From where does the phrase "cold hands, warm heart" come from?

Question

I usually hear this rejoinder when I shake some one's hand, and they comment on my cold hands. I think the phrase is supposed to be a compliment on character, a sign that that one has "a warm heart."

Answer 1

probably because scientifically, your hands are usually cold because all the heat is going to the trunk/main organs of your body

Answer 2

This proverb has been traced back to 1903 by V. S. Lean.

(see web site below)

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board...