The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1903-05-08
CHINESE MANIcURING WAYS.
How the women of the Orient Have
Their Finger Malls Treated
by American Artists.

| Lovely woman has the same weak
hesseS> in Peking and Canton as in New
p! York and Chicago. The coiffeur. mil
| liner, dressmaker and bootmaker are
| as important to her as TO her Amerl-
can sister, according to the New York
Times. Like the latter, she dotes upon
manicuring, but on account of social
conditions there are no professional
manicures to employ twice or thrice
week. Either she attends to her own
nails or else she depends upon junior
wife, a servant or slave to do the
| work for her. The wives of wealthy
Chinese merchants in New York's Chi
natown usually hire the barber" to
look after their tapering fingers.
| Her ideal fngernail is nots that of
the occident, at least so far as shape
is concerned. Where the western
makes as a standard a simple oval
which is almost parallel to the curva-
ture of the finger, Chinese lady of
fashion wants hers to extend well be-
yond the finger-tips, so as to form an
ellipse whose major axis is at least
twice the minor. The flesh at the base
Is pushed back as far as possible, so as
to increase the lunette, or moon, while
at the side it is encouraged to overlap
| the nail.
The ends should be at least half
inch in length beyond the line where
they separate from the skin. The
| reason of this last requirement is that
the length shows that the owner does
not work. Yet, as every Chinese wom-
an does work, she keeps up the fiction
| by several odd eXpedients. One is to
wear finger-caps when working and
when asleep. These are often bought
by Summing parties in Pell street for
| souvenirs. Another is to use gloves
or mittens, or even stockings upon the
hands when engaged upon household
| labor.
In manicure equipment there are,
| first, toilet soap, and, second, soap
wood; the latter being also employed
for shampooing. There is also a jar
| of unguent, which corresponds to
| American cold cream. For polishing
powder they use pulveriZed cuttlefish
| bone mixed with sandalwood, sawdust
| or dried tea flowers. For applying the
| powder, they have small brush look
| ing very much like the western tooth
brush, or fine silk towel. For improv-
| ing the color of the nail many washes
| have been invented. Nearly all seem
manufactured upon general formula
| of an alcoholic base tinted pink and
| containing a solution of some gum
| lacquer, which when dried remains
| moderately elastic.
The nail-scissors are small, like those
| of the west, so far as the blades are con-
cerned, but the loops are altogether
different. The thumb loop is of nor
enough for two and even three or four
fingers. This construction gives firm
er grip and stronger and more accurate
cutting quality. Curious implements
are the cutting tweezers. These have
straight or convex edges and are EN-
ployed to remove callous or dead skin,
trim nails and to correct the growth
of tissue on the tip of the finger be-
low the nail. For polishing the under
side of the nail, especially near the
quick, little sticks of hard, elastic wood
! are used. These are cut with varying
heads. Some come to a point, others
| to chisel-like edges, while third are
cut into brush-like ends which will
| carry large amount of polishing pow
| der. Many Chinese women, instead of
cutting the sticks, chew the ends into
| little brushes.