The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1883-12-15
The Elements Of PaImistrv.


To begin with the fingers. The varis,
tons OF these are not numerous, and
any hand may be referred to one OF
some three or four types. There are
the pointed fingers, where thesfinger tips
are small and conical and the fingers
themselves sleek and soft. They are
no uncommon possession and admit of
no doubt when they are found. 1t is
said that they indicate dreamy dispo-
,sltlon, a tendency to poetic and to spec
ulate. Men with such hands are enthu-
siasts and orators, have the gift of i'm
aginationN y prodigally bestowed upon
them, bu the expense of common
sense and knowledge of the world. Such
hands are claimed for Shakespeare,
Schiller and Goethe, and certainly pos
sessed by Victor Hugo and George
Sand. With the soft fingers and con-
lcal tips there is no necessary alliance
The fingers may be sleek and the tips
may be square. And this combination
gives us another class of character.
Here we have the tendency to art and
poetry, but better under control. They
are instructive rather than imaginative.
The fine frenzy gives place to an eye for
symmetry and an ear for rhythm, and
the types are to be found in Molere.
Poussin, Vauban and Turenne 1t is
pity that we have no living examples
Portrait painters century ago had a
fashion of taking the face from the sitter
and the hands from a favorite model
,Nandyck's warriors, diplomatists and
courtiers had all precisely the same
kind of fingers. The fingers may be
even more than square. They may be
.spatulOus, widened and rounded at the
end like chemists blender or an ar
lists paletee knife. This is a very
practical hand indeed, widely removed
from the dreamer and the visionary
the hand of a man fond of movement
and of action, the. hand of man fond
of horses and dogs and hunting and
warfare, or, if he is more peaceable, of
commerce and mechanism; man of
order and of contrivance, merchant
tinancier, or, it may be, only q church
warden. The spatulous hand is generally
found supplied with large finger knots,
but where the fingers have no predomi-
nant joints the artistic character pre-
walls. Men act from impulse rather
than from knowledge or reason. 1t is
not laid down, however, that the ten
dency of rheumatism is to convert poets
into politicians, though it painfully de-
velops the knots of the fingers. Lastly,
there is 3 general rule that large hands
deal best with detail and short ones with
genearl effect. 1t would be interesting
to test this by examining the hands of
the Royal Academicians.
But the art descends into minuter de-
tail. Each of the fingers has its special
characteristic, and system of mytho-
logical nomenclature has been adopted
| based on the attributed distinctions.
| The fingers known to us as first, second,
| third and little are called respectively
Jupiter, Saturn, Apollo and Mercury,
! and if it is thought that we are getting
| into the region of the fantastic, it is only
fair to the Professor that his statement
be heard and be tested. There is ranged
across the palm of the hand series of
little cushions or hills; one at the base
of each finger but little way from the
| thumb. Character lies in these, and
the character may be told by their ex-
| animation. The first finger indicates
! ambition. If the mound is large, its
| owner will have a love of power coupled
with desire to shine, great gayety,
some pride, tendency to superstition,
and a fondness for nature. 1.-THE mound
be wanting, the life is one without dig
| nity, the tastes are common, and the
man is narrow, selfish and interested.
L |,
life, as it shows the extent of his pru-
dence and the probability of his success.
But if the mound be preternatural we
are to look for silence and solitariness
Hamlet-kind of disposition, verging on
asceticism The third finger, however,
supplies us with more cheerful reflection.
1t is the finger of the arts. 1t shows the
presence of genius and probability Of
fame The man with large mound
near his third finger will be amiable anc
hopeful-a delightful companion and al
excellent friend. But if the mound bt
excessive the results are disastrous. A
love of notoriety converts the life into
vainglorious existence, with tendency
to avarice and certain direction toward
envy. Lastly we come to the little
finger. 1t is the finger of invention, O
industry, of quickness, of ingenuity
the finger, probably that makes US {
nation of shopkeepers. 1t is the finance
finger, and an excessive mound Nigh
even be found among the less attractive
types of the British bankrupt, as it indi
Gates sharp practice, disastrous acutenes'
ti5honorable trickery and love of en-
vasion. Pail Mall Gazette.
AT ST. Thomas, Canada, travele