CHARACTER REVEALED BY HANDWRITING.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XVII, Issue XXV, 19 December 1896, Page 192

CHARACTER REVEALED BY HANDWRITING.

A writer on this subject says that in the details of punctuation and finals are to be found many salient signs of character. Take punctuation first: —Total absence of punctuation, if the writing be well formed, indicates an unsuspicious person. When, however, the sentences are carefully punctuated, with every i and j carefully dotted —each dot being placed exactly above the letter—and the t’s carefully crossed, the writer is a systematic, methodical person, having a care for detail. When the dots of the i’s and the bars of the t's are seen flying away in front of the letters, the writer is impulsive, ardent, and lacks decision of character. When the dots of the i’s and the periods at the ends of sentences are pear-shaped instead of round, the writer is vivacious, impressionable, and easy-going. A full stop only faintly indicated shows a weak will and want of energy on the part of the writer. When the full stop is large, round and very black, it is an indication of extreme sensuousness. When a series of dots are seen at the end of a sentence, it shows a romat tic and enthusiastic nature. A short bar employed in place of the period, denotes a cautious person, and when the bar is seen in addition to the full stop, it indicates excessive caution. Should the note of admiration be unusual in length and not proportionate with the rest of the writing, it is a sign of strong imagination. When the note of admiration is slender and delicately defined, and occurs very frequently in the writing, it implies a romantic and sensitive temperament. When it is slender and very sloping, it denotes a tenderly passionate nature. When simple and regular in form, it shows an orderly, tranquil, reasonable nature, but, if abnormal and peculiar in formation, it indicates eccentricity or marked individuality in the writer.

The same principles apply to the note of interrogation. Further, take the finals of the letters :—Where the finals end abruptly, as though to save ink, the writer is

very economical. When the final is so suppressed as to be scarcely discernible, it denotes sordid avarice in the writer. Should the finals be free, full, and flowing, the writer is of a generous disposition—more or less according to the length of the finals. When the finals are excessive in length and flourish, it is a typical sign of prodigality. When this last trait is noticeable in a handwriting where the marks of prudence and conscientiousness are absent, the writer might readily carry extravagance past the limits of honesty. Sharp, angular finals having an ascendant movement, when co-existent with words of a similar formation, denote quickness of temper ; while, on the other hand, should the finals be gracefully rounded, with an absence of angularity in the writing generally, the writer is naturally gentle and amicable in character. When this latter sign is noticeable in the capitals it also indicates grace, culture, and artistic tastes. When sharp, angular finals, rising high above the writing predominate, the writer is of an ardent temperament. If the ascendant movement is excessive, it indicates wit of the pungent, sarcastic order, but if the curves are rounded and graceful instead of angular it denotes humour of a more kindly character. Should the curves of the finals be broken, and this be accompanied by absence of grace in the formation of the writing generally, the writer has no taste for art, and is frequently found to be harsh, tactless, and unsympathetic in nature. Benevolence is denoted by a combination of the signs showing generosity and affection, viz., full flowing finals and a marked rightward slope. A melancholy and despondent temperament is clearly shown in handwriting that has a tendency to run down into the corner of the page. In such writing certain words here and there will exhibit the downward movement, and this sign is generally observed in the signature also. Courage is indicated by a combination of the signs showing ambition and will-power, viz., an ascendant movement in the lines and the signature, together with

strongly-barred t's. Dissimulation is denominated in writing the words and lines of which are not straight and well defined but thread-like in formation and serpentine in character ; some of the letters are scarcely distinguishable at all, and the whole of the writing creates the impression that the writer is trying to conceal his thoughts and disguise his intentions. Energy is denoted by a writing that has an ascendant movement, slightly less marked than that of ambition, the letters of which are angular in form. Honour is typified by an almost rectangular straightness of the lines, and a perfect equality in the size of the letters. Indolence is readily discerned by a handwriting where all angularity is absent, the curves of the finals being round, languid, nerveless, and sometimes only halfformed. Such writing is always lacking in verve and movement; the letters are ungraceful, the punctuation carelessly observed, or utterly ignored. Impulse presents entirely opposite characteristics. There is a general look of movement in the writing. The capitals and finals are angular in form, and the latter have an upward tendency. The up and down strokes are also long and wavy in form, and the t's have long flying bars.