PHYSIOGNOMY. 



tour of the miserable wretch, when per- 

 haps many of our friends, and even rela- 

 tives, would sufivr by a comparison, and 

 yet had led uniformly innocent lives. On 

 the other hand it must be admitted, that 

 vice generally stamps her votaries with 

 marks, which may be known at a glance, 

 but this admission applies only to the con- 

 firmed enemies ot virtue, those whose ha- 

 bits of living are so uniformly vicious, that 

 Very little propriety occurs in their con- 

 duct. 



The following anecdote related by La- 

 vater, may serve as a partial illustration 

 ot" the assertion, that the features are af- 

 fected by the turn of the mind; or, per- 

 haps more correctly speaking, the mus- 

 cles of the face. An innocent, amiable, 

 and virtuous young lady, of high birth, 

 who had been educated in the retirement 

 of the country, happened one evening to 

 pass a mirror, immediately after having 

 attended evening prayers, and with a can- 

 dle in her hand was depositing a bible 

 on a table, when she observed her image 

 reflected in the glass : affected with a 

 sense of humility, and of extreme modes- 

 ty, she averted her eyes and retired. A 

 succeeding winter was passed in the 

 amusements and dissipation of a city, 

 where this lady had the misfortune to 

 forget all her previously devout pursuits; 

 but returning to the country, she once 

 more passed the glass and the bible, and 

 saw her features reflected, now deprived 

 of those fascinating graces which belong 

 alone to the serene and happy state of 

 mind she had lost. Alarmed at the 

 change, she fled from the spot, and retir- 

 ing to a sofa, ejaculated sentences of pe- 

 nitence, and formed resolutions of future 

 amendment. 



Lavater begins his remarks on the hu- 

 man face with the forehead. According 

 to this observer, the general form, pro- 

 portion, the arch, obliquity, and position 

 of the scull of the forehead, denotes the 

 degree of thought, the sensibility, the 

 mental vigour, and the propensities of 

 man ; and at the same time the skin of 

 this part of the head explains, by its hue, 

 tension, or wrinkles, the state of the 

 mind at the moment of observation, and 

 the passions which influence it, the 

 bones afioiding the internal quantity, and 

 the covering the application of power : 

 however the latter may be affected, it is 

 well known that the bones must remain 

 unaltered, and yet they regulate the 

 wrinkles by their variation of component 

 form. Wrinkles are produced by a cer- 

 tain degree of flatness ; others arise from 



arching, and those considered separately 

 will give the form of the arch, and vice 

 versa. Some foreheads are furnished 

 with wrinkles that are confined to hori- 

 zontal, perpendicular, curved, and others 

 confused and mixed lines; those least 

 perplexed when in action are usually ob- 

 served in foreheads without angles. 



Lavater appears to have been the first 

 who attended to the peculiar turns of the 

 position and outline of the forehead, 

 which he considered the most important 

 part presented for the study of the physi- 

 ognomist. This he divides into three 

 classes, and those he termed the perpen- 

 dicular, the projecting, and the retreat- 

 ing, each possessing a number of varia- 

 tions ; the principal, however, are rectili- 

 near, " half round, half rectilinear, flow, 

 ing into each other ; half round, half 

 rectilinear, interrupted : curve-lined, sim- 

 ple ; the curve-lined double and triple." 



A long forehead denotes much capaci- 

 ty of comprehension, and less activity; 

 a pompressed, short and firm forehead, 

 more compression, stability, and little 

 volatility ; severity and pertinacity belong 

 to the rectilinear ; and the more curved 

 than angular portends flexibility and ten- 

 derness of character ; deficiency of un- 

 derstanding is discoverable in those whose 

 foreheads are perpendicular from the 

 hair to the eye-brows ; but the perfectly 

 perpendicular, gently arched at the top, 

 signifies that the possessor thinks coolly 

 and profoundly. The projecting forehead 

 indicates stupidity and mental weakness ; 

 the retreating, exactly the reverse ; the 

 circular and prominent above, with 

 straight lines below, and nearly perpen- 

 dicular, shews sensibility, ardour, and 

 good understanding ; the rectilinear, 

 oblique forehead has the same properties ; 

 arched foreheads are considered as fe- 

 minine ; an union of curved and straight 

 lines, happily disposed, with a similar 

 position of the forehead, gives the charac- 

 ter of consummate wisdom. " Right 

 lines, considered as such, and curves, 

 considered as such, are relaxed, as power 

 and weakness, obstinacy and flexibility, 

 understanding and sensation." When 

 the bones surrounding the eye project, 

 and are sharp, the person thus formed 

 possesses a powerful stimulus to exercise 

 a strong mental energy, which is pro- 

 ductive of excellent and well digested 

 plans, and yet this doth not seem a pecu- 

 liar mark of wisdom, as many wise men 

 have been known without it : those thus 

 circumstanced have more firmness, when 

 the forehead rests perpendicularly upon 



