer. At last she was dragged from her bed by the
women who had to prepare her for her journey, and she reluctantly
submitted to the preparation. Her hair was shaved all around the edges,
the hair in front, which used to make the fringe for the forehead, was
pulled out. Then her hair was combed straight back to show that she
was now to enter the ranks of the married women. Then she was
powdered and painted, and dressed in her bridal attire, which consisted
of a red skirt, and red cloak, beautifully embroidered in bright colours,
but rather the worse for wear, as it had accompanied the bridal chair on
many another journey. The box with the mitre was brought forth and
the crown was placed on her head, already too richly adorned with
artificial flowers. And now the wailing broke forth beyond all bounds,
the young bride and her mother vying with each other in making the
greatest possible noise; at times beating their heads against the wall, the
bed, or the table in their self-imposed manifestations of sorrow.
Outside, the trousseau was being sent off, as it had to reach the bride's
future home before she entered the same. Two men carried a cupboard
between them. Others followed with some chairs, and a table covered
with candlesticks and all kinds of utensils. A pair of the bride's shoes
might also be found, placed within those of the bridegroom's, for, as
every one remarked, "The two must now walk together till old age."
Others carried a couple of red wooden boxes filled with the clothes and
personal belongings of the bride, also a wadded bed-quilt, a bed-curtain,
and two embroidered pillows, etc. The whole procession made an
imposing show, and the relatives of Everlasting Pearl looked after it
with pride. The girl had been well provided for, and could lift up her
head without shame before her husband's people.
The bride herself was at that time kneeling in her bedroom on a large
sieve (a token that all evil influences are "sifted out" and all good luck
and riches "sifted in"), bidding farewell to all her relatives. One by one
they were led to her, beginning with her parents and brothers, and

ending with the distant relatives, neighbours, and guests. To each one
she clung in despair, clutching their feet, and vowing she could not
leave them; and she did not let go her hold until a coin, wrapped in red
paper, was dropped into the sieve; then, with a few words of comfort,
the giver would move away to make room for another, and all the time
the red paper parcels increased in number.
When the farewells had nearly come to an end, the middleman urged a
speedy departure, and at last, when she still delayed, he entered the
room, lifted the weeping girl into his arms, and carried her out into