Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1911-02-28
III. SMOOTH FINGERS.

WHEN the knuokies are not promi-
w nen and the fingers present q
smooth appearance along their Sides
from tip to base you may make up your
mind that their owners are not given to
picking apart things and ideas or
spending much time on reflection But.
by the natural law Of compensation, the
smooth-f1ngered people make UP for the
lack of analysis by a quick intuition
which enables them to see rather than
reason out conclusions.
Such folk are usually of an artistic
turn Of mind and prone to act upon in
spiration. They see more of the grace
and beauty Of the world than 40 the big
knuckled people.
While big knuckles add TO the value of
a civil engineer, scientist or educator.
1t is your smooth-1ngered man OF
woman who Is the greater actor or
actress or Jury lawyer. For the SCI
enlist has shoals of time to devote TO
thinking out his problems; but when
one is before the footlights or pleading
in a court he must be quick to take adj
vantage OF occurrences of the most
evaneseent nature-occurrences which
would probably disconcert the big
knuckled thinkers. Let us assume that
while an actor is in the thick of a very
trying scene, a person in the audience
sneezes or uee ON other equally
iudicrous interruption. Mr.. Big Knuckla
would probably stop 70 ponder the mat
ter in an effort to recover his balance,
n in the meantime h episode would
a been gathering momentum ana
diffused itself over the audience wtt1s
telling effect.
The smooth-fingered actor, on The
other hand, would, without stopping Ia
reason, but by a fash Of intuition, turn
the occurrence to good account and
thereby wrest fresh laurels a. 1t wore
from q seemingly adverse circumstance
And so, likewise. with the lawyus
who, we win say, Ii pleading for tina
life Of a-olient. Ravagnan, q srea.
French lawyer. who afterward became
a power IN the pulpit, was once trying
to persuade a jury Of the innocence of
a really innocent man whom circum-
stantial evidence had 80 completely
enmeshed as to cave scarcely any
loophole for his escape from the charge
of murder. In his excitement Ravag-
nan upset an inkstand without noticing
II, and, with equal Observation-Disclosures.
he placed his hand in the pool Of ink
on the table. And then, still too deeply
absorbed to observe that his hand was
dripping with the fluid, he pressed the
palm against his forehead. The GEES
ture was expressive Of the thought
which, at that moment, he was trying
10 convey. But, alas! the ink stains
which covered his face made the
Jurors lose sight of the point of his
argument, and they burst into a loud
laugh at the ludicrous appearance he
presented.
To a big-knuckled orator this laugh
would have been food for deep thought
and much long-winded analysis. Not
30 to Ravagnan. whose fingers were
smooth. Like a fash he turned the &C.
' currence to advantage for the prisoner
by saying as ~gravely as he could
Gentlemen, how viii you ever be
able to reconcile an adverse verdict
with your conscience II you send q
fellow man to death while you are in
so frivolous a mood?'
Rather than incur the reproach of
having frivoled away a human life the
jury gave the prisoner the benefit OF
n doubt, n months later 1t was
shown conclusively that another had
committed the crime for which, but for
Ravagnan's smooth fingers, his client
would probably have suffered death.