Part 16

A skillful palmist does not have to see the actual hand in order to give a correct reading. An impression of the palm on a sheet of smoked paper, which is afterward covered with oil in order to retain the impression, shows him the main line with sufficient distinctness to enable him to give a correct reading.

The Shape and Length of the Phalanges

represent certain qualities and features of character, as presented in the following:

Jupiter, the first finger.—If the first phalanx is longer than the second, it indicates ability to control others, direct and maintain order; if the second phalanx is long and well developed, it indicates leadership; if short and thin, intellectual weakness; if the third phalanx is long, it indicates love of power in material things.

Saturn, second finger.—If the first phalanx is longer than the second, it indicates ability for mastering scientific subjects; if the second phalanx is long, it indicates great interest in subjects requiring deep study; if the third phalanx is long, it indicates a love of metaphysics and money.

Sun, third finger.—If the first phalanx is longer than the second, it indicates love of the arts; if the second phalanx is long, it indicates success and love of riches; if the third phalanx is thick, it indicates an inherited talent for the arts.

Mercury, fourth finger.—If the first phalanx is longer than the second, it indicates a taste for and love of research; if the second phalanx is long and well developed, it indicates industrious habits; if the third phalanx is long and fat, it indicates a desire for the comforts of life.

The following points, upon which the science of Palmistry is based explain its mysteries, and will be found very interesting, amusing and instructive.

Form of the Hand

Hands are classed in seven types:

1. The Elementary or Bilious Hand, indicating brutal instinct instead of reason as the governing power of the character.

2. The Square or Jupiter Hand, indicating a practical, stubborn, methodical and conventional character; one apt to be suspicious of strangers and radical in views.

3. The Spatulate or Nervous Hand, so named because of its imagined resemblance to a spatula. It is broad at the base of the fingers, and indicates great energy and push to discover; also courage and fearlessness.

4. The Philosophic or Venus Hand has a long, thin, muscular palm, with long fingers; indicates a student of nature and searcher after truth.

5. The Mercury or Artistic Hand indicates quick temper, impulsiveness; a character that is light-hearted, gay and charitable, today; and tomorrow, sad, tearful and uncharitable.

6. The Lunar or Idealistic Hand indicates an extremely sensitive nature.

7. The Harmonic or Solar Hand indicates a character of great versatility, brilliant in conversation, and an adept in diplomacy.

Character from the Shape of a Hand and Fingers

The shape of the fingers is frequently a correct indication of the character of the individual, and taken in connection with the lines of the palm they serve as a forecast of the person’s life in the past and future.

A hand with pointed fingers (see Fig. 1) is rare and is usually the accompaniment of a delicate, sensitive palm and is the hand that is most often found among dreamers, poets, idealists, artists and philosophers. It is an indication that soul rules over matter and indicates a high-grade personality.

Conical fingers (as in Fig. 2), with a well-formed thumb, indicate that the person is quick in action and is ruled by impulse rather than by calculation. They are the sign of a clever, nervous, energetic character.

Square fingers (such as are shown in Fig. 3) indicate perseverance, regularity and a love of order. They are generally found with a thorough business man, a progressive, law-abiding citizen with a talent for conception and execution. Their owner is usually methodical, punctual and neat.

Spatulate fingers (as shown in Fig. 4) derive their name from the fact that the “spatula” is a knife-shaped instrument used by druggists, where the tip is slightly wider than the stem. Fingers of this kind show action, energy, self-confidence. They are often found in men who labor with their hands, and seldom with the idle rich.

Knotted fingers (as in Fig. 5) are an indication of toil, energy and resourcefulness. The person is usually more imitative than original, but is able to turn any situation to some practical advantage.

The refined woman’s hand (see Fig. 6) has the fingers neither spatulate nor square, but usually of the tapering type, tho not often pronounced, except in the idle women. Possessors of such hands love beautiful things, crave excitement, act on impulse, but make good wives and loving mothers.

The criminal’s fingers (see Fig. 7) are usually short and ill-formed. The fingers are wide at the base and rounded at the nails, which are apt to be thick and coarse. The palm is soft from lack of manual work. The thumb is short but flexible.

In the workman’s hand (see Fig. 8) the palm is hard and thick; not necessarily from toil but by nature. The thumb is short and slightly turned back. The fingers are usually coarse and thick. This hand indicates improvidence, lack of forethought, and primitive passions. It is also the hand of the savage and the illiterate.

The Mountains