CHAPTER XXIV
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OF THE VARIOUS MARKS TO BE SEEN ON THE HAND
Besides the Lines and Mounts already described there are other signs or marks which, as they modify the qualities given by the lines and mounts, should be carefully considered in giving judgment on the hand as a whole.
A star (Fig. 1) indicates something beyond our own power of action--a fatality for good or evil over which we have, personally, no power. A star on the Mount of Jupiter indicates honours and distinction in marriage and great and unexpected glory, for Jupiter is always a favourable planet.
A star on the Mount of Saturn means assassination or death on the scaffold; or, in an otherwise good hand, death by paralysis.
A star on the Mount of the Sun (with no Line of the Sun) indicates fatal riches, which bring of themselves unhappiness in the affections. Should the Sun line be strong it would signify success in art, or military glory in a hand where Mars is strong.
A star on the Mount of Mercury shows theft and dishonour; on the Mount of Mars, death in battle; but a star on the plain of Mars, military glory.
A star on the Mount of the Moon, when on a voyage line, means death by drowning; when not on a voyage line, an illness connected with water, such as dropsy or diabetes.
A star in the centre of the hand shows that some person of the opposite sex will influence the life in an unhappy manner.
A star on the Mount of Venus means unhappiness caused by love.
Two stars on the top joint of the middle finger indicate death on the scaffold.
A square (Fig. 2) shows power and energy of the qualities of the mount on which it appears, except on the Mount of Venus, when it means imprisonment. A square announces preservation from accident when seen near any indication of such accident.
A circle (Fig. 3) on any of the mounts, but above all on the Mount of the Sun, signifies success in the qualities given by the mount on which it appears; but a circle on the lines of the hand has always a bad signification. A circle on the Line of Life means loss of one eye, and two circles would indicate total blindness.
An island (Fig. 4) is again always a bad sign; on the Line of Heart, it signifies adultery; on the Line of Life, illness, corresponding in time to its position on the line; on the Line of Head, it would mean ruin arising from false speculations, or if illness is shown on the Life Line, it might indicate brain illness or neuralgia; on the Line of Health, disorders of the liver and the digestion; on the Saturnian Line, an island indicates happiness from an adulterous liaison; but if the island is broken in shape, it indicates poignant grief arising from an illicit affection. The duration of these affections is shown by the size of the island. An island at the commencement of the Saturnian Line indicates an event of an unfortunate nature, probably death of father or mother, in childhood or very early youth. The lines which go lengthways round the side of the hand, between the Line of Heart and the root of the finger of Mercury, show the serious attachments. A horizontal line barring these, or a black spot, shows widowhood. If the lines take the form of islands, it shows love for cousins or near relatives.
A triangle (Fig. 5) announces aptitudes of a favourable signification. On Jupiter it shows diplomatic distinction; on Saturn, mystical ability; on the Sun, success in art or literature; on Mars, military glory; on Venus, happiness in love; on Mercury, distinction in law, physics, or mathematics; but on the Mount of the Moon it indicates danger from the water.
A branch (Fig. 6) shows aptitude in the qualities of the mount on which it appears.
Chains (Fig. 8) always show obstacles and worries in connection with the qualities of the mount on which they appear.
A spot (Fig. 9) is sometimes favourable and sometimes the reverse. Red spots on the Line of Heart mean physical suffering from that organ. White spots show love conquests, and the lover is indicated by the mount under which these spots appear by the physical description of the planet to which the mount belongs.
Curved lines (Fig. 10) mean disaster wherever they appear. On the Line of Head, madness, especially should the line droop to the Mount of the Moon.
Hair-lines (Fig. 11) show an excess of the quality of the line on which they appear.
Cross-bars (Fig. 12) are always obstacles, and show excess in the qualities of the mounts on which they appear; on the Moon, morbid imagination; on Venus, lasciviousness.
Two lines going from the Mount of Venus to that of Mars denote the pursuit of two love affairs at the same time, and a star joined to these lines shows that the matter has ended or will end in disaster.
A long island, extending from the Mount of Venus to that of Saturn, shows, on a woman's hand, seduction at the age when the sign crosses the Line of Life. Should a square appear on the line, she escapes the temptation.
A Line extending from a star on the Mount of Venus, and terminating with a fork on the Mount of Saturn, shows an unhappy marriage.
A Line going from a star on the Mount of Venus straight to the Mount of the Sun, foretells a great inheritance from the death of a near relation.
[Illustration: THE HAPPY HAND.
_To face Chapter XXV ._]
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