“Is the nose reliable as an indication of character?”
“Always. Do you see that gentleman on the front seat with the pug nose? Well, his character is equally undeveloped, as his friends will tell you. The shortness of the organ from root to tip signifies a distressing lack of executive ability.
“The lady beside him is much the better man of the two. She has executive force enough for a whole family, and the fact is betrayed by the strong features, large nose, wide head and firmly set jaws and lips.”
“Does the mouth indicate as much character as the nose?”
“Yes, the character is written on every feature. You see that lady on the second row of seats, back of our pug-nosed specimen? When she smiles, her upper lip curls up on one side, and when her countenance is at rest, her upper teeth are slightly exposed. That is the sign of approbativeness, love of applause, compliments, desire to attract attention, etc. You can see the same element of character in the fact that she inclines her head to one side nearly all the time. Her costume is almost loud. Her voice certainly is, for we have heard it at this distance several times.”
“Approbativeness is not a very desirable element of character, then.”
“That depends upon perversion. In the present instance it is turned to bad account. The young lady is admirably adapted to the stage, and if she would adopt that profession the very faculty of approbativeness would be her most powerful stimulus in ambition to excel.
“Approbativeness is often mistaken for self-esteem. Do you see that gentleman coming down the middle aisle? From his walk you would suppose he owned most of Dallas. He displays a good deal of jewelry and is evidently ‘stuck on himself,’ as the boys say. He is a well-known lawyer of very moderate talent, and the fact is that self-esteem is very low in his organization, as he is very deficient in dignity. That aggressive display is an effort on his part to supply a deficiency of which he is painfully conscious.
“His wife, who accompanies him, is very modest and apparently unassuming in demeanor, but she has plenty of self-esteem and firmness, and the result is that she is the controlling member of the firm. If it were not for her large benevolence and suavity, which makes her a very agreeable woman, he would be badly henpecked. As it is, she uses more tact than force, but he obeys implicitly, nevertheless.”
“What benefits do you claim, Professor, to result from the practice of phrenology as applied to matrimony?”