BY  the  highest  and  most  revered
authorities  marriage  is  described,
and  rightly  described,  as  the  great-
est of  the  five  human  relationships.
It  is  the  foundation  of  the  State,  and  it  holds
out  that  prospect,  which  is  so  dear  to  the
heart  of  every  Chinaman,  of  obtaining  sons
who  shall  perform  at  the  tombs  of  their
parents  the  sacrifices  which  are  necessary  for
the  repose  of  their  spirits.  In  one  respect,
matrimonial  alliances  in  China  have  an  advan-
tage over  those  in  Western  lands.  They  can
never  be  undertaken  in  a  hurryo  There  can
be  no  running  off  of  the  young  lady  to  the
registry  office  some  morning  before  her  par-
ents come  down  to  breakfast,  nor  can  a
special  license  be  obtained  in  a  moment  to
gratify  a  sudden  caprice.
In  the  houses  of  all  well-to-do  people  the
ceremony  is  surrounded  by  rites  which  make
haste  impossible,  and  the  widest  publicity  is
secured  for  the  event.  In  dealing  with  social
matters  in  so  huge  an  Empire  as  China,  it  is
necessary  to  remember  that  practices  vary  in
detail  in  different  parts  of  the  country.  But
throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the
land  the  arrangement  of  marriages  of  both
sons  and  daughters  is  a  matter  which  is  left
entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  parents,  who  in
every  case  employ  a  go-between  or  match-
maker, whose  business  it  is  to  make  himself
or  herself — both  men  and  women  follow  this
strange  calling — acquainted  accurately  with
the  circumstances  of  both  families  and  the
personal  qualifications  of  the  proposed  bride
and  bridegroom.
