Tombstone epitaph., 1890-02-01
Hand Shaking.

hOW ulu pSOLJ1O hAS' SO' AA'O 'AiN habit of shaking hands? The answer is not far to seek. In early and bar barous times, when every savage or semi-savage was his own lawgiver, fudge, soldier and policeman, and had to watch over his own safety, in de- fault of all other protection, two friends or acquaintances or two strangers de string to be friends or acquaintances, when they chanced to meet offered each to the other the right hand-the hand alike of ofense and defense, the hand that yields the sword, the dag ger. the club. the tomahawk or other weapon of war. Each did this to show that the hand was empty and that neither war nor treachery was in tended.
 A man cannot well stab another while he is engaged in the act Of shak- ing hands with him unless he be double-dyed traitor and villain and strives to aim cowardly blow with the left, while giving the right and pretending to be on good terms with his victim. The custom ol hand shak- ing prevails, more or less, among all civilized atio115 art i=' -t1Cii FY0Wal of friendship and good will, just as the kiss is of warmer passion.
 Ladies, as everyone must have re- marked, seldom or never shake hands with the cordiality of gentlemen, un- less it be with each other. The reason is obvious-it Is for them to receive homage, not to give 1t. They cannot be expected to show to persons of the other sex a warmth of greeting, which might be misinterpreted, unless such persons are very closely related to them, either by family CT affection, in which cases hand shaking is not needed and the lips do more agreeable duty.
 Every man shakes hands according to his nature, whether it be timid or aggressive, proud or humble, courteous or churlish, vulgar or refined, sincere or hypocritical, enthusiastic or indif- ferent. The incest rehnements and idiosyncrasies of character may not perhaps be discoyerable in this fashion but the more salient points of temper ament and Individuality may doubt less be made clear to the understand ing of most people by better study of what 1 shall call the physiology or the philosophy. ol hand shaking.
 To present the. left hand for the pur- pose of friendly greeting is piece Of discourtesy-sometimes intentional on the part of superiors in rank to their interiors and an act that no true gen. tlemen will commit. There Is no req son why it should be considered more discourLeous than iJ would be to kiss the left cheek instead ol the right; but doubtless the custom that makes the right hand imperative in all sin cere salutation dates from those early times when hand shaking first began; and the hand that shook or was shaken in friendship was of necessity weapon less.
 The poor left hand, that one would think ought to be of as much value al strength as the right. just as the leftl tt or leg is as strong as the right foot or leg because they are both used equally, has fallen into disrepute as well as into comparative di4use until it has become an accepted phrase to say of any proceeding that Is lnauspI- cious, artlul, sly or secretly malicious that it is ''sinister"-i. c., left handed.
 To shake hands without removing the glove is an act Of discourtesy which, if mintenlOnal ana thought less, requires an apology for the hurry or inadver5euce which led to it. This idea would also seem to be an occult remnant Of the old nosion that the glove might conceal a weapon. Hence true courage and friendship required that the hand be naked as a proof of good faith.
 To refuse pointelly to shake hands with one who offers you the opportu- nifty in friendly manner amounts to a declaration of hostility. And alter aquarrel, or act ot open hostility, the acceptance of the hand offered is alike the sign and the ratification of peace. IN. I. Mail and Express.
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 A well-known and very successful | woman in -Gcja5y nl-it- wins aHYlir3-