The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1904-05-17
ZIG
Hands,

mails, With its perfectly opposasnle
thumb i1soffers possibilities OF adapta:-
fition that have had q treraendonsa part
10 play in the development OF the race ace
Yet the disposition of the hands when
not in actual use iSsa very serious
problem TO a great many peopie.ss5it
/ is not only the shy and self-consclous
who have trouble with their hands
| ma ority of people either keep them
too busy or too idle
a Highland avenue street car
stopped at Penn avenue the other at
ternoon to take a smartly clad woman
aboard. In one hand she carried a
pnrasol. In the other, she pore
handbag. and under both arms va
rious unwieldly little packages We're
stocked The woman was in Pred1ca-
ment It was necessary for her 10 n1t
her skirt before, she could step TO the
running board, but she had no thlrd
hand with which she could perform
the very imperative service me con
ductorz stepped forward TO assist he1
and then changed his MIND, 1or none
of the packages was large enough 10
make its removal OF any great moment
and no man could ever have managed
the entire number BY some nSste-
rious art however. the woman was
able, after season Of maneuveflns'
10 solve her difficulty and take her
sea in the car.
man would not have caused the
delay that the woman did, but men
60 TO the other extreme. There is
son, rllin:. utterly offensive about a
J,,,x. n
in the event of the most immediate
necessity viii he carry one and when
he does set off WITH it he wears q
lang-iog air. Few men like to carry
an umbrella unless ii is raining, aii0
as for handbag. perish the thought!
His hands being absolutely empty,
mans first impulse is to thrust
them into his pockets. Hidcen
away there, he feels at his ease I'M
nediately, and he can talk for hours
with no other gesture than an occas-
ional shrug Of his shoulders or per
haps a meaningless wag of his ell
bows.
This applies to the American man
almost exclusively. His English broth
er is SO much more accustomed to
wearing a frock coat-which prevents
the use of pockets as places OF refuge
and carrying a cane that ne does
not feel SO much at a loss when his
hands are visible. Among the cont-
mental peoples the hands are practl--
cally indispensable adjunct to CONVEX
sation-
Did you ever see an Italian VINO
could talk without bringing mis- hands
into play? a Frenchman is the same
way. and it is a curious fact that thes
have their fingers spread and crooked
as though they We're about to pick
something up The Teuton talks with
his fingers apart, bat rigid, ana ms
most characteristic gesture is more IN
tht nature of a jab at nothing IN par
ticular than anything else The
Semitic blood manifests itself by a
fling Of the hand, which displays the
palm with the fingers pressed closely
together
1t is significant that the races which
talk with their lips and their hands
lat the same time more emotional
than the American They. speak rap
idly and frequently with an appear
ance of anger, but they are merely
JuDll2nl.- me American l1idy iSSi 90
deeply and be Just as much in earnest,
but if he cannot keep his hands in his
pockets he is content to keep silent
On the street nine out OF ten men
must have their; hands hidden or &C
cupied. A cigar OF stogie Wi! meet
the requiem entsg of the occasion or
a folded newspaper and in any pubic
conveyance the same thing IS true.
If man finds his hands empty he Will
change their position a dozen times
minute and look. while he Is DONG
it, as if aulputation might not be sitch
bad thing after all.
This amending search for something
to do with his hands has robbed the
American Of much of the repose OF
manner he might otherwise enjoy II
cannot be said that q man locks hls
best when his hands are deep il nus
trousers pockets. He may sometimes
be a more picturesque figure when
they are there but what he gains n
the picturesque he loses in dignity
Not long ago a company from Can
adian Highland regiment was in New
York It was noticed that when they
t,ap, ray