The supposed decease of one of the contracting parties, either through absence or disappearance, will not enable the other to marry again. So long as the decease of one of the contracting parties, either through absence or disappearance, has not been absolutely proved, the marriage is not considered as dissolved. ANNULMENT OF MARRIAGE.--A marriage may be annulled when it was contracted in violation of some legal impediment, or for want of proper consent. SECOND OR FURTHER MARRIAGES.--A woman cannot marry again for ten months after a dissolved or annulled marriage, unless she was left pregnant, in which case she may marry after having given birth to the child. PROOF OF MARRIAGE.--A marriage must be proved by certificate, or copy thereof, of such marriage. If it is impossible to produce the certificate, or its copy, all other means of proof will be allowed, but these other proofs will not be admitted unless it is previously established that such certificate or copy cannot be produced. CHAPTER XXIX. THE UNITED STATES OF BRAZIL. The United States of Brazil (_Estados Unidos do Brazil_), the largest country in South America and one of the most extensive political subdivisions of the world, is a Republic comprising twenty States and a Federal District. Its present constitution was adopted February 24, 1891, and is in many respects similar to that of the United States of America. The legislative power is vested in the President of the Republic and a National Congress, consisting of a Senate and Chamber of Deputies. The individual States are governed by their governors and legislatures, and possess their own judicial systems. The main body of the civil law has its origin in the Portuguese Code and in the judicial precedents of Portugal. There is a Supreme Federal Court of Justice, which sits at the capital, Rio de Janeiro, and Federal Courts in each of the twenty States. Ninety-nine per centum of the people of Brazil are Roman Catholics and consider marriage as a religious sacrament, but the law of the land considers it simply as a civil contract. MARRIAGE.--The Civil Code defines marriage as a perpetual contract between two persons of different sex to live together and establish a legitimate family. A civil or legal celebration of marriage is compulsory for all persons, irrespective of race or creed. If after the civil marriage the parties may desire to satisfy their consciences and the mandates of their church or sect by having the marriage solemnized in a religious form, there is no legal objection thereto. Marriage is forbidden: 1. Of minors under the age of 21 years, unless with parental consent. 2. Of persons of adult age who are incapable of properly governing themselves or their estates, without the authorization of their legal representatives. 3. Of an adulterous wife with her accomplice who has been condemned for the offence.