Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1894-01-25
CHARACTER IN GAIT.
PERSONALITY OF PEOPLE SHOWS
ITSELF IN THEIR WALK.

The Strutter Has BoundIess Conceit-The
Woman Who Steps With Painful Accu-
racy-Ah. Here Comes the Man With
Steady Tread and Manly Carriage.
1t is Plutarch who says that can ac-
ton of small note, a short saying or Jest
will distinguish persons real character
more than the greatest sieges or the
most important battles" and Layater,
the father of physiognomy, declares that
no man can set a glass upon a table
without betraying to a certain extent
his individuality. True, no doubt, but
one must have the keen vision. the well
tr>ined eye, in order to interpret these
mystic signs. The indications of char
acter as exhibited in the walk of per-
son, however, are patent to every be-
holder and may be deciphered by the
most untutored, the least astute.
Sit by your window some fine morn
ing and watch the men and women as
they pass to their varied avocations
Take. for example, the man just ap-
preaching. His chin is elevated to an
angle of 90 degrees. self important
frown corrugates his brow, complacent
smile plays about his mouth, he struts
rather than walks. Need l point him
out as a man of boundless conceit, of
monumental brass, of colossal gall? His
amiability is imperturbable, for one who
is absolutely self satisfied is apt to take
an indulgent view of the world at large.
His faith in himself is limitless. No
traitorous feeling of self distrust will
ever cause his failure. He will under
take without the slightest misgiving
what man of ten times his ability would
hesitate to attempt. His success in life
is assured, and yet one cannot help feel
ing that if traced TO its roots it would be
found TO spring from defects rather than
merits.
The dress Of the woman coming Just
behind him is arranged with mathemat-
ical exactness. The placing of each pin
has been matter of special care. Her
lips are compressed, her hands clasped
primly before her, her steps are taken
with painful accuracy; there is not a
halrbreadth's difference III the length of
them If you follow her to her home,
you will find that the same scrupulous-
ness prevails in the disposition of every
thing about her. The furniture is ar
ranged with rectangular exactness,
there is not pin out of place in her
bureau drawers, and the jars upon her
pantry shelves are marshaled like sol
will oh
no great work in life, however. She is a
precisionist and spends her time labori-
onsly doing nothing. And. also, take
care of this woman. She is absolutely
uncompromising and all about her must
be Topped off or stretched out to fit the
procrustean idea of order which exists in
her own mind.
But don't-you who are in search of a
wife-fall into the opposite error of choos-
ing as life companion the girl with the
frouzy head. the skirt of whose dress
dips in points, whose gait is careless
who swings her arms as she walks. She
is generous, warm hearted, good natur
ed, possessed of noble traits, but con
fusion with all its hideous train of evils
follows in her wake. One foresees fol
her an untidy, chaotic household, irreg
ular, i'll arranged meals and uncleanly,
badly governed children. If her husband
happens to be a strong, an exceptionally
strong man, he will simply be supremely
wretched and uncomforta Die, If not
MS ambition will be paralyzed, mis- dis
position spoiled; he will escape the phys
ical discomforts of his situation by every
means in his power and perhaps drown
the recollection of them in drink
The man with the shuffling, uncertain
gait. whose steps seem to be directed by
no guiding power within is weakmind
ed. There is nothing which more surely
betrays feebleness of intellect than the
walk And he of the awkward gait, the
restless manner, the furtive glance, is
cannot for moment divest himself ol
the sense of being observed; who lives
so to speak, under glass case And he
of the soft, cautious tread, who gives you
the impression of creeping upon some
object as a cat creeps up upon bird, Is
feline in his nature. He is not to be
trusted; he is treacherous; every faculty
of his mind is poised for spring.
Let me commend to your confidence
the man just coming into vlew-the man
with the earnest eye, the manly carriage,
the firm tread, who walks with simple,
straightforward directness, as if toward
some given point. He is stable in all
his ways" He has distinctly defined,
well considered purpose in life, toward
the attainment of which he advances
with answering steadfastness, never
turning to the right or the left, never
allowing himself to be drawn into by
paths, no matter how alluring. His vic
tory is assured, his success merely a ques-
ton of time.
And so might one multiply types ad
infinitum, for the variety in mankind is
linitless. Nor is it to be wondered at
that the characteristics of men and wom-
pn exhibit themselves in the gait, for
the motive power, the propelling force,
is from within.
In his account &c Cataline, Sallust,
the great master of nature, has not for
gotten to remark that ''his walk was
now quick and again Slow" as an indi-
cation of mind revolving with violent
Observation-Disclosures Times.