These aristocratic nails are generally half an inch long, though I
saw one man whose nails were quite an inch in length, but only on
his left hand. With this hand it was impossible for him to raise
any flat object, except by laying his hand flat upon it, and
catching hold of it between his fingers.
The women of the higher classes are generally inclined to
corpulency, a quality which is highly esteemed not in women alone,
but in men as well.
Although I had heard a great deal about the small feet of Chinese
women, I was greatly astonished at their appearance. Through the
kind assistance of a missionary's lady (Mrs. Balt) I was enabled to
behold one of these small feet in natura. Four of the toes were
bent under the sole of the foot, to which they were firmly pressed,
and with which they appeared to be grown together; the great toe was
alone left in its normal state. The fore-part of the foot had been
so compressed with strong broad bandages, that instead of expanding
in length and breadth, it had shot upwards and formed a large lump
at the instep, where it made part and parcel of the leg; the lower
portion of the foot was scarcely four inches long, and an inch and a
half broad.
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