Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-11-06
THE RIGHT AND THE LEFT.
WHY IS THE RIGHT HAND USED
IN PREFERENCE TO THE LEFT1

Opinions Of Learned Men on the Habits
Was Done with Either Hacd-Charies
Resde's support OF Ambidexterity.
Every little custom or popularity has
history attached TO IL, and il would be sur
prisng, therefore, IL so curious problem as
the general use OF the right hand In prefer
ence TO the left had escaped notice. Ii Is. as
matter of fact, an old subject, and one that
has furnished scope for great deal OF wild
theorizing Even the derivation of the term
left has been source of much controversy
Archbishop Trench says the left" hand is so
called because il is left unemployed so much
In that view be does not receive much sup
port. indeed his conclusion has been sturdily
opposed
The question as 10 whether our ancestors
were what we call dexter" handed may he
answered emphatically in the affirmative
All are agreed on this point But were the
ancient Hebrews left handed peoplei DIR
Erlenmeyer has given an interesting and
learned lecture TO prove that they were
Most of the Aryan people write from the
left to the right of the sheet OF paper, and in
their books the lines run in the same direc-
ton. Most OF ths Semitic people, on the con
trary, write from right to left. Instead of
regarding this essential difference as mere
characteristic OF habit, kept up by that rev
erence for tradition which Is deeply rooted In
the Semitic mind, DR. Erlenmeyer thinks
that the direction taken by the hand OF a
Semitic scribe was due 20 physiological cause
namely, that the left hand was the better
OF the two-and insists that the writers OF
the Old Testament, and probably the early
Talmudists after them, naturally wrote with
their left hands, and would have found it diff.
fcult, IL not impossible, TO write with the
other hand DR. Erlenmeyer says he has
found striking confirmation of the theory in
the Talmud, and cites a passage which insists
that certain special prayers and inscriptions
are always To I've written with the right hand
and not with the left. As the execution of
this exceptional work was difficult, and re-
quired time and patience, it is implied that
the process OF writing with the right hand
was departure from the ordinary method
then in vogue
History, however-as was pointed out soon
after the publication of the doctors lecture
does not support this ingenious theory The
most ancient forms of Semitic letters within
our reach are the PhGnician characters of
the Moabite stone, which characters date
from about the year 900 b. c. The inscrip-
ton in this instance reads from left 70 right,
as we do in the present day A learned cor
respondent OF The British Medical Journal
states that the practice OF writing from right
TO left came into use about the time of Ezra,
when probably the square form OF the He
brew characters began The earliest Greek
Inscriptions nearly allied with the Pho
uician, are" he adds, sometimes written
Others, again, show how the difference be-
tween the two methods was bridged over by
the immediate practice OF writing alter
nately-like an OK plowing-and, therefore,
called BOustrophedon writing"
The net result OF this interesting contro-
versy seems TO he that the ancient Hebrews
were approximately near Charles Reade's
ideal, namely, either handed or, rather.
that they did not solely confine themselves 20
the education OF the right hand But the
question asked nowadays Is: is the use Of
the right hand, in preference TO the left,
natural, or Is IL acquiredf'
Aristotle strongly contends that In this. as
in all other instances, the organs OF the right
side are more powerful than those on the left
Plato, however, ridiculss the idea that the
use Of the right hand il natural and attri-
butes the weakness OF the left side 70 the bad
habit established by nurses and mothers.
Finally, several doctors say there Is no
anatomical difference in the two hands
Here conflict OF authorities with a ven
ceancel Though IL is not for Us 70 step in
and decide where doctors disagree certain
conclusions are so obvious that they will oc-
cu- 10 anybody after little reflection In
the first place, II the use OF what we call the
dexter hand In preference 20 the left, were
an original instinct all men alike would
I'M right handed-there could be no exception.
The fact that there are exceptions proves con-
clusiveiy that the Partially for the right hand
Is acquired.
There seems no reason 70 doubt that the
left side might be educated equally as well az
the right In cases of accident, the left hand
Is often made to do work that was formerly
mDn0polized by the dexter hand; and ths
special excellence which not infrequently
charucteriz-s performances under such diff
Guilty Il notorious OF "a schOolmasUer who
was born withOuta right hand, the following
amusing epIgram was written:
Though OF thy right hand nature hath oerefr
thee,
Right well thou writest with the hand that's left
thee
Ia this particular case the dexter hand
could not have been missed. but even when
It Is, the left hand soon becomes accustomed
TO its new duties.
Charles Reade. who once started a long
newspaper discussion on ambldexterity, was
OF opinion that mankind can, ought 10 and
eventually will be either handed That it is
possible to train both hands is evident from
the story told Of Sir Edwin Landseer, who
on one occasion drew deer's head with one
b. la. h.
the other Again, Professor Edwin Morse,
Of Salem, Mass, could draw simultaneously.
and that, too, before an audience, two diff
ferent objects with either hand; or he would
draw an object with one hand and at the
came time write the names Of the parts Of
the object with the other
Further examples OF this aAcbidextrous
work could ns given. but they not nece=-
sary, since In every day life we can see
abundant proof Of what Is possible In this
direction Piano players and organists. for
instance havs 70 train both hands Taking
these and many other circumstances under
consideration, there can be no doubt tina,
children conld be taught 10 Use both hand.
with equal freedom aud facility, and Der
maps, II they were left TO themselves, the
result would he Just the same But n is i'm.
perative that child should be taught TO eat,
dress, play and write as quickly as possible
This l. patent. To teach a child to do all
these things with both hands would take
nearly, If not quite, twice as long as with one
hand only; and, therefore, rs a matter of ex-
pediency, the latter course is generally adopt
81, and It must be admitted that taking al
things into consideration, IL is the more Judi
cious one On the ground Of economy of
time, then, 1t is extremely doubtful whether
Charles Reades ideal will be realized. All
the Year Round
The word "hoodlumn means. at the presen;
day. a rough, n disorderly person. II is In