CHAPTER XX.

THE COSMETIC CARE AND TREATMENT OF THE HANDS.

HE hand, being the important member of the body described

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in the last chapter, every rational being will endeavor to make it presentable. The first of negative qualities in its presentability will, of course, be cleanliness. But, unless doomed by toil to hardness of skin and stiffness of joints, it should have also the positive virtues of gently pronounced muscularity and suppleness, as thus best adapted to the large range of duty which fitness for the plastic and mechanical capacity of mankind demands. And not less are these attributes of the hand æsthetically than they are usefully requisite to its excellence. Its distinctive attributes, of usefulness and beauty, stand on an equal, although on a different, footing. Beauty in it is conditioned upon its appearance of serviceableness; a meagre, undeveloped hand being not more surely incapable of fine action than of presenting any appearance of capacity. Such a hand gives dissatisfaction to the mind from perception of deficiency, which is, in a sense, a deformity. A foot that cannot walk, a hand that cannot act, is a defect, not only from the point of view of usefulness, but from that of beauty. Aurora, although a goddess, the gracious, the glorious, and refined, the rosy-fingered Daughter of the Dawn, does not scorn deftly to draw aside the sable curtains of the night.

It is universally agreed that the handsome hand has tapering fingers, and nails of the form called almond-shaped. We do not remember ever to have seen the fingers too tapering to be graceful, but the almond-shape of the nail is occasionally found in This term, almond-shape, refers to the shape as looked. down upon from immediately above the nail. Referring to the

excess.

true shape of the nail, as seen from another point of view, sidewise, it should curve slightly from side to side, but scarcely perceptibly from front to rear. When it curves markedly from root to tip it becomes extremely unsightly, and this defect may reach a point in which it amounts to a disease, which will be described in the chapter on the subject of the nails. Reaching that degree of malformation, it presents the appearance of a modified talon. If beyond the smallest degree it curves from root to tip, that formation represents a defect, and the nails should be kept most carefully pared to avoid exaggerating its appearance.

The paper-nail is caused by a congenital defect in the nutrition of the nail-substance. When such nails occur they should be carefully trimmed down to the most restricted dimensions, for when allowed to grow, as we have seen them, with the corners appearing well above the end of the finger, they are not only unsightly, but are liable to be painfully torn. In such cases the advice of a physician should be taken, with the hope that some palliation of the disease may be effected, and the nail be made to assume a more serviceable and more sightly condition.

As we intend to devote a separate chapter to a description of the structure and growth of the nail, which will, of course, apply equally to the nails of the hands and the feet, we shall not here enter more deeply into the subject than to describe in general terms the treatment which the nails, as the most distinguished portion of the hand, require to insure their presentability. Be the shape of the hand and the nails never so handsome, if a person is not especially fastidious as to the nicety of the latter, the hand loses its social position, and damages its owner's repu tation for keeping good company; whereas, on the contrary, be the hand never so homely, if it be cared for, the fact will be evident, and it will be recognized as the associate of a gentleman or gentlewoman.

It is by constant, assiduous, not intermittent, attention to the hand that it is kept in proper order. A little box of manicure instruments aid the process, but are merely conveniences with which one can dispense. For the regular routine of the toilette of the hands, one should, in washing them, never fail to press gently back with the towel, as they are being wiped, the delicate selvedge-like edge around the root of the nail. There are little ivory, spade-shaped instruments that are purchasable for this purpose, which come in all manicure boxes. The effect of the nail is wonderfully enhanced by the appearance of the lunula, or little whitish half-moon at its base. When the selvedge-edge is pressed back, it reveals this pretty feature of the part. The edge of the skin, being pressed back when the hands are damp, grows symmetrically, and makes a delicate setting for the nail. Neglected, the nail in growing becomes laden with some of the surrounding skin, covered with whose flakes it presents a most unsightly appearance as it continues to push forward. Some persons are so obtuse to the beauty of this delicate edge of skin at the base of the nail that they actually trim it away, leaving an ugly red rim around the nail, like the edge of an inflamed eyelid.

occur.

Of course, all excrescences, such as warts, must be removed from the hand; also such things as agnails, or hangnails, as they are popularly called, ragged pieces of skin caused by the forward growth of the nail. With constant care in keeping the skin at the base of the nail pressed back, these latter, however, do not The most common treatment of warts, with nitrate of silver (lunar caustic), is quite painful, and has to be frequently renewed. A high authority, Kaposi, suggests the following application for their treatment: Paint delicately, with a camel's hair brush, on and around the base of the wart, once daily, with a solution of 1 part of bichloride of mercury to 30 parts of collodion.

Fowler's solution of arsenic, from 1 to 3 minims, twice a day, taken internally, has been known to effect the cure of warts.

Warts can be summarily removed by the action of the electric needle.

There are many refinements connected with the beautification of the hand which some persons would not find it possible to practice. All, however, are able to accept and pursue the following course as the basis of any possible amplification of the process.

Wash the hands frequently with soft water and bland soap, avoiding the use of warm water except for the removal of an exceptional amount of foreign matter on the skin. In wiping the hands, press backward in all directions the skin around the nails. Trim the nails neatly with a sharp penknife (if you can, use the knife instead of the scissors), so that they shall be slightly rounding at the ends, and not project beyond the ends of the fingers. Then round them off to the greatest nicety with

the delicate kind of file to be found in the manicure boxes and elsewhere. Daily employment of this filing process enables one even to dispense with paring the nails. Some persons, few we are happy to say, are like Miss Betsy Trotwood, who, being afraid of fire, always went to a hotel in London where they had a marble staircase, and, to secure more marble staircase, took a room at the top of the house. They cherish the nails as if they were exotic plants that ought to show their luxuriance of growth. We have even known a man to have a single pet nail, which was the cherished Joseph of the family of brethren, to the point of having a coat of many colors.

The nails of a Chinaman of exalted rank, grown long to show that he is above the possibility of manual labor, propped up with bamboo sticks, grooved, tawny, friable, are disgusting. In only lesser degree, nails grown distinctly beyond the end of