The Wedding Ring

1895

The ring was considered a badge of servitude by some and was for that reason given by the man to his wife, like our forefathers, who were accustomed to give the future son-in-law one of the bride's shoes as a sign of authority over her. It was reputed to be accompanied by a tap on the head of the bride with the said shoe by the husband in order to assert his prerogative. The ring was used in ancient times as a sign of contract, and from that fact, according to the antiquary Brand, it was nearly abolished by the Puritans of Cromwell on account of its heathenish origin. Butler, in his "Hudibras," refers to it:

Others were for abolishing
That tool of matrimony, a ring,
With which the unsanctified bridegroom
Is married only to a thumb,
As wise as ringing of a pig
That used to break up ground and dig.

The circlet of love withstood the assaults of the sanctified Roundheads, and Cupid's yoke did and does still have sway. An old Latin writer thus describes the ring: "(1) It is circular, because its form importeth that mutual love and hearty affection should always exist between the giver and Wearer. (2) Its rotundity exemplifieth that the loving joys of courtship and matrimony should be forever, their continuity remaining as unbroken as the circlet itself." — Chambers' Journal.