A QUEER METHOD OF DIVORCE.
When a Burmese husband and wife decide to separate, the woman goes out and buys two little candles of equal length, which are made specially' for this use. She brings them home,' and she and her husband sit down on the floor, placing tho candles between them, and lighting them simultaneously. One candle stands for him, the other for her. The one whose candle goes out first rises and goes out of the house for ever, with nothing but what he or she may have on. The one whose candle has survived the longest, even by a second, takes everything. So the divorce and division of the property —if you call it a division —are settled. It looks fair enough, but appearances* are deceitful. Tho wife on her way home with the candle sometimes takes a tiny scraping from the bottom of one of them. A very little will be enough. If the husband and house contain scarcely anything but children, .site takes the shortened candle, and walks out free and content. But if the house is well furnished, and the husband's possessions are considerable, he gets the short candle and does the walking.
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/AS18980928.2.11
Bibliographic details
Auckland Star, Volume XXIX, Issue 229, 28 September 1898, Page 3
Word Count
199A QUEER METHOD OF DIVORCE. Auckland Star, Volume XXIX, Issue 229, 28 September 1898, Page 3
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