[66] Bühler, Sacred Laws of the Aryans, Part I., 267, sq. [↑]
[67] Hindu Law, 61; and see Starcke, Primitive Family, 141, sqq.: Westermarck, History of Human Marriage, 510, sqq. [↑]
[68] Census Report, North-Western Provinces, 1891, 249. [↑]
[69] The Panjâb returns show 145 widows to 1,000 women, 23 per cent. of women over 15 years of age are widows. This rises to 25 for Hindus and falls to 21 for Muhammadans. (Maclagan, Census Report, 226). Mr. O’Donnell (Bengal Census Report, 186) attributes much of the relative increase of Muhammadans in that Province to their toleration of widow marriage. [↑]
[70] The exact figures are:—
| Not permitting widow marriage | 9,713,087, | or | 24·05 | per cent. |
| Permitting widow marriage | 30,667,081, | or | 75·95 | per cent. |
| Total Hindus | 40,380,168, | or | 100 | per cent. |
These figures are, however, subject to the correction that some even of the lower castes partially prohibit widow marriage, and this is represented by the Byâhut section, which appears in many of them. In the whole of the Behâr Provinces (Census Report, 200) the Musahars of the north-eastern area, with only 5·5 per cent. of widows amongst women between 15 and 40 years, are most addicted to widow marriage. The Thârus of Champâran, and the Dhobis, Lohârs and Dusâdhs of North-West Behâr, follow them very closely in this respect. [↑]
[72] Of the Panjâb Mr. Maclagan remarks (Report, 255) that “the practice of child marriage among girls prevails mainly in the east of the Province. It is primarily a Hindu practice, and is found most strongly developed in the districts where Hinduism is the prevailing religion; and in the Province generally it is much more common among Hindus than among Musalmâns. But the early marriage of girls has now become a matter more of custom than of religion, and the Musalmâns in Hindu districts are nearly as much addicted to it as the Hindus, while among Hindus in Musalmân districts it is almost as rare as among the Musalmâns. In fact, the Muklâwa is very little in vogue among Hindus anywhere in the extreme south and west of the Province.” The Bihâr returns (Census Report, 199) show that “the age of Kâyasth and Brâhman girls before they find husbands to be much higher than that assigned by popular opinion. The Râjput girl marries, like the Bâbhan and the aboriginal Thâru, a little later than the Dusâdh. So do the Nuniya, Lohâr, Kurmi and Kahâr, but only on an average a month or two later. The Dhânuk girl marries earlier than females in any other large caste in this area, though a year later than girls of low caste in North-East Bihâr.” [↑]
[73] Mr. Ibbetson shows that the difficulty of marrying among the Khatris of the Panjab is due to the strong law of hypergamy or necessity of marrying a girl in a higher grade than her husband, which prevails among them as well as among Brâhmans and hill Râjputs (Report, 356). This probably explains the fact in these Provinces. [↑]