Nothing so much lends enchantment to the hours or wings them to merry
flight as fortune-telling. And particularly fascinating is the art
of foretelling the future through the medium of palm-reading. When a
bright girl who has the faculty of revealing character and prophesying
the future by inspecting the hand is in a drawing-room, the hostess
need not fear for the pleasure of her guests, for the fair magician
will take care of beaux and belles alike, leading them on to happy
marriages and boundless wealth (for no real fortune-teller ever forgets
matrimony and money). Nor will the young people alone be anxious to
learn what is written in the palms of their hands, for more or less
superstition lingers with us all. And what if there has been a small
error regarding character-reading, or a trifling discrepancy relative
to past events, one happy guess will cause all such mistakes to be
forgotten: and besides, the necessity for verification is seldom
urgent. Palmistry is not altogether pastime, any more than divination
is altogether jugglery, for no hand is exactly like another hand; the
intersection of the lines, the stars, the mounts, the texture, really
do supply a guide to the character of the owner. And if, added to the
knowledge of hand-reading, you are a student of the face—and every
one is more or less a physiognomist—you will arrive at fairly correct
conclusions.
Palmistry is linked with astrology: the first finger belongs to
Jupiter, the middle to Saturn, the third to the Sun, the small finger
to Mercury; Venus is in the thick part below the thumb, the plain of
Mars is directly under the mount of Mercury, the moon controls all
beneath the kingdom of Mars. This link between the planets and the hand
was arbitrary; astronomers distributed deities among the planets, and
the planets were supposed to partake of the nature of the gods and to
influence life.
Palmistry also depends on analogy and symbolism. Every mark on the
hand has some mystical meaning. A star denotes success, barred lines
indicate obstacles; where several parallel lines are formed instead
of one, they show a variety of pursuits, instead of force only in one
direction. If lines are long, gently curved, and red, they indicate a
gentle disposition; if you have a special talent, there will surely
be a perpendicular line from the base of the hand toward the fingers;
this line is sometimes doubled. Long tapering fingers indicate high
mental qualities, a love of the arts, a thirst for knowledge, and
strength of memory, while the contrary shows a tendency to rapid
progress at first, only to be followed by failure in all intellectual
undertakings. People with short fingers are apt to be impulsive, if
they are very short, they indicate lack of tact. Long-fingered people
go into detail, and are punctiliously careful about trifles. Twisted
fingers with short nails show tyranny and a worrying temperament. If
the fingers fit closely together, their owner is apt to be avaricious;
if smooth, they indicate indiscretion and talkativeness. But if twisted
and showing spaces between, the person is sympathetic and generous.
Sensitiveness is shown by the small fleshy protuberances, which stand
out from the curved surface of the finger-tips. If your fingers are
broad, you will love things for their practical uses; your taste will
be for industries, mechanics, commerce. If your finger-tips are square,
you will be fond of literature, logic, language, you will be inclined
to theorize, and you will have respect for authority. The joints of the
fingers have an importance, so they too must be carefully examined.
Indeed, no one part of the hand can be taken alone; a joint or a line
or a mount may so change the meaning of what you have already observed,
as to greatly modify your conclusions. Conic fingers show a love for
the beautiful, the ideal and romantic, but the well-developed joints
may add moral force, as also does a large thumb. Hands that are always
white, regardless of temperature, tell of selfishness and conceit,
lack of sympathy for the sorrows of others. Soft hands tell of a lazy,
lethargic temperament; hard hands show a love of exercise and labor.
Soft hands indicate tenderness rather than fidelity, while hard hands
indicate true love, but not much tenderness or passion. Smoothness
of the hands shows delicacy of mind. A wrinkled hand, if soft, shows
sensitiveness; if hard, irritability. Pale lines in a hand show a
phlegmatic disposition, in a man amounting to effeminacy.
Each mount is of as much import as are the indications found on the
fingers. On the mount of Jupiter you will learn of honor, ambition,
religion. If it is very large it shows tyranny and ostentation; if
small, idleness, egoism, vulgarity. A cross found on this mount will
tell of a happy marriage; if a star is found as well, the marriage will
be wealthy and satisfactory to the highest degree. A spot on this mount
shows ignominy and dishonor.
The mount of Saturn, which is at the base of the second finger, tells
of caution, credulousness, timidity. If very large, the individual
will be melancholy, quiet, and morbid. A solitary line on this mount
indicates bad fortune.
The mount of the Sun, when prominent, insures success, genius, pride,
eloquence. If the mount is extremely large, wealth extravagance,
luxury. A single line on this mount means glory.
Below the little finger on the outside of the hand we look for the
mount of Mercury, and there learn of invention, speculation, agility.
Excess of this mount indicates cunning, treachery, and falsehood.
Below this mount we find Mars, which if very prominent, shows the owner
to be brusque and violent; if it is small, look out for cowardice and
meanness.
The mount of the Moon, which is found lower still, denotes a love
of the mysterious; those possessing this mount to a high degree are
also inclined to revery, as well as to idleness. They are likewise
capricious, changeful, and irritable. In hard hands you will also read
discontent and fanaticism.
The most important of all the lines on the hand is the line of life. If
long, clear, and straight, it shows long life and good character; if
pale and broad, the indications are ill health and a weak disposition;
if thick and red, the owner is apt to be violent to brutality; if
varying in thickness, this will show a fitful and high temper.
The greatest caution must be used by any reader of the hand, and
before even a pretension is made to judge character or to foretell the
future, much careful study of the many books on this subject should be
given. The student must learn from different authorities, as well as
by thoughtful study and comparison for himself. Many rules must be
applied, and there are many conflicting forces to harmonize. The hand
is of the utmost importance in human economy. Aristotle denominated it
“the organ of the organs.” After the murder of Cicero at Caieta, not
only his head but also his hands were exhibited in the Roman Forum.
The homologies have been traced between the human hand and the paws
of the brute creation, and it has been proved that to man alone was
the perfect hand given, exquisite in beauty as well as paramount in
usefulness.
Palmistry is an old science. As early as the year 1504 there was a
book published in the city of London on _The Art of Foretelling the
Future Events by Inspection of the Hand_. It has been asserted that
Homer wrote on the lines of the hand. Probably most people are familiar
with the verse assigned by the superstitions as Scriptural warrant for
indulging in this popular art: Job xxxvii. 7, “He sealeth the hand of
every man, that all may know his work.”