A Native Woman Carrying Buckets
Photograph by John Thomson
This photograph was taken near to a tea
plantation on terraced hills just outside of Fuzhou. Terraced
fields were common in the Fujian countryside. To fertilise them the
native women had to transport human manure from the city of Fuzhou.
They did not bind their feet, and they carried the same burdens as
the men did. Hard work rendered these women strong and healthy.
According to Thomson, "their olive cheeks are warmed with a glow of
colour".