H O W T O R EA D C H A R A C T E R FR O M

H A N DW R I T I N G , W I T H FU L L E !
P LA N A T I O N O FT H E S CI EN C E . AN D
M AN Y E! A M PL S E FU LLY A N A LY Z ED
TH E E NU M E RAT I O N

2 74 7 (£ l Ave .
 PR E FA CE

G R AP H O LO G Y is the art of readi n g character

from h an d wri t i n g That there is a relationship
.

between character and style of pen m anship has

long been recognized but until recently little has
,

been done to for m ulate the principles upon w hich

this relationship is based E nough has now been
.

acco m plished in t his d irection however to make

, ,

i t possible to lay down definite rules for deter

m ining one s disposition a ptitude and nature by
’
,

the peculiarities of his handwriting .

A s a matter of pastim e the author took u p a

study of this interesting subject several years
ago Finding it so full of entertainment and u se
.

fulness and realizing that there exists at present

no popular treatise on the subj ect n o t w i t h s t an d
,

ing the wide spread interest and curiosity

-

invariably aroused by an exhibition of ability to

read character from hand writing he h a s gath ,

ered together the results of his studies and

experience in the h ope that the information
,

here se t forth may serve as a source o f ente r

3
4 p re fac e

to the gen e ral reader

t ai n me n t as a me an s
of aiding those who desire to a c quire a prac
ti cal knowledge of graphology .

W as h i n g ton , D C , 1 904
. . .
 I N T R O DU CT I O N

W H E N we receive a letter f rom a f riend it i s

n o t necessary to open it in order to kno w from

W ho m it co m es A glance at the address on the

.

envelope is sufficient The style of the hand

.

writing tells us at once w h o the writer is W e .

recognize h i m by his penmanship as readily as

we would by his voice .

This shows us very convincingly t h at there

must b e some sort of connection b etween the
style o f handwriting and the personality of the
w riter . A nother familiar evidence of this i s the
fact that no two persons write exactly ali k e not ,

withstanding that hundreds of thousands o f us

learned to write from the same copy books and -

were taught to for m our letters in precisely the

same way .

N o w i f hand writing bore no relationship to

,

personality and was not influenced by the char

acter of the individual w e would all be writing
,

the b eautiful S penceria n copperplate we were

taught in our school days B u t as it is not one
- .
, ,

5
6 G rapb o ognl
in fi fty thousand writes in this manner fi ve years
af ter leaving s c hool .

E ach one of u s has modified the copy b ook -

style in accordance with his i n dividual character .

E ach one has unconsciously adopted a style of

handwriting that i s b est suited to his tastes and
inclinations and has consequently given to it a
,

distinctive character .

Like speech or gesture handwriting serves as,

a m ea n s for the expression of thought ; and in

expressing our thoughts we give express i on to

l
ourselves W hen once the art o f writing is
.

e arned we are no longer conscious of the mental

‘

and manual eff ort required to form t h e letters .

I t b ecomes as it were a second nature to us W e .

l
do it mechanically just as we for m our words
,

when ta king without realizing the complex

,

processes of mind and muscle that it involves .

It is plain therefore that a person s ha n dwrit

, ,
’

ing or chirography is really a part o f himself

, ,
.

I t i s an expression of his personality and is a s

characteristic of h i m as is his gait or his tone of
voice .

How many persons are there who are a b le to

answer off hand the f ollowing q uestions regard
-

ing their own hand w riting

 l
‘
nt t oc uc t ton

Do you close your a s and o s at the top or leave

’ ’

them open
D o you end the final letter of a word ah
r a ptly or do you add a fi nal strok e
,

If you u s e terminal stro k es to your final let

ters do these strokes ascend descend or extend
, ,

in a straight line
D o the letters of a word remain unifor m in
size throughout the word or do they diminish or
,

increase toward the e n d of the w ord

U nless a person has m ade it a point to analyze
h i s writing there is not one in a thousand who is
,

able to ans wer the foregoing questions In .

order to do so he w ill be o b liged first to ex

a m ine some o f his own writing A n d these .

are b u t a f e w of a score of questions that might

be asked in re ference to the characteristics of
hand writing a bout which the average person is
entirely ig n orant This goes to sho w very

l
.

plainly that many of the constituent features of

a handwriting have been unconscious y adopted ;
and although they may appear insignificant in
themselves they are n evertheless all v ery s i g n i fi
,

can t as indications o f the writer s personality

’
,

and are among the m ost important guides i n

the reading of chara c ter .
8 l
G rapbo ogn

Unless as j ust stated one h as made it a

, ,

point to study his pen m anship he knows really ,

very little a b out it b eyond its general appear

ance I t is f o r this reason that handwriting
.

experts are ab le to dete c t f orgeries and disguised

writings .

W hen a man attem pts to chan ge h i s style of

hand writing he simply alters the principal features
of it I f his writing nor m ally slopes to the right
.
,

he will pro b ab ly adopt a b ackhand He may also .

u se a diff erent kind o f pen m ay c h ange the size

o f the writing alter the customary for m ation o f
,

certain lette rs and add certain un f am iliar fl o u r

,

ishes B u t knowing nothing a b out the many

.

minor characteristics of his n atural writi n g h e

unconsciously repeats them notwith standing his
,

b est eff orts to veil the identity of his chirography .

I n this respect he rese m bles the actor who while , ,

he m ay assu m e all the outward characteristi c s o f

another individual still retains certain persona
,
l
peculiarities of which he is hi m self unaware and
w hich render it i m possible fo r him to co m pletel y
disguise his own individuality .

There are some who b elieve that differen c e in

handwritings is l a rgely due to di ff erence in styles
o f p e ns .I t is tru e that pens have mu c h to do
 I nt rob uc t ton 9

with the appearance of the chirography but the ,

choice of a pen is one of the ele m ents involved

in the individuality o f handwriting .

E ach one of us chooses a style of pen that b est

suits h i m and hence it allows h i m to write in
,

the manner that i s most natural to him But it .

is a m istake to suppose that it i s the pen that de

termines the peculiarities of a handwriting It .

may be awk ward for a person who is accustomed

to a stub pen to use a fi n e pointed pen b u t it
-
,

will not alter the distinguishing characteristics

of his chirography any m ore than it destroys his
personality to wear a suit o f clothes that does
not fit him .

There are also many who clai m that their

writing is changeable ; that they never write
twice alike This is true to a certain limited ex
.

tent P ro bably no one can produce three speci

.

mens of his own signature that are absolute fac

fic i a l
si miles But the diff erences are purely super
.
.

The style o f handwriti n g varies no more from

day to day than does the o u tward appearance of
the individual A change of emotion will produce
.

a corresponding change in the expression of the

f ace. A di ff erent style of hat a c hange in t h e ,
10 l
G rapb o og n

mode o f wearing the hair the shaving o ff o f a

,

b eard or any alteration of a like character will

produce its effect but the individuality o f the
,

person is not affected there b y In a similar man.

ner our penmanship i s superficially modi fi ed by

our f eelings our physical condition b y the kind
, ,

of ink we use the style of pen the kind of paper

, , ,

l
et c b u t its individuality re m ains unaltered
,

O f course the s t v e o f hand writing does not in

,
.

every case re mai n the same throughout the e u

tire life of a m a n or wo man A m a n at fifty .

may n o t write the same hand that he did when

he was eighteen or twenty and i f he lives to be
,

eigh ty or ninety it will in all probabi ity sho w

f urther indications of change This f act only .
l
l
e m phasizes the relationship b etween handwriti n g
and persona ity ; fo r it will al w ays be found that
w here there is a change in the style o f penman
ship there is a corresponding chan ge in the per ~

son hi mself V ery fe w of us retai n the sa m e

.

character dispositio n and nature that we had i n

,

youth E xperience a n d vicissitudes d o much to

.

modify our natures and with such m o d ificatio n s

,

com e alterations in our hand w riting In so me .

‘

persons the change is very slight while in others ,

it is noti c ea b ly evident .
 1! n t roouc t i on 11

W ithout pursuing the subj ect further it must

b e evident to every thoughtful m ind that hand
writing does bear a very close and definite rela
t i o n s hi p to the personality of the writer . W e
see that every one h as a sty le of wri t ing
peculiar to hi mself and it is only re a sonable to
,

suppose that each feature of his writing reflects

some personal trait or tendency ; otherwise w h y ,

i s there such a variety o f features i n handwrit

ings ? W hat would cause these various distin
g ui shi n
g characteristics of pen m anship i f it is not
th e individuality of the w riters the m selves P
‘

But aside fro m all argu m ent or speculation it ,

is only necessary to add that careful and scientific

investigation h a s conclusively shown that there
is a direct co rrespondence between the various
features of a hand w riti n g and the character of
t h e pen man .It h a s clearly de m onstrated that
one s nature and disposition m ay be accurately
’

d etermined by his chirography .

The studies and investigations of the author ,

in c onjunction w ith those of other students of

the subject have revealed the fact that every
,

feature of a hand w riting is indicative of so m e

.

particular personal characteristic and it is the ,

objec t of this volume to point out these relation

12 l
G rapbo ogtz

ships ; to sho w the characteristic features o f

hand writings and their corresponding personal
indications and generally to present the su b j e ct
, , ,

in such f orm as to make it readily possible for

any one to demonstrate to his o wn satisfa c tion
the relation s hip of character to c hirography
.
14 c ont ent s

II . M ethod of Delineating Chara c ter f rom

Hand writing . S pecime n D elinea
tions

PA RT I I I
S P E CI M E NS o r HAN D W R I T I N G A N D
‘

T H E I R A N A LY S I S
I N DE ! TO P E R S O NA L C H ARA C TE R

I S T I CS
 CH AP T E R I
l
pre i mi n arg Re marks
“

G l. mow
as s i fte b
b an owrtt i ng s me

I T would b e as diffic ult to find two h andwrit

ings that are exactly similar as it would be to
find two persons who are precisely alike Y e t at .

the same ti m e we o ften s e e handwritings that

rese m ble one another either in their general a p
,
«

a ra n c e or in certain particulars and we find

p e ,

upon investigation that while the chirography o f

l
no t wo persons is exactly alike there are never
t h e e s s certain general styles or types of hand
writing to so me one of which every specimen of
,

pen manship can be assigned as containing certain

features peculiar to that particular type of han d
writing .

The first requisite there f ore in the study o f

, ,

graphology is to classify the di ff erent types or

kinds of hand w ritings This will enab le us to
.

tell not only w herein certain hand writings re

se mble one another but also to distinguish the
,

differences between the chirography of one per

17
18 l
G rapb o og g

son and that o f a nother for it very f reque n tly

,

happens that although we rea lize there is a diff er

ence between two handwritings we are u n ab le to
tell in j ust what particular features the diff erence
exists ; so that we s e e at once the necessity fo r
adopting so m e m ethod of classification as a basis
for t h e prope r understanding of the su bj ect .

The study of b otany depends primarily upon a

syste m o f classi fying plants and in natural his
,

tory or zoology very little profita b le work could

, ,

b e accomplished were it not for a met h od o f

l
classify i n g the various animals The same prin
.

c i p e holds g ood in graphology where we have a

,

great variety o f types and kinds to deal with .

But this does not mea n that we are to cum b er

our minds with an elab orate or intricate syste m
o f classification. O n the contrary it i s very
,

simple and very plain for it is b uilt up on c ertain

,

definite lines that make it at once o b vious and

logical .

l
In the first place hand writings are disti n guish
,

ab e by their general appearance S ome are

.

small and some are large ; so m e are heavy and

o t hers light Here is one that is easy to read
.

and there is another that is al m ost undecipher

a b le In short we find that hand writings in
.
,
 Gt a O I O GQ 19

their general appeara n ce w ithout taking into ao

,

count any o f their details are subject to quite a ,

variety of di ff erences which are recognizable at

once It i s only necessary therefore to classify
.
, ,

these various differences in appearance that d i s

t i n g u i s h one kind of handwri ti n g from another ,

and the n ascertain what these particular varieties

of styles indicate as to personal characteristics ,

for each general style o f h and writing has its

corresponding significance
l
.

O ur first c a s si fic a t i o n t h e n is m ade up of the

,
‘

General Features of handwriting .

O u r second classification consists of the S pecial

Features as revealed in the various details o f
,

hand writing .

It not in frequently happens that a n umb er of

d ifferent handwritings will very closely rese m b le
one another in their general appearance for they ,

m ay all possess the sa m e general f eatures ; but

upon examination it will be f ound that they di ff er
from one another in certain details or special
features In one of them perhaps the t a are all
.
, ,
’

crossed very heavily and firmly in another they

are crossed very lightly and in a third the crosses
may b e entirely absent .

N o w although these diff erences may see m very

,
20 l
G rapb o og g

trifling in themselves they are nevertheless of

,

importance to t h e graphologist fo r each of them

,

has its special significance as to the character of

the writer A n d what is tr u e of the example
.

j ust cited applies to all of the various special

features to be fo u nd in hand writings These .

special features consisting as they do of pa rti c

,

ular details are not s o readily discerni ble as the

,

general features and it is there fore o u r purpose

, , ,

not only to classify these various details and to

assign to them their respective s i g n i fic a n c e s b u t ,

to point the m out and explai n the m in order that ,

they may be easily identified i n the analysis o f

‘

any particular handwriting .

H aving thus defined the two classifications

necessary for a system atic study o f graphology ,

we shall n o w take the m up in their order for the

pu rpose of learning what the various types and
fe a t u res o f hand writing indi c a te .
22 l
G rapb o ogn

formations The speci m ens given in plates 2 4

.
, ,

8 and 1 5 are distinctively rounded hands

E ach o f these two general or f u n d a m e n t a
types has its parti c ular signifi c ance .
.

l
()
x T h e A n gu a r H l an d

L TE
(P A S 1 , 7 A N D
A ngularwriting always indicates activity I t .

is associated with nervous quick and energeti c ,

dispositions It b etokens a person o f mental

‘

alertness and physical restlessness .

W riters of an angular hand are nat u ral

w orkers . They are not happy unless their b rains
or h ands are b usy W hatever they do is done
”

W i th energy and e n t husiasm Their tastes turn.

to the pra c tical a ff airs o f life and they have a ,

n atural aptitude f or work requ i r i ng manual skill .

They are apt to b e emphatic precise positive , ,

and aggressive They are generally sel f reliant

.
-

and industrious .

(2 ) T h e R ou n d e d H an d

(P L A TE S 2, 4 ,
In general the personal qualities represen ted
,

by the ro unded hand are the opposite o f those

show n in the angular hand .
 l
(Brapb o og g 23

W riters of round hands are fond o f the

pleasures the b eauties the c om forts the luxuries
, , ,

of the world W ork for work s sake does not

.
’

appeal to the m They are not naturally

.

d u s tri ou s. Th ey are lovers of peace rest and ,

enjoyment They do not like to b e distur b ed

. .

Their natures are more or less passive .

A s a rule they are benevolent and kind

,

hearted and ha ve loving dispositions rather than

affectionate or ardent Their natural desire i s
.

to go through life as easily and as comforta b ly

as possi b le and hence they are caref ul to avoid
,

all unnecessary b urden s .

R am a/ria —I t must b e b orne in mind that the

s i n i fic a t i o n s
g given to the angular and the

g e n eral
rounded types of handwriting are merely the
personal chara c teristi
these two b road classes o f penmanship They
c s indicated by
.

are su bject to modification by other i mportant

features as will be shown later on ; so that these
,

t wo pri mary types — the an gular and rounded

‘

should b e regarded not as specific indications ,

but rather as b road foundations on which to

build character d elineations .

A second division of hand writings is that

which i s determined by the slope of the writi n g .
24 G rapb o l og g

In this division there are three styles of pe n m an e

ship
(a) The Forward Hand or writing that slopes ,

to the right .

()
6 The V ertical Hand .

()
0 The B a c k Hand or writi n g that slopes to
,

the lef t .

(3) T he Fo r w a rd H an d

(P L A TE S 1 ,
2,

Nearly all handwritings have the forward

mpe varying f rom the almost vertical to an ex
,

e ra t e d slant N inety per cent o f all who use

a
gg . .

a pe n write a f orward hand I t m ay readily b e .

-

, ,

l
seen there f ore that taking this as a style b y
itself it can have bu t ittle individual significance
since it is employed so universally .
,

A t the same ti m e ho w ever it has i t s s i g n i fi c a

, ,

tio n as disti n gu i shed fro m the vertical and the

,

b ack hands Broadly speaking it indi c ates a

.
,

personality in which the emotions the f eelings , ,

the sympathies constitute the n a tural governi n g

,

element I t shows susceptibility to sentiment

. .

The n atural tendency of a w riter o f a forward

h and is to b e guided b y his impulses .

The m ore th e writing slopes to the right the

 l
G rapb o ogn 25

more predominant are the emotions and the i m

pulses as controlli n g fa c tors i n the person a lity o f
the writer .

W here the slope is very marked as we see it ,

in the specimen given on plate 3 the writer is ,

governed very largely by her sympathies and

feelings S uch a writer is extrem ely a fl e c ti on
.
’ ~

ate ; kind and sympathetic ; generous and self

s ac ri fic i n g ; inclined to b e i m pulsive animated ,

and demonstrative ; capable of intense love and

passion ; easily pleased and readily stirred to
,

enthusias m .

The average for ward hand however can n ot , ,

b e regarded as a specific indication o f character ,

b eyond the f act that as the forward hand is the

natural style o f handwriting it shows that those
,

who use it are in a general sense amenable to the

common influences o f life ; b u t the e ff ects pro
d u c e d by these various influences will o f course , ,

depend upon the individuality of each person .

(4 ) T h e V e rt i c a l H an d

(P L A TE
The writers o f this style are n ot s o readily
susceptible to the influences of their environm ent
or their emotions as are those who write a for
,
26 l
G rapb o og n

ward hand Their natures are not necessarily

.

calmer or more evenly b al a nced b u t they e u ,

d e av o r to condu c t themselves more deli b erately .

J udgment and reason and self interest enter into -

their motives and into their actions They are .

not apt to b ecome very enthusiastic nor are they ,

in clined to b e ardent in their attachments .

W hatever they do is tempered w ith sel f restraint -

and deli b eration They do not like to be

.

hurried ; they are generally S lo w and do not ,

arrive at decisions very readily .

W he n this style o f writing is rounded and well

formed as show n in plate 4 it indicates simplicity
, ,

of taste d eli b erateness o f thought and speech and

, ,

outward c al m ness W e say out w ard calmness b e

.
,

cause the writers o f such a hand are not always

naturally cal m a nd o f ten su b j e c t themselves to re
,

pression of f eeling and e m otion They are apt to .

talk slowly and act with m uch deli b eration and pre
c i s i on
. They do not like to do anythi n g hastily or
on t h e spur o f the moment E verything must b e
.

g i ven d u e consideration and attention Their a f .

f e c t i o n s may b e deep b u t are not often intense or

,

de m on strati ve A s a rule however they are si n

.
, ,

cere constant and loyal They usually take a

, , .

practical common sense vie w o f life a n d are n o t

,
-
,
 l
G rapb o og n 27

readily distur b ed in their purposes and b e

liefs.

l
In the signature o f Long fe low which is given
on plate 1 4 we find this style o f handwriting
,

vertical and rounded indicating a deliberate ,

d ignified person a lover of the b eautiful a m an

of careful hab its and simple tastes ; a person of
sel f control and b alance These are the very
-
.

traits we would logically look for in this poet to ,

j
udge h i m solely by his works There is a calm
.

ness a fi nish a clearness a b out h i s poetry that con

, ,

tras t s strongly for exam ple with the involved

, ,

impetuous and rugged style of Browning who as , ,

we s e e by his signature— S hown in plate 1 4 — wrote

an angular for ward hand Lo n gfellow s poetry
,
.
’

i s never impassioned nor highly dra m atic nor is ,

it ever mystical or elusive as is that of most o f

the great poets He was always careful to have
.

h i s poetry in perfect form ; its meter and rhyth m

are faultless ; a characteristic due to his love of
order and detail which is one o f the qualities i n
,

d i c a te d by a vertical ha n dwriting .

(5) T h e B ack H an d

Reason l (P L A TE
and se f interest are the governing mo
-
 l
G rapb o og g

t i ve s ofthose who write back hand W hile se n -

.
~

t i me n t or sus c epti b ility to sentiment is not lack

ing in these writers it is rarely permitted to i n
,

fl u e n c e their actions or their decisions i f it is ,

likely to inter f ere with their com fort or plans .

B ack hand writers are natural reasoners and

-

schemers Their personal interests come first in

.

the decision o f all questions Their sympathies .

are held in che c k They do not o f ten have very

.

deep or lasti n g a ff ections They think more o f .

themselves than they do o f any b ody else .

A b ack han d writer is nearly always self c on

- -

p ll
s c ious I t is seldom that he does anything i m
u si ve
.

ue n c es
y or
He
without
has a
first
dread
thinking
of
o
appearing
f the
in a
oons s

false
‘

q .

light to others or o f creating an i m pression u n

,

favora b le to himsel f A s a result o f this quality

.

he i s inclined to b e artful and insincere

A s a rule the writers of this sty e of hand writ l .

ing are persons o f ability originality and much ,

sel f reliance This latter chara c teristic is ofte n

-
.

very strongly marked T h ey are usually u n o rth o

.

d c x in their belie fs and are seldom enthusiastic or

deeply interested i n the general aff airs o f the
world They are not the kind o f persons who e n
.

gage i n charita ble work or philanthropic enter

30 G ranDO I O GQ

hand when o bliged to use his le ft hand ; an d

curiously enough he will write forward i f his
,

natural right hand style is b ack hand In other

- -
.

words any one w h o is obliged to u se his una c

, .

custo m ed hand will slope his letters in the dir c o

tion opposite to that of his natural chirography .

These facts go to de m onstrate that it is useless

to attem pt to correctly read a person s character ’

f rom his hand writi n g unless the writi n g is in his

natural style Graphology makes no pretense of
.

detecting false or u n natural styles o f c hirography .

I t lays claim si mply to showing the correspond

ence between h andwriti n g and c haracter in their
natural relationship .

()
6 S ma l
l
W ri t i n g

(P L A TE S 5, 6 , 1 7 AN D

The size o f a hand writing has a de c ided b ear

ing upon its significance This f eature o f course
.
, ,

admits of great variation ; ranging f rom the

enormous to the m icroscopic ; b u t by classi fying
the various sizes into small and large and re pre
senting each b y its extreme we shall be a b le to
,

gain an approximate estimate o f the value of size .

The specime n given on plate 6 will indi c ate

what is here meant by small writing as com ,
 G rapb o og u l 31

pared with the average size The other speci

mens noted ab o ve all fall w ithin the c assification
of s m all writing but N o 6 is especially ill u s .
.

l
,

t ra t i ve .

S mall neat writing indicates as a general rule

, , ,

intellectuality good reasoning powers culture

, , ,

and originality of ideas .

The writers of s m all hands are usually person s

capab le of concentration both m ental and phys ,

ical They are natural b rain wor k ers and can

.

e n dure a large a mount o f fatigue .

They are persons o f individuality and force o f

character Their m ental powers are above the
.

average and their general a b ilities and capacities

u ra l
l
a re correspondingly pronounced

y versatile well informed ,

They are nat
acquisitive
knowledge and good thinkers a n d reasoners
-
o f
.

.
,

They are apt to be self contained and patient -

,

with a natural reticence con cerning their per

sonal affairs They are not apt to make a dis
.

play of feeling in pu b lic They have the gift o f .

k eeping silence and biding their ti m e

,
Re .

serve quietness and dignity are often associated

,

with this style of handwriting W riters of s m all .

hands are usually sel f s u ffi c i e n t They may enjoy

-
.

society and the companionship o f their fellows ,

32 l
G rapb o og n

bu t they seldo m c rave it or fi n d it essential to

their well b eing They are usually b est con
-
.

tented when alone with their own thoughts and -

work .

M any literary persons scholars statesmen , , ,

philosophers and persons o f m ental refinement

generally write small hands N o person of o r
,
.

cided
y l
d i n a ry i n telle c tual qualities ever writes a de
small hand
I f the writing in addition to b eing sma
.

is l
, ,

well f ormed and even it indicates a person of ,

-

methodi c al ways neat self reliant and thorough ,

-
.

I t i n dicates also executive and b u siness qualities ,

in whi c h perspicacity ju d gment and som etimes ,

shrewdness play important parts for w ri t e rs of ,

~

this style o f hand seldo m do anything hastily or

ill advisedly but are governed a lways b y well
-
,

trained faculties S pecimens o f s m all neat w rit

.
,

ing exemplifying the personal traits a b ove cited

, ,

are shown on plates 6 and 1 7 .

W here the writing is very small and the words

are written close together giving the writing a ,

c ompact crowded appearance it shows cunni n g

, ,

and suspicion But the cunni n g of such a writer

.

is always that o f a diplo m at W hat would b e de .

c c it and trea c hery in a person o f less trained men

 G rapb o og g l 33

tality is with this writer finesse and diplomacy

,

H e is wary and alert di fficult to convict clever , ,

at plausi ble arguments and evasions and always ,

careful to provide a loophole for escape from any

dile mma .

To s u m up its variou s indications small writ ,

i n g a s a general rule denotes intellectuality lit

, , ,

e rary and b usiness a b ility educational culture , ,

reservedness diplom acy sel f containment pa

, ,
-
,

t i e n c e industry quietness thoughtful n ess mental

, , , ,

energy perspi c acity and j udgment

, ,
.

(7 ) L a rg e W ri t i n g
(P LATE S 7, 1 2 AN D

W hen writing is a b ove the average i n size it

signifies a c haracter devoted more to the prac
tical material a ff airs o f lif e than to the i n t e e c
,

tual or the spiritual .

,
l
l
The writers o f such a hand are inclined to b e
outspoke n f rank and talkative and possess b u t
, ,

little tact They express their feelings without

.

reserve Their natures are close to the surface

.

and are easily seen for t h ey make little or no e f

,

fort to conceal their e motions or opinions They .

are apt to be critical and to fin d fault ; although

i n the great m ajority o f instances their b ark is ,
34 G rapb o og n l
worse than their b ite W hile they are quick to
.

take others to task and to cast aspersions upon

the conduct of their friends and acquaintances ,

they are seldom deeply i n earnest and their c o m

,

ments generally should b e taken with due a llow

ance for their i m pulsive n ess and lack of re
straint .

They have b u t slight power o f concentration .

Their thoughts are di ff use and fly readily f ro m

one subj ect to another They find it difficult to
.

remain long at one task They are naturally

.

restless and unsettled and hard to satisfy

,
.

Their emotions are q uickly aroused They .

are extremely sensitive to their surroundings .

They are naturally generous and sympathetic ,

particularly those whose writing is rounded .

Their pride is readily wounded and they are

,

quick at retaliation.

They have but little reserve f orce They ex

.

pend their e n ergy extravagantly They are in

.
,

fact inclined to be extravagant in all ways — i n

,

the spending o f m oney in the expression o f opin

,

ions in their charities and in their voca b ularies

, , .

A s a rule they talk and laugh noisily

, .

W here flourishes and deliberate shading con

s t i tu te a feature of larg e writing we fin d a per
,
 G rapb o ogg l 3b

s on who i s egotistical and pompous and m u ch ,

give n to b oasting .

If the large writing is angular as in plate 7 it

, ,

denotes ardor zeal and enthusiasm S uch a

, .

writer b ecomes readily ani m ated or excited a n d

is al ways vivacious and spirited .

W riters of large hands are usually fond o f

that which is s m all or dainty They observe de
.
'

tails and particularities very quickly and ofte n

give themselves much concern over them .

They are usually very entertaining talkers ,

although their talk is almost invariably ab ou t

themselves or ab out their personal a ffairs or e x
e ri e n c e s A s a rule they i nsist upon havin
p .
g
things their own way and it matters bu t little t o
,

the m whether it suits others or not In this .

respect they are apt to b e extremely selfish and

thoughtless .

R e m a rk —M edium size writing has in i tself

.
-
, ,

no specific signification H and writings that fall

.

bet ween the s m all and the large m ust b e treated

i n accordance with their proxi m ity to either one
o r the other extre m e W here they occupy an
.

a pproximate middle position as to size t h e oppos

i i g qualities indicated by the two extremes are

'

n eutralized .
36 G rapb o ogg l
The size o f a hand w riting there fore is not o f
, ,

much value from a graphol ogical point o f vie w

‘

unless it is distinctively s m all or large .

(8) H e av y W ri ti ng

(P L A TE S 8 AN D

Heavy writing is of varying degrees I n some .

hand writings it is very pronounced as in the ,

specimens S how n on plates 8 and 1 2 where the ,

letters are all f ormed o f thick black strokes ,

.

These represent extreme exa m ples and b etween ,

this style and the writing composed o f fi n e deli ,

cate strokes there is a large range o f styles

,
.

W here the writing is as heavy as in the exam

ples cited it denotes assurance aggressiveness ,

and a general lack o f delicacy especially where ,

this f eature is show n i n writing that is ab ove the

average in size as the two specimens are
, .

In a man s chirography heavy b la c k writing

’
, ,

indicates roughness and boldness o f manner .

S uch a man is over b earing a b raggart and in , ,

all proba b ility a b ully though this latter trait is

,

not necessarily denoted unless it is corroborated

by other features o f the chirography He is pos .

sessed o f strong passions and animal appetites

H e is usually muscular fond of physi c a exercise
, l .

,
88 l
G rapb o ogn

always ready to b oast of their exploits and thei r

accomplish m ents whether real or imaginary
,
.

Their good qualities lie in the fact that they

are masterf ul s elf reliant and frequently possess
,
-

much a b ility S o m e of the other traits cited

.

ab ove are n O t in f re quently turned to good pur

pose ; for aggressiveness and sel f assurance for -
,

example may often be used to good and worthy

,

purpose when applied with discretion A n d it .

must also be b orne in m ind that the character

i s t i c s cited in connection with this style of hand
writing as well as all others are all subj ect
, ,

to modi ficati on by other features o f the chi

ro
g ra h
p y .

(g) Sh aded W ri t i n g
(P LATE S 2 , 7 , 1 0 AN D
S haded writing di ff ers f rom heavy w riting in
the fact that the latter is for m ed of heavy thick ,

or b lurred strokes throughout as in plates 8 and ,

1 2 ; whereas i n S haded writing the heavy strokes

o c cur only at intervals .

S ometi m es the shading is d one for effect as in ,

the speci m en on plate 1 0 In this case it b e .

tokens affectatio n and egotism and a comm o n

place personal i ty S hading of this kind where
.
,

it is done c ons c iously with a vie w to adding

 l
G rapb o ogu 39

to the effect o f the pen m anship is nearly always ,

an indication of small education and lack o f ,

culture and ab ility .

But the shaded writing show n on plates 2 7 ,

and 1 1 is distin c tly different f rom that j ust re

f e rre d t o
‘

.In these exa m ples w e see that the

shading is con fi ned largely to the cross o f the t s ’

and to the terminal strokes of certain letters .

W herever it appears it b ears evidence of having

been done unconsciously or without d esign on
the part o f the writer This sort of shading .

indicates an insiste n t nature and the more pro ,

n o u n c e d the sha d ing is the more insistent and

,

emphatic the writer i s apt to b e This feature .

denotes also natural executive ability coupled

, , ,

with a fondness for and an appreciation of phys

i cal pleasures Those whose chirography con
.

tai n s this style o f shading are likely to be fond

of luxury and good living They a re usually .

persons o f distinctive personality with well d e ,

fined tastes The chief signification however is

.
, ,

insiste n ce and d etermination .

( )
1 0 Fi n e W ri t i n g
(P L A TE S 3, 4 ,

W hen a handwriting is composed of deli c ate

40 l
G rapb o og u

s trokes or there is a marked a b sence o f shading

or pressure on the pen as w e see in plates 3 4 , , ,

1 6 1 8 et c it is a general indication o f a person

, ,
.
,

o f quiet ,
modest tastes and with a disposition,

that tends toward complaisance and si mplicity .

There are s o many whose writi n g has this char

a c t e ri s t i c o f unshaded strokes that no particular

indi c ations c an b e given fo r it W e must con .

tent ourselves wit h the general signification

a b ove given except that w here this feature o f
,

c hirography is very distinctive as fo r exa m ple , , ,

i n plate 3 where the letters are all for m ed o f

,

very fin e strokes we may take it fo r granted

,

that the w riter is a person o f refined and delicate

sensibilities temperate in ha b it quiet and u n o b
, ,

l
t ru s i v e and with little i f any desire f or the vo
,

u pt u o u s pleasures or luxuries o f li f e .

( 1 1 ) C o nvent i o naW rli t i ng

( P LATE S 1 0 AN D

By conventional writing we mean that

“ ”

style of hand writing which i s popularly regarded

as the standard for m of good pen m anship — the
copperplate style and the kind that is contained
in the copy books w here the letters are all
-
,
-

f orm e d pre c isely and distinctly a c cording to rule , .

 l
G rapb o ogu 41

I t very frequently happens that when a person

is tol d that his character can b e read from h i s
hand writing he i s wont to exclaim O h bu t I !

w rite such a poor hand that it certainly can t ’

‘

signify anything good a b out me A s a matter

.
”

o f fact however the so called poor writers

- “ ”
, ,

are usually those w hose chirography indicates

the greatest amount of character while the ,

good penmen — those who write the fine legi b le , ,

copperplate hands— are generally persons pos

sessing b u t little indivi d uality .

I t may b e set down as a rule that the more ,

nearly a hand writi ng approaches the copy b ook -

standard the more commonplace is the person

,

ality o f the writer .

The man or woman who writes a s o called -

copperplate hand is one w h o lacks individu

ality S uch a person has no distinctive char
.

acter His ideas and his capacities are limited

. .

H e has but little i f a n y originality

, ,
H e is .

m erely a copyist an i mitator bound by rules

, ,

and conventionalities H e has no ideas of h i s

.

own ; t h e m 1 s not hing a b out h i m mentally that, ,

raises above the dead level of the co m m onplace .

He is merely one of thousands W hatever he .

does he may do w ell but no b etter tha n others

,
.
42 G raph otogu

H is ac c omplishments are limited and are never

b rilliant .

Clerk s tea c hers b ookkeepe rs — all w hose li fe

'

, ,

is devoted to routine duties calling fo r strict a d

h e re n c e to rules— are apt to write more or less
conventional hands P lates 1 0 1 5 and 2 1 are
.
,

examples of this style o f writing .

W here good pen m anship includes what is

known as f ancy writing which abounds in
“ ”
,

flourishes and supposedly graceful curves that

do not b elong to the letters necessarily we have ,

a sign of a person w ho i s much impressed with

his o w n importance and who is c onsequently
egotistical and conceited The sp ecimen on
.

plate 1 0 is a mild example o f this style o f writing .

It is however quite tame c ompared with many

, ,

examples that might b e S hown in which the ,

capital letters are ornamented with scrolls and

the chirography throughout is adorned with
fan c i ful strokes and artistic shading .

The more wonderful and elaborate such pen

manship i s the m ore insignificant is the person
,

who is responsible for it This does not prevent

.

his having an excellent opinion of hi m self how ,

ever He is often affected in his manner and

.

e ndeavors to have it b elieved that he i s really of

 (Branb o ogn l 43

importance He i s inclined to b e headstrong

.

and opinionated and to lay much stress on

,

trifling matters o f form and style .

(1 2 ) I n a rt i s t i c W ri t i n g
(P L A TE
The opposite o f the affected or good w riting
is what may b e termed plain or inartistic writ
ing P late 9 affords an example of this style
.

the so called school boy hand I t is often

-
“ ”
.

awkward in its formation and anything but

b eauti f ul A t the same ti m e however it is legible
.
, , ,

u na ff ected and distinctive in its si m plicity

l
No .

hand displays b etter or more desirab e qualities

than this fro m the standpoint of inherently good
,

character In suc h a writing we h ave m odesty

.
,

frankness tr u thfulness and sincerity

,
The .

w riter is unassu m i n g honest and trustworthy , ,

and guided al w ays by m otives of integrity He .

has no patience with deceit and rises superior to

a fl e c t a ti o n He does his duty and i s careful at
.

all times to do what he thinks is right regard ,

less o f what others may say or think of him .

(1 3 ) N e at, U n i for m W ri t i n g

W riti n g tha t
(P LATE S
is
1 ,
6 AN D

neat and uniform in i t s genera l

 G rapb o ogn l
appearan c e or where the letters are c are fully
,

and distinctly formed is al w ays an indication

,

of corresponding neatness precisio n and care ful ,

ness on the par t o f the writer .

S uch writing denotes a personality that is

tact fu l methodi c al painstaking and generally
, ,

well b alanced .

The writer o f a neat clear hand as show n i n

, ,

plate 1 6 or 1 5 is systematic likes to do things

, ,

according to syste m and to do them w ell and

thoroughly S uch a w riter has good b usiness
.

instincts and is thrifty prudent economical and

, , ,

painstaking Good managers and organizers

.

often write this style of hand as do also ,

l
capab le clerks and me n and women o f responsi
b e positions .

( 4) U 1n e v e n W ri t i n g
(P L A TE S 9 ,

W here the writing si m ply shows a lack o f

precision in its for m ation or a general uneven
ness of appearance as we s e e in plate 9 it
, ,

betokens a greater or less degree o f carelessness

on the part o f the writer S uch a person i s not .

naturally methodical or syste m atic i s often care ,

less a b out little things and is inclined to be

,
 G rapb o og u l
sist simply of mere unfor m ed strokes as the
, ,

result of evident haste i n wr i ting

mens shown on plates 3 1 1 and 2 2 will i

The speci
,
.

l
l u strate this feature better than can b e de
scri b ed .

By exa m ining plates 1 1 and 2 2 it will b e seen

that m a n y of the words contain letters that are
scarcely formed W e only kno w by the context
.

what they are intended for I f they were to b e .

cut out o f the word and isolated it would b e next ,

to impossi b le to tell what they are Take fo r .

,

example the word bri n g o n plate 1 1 I t is the

,
.

second word o n the seventh line Here we see .

that the b and r are the only letters o f the word

that are recognizab le T he rest o f the letters
.
,

73 n and
, g consist S
,
imply o f a c ontinuous straight
stroke S ee also the word f or i n the third line
.
, ,

of plate 2 2 ; it is the second last word on the -

line W ere it n o t that we kno w f rom the con

.

text that it is meant for f or it i s dou b tful ,

whe t her we would b e able to decipher it The .

entire w ord consists si m ply of a loop and a

curlicue— a mere hieroglyphic .

Taken in its entirety such chirography as we

,

h ave cited p resents the appearance of haste and

q uickness and a general la c k o f d istin c tness It .
 G rapb o l
og u 47

is the sort o f writing that must b e read quickly

and in jumps if we are to read it at all .

A s m ight naturally be supposed this style of ,

writing indicates q uickness and hastiness as well ,

as i m patience vivacity and animation W riters

,
.

of this kind o f chirography are usually good talk

e rs and very entertaining ; they possess much

a b ility and are nearly always accomplished in one

direction or another They have a good deal of
.

originality and put the stamp o f their individual

,

ity upon whatever they do or s ay They have .

b u t little patience with rules or humdrum work

They are apt to be insin c ere and they do not a
ways intend that what they say shall b e accepted
l.

literally D issimulation and artfulness are always

.

present in one for m or another and c o n s c i e n

, ,

t i ou s n e s s is not usually one o f the strong points

of such w riters .

They seldo m bother themselves with details .

They do things in a hurry and do not stop to ask

whether they are in accordance with the fixed
rules o f their neighbors They have no ti m e for
.

co m monplace little affairs and such duties as

, ,

they have to perfor m are ac c omplished in the

quickest m anner possible it m aki n g no difference
,

to the m whether it is according to rule or not .

 0 0 92

There is another style of hasty writing how ,

ever which must b e distinguis hed in so m e pa rt i c

,

a lars f ro m that upon which we have j ust bee n

co m menting The speci m en in plate 3 for ex

.
,

a m ple while coming under the head of hasty

,

and indistinct writing is not characterized by

,

the sa m e sort of indistinctness as is that on plate

1 1 or plate 2 2 It will be seen that in this case
.

the w riter has n o t f ailed to for m her letters and

has not slurred them over as in the other two ex
a m ples b u t the indistinctness o f the chirography
,

lies in the fact that the writer does not distinguish

one letter f ro manother E ach letter is separately
l
.

f or m ed but it is d i fli c u t to tell the diff erent letters

,

apart as they are all made s o nearly alike Take .

,

for instance the fi rst word in the specimen on

,

plate 3 N o dou b t there are many who will not

.

be able to tell at once that this word is Cou s i n .

N o t one of the letters is missing nor is any one

of them simply indi c ated b y a mere stroke as in ,

the other speci m ens ref erred to but each one i s ,

al most precisely like the other W ere it not fo r .

the i dot there would be really no c lue to the

identity of the word .

In d istinctness due to this cause den otes a c har

a c ter in many particulars like the one we fi rst
 l
(Brapb o ogn 49

l
considered It S hows q u ick ness animation v i v ac
.
, ,

ity m uc h hastiness and intolerance of detai s

, ,

and an inherent inability to do things acco rding

to plan or order The writer is i mpulsive and i n
.

sists always in doing things agreeably to her own

notions ; s h e will not fo low recipes nor rules l ,

nor will s h e sub m it to dictation S uch a writer .

usually lacks the ability or aptitude for practical

w ork There i s wanting the necessary patience
.

to follow directions or to re m ain stead i ly at any

one task .

But this sort of indistinct writing does not de

note dissimulation finesse diplomacy or lack of
, ,

f ran kness as is shown in the kind of indistinct

,

ness peculiar to the speci m ens given on plates 1 1

and 2 2 .

It will be seen there fore that hasty and indis

, ,

tinct writing ad m its of division into two varie

ties which should be carefully distinguished when
,

considering the traits of chara c ter last e n u me r

ated .

(1 6) C row d e d W rit in g
(P L A TE
W here the words and lines are crowded well
together and where the writing h a s the appear
50 l
(Branb O O QQ

l
l
ance of b eing
crowded on the page it shows gen , ,

e ra y a saving disposition
,
The writer is inclined
.

to worry and to be particula rabout little things .

There is also a tendency on the part o f such a

w riter to b e close or to take narrow vie w s of life .

I t fr e quently happens too that such writers have

, ,

s u S i c i o us natures This is especially s o if the

p .

writing is crowded along the right hand m argin -

of the paper s o that some of the words look as

though they were b eing squeezed in order to get ,

them onto the line rather than divide them and

,

carry the syllab les over to the succeeding

lines .

A s a whole crowded writing denotes a person

,

who is naturally secretive saving and suspicious ;

,

one whose nature is cramped and o f ten warped

S uch writers u sually fi up every available
bit o f space on a sheet of paper ; squeezing the
l
l .

w ords in at the corners and filling up the space at

the head of the letter rather than u s e another
sheet It is due to an instinctive desire to save
.

paper although they do not do it consciously

,

but it serves nevertheless to exemplify the qual

, ,

ity o f econo my closeness or parsimony that is

,

al m ost invaria b ly associated with a chirography

o f this s tyle .
 (Branb o og u l 51

(1 7 ) D i ffu s e W ri ti ng

(P L A TE S 2 , 7 AN D
At the opposite extre m e to crowded writing ,

we have a style of chirography that spreads itself

o ver the page occupying a large a m ount of space
,

with co m paratively little writing It is this style

.

to which we give the nam e of diff use w riting .

It is recogniza b le at once by the a m ple space

b etween the words and between the lines The .

specimens shown on plates 2 7 and 1 6 are good

,

examples of this kind o f handwriting A S a rule .

it i s associated with large hands it is not often

that a small w riting exhibits this characteristic .

Those who write diffuse hands are naturally

generous or extravagant They find it difficult
.

to save They are intolerant of restraint They

. .

wish to b e left free to do what they please and

to spend as much as they please They are .

neither economical nor t h i rfty unless circu m ,

stances should m ake i t necessary A s a rule .

they are not m ethodical nor system atic and as ,

they dislike drudgery of any sort they are often

m erely superficial in their acco m plishments and
education Fortu n ately nature usu ally endows
.
,

persons o f these traits with quick and ready

minds and with inherent talents s o that they ,
52 l
G rapb o ogn

can o ften accomplish much without great e ff ort .

They d o things in a hurry b ecause they want to

,

get them out o f the way as quickly as possible ,

and consequently they are often hasty and care

less .

They are inclined to be thoughtless and i m

prudent to say and do things that ought not to
be said or done T hey are usually lacking in
.

j udg m ent Thei r ideas like their chirography

.
, ,

are d i fl u s e and not easily concentrated .

They are often of socia b le disposition f ond o f ,

the co m pany o f their fellows and enjoy enter

,

taining and b eing entertained They relish the

.

good things o f life ; prefer extr avagance to

l
l
plainness k now h o w to dress well and are gen
e ra y up to date in the modes and f ashions
,

As .

a rule the writer of such a hand i f a woman

, , ,

w ould rather do without her dinner t h an be

o b liged to preside at a ta b le that was not
fashionably per fect as to its appointments and
service .

But the style of di ff use w ri t i n g j u s t considered

must not b e confounded with that style o f
writing in which the words are straggling and
spread out as we see in plate 1 3 Here although
, .
,

the writing a s a whole is crowded we s e e that

, , ,
54 (Bran[30 10 9 2

and the di ff use writing there are many grada

,

tions and varieties each o f which must be

,

determined as to i t s indications by its proxi m ity

to the one or the other extreme M id way b e .

tween them we find the variety that i s neither

crowded nor di ff use and in which the writing is
,

care fully and uniformly spaced By referring to .

the specimens on plates 5 6 and 1 7 it w ill b e noted

,

that the letters o f the words are well spaced ,

the words themselves are well spaced in relation

to one another the lines are all approximately
,

even in their spacing and each line i s con fined to

,

itsel f ; that is to s ay none o f the loops or down

,

strokes of the letters in one line co me down to

the next line .

A writing that is well spaced in this manner

d enotes pri m arily a person of good j udgment
, ,
'

one w h ose mind is well ordered and who may b e

depended upon i n matters calling for c i rc u ms pe c
tion and prudence S uch a w riter rarely acts
.

hastily in m atters of b usiness and he is not ,

readily fl u s t e re d or convinced against his better

j udgment He is naturally a good manager
.
,

careful and conservative with the instincts o f a ,

b usiness man .
 l
G rapb o og n 55

( 9)
1 W ri t i n g Th at is N ot W e l l S pa c e d
(P LATE S 2,
W riting that is not well spaced m ay be divided
into two varieties : That i n which the letters of
one line collide w ith the letters in the line b e
low and that in which the lines are unevenly or
,

irregularly spaced in relation to one another .

A n example of the first variety is to b e found

in the specimen on plate 2 It will b e seen here .

"
that the loops o f the letters J y etc extend , ,
.
,

from one line into the next line and even b e ,

yond it in some instances This peculiarity is .

also noticea b le in the specimens on plates 1 5

and 2 3 .

This feature is usually asso c iated with persons

of more or less carelessness i n certain directions .

It is not necessaril y the carelessness that is

sho w n in matters o f dress or personal appearance ,

but may be and usually is the kind of careless

, ,

ness that manifests itself in indi ff erence to e n

a
g g e m e n t s or duties or minor proprieties It .

denotes a tendency to fli g h t i n e s s or lack of poise .

S uch writers are not naturally m ethodical or

syste m atic and their j u d g m ent in a ffairs of i m
,

portance is not often to be relied u p o n They .

are themselves not al ways to be depended upon ,

56 G rapb o ognl
for they change their m inds quickly and m any , ,

ti m es without a pparent cause s o that it is not

, ,

usually an easy m atter to m ak e any definite pre

dictions regarding their decisions or plans Their .

decisions are always more or less unsta ble w hile ,

their plans are lia ble to sudden alteration due ,

perhaps to so m e change of mood or to so m e u n

expected circumstances w hatever m ay b e the
,

real value o f its bearing on the matter .

S uch writers though they may have practical

,

ab ility have b u t little taste for routine business

,
.

I n financial affairs they are likely to be rash and

imprudent They prefer as a rule to m ake
.
, ,

money b y speculation rather than by in v est m ent

,

or work .

The second variety o f han dwriti n g that is not

well spaced i s exe m plified in the speci m en show n
on plate 9 H ere although the lines do not i n
.
,

t e rfe re with one another to the extent shown i n

the other exa m ples give n it will be noticed that
,

they are n o t evenly or regularly spaced The .

same is also true of the speci mens o n plates 3

and 1 0 .

This indicates merely a person who is not

, ,

naturally gifted with methodical or b usiness i n

s t i n c ts
. It i s indica tive also o f a tendency to
 G rapb o og u l 57

carelessness and lack of precision U pon the .

whole however its significance is not s o c o m

, ,

prehensive nor so pronounced as is that o f the

feature that distinguishes the first variety of this
style of writing .

A n other point to b e considered in connectio n

with the general features and styles of hand
writing is the direction or position of the lines
,
.

W hen writing is on unruled paper the lines ,

will be either straight across the page or they ,

will slope toward the upper right hand corner or -

to w ard the lower right hand corner W e shall

-
.

classify them therefore as straight lines ascend

, , ,

ing lines and descending lines E ach o f these

, .

directions of writing h a s i t s significance .

ra i g h t L i n e s
( )
20 St

(P L A TE S 1 3 , ,

W hen the writing i s in straight even lines it ,

shows perseverance and will power a n d m ore or ,

less fir m ness of character The degree to whic h

.

these traits are applicable in each case will de

pend very m uch upon the other features of the
handwriting .

It must be borne i n m ind also that what is , ,

here meant by a straight line is not m erely ,

58 mrapb o og u l
one that goes acr oss the page without sloping up
or down b u t one that i s e ven throughout It
,
.

will very frequently be f ound that the words

c onstituting a line are not strictly on the line
throughout its length S o m e are a bove and
.

some b elow although taking the line as a whole

,

it may appear straight A typical exa m ple o f

.

this f eature m ay be seen in the speci m en on plate

23 . A n examination of this specimen will show
that not only are the words uneven as to their
position o n the li ne b u t the words the m selves
,

are s o formed a s to make an uneven e d ge at the

b ottom . I n other words some of the letters of
,

a word are not o n the line .

W hen we find lines of this kind therefore , ,

they c annot properly b e included under the

heading o f straight lines This peculiarity o f
.

uneven lines makes such chirography subj ect to

the rules governing in the case of uneven writin g
(S ection 1 4 ) and writing that is not well spaced
(S e c tion

( )
2 1 As c e n d i n g Lin e s
(P L A TE
the lines have a tendency to run up hill it
I f
signifies an am bitious person ; one who i s n atu
 G raph otogn 59

rally hope ful not easily disc ouraged and pos

, ,

sessed of much good nature especially if the ,

l
writi n g i s rounded S uch a person takes a cheer
.

fu vie w o f life . H e is optimistic by nature .

H e may be cast down one time after another ,

but he is always ready to try again .

I n addition to the qualities of opti m is m and

buoyancy of spirit the writer of ascending lines
,

usually possesses am b ition and deter mination to

succeed H e never feels satisfied with what he
.

has a c complished for there is always more he

,

wants to do and more that h e feels capa b le of

accomplishing H e is constantly pushing ahead
. .

H e has ideals and aspirations He always has .

something to which to look for w ard H e thinks .

more of the future than he does o f the past .

W hen the upward slope is very m arked it

shows exaggerated am b ition S uch a writer is
.

more ambitious than practical He is likely to .

b e visionary and to have extravagant aspirations .

( )
22 De s c e n d i n g Li n e s
(P L A TE
W riting that droops toward the lower right
ha nd corner of t h e paper indicates generally a
, , ,

lac k of initiati ve or a lack of active am b ition .

so l
(Brapb o og r
z

P ersons in whose chirography this f eat u re occurs

may be am b itious but they have not the n e c e s
,

l
sary vigor or steadfastness o f purpose to a e com
i s h it In fact i n most cases they make no
p .
,

attempt to attain it fo r there is usually wanting

,

in suc h writers the feeling of self reliance or -

l
h opefulness that i s essential to the successful ao
c o m p i s h m e n t of any purpose or desire

S uch writers are very apt to b e pessi m istic

.

It takes but little to discourage them They are .

easily put out of hu mor and they have a habit

,

of worrying and fretting They take it for

.

granted that the worst is al ways going to happen .

They are subj ect to m orbid prej udi ces They .

are often suspicious and are li k ely to take offense

very quickly They have a way of mi s c o n s t ru
.

ing what is said or done by others and they fre ,

quently take uncharita b le and unreasona b le views

of their neighbors and m isinterpret the motives
of their frien d s They are m oody and subj ect to
.

fi ts of depression ; happy and i n high spirits one

hour and in the depths of gloom or discourage
m ent the next .

It so m etimes happens that the writing o f those

w h o usually write in straight lines will b e f ound
to show a down ward tendency This is always .
32 l
G rapb o og n

is always one o f the incidents o f a crowded wri t

ing The c o m ments given under S ection 1 6 will
.
,

therefore apply whenever a speci m en o f chi

,

ro ra h
g p y is found i n which the margin on b oth

sid e s is a b sent
.
 CH A P T E R I II
S pe c i a e l a t ure e

l t t d by l t
tl l
P erson a c h a rac e ri s t i cs i n d i ca e vari ou s de a i s of h an d ~
t
wri i n g . T he s i g n ifi ca n ce of t h e d iffe re n ett e rs of t h e a ph a~
bet.

I the preceding chapter our attention was

N

confined to the features presented by handwrit

ings viewed as a whole These are the general .

l
features of hand writing as distinguished from ,

the spe c ial f eatures which pertain to the d e ta i s

,

of chirography These special features relate to

.

the manner in which the letters of a word are

put together and to the m anner in which the
individual letters the m selves are formed .

W e will consider first the peculiarities e m

braced i n the manner o f constructing words or ,

putting the letters together .

U pon compari n g a nu m b er of specimens o f

handwriting it will be found that in some of
them the letters o f each word are well joined to
gether w hile in others the letters are more or
,

less separated W e have therefore under the

.
, ,

63
64 l
(Brapb o og n

heading o f this spe c ial feature two kinds of hand

,

writing : Connected letters and disconnected ,

letters .

(2 4 ) Co c t e d L tte r
nne e s

(P LATE S 4 8 A N D
,

W here the letters of a word are well j oined

that is where each word is written without tak
,

ing the pen from the paper— w e have an example

of connected letters A n examination o f the
.

specimens on plates 4 8 and 1 6 will explain w hat

,

i s meant b y this f eature .

\

A person whose chirogra phy exhibits this

feature is generally o f a practical t urn o f m ind .

He is instinctively careful and prudent and does

not make u p his m ind hastily on matters o f i m
portance .

S uch a person is a natural reasoner He takes .

very little fo r granted and is inclined to ask

,

questions ; fo r he m ust k n o w the why and the

where fore This quality tends to make h i m
.

argu m entative with a corresponding tendency

,

to question the statements and opinions of others .

He is skeptical o f whatever he does not at once

understand h e accepts very little on faith and ,

consequently is likely to b e opinionated and to

 G t fl pb O O QQ l 65

hold very decided views Facts must b e proved

.

to him according to his principles o f logic and

reaso n ; otherwise he will dispute them or decline
to accept them as true .

This feature of connected letters is very often

seen in the chirography o f b usiness m en and ,

p a l
especially o f lawyers I n fa c t there are c o m
.
,

ra t i ve y few lawyers whose handwriting does

not exhibit this characteristic to a greater or less

extent This exe m plifies very strikingly the
.

s i g n i fic a t i o n s ascribed to the f eature o f handwrit

ing under consideration fo r the legal pro fession

,

i s one in which the reasoning and argumentative

faculties are essentially predominant .

It not infrequently happens that su c h a writer

joins his words together as well as his let
ters A n exam ple o f this is shown on plate 8
.
,

w here it will b e noted that the writer has a

tendency to keep right on writing without rais
ing his pen from the paper w ith the result that
,

two and three words are strung together at a

ti me .

This peculiarity accentuates the personal qual

ities above enu m erated It shows a person of
.

very decided convictions great argu m entative

,

ness and deep prejudices He is hard to c on

.
66 l
G t fi pb O O Q Q

vin c e ; is very tenacious o f his opinions and i n ,

.

sists upon full and definite understandings in all

b usiness m atters H i s actio ns are governed a
.

ways by j udgment and reason ; he never permi t s

l
his intuitions or h i s feelings to influence h i m in
the practical a ff airs of life He rarely ju mps at .

conclusions H i s views o n any subject are all

.

f ortified b y reason facts and argument

,
H e does .

nothing without cause and su b scri b es to no tenet

,

or b elief without assuring hi m sel f that it accords

with his j udgment In matters o f b usiness such
.

a man is keen shrewd and exa c ting I t i s a

,
.

diffi cult matter to overreach him .

( 2 5) Dis c on n e c t e d L e tt e rs
(P L AT E S 7, 1 5 AN D

Bydisconnected letters we do not necessarily

mean the direct opposite o f connec ted letters ,

wherein all the letters o f a word are unj oined .

It is in fact very rare to find a hand writing in

which none o f the letters are connected B y .

the term D isconnected Letters we mea n s i m

“
,
”

ply that f eature of hand writing in which there

is a failure to a greater or less extent to write
, ,

each word with a continuous stroke as is done in

the case o f connected letters T he words have .
 G rapb o l
og n 67

the appearance of being brok en due to the fact ,

that here and there the writer has not joined

certai n le t ters A re ference to plates 1 5 a n d 2 2
.

will indi c ate more clearly what is meant .

In these specimens we s e e that there are very

fe w words in which the letters are all joined
from b eginning to end W e find that there is a
.

break i n almost every word ; so m e of the m are

b roke n in two or three places as for example in
, , ,

the word w a n ti n g on plate 2 2 (the first word o n

line where w e note that the writer took her
pen fro m the paper three times w hile f orming
this one word .

This feature of disconnected letters i s found

much more f requently in the handwriting of
wo m en than of m e n It is essentially a fe minine
.

characteristic There are in fact comparatively

.
, ,

fe w women who write every word with a con

t i n u o u s stroke o f the pen .

The S i m plest manifestation of this feature is

seen in the failure to connect a capital letter with
the bala n ce of the word M any writers who join
.

their letters well together in all other respects ,

have a habit of allowing all capitals to stand

alone W e ha v e exa m ples of this in plates 1 1 1
.
,

and 1 9 This peculiarity has but slight s i g n i fi

.
68 l
G rapb o og n

aside f rom the fact that a writing in which

c a n oe ,

it is exhibited cannot properly b e classed under

the heading o f Connected Letters while at the ,

same time it does not come in fo r a full share o f

the s i g n i fic at i o n s ascri b ed to D isconne c ted
Letters though it partakes o f them to a limited
,

extent .

The primary significance o f disconnected let

ters is intuition The writers j u m p at conclusions
. .

They make up their minds quickly They arrive .

at their decisions instinctively Their j ud g ment

.

o f matters a n d people is dictated by their inner

cons c iousness rather than b y any pro c ess of

deli b erate reasoning .

S uch w riters are quick o f comprehension ,

o b servant and critical There is little that

.

escapes their notice They are generally good

.

j udges of character Their likes and dislikes are

.

formed on the spur of the moment They are .

guided largely by their i m pressions Their first .

impressions are likely to prove the most trust

worthy and the most nearly correct They usually
.

find that it is better for them to b e guided by

these impressions than to attempt to convince
themselves di ff ere ntly b y arguments or rea
son .
70 e rapb o wgn
on plate the qualities cited above are ao
c e n tu a t e d S uch writers are usually idealists
Their i n tuitions are the do m
. .

inant controlling
force of their lives They are g u ided almost
.

wholly by their i m aginations their i m pressions , ,

their su b consciousness Their acts and words are

.

largely inspirational S tudents of the occult

.

often write in this manner and this peculiarity ,

l
is characteristic of persons gifted with psychic
—
powers m ind reading mediu mship c a i rvoy
-

, ,

ance etc They are very rarely practical or

,
.

logical If any one clai m ing to be an adept in

.

occultism or s piritualis m writes a hand indicative

of b usiness instincts or logical reasoning powers ,

he or S he may be s e t down as an impostor so far ,

as true py s c h i c powers are concerned .

The feature of disconnected letters is a d i s

t i n gu i sh i n g characteristic o f artists poets , ,

musicians— i n short of all those whose work is

,

essentially inspirational or e m otional The .

handwriting of nearly every m an of genius in

the real m of art poetry m usic oratory etc
, , , ,
.
,

exhibits to a greater or less degree this peculiar

ity of disconnected letters S ee for exam ple .
, ,

the signatures of Longfellow Browning W ilde , , ,

M illais and P oe plate 1 4

, .
 G rapb o og n l 71

r i n g S i z e o f L e tt e rs
( 2 6) Ie anc
s

(P L A TE S 4 A N D

A caref ul analysis of a hand w riting w ill some

times show that letters increase in size toward the

a t i ve
yl
end of a word ; that i s the last letter will b e rel
larger than the
,

first
i s not very often f ound but when it is it may
This
. feature
, ,

b e relied upon as a S ign of conscientious

ness .

P ersons in whose chirography this feature c c

curs are naturally honest straightforward and , , ,

above all conscientious I n fact they are usually

,
.
,

overconscientious They do more than their

-
.

duty in the fear that they may not b e doing

,

enough It causes them o ften to b e f ussy over

.

trivial matters o f propriety or honesty They are .

apt to exaggerate the i m portance of their duty in

respect to fulfilling obligations or living up to
their principles o f right Th e y se t high stan dards
.

for themselves and will allow nothing to swerve

the m from their adherence to these standard s ,

thoug h they are often unreasonably exacting ,

They place an exalted value upon consistency and

allegiance to principles They endeavor always
.

to be consistent in their views and conduct and ,

their decision upon any q uestion i s determined

72 l
G t flpb O O QQ

al ways by the principle involved whatever may ,

b e the circumstances o f the case .

This f ea ture o f handwriting is very prominently

shown in the specimen on plate 9 It will b e .

noticed fo r example how disproportionately large

, ,

l
is th e letter d i n the word p e a s e d on the second
line ; and in the word s u c c e s s on the last line , ,

ea c h letter is larger than the preceding one until ,

we reach the final 3 which is almost twice the

,

height o f the initial 8 .

P late 4 also contains ex amples of increasing

siz e o f letters in a word b u t they are not s o pro
,

n o u n c e d as those in plate 9 A t the sa m e ti m e

.
,

however this specimen exhi b its this fe ature more

,

uni formly throughout the writing tha n does the

other specimen f or it will b e found that it oc c urs
,

to a greater or less extent in nearly every word .

( 7)2 D e c re a s i n g S i z e of L e tt e r s
(P LATE S 2, 1 2 AN D

This is a cha acteristic m uch mo re frequently

r

observed than the one co m mented u pon in the

foregoing section I n this case the characteristic
.

is j ust the reverse of the other ; the letters de

crease in size Instead o f remaining the same
.

throughout the word or increasing in siz e toward

,
 l
G rapb o og u 73

the end they grow s m aller and give a word the

,

appearance of tapering off .

E ach one of the words i n the second line of

plate 2 is a typical example of decreasing size of
letters N ote in the word wri te how much s m aller
.

is the letter e than the letter w and in the word

,

a n d we find that the entire d i s smaller than the a .

In plates 1 2 and 2 2 the diff erence in size bet w een

the words do not taper as even y as in plate 2 l

the initial and the final letters is m ore abrupt ;
.

The signification however is practically the sa m e

, ,
.

Broadly speaking this peculiarity of hand

,

writing denotes lack o f frankness P ersons in .

w hose chirography this f eature appears possess

qualities that are approximately the reverse o f
those exhibited by writers of the increasin g size
o f letters . They m ay not be lacking in c o n sc i e n
t i o u s n e s s b u t it is never obtrusive and is never

l
,

allowed to interfere with the plans or wishes o f

the writers They may have high idea s o f right
.

l
and duty but they do not feel the m selves n e c e s
,

s a ri y b ound by the m . E xpediency is to them a

more important point of consideration than con
sistency or adherence to principle They are a . l
ways ready to concede that circumstance s alte r
74 G rapb o og n l
As a result o f the traits just enumerated su c h ,

writers are usually diplomatic tactful or shrewd , .

They are o ften selfis h and are not always to be

depended upon They are likely to be capricious
. .

It is frequently difficult to understand them .

They rarely express themselves unreservedly and

have a natural reluctance to exposing their true
feelings They are lacking i n directness and
.

candor .

W hen this feature o f decreasing size of letters

is very marked as for exa m ple in plate 1 1 where
, , , ,

z on ta l
st l
so m e of the final letters d windle into m ere hori
ro k e s —s e e the n in J oh n on the first, ,

line— the personal characteristics pert aining to

this feature o f chirography are c orrespondi n gly
pronoun c ed .

(
2 8) V a ri a b l
e S iz e of L e tt e rs
(P LATE S 12 AN D

This feature is de m onstrated in handwriti n gs

where the letters form i n g a word are of varying
s i zes— so m e s m all and so m e large It di ff ers fro m .

the features considered in the two f oregoing s e c

tions in that there i s no uniformity in the varia
tion o f the size In S ection 2 6 we considered such
.

examples o f handwriting as S ho w a uni form i n

 l
G rapb o og n 75

c rease in size while in S ection 2 7 we dealt with

,

letters that S how a more or less uniform decrease

in size fro m the beginning to the end o f a word .

In the prese n t section however we have to deal

, ,

l
w ith letters that are of di ff erent sizes throughout
the wor d The words en c os e and v ers i on on plate
.

1 2 and i n d e e d and ki n d on plate 2 3 are exa m ples

,

o f this peculiarity of hand writing .

It indicates generally a person o f versatili ty ;

one who has the natural a b ility to do m any things
well S uch a person is apt to lack poise and to
.

b e rather changeable .W riters of this kind are

subj ect to whi m s and fancies .

Having n o w considered the m ost important

special feature s of handwriti n g pertaining to the
fo rm atio n of w ords and the size of letters we ,

c o me to a consideration o f t h e in d ivid u al letters

of the alphabet and the personal characteristics
represented by the m according to the manner in
which they are made .

W e shall turn our attention first to the capi

tal letters It is not essential to tak e the m up
.

one by one in alphabetical ord er as we shall do

, ,

for the most part in the case of t h e s m all letters ,

for the peculiarities incident to the m are very

largely collective and apply equally to all of them .
76 l
G rapbo ogn

( 9)
2 P lC l
ai n a pi t a s

(P L A TE S 2 , 6,
I t may bedown as a ge neral rule that t h e
se t

more simply capital letters are made the more

convin cingly does it denote taste refi nement , ,

m odesty and simpli c ity .

P ersons o f quiet artistic temperaments nearly

,

always f orm their capitals modestly and with

decided S impli c ity W e have an excellent illus
.

l
t ra t i o n o f this in the signature of Longfello w on ,

l
plate 1 4 W e note that the capita s are rela
.

t i ve y small and there is an a b sence o f any a t

,

tempt a t ornamentation The signature of .

Browning on the same plate presents the sa m e

feature even more strikingly fo r neither the R ,

nor the B rises a b ove the general line of the

writing and each of them is made with the u t
,

m ost plainness This simplicity in the f orma

.

tion of the c a pitals is characteristic o f many men

o f genius for it is al w ays an indi c ation of artis
,

tic re fi ne m ent and a b ility It does not of course .

follow that all great men write their capitals in

this way for the greatness of many o f them is
,

not dependent upon the personal qualities j ust

cited .

Literary men as a rule however as well as

, , ,
78 l
G rapb o og n

c apital letters of a hand writing the more i n s i g ,

n i fic a n t is the writer except in his own estima

,
~

tion He i s usually a person w ho places great

.

store by his own i m portance and gives undue

weight to t ri vial personal m atters H i s talents .

and acco m plish m ents are usually medio c re and

he is not a perso n of intellectual depth .

Capitals that are si m ply large but without any,

attempt to orna m ent them w ith scrolls or n u

necessary flourishes while they indicate egotism
,

and pride to a certain extent are to b e c on s i d

,

ered more as an indication o f b oldness and ag

re s s i ve n e s s sel f reliance and master f ulness
g
-
.
,

It not infrequently happens that pe rsons o f

talent and general culture and ab ility write
large o rn a m ental capitals and even indulge in
, ,

flourishes and shadi n g N evertheless such writ

.
,

ers are naturally vain and egotistical They are .

either conceited and boastful in their talk or

q u ietly self appreciative and fond o f approb ation
-
.

In one way or another they exhi b it the trait of

self i m portance accordi n g to the personality rep
-
,

resented by the w ri ting in general .

In deter mi n i n g the value to place upon large

and orna m e n tal c a pit a ls very m uch depends upon
the chirograph y i n o t her respects It will so m e .
 G rapb o og n l 79

times b e found that a person who writes a quiet ,

modest unassu m ing hand will indulge in grand

,

capitals In such a case the signification to be

.

gi ven to this peculiarity is comparatively slight ,

for its e ff ect is largely counteracted by the other

features of his chirography I n all probability .

i t would signify a certain eccentricity of char

acter for any inconsistent feature of this sort
,

occurring in a person s writing is always indica

’

tive of eccentricity or originality .

( ) C ro
31 ss -
Cu t C l
a pi t a s

(P L A TE S 12 AN D

W hen the initial stroke of a capital cuts across

the b ody o f the letter it is what is designated as
a Cross cut Capital
-
A typical exam ple of
.
”

this feature will be seen in the capital M on the

first line of speci m en 2 2 This peculiarity occurs
.

most frequently in N and I but is met with i n

other letters a s well ; as for exam ple the capital
l ,

, ,

I on plate 1 2 .

Cross cut capitals always signify egotism The

-
.

person in whose chirog raphy this feature appears

al ways entertains a good opinion of herself ,

either in regard to her acco m plish m ents or her

personality It does not necessarily follow that
.
80 l
G rapb o og u

this trait is o b trusively evident fo r as a matter , ,

l
o f f act it will generally b e f ound that this
, pe
c u i a ri ty is associated with a style of chirography

indicative o f cultivation a n d ability so that the

_

egotism of the writer is rarely b al d ly pronounced

or evident though it i s never a di ffi cult matter
,

to dis c over it S uch a writer is always sel f ap

.
-

p re c i a t i v e has
,
much self reliance and i s-
very ,

intolerant o f adverse criticism .

This particular f eature o f chirography o cc urs

almost exclusively in the writing of women .

(3 )
2 T a l
lro
-St ke C pit
a a s l
(PL A TE
This f eature i s appli c ab le only to the M
an d

l
I V It consists of giving to either o f these cap
.

i t a s a disproportionately tall first stroke as

illustrated in the specimen o n plate 4 In the .
,

words N orm a n and M on d a y it will b e noted that

the first upward stroke o f each o f the capitals is
decidedly higher than the other strokes o f the
letter .

This peculiarity denotes a person who is a m

b itio n s for the success or wel fare o f those dear
to the m It is an ind i c ation of pride in others
.
,

a s that o f a mother f o r a c hil d or a wi fe f o r a ,

 G rapb o l og g 81

husband It is what might b e called egotism

.

once re m oved .

It someti m es happens that the last strok e of

the capital M is taller than the first two This .

i s b y no means Common and it is j ust as well that

,

it i s not for it is a s i g n of an unb alanced m ind

,
.

N o t that the writer is necessarily crazy but he i s ,

invaria b ly o f a nervous eccentric unreasonab le

, ,

disposition ; exacting in his demands upon

others thoughtless o f their comfort or c apa b i i
,
l
ties and possessing generally a disposition that
,

is both trying and wearing to a those with

whom they have anything to do A n example .
l
l
of this style of M is show n in plate 1 7 .

Having considered the signi fic ant peculiarities

of capital letters we are prepared now to
,

consider the small letters These we shall take

.

up individually or in groups as their s i g n i fic a

,

tions are too varied to be treated collectively as

in the case of the capitals .

A lthough upon first thought it would not

, ,

seem that there could be much opportunity for

any marked difference in the formation of the
indi vidual letters of the alphabet fo r their lines ,

l
of form a tion are so si m ple and they must n e c e s
s a ri
y be made according to a fixed s tand a rd yet ,
89 G rapb o og n l
nevertheless there is a su fficient differe nc e l a

enable us to dra w so m e very clear distinctions

between the letters of one writer and those of
another .

E very letter of the alpha b et may be said to

have its special significance accordi n g to the way
it is made For all practical purposes however
.
, ,

it will b e necessary only t o consider those that

are o f relative importance ; and in this conne c
tion it will b e seen that a nu mb er o f them serve
as types fo r others ; for what is true of one
letter will be equally true of others having the
sa m e general for m ation as f or example g j and
, , ,

g,

of
m and n etc ,
.

Taking them in order the fo o w m g letters are

,

special S igni fican c e in graphology and it

l
l
,

is to these that we shall give our particular a t

l
e

tention viz a b d f g h i j 70 m n o p s
,
.
, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

t and g
,
.

The significance of this letter lies i n the fa c t

o f its b eing either closed or open at the top .

A n exa m ination of a num b er of hand writings

will S ho w that in so m e of the m the a s are left ’

open and in others they are closed A ccordi n gly .

 G rapb o og u l 83

we have t w o varieties of this letter each of ,

which has its special in d ication .

The letter 0 co mes under this classification

also and what is here pointed out with reference
,

t o the a is equally applica ble to o .

(33) a W h e n th e L e tt e r i s l
C os e d
(PL A TE S 8 AN D

W hen the a and o in a handwriti n g are all

well closed at the top it signifies reserve lack of ,

frankness and the desire as well as the abil

,

ity to keep one s own counsel The writer in

’
.

whose chirography this feature occurs i s not in the

habit o f taking others into his confidence H e .

or she knows h o w to keep a secret S uch a .

person is naturally tact ful cautious and discreet, .

W hen the letters are closed with a loop as ,

they are i n specimen on plate 8 it b etoken s s e ,

c re t i ve n e s s and a very reserved u ncommunicative ,

S uch a writer rarely talks about

l
d isposition .

hi m self or his affairs and it i s a d i fli c u t matter

l
to draw him out on any subject or to as oer
tain definite y what his opinion is on a give n
subject for he is care ful not to commit h i m
,

self .
84 G rapb o ogn l
(34 ) a W h e n th e Le tt e r i s Op en

(PL A T E S 11 AN D

Failure to close the a and o is shown in speci

mens on plates 1 1 and 1 8 which will ill u strate ,

w hat is meant by this feature .

A s a general rule it may b e said that this

,

feature denotes the reverse of that indicated by

the closed letters The writer is usually a f rank
.
,

outspoken person who does not hesitate to ex

,

press his opi n ions or f eelings on a su bj ect is ,

generally ready to talk and to have a word to

s a y on a n y su b j ect that i s b rought up .

It is difficult fo r such a person to keep a secret .

His or her tendency is to take oth e rs i n to per

sonal confidence regarding family matters or
do m estic affairs S uch a person is seldom
.

reserved b u t on the contrary is inclined to b e

, , ,

com m unicative His remarks are o ften ill timed

.
-

or indiscreet fo r such a writer usually has b u t

,

little tact .

6
There are three peculiarities in the style o f
making the letter 6 that are signi fi cant and ,

l
these peculiarities and their s i g n i fi c at i o n s apply
also to the letters i t k and t , ,
.
es (Brapb o l
og n

we find nearly all the t s and b s m ade that way

’ ’
,

as well as the i t s ’
.

This initial hook is an unfailing sign o f

.

talka t iveness The writer is f ond of conversa

.

tion and given the opportunity always has

, , ,

much to s ay and is usually a rapid and an i mated

talker
l
.

( 7)
3 b W h e n t h e L e t t e r i s U n oo pe d

l
(P L A TE S 6 A N D

The conventional or standard b h and consist ,

o f a well d e fi n e d loop for the upper f ormation

-

of t h e letter S ome writers however d ispense

.
, ,

with this loo pand use instead a mere stroke .

E xa m ples o f this will be found in the speci

mens S hown on plates 6 and 2 2 .

A s a rule it signifies a person of conciseness

,

and practical ideas and a b ilities It is also an .

indicatio n of originality or distinctive individual

ity S uch a writer is n ot usually common
.

place .

This sign also is o ften associated w ith de

c i si ve n e ss The writer has fi rm convic t ions
:

and does n o t hesitate to carry them out .

(This letter is without any special signi fic ance ) .

 G rapb o og gl 87

d
This letter f urnishes a num b er o f s i g n i fic a
tions as it ad m its o f quite a variety of distinctive
,

form ations and is consequently of much impor

,

tance to the graphologist .

( )
38
’
a W h Uppe r P o rt ion i s H i g h
en th e

(P L A TE S 9 AN D

I n the S pecimens re ferred to plates 9 and 2 3

—
— i t will b e noticed that the stroke f or m ing the

u pper portion o f the letter d is above the

standard height relative to the other letters .

that of the
,

l
N ormally the height o f the d S hould n o t equal
h or k ; b u t in the examples
, ,

pointed out the d is not only equal in height to

the othe r letters mentioned b u t overtops them ,

i n som e instances ; thus constituting what is

kno wn to the graphologist as a high d .

A d o f this kind signifies pride and self respect -

.

It i s necessary to explain however that these , ,

traits must not be confused with conceit and

vanity for as a m atter of fact the writers of
, , ,

such a style of d are rarely conceited or vain in

the usual m eaning of those term s The writer .

of the speci m en on plate 9 for exa m ple is , ,

naturally inclined to be retiring and sel f depre -

88 G rapb o og n l
c i a t i ve , he has at all ti m es nevertheless a
but , ,

high regard for his dignity and self respect -

.

W riters in whose chirogra phy this feature a p

pears are likely to b e proud of t h eir fa m ily their ,

l
ancestry or their connections It does not nec .

e ss a ri y follow that they are b oastful on the s u b

j e c t or make any display o f it but it is a source ,

of satisfaction to them and forms a part of their

sel f respect
-
.

The pride o f such persons therefore consists , ,

o f pride o f person or o f f a m ily ; an inherent

dignity and respect for one s sel f These persons ’

.

never c ondescend to anything that will com

promise or demean their standard of personal
quality They have a hi g h sense of honor which
.
,

at times is al m ost fanatical in its strictness .

( )
39 d W h en th e Uppe r po rt i o n is sh ort
(P LATE S 2 , 8 AN D
W
l
hen the upper stroke of the letter is rela
t i ve y short as is exe m p ified in the specimens
,

re ferred to— plates 2 8 and 1 5 — i t indicates not

l
, ,

necessarily a lack of self respect but the writers -

,

o f suc h a d have not that sa m e regard for their

personal dignity as is m anifested in the high d .

T hey may posses s much personal pride b u t they ,

 G rapb o l
ogu

are willing in a pinch to waive it in favor of

, ,

some personal gratificati o n or profit It d oes .

not for m an essential part of their nature It is .

put on and taken off to suit the conditions in

whic h the writers find the m selves They have .

not that sam e high sense of honor that dis

t i n g u i s h e s the writers of the tall d Their c o n .

sciences are m ore elastic and their standards

are not so clearly defined They allow them .

selves more scope fo r action without compro m is

ing their dignity or their morals .

(4 0)
'
a W h en th e Uppe r r
Pa t i s C r u ved

(P LATE S 6, 1 8 AN D

The conventional method of making a d is to

f orm the upper portion with t wo strokes of the
pen one going up and the other com ing down
, ,

the two strokes either blend i ng into one or form

ing m ore or less of a loop There are m any .

writers however who do not make the return

, ,

stroke on their final d s b u t simply the u p stroke

’
,
-
,

w hich i s allo w ed to terminate either in a more

or less graceful curve as in plate 6 or in the
, ,

l
form o f a little hook a s in plates 5 1 8 and 2 2
, ,
.

This style of d will near y always be found in

the writing of literary persons E ither they .
90 G t apb o ogu l
have literary tastes or are writers or critics It
,
.

is a sign of scholarly attain m ents literary dis ,

crimination and a nicety o f taste in the culti

v a t e d arts They are u sually persons of a b ility
.

and are more or less accomplished p a rticularly ,

in the do main o f literature .

W hen the curve is decidedly to ward the right ,

ho w ever s o that the letter has the appearance o f

,

leaning f orward it is an indicatio n of a coquet

,

tish nature especially when associated with large

,

l
or di ff use writing The writer o f such a d is i n

tende n c y to b e flirtatious
‘
,
.

c i n e d to b e gay f u n loving and f anci f ul with a

-

(40 a ) W h e n th e C r
u ve i s B a c kw a rd
It sometimes happens that the curved upper
portion instead of tending toward the right as
, ,

i n the exa m ples cited in the foregoing paragrap h ,

is turned backw a rd toward the left A n i n ,

.

stance of this w i ll b e found in the specim en on

plate 1 9 I n this case the stroke is turned b ack
.

ward very decidedly .

This peculiarity indicates a n analytical as well

a s a critical m ind The writers of this style o f d
.

have a tendency to analyze their thoughts and

f eelings as well as the motives and a ctions o f
,
 l
G rapb o og n 91

those about the m They are apt to be sensitive

.

and easily prej udiced Their nature is largely

.

introspective ; their inclination is to dra w withi n

the m selves They do not care for the i n d i s c ri m
.

i n a t e society o f their fello w beings They would

-
.

rather b e isolated tha n be obliged to associate

with those who are not c ongenial .

( )
4 1 d W h e n th e U ppe r r
Pa t is L oo pe d
(P L A TE S 13 AN D

The return stroke of the upper portion o f the

d is someti m es so widely separated from the u p
stroke that i t forms a loop instead o f the stand ,

ard str aight line The exa mples alluded to on

.
,

plates 1 3 and 1 7 are typical of this style of mak

,

ing t h e d .

P ri m arily this f eature sig n ifies sensitiveness

, .

The pride of the writer is easily wounded and ,

his feelings are readily hurt H e takes off ense .

quick ly and often at m ere t ri fle s It takes but

,
.

little to m ake h i m feel that he has been wronged

or insulted .

A n exaggeration of this f eature in which the ,

loop is disproportionately large and infla ted ,

sho ws extre m e m orbidness on the subject of one s ’

pride and rights It is a peculiarity often seen

.
92 G rapb o og n l
in the writing o f lunatics and invariably denotes
,

unreasona b le sensitiveness and a generally mor

b i d c ondition of mind .

(4 2 ) d W h en S t roke
L A TE
De s c e n ds B e l
o w th e Lin e
(P
W hen the return stroke of the upper portion
o f the d is brought below the line of writing as ,

is done in the hand writing sho w n on plate 1 6 ,

we have a Sign of a person who is strongly opin

i o n at e d
. This feature is al ways an indication of
decided views strong convictions and usually
, ,

narro w prej udices O bstinacy is nearly al ways

.

present in the writer s m ake u p and wil fulness

’
-
,

is usually indicated also S uch a writer clings t o

.

his or her opinions through thick and thin and ,

the m ore they are opposed the more determined

b ecomes the writer to hold on to them .

( )
4 3 d W h en th e L oo p is Op ened or C osl ed

The loo p forming the lower part o f the letter

is sometimes left open at the t o p and sometimes ,

we find it tightly closed A n exa m ple of the .

first for m is seen on plate 1 1 w hile o n plate 2 3 ,

we have an exa m ple of the opposite for m .

These f eatures have the same signification as is

94 l
(Branb o og n

It is only when the loop is prominent b y re a

s o n of its size or so m e unusualness of its f orma

tion that it m ay be counted upon as an i n flu e n

,

cing indication In that case it shows clever

.

ness a lively i m agination and a quick and vivid

,

fa ncy The person who makes his f s g s j s g s

.
’

,
’
,
’
,
’

and 2 s with long and well ro u n ded loops i s fond

’

of poetry m usic or art — whatever appeals to the

,

i m agination — and is m ore or less do minated by

his i m pressions and fan c i es a s opposed to th e one
,

who is guided by strict reason and principles o f

b usiness and order .

W here the loop is s o long that it extends into

the line b elow as we s e e in plates 2 an d 2 3 it
, ,

is a S ign that the w riter is inclined to be romantic

and notional and to hold rather un c onventional
ideas on m any su b j ects .

This peculiarity of long sweepi n g loops that

,

colli d e with the letters in the line b elow is f ound

more frequently in the writing o f wo m en than of
men W hen it occurs it may be taken for granted
.

that the writer is fond of novelty and originali t y .

W hatever is odd appeals to her at once S he is

.

a lover o f fads especially such as are supposed to

,

be fashiona b le for s h e is always abreast o f the

,

times in styles and notions and quickly adopts

,
 G t fl pb O l O QQ 95

whatever society endorses as the proper

caper and drops it as soon a s it is no longer re
,

garded a s good form S h e is apt to be e x t rava

.

gant in her m ode of living as s h e is not really ,

content unless in s tyle in m atters of dress and

household appointments S he is not usually m uc h
.

of a b usiness wom an being too venturesome and

,

speculative .

The disposition o f such writers is usually rest

less and calls for frequent change and variety .

l
W hen the loop is m ade after the manner of the
loop in t h e e tter g as we s e e in plate 1 1 it is an
,

indication of hastiness ; a desire on the part of

,

the writer to get throu gh with h i s tasks as rapidly

as possi b le in order to have them off his b a n d s
, .

(4 5) f W h e n th e Le tt e r i s N ot L oo pe d
(PLA T E S 6, 1 4 AN D

W here the lower hal f o f the letter i s made wit h

a si n g le stroke and not looped as we s e e i n plates
, ,

l
l
6 a n d 2 0 a n d i n the S ignatu r e s of Long fellow a n d
Lord W o s e y o n plate 1 4 it shows c o n s erv a tis m
,

o f ideas practical and methodical traits

, ; a good
deal of firm ness will power and self reliance
,
-
.

Fancy and i m agination while often present in

abundance are held in check ; they are not a
,
,

l
96 G rapb o og n l
lowed to carry the writer b eyond the b ounds o f
reasonableness or utility S u ch writers are util .

i t a ri a n in their tastes and ideas rather than ideal

i s t i c or f anciful .

l
l
W hen the stro k e forming the lower portion of
the letter is heavy as in the signature of W o s e y
, ,

it denotes much firmness and determination .

S uch a writeri s inclined to b e ob stinate and hard

'

to convince against his wishes The more fi rmly .

and the more heavily the stroke is made the more ,

c learly are these traits ev i denced .

9
(S ee letter f S e c tions
,
4 4 and
it

(S ee letter b S e c tions
,
3 5, 3 6 and
Z

The manner o f dotting the i determines the sig

n ifi c an c e o f this letter .

(4 6)
’

z W h e n t h e Do t i s P l
ac ed to th e R i gh t

(P L A TE S 1 ,
3 AN D
The maj ority o f persons dot their i s to the ~
’

right o f the letter s o that this f eature has little

,
98 a rapb o ogn l
carry out his purposes He lacks stead fastness
.

and continuity o f mental effort His mind and .

his a c tions do not al w ays work in harmony He .

allows his impulse often to gover n him not be ,

cause h e is naturally i m pulsive b u t because h e ,

cannot get his m ind to determine for him The .

specimen on plate 1 3 contains examples illustra

tive of this characteristi c .

j
(S e e letter f , S e c tions 44 an d

lo, Z

(S e e letter b, S e ctions 35 ,
36 and
m, n

T he only significance o f these letters lies in the

cross cut f ormation co m mented upon under the
-
,

letter b S ection 35 The sig n i fic ation there given

,
.

applies equally to m and n .

(S ee letter a S e c
,
tions 3 3 and
7
Z
T he l e tter 1 9 admits of o n ly one distin c ti v e fe a
 (Branb o og n l
l
99

ture that is o f any special va ue to the graph

ologist and this is
,

(4 8) 1 5 W h e n th e L o w e r P a rt of th e Lette r is
L on g
(P L A TE S 2 , 7 AN D
The letter p contained in the spe c im ens on the
plates referred to— 2 7 and 8— is decidedly long
,

in each case This denotes physical agility ; a

.

love o f exercise ; o f athletics ; o f outdoor sports .

The persons who make their p s in this f ashion ’

are usually good dancers and o f good muscular

development S ports and recreatio n o f all kinds
.

c alling for ph y sical exercise appeal to them .

W hen the lower portion of the letter is looped ,

as in plate 2 i t s Significance i n additio n to the

, ,

personal characteristics m entioned in the forego

ing paragraph is the same as that ascribed to
,

the loop formations o f f g j etc S ection 4 4 , , ,

.
,
.

r
g
These letters are without any spe c ial sig
n i fic an c e .

The letter 8 is of b u t s m all value ex cept in

,
on e
1 00 l
G rapb o ogn;

peculiarity o f its form ation This peculiarity is .

the tight closing o f t he lower portio n o f the

letter .

(4 9) s W h e n th e L e t t e r i s T i gh t lCl
y os e d

(P L A TE
I t is only when this feature is m arkedly promi
nent that it is to b e relied upon as an indication .

M any writers close their s s well and care fully

’
,

b u t it i s necessary in order to b e o f S ignificance

, , ,

that the letter should b e closed as it is in the

specimen on plate 8 for example Here it will
, .

be noted that t h e writer has vi rtually tied the

letter shut at the b ottom either by a decided ,

loop or b y a fi nal stroke b rought well b eyond the

b ody of the letter .

W hen we find an s made in this fashion we

may conclude that the writer is not a person of
candor ; and while it is always a de i c ate matter
to ascribe untruthfulness to any one such an s is
l
,

always prima f acia evidence o f a disposition to

dodge the truth on occasion .

The other features of the chirography will do

much to confirm or m od i fiy the signification of
this peculiarity ; b u t in itsel f it may be relied
upon as indicative o f a perso n whose as s ertions
1 02 G rapb o ogu l
these s i g n i fic ati o n s that the t e throughout the ’

writing should all b e well stroked and not only ,

here and there The specimen on plate 4 con

.

tains a good example of what is here defined as

a care fully c rossed t .

The perso n whose chirography exhi bits this

feature is naturally methodical conscientious and ,

m ore or less deliberate He likes to do things

.

right and according to rule and it is not li kely to ,

relinquish a task until it is properly completed .

1 51 ) t W h e n th e Le tt e r i s H e av l
i y C ro s s e d
(P LATE S 1 ,
8 AN D
hen the letter is crossed with decided fi rm
W
ness irrespe c tive of whether it is done caref ully
,

and methodically as in the examples referred to

in the preceding section it denotes firmn ess and , ,

much will po wer and determination I f the .

strokes are made care f ully then the qualities ,

enumerated under that classification are also

present .

In itsel f however this feature denotes a per

, ,

son o f great deter mination much aggressiveness , ,

assurance and sel f reliance H e insists u pon hav

-
.

ing his ow n way and is possessed of that force of

,

chara c ter that generally accords him that right .

 l
G rapb o og n 1 03

He is positive i n his vie ws and determined i n his

purposes .

Generally speaking this manner of crossing

the t s is a sign of for c e and energy strong
’
,

will physical c ourage daring and persistence of

, ,

eff ort .

W hen the cross in additio n to b eing firm and

,

heavy is also large as in plate 8 it adds e m phasis

, , ,

to the qualities just cited S uch a writer goes .

ahead boldly and with m uch assertiveness H e .

permits nothing to daunt him a n d is often de ,

fia n t in h i s manner .

( )
52 t W h e n th e Le tt e r i s W lCro
e ak y ssed

(P L A TE S 1 5, 2 0 AN D

A weak crossing o f the t is one in which the

cross is insignificant in size and strength or where
it is absent to a greater or less degree throughout
the writing In the specimens on plates 1 5 and
.

2 0 we have exa m ples of weak and indifferent

cross strokes They lack firmness and size ; and
-
.

are without definite character especially those ,

shown on plate 1 5 In the specimen on plate 2 1

.

we have an exa m ple of writing in which m any of

th e t e are not crossed at all
’
.

A weak crossing of the t as j ust de fi ned re pre , ,

1 04 ® rapb o ogn l
sents i n i ts genera l significance a lack o f strong
will power P ersons in whose chirography this
.

feature occurs are usually without muc h force of

character They lack fir m ness and decision
. .

They are not likely to b e stead fast in their aims

or purposes unless their pathway is smooth and
,

easy They are easily dissuaded vacillating ir

.
, ,

resolute and are wanting in continuity of energy .

‘

They have not the sel f reliance o f t h os e who f orm

-

their c ross strokes firmly nor have they the per

-
,

s istence and determination that c haracterize the

other class o f writers .

This f eature is rarely found in the writing o f

.

persons who hold responsi b le positions in li fe ,

where assurance determination firmness and con

, ,

s t an c y of purpose are requisite qualities N o r is .

it us u al to fin d it in the chirography o f per

sons o f marked a b ility It b elongs essentially to
.

those o f mediocre and co mm onplace capabilities ,

those who hold the minor places in business and

society .

W hi le these commentaries m a y seem unj ustly

severe it must b e borne in mind that they pertai n
,

only to certain specific features considered b y

themselves and without relation to other features
or c ir c umstan c es I t must not be s u ppose d there
.
,
1 06 l
(Brapb o og u

(54 ) t W ro
h e n thk e i s P a
e c St
e d t o t h e L e ftl
(P L A TE
I f the stroke does not cross the t b u t remains ,

on the lef t o f it it is a certain sign o f proc ras ti

,

nation .

A n example of this manner o f stroking the t is

seen in the specimen on plate 1 where it w ill be ,

noticed that several of the t s are not c rossed b u t ’

l
that the stroke only co m es up to the m ain stem
and stops The word be a u tif u i n this specimen
.
, ,

aff ords a good illustration of this peculiarity .

The writers in whose chirography this occurs

have a natur al tendency to put off work f rom
d a y to day ; they pre fer waiting to doing ; they
are rarely on ti m e ; they often miss their e n gage
ments and cannot b e depended upon to fulfil
,

their promises however well meaning they may

,

be . In short they are procrastinating

,
.

(55) t W h en th e C ross i s o
D w nw a rd
(P L A TE S 2 AN D
W henever the t is crossed with a downward

l
stroke as on plate 2 0 or as in the word u nf ortu
n a te
,

y on plate 2 it is a S ign of O bstinacy

,
,

l
l
P ersons who stroke their t e this way are u s ’

ua
y self willed
-
and insist upon
,
having their
 G ranb o ogu l 1 07

own way and holding to their own convi o

tions .

(56 ) t W h e n th e C ro s s ’

is Upw a rd
(P L A TE
An pward crossing of the t is not often met
u

with W hen it does occur however it is a sign

.
, ,

of a hopeful person who is inclined to be i magi

,

native and fanciful H e is generally a m b itious

.

and has many irons in the fire H e think s m ore .

o f the f uture than either of the past or the

present .

(57 ) f W h e n th e C ros s S t roke - i s A bo v e t h e

L tt e er

(P LATE S 3 A N D
W hen the c ross stroke is placed above the t
-
,

as is sho w n very pro minently on plate 1 6 it is ,

an indication of absent m indedness as well as of

-
,

a lively i magination S uch writers are often

.

highly aspirational and are fond of building air

,

castles .

H aving now considered the several distinctiv e

methods o f crossing the t we co m e to a considera
,

tion of three or four other features pertaining to

the fo r mation of this letter .
1 09 G rapb o ogn l
(5 ) W h e n t h e
8 1 L e tt e r i s C ro s s - Cu t
(P L A TE
The significance o f this is t h e same as that de
scri b ed in connection with the letter b S e c tion ,

35 . Briefly it b etokens conceit or egotism

, .

(S ee S e c tion
(59) 1 An I n it a i l H o ok

(P L A TE S 3 AN D

Thi s f eature is treated under the letter b S e c ,

tion 3 6 to which the reader is re ferred B riefly

,
.
,

it indicates talkativeness
l
.

(60 ) “
2 W h en th e L e tt e r De s c e n d s B e ow th e
Li n e
(P L A TE S 16 AN D

T he specimen on plate 1 6 will illustrate what

is meant b y this feature w here in the c ase o f the
, ,

final t s i t will be seen that a portion o f the

’
,

letter i s brought below the line of writing This .

indicates opinionated ness and obstinate convio

tions For a full treat m ent of this feature s e e
.
,

S ection 4 2 under the letter d

,
.

(6 1 ) t W h e n t h e L e tt e r i s L oo pe d
(P L A TE S 8 AN D

S ometimes the upper portion of the t is made

1 10 G rapb otog g

evident and ab undant throughout the writing

that it is of value to the graphologist .

O n plate 1 we have a good exa m ple o f this

sort of term inal stro k e N early every word it
.
,

will be observed terminates with a pronounced

,

strok e .

l
This feature d enotes a natural tendency to
give to gi v e out to throw off It is d i fli c u t to
, , .

l
define it more specifically in its broad applica
tion for its particular indication in each case wil
,

depend upon the other characteristics of the writ

ing If we fi n d i t associated w ith a chirography
.

denoting kindli ness quick sympathies etc (as on

, , .

plate it is an indication of generosity and self

s a c ri fi c e — a giving out of one s self for the sake
’

o f others In a h and indicative of more selfish

.

traits as on plate 1 2 for example it denotes ex

, , ,

t ra v a g a n c e a willingness to spend freely a re a d i

, ,

n ess to give abu n dantly not necessarily for the ,

sak e of others but for the satisfaction o f one s

,
’

self in one way or another .

( 6 2 a) W h en the ter m inals incline upward as

on plates 7 and 1 0 it is a Sign of a good natured
,
-

d isposition — candid and outspo k en A down .

ward tendency a s on plate 8 b etokens secretive

, ,

ness and a general lack o f candor .

 G rapb o l
og n 111

( 3)
6 W h en T e rm i n a lt o
S r ke s E nd wi h t a H o ok
(P LATE S 2, 7 AN D

This feature denotes deter m ination and ob s t i

nacy and is especially evident when the termi
,

nal strokes have a downward tendency as in ,

the speci m en on plate 8 S uch a writer i s opin .

o

i o n a t e d perverse in his convictions and i n s i s

, ,

tent upon his o wn ideas H e has his special .

way of doing things and will tolerate no dic

t a t i on .

(64 ) Ab s e n c e of T e rm i n a lS t roke s
(P LATE S 5, 1 4 AN D

A marked absence o f terminal strokes signi fi es ,

generally the opposite qualities to those indi c ated

,

by pronounced terminal lines .

P ersons in whose writing this peculiarity is

exhibited are usually self contained they are not -
,

given to extravagance either in the spending of

material goods or o f their emotions They m ay .

l
be generou s and sym pathetic but never e x tra v a
g a n t y so nor to the sacrifice o f their own wel
,
,

fare They exercise discrimination in their

.

generosity and kindness which cannot be said ,

in all cases of those who indulge in terminal

strokes .
112 l
G rapb o ogn

(65) S i gn a t u re s

(P L A TE
A person s signature is always the most ex
’

pressive example o f his chirography fo r having ,

l
written it s o much m ore frequently than any
other com b ination o f letters it represents an a ,

most entire a b sence o f co n scious e ffort In con .

n e c t i o n with a specimen of his writing his signa

ture is of co u rse si m ply confirmatory o f the

, ,

characteristics shown in his hand writing as a

w hole and is therefore o f no special value to the
graphologist except in one parti c ular This is
, .

w here the writer underscores his signature with

a stroke or a more or less pronoun c ed flourish of
some kind .

W here this peculiarity c onsists o f a mere

stroke as in the signature o f the a rtist M illais
, ,

plate 1 4 it b etokens a love o f appro b ation T h e

,
.

writer is appreciative o f praise He likes to .

have his talents recognized I f the stroke is very .

large or pronounced the love o f praise a n d a p

pro b ation is m ore strongly in evidence com ,

b i n e d w ith more or less egotism and a high a p

preciation o f one s own merits W hen the stroke
’
.

gives place to a flourish conceit and egotis m ,

c ome to the fore very prominently and when it ,

 PA R T

l
II

T h e Prac t i c e o f G ra ph o o
gy
or

l
T h e Appl i c at i on o f t h e P r i n c i ple s o f G raph
o l o g y t o t h e De i n e a ti n g o f C h ara c te r

fro m H an d w rit i n g
118 l
(Branb o og n

that taking fo r granted that the relationships a s

,

s e t f orth i n the preceding pages are correct ,

l
there is no logical basis for these various rela
'

t i o n s h i ps ; to all appearances they are pu re v

ar b itrary and off er no guide to the student fo r
associating the m with their respective s i g n i fi c a
tions A ssuming this to be s o the student is
.
,

under the necessity of com m itting to me m ory all

the various peculiarities of handwriti n g as enu
me ra t e d with their corresponding personal indi
,

cations with nothi n g to help him in the event of

,

c i fic a l
l
coming upo n f eatures of handwriting not s pe
y cited :
Fortunately however this is n o t the case .
, ,

The principles of grap h ology have a logical and

reasonable f oundation In this res pe c t graph
.

ology differs essentially from palmistry phren ,

ology and other kindred m ethods of reading

character It rests upon a truly scientific b asis
.
,

inasmuch as it admits of rational analysis This .

cannot b e said o f pal m istry for exa m ple W hat

,
.

ever may b e its merits as a guide to the readi n g

o f character— and no one who is acquainted w ith

it can deny that it is of real val u e in this respect

i t m ust be ad m itted by all those w h o are
versed in it that there i s no logical relationship
 G rapb o[ 0 9 9 119

b etween the shape of the fingers the mounts

the lines etc and the persona qualities they
,
.
,

signify W hile it is true for exa m ple that a

l , ,

.
, ,

l
person with protruding k nuckles is naturally
m ethodica or that a well developed m ount of
,
-

m ercury betokens ingenuity and inventive tal

ents there is no explanation of why it is s o W e
,
.

simply accept it as a matter o f truth because ex

p e r i e n c e h a s demonstrated it .

Graphology on the contrary is ready with

, ,

explanations for all of i ts rules and declarations .

W e m ust re m e mb er that handwriting is some

thing created by the individual himsel f and in ,

drawing deductions f rom the various features

of it we are dealing directly with a conscious

l
and deli b erate manifestation of the writer s per ’

s o n a i ty whereas in palmistry or phrenology the

,

deductions are drawn from purely physical

peculiarities over which the individual himsel f
has no control and in the f or m ation of which he
cannot possi b ly have had any conscious or u h
conscious personal influence .

In other words the individuality of a person

,

is the result of his particular physical peculiar

ities and it is fro m this si d e that pal mistry and
phrenology apply their m ethods ; while o r t h e
1 20 l
G rapb o og u

opposite side the peculiarities o f a perso n s

,
’

l
hand writing are the result o f his particular i h
d i vi d u a i ty
. W e ,
se e therefore that the
materials with which the graphologist deals are
,

actual products of personality Certain features

.

o f handwriting are the direct result of certain

f eatures o f chara c ter . Cause and e ff ect are

represented in every instance There is a reason
.

for every distinctive f eature o f handwriting .

This f act can bes t b e de m onstrated by sho w ing

t h e logi c al relationship b etween some o f the more
important f eatures o f chirography and the
s i g n ifi c a t i o n s ascri b ed to the m . But aside from
thus merely demonstrating an interesting fact ,

it is o f value to the student in aiding him not

only to more readily remem b er the many features
tou c hed u pon i n the first part o f the b ook b u t ,

also to draw for hi m sel f the natural conclusions

necessary when confronted with some peculiarity
not specified in this work W ith a rational b asis
.

to work from it makes it possi b le fo r him to

,

comprehend the meaning of the various f eatures

l
o f chirography without h a v 1 n
g to
s t a n t y to his memory or to the book as would

be unavoida b le were the relationships purely

resort
,
con

arb itra ry and without rational explanation .

1 22 (Branb o og nl
conventional style at once suggests a personality
,

in clined to question and del i b erate while the

b ack hand showing a decided O pposition to the
,

usual forward hand would o f itsel f logically

,

suggest a person o f corresponding disinclination to

b e gover n ed by impulse or authority with the ,

resulting qualities of character ascribed to the

writers o f this style o f penmanship .

l
P assing to the relationship b etween the S ize o f
the chirography and the writer it i s not d i fli c u t ,

to understand why a small hand should b etoken

a person o f sel f contain m ent reserve and mental
-
,

c ulture. In t h e fi rst place the writing is itsel f u n

o b trusive ; it is compact concentrated held, ,

w ithi n b ounds in an orderly and concise manner .

I n the second place it covers a small space with

,

much material ; there is an evident desire to

l
avoid display what is written is written u n o s t e n
t a t i o us y and quietly These and many other
.

characteristics that will occur to the reader are all

obviously expressive of the personality which such
a writing indicates .

It i s scarcely necessary to dilate upon the very

evident relationship between the features o f
large writing and the personal characteristics de
noted by them They are upon the whole the
.
, ,
 l
G rapb o og n 1 23

reverse of those sho w n in the s m all writing a n d , ,

as will be reme m bered the personal qualities i h

'
,

d i c a t e d by the m are the counterpart of those

ascribed to the opposite style of writing Briefly .

stated large writing is o b s t ru si ve unrestrained

, , ,

diffuse with comparatively little to S how for the

,

a m ount o f space occupied W hen therefore we .

, ,

learn that the writer o f s u ch a hand is superficial ,

unreserved restless and thoughtless together

, ,

wit h the various traits incidental to these quali

ties we are b u t confirmed in the opinion which
,

the writing gives us fro m a purely logical an d

theoretical point of vie w .

In the features represented by heavy writing

and fi n e writing we have further instances o f
the ob vious association of the traits of penman
ship with the traits o f personality I n the first .
,

the chirography has a b old dominating appear

ance It is coarse obtrusive ungenteel deter
.
, , ,

mined assertive I t shows an expenditure of

,
.

unnecessary force W ith these characteristics

.

before us it is hardly necessary to re m em ber

that the w riter of such a hand is aggressive a n d
do mineering strong willed masterf u l exacti n g
, , , ,

sensuous etc H e has e m bodied hi m self in his

,
.

writing The writer of the fine hand reveals

.
1 24 l
G rapb o ogn

himsel f with equal clearness W hen we s e e his .

writing with i t s delicate strokes its lack o f

, ,

material force its unassertiveness we are quite

, ,

ready to admi t that it indicates a character in

w hic h the qualities represented b y the heavy
writing are generally lacking .

The S haded writing m ay not perhaps at once

l
suggest s o o b vious a relationship ; b u t will b e
f ound in this case as in all others that an a n a y
s i s o f the f eature in question will quickly revea

the association b etween it and the personal traits

,

l
indicated by it Considering the s tyle o f shaded
.

writing show n on plates 2 7 and 1 1 where the , ,

shading consists o f a heavy stroking of the t

or a pressu re o f the pen on some o f the terminals ,

we realize a f ter a mom ent s examination that ’

this f eature occurs spas m odically throughout the

writing E very little while the writer h as
.

pressed on her pen— so m etimes on the stroke of

a t and so m eti m es on the fi nal stroke o f a
,

word It is done as it were to give emphasis

.
, ,

to her writing N o w as a m atter o f fact w e

.
, ,

find that this feature signifies a person of e m

phatic and decided views This feature we .
,

w ould s ay also shows a tendency toward the

,

heavy style o f writing ; it crops out here and

1 26 l
G rapb o og n

l
less c onventional hand means simply a more or
less conventiona person ; one who has relatively
little originality or initiative w h o does thi n gs ao ,

cording to rule and custo m and w hose opinions ,

are the reflections largely of others ideas

, ,
’
.

In the inartistic or una ff ected writing we have

a chirography that S hows all a b sence of atte m pt
at affectation or style or conventionality The .

writing is S imple u naff ected and modest free

, ,

fro m display or ostentation These character .

i s t i c s express at once the very traits th at we find

ascribed to the writer o f this style of penman
ship .

P assing on to the w riting that we have termed

neat and uniform w e s e e that i n thi s style the
chirography is neat even well spaced method , , ,

ical well b alanced and uni form It is perfe c tly

,
-
,
.

natural therefore that this writing should indi

, ,

cate a person who is neat methodi c al systematic, , ,

etc I t requires no rule to tell us that these are

.

the personal qualities to b e expected f rom such a

h a ndwriting It is its own interpreter o f the
.

writer s character in these particulars

’
.

U neven writing is also a self evi d ent i n t e rpre -

t at i o n o f the writer s personality as concerns his

’

lack of method or system his c arelessness et c , ,

.
,
 l
G rapb o ogn 127

for such a style o f chirography mani fests in itsel f

these very characteristics .

H asty and indistinct writing presents i n itself

the appearance of quickness i m patience hurry, , ,

carelessness M any of the letters are only half

.

for m ed or are wanting altogether or they have ,

no distinctive for m ation one from another The .

whole effect of the writing is that of dash and .

scurry haste and vivacity a desire to get through

, ,

as quickly as possi b le ; to write the words with the

least possible effort and without regard to rule s
o f pen m anship W hat more natural or reason
.

able therefore that this style of writing should

, ,

denote a person who is quick and impulsive ,

hasty vivacious animated intolerant of restraint

,

,
, ,

or rules tal k ative and origina careless of exactl

,

facts or statements and e m otional P D oes i t not

,

follow as a matter of course that these traits b e

long to this style of chirography
W he n we c ome to a specimen of crowded writ
ing we note t hat it is cramped on the page the ,

words and lines are crowded together as though ,

to save S pa c e and paper and with no other fact

,

to guide us we would naturally conclude that the

writer of this style of hand was of a saving dis
position ; close secretive introspective narro w
, , ,
.
1 28 G CaO DO I O GD

As will b e seen in S ec tion 1 6 these are in reality

the very traits b elonging to the writer o f su c h a
style of chirography .

In the diff use writing the O pposite chara c te r

i s t i c s are shown and as a consequence we in fer
logically that this represents a personality very
much the reverse o f that denoted b y the crowded

l
specimen of penmanship W e would instinct .

i ve y look fo r extravagance s u pe rfi c i a i ty lack

of reserve etc from a writing that is spread
.
,
l
,

, ,

out di ff use extravagant i n its spacing and the

, ,

am ount o f paper used and wanting i n c on c e n

,

tra t i o n .

B etween the well spaced writing and the writ

ing that is not well spaced it is not d i fli c u t to
de fi ne the contrasts of character The c o n s ti t u.
l
ent f eatures of each o f these styles o f writing
are sel f explanatory o f the personal qualities de
-

noted and in view o f the many examples already

,

given do not require special comment .

Considering n o w the S lope o f the writing it ,

may b e supposed that we have here certain fe a

tures o f hand writing that are not su b j e c t to the
rational analysis that we have b een a b le to give
to the others ; b u t we will fi n d that they are as
readily amena b le to log i c al explanation as any
1 30 l
G rapb o og n

b et ween such f eatures and the corresponding

characteristics o f personality But it may b e
.

contended that while these general f eatures are

obvious enough in their s i g n i fic a t i o n s the same ,

reasoning will not apply to the special features ,

where m ere details are considered as against

hand writing as a whole I f this contention were
.

c orrec t graphology could not mai n tain its claim

to b e recognized as a science and in order to de
,

termine its right to this claim let us consider

some o f the leading special f eatures with a vie w
to determining w hether they like the general ,

f eatures admit o f rational explanation in regard

,

to the personal qualities attri b uted to them in -

,

their s i g n i fi c a t i o n s
.

Taking up the special features in the order as

given let us analyze a spe c i m en of handwriting
,

ll
i n which the letters are co n nected This feature
.

S ho w s us very c e a r v that the writer f orm s his

w ords without taking his pen f rom the paper ;
perhaps he even j oins several words together in
the same manner The writing therefore pre
.
, ,

sents an appearance of continuity ; it has no

breaks no gaps in it ; t h ere are no j umps f rom
,

one letter to another ; each one f ollows as a

natural and actual c ontinuation o f the pre c eding
 l
G rapb o og n 1 31

one so that each simply forms a link i n the

,

chain It is u n necessary to go any further i n the

.

analysis W e already see the direct a n d logical

.

connection bet ween these traits of pen m ans h ip

and the traits of personal character that are
ascribed to a chirography containing this feature .

W e learn fro m S ection 2 4 that the writer of con

n e c t e d letters is a natural reasoner ; h i s mind

works methodically and in continuity o f thought ;

he does not ju m p at conclusions ; there are no
gaps or b reak s in his chain of reasoning or i n h i s
j udgment H e accepts nothing in the way of
.

belie f or conviction unless it presents to h i m a

com plete and u nbrok en line o f facts and reasons
f rom one end to the other .

The feature of disconnected letters presents

traits of penmanship that are essentially opposite
to those displayed in the connected letters and as ,

a consequence we conclude that they stand for

corresponding di ff erences in the traits of the
writer which we find is the case S uch a writ
, .

ing sho ws lack of continuity ; the words are

b roken and split u p ; the letters m any of the m
,

stand apart ; the writer tak es his pen from the

paper and j u mps fro m one letter to another A
these characteristics are expressive They na t u
.
. l
l
1 32 l
G rapb o og u

rally lead us to conclude t hat the writer la ck s

continuity of thought and action ; that he j umps
at conclusions ; that he does not depend upon

l
l
logical and definite reasoning f o r his opinions .

A this is true as a matter of fact and hence we

, ,

s e e that in this case as in all others there is a

, ,

logical reason fo r the personal characteristics

ascri b ed to certain chirographical features .

It would be useless and a waste o f ti m e to take

up each of the special features enu m erated fo r ,

the purpose o f demonstrati n g in each specific i n

stance what m ust already b e clearly proven to the
most S keptical It may not b e amiss however
.
, ,

b e f ore dismissing the subject to touch upon some

,

o f the characteristics shown in the m anner of

forming the individual letters of the alphab et in ,

order to sho w that even these minute details are

not wit h out their rational and inherent s i g n i f
i c an c e .

In the letter a fo r example when the writer

, ,

f ails to close it at the top w e see a writing that

,

is what may be termed open “

The failure to
.
”

close the letter is not necessarily a S ign of mere

l
carelessness on the part of the writer for the
chirography as a who e may present a very n e at
,

care ful appea ran c e ; so that it gives eviden ce

1 34 G rapb o og n l
th e up w ard stroke pointing to the sky speaks o f
, ,

hope and aspiration The looped formation o f

.

the upper part of the letter s h ows an unnatural

coming b ack on itself of the stroke that S hould
d es c end with the u p stroke and hen ce w e conclude
-
,

that the writer h as a ha b it of allowi n g h i s

thoughts or his emotions to b e reflected b ack
upon himsel f with the result that he i s sensitive
,

and readily hurt in his pride .

From the f oregoing examples the truth is

clearly demonstrated that the principles of graph
ology have a ratio n al and logical b asis and that
there is a n inherent and manif est relationshi p
b et w een the features o f a handwriti n g a n d their
respective s i g n i fic a t i on s A side f rom this h o w
.
,

ever it has been the a i m of the author in this

,

chapter to suggest a rational method o f learning

the various personal qualities ascri b ed to the dif ~

fe re n t styles and peculiarities of chirography .

! nowing that each of the f eatures of handwrit

ing contains within itsel f its o w n interpretation ,

renders the study at once co m prehensible and

co m paratively easy A n d m ore than that i t
.

places at the command of the graphologist a

means of interpreting any unusual or untabulated
pe c uliarity o f hand writing that he may e ncounter .
 l
G rapb o og n 1 35

W ith the rationale of the science thus explained

and with a knowledge of the s i g n i fi c a t i o n s of the
various styles and features of hand w ri ting we are
,

in position n o w to put the principles of graph

ology to pra c ti ca l tes t
.
 CH AP T E R II
l l l
I h e t h ob c t De i n e at i ng c h arac t e r f rom
S pec i me n E e i n e at i ons
manbwri t i ng .

TH E firstrequisite in the delineation o f char

a c ter f rom hand writi n g i s a careful analysis o f
the c hirography U ntil we have analyzed the
.

specimen of handwriting until we have dissected

,

it and classi fi ed its various features we are not ,

prepared to a rrive at any definite concl usions .

I n undertaking to analyze a specimen of hand

w riting we are at once impressed with the fact
that it contains features which are apparently
contradictory and that many of i ts f eatures do

l
not seem to fit definitely under any of the speci
fi e d c assifications
fo r granted
This o f course must b e taken
.
,

W hen we remem b er that no two

.
,

persons in a million write exactly alike and ,

when we consider what an infinite variety o f

handwritings there are we cannot reasona b ly ex
,

p e c t that every spe c imen we examine will contain

f eatures that c on form definitely and a b solutely
w ith tho se des c ri b ed in the f oregoi n g pages .

1 36
1 38 9 1 9 0 0 0 1 0 92

crossed in four or five different ways or a hand ,

w riting indicating i h its general style a person of

quickness and pro mptness may contain here and
there certain features indicative o f slowness or
procrastination A s a m atter of fact a very large
.

number o f handwritings present the se inconsistent

features It is rather rare to find a chirography
.

that i s consistent throughout in all i t s features

and de t ails.

If it were not that handwritings present i n

t hemselves so m any varieties of feature and such
a tendency toward the blending of one feature
into another or the contradiction of one peculi

l
a ri t y b y another the art of graphology would be
,

a s si m ple as ro ling o ff a log I f every specimen

.

of hand writing presented defi n ite u n ifor m and ,

consistent features throughout a delineation of ,

the writer s character would call for nothing

’

m ore than a mere reference to the s i g n i fic a t i o n s

given in the first part o f t his book and the work
would be acco m plished .

But to delineate cha racter from handwriting

requires a little m ore ability than that for the ,

skill of the graphologist consists not only in his

a b ility to analyze a hand writing and acquaint
himsel f with its various constituent f eatures b u t , ,
 l
G raph o ogn 1 39

most important o f all to give these various fea

,

tures their respective values i n accordance with

their relationship one to another It is i n this
.

latter respect that the true value of graphology

lies To deter mine what significance to give to
.

a f eature in accordance wi t h i ts relation to the

l
standard of that feature and what effect one pe
c u i a ri t y has upon the value of another consti ,

t a tes the real art of reading character from hand

writing The thoroughness and nicety with
.

which this can be done determ ine the measure o f

th e graphologist s ability
’
.

It must of co u rse be evident that where a hand

writing is m ade up of a numb er of varied or con
fl i c t i n g features one feature m ay often alter or
,

mo d ify the si g nificance of another s o that the

,

specific indicati o ns given in the foregoing pages

are all subject to m odification according to their
relation w ith other features in the sa me S peci men
of handwriting .

The question of deter m ini n g the extent of

these m odifications i s a m ore si m ple m atter than
might at first be su pposed ; nor will it be found
a difficult m atter to deter m ine the e fl e c t of the
’

presence of contra d ictory or inconsistent features

i n the sa m e speci m en of handwriting The e x e r
.
1 40 l
G raph o og n

cise o f common sense and the a b ility to put two

and t wo together are all that are required i n ,

conj unction with a little practi c e to ena b le any

,

one to arrive at correct results af ter he has a o

u a i n t e d himsel f with the princi ples o f the s u b
q
j c et a s s e t f orth in the fi rst part o f this b ook.

A s stated in the b eginning o f this ch apter the ,

fi rst and c hief requisite in undertaking to deline

ate a character f rom hand writing is to analyze
the hand w riting ; and the first thing to do i n this
connection is simply to pick out the leading or
salient f eatures o f the specimen This will reveal
.

at once the leading characteristic o f the writer ;

and with this as a ground work it will b e found
that the s i g n i fi c at i o n s o f the other fe atures will
naturally a dj ust themselves to one another and
to the primary or leading characteristics o f the
writer s personality The degree o f minuteness
’
.

to which the d elineation may b e carried will o f

l
course depend upon the pains taken by the de
i n e a t o r to study the combi n ations of the di ff er
ent features and work out the results .

It is well to have the speci m en on unruled

paper ; otherwise it a ff ords no clue a s to the
,

writer s method o f spacing or h i s tendency in the

’

matter of the slope o f the lines For the purpose

.
 l
l
1 49 6 178 0 130 1 0 9 2

culture as the c ase may be A these i n c idental

,
.

f eatures are worthy of n o t i c e a s they tend to i m

,_

press the writer s personality upon the delineator

’
.

M ore explicit and m ore extensive directions for

reading chara cter f ro m handwriting m ight b e
given than t h ose s e t forth above but as practical ,

exa m ples are al wa ys worth more than tedious

rules it has been dee m ed b est to give no more
,

than the general d irections a lready cited and

allow their practical value to b e demonstrated
by applying them to one or two actual delinea

l
tions o f character f rom hand writing A ccord .

i n g y two sp e c imen delineations are here s u b

,

joined E ach of them is written in an explana

.

tory m anner in order to illustrate the manner o f

,

applying the principles of graphology a s s e t forth

in the preceding pages and as a demonstration
,

of the method of reading c hara c ter f rom hand

w riting .
 l
D e i n e at i o n of C h a ra c t e r
l
l
Fl
R ep re s en te d i n th e H
o
an

ow i n g
d w ri ti n g S h ow n
P a ge .
on ti e

l(The num ers parentheses refer to the

b i n
pas
:

t i c u a r sections in P art I describing the f eatures

m entioned ) .

Taking u p the analysis in the order given i n

l
the preceding pages we find first the f ollo wing
gen era features
A ngular writing
,

A forward h and
, ,

l
The writing is w ithout shading and is com para
t i ve y fine It is carefully form ed

l
The lines are straight These constitute the
salient gen era features of this hand writing
l
.

Considering n o w the sp e c i a features we find ,

that there is a te n dency to separate the letters

that the letters increase in size toward the
end o f a word that the capitals are very
plainly made (2 9) that the a s and o s are closed ’ ’

that the s and y s are m ade with a l o n g

f g
’ ’
( )
’
33 s

loop (4 4 ) that for the m ost part the cross strok e -

1 43
 l
1 46 (Bran0 0 1 0 92

W e find , a so that h e r n atural i m patience

,

and quickness are restrained by her painstaking

disposition (shown in the care f ul and precise for
matio n o f the w riting) and by her extre m e con
sc i e n t i o us n e ss (increasing size of letters ) S o .

that while her impulse is always to push ahead

ra pidly she is constantly held in check by these
restraining qualities which coupled with her
, ,

perseveran c e (straight lines ) i m pels her to do,

thoroughly and w ell w hatever S he undertak es ,

no matter h o w trifling it may b e or how tedious

it may be c ome W e may therefore say with
.
, ,

certainty that s h e has a nervous worrying ,

disposition a s the result o f thes e conflicting

qualities i n her c haracter .

P assing on to a m ore direct and definite deli u

c ation ,
w e see that sh e is energetic ; that s h e is
f ond of doing that s h e is al ways engaged upon
s ome w ork or the planning of work This is .

shown b y the angular and forward writing .

Her manner of stroking the t s shows her to b e ’

procrastinating This feature o f her chara c ter

.
,

however is larg ely offse t b y her cons c ientiousness

, ,

whi c h will not permit her to f ail to keep a n

engagement on time or per form a promised task
within the spe ci fie d period ; b u t i n matters c on
 l
G raph o og n 1 47

cerning only her own co mfort or convenience S h e

is apt to procrastinate ; t h at is s h e will put o ff ,

from ti m e to ti m e the work sh e h as planned to do .

J udging alone from her rare conscientiousness

w e are certain that s h e i s thoroug h ly honest ,

sincere and truth ful straightforward and trust

,

worthy S he would never wilfully deceive or

.

break a promise S h e has a hig h sense of duty

.

and of loyalty and is extre m ely particular in the

,

m atter o f o b ligations S he is a true and con

.

stant friend always to be relied upon not only for ,

her loyalty b u t for her confidence as s h e never ,

betrays a secret nor repeats u nkind gossip S he .

is therefore a wo m an who m akes m an y war m

, ,

friends S he is always frank ingenuous and S in

.
,

cere yet never blunt nor i m pulsively outspoken ,

for her natural delicacy and sy m pathy (co mbined

with an instincti ve reticence as shown by the ,

closed a s and o s ) te m per her expressions o f

’ ’

opinion with thoughtfulness and tact s o that she ,

is at no ti m e guilty o f wo u nding the feelings o f

others b y i m petuous or inconsiderate remarks .

S he is intuitive (separation of letters) though ,

her sen se of the practical does not allo w her to b e

governed very largely by mere intuition or i m
pulse This intuitive faculty however gives h e r
.
, ,
1 48 G raph o ogn l
quick perc eptions and a ready com prehension ;
it ena b les her to m ake up her m ind quickly s o ,

that S he is rarely at a loss h o w to act in case of

an e m ergency In conj unction with her practical
.

nature it gives her ingenuity ; ability to devise

and plan .

W hile she is practical (care ful a n d precise fo r

mation of writing) s h e is at the same time artis
,

tic and gifted with a ready fancy and a love for

t h e arts as indicated b y the lo n g loops o f the f s
’
, ,

g
’
s,
etc Com
. b ining the practical with the artis
t i c we have a person o f talent and one who puts ,

the arts to practical sensible use Hence w e

, .

may s a y that the writer is accomplished in m usic

or in art or in literature b u t while her work in
a n y of these branches would b e delicate and s y m

pathetic it would never b e highly i m aginative

,

nor strikingly original The com b ined qualities

.

of the artistic and t h e practical m ake her a very

c a pa b le wo m an b u t S h e is too painstaking too
, ,

conscientious too care ful in the f ollowing o f

,

rules ever to b e very b rilliant N evertheless

,
.

s h e is extremely versatile and whatever s h e does

,

s h e does well and with thoroughness There i s .

little s h e c annot do and will not do i f she so de ~

S i res .
 1 50 l
G raph o og n

l
n e st y.

pre c iation
At the same ti m e s h e has a hearty a p

o f pleasure and enj oyment ; f o r her

sympathies her a ff ections her sentiment give to

, ,

li fe a glow and color that relieve it of the auster

ity o f a purely practical nature .

O ur se c ond delineation deals with t h e hand

writin g o f a man and in this connection it may
,

b e well to state that there is no definite rule b y

w hich the c hirography of a m a n can b e distin

g u i s h e d f rom that of a woman A

. s a matter o f
f
a c t however it is usually not difficult to dis
, ,

t i n g u i sh the s e x in the hand w riting for the ,

writing o f w 0me n is as a rule characteristic and

is generally recognized b y any one But it does .
‘

f requently happen that a wo m an writes like a

man and that a man will write a feminine hand .

W hen this occurs it is largely a matter o f guess

work to tell the s e x of the writer If it were a .

matter o f i m portance it might b e worth while to

endeavor to formulate so m e m ethod of distin
g u i s h i n
g the writing o f one sex fro m the other ,

b u t as a m atter of fact it m akes but little di ff er

ence to the graphologist s o far as the general
‘

char a cter of the writer i s concerned though at

the sa m e ti me it is al ways well for the delineator
to know the s e x of the writer as it ena b les him
,
 l
G raph o og n 1 51

to give m ore definite details and to give the

proper modificatio n to the s i g n i fic an c e s of t h e
features according to whether they apply to a
man or a woman .
 De l
i
n e at i on of Ch a ra c t e r

Fl
l
R ep res e n te d i n th e H an d w r i ti n g S h ow n on th e
o ow i n g P a e
g

l(The numbers in pare n theses re f er to the par

t i c u ar sections in P art I descri b ing the f eatures

m entioned ) .

An analysis of the hand writing gi ves u s first , ,

the f ollowing general f eatures

R ounded w riting (2 ) with a n gular mo d i fi c a
tions
modifications
For ward writing (3 ) with vertica
A tendency to heavy writi n g
l
uneven writing Crowded wor d s
b u t a tendency to diff u se writing W riting
not well spaced D ecided margin
S o m uch for the general features Continuing .

the analysis w e find the following special fe a

tures
D isconnected letters but with instances
of connected wor d s decreasing size of letters
The letters a and 0 are b oth closed (3 3) and
ope n The letter b i s unlooped The
1 52
1 54 G raph o ogu l
l
etter d is curved it is also looped (4 1 ) and
in one instance it descends belo w the line
T h e letter f i s looped T here is one instance
o f the letter 8 b eing tig h tly closed The
general stroki n g o f the t is a b ove the letter
It has a tendency to loop The re is a gen
eral a b sence o f terminal strokes
From this analysis it will b e seen that we have
b e f ore us in this speci m en a hand writing w hose
features lack uni f ormity and consistency . It
affords us a good example o f a mixed hand The .

delineation to b e drawn from it must b e deter

mined largely b y the result o f the com b ination

l
o f its varying f eatures . There is scarcely one
f eature s u fli c i e n t y definite or su fficiently pro
n ou n c e d to b e d epended upon f o r a determinate

characteristic I t is such an exa m ple as this as

.

puts the skill o f the graphologist to the test .

By going ab out it systematically however it

, ,

will b e found to b e a simpler task than might at

first b e imagined . S o much depends upon merely
knowing how .

Looking at the first two or three general

features in combination we would say that the
,

generally rounded ha n d with a vertical tendency

wa s an indication o f a person who was naturally
 l
(Branb O 0 9Q 1 55

inclined to be deliberate and indolent ; to take

li fe rather easily ; work ing when necessary but
rarely for the m ere love of doing something .

The presence however of a n gular form ations

, ,

here and there introduces an ele m ent of activity

, .

W hile there are not enough of the m to m ake the

l
writing angular they are nevertheless s u ffi
,

l
cien t
y a b undant to conclude that while the
writer is natura ly deliberate as suggested by ,

the ro u nded feature his nature contains a cer

,

tain amount of energy and nervousness C o m .

bining these two features t h erefore we S houl d

, ,

s ay that the writer was a person o f a restless dis

position H i s moods are often uncertai n and i n

.

definite ; he wants to be doing and he doesn t ’

l
want to b e doing At ti mes he will work i h
.

d u st ri o u s y and deter m inedly and with great

energy and vigor a n d again he has neither the
,

inclination nor the energy to turn his hand to

anything practical .

The rounded hand reflects his aesthetic nature ;

his love of the beautiful his artistic sense whic h
, ,

qualities are confir m ed by the i magination and

fancy sho w n in the m ethod of strok ing the t and ,

i n the good si z ed loops of the f and p In these

l
- .

respects he is essentially poetica and were t h ,

e
1 56 G raph o l
ogn

features that are significant o f this characteristic

sustained throughout the w riting w e could s e t
him down as a m a n o f decided genius as a poet .

But we find in the a n gular writing and in the

tendency to j oi n his words together an element
o f the practical nature with a tendency toward
,

the material as evidenced by the decided shad

,

ing here and there These off set to some extent

.

his idealistic tempera m ent and indicate that he

i s to so m e degree practical and capa b le a s a man
of b usiness and with a certain degree o f fond
,

ness fo r the m aterial pleasures o f life .

But to wh atever extent he may b e practical ,

he lacks m ethod and systemati c plans This is .

shown by the a b sence of good spacing and b y

the f eature of disconnected letters N o r has he .

the faculty o f concentration necessary fo r long

continued me t hodical work as shown in the
, ,

di ff use writing H e is too easily diverted ; his

.

m ind is too restless too susceptible to the i n fl u

,

ence o f his surroundings too i m patient of logical

,

and tedious reasoning (disconnected letters) .

I t b eco m es evident therefore that the intui

, ,

tive artistic and spiritual ele m ents of his nature

, ,

out w eigh the practical and material in their

i m portance Combined as they are makes i t
.
1 58 G rapb o ogn l
portance fo r fear that others may take advantage
of h i m should he disclose his purposes too soon .

In other respects he is frank and outspoken as ,

indicated by the open a s and o s

’ ’
.

H e is inclined to be opinionated and is rather

intoleran t of argument as denoted by the d i s
,

connected letters and this f eature indicates also

,

that he is intuitive j u mps at conclusions and is

, ,

mentally alert and active But in m aking up his

.

mind on matters o f business or on m atters affect

ing his personal interests he i s o ften very slo w
and uncertain due to the presence o f the logical
, ,

reasoning faculty shown in the joining o f two

of his word s and the general uncertainty or i n
decision that characterizes many o f his moods as ,

pointed out in the opening paragraph Con .

sequently he is someti mes unreasona b ly perverse

in co m ing to a decision H i s j udgment and his
.

intuition clash ; the one dictates one ac tion and

the other an opposite course .

The general u nconventionality o f his writing ,

together with the unlooped b tells us that he is

,

a m a n o f originality he is not com m onplace nor

a person of m ediocre talents The curved d .

would suggest that his talents lie in the direction

o f literature in one form or another W hatever .
 G raph o ogn l 1 59

the part i cular form whether as play w right

, ,

l
novelist poet or critic —his w ork possesses i n
, ,

d i vi d u a i ty and fancy and is always artistic as

, ,

shown in the general lack of characteristics i n

d i c a t i n g practicality and the w ide m argins
.

H i s nervous te m pera m ent w ould naturally

m ake h i m fussy and often u nreasonably irritated
over t ri fl e s— a trait which is also denoted by the
wide margins .

H e is sensitive on matters touching his pri d e

his sensibilities are easily affected (looped t and
d s ) and he is apt to take prej udices and bear
’
,

m alice toward those who he thinks have wronged

him or o ff ended h i m.

The general unevenness of the writing and the

varying slopes of the letters S how in a person of
,

this character versatility and thoughtlessness

, .

There is little he cannot do i f so inclined ; his

m ind is quick and keen ; rapid of comprehension ;
grasps principles intuitively and is capa b le of
,

ready understanding and m astery of any su b ject ,

though it is doubtful whethe r he h as the patience

or the industry to devote hi m self undividedly to
any one sub j ect ex c ept as a matter of necessity .
0 138 9 130 10 9 2

PL A TE 1 .
 G raph otog u 1 63

l
A n a y s i s o f H a n d w ri t i n g— P l
at e 1

( W m W i i
’
o an s r t n
g) .

A N G U L AR , forward hand— activity quickness , .

Rounded tendencies — love of pleasure N eat .

,

u nifor m writing — m ethodical careful tasteful , ,

.

W ell spaced writing — prudence good judg m ent ,

.

S trai g ht lines — perseverance fir m ness of char ,

acter .

Connected letters — reasoning faculty logical , ,

argu m entative ; careful in business affairs O pen .

a s and o s — fran k outspoken candid c o n fid e n

’ ’
, , ,

tial Cross cut capitals— self appreciation a n d

.
- -

egotis m tempered by good j udgment balance

,
-
, ,

taste and reason as sho wn by uni for m writing

, , ,

good spacing and other analogous features .

Looped d — sensitive pride dignity Lo n g loops ,

.

to f s and g s — cleverness lively i magination

’ ’
, ,

fondness for poetry m usic etc ; fancifulness , ,

.
,

te mpered by good judgm ent carefulness and ,

taste as indicated by other features noted above

, .

Letter p long and looped — fond of physical a c

t i vi t y d ancing sports outdoor exercise ; gr a ceful
, , ,
.

Letter t well crossed crossed above the letter , ,

and not crossed — fi rm n e ss deliberation a n d con ,

s c i e n t i o u s n e s s modified by i m aginativeness and a

,

tendency to vacillation Long ter m inal strokes .

— generous extravagant ; sympatheti c

,
.
1 64 l
G rapho og n

PLA TE 2. 3
 G raph o og n l 1 67

l
A n a y s i s o f H a n d w ri t i n g—P
W m W i i
l
at e 3
(
’
o a n s r t n
g) .

Combination of angular and rounded hand

activity quickness and energy modified by love
, ,

of ease D ecidedly forward hand — susceptibility

.

to emotion and sentiment ; controlled largely by

feelings ; a ff ectionate and demonstrative Fine .

writi n g —quiet and modest tastes ; gentleness .

Hasty and indistinct writing— impulsive ani ,

mate d vivacious ; impatient intolerant o f rules ;

, ,

original S traight lines — perseverance m odified

.

by traits i n dicated in preceding feature

Con n ected letters —practical pru d ent logical ;
.

, ,

bu t these traits are al m ost entirely overcome by

i mpulsiveness originality and suscepti b ility to
,

senti m ent a s shown in other features which

l
l
,

dominate the writing P lain capitals— m odesty .

,

lack of conceit T a s t rok e capitals— ambitious

.
o

for the w elfare of others O pen a s and o s .

’ ’

frank candid outspoken I nitial hook on letters

, ,
.

b m t e t c — talkative ; good conversationalist

, , ,
.

U nlooped y s — natural determination and insist

’

ence m odified largely by i m pulsiveness and

,

senti m entality Cross strok e of the t placed to

.
-

the right of the letter— impatience quickness , ,

etc Terminal strokes— ready sy mpathies gen

.
,

e ro s i t
y ; s el f s ac ri-
fi c e ; kindnes s .
1 70 l
G raph o ogu

w p fi w flr
fl

”
M
M

A
PL T E 5.
 G raph o oan l 171

l
An a y s i s of H an d w r ti n g i
W ri ti n g
—P l
at e 5
(M a n
’
s .
)
Back hand— self interest ; sentimen t controlled
l
b y reason and personal conside rations ability
0 1 i g i n a i t y ; shrewd diplo m atic S mall hand
,

indiv i duality o f c h a ra c t e i ; u n c o n fi d e n t i a ; indus

.

l
.

t 1 i ous thoughtful capable ; S lf relia n t ; quiet

, ,
e .

N eat u n i fo 1 1n W 1 iting — g o od j udg m ent and b us i

ness instincts m o d ified by lack of aggressiveness
, ,

as S hown in the s mall a n d co m paratively fine

writing and by the ten d ency to separate the
,

letters o f a word sho w ing an i n clinatio n to

l
,

jum p at conclusio n s h a s tily Li n e s slope upward

—
.

a m b ition and hope fu n e ss .

O ccasional disconnected letters — tendency to

l l
for m hasty conclusions and to be i m pat i ent of
rules P l a i n c a pita s— lac k of conceit ; art i stic
sense C o s e d a s and o s — u ncom m unicative ; re
.
’ ’

s e rved ; lack o f cando r Letter d m ade wit h .

c u rved and ho o ked u ps t ro ke— literary tastes and

abilities Le t t e i s f a n d g m ade wit h a n d without
.

loops — fancy and i magination co m bined w it h

pra ctical ideas Letter go very S h o rt — indifference
.

to athletics o r o u td o or sports Letter t stro k ed .

upward — hopefulness and opti mistic d isposition ;

fanciful a m bitious sche ming inventive G eneral
absence of terminal strokes —s e fi s h u n e x t ra v
nt
, , ,

l .

a
g a .
1 72 l
G raph o ogn

PLAT E 6 .
 G raph o og g l 1 75

An a y s i s l of H an d w r i t i n g— P l
at e 7
(W om a n W ri ti n g
’
s
)
.

A ngular , forward an d large hand —energy ,

quickness animation industry love o f activity ;

, , ,

i mpatience quick te m per i m pulsiveness ; quic k

, ,

sy m pathies The feature of the large writing i n

.

itself shows diffuseness of thought lack o f con ,

centration restlessness desire for change ; read y

, ,

expression of opinion o r f eeli n gs Tendency to .

‘

ward heavy writing— love of pleasure good liv ,

ing and luxury ; aggressive and i n sistent W rit .

ing comparatively well spaced— practical dis

position m ethodical D iffuse writing— largely
,
.

confirms characteristics sho w n by the size of the

writing ; offsets to some extent the m ethodical
trait indicated by good spacing
l
.

D isconnected letters— intuitive ; quick at con

c u s i o n s ; impatient of argument or reason ; crit
ical Letters f and g m ade with long loops
.

fanciful good i magination lively u nconventional

, , , .

Letter 7) long— fond of physical recreation ; e n

j oys outdoor sports and pleasures generally .

Letter t cross cut and m ade with initial hook

-

egotistical and self centred ; good talker lively

-
,

and animated conversationalist ; loquacious .

Terminal strokes and hooked — extravagance ,

generosity determination insisten c e and o b s t i

, ,
'

nacy .
 (Bran[30 10 9 9 179

An a l
ysis of H a n d w ri ti n g- P l
ate 9
(M W ri ti n g )
’
a/n s .

Com b ination of angular and rounded hand

natural love o f ease associated with a disposition
to ward quiet industry Irregular forward hand
.

— lack of decisive inclination i n most matters .

Fine writing quiet tastes and te m perate de

-

sires ; natural refinement and gentleness Inar .

t i s t i c writing— trustworthiness unaffected man ,

ners naturalness moral courage U neven

, ,
.

writing— lack of m ethod ; unsystematic careless ,

.

D iffuse writing— uneconomical generous .

Connected letters — reasoning faculty ; con

s e rv a t i v e ; c onclusions b ased upon j udg m ent
rather than sentiment or intuition Increasing .

l
size o f letters — deci d ed conscientiousness strict ,

adherence to principles P lain capita s— m odest

.
,

unassuming ; lack of conceit O pen a s and o s .

’ ’

— candor and frankness Letter t stroked on the .

left hand side— procrastination which in con

-
, ,

junction with the indicated traits o f a rounded

hand renders the writer slow and deliberate
,
.

U npronounced terminal strokes — regulated s y m

pathi c s and generosity .
1 80 l
G raph o ogn

z f f
y e gf

P LAT E 10 .
1 82 l
G raph o og n

A
PL TE 1 1 .
 G raph o ogu l 1 83

A n a y s isl of H an dw ri t i n g— P l
ate 1 1

(W m W ri ti n g
’
o en s .
)
A ngular, f or ward hand , with rounded m o d i fi
c ations— quickness , activity , ani m ation energy , ,
tem pered with love of pleasure the enjoyment ,

of co mforts and luxuries and an ar t istic tem per ,

ament S haded writing— emphatic insistent

.
, ,

determined ; also confirmatory of fondness of

luxury etc W riting not well spaced— lack of
,
.

m ethod unsystematic ; careless ; unconventional .

Hasty and indistinct writing— i m pulsive hasty , ,

capab le original good t a lker entertaining

, , , ,

gifted tactful insincere A scending lines— a m

, ,
.

b i t i o us opti m istic b right ; not easily dis

, ,

c o u rag e d .

D isconnected letters— intuitive mentally alert ,

and keen quick at form ing conclusions which
, ,

characteristics are m arkedly em phasized by the

q ualities shown in the feature of hasty and indis
tinct writing D ecreasing size of letters— tact
.

fulness lack of fran k ness etc Letters a and 0 ,

.
,

both open and closed — i m pulsive c o n fid e n c e s

wit h a natural desire to be uncomm unicative .

Letters b and t for m ed with initial hook— tal ka

tive Letters f and g formed with long loops
.

fanciful ro m antic unconventional Letter t

, ,
.

heavily stroked— fi rmn e s s deter mination will , ,

power S troke placed o n the right of letter

.

i m pa t i e n c e q u i c k n e ss etc
, ,
.
1 84 l
G raph o ogn

PLAT E 12 .
1 86 G rapho og gl

PL A
TE 1 3.
 (Braph o og u l
l
An a y s is of H an rt
d w i i n g —P l
at e 1 3
(W o m an
’
s W ri ti n g
).

Rounded , for ward hand lack of energy love —

,

of ease indolence ; t hese traits b eing especially

,

indicated by reason o f the com bination o f the

rounded for m with the straggling and weak a p
p e a ra n ce of the writing as a whole H eavy .

writing— m aterial nature ; animal appetit e s ;

assertive selfish exacting U neven writing and
, ,
.

writing that is not well spaced— unsystematic ,

careless fl i g h t y lack o f poise or balance ; little

, ,

or no po wer of concentration of mind ; vacilla

tion u n reliableness Crowded writing— s us pi
,
.

cions close secretive n arrow minded D escend

, , ,
-
.

ing lines— morb id i magination pessi m istic nature ,

lack of energy or a m bition .

Letters both connected and disconnected

mixture of argumentativeness and i n difference .

Letters a and o closed — lack of candor Letter .

l
d made with large loop — extre m e sensitiveness ;
mor bid s u s pe c t i b i i ty to offense ; easily insulted
or wronged ; this trait b eing confirmed and
emphasized by the looped t a in the writing Let ’
.

ter t s t rok e d for the most part on the left

, ,

pro c rasti n atio n .

1 88 l
G raph o og iz

P LAT E 14 .
 G raph o og g l 1 91

l
A n a y s is of H a n d w ri t i n g —P l ate 1 5
(M a n W ri ti n g )
’
s .

Rounded , forward hand love of pleasure —

,

easy going kindly good natured W riting some

-
, ,
-
.

what conventional — lack of distincti v e in d ividu

ality ; co m monplace culture and attain m ents .

N eat uniform writing — methodical tidy careful , .

, ,

W ell spaced writing— good judg m ent business ,

instincts m odified by the characteristics indicated

,

by disconnected letters S traight lines— will .

power but largely modified b y weak and u n c e r

,

tain crossing of the letter t .

D isconnected letters— intuitive ; h asty con

elusions ; indifference to rules or reasoning .

l
Closed a s and o s — unco mm unicative on p e rsonal
’ ’

l
affairs R elatively sma l d — indi ff erence to prin
c ip es
.

readiness to waive a principle i n favor o f

personal interest Letter t crossed weakly— lack
.

of will power or firmness ; vacillation change

-

a b leness indecision lack of sel f relian c e

, ,
-
.
1 94 3 1 3 0 130 10 9 2

li
s u ce .

A
PL T E 1 7 .
 G t apDO 1 0 9 Q 1 95

An a y s i s l of H an d w ri t i n g — P l
at e 1 7
(M a n W ri t i n g
’
s .
)
Rounded hand with angular m o d i fic at i on s
love of ease appreciation of good living and
,

luxuries combined with activity industry and a

, ,

desire to do Tendency toward a vertical hand

.

—inclined to be more or less d eliberate to weigh ,

matters carefully ; lack of i mpulsiveness or rea d y

response to emotion S m all writing— good m e n
.

tal faculties ; cultured inclined to be reserved ; ,

educated Tendency to heavy writing — asser

.

tive determ ined appreciatio n o f material and

, ,

physical pleasures .

There is a tendency to dis c onnected letters

intuiti ve faculties quickness of perception ready
, ,

arrival at conclusions ; critical Capita l M made .

with tall third stroke— nervousnes s irritability , ,

exacting and unreasonable nature in many re

s pe c t s
. Closed a s and o s — lack of candor ; u n
’ ’

communicative Letter d formed with loop

.

sensitive ; easily o ff ended ; morbid prejudices .

Letter p for med with long loop— physical agil

ity fondness for sports and outdoor recreations
generally and dan cing Letter t stroked firm ly
,
.

and h eavily — firm n e s s great will po wer and de ,

-

termination Tendency to initial hook s on so m e

.

of the letters— talkativeness H eavy hoo k ed .

,

terminal strokes— insist e n ce and determination .

1 96 l
G raph o og n

—
J ( a .
ex .
L
f
r
Qe sm u

M W 07 :

W V4”

PL A
TE 18 .
 l
G raph o og g

PL A TE
 t pb O O 9 Q l 1 99

l
An a y s is of H a n d w ri ti n g— P l
ate 1 9
W o m an
( W ri ti n g )
’
s .

Rounded and decidedly forward hand— pleas

ure loving fond of ease and luxury appreciative
-
,

of the b eauties the art the comforts of life ;

,
,

sy m pathetic a ff ectionate kind hearted i mpu

sive W riting not well spaced with a tendency
.
,

,
-
l
,

to crowding— lack o f b usiness methods or syste

matic action ; ten d ency to carelessness in matters
of uni m portance and t ri fl e s ; rather circumscri b ed
views and desires ; little taste for general society
a saving economical disposition Lines have a
,
.

downward tendency — easily dis c ouraged ; s u b

c t to moods o f depression i n an otherwise
j e

bright and lively nature as shown b y the de ,

cided f or ward hand and the roun d ed formation

indi c ating love of pleasure .

Increasing size o f letters— conscientiousness ;

high sense of duty Tall strok e capital M — am .
-

bitio n s for the success of others Closed a s and .

’

o s — uncommunicative ; not generally c o n fid e n

’

tial Letter d formed with backward curve

.

critical disposition ; introspective Letters f and .

y made with long loops — lively fancy original ,

ideas unconventional notions ; fondness for

,

poetry music e t c
, ,
.
 G ranb o ogxz l 2 03

l
An a y s i s of H an dw ri t i n g — P l
at e 2 x

(W o m a/n W ri ti n g )
’
s .

R ounded , forward hand — easy g oing,

lack o f
energy; love of pleasure ease comfort and luxu , ,

ries ; appreciative of the good things of life ;

kindly good natured ; quietly sympathetic and
,
-
,

loving ; rarely de m onstrative and generally ,

a b out the sam e fro m one day to another These .

traits are indicated also to some extent b y the , ,

conventional style of writi n g which signifies a ,

perso n of comm onplace ordinary attributes with , ,

nothing distinctive one way or another The .

writing is generally well spaced — m ethodical ,

careful to follo w directio n s and to do what is re
garded as fashionable The writing has a tend .

ency to be cro w ded — economical saving ; pru ,

dent natur a lly close fi s t e d and thrifty The
,
-
.

lines have a tendency to ascend— m ildly ambi

tious hopef u l opti m istic
, , .

Connected let t ers — slo u think er wants a rea r

s on for whatever is done The letters are all .

for med conventionally i n k eeping wi t h the chi ,

ro g ra ph y as a whole and are of little individual

,

significance Letter t is not crossed — lack of

.

will power or self c o n fid e n c e ; a personality with

- -

out any decided views o r convictions of its own

General absence of terminal strokes—not readily
.

generous ; self centred -

.
20 4 l
G rapb o og n

L d

4 24 M

! i m
PLAT E 22 .
 (Brapb o log g 2 07

An a y s i sl of H a n d w ri t i n g —P l ate 2 3

(W m W ri ti n g
’
o a n s .
)
Co m bined angular and rounded writing — in
d u s t ri o u s active energetic practical with love
, , , ,

of ease appreciation of com fort and luxury and

, ,

a tendency to tak e life easy Forward hand .

susceptibility to i m pulse U neven writing— i n .

difference to rules or engage ments W riting not .

well spaced— m ore or less carelessness in certain

directions ; u n stable d ecisions ; intolerance o f
restraint or dictation .

D isconnected letters with the general tendency

,
—
however toward connected letters critical d i s
position observant ; a good reasoner ; logical de
,

c i s i o n s in matters of i m portance Letters of .

varying size— versatility capable of doing many

things well and perfectly O pen a s and o s .
’ ’

candor frankness ; outspoken opinions Tall

, .

letter d — pride of fa mily or personal dignity .

The i dot placed well to the right of the letter

quick ness ; energy Letter t strok ed firm ly and
.

to the right of the ste m— will power fir m ness -

, ,

determination ; i m patience activity This letter , .

as well as others descends below the line— insist

,

ence O b stinacy ; hard to convince ; opinionated

l
, .

Letter 31 m ade with long loop— fanciful ; u n c on a

v e n t i o n a ideas fond of fads

,
.
210 l
G rapb o ogg

l
Can d or

l
Care fu n ess
Care ess n ess
Ch a ri ty
l
C e v e rn ess
Coa rs e n ess
Commu n i ca ti v e n ess
Co n c e i t
Co n c e n t ra ti on
L k ac of

Co n c i se n ess
Co n sc i e n t i ou s n ess
Co ns e rva ti sm
Con s ta n c y
l
.

Cri t i c a d i spos i ti on
l
Cu tu re
L k ac of

Cu n n i n g

Dari n g
D ec e i tfu ln ess

l
D e c i s i on
D i b ti
D l
e e ra on

e i cac y
L k ac of

t ti
D e on s ra v e n e ss
m
t m i ti
l
D e er n a on
D i p omac y
Di sc re t i on
l
D i ss i m u a t i on
Domi n e e ri n g d i spos i t i on
 i noex 211

E co n om i ca l d i s pos i i on t
Eg t i m ( C i t )
o s se e on c e

Emph ti d i p i ti
a c s os on

E gy
Em ti ( pti bi l
ner .

o i ty t )
on s su sc e o

E th i m
n u s as

L k f ac o

Ex ti g d i p i ti
Ex ti bi l
ac n s os on

ec u i ty ve a

Ext g ra va an ce

Fa n cy
Fi n esse
Fi rmn ess
Fra n n ess k
L k ac

G e n e ros i y t 3, 1 7 , 6 2

H as ti n e ss

ty
l
H o n es

H o pe fu n e ss

L k ac of

I d ea i sm l
I magi n a t i on
I mpa ti e n ce
l
I m pu s i ve n ess
212 e t aDDO I O QQ

I n d u s try
I n si g h t
I n s i n ce ri ty
In si s ten ce
ll
l
I n te e c tu a
t i y
I n t e gri ty
I n t u i t i on

J u d gme n t

t
! i n d -h ear e d n e ss

Li t e rary t t as e s

L i
ov n g n a u re t
L x
u u ri ou s t t as e s

Laz i n ess

t l
M e h od i ca d i s pos i i on t
M od es y t
b
M or i d n ess

N e at n ess
N e rvo us t e m pe ra m e n t
24
9, 45, 51 , 55, 6 3
21 4 l
G rapb o og g

R e l
blt
ia i i y

R ese rve

R eso u lt i on
L k
t l
ac of

R es fu n ess

R ti
e

R gf
e ve n
c e n ce

l
e u n ess

R m ti
o an c d i spos i ti on
R gh
ou n ess

l t
S ec re i ve n ess

S lt
S e f-c on sc i ous n ess
e f -c on ai n me n t
L k
S lt t
ac of

l
e f -i n e res

S ll
S e fis h n ess

Sl t
e f-re i an ce
e f-res pec

S lt t
e f-res rai n

L k
Sl
ac of

e f -sac ri fic e .

S t
ti bi l
e n si i v e n ess
S ti m t ( i ty
l
en en su sce p

S i mp i i ty c .

S i i ty
ll
n cer

l
S i
o ve n n ess

S w o n ess
 I nner 215

S pi i
us c ou s n ess

Sy mp t h y a

Sy t m t i
s e a c t
d i s pos i i on

l
T tfac u n ess

L k
Tl
ac of

kt a a i v e n ess
T t (g d )
as e oo

T mpe er

T mp t t t
e e ra e as es

T d
Th gh tf l
en ern ess

ou u n ess

Th if ti
T th f l
r n ess

ru u n ess

T t w th i
ru s or n ess

Vi vac i y t

W i fu l
l
l
l n ess

W i pow e r
-

L k ac of

W orry i n g t
d i spos i i on
fiTi Q UE TTE
l
Th ere i s n o passport t o g oo d m
”

831 Agnes I 1 Mo rto n ike g o o d man n e rs fl] E ve n th o u gh one

ll
. .

posse ss w e alth an d in te llig e nc e hi s suc

ll l
,

c e ss in ife may b e marre d by ign o ran c e o f soc i al c u stoms .

11] A pe rus a o f this bo o k wi pre ve n t suc h blun de rs i t is

l
.

a bo o k fo r e ve ry bo dy for the s o c ia le a d e rs a s w e l as for

l
,

those e ss ambi tio us Q 1] T he subj e ct is pre se n te d in a bright

.

and in te re stin g man n e r an d re pre se n ts the a t e st vog u e

l
, .

LETT E RW RiT NG W hy do most

l
l
dislike to
pe rson s
By Agnes W rite le tt e rs ? i s it n o t be c ause

l
Mo rton
‘
.

the y c an n o t say the ri ght thin g i n

the rig ht plac e 9 T his admirable b oo k n o t o n y sh ow s by
nume rous e xample s ju st w ha t kin d o f le tte rs to w rite bu t by

l
l
,

dire cti on s an d su g ge stio n s e n a ble s th e re a de r to b e c o me an

ac c e ptan c e s e tte r
, l l
ac c omplish e d o ri gin al le tte r w rite r !II T he re are fo rms for a
.

kin ds o f bu sin e ss an d s oc ial e tte rs in c lu di n g in vi ta ti ons

,

s o f sy mpat hy c o n gra tulatio ns an d ove

, , l ,

Q uoTAT i O NS A l lt
c e ver c ompi a i on f thy
pi q u ota

ll
o

By Agnes H M or o n. t i
t on s, d fro m a gre a t varie ty of
l
se e cte

s o u rc e s an d a phab e tic ally

, a rran g e d

ac c ordin g t o the s e n time n t 41} i n a dditi o n to a th e popular

l
.

q u o ta tion s in c u rre n t u se i t c o n t ain s man y rare bi ts o f prose

,

an d ve rse n o t g e n e rally foun d i n s imilar c olle ctio n s ( O ne

l
.

importan t fe a tu re o f th e bo o k i s fo un d i n th e c hara cte ri stic

we s t a di m} to the ir o rig in a so urce s

u
l
in e s fro m w e ll kn o wn a u thors in w hic h the familiar saying
,
E Pi f APfiS E ven de ath has its humo rous si d e .

By F re deri c w H oga n (J! T he re a re s aid to be se rmon s in

l
.

"
éto n e s bu t w he n the y are to mbston e!

l
,

the re is marry J smi e mixe d wi th the mo ral 11] U s ually .

c hurc hy ard humor is a the more d e lightful b e c ause i t is

un c o n sc io u s but the re a re ti me s whe n i t i s in t e n tio n al an d
,

bo ok c o n tain s the be st l
non e the le ss a mu sin g 1] O f e pi taphs o d a n d n e w this
.

t i s full o f q u ain t bi ts o f o bitu a ry

.
, l ,

fan c y wi th a touc h o f the grue so me here an d the re for a

,

t t
ht l
PROVE RBS T he g e n iu s, wi t, d ii f a na i on

l t l
an sp r o

By Jo h n H Bec e

t
, disc o ve re d in its
are

c o n de n se d w i sdo m o f a

na i o n s i s e mb od ie d i n t
a n d the

a g e s an d a

h e m 61] A g o o d prove rb tha fits

l
pro ve rbs ,
’

l
.

t
the c ase i s o f e n a c o n vin c in g a rg u me n (if T his v olume t .

t tt t
c on a in s a re pre se n a i ve c olle c io n o f pro ve rbs o d a n d n e w , ,

an d the in d e e s x t
o pic al a n d alphabe ic al e n able on e to fin d
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TH I NGS W O RTH C an y ou n ame the co ldest pa ce in

! NO W I NG U ni e d S a e s o r e
the a t
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By John H 3 “ ; t ha d 4 4 5 d ay s ? Do y o u kn ow

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a ni c t i oNARY on M ost of us n ine to t e a m
MY TH O LOGY ‘
my tho o gic a subje ct b e c a u so
O f th e e q uire d !II T his
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featu re o f the boo k i s the pron u n c ia i on of the prope rname s, t

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S L PS O FS PE E CH W ho d oe s
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50 0 k c on tain s ove r w o rds o n w hic h mo st o f us are

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By W i iam Pttte nger re spon d to a to ast o r to ma ke an a d
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.

the abi ity to be rid of this e mba rra ssme n t ? N o n ee d to

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from it many su g ge stions .

T H E DE BAT E RS T he re is n o gre ater ability than

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TRE ASU RY the pow e r o f s killfu l an d forc ible

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mo re re adily a c q uire d i f the pe rson

is pro pe rly dire cte d ( I n this little volu me are dire ction s for

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o rg an iz in g a n d c o n d u ctin g d e ba tin g s oc ie tie s a n d pra é

su g g e stio n s fo r a
ti c a
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.

h l so a list o f o ve r 2 00 q u e sti o n s for d e b ate with

(II T e re i s a ,

a rgume n ts b o th a ffirmati ve an d n e g a tive

ON
PU N CTUAT'
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Fe w pe rso ns punc tu a t l
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a te a t a Q] A pe ru sal o f his b oo k t
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t
wi l re mo ve a diffic ul i e s an d ma ke a poin s c le ar ( T he .

f t t t
ru e s are pla in ly st a e d a n d fre e ly illu s ra e d thu s furni shin g ,

a mo st u se ful v olu me t
(H T he a u hor i s e ve ry w he re re c o g

ll
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ni ze d a s the le a din g au ho ri y u po n the s ub je dt an d w hat ,

he has to say is praéi ca c oncise an d c o mpre he nsive

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 Q RATO RY Fe w ’
me n d a wi de r ex
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By H e nry W ard Be e c h e r pe ri e nc e o r a c hie ve d a hig he r re pu a

t ati o n in pu blic s pe a kin g th an M r .

Be e c he r ‘ia W ha t he h a d to s ay o n this su bje ct w as bo rn

.

of e xpe rie n c e a n d his o w n in imit able s ty le w a s a t o n c e b o th

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st a te me n t a n d illu stra ti o n o f h the me 41] T his v olu me i s a

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u niq u e a n d ma st e rly tre a ti s e o n the fu n dame ntal prin c i ples «of

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CoNVE RSAT O N
By J P M ah a ffy
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l S o me pe o ple are a c c u se d o f ta kin
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ii
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p a ce .

t t
N o hin g is mo re d e ligh ful o r valu able 4] T o su gge s w ha . t t
to sa y j u st h o w a n d w he n to s ay i is the g e n e ra l a im o f
, t ,

, t
this w ork an d i su c c e e ds mo st admirably in its pu rpose .

RE AD N G
AS A FNE ART
l l T he abili ty to re ad alo u d w e l
w he the r a t the fi re side o r o n th e
l ,

t
By E rnes Legou vé pu blic pla tfo rm i s a fin e art , .

!H T he d ire cti on s an d su gg e sti on s

c ont } re d in this wo rk o f st a n dard a u tho rity w ill g o far
tow ai d the a ttain me n t o f this c h armin g a c c o mplishme n t .

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11]T he w o rk i s e s pe c ially re c o mme n de d to te ac he rs and
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S O CI AU SM
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By Char e s H O h " .
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S oc ialism is i n th e ai r C Re fe re nc e? .

to the s ubje ct are c o n st an tly a ppe a ring

09

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n e w spa pe rs ma g a z in e s an d othe r

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pub ic a n s. fl] Bu t fe w pe rso n s e x cep t th e i list the m
so c a s

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se ve s t
h ave mo re han a dim c o mpre he n sio n o a a f w h t it re ly
me an s (E T his b oo k giv e s i n a c le ar an d in e re sti n g mann er
. t
t
a c o mple e ide a o f the e c on o mi c d oct rin e s a u gh by the be a t t t

soc i alists .

W ha t is
ho w is it o b tain e d how
ll
JO URN AL' SM n e w s,

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By Char es H O i n . han dle d

a n d ho w c a n o n e be c o me a

ll
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Journ alist ? fl] T hes e q u e sti on s are a

ans w e re d in this b oo k an d de t a i e d in stru ctio n s a re give n fo r
,

o bta in in g a po sitio n a n d w ritin g u p a kin ds o f assign

me n t s. Q] It sho w s w ha t to a vo id
d wha to c ul iva e
an t t t ,

an d t
c o n ai n s c hap e rs t on boo k re vi e win g d rama i c c ri ic ism
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an d proo fre a ding

l l l
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t A ho u gh alw ay s a de lightful fo rm
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VE N TR LO Q U SM
By Ch ar es H O in t t o f e n e r ain me n t V e n triloq uism is

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t o mo st o f u s more o r le ss o f a

my st e ry ( t n e e d b e s o n o lo n ge r ! T his boo k e xpose s .

the se c re ts o f the a rt c omple t e ly a n d sho w s ho w almost

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an y on e ma y le arn to thro w the voic e bo th n e ar d far

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.

q Dire cti o n s for the c on stru ction o f au to maton s are give n:

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as w e l

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1] Ful y illu stra te d .

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