Democratic messenger., 1888-02-25
WINDOWS OF TIE SOUL.
THE EYES AS A FEATURE IN Ma
TIoNAL PHYSlocNoMS'.
sinions Of Bufron, winckeimann and
Other Aushoritics-Eycs Regarded ~
Tribal iniirations-A Few Paragraphs
from I.avater-conccrning Coior.

Other Authoritics-Eycs Regarded ~
Tribal iniirations-A Few Paragraphs
from I.avater-conrcrning Color.
Some poctcal gentleman hns called the
eye ''ihc window of the SOUL" and at all
times and among nearly all peoples It Is
regarded as the great feature Of express
sion; that Is, persons vino are neither anna
tcurs in nor professors of that quasi
science physiognomy. These gentlemen
devote their linic and treatiscs as much TO
tl.c nosc MS to the eyes, propounding rules
Of character III dcducel from the wrinkles
OF the forehead and warts on the check,
writing lcaruc'ily Of the lineaments Of the
check, the Specification of the chin, the
index Of the mouth and score Of other
diycrsitics of feature.
First us To the eyes rs n feature In ma
tioial physiognomy. Lavater, when dis
ciiss!ng this question, gives tile following
rs the result Of his observations: That
the Italians have small eyes; the Ger
mans li?ht colored eyes. surrounded with
many wrinkles; the English, strong, open,
liberal and stcadfast eyes, and the Swiss
dull eyes.
The I.arlanlcrs, according to Button,
heA'S cseS, thO Pupto VI u 1cuOW
brown. inclning to n black, and the eye
lids retiring toward the temple. The
eyes of the Tartars, he says, ore small and
eyes, anil the cyelids thick. The eyes of
the Chinese are small, their eyebrows
large aud the eycliis raic.d.
The New lIollnndcr hal dull black
eye. t.iick eyebrows and cyeliis half shut
--a habit acquired In fancy to preserve tho
eyes from the gnats. To the Spaniar,ls
BmiI":l gives good eyes," TO the Goihs,
blue eyes. and TO the Finlandcrs, heavy
lids and the iris OF u deep yellow.
Winckclinann holds the opinion that tho
shape and color Of the eyes are very
largely the result of climate aud other di.
rect conditions. Thus, he says, the small,
half closed, blinking eyes of the Esqui-
i,aux arc due To natures attempt to pre-
serve the sight froiu the dry, cold mir
and the cifuson Of light from the snow
amidst which they live. The small eyes
q: all the distant and northern nations,
lie. says IN another place. are In consc-
pucncc Of the imperfection Of their
growth. IL is upon the authority OF
philosophic writer named DE Pauw that
the Peruvian has an eye the apple OF
which Is black and the white not very
clear.
This reminds one Of the description By
Russell Of Scncgambian's eye, which he
likcns To n boiled prunc set in u plover's
egg. Another authority states that the
eye of the Turks Is devoid Of passion or
great enterprise, but that II is eloquent in
all the penetration OF benevolent cunning
This writer also says that the silent
eye" of the Englishman ''secks not 10
please" that the eye uf the Frcmchnian Is
'Niyacious AMI unsiablc:" that the ltal-
ian's is ''arlcnt" and the Du,chman's
''hnlf open and withuu; Thought"
Eyes have always hccn regarded as
tribal indications. Tacitus, for example,
describes the Germans rs fierce, with
blue eyes and red hair" The Ccl,s arc
described ns swarihy and dark eyed. the
Gauls are red haired and light eyed,
while the Nubians aud Egyptians have
always been spoken OF rs dark eyed.
These characteristics have not apparently
changed, and il may he said rountly that
the people Of the temperate zone have
generally light colorcd eyes. while those
of the extreme zones are dark. OF the
races. the only one that can he said TO be
light eyed Is the Caucasian, aud even this
race is by no means uniform rs 10 color
in its eyes. The entire human history
goes to prove that the light haired, blue
eyed races are capable of the highest
degree OF civilization, but IL does not by
any means prove that the highest dcgroa
of civilization Is confined TO the blonde
races. There was period when blue
eyed persons were rarely seen, and today
seven. eighths OF the worlds inhabitants
have dark eyes. Not only Is the majority
on the side Of the dark eyed, but statistics
would seem 10 indicate that that majority
Is increasing. In paper read some time
ago before the Swedish Anthropological
society II was stated that brown eyes were
becoming more common in Switzerland,
North Germany, Belgium and Sweden,
and that out Of every 100 sets OF light eyed
parents SO per cent. Of the children had
dark eyes. In this calculation blue gray
and gray eyes were classified rs blue, and,
IL there Is any weight to be attached to
the report, IL would show that blue eyes,
even in blue eyed country, are becoming
decidedly scarce, which ought TO be good
news for the blondes.
II will he sequential here 20 quote o
paragraph or two from I4avater concern
ing the color Of the eyes. "rhe colors
most common to the eyes" he writes,
''arc the orange, yellow, green, blue, gray
aud gray mixed with white. The blue
anil orange are most predominant and arc
often found In the same eye" Eyes
supposed to be black" says Button. 'are
only yellow, brown or deep orange; TO
convince ourselves Of which we need but
look at them closely, for when seen at q
distance or turned toward the light, they
appear 20 be black, because the yellow
brown color is so contrasted TO the whito
of the eye that the opposition makes it
supposed black. Eyes also OF less dark
color pass for black, but are not esteemed
SO tine rs the other, because the contrast
Is not SO great There also are yellow
and bright yellow eyes which do not ap-
pear black because the colors are not deep
enough 10 be ovcrpowerc,l by the shade.
II Is not uncommon to perceive shades OF
orange, yellow, gray aud blue In tho
same eye, and wherever blue ap-
pears, however small the tincturc, II be-
comes the predominant color and ap-
pears In strcaks over the whole iris. Tho
orange is In flakes round, and at some
little distance from tire pupil, hut Is no
strongly eiraccl by the blue that the ego
appears wholly blue. and the mixture OF
orange Is only perceived when closely In
specicd. The finest eyes are those which
we imagine To be black or blue. Vivacity
hnl fire, which are the principal charac-
teristics II the eyes. are the more emitted
when the colnrS are deep and contrastcd
than when slightly shaded. Black eyes
have mosi strength " expression and
m0si vivacity; hut the blue have most
miltrcss anl are mure arch. In the for
mcr there l. an arinr unlnicrrupiclly
bri';,ii. because the color, which appears
Ia ~ uniform, cmi;s similar reflections
every way We look ut IL. But m@li!!ca-
tiuns arr distinguished in the light which
animate, blue eyes. because there ARE va
rinus iimis of color producing various rc-
flccs!uis San Francisco Chronicle.
IN Interrupted prayer; "S"w ! lay uic
a"wn u sheep. aid-oli, Lord. but your
feet arr cuid"'-St. Paul News.