It is within your power, Madam, if you attend to your hands, for them to be as beautiful as your face and even surpass it in expressing your personality. And it is an expression whose understanding is not confined to the fortune-teller alone; the shape of the hands and the feel of their skin say a great deal, and more eloquent still is the way you use them. Perhaps you have seen the marvelous picture of La Gioconda by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. Gaze at her face, radiant with contentment and inner confidence, over which lies a touch of irony and disdain for the whole world; then gaze at the shape of her hands and their pose — they disclose to us that bodily content-ment made manifest in the features of the face.

And your hands, Madam, express your personality in the same way. If your hand is slender and soft, with fingers tapering at the tips, then you have an advantage over some of your peers, since slender hands enjoy the greatest favor — though I know some women with small, plump hands like children's

hands, which have a beauty all their own because of their softness, their cleanliness, and the graceful way they gesture. So you need not worry if your fingers are not of the long, slender type, for every hand has its own personality. Still, the most beautiful hand in the world loses its charm if its cleanliness and good grooming are neglected.

And remember how many times you use your hands, deliberately or not, especially in your hours of emo-tion. You clasp your hands tightly in moments of dis-tress and anxiety, raise them in astonishment, pass them over your forehead when tired; your fingers touch your face in contemplation and thought, and you extend your hands in greeting a friend. In short, hands are more eloquent in expression than words.

The first thing an actress learns is how to use her hands — or, more precisely, how to hold their reins and make them obey her will, for every gesture of the hand betokens an idea or a state of mind, and so the gesture must be right.

And what applies to this actress applies to you as well, Madam, for it is important that you know how to use your hands, since they are always the object of attention, and so they must appear at their best. Someone may ask: and how is that to be done? The answer: first, the hands must be perfectly clean. Second, they must be given complete care. Third, their nails must be trimmed in a manner suited to their shape.

The secret of all bodily beauty — whether of the face, the hands, or the figure — is composed of eighty percent health, ten percent care, and ten percent sound taste. Your state of health shows itself in the nails of your hand. If their surface is thin and easily broken, or furrowed and marked with white spots, then your general health suffers from some deficiency or ailment. In that case you must watch your diet, to learn whether you are eating more than your body can digest; whether you are getting enough physical exercise; and whether you are deprived of fresh air.

Answer these questions for yourself first, since beauty is not complete or attainable without securing bodily health. Now let us suppose you enjoy perfect

This picture shows how the beauty of well-tended hands is enhanced by cheerful jewels, and how each draws the eye to the other. Accordingly, every woman should give her nails a complete manicure before adorning herself with even a single ring.