WORLD LOVES A WEDDING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20988, 26 September 1931, Page 6 (Supplement)

WORLD LOVES A WEDDING.

CUSTOMS OF OTHER LANDS.

FLOWERS REPLACE THE RING

" With this ring I thee wed ..." and the bridegroom slips the ring on his bride's finger.

This slipping on of the ring is the symbol of union and fidelity. In various and different ways it is practised the world over, but always the symbol of union is the cardinal point of the service. Although the cathedral decked with flowers, bridesmaids in lovely gowns, flower-girls showering petals for the bride to walk on, may be the London girl s idea of the ideal marriage, the Bengal bride thinks the simple ceremony of a flower chain bound about herself and her beloved is fitting symbol of their union. And think what delight the Zambale girl must get out of her marriage ceremony! An old man of the tribe is appointed to knock together the heads of the devoted pair! In parts of China the hair of the couple is knotted together. In Southern Spam each wedding guest ties a knot on the fringes of the bride's costume and the groom's toga. In some nations the couple just shake hands before the guests; in Orkney, they sometimes carry on the old custom of plighting hands through a large stone ring. In some countries the hands are not only clasped, but also bound With a cord. But in Assam both methods are used; a blade of cusha grass is first used to tie the thumbs of the couple; when this is severed they present each other with a ring! One of the simplest customs of presenting the ring is practised by the lors of Central Africa. On the seventh day after their union the groom presents his bride with a ring. In the evening it is done . . . she is waiting at the door of their hut for him with the golden rays of the sinking sun brightening her crimson garment- and her dusky skin. He_ s n £ es through the woods to her, a^ inn loveliness, and gives her a gold or siher ring. She accepts this and gives him one in return accompanied by some present as a love token. Vogue lor Jewelled Rings. In England and America a new fad has arisen within the last few years. The gold circlet, Greek in its simplicity, pure ind lasting in metal, and the veij essence of strength and harmony,_is being abandoned for more gaudy things—jade, diamonds, rubies, emeralds; and some modern young women even go to the extent oi having more than one wedding ring. In fact, a wedding ring to match each costume! We may hope that this will be but a passing fancy . . - yet perhaps the wedding ring is going through another stage of its evolution. The ancients favoured the ring of iron, then the ring of brass. In the second century gold was introduced for secular purposes; then it received ecclesiastical sanction and .was blessed and_ used during the ceremony. The gold ring came to make a long stay. It is true that the plain band has been supplanted temporarily dv elaborate ones engraved and studded with jewels, but not tor long. And the Teutonic countries, who are adopting the gold band more and more, were much against it at first . . . favouring their custom of dividing a silver or gold coin j n two—the bride and groom each taking half. The Ring Finger. And the/marriage ring has taken quite a iournev before reaching its place on the third finger of the left hand. Some countries first placed it on the thumb of the right hand, then the third finger of the same hand. Then it jumped to the thumb of the left and finally to the third finger there. But some < countries still use the right hand finger in preference. The reasons for our .placing it on the third finger, of the left hand are very charming and appropriate. It is the finger least used and so the most protected. It is the weakest finger of all and svmbolises the wife's dependence on her husband. It is connected directly with the heart, and is therefore supposed to be the " finger of life."