Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-11-22
GESTURE LANGUAGE.
PEOPLE WHO EXPRESS IDEAS WITH
THEIR HANDS AND FINGERS.

PEOPLE WHO EXPRESS IDEAS WITH
THEIR HANDS AND FINGERS. |
The Sign Converse of the Italians-Ges-
lures In Use Among Oriental Nations.
Significant Motions of School Children.
Hebrew Tradesman's Contempt.
The deaf mute is by no means the only person
who uses his fingers and hands as medium
Of conversation Among Orientals and
many European nations, especially those of
the Latin race, gestures form an important
part in the Transmission of ideas and infor-
nation, the story going that the proceedings
in an Arabian court of justice are often
without the utterance of a single
word
peculiar instance of the set use of ges-
lures is related in an old volume of Once |
Week. 1t seems that Turkish mail steamer |
proceeding from Constantinople TO Cavalla |
lost her way, although the trip was taken in |
full daylight, and notwithstanding that a |
number of naval officers were on board |
These Osmanli officers were noticed strug
Cling with a chart III the saloon and every now
and then one of them would rush up to the
deck only to return without word, but with
the same unvarying gesture. The right hand
was held with the fingers pointing upward,
as If to raise plate fiat on their tips, and
raised TO the level of the temple, short turn
being given to the wrist as though to set the
plate spinning. The gesture meant per-
pleyity, or in plain words that they
haA tnrt thnf., lal Nhn nfff
in this ludicrous predicament been Amer
lean or English, one would have shrugged
his shoulders, a second would have scratched
his poll, third rubbed his forehead, and so
on. Here each befezzed gentleman made the
same gesture, repeated, in fact, a national
sign.
The writer of the article next morning
asked several of the same officers what had
become of a small gunboat that had been
bearing them company. Every one replied
with a short hatchet movement of the right
hand, gradually increasing the length of the
chop This meant that the boat had gone
away, and the same gesture, it was found,
was repeated throughout Turkey whenever
it was wished to intimate that some one or
something had departed.
AMONG ORIENTAL NATIONS.
Among nearly all Oriental nations the
hands crossed over the breast is an unfailing
gesture to indicate hu.nility or subservience,
while the fnger placed horizontally to the
temple and held there for a brief space
means DO you understand when put in
the form of question, or the perception or
suspicion Of a hidden meaning, or the detec-
ton or appreciation of some secret design
when used as a remark in soiloquy.
| South Italy is the true home of the gesture,
many OF them having directly opposite mean
| inCs TO those with which we are accustomed to
invest them. Toshake the head, for instance
both there and in Turkey, is not taken as o
negative, but means Il don't understand
What do you wantr No in Italy IS ex
pressed by elevatins the chin, prouuding the
| lower lip little and scraping the under sidt
of the chin with the tips OF the right han6
fingers, holding the knuckles outward aut
the fingers slightly bent.
Death is expressed in southern Italy by
making the sign of the cross with the frs
two fingers OF the right hand held togethel
upright before the face, that being the fina
action of the priest when administering tn
last sacrament or extreme unction 10 tn
moribund. The same two fingers held in tn
same position without the sign of the cross
the gesture that is used by the priests of tn
, Catholic faith to accompany the Pax Fobis
cum. and means the same thing, even whe
not accompanied by words. A gesture of
very different signiiication is that of heldiD
up the first and little fingers with the res
closed This is used alike to exercise tn
power Of the evil spirit or the evil eye and t
cast an unholy charm upon an enemy.
In this country We beckon with the hand Q
finger up: in South Italy that is ssluatior
and the fingers in beckoning are held dow
and moved quickly toward the body. Th
= command to go is given by the hand hel
in the same position, that is, with the finger
perpendicular to the ground and shaken frol
the wrist in the direction which the party
commanded to take With US, as of cours
is known by the reader, the arm is held OF
perpendicularly and the index finger pointe
in that direction.
OTHER SIGNIFICANT GESTURES.
The gesture signifying hunger" or Il a
hungry or ''let us eat,n is 10 extend Il
>, thumb and the first finger, keeping the othe
closed over the mouth and giving the wrist
slight rotary motion. To-day" is indicate
by closing all the fingers of the right haI
except the index, then pointing downwar
making slight but rapid movement of Il
hand from the wrist up and down. The &c
ture signifving tomorrow" is the same, e
cept that the motion is made from the elbo'
Gestures are not unknown to the Angl
Saxon race, and we have two or three tn
are very expressive. To put the thumb
the nose for instance, with all the fingers e
tended, means contempt and derision, and
so generally accepted as meaning this We
emphatically that the person employing
takes care as a rule, to make IL behind t
back of the person insulted. Among Anne
can school children there is gesture ma
n by passing the forefnger of the right ha
quickly over that of the left which meal
''Fie, for shame!n the person so shamed bel
pointed at by the index finger in repose. 7
school children of San Francisco occasiona
employ a gesture which Is of French orig
The thumb of the right hand is lifted to I
= mouth with the ball pointing outward, a
the nail drawn forward from the teeth w
IT a slight click 1t means, II don't care a
more for you" or "Our friendships is brokel
This is precisely the same gesture used by
French grisette to indicate much the Sa
thing.
81 There is gesture that is quite comm
among Hebrew tradeSrnen of the lower cl
that has also received stage notoriety. L
that of throwing up the right hand O.
81 level with the head with the fingers extenC
and the palms in, with waving mot
bis from the wrist 1t means contempt, wi
when both hands are so lifted and waved
contempt is changed to denunciation.
other gesture of contempt, but used only
Christians is that of laying the forefn
beside the nose, although this sometime
. used to indicate cunning appreciation O
70 trick or vulgar smartness.-Ssn Franci
Chronicle
\ He Isn't Dead Yet.
l. There was a time in the history of |
country when one manor woman eithe
could write to another one, mail the lei
r.. without postage and thus compel the
,ea ceiver to pay the postage. The man '
,ar. used to indulge in that sort of fun isn't dc