T 
sciences ; he therefore calls it the philosophical knot. Full middle 
joints mark an appreciation of physical order. Knowledge is quite 
differently acquired by the possessors of smooth and of knotted 
hands. Impulse and intuition characterise the smooth, as may be 
observed in poets and artists; analysis and induction, the knotty, 
as in mathematicians and men of mechanical genius. 
But if the development of the fingers is important, still more is the 
appearance of the thumb in the doctrines of chirognomy.” ‘A 
small thumb is generally the sign of weakness, irresolution, and vacil- 
lation ; combined with a soft palm it shows an accommodating and 
affectionate spirit.’ The large thumb, on the other hand, is in- 
dicative of ‘‘a strong will and little general sympathy.” ‘The 
heart is in subjection to the head.’ Idiots and people of weak 
intellect have invariably small thumbs, while in the monkev the 
thumb extends no farther than the root of the first finger. The 
development of the thumb modifies, or is modified, by the appear- 
ance of the rest of the hand; thus if the palm be soft and the first 
joint of the thumb long, the individual will labour, not from love 
of work, but from a sense of duty, the inert tendency shown by the 
soft palm being negatived by the force shown by the long thumb. 
The first phalange of the thumb is the index of the will. Beware 
of a man with a long strong first joint! for it is indicative of “a 
powerful energetic will, great self confidence, and a desire for 
domination sometimes amounting to tyranny !”’ Ifthe second joint 
be long and strong, “logic and reason prevail over impulse and 
will;”’ if equal in length, there will be some comfort, for then 
reason will guide and modify the domineering influence of the first 
phalange. The root of the mound is called the ‘‘ mound of Venus,” 
and is supposed by chiromancers to preside over the domestie 
affections. If the section of the fingers be square, as it generally 
is In men, it is indicative of ‘‘ openness and candour,” if circular, 
‘‘of a certain reticence and unwillingness boldly to express the 
thoughts.” In the female hand, says Mr. Beamish, the circular 
form prevails. Short fingers, we are told, ‘‘ are apt to form hasty 
and unsound judgments.’ As artists their possessors are incapable 
of working out the details, the result must be broadly obtained. 
Long fingers, on the contrary, are irresistibly drawn towards 
_ -minutiz and detail, they prefer the minute to the grand, and are 
invariably great sticklers for correctness in dress and costume. 
Nor is the hardness or softness of the hand without its significance 
in hands having other characteristics in common. Thus a soft 
hand conjoined with square or spatulous fingers may enjoy 
’ “moderate exercise or exertion, but prefers to witness energetic 
action in others, while the hard palm delights in personal displays 
and strength. The hard hand cannot be idle ; it must always be 
