The Oregon daily journal., February 23, 1908, Page 31, Image 31

; nte Oregon T Sunday v journal, Portland, Sunday corning, ; February 23, 190a
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SIR
This Question is for Men, as the Tilt of.
the Top Piece Reveals Character
GUT?
i
rOUR pardon, sir, but is your hat on
straight? Or do you give its tilt
intentionally or just unconsciously
because of habit? For, you know, nowadays
you must be careful the way you tilt your hat!
Have you committed murder? Don't
get frightened only be on guard. Have you
robbed a bank? Pardon the question, but
ah are you entirely true in your ah do-,
mestic life? Just so! IV e thought you were.
But hold on how about your business con
tracts? Are you quite trustworthy, do you
keep the specifications, and so forth? Yes,
yes! But how about your feeling to humanity
a little selfish, hard, uncharitable, eh?
What if some one accosted you on the
street and asked you these questions? A
stranger, for instance? Well, it is not unlikely.
For a new system of reading character is
coming into vogue. The clue to your inner
most feelings, it is said, is indicated in the
most simple and involuntary manner.
If you are a criminal, you will show it;
if you are dishonest in business, untrustworthy
in relation to your fellow-men, you will iAow
it; if you are of a jovial disposition, or crab
bed or sour, if you are intellectual or stupid,
or brilliant or dull these characteristics will
be revealed in the tilt of your hatf
At least, that is what is claimed by Pro
fessor H. Gross, of the Psychological Labora
tory of Leipsic, Germany, who recently vis
ited this country. "Let me see how a man
mars his hat," declares Professor Gross, "and
I can get a pretty good idea of his char
acter." Whether this is true or not is a question,
of course. But if you are going out on the
street you may as well see whether your hat
is on straight, or whether it has a pronounced
tilt. For people may judge you by the tilt.
One can't tell.
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aoul. Every on, would Yntuny Bnd It uncomforUbl,
to wear hi, heart on hta coat iletT, much Ipsa on hlf
hat
Long; befor, th Fharaohi built th, fatnoua pyramldg,
men tried to discern the character of othsr men by lines
of the face and tracings on the hand.
Failing; to read the secrets of the heart In the stars,
thfy turned to the bumps on men's heads. They studied
tho markings on the palm and read the secrets) of life
anil love and made prophecies of the future. Of late
years physiognomy has become a science with such men
as Lombroso; the tut of the eye, the color and the
method of parting- the hair, the position of the cheek
bones, the site and shape of the mouth, to say nothing
of the nose, all mean something to the student of the art.
Returning to the science of old ages, others have
sought to prove the depths of men's beings by clairvoy
ance, and in darkened rooms black-robed seeresses have
tried to fathom the thoughts and emotions of men.
Reading cards, modern oracles have instructed countless
wives how not to get along with their husbands and
luminously Informed them of things their husbands didn't
do and thoughts their lovtrs did not think.
But there Is the new science. Bo simple you can't
make a mistake. And a thing done so unconsciously by
men that the merest passerby can read his bidden
thoughts and character. At least, so Professor Qross
asserts. Listen to what he says:
"By the way a man tilts his bat you can get the tilt
of his character. A man usually putt bis hat on un-
2 &sTnetc72tf6e-
thlnklngly. He will comb his hair with the greatest
care, deliberately curl his moustache, feign or cultivate
various expressions but he will never think how he will
wear bis hat
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"And here you can get an Index to his character."
Professor Gross has formulated the following general
rules, which, he says. In nine cases in ten, will enable
one to judge character by the position of th hat:
Worn straight, but easily, without a very noticeable
tilt to either side, forward or backward, shows a man
straightforward, regular In bis habits, honest and direct
in his dealings.
Worn straight, with accentuated exactitude, pressed
down deliberately on the head, shows the wearer Is lack
ing in charity, unsympathetic with the shortcomings or
sorrows of friends, takes a too serious view of life, has
no sense of humor, devoted to one particular pursuit,
lacks versatility, an uninteresting conversationalist, a
depressing traveling companion.
Tilted to the right side: Denotes a Jolly. Jovial na-
Here's a Curious OuestiontArAroeslnsaiid
X T THEN asked tha question. U your bat on straight?
f that doesn't mean. Is !t on exactly straight.
V V pressed down deliberately and unerringly on
the top7 of your head? That Is as bad as a
rakish tilt
It means, Docs your; hat cock Jauntily or droop
slouchlly to ono side or tho othart Doea It fall forward
or is It jammed away back?
Perhaps you've never noticed, after all, how you tilt
your hat. Bo take a look In the glass juat before going
out and tea whether you don't give yourself away un
consciously. If you are regular In your habits, honest In
business, with no secrets to conceal, of course, you need
not fear betraying anything. However, you'd better hava
a look at yourself, anyway. For you wouldn't want to
give any on a wrong Impression.
Even If you are uncharitable, if you don't cars a
hang about civic righteousness In publlo affairs or high
Ideals of personal living, If your one aim Is to make
money for No, 1 and let other considerations take care
of themselves wy, even then, perhaps, you don't care
to bttray these attitudes.
PARADING, PERSONAL TRAITS
If you are Irresponsible, erratlo; If you are likely to
follow an Impulse and do a crasy, insane deed, take a
mad plunge in stocks or write an anonymous sequel to
"Three Weeks," or are Inclined to scorch your auto to
see how many chickens or children you can run down
well, you don't want to parade this mental intractability,
do you?
If you are Inclined to be sporty, say, and if your
position in life is such that you must preserve an irre
proachable demeanor well, It would hardly do for your
clients, If you are a lawyer, or your parishioners, if you
are a clergyman, or your depositors. If you are a banker,
to know that there is a distinct sporting side to your
nature.
One of the Christian precepts !s not to let your left
hand know what the right hand does. Sometimes it
would be embarrassing to keep a record of the things
one's hands do, and again modesty would forbid one to
boast of his good deeds. There are- traits of character,
good or bad, that one. would not wish to show In glaring
colors; h would net want to make a billboard of his
i ' ...
WHEN
'HEN Ethan
Alien rush-
into im
mortality at
Ticonderoga, was his
act one of deliberate
and tans heroism or
was it thatoof a mad
man f H'
"When Lieutenant
Hobson boldly sailed
the Merrimao into the
channel at Santiago,
risking death from
shot, shell, torpedoes
and drowning, w..s he
in his right mind f
Were the Japanese
who rushed to death in
the great battles of
the war with Russia, or the Russians whe so brave
ly fought them, unselfishly heroio, or were they
simply insane and without a full comprehension
of what they were doing!
Is a hero a hero, or is he a madman t This
question has been raised by a recent article by Dr.
Awtokratow, a famous Russian specialist, who says
that insanity becomes alarmingly prevalent among
troops during warfare. He credits many of tho
hare-brained but laudable acts of heroism to tem
porary insanity.
DURING the war between Russia and Japan Dr.
Awtokratow was fntrusted with tha task of
organizing the system for segregating and
treating the insane cases which subsequently
was placed In charge of the central Asylum for In
sane Soldiers at Kharbtn. There Dr. Awtokratow had
an opportunity to make a thorough study of the malady.
At the beginning of the war no provision bad been
made for the care of insane patients. Yet, as) the
famous doctor has asserted, during every war there
la a notable Increase of Insanity among1 tho men of
tho army. The stress and strain, tha constant fear
and the' alertness day and night tend to undermine
the reason and Induce mania.
In fact, the doctor observes, a disturbance of the
mind prevails In soldiers ordinarily sane, and tem
porary aberrations are by no means uncommon.
In battles, the doctor asserts, the minds of men be
come affected, and deeds are done while tha men are
in an entirely Irresponsible condition.
The theory of the Russian savant places In a doubt
ful light tha deeds of many whom we honor as heroes.
If his theory Is correct who can tell whether Eng
land's heroes. Sir Francis Drake, Lord Howe and Rod
ney, were not mentally unbalanced when they carried
through their bravest battles? If the strain of battle
affects the mind, who knows but what John Paul
Jones, Commodore Perry and Admiral Farragut were
Irresponsible during their fiercest campaigns.
As the famous Light Brigade. ruBhed forward in
the charge immortalized In Tennyson's poem, had they
all becogpe suddenly insane?
WAR PRODUCED MADMEN
At the Kharbln hospital, where the Insane were
brought, the total number of patients received, from
December IB, 1904, to March 18, 1906, was 1849.
The alarming' number of madmen produced during
the war aroused widespread discussion in medical cir
cles in Russia. And the amazement of the world in
tensified when the doctor in charge of the hospital
announced his theory of the prevalence of or predis
position to madness among troops during a war.
If this is true, it was generally asked, what of our
worship of the heroes of the past? Do they deserve
the credit given them? Or would any one who had
lost his senses do the same deeds, braving death to
rescue a flag or plunging through surrounding dan
gers to reach a coveted goal?
According to Dr. Awtokratow, a principal cause of
Insanity among officers who came under his care was
alcoholism. This was the c.iuse In 34. E8 per- cent of
the patients who suffered from mental disease 275 being
officers and 1072 belonging to the rank and file.
Amohg others, the prominent form of disease was
epileptlo insanity no less than 27.9 per cent, of tha
cases being classed under this head. Alcoholism and
confuslonal Insanity came next.
"As to tho causes -of the astounding frequency of
epileptic psychosis," declared the doctor, "I think it Is
due In part to tho less discriminating examination of
recruits and a lowering of the standard of fitness,
which is not maintained in times of emergency.
"The stress of battle also causes a turning of the
mind, and In many of tha patients there were no symp
toms until they neared tha elose of a fierce engage
ment." At the hospital at Kharbln the scenes were Indeed
pitiful. Many of the soldiers labored under the delu
sion that they were surrounded by putrefying bodies,
and their sufferings were most terrible. Others trem
bled in fear, holding their hands to their ears, de
claring they were nearly deafened by the sounds of
bursting shells.
Many, again, fought furiously with attendants, de
claring that their duty was to pursue fleeing enemies.
Others cowered and tried to hide themselves for fear,
obsessed with the Idea that they were being pursued.
"The cause of Insanity among troops," declared Dr.
Awtokratow, "Is due mostly to the severe strain an
army is under. There is particular danger when men
are admitted who are not up to the standard. Thus a
nervous and neurasthenic nation is hardly fit for war.
"A man who is nlghly strung and of a nervous tem
perament is not the man to fight in a battle. The men
who are not affected are stolid, one may say coarse,
rugged, unrefined men; fien of brawn rather than brain.
"A man of highly nijrvous disposition Is likely to be
carried away In a crisis. He is no longer himself. He
may become a victim to hallucinations, and they may
be variously colored.-, He may feel himself inspired to
do a heroic deed, or he may be overwhelmed with terror
and flee,"
It Is pointed out that during the siege of the Com
mune in Paris and in the disturbed districts of Russia
within the last two years the Insanity of many people
was due to .hallucinations concerning war.
"The Idea that some-of 6ur heroes may have carried
through amazing feats of bravery while partly Insane is
certainly startling," declared a well-known American
physician. "There is no doubt In my mind, however,
that this is more than a possibility.
"It is hard to tell when an exaggerated enthusiasm
may become a mild Insanity. Nevertheless, this will hot
afreet our estimation of our heroes. Many psychologists
agree that genius is a form of insanity. ' go whether It
produces great things in literature, art or warfare will
not so much matter."
aW .MW ,1 , VS. M'i vw
A -
rr; kind and sympathetic, possibly Irresponsible. ba5
ot lacking In sincerity or honesty. ';.
Tilt I'd to the left: Denote a nature addicted to sport!,
nibibiy a gambiiiiK and pugillstlo nature; usually nol
too highly developed Intellectually nor too SCTUpulOU lm
jsin'ts tranra'ttnita. - '.
Slanting backward: Drnotra recklessness; a Spirit of
bravado or true hrrolsm; a mun who will take ehanco
go the limit in any daring pursuit, without fear, regard
less of consequences; devoted to a great cause, such sj
man will make any sacrifice, brave any danger and Beveti
know defeat. t'
These are the genrial rules. Look among your friend J
and see how thry work out. Only do not take It all foe
granted; you know, as Professor Gross himself remark
ed, there are exceptions to all rules. '
Here's Andrew Carnegie, ho became famous by
making an enormous fortun, building libraries and "kiss-
Ing a charming woman in public. Tlie "Laird of BlUbO,"
as you can see, tilt hi hat slightly to the left. Is Mr
Carnegie sporty? And Is thla sport confined to golf? -
And here's "UncH Joe'" Cannon, the man who keepS
thr llounc of Representatives in order with such a Strong
hand. In a masterly way doen he hold the reins. NOW!
Tncla Joe" ulwuys tilt his hat to llm left. According;
to the Oerman scientist, one might ask. "Is 'Undo JOOV
lacking In intellect?'' .". ..
Then look at the king of the Standard Oil system.
Protecting the wonderful brain that contrived the great"
est trust of all time Is a round, flat hat. planted down
with unmistakable decision. Not a tilt. Mr. Rocke
fc llor wears his hat with extreme exactitude entirely too
much no, acoordlng'to Professor Gross, who asserts that
such a man must be lacking In charity. Some one) aug-
gsts that Mr. Rockefeller wears his hat so straight' la
order to keep liis wig In place. But only he knows this."
King Edward of England has always been known' as
a Jolly good fellow. lie wears his hat slightly tilted to
the right on all occasions, and were his subjects to judgsi
him by the tilt of hla hat alone they would find th ver
dict supported by his career. He may have enjoyed hav
ing a Lily Langtry pour champagne down his back aniS
he may like a good time, but he's as true as steel and
as honest as his blood Is blue. . ' -'
Emperor William of Germany wears his hat Straight,
but not with what one might call too much precision
Ills subjects know ho Is regular In his habits and direct
and honest.' Occasionally his majesty takes part In '
theatrical, and then it Is said he wears his hat sllghtljf
to the right, which would Illustrate and bear out 19
Joviality of disposition. '.r!T
Of our own President no picture Is so characteristic
as that in Rough Rider's costume. Out in the open, Mr
Roosevelt throws oft all restraint and is himself. Ha
slams his hat on his head without thought, and often
wears it well back. Professor Gross eays this la typical
of the man who is willing to take the chances of combat
in any struggle, who presses on with an eye) straight to
the goal; running risks and braving difficulties in hi
progress; who is not dsunted by opposition and danger.
Almost a similar character reading would be given
by the Gross method to William Jennings Bryan.. JIIs
hat Indicates a man who is not daunted by defeat, but
continues working for a cause he deems right, desplto
an criticism ana opposition.
LAWSON "RATHER SPORTY"
And here's "Tom" Lawson, of Boston, who tlpa hta
sporty cap back and slightly to one side. "Rather sporty,
a bit irresponsible," is the Gross comment Does this fit
the Boston author of "Frenzied Finance"? ' "
Suppose you met Elihu Root, secretary of state, in a
parlor coach on a long Journey. Do you think you,
would find him a good traveling companion? Let's see
how he wears his hat. You'd think he'd studied It for
hours before he plastered the hat on his head. It's plant
ed with a decision as deliberate as that of O.hn D.
Rockefeller. But, then, It is tilted in back.
Professor Gross would tell you by this that Mr. Root
would not be very Jolly on a long trip, that he takes a
serious view of life and once In a while would bo found
showing an irritable, crabbed disposition. But ho U also
determined and direct. i ;
Is Mark Twain lacking In Intellect? Who'd think It?
But there you are: There's Mark, marching along On
the occasion of the conferring of a degree upon him at
Oxford. A serious occasion! But Mark perhaps with a
sense of humor tilted the mortar-board to the. left.
Which the German savant would regard as an Indication
of a lack of intellect and honesty. ,
Mark's noble work in paying oil all creditors, a.fter1
the failure of a publishing house in which ho was Inter
ested was one of the most striking examples of fair
dealing ever displayed In the country. And about his
intellect have you read his books? You say the German
professor is wrong? Hold on has It not occurred to
you that it was Just Mr. Twain's. Intellect that caused,
him to tilt his hat, thus showing an Incomparable) senso
of humor? . r
Some Curious Facts ,
THE greatest heat is never found on tho equator,
but some ten degrees to the north, while mora
severe cold has been registered In northern
Siberia than has been found near the Polo.
All German soldiers must learn to swim. Some of
them are so expert that, with tbelr clothing on their
heads and currying guns and ammunition, they can swim
streams several himdred yards wide.
Plant with white blossoms have a larger proportlo
of fragrant species than any others; next comes rel,
then yellow and blue. Many of the flowers of spring era
white and highly fragrant; those ot autumn and 'winter
being darker, with less perfume. .. ,
A Paris Journalist has founded a babies' club. It U a
spacious and pleasant building, with a garden and a club
house where games of all kinds are provided. There U a
Puncfi and Judy show, and a cafe, where sweets, cakes,
tea. milk and various kinds of lemonade are sold to mem
bers and their parents, while there are also Innumerable
toyshops and a theater.
There are reckoned to be at least (00,000,000 cocoanct
trees in existence In full bearing.
The oldest known English picture Is one of Chaucer,
painted on panel In the year 1380. 1 . - . .
There are never fewer than 40,000 tramps ro Engtand.
Hard times double that number. " t ' t
Burning orange peel has the faculty of dissipating
the odor of tobacco smoke' In a room.' .- f
The first place of worship In western Australia vm
unique In two respects the materials of which It n
built and also the several purposes to which It was de
voted. This remarkable building was made at Perth by
soldiers shortly after their first! arrival In 1K9, and wa
composed almost entirely of bulrushes. Is addition to l
use on Sundays for divine worship. It occasionally srv i
as an amateur theater In the week and during the l
time. as a barracks, ;- "-;y.--- ' , ,
Among the birus the swan lives t b the ?J , '
extreme cases reaching Soo years.-"The fait-on ti
known to live over 16J -feara