on the square I gave an illustration of that type with mixed fingers. In
that case, however, the mixed fingers have the foundation of the square
hand, whereas with the true mixed type no such foundation can be cited for
the student's guidance.
The mixed type is so called because the hand cannot possibly be classed
as square, spatulate, conic, philosophic, or psychic; the fingers also belong
to different types—often one pointed, one square, one spatulate, one philosophic,
etc.
The mixed hand is the hand of ideas, of versatility, and generally of
changeability of purpose. A man with such a hand is adaptable to both
people and circumstances, clever, but erratic in the application of his talents.
He will be brilliant in conversation, be the subject science, art, or gossip.
He may play some instrument fairly well, may paint a little, and so on ; but
rarely will he be great. When, however, a strong line of head rules the hand,
he will, of all his talents, choose the best, and add to it the brilliancy and
versatility of the others. Such hands find their greatest scope in work requiring
diplomacy and tact. They are so versatile that they have no difficulty
in getting on with the different dispositions with which they come into
contact. Their most striking peculiarity is their adaptability to circumstances:
they never feel the ups and downs of fortune like others; almost
all classes of work are easy to them. They are generally inventive, particularly
if they can thereby relieve themselves of labor. They are restless
and do not remain long in any town or place. They are fond of new ideas :
one moment they determine to write a drama, the next, perhaps, they invent
a gas-stove or go into politics ; but as they are always changing, and unstable as water, they rarely succeed. It must be remembered that when the
palm belongs to a certain type these characteristics are much modified ; as,
for instance, mixed fingers on the square, the spatulate, the philosophic, or
the conic will often succeed where the pure development of the type would
fail. When the entire hand is mixed it is then that, through versatility of
talent and purpose, the subject is inclined to become the " Jack of all trades,"
to which class of unfortunates the individual possessing this type of hand is
so commonly relegated in works on palmistry.
