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GIOVANNI MARITI
Travels in the Island of Cyprus
page 51 View PDF version of this page her to amuse herself and feast with the other women while he does the same with the men, and at last all retire to their own apartment.
For a woman married by Kebin, or hire, there are fewer formalities. A contract is made before the judge, specifying the time for which the man wishes to keep her; the sum, as agreed upon between the parties, to be paid by the man, and a condition that he shall maintain the issue of the marriage, the children being considered legitimate and capable of in-heriting.
Of slaves they may have as many as they can keep, and they avail themselves of this right without any further formality than that of purchase. The father must maintain the children of such unions, but if at his death he does not allot them a share in his property they have no claim on it, and remain at the mercy of the legitimate heirs.
A Turk who is tired of a legitimate wife can, without giving a reason, divorce her : but then he must pay the woman the dowry assigned to her in the marriage contract, and restore to her the property she brought to his house. If he has an adequate reason for separating from her, he is not obliged to give her anything; but in both cases the children remain at the husband's charge. The woman cannot marry again until she has been divorced four months, to see if she is enceinte : if she is, she must wait the birth of the child, which remains with the father. If after the divorce the parties wish to live together again, the woman must first marry another man, who does not care to keep her ; they are then free to remarry. When a reconciliation of this sort is to be effected, the man tries to find a friend to play the part of the new husband, with whom he agrees for the restoration of the woman.
A Turkish woman cannot, like a man, obtain a divorce without reason given. But she is entitled to demand it when her husband does not give her sufficient food : if he does not admit her to his bed at least once in eight days, and if he does
vi] of the Island and Kingdom of Cyprus 47
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