ANIMALS. 



141 



has acquired the most perfect symmetry. In 

 women, the body arrives at perfection much 

 sooner, as they arrive at the age of maturity 

 more early ; the muscles, and all the other 

 parts being weaker, less compact and solid, 

 than those of man, they require less time in 

 coming to perfection ; and, as they are less 

 in size, that size is sooner completed. Hence 

 the persons of women are found to be as com- 

 plete at twenty, as those of men are found to 

 be at thirty. 



The body of a well-shaped man ought to 

 be square ; the muscles should be expressed 

 with boldness, and the lines of the face 

 strongly marked. In the woman, all the mus- 

 cles should be rounder, the lines softer, and 

 the features more delicate. Strength and 

 majesty belong to the man, grace and softness 

 are the peculiar embellishments of the other 

 sex. In both, every part of their form de- 

 clares their sovereignty over other creatures. 

 Man supports his body erect; his attitude is 

 that of command ; and his face, which is 

 turned towards the heavens, displays the 

 dignity of his station. The image of his soul 

 is painted in his visage ; and the. excellence 

 of his nature penetrates through the material 

 form in which it is enclosed. His majestic 

 port, his sedate and resolute step, announce 

 the nobleness of his rank. He touches the 

 earth only with his extremity; and beholds 

 it as if at a disdainful distance. His arms 

 are not given him, as to other creatures, for 

 pillars 01 support ; nor does he lose, by ren- 

 dering them callous against the ground, that 

 delicacy of touch which furnishes him with 

 so many of his enjoyments. His hands are 

 made for very different purposes; to second 

 every intention of his will, and to perfect the 

 gifts of Nature. 



When the soul is at rest, all the features 

 of the visage seem settled in a state of pro- 

 found tranquillity. Their proportion, their 

 union, and their harmony, seem to mark the 

 sweet serenity of the mind, and give a true 

 information of what passes within. But, when 

 the soul is excited, the human visage becomes 

 a living picture ; where the passions are 

 expressed with as much delicacy as energy, 

 where every motion is designed by some 

 correspondent feature, where every impres- 

 sion anticipates the will, and betrays those 



hidden agitations, that he would often wish 

 to conceal. 



It is particularly in the eyes that the pas- 

 sions are painted ; and in which we may 

 most readily discover their beginning. The 

 eye seems to belong to the soul more than 

 any other organ ; it seems to participate of 

 all its emotions ; as well the most soft and 

 tender, as the most tumultuous and forceful. 

 It not only receives, but transmits them by 

 sympathy : the observing eye of one catches 

 the secret fire from another ; and the passion 

 thus often becomes general. 



Such persons as are short-sighted labour 

 under a particular disadvantage in this re- 

 spect. They are, in a manner, entirely cut 

 off from the language of the eyes ; and this 

 gives an air of stupidity to the face, which 

 often produces very unfavourable preposses- 

 sions. However intelligent we find such 

 persons to be, we can scarcely be brought 

 back from our first prejudice, and often con- 

 tinue in the first erroneous opinion. In this 

 manner we are too much induced to judge 

 of men by their physiognomy; and having, 

 perhaps, at first, caught up our judgments 

 prematurely, they mechanically influence us 

 all our lives after. This extends even to the 

 very colour, or the cut of people's clothes ; 

 and we should, for this reason, be careful, 

 even in such trifling particulars, since they 

 go to make up a part of the total judgment 

 which those we converse with may form to 

 our advantage. 



The vivacity, or the languid motion of the 

 eyes, give the strongest marks to physiog- 

 nomy; and their colour contributes still more 

 to enforce the expression. The different 

 colours of the eye are the dark hazle, the 

 light hazle, the green, the blue, and gray, 

 the whitish gray, " and also the red." These 

 different colours arise from the different 

 colours of the little muscles that serve to 

 contract the pupil; " and they are very often 

 found to change colour with disorder and 

 with age." 



The most ordinary colours are the hazle 

 and the blue, and very often both these co- 

 lours are found in the eyes of the same per- 

 son. Those eyes which are called black are 

 only of the dark hnzle, which may be easily 

 seen upon closer inspection; however, those 



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