The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1897-04-13
NO DISGUISE IS POSSIBLE.
Faces Change, but a Mans Haudwrit-
ing May Betray Him.

ing May Betray Him.
1T is impossible for any one to dis
guise his handwriting so that the at
tempt cannot be detected" says an ex-
pert. Let me give you an example.
Before me at this moment are the
papers in a sensation case shortly to be
tried. The writer Of a series Of letters
he's attempted to disguise his hand so
that the letters might appear to have
come from several different people. In
all there are marring indications that
they were written by n and the same
person.
For instance, the habits Of the man
shown in the manne of the beginning
Of the lines. In each case they are be
gun close to the edge of the paper,
this evidently being one Of the mans
peculiarities. Then the conjunction
and" is in each sentence with the
sign 81" Even when he has gone to
the trouble of printing the letters, SO
that be may be sure that the writing
is effectually disguised, the writer for
gets to disguise this n word, and the
signs are so much alike that there is
no mistaking them.
ut would almost seem as if nature
had made wen the cleverest criminal
weak in some point or other in order
that his crookedness might be fastened
upon him. This man has disguised his
handwriting, but he forgot to disguise
the feet that he is fond Of the excla
nation point and the Interrogation
marks as marks of emphasis to bis
words. Over all the letters both ex
clamation and interrogation points are
thickly sprinkled, in some instances
the marks r being repeated two or
three times. No two men in a hun
dred would have this popularity.
Then, again, when he printed the let
ter IS" this stupid writer forgot that
he was in the habit of printing this
letter in his ordinary writing, so that
this mistake makes it possible to com
pare the two to detect the similarity.
When I put them together, no one
could doubt that they were written by
the same hand. AS a matter of fact,
the writing Of the world is marked
and varied In it's peculiarities as are
the features of the writer's. The cloee
observer distinguishes between nation
alities by their writings as readily as
he does by speech, physiognomy orany
other race popularity. Even when
one he's learned to write another than
his native language, the rae distinc,
ton remains to a very preceptible de-
gree. The writingcf q G2rman, French
man or other foreigner who has learned
to speak and write the English Ian
guage will retain q style az preceptible
to the expert as will be the accent in
the foreigners speech, and the one can
no more be overcome Or avoided than
the other.
Although it be a fact that writing
ultimately becomes the automatic pro-
duction Of the hand, it is equally a fact
that it does so as the pupil and agent
Of the mind, and in the molding process
peculiar qualities Of its tutor and mas
ter enter ~unconsciously into it's COM
position, and it becomes a mirror OF it's
creation-the mind. An inspection OF
the autographs of famous people would
reveal the fact that they illustrated
how persons whose mental character
istics are a matter Of history clearly
exhibit those characteristics In their
handwriting.-Boston Traveller.