The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-12-25

hand, which are not under the control of the
will, and the book is open before you."
"You do not mean to say you are believer IN
palmistry ?" Mr.. Cummings asked.
"By no means. But you will not understand
me, unless relate my own curious experience
May do SOP"
do, Doctor" said Nina.
Certainly" said Mr.. Cummings.
| And the Doctor proceeded:
| 81 had Just finished my travels in England
and Wales, after my return from the Continent,
and was spending a few weeks with friend in
the North, to recruit little before i sailed for
home. We were one day walking in one of the
shady lanes near his residence, when we came
across an encampment of gipsies. had often
met thesn in different parts of Europe, and es-
pecially in Spain, where they are very abundant,
but had never tried their skill in fortunetelling,
because, like you, sir, looked upon it with in
credulous contempt. But now, when pretty
girl belonging to the tribe approached us, and
offered to tell our fortunes for US, L unhesita-
tingly extended my hand. She, however, re-
fused to look at it till had crossed her palm
| with silver Giving her half crown, with the
stipulation that it should pay for both of US, l
held out my hand again, and after gazing at 1t
a moment, and tracing the lines with her finger,
as child would trace out the letters of the al
1ation of some events in my past life, which
supposed were known only to myself She then
proceeded to read my future destiny. l will not
say how much of this has proved true. My triend
followed, and, as he confessed to me, with a like
result and we left the place, laughing at the
condolences.
"But the more thought of it, the more my
curiosity-I can call it By no other name-was
aroused to know and see more of the singular
| Il 81 ~ law RI he
ment, and attempted to gain some information
from the girl as to her mode of seeing into the
past and future. But she would tell me nothing,
and even the considerable amount of gold that
/ offered, though it evidently tempted her eye,
could make no impression upon her will. She
was obstinate and incorruptible.
81 must confess to good deal of surprise,
and perhaps some approach to belief in the mat
ter. In vain / reasoned against it. l told my
self over and over again, day after day, that it
was all accidental Bat then would recolect
the oft-told experience of others, and the fact,
that nv friend had acknowledged remarkable
aoreem ent in his own case, and my mind be-
came painfully confused with the question. l
could not successfully cast it off, even when the
laughter-almostridi cule-of my friend and his
family was directed at me. determined to in
vestigate the subject as far as l could. But
how should proceed?
"The comparison Of my friends hand and
my own with the prophecy, or rather the histo-
nv, given by the gypsy girl, occurred to me as
the leading idea, but found it like the study
of the hieroglyphics on the old monuments OF
the East / had nothing to begin with, and
nothing to compare. then took all my friends
family, one by one, to the same girl, and added
their fortunes to ours. [ also took accurate
casts of the palms of the whole in wax, reject
ing every one which had the least defect, or
any want Of correspondence. Occasional Wis
itors to the house were easily persuaded to see
the wandering tribe, and these l added to my
list. The servants too, were not left out of the
experiment. The fortunes of each one were
carefully written out, and numbered to cores
pond with each cast that | took; and in this
way readily collected quite volume of man
us.ript fortunes, and q very Respectable cabinet
of human hands, and of no little variety.
hYou will observe that did not care to in
oure into the truth or fasity of the predictions
7 All wanted was, to ascertain if there was any
correspondence between certain lines which
were alike in all the casts, and the events con-
nected with them in the history gwen by the
gipsy girl, and thus reduce them TO system.
IF I should end q certain line in all the hands,
and one event in all their histories, by following
this rule out I might make an art of the thing,
l which would remove all the mystery that vas
r HANGING about it. But I fouDd 1t diihnlt
3 and perplexing task However, had STUDIED
out Inscriptions in Nineveh and Thebes, md
could not Go the same thing here
1 ~ found si.eilarities-no, perfect agreements
in the written accounts of ali, and Just as stF-
! king differences--and found the same resot
J. bances and disagreements IN their hands an
q after long, and tedious, and patient lnvestgt
r ton. in which became intensely interested
n thought I saw order beginning to arise out q
# the confusion. and my collection of hands DC
It ginning to look, to me, like so many indistlnc
faces. the expression of which | fancied L coul(
:, read. Gradually they became more distinc
and plain as / progressed in the study, TIL
1t could see the whole with the utmost ciearness
e "Mind, do not say that had demonstrate
the truth of fortune-teling. | was great wa
off from that. ] only say that by the lines ira
versing the palm of the hand, could tell tn
D. same past events in the life of any individGG
that one of the gypsy tribe could tell. OF IL
{. t,re events had yet an infnity more OF stud
to DO, before l could arrive at any degree c
skill, though had the same book open betor
er me, and BIZ perseverance succeeded here also
It, put it to the test and did not fail. My friend
en- were all aston:shed, as well they might be-a
re | was myself 1t was 6 system regulated b
oy fixed rules. Lines which were the same in th
ne hands of any two persons denoted the sam
thing. Each line had its peculiar meaning,
lg we'll as the relative position and the crossing
and curves of the lines; and by the aid of
10 good memory, soon became as expert as tn
gpsies themselves
Through all this strange narrative we listel
at ed with the most intense interest to the Docto
IT, almost compelled by his perfect air of truthful
y. ness and veracty to believe, even further tina
n he seemed to, in it.
of "Teli mine, Doctor" said Nina, approachin
'ss him with her hand extended.
en- az can read it, Madenaoiselle, but not tell 1T
"Oh! there is no satisfaction in that, sir.
az have always used my knowledge in thi
nd lay dear young lady," the Doctor replied, " +
IN, a selfish ond-simply the qualification OF Il
own fancy. / do not believe in it as tn
"a, science, all its apparent truths being only CT
rse responsiveness, and therefore l cannot use it I
ms the entertainment Of others while there is da
ing ger of their being deceived by it, or frighten
vas into credulity to the strange and surprising
medicines it presents"
on, You do find correspondence, then,
tween what you see and the lives of person
tse Doctor?" said Mrs. Cummings.
clip Gin ray own case, certainly, Madam, as Al
as in the history OF aI whose past lives l am
~" quainted with"
lng 9But you cannot have the same objection
tell as of the past as of the future" said Mi
on, "Precisely the same. For if tell you ever
we which have really occurred in the past, you n
hu easily lead yourself to believe can tell fqt'
self ones. No, no, young lady. Rest conten
pos with your own experience of the past a
learn lessons from it to guide you in the futu
Inc Its experience comes fast enough and bit
the enough to most"
far "Most truly spoken, Doctor Norris s