UNBECOMING CUSTOM. 
291 
ment has loose hanging sleeves, and her under robe 
is a very narrow skirt. These two vestments are 
fastened vdth a wide sash of most voluminous pro- 
portions, which is tied behind in a huge knot. In 
the tea-gardens this is a very becoming feature in 
the pretty waitresses, who, bending on one knee, 
offer you tea and sweetmeats on a lacquered tray. 
Unlike the ladies of the Flowery Land, our damsel of 
the Land of the Rising Sun wears no spacious pan- 
taloons, and her feet are bare. Her face is made 
beautiful by cosmetics, her complexion is whitened 
with pearl-powder prepared from the dried fruit of 
the Marvel of Peru, and her lips are painted with a 
rich vermilion dye. 
The ugly fashion of staining the teeth black, and 
plucking out the hair of the eyebrows, is not fol- 
lowed by our charming Moosmi,” for she remains 
at present “ in maiden meditation fancy free.” This 
unbecoming custom, I quite agree with Mr. Oli- 
phant, appears to be a heartless device of jealous 
husbands, who wish to keep entirely to themselves 
a useful household manager to mind their domestic 
