could not raise so much, even if they were to sell everything they had, including their clothes. They came to me, and it so happened that I had a little of the Lord's money that a friend had sent to me to use as I thought best; so the trade was closed and Rhoda was redeemed from a life of slavery to this worthless man, and is now free and happy.
But what is to be her future? Who can guess? She is now thirteen years old, and that means that she has not many years of single life ahead of her. I may say here that our Christians have a rule by which the girls are not to marry till they are eighteen years old, native count, so this rule will help Rhoda to escape for a few more years.
But the marriage about which I started out to tell. The day is usually decided by the parents of the contracting parties calling on a sorcerer or a sorceress and having that individual select a lucky day for the marriage. Before this day has been set, the parents of the bridegroom have provided the clothes for the bride and sent them to her home — not simply one suit to be worn the day of the marriage, but as many suits as they are able or willing to give. It is often the case that these are the only fine clothes that the bride will ever receive. Included in his outfit is a hairpin and a pair of silver rings. Up to this time the girl has always worn her hair braided and hanging down her back; but the day that she is to be married her hair is parted in the middle, combed smoothly back, twisted into a roll low on the back of the neck, and securely fastened with the silver pin. This pin
