New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-09-16


Sir William Flowers claim at the recent
meeting Of the British Association at oxford
that "a mans social status varies with the
width Of his nose" and that the latter must be
regsrded henceforth as constituting the most
reliable test Of character. intellect and caste"
=. Of nature to cause all the crowned heads
and scons of royalty in the Old World to exam
ne that particular feature OF their faces with
unusual concern and uneasiness. That Is 10
say, uneasiness II they feel inclined to accept
Cir Williams conclusions. based upon extern
dive research and investigation in India. that
the finest and most delicately shaped noses
belong TO the Brahmins OF the highest caste.
and the coarsest nasal organs to the lowest
grades Of the Hindu social system. According
10 this method Of classification the vast ma
torty Of the monarchs. the princes and prin-
cesses Of the blood in Europe are on the same
level as that most debased OF all human out
casts the Indian pariah. When 1t is borne IN
mind that Sir William Flower 10 resarde'. as
the greatest English-speaking authority o. the
age on all questions Of anthropology and zool-
oev since the death Of the late Professor Sir
Richard owen. who was his lifelong colleague,
associate and predecessor as director or the
great Museum OF Natural History a, South
Kensington in London. IT will be realized that
those illustrious percentages scripturaily known
&C the Amounted OF the Lord have some cause
for beginning to entertain doubts as - the
sem,-divine character Of their origin. Indeed,
King Oscar Of Sweden. who IS far and away
tho most intellectual and scientific Of reigninS
sovereigns probably had some such Ideas as
these in mind when he so greatly perturbed
bis brother monarchs the other day by public
,rofassion of his belief In the Darwnan doc
trines concerning the monkey ancestors ut the
human race.
ne ALL the royal noses that II has been my lot
,o hAho,d the most extraordinary assuredly
that Of the late King Victor Emmanuel. It's
size. its shape and its color were phenomenal
II was an enlargement Of the ordinary VIDE
nostrilled pug nose and partook OF the character
OF the bottle nose both IN architecture ana flpe-
ness While II served an index 10 the mans
nature which was essentially coarse, yet IL couu
not be said to bear out Sir Williams theory as
10 the alleged correspondence between nose ana
caste; for according to this King victor FIN
manuel should have belonged TO the very lowest
grades Of society. alike by ancestry ana rahK'
instead OF being the head OF a mouse "hic"
traces its descent back 10 the year looZ' 10
each OF his four childreh Victor Emmanuel De-
oueathed his nose-that is, the broad-nostrlled'
pug-dog style of construction. without however,
its excessive leshiness ruby hue. III there De
any truth in the pretty legend that women are
angels sent from Heaven 10 Tighten our pain
through Mfe then Queen Pa OF Portugal ana
her nun-like sister. the Princess Clothide Bona
rar,e must have 10 Judge from their appear
ance. fallen upon their noses when making the'r
descent from the realms above. while the nose
OF the late Duke of Aosta and in minor de-
gree that Of King Humbert can only be de-
dan
is to say, their nostrils so broad and upturned
that the rain beats into them whenever their
owners get caught in shower. Although ac-
cord,ng 20 Sir William this shape Of nose Is
distinctly low caste and would have the effect OF
cIassing King Humbert and his sisters both So
SALLY and intellectually with the water carriers
OF India, who slight degree higher IN the
social scale than the Pariah. there are other
learned scientists who claim that noses OF this
species indicate on the contrary high degree OF
mental endowment. in proof WHEREOF they point
10 the fat upturned. wide nose OF socrates ana
NJ many another celebrated philosopher. states
man. divine and general. They add that In
nose such as this the width Of the nostrils cor
responds with the breadth Cf the mind and that
moreover II expands laterally progressively with
the expansion Of the Intellectual facuiues. for
this reason II has been named by nasologsts
as "cogitative nose. anc young men are
,herafore recommended 70 cultivate a cogitative
nose by cultvating their mind. Indeed, there are
some Of these nasologists. Of the Tory persua-
sion II is true who claim that the Home Rule
question would never have arisen had England
directed It's efforts to develop cogitative noses
IN the Emerald Isle in lieu OF the saucy happy
po.,uckv and inquiring snubs that give so much
character and p!auancy 10 the average Miesian
face.
Enneror Alexander OF Russia Is distinctly
snub-nosed and, according to Sir William Flow
ers mode Of classification. should belong both
Intellectually and socially TO a very low caste.
This style CT nose is appropriate perhaps TOT
the ruler OF a people, certain races OF when
are in the habit Of squashing the noses of their
infants in order that they may grow up nat
nosed and who has his crack regiment OF guards
COMPOSED exclusively Of men who are endowed
with wide most rils. uptilted noses or the most
aggressive type, man whose nose Is either
aouiline or Grecian being admitted to the corps
Strangely enough. Emperor Alexanders "loer
brother. Nicholas. who died at Nice in lo'o pos
,o.sod thin clear-cut features and q most deli
cately shaped aquiline nose. thus presenting
.,r,king contrast to the man who succeeded not
only 10 his birthright. but also to his hancee
We, u IL not uncommon to see in one and the
same Russian family two brothers, one WIN
finely shaped Grec!ar nose and the other WIN
a noe. as fat as a pancake or as sha2eless as
lrnon Of dough- like that OF the Car. There
Ia ,o,h,np in the state Of society there to sho"
,b., the finely nosed man possesses an ad
vantage social or otherwise, In the race OF
life over his fiatnosed brother save that WINCH
comes from superior good looks AT the same
time II cannot be denied that the deicacy o.
the late Grand-Duke Nicholas's nose was ou
the reflex Of the delicacy Of his mind and OF the
refinement OF his intellect. while the present
Gar. though his superior in sterling honesty i
intellectually OF a much coarser and grosse'
strain. l., ,,-or. u,hoss
There 4. one royal prince in Europe whose