The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1876-08-17
CHINESE WOMAN OF Fashion.
"A newspaper q corr r 5 ,Ondent in San


Francisco managed to obtain an inter
view with the wife of a wealthy Chi
naman, and thus describes this speci
men of Chinese Style.
Sing Lee corteously conducted us
through the dark wash house, where
men were beating clothes with bam-
boo sticks, scrubbing them in the suds
with bamboo brushes, and China boy
was cooking dinner in & bi" pot over
little furnace, to range of berths
like those of ocean steamers, and, lift
ing the curtain of the bed, introduced
us to the lady by saying: This is my
cousin The woman Immediately
rose from the bed on which she was
sitting and extended her hand to each
of us, saying, 'IIow do Her husband
was sitting by her side, holding boy,
who was already dressed in trousers
and gown, and wore red silk turban
cap on bis head. The wife was more
elegantly dressed than any Chinese |
had yet seen. Herhair was elaborate-
ly dressed. and fastened sp IN puffs
and coils by long dagger-shaped pins
ofgold. Her gown, or robe, was
loose. extended to the knee, and had
big, loose sleeves, distended by hoops !;
her robe was of dark blue silk, en-
broidered with yellow and red silk !;
her arms had several bracelet orna-
ments !; her hands were small and well
formed, and covered with rings; she
wore big hoops of gold in her ears
she had a pretty face, oval shaped,
large eyes, small mouth, and dimpled
cheeks She smiled frequently as we
conversed with Sing Lee, but took no
part in the conversation. think she
only could speak a very few sentences.
When l SAID we wanted 10 see her
foot, she evidently understood, for she
laughed. and put out her tiny, pointed
slippers. Igot on my knee, and took
her foot in my lap and examined it
closely, and measured it. The foot
and leg were bound tightly in white
satin,apparently sewed neatly around
the limb. There were bands of gold
around her ankles her ankle measur-
ed ten inches in circumference at its
smallest place; her foot was two and
three-quarter inches long, two inches
broad in the middle, aud one inch at
the toes; over the white satin band or
stocking she wore blue satin slippers,
embroidered in silver. The slippers
came almost to Il point ut the toe. She
could only walk by aid of her cane.
which was on the bed beside her
Even with its aid, her walk was lump
ing and painfully slow. The doll baby
foot, SO elaborately decorated in blue
aud silver, hanging to the big ankle,
which was, of course, disproportion-
atcly large, looked anything but hand
some, according to my standard of
aristocratically-Inoid limbs and feet.
Her legs looked like sticks OF wood
whitfield down to point for foot.
But she is evidently very vain of her
Her baby, one year old,
had feet five inches long, but he was a
boy and entitled to masculine freedom
OF limb. 1t looked incongruous to
see SO much gold, silver, satin. and
jewels on one poor little crippled wo-
man, sitting in little room back of
wash house, and dressing and living
in the bunk of bed, set against he
wall. But she seemed to be as much
at ease, and have as much room in her
curtained six feet by four, as Ameri-
can ladies find in twenty-roomed
house. M