The Portland daily press., 1888-12-24
ONLY THEY ARE WOODEN.
The Double Chin.
[London Atandard !


The great justification of the double chin
rests, Of course, on its unrivalled value as
an index of character-an such character!
1t is really natures patent of nobility. This
was long ago discerned by the great master
of physiognomy. 1t is net difficult to divine
what Lavater thought of double chin He
carefully points out that man differs from
the animals chiefly by his chin, laying it
DOWN as an axiom that the chin is the dis
tinctive characteristic of humanity; cOnse-
quently double chinned people are doubly
differentiated from the beast that perish.
which is realty to their credit He express
ly takes for his model of ''the thinker, full of
>agacity and penetration" man with a
feshy double chin. coupled with a nose
rounded at the end. The portrait he gives is
tleman is linned with at least five chins, SO
that his lower jaw Is a vista Of magnificent
distances, like Washington. This happy
physiognomy of the double chin, coupled with
the rounded nose, characterizes, be tells us,
the mind which can rise TO heights, and
which follows its designs with rejecting
firmness, unalloved by obstinacy Let,
therefore, those with double chins rejoice.
whether they possess rounded noses or not,
and quote Lavater in. gratitude. He gives
again another example of the double mention,
and the face so endowed, he says enthuslas-
tically. in Reasons own image. He quite
revels in this feature He takes an example
OF Raphael with beautifully rounded double
chin, and in criticising 1t he acknowledges
that the profile is wanting in truth, harmony
and grace, but then, asks he, how is it SO
strongly takes captive our sympathy? Where
lies the iilusionP Merely in the chin, he
answers, and as the chin is double one. the
matter is no longer mystery. He points
triumphantly to Cicero's magnificent dou-
pie chin, and In burst of eloqnence says of
N nd xx,s4t
(among Other things such a chin as that,
without being gifted with some extraordinary
talent he renounces for ever the science of
physiognomy. What Lavater has thus laid
couble-chinned, therefore, should hold their
heads up higher, in the conscientIousness of
modest merit, and give free play and
Just prominence TO their certificates of
character. 1t is. as limited above. rather
difficult at present to tell who is endowed
and who is not. Portrait-painters are craven
enough to dissimuiate double chin; they
leave 1t to the caricaturist, who seem to
think it great fun for a popular statesman or
poet to have two chins, whereas those APP
ptndagees are the secret Of their success.
Some OF our more observant writers have got
glimpse of the truth; Mr.. Wilkie Collins,
for instance. He very properly credits Count
Fosco, the man Of daring, recource, aud de-
termination, with a double chin, to which
Fosco's pet ccockatoo, calls public at
most appreciative manner possible. But
your ordinary novelist would never have
thought of that. As an Englishman. by the
way, one naturally turns to Shakespeare, to
see whether his appearance corroborates
Lavater's views. Shakespeare undoubtedly
foresaw the point, as he foresaw every thing
else, but he was sufficiently artful to wear
just enough beard to place it in eternal doubt
whether be had a double chin or not. Thus
ne leaves itopen to all parties, single chinned
thing they like, which, after all, is the great
use which Shakspere has always been put to.