According to Russian law, no man can marry before he is eighteen years of age, or a woman before she is sixteen; nor after he is eighty, and she is sixty. Priests are permitted to marry once. Secret marriages without witnesses are regarded as invalid, and both bride and bridegroom must be baptized persons. If a Russian takes a foreigner for a wife, she must bind herself in writing to bring up any children she may have in the Greco-Russian faith. According to an ancient custom the bridegroom presents his bride with the costume and jewellery worn at the marriage. The dowry comes from her family, and consists of a complete wardrobe, silver, linen, and household furniture of all kinds. The hair of an unmarried woman of the peasant class in Russia is dressed in a single plait hanging loose upon the shoulders, and tied with ribbon. After marriage it is arranged in two braids coiled round the head, covered with a cap tied behind, or with a cotton or silk handkerchief and a little lappet of linen rests on the forehead, and is considered an inevitable symbol of marriage. Marriages are performed after banns, and much of the finery used by the lower classes is hired for the occasion; and the crowns used in the Russian ceremony are generally the property of the Church. Formerly they were worn for a week, but this practice has been discontinued. [Illustration: A RUSSIAN BRIDE.] [Illustration: NORWEGIAN PEASANT BRIDE AND BRIDEGROOM.] There are three distinct periods in the life of a Norwegian woman, and each one has marked characteristics, particularly as regards dress. During girlhood, up to the time of confirmation, a solemn occasion for which there is much preparatory training, girls do not usually go from home to work, or earn their own living. Among the poorer classes this ceremony takes place when they are about fifteen. Their petticoats are short and their hair is arranged in two long plaits. After confirmation they are supposed to regard life from its more serious aspect, and to engage themselves with various duties, according to their station. The third stage, of course, is married life, and it should be stated that neither men nor women can enter upon the holy contract unless they can bring proof of their confirmation, and can show ample evidence of sufficient means to provide for a household. The marriage is preceded by a betrothal ceremony, when the young couple go to the church, accompanied by their friends, and exchange rings of plain gold and presents of jewellery and apparel, which must be worn on the wedding day. At her marriage the peasant bride wears the crown. It has a rim of brass to fit the head, and the upper portion is of silver and gold, sometimes embellished with precious stones. Such crowns are generally heirlooms, and it is not uncommon for all the brides of one family for centuries to wear the same adornment for the head. A very usual dress on such an occasion is a plain skirt of some woollen material, with a