Where Women are Never Loved

Mrs. Archibald Little, the well-known traveller, records some interesting impressions of China. She says:- "In China women are held in the greatest contempt. A Chinaman habitually alludes to his better half as 'my wretched thorn,' and except in the poorest circles the wife never sits down to meals with her husband. Women are completely ignored. When a Chinese mandarin calls on my husband, he pretends not to see me. I may be sitting within a couple of yards of him, but he will still affect to be unconscious of my presence. The Chinese don't make love. Marriages are conducted through agents. As a rule a Chinaman never sees his wife until the wedding ceremony, when she unveils in his presence for the first time."
The Young Woman February 1900.