Sidelights on Life in Lithuania

ISBN: 9781332195701 出版年：2016 页码：29 Lithuanian Information Bureau Forgotten Books

A peasant wedding always takes place on Sunday, and if it' is a grand one, the whole church is lighted up, even the side altars; it must be remembered that the Lithuanians are devout Roman Catholics. The bride is led in by two young men and followed by her bridesmaids, who all, like herself, are in their best dresses, and wear crowns of flowers. The bridegroom is accompanied 'by several young men, and behind the wedding party are the two mothers. A table is placed within the sanctuary, having on it a crucifix and candles, and it is there that the priest stands to unite the couple, and the bride would be guilty of very bad manners if she did not weep the Whole time. If she is not inclined to do so the old women scold her. They then go home and feast for several days and nights, the first entertainment being given by the bride's mother, the next by that of the bridegroom, after which other relations follow suit. The national dance, which is something like a jig, and very difficult, is performed by a number of couples at once, and in the middle of it the bride and bridegroom dis appear, and go to their own house.