12 



-THE POPULAE EDUCATOE. 



table at which you intend to write ; then, placing your left arm 

 on the table and your left hand on the edge of the book or 

 paper to hold it firm, if necessary, by pressure with the fingers, 

 take the pen in the right hand, and grasp it firmly, but not too 

 much so, between the thumb and the two fingers next to the 

 thumb, that is, the forefinger and the midfinger, as shown in 

 the accompanying representation of the hand with a pen in It. 

 In this position, remember carefully that before you can draw 

 a stroke, the point of the pen must be placed at the distance 

 of about five-eighths or 

 three-quarters of an inch 

 from the tip of the mid- 

 finger, with its face or 

 open part downwards, and 

 not leaning to one side or 

 other; tbe pen must also 

 be placed alongside of 

 the nail of the midfinger, 

 not on the nail itself, but 

 on the fleshy part of the 

 finger close by it. The 

 upper part of the pen 

 must likewise be raised 

 above the knuckle of tho 

 fore-finger, as seen in the 

 figure of the hand, so that 

 a thin papor-folder might 

 pass a little way between 

 this part of the pen and 

 the knuckle. It is of essen- 

 tial importance to observe 

 this part of the directions 

 as well as the preceding, 



because for want of attention to these apparently trifling minutiee, 

 or small matters, many bad writers have arisen, and some of 

 them even teachers, who ought to know better what they are 

 engaged in. For it stands to reason, and any one may prove it 

 to himself by a few trials, that if tho pen be allowed to fall 

 below the knuckle, there is an instant loss of power, and of all 

 real command over the pen. 



Another direction of equal importance with any of those we 

 have now given, is the position of the thumb ; this you bend out- 

 wards from the pen so as to cause the tip or fleshy part of the 

 point of the thumb to rest upon the pen directly opposite the first 

 joint of the forefinger, as shown in the figure of the hand. This 

 completes the directions for the position of the three fingers 

 which hold the pen. Now let us attend to the other two 

 fingers. One of these, the little finger, must be held so as to 

 touch the paper on which you intend to write, just on the tip of 

 it, close by the side of the nail, while the hand itself is made to 

 rest upon its heel, that is, close by the wrist, not pressing 

 heavily, but as lightly as possible. In fact, the pressure on tho 

 tip of the finger should be light also, so that in writing tho 

 heel of the hand should assist the tip of the little finger, and 

 the tip of the little finger assist the heel of the hand, by 

 mutually bearing the weight of the hand, and acting alternately 



POSITION OF TIIS HAND WHEN HOLDING THE PEN. 



kept upright, so that the top of the pen may point to the right 

 ear when the hand is at the commencement of a line which you 

 are about to write, and that as you move it along it must be 

 kept parallel to this position throughout. It will assist you 

 very much in obtaining and keeping this position of the hand to 

 observe that the knuckle of the little finger and the knuckle or 

 second joint of the thumb should both be kept always as near 

 as possible at the same distance from the paper, say about an 

 inch and a half, while in the act of writing. It will also be of 



the greatest advantage 

 if, at the commencement 

 of a line in writing, you 

 should have the elbow of 

 the right hand pretty close 

 to your right side, and as 

 you move the hand along 

 the line, in writing, to 

 preserve the arm parallel 

 to this position as well as 

 the pen to its first posi- 

 tion ; in fact, if you do 

 the one correctly you will 

 necessarily do the other, 

 unless you choose to hvist 

 ihe u'rist, which would be 

 equally painful, absurd, 

 and unnecessary. 



As to the position of 

 the head and shoulders, 

 stoop as little as pos- 

 sible ; a gentle inclination 

 of the head is all that 

 is necessary in general, in 



order that you may observe earnestly and accurately tho motion 

 of the hand and the formation of the letters. In near-sighted 

 persons a greater inclination of the head is required than in 

 ordinary cases ; but in all cases whatsoever this rule is abso- 

 lutely essential, to keep the chest entirely free of pressure on the 

 table or desk at which you write; if once you acquire a habit 

 of leaning on the table, or lolling upon it with your chest or 

 stomach, you need never expect to be a good writer. We 

 believe that many pupils have been seriously injured in their 

 health by the practice or habit of leaning upon the chest 

 while learning to write, and that such injury has followed 

 them through life. What can be more absurd than to see a 

 boy or girl sprawling on a table or desk with their arms 

 akimbo, and their noses almost upon the paper imitating the 

 motion of the pen ? What more foolish or disagreeable than to 

 see every stroke of the pen imitated by the moiith or the 

 tongue, as if the writer was approaching a state of idiocy ? 

 Let every student of penmanship sit erect while writing, and let 

 him only stoop his head with a gentle inclination, as we Baid 

 before, sufficient to enable him to see clearly what ho is doing, 

 and to produce such a specimen of writing as will do credit to 

 his care, attention, and ingenuity. With all these directions 

 and we have not spared them you will require both time and 



COPT SLIP NO. I. THE " POTHOOK/ 



as momentary fulcrums or resting-points, while the hand moves 

 forward, making one stroke or letter after another. The other 

 finger, next the little finger, usually called the ring finger, 

 because ladies wear their rings upon it, is the most difficult to 

 dispose of, but it must be done. Endeavour, then, to give it an 

 elegant curvilinear form, something in the shape of part of a 

 ring itself, so that it may lie passively between the midfinger 

 and the little finger without interfering with their movements ; 

 it should be considerably within the little finger, and its first joint 

 should rest very nearly upon the first joint of the little finger, in 

 a crossing position. This completes the directions for the position 

 of the little finger and the ring finger. Lastly, as to the position 

 of the whole hand, you must carefully observe that while resting 

 upon the heel of the hand and on the little finger, it must be 



perseverance, and constant practice, either to learn the art of 

 writing from the commencement, or to correct and improve the 

 system you have already acquired. But perseverance, practice, 

 and determination will do all that you require ; and you will 

 soon reap a rich reward for all your care, attention, and earnest 

 application. 



That those of our readers who are anxious to commence 

 teaching themselves the art of writing may lose no time in 

 making a beginning, we have given a copy slip, in which ia 

 shown the first stroke that demands the attention of the writer. 

 It is a down stroke, commonly called a pothook, square at the 

 top, and brought down with an equal or uniform pressure of 

 the pen, until it begins to a hair line, which is turned at the 

 bottom and carried upwards to the right. 



