jrf m tm mi prtj 
 
 ^/HGAWQ-»fc >t?AHVMn-^ N ^-AMVMIH^ 
 
 
 
 ^•UBRARY^r ^UJBRARYflr 
 
 
 .vlOS-AMCFlfr/ 
 
 
 CO 
 
 "fr/WBAINIHttV* 
 
 
 
 ^OFCALIFOfcfc. ^WEUNIVER^ 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 f 
 
 ^lOSANCElfj^ 
 
 ^/«UAW(HWV 
 
 IWR&a 
 
 ^•UBRARY^r 
 
 ^tUBRARYQ^ 
 i3 1 ir' i 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 I^ 
 
 ^OFCAllFOfy^ 
 
 ^■AMVuan-^ 
 
 JCElfx 
 
 
 ^UlBRARYtf/- 
 
 £ >U I? i 
 
 
 ^0JIW3JO^ 
 
 aofcaiifo% 
 
 ^Aavaan-# 
 
 ^/ojitcho^ 
 
 
 aofcaufo% 
 y 0*avaan# 
 
 
 =* , y y o 
 
 
 5WEUNIVER5/A 
 
 v^lOSANCFlfx^ 
 
 "^SiGAJNftJVW 
 
 
 <to uawsov^ %uaim^ 
 
 ^WEUN!VER% ^lOS«L£j> 
 
 ^•UBRARYO^ ^UIBRARYQ^ 
 
 ^J\E-UMIVEW/a ^lOSANCElfj> 
 
 s g 
 

 
 MiyiJ I Ml I Ml !=CH 
 
 fiOl^ 
 
 "^whaim-m*' 
 
 ^•AHVMItt^ ^waaii-^ 
 
 <Til33NV-S01^ 
 
 
 U 
 
 §1 ir-^ 
 
 
 ^lO$ANCFl£j> 
 
 o 
 
 ^UIBRARY-0/ 
 
 ^mmiiyj-jo^ ^rjiw-soi 5 ^ "^saaAiNfl-aft^ %oi\mi^ 
 
 5^E-LIBR/> 
 
 ^OJITV 
 
 IF(% ^ 
 
 an-v^ - 
 
 ^OF-CAUFQftfc 
 
 
 ,<W«ER% 
 
 or 
 ae 
 
 ^lOSANCEl^ 
 
 o 
 
 A0F-CALIF(%, 
 
 "%huaimwv n ^avaain^ 
 
 ^OFCALI 
 
 n 
 
 y oxmi 
 
 
 v^lOSANCEl^ 
 o 
 
 -< 
 
 <^UIBRARY0/. ^E-UBRARY-Or, 
 
 \omm^ 
 
 ^fOJUVD-iO 5 ^ 
 
 ^EUNIVEW/a 
 
 ^UDNV-SOl^ 
 
 ^•IDS-AM 
 
 %H3AIN 
 
 /ER£//< 
 
 ^•lOSAKCElfj> 
 
 o 
 
 ^/HHAIM-M* 
 
 ^0FCALIF(% ^0F-CAIIF(% 
 
 ^■UMIVEWto. 
 
 ^•Aavwn-iN^ i&AavaaiH^ ^fiuowvsoi^ 
 
 c? _ 
 %UAIN 
 
 ^UIBRARYtf/- 
 
 V \WEUNIVER% 
 
 o,lOSANCElfj> 
 
 ^tUBRARYtf/ 
 § 1 I* - ' 
 
 ^M-UBRA 
 
 NO^ ^/OJITsOJO^ ^5U3NYS0# "SttMAINIHtf^ ^OJITVDJO^ 
 
 ^odiw; 
 
 F(% ^OF-CAUFOfttj 
 
 ? 
 
 % 
 
 
 .^E-UNIVERS/a 
 
 o 
 
 <C?U3KV-S0l^ "%nUAJMW* 
 
 ^OF-CAllFOftto 4.OFCALI 
 
 y ^«vaan# 
 
 *'o-mn 
 
 v^lOS-AMCFlftv 
 
 •s^E-UBRARY^. ^t-UBRARYflr 
 
 soi^ ^aaAiNrt-3i\v s ^ojitvdjo^ ^ojiivdjo^ 
 
 ^EUNIVEWa ^jlOS-ANC 
 
 O 
 
 £ 1 
 
 <QU3NYS0^ %i!3AlNf 
 
 ^10SANCEI% 
 
 IRS/A 
 
 5i! 
 
 ^OFCAllFOfy^ ^OFCALIFOfy* 
 
 ^ 
 
 AWEUNIVERS/a 
 
 < 
 
 CO 
 
 vVlOS-AMC 
 
 rs»Jl P
 

 
 A TREATISE 
 
 ON 
 
 Disputed Handwriting 
 
 AND THE DETERMINATION OF 
 
 GENUINE FROM FORGED SIGNATURES. 
 
 The Character and Composition of Inks, 
 
 AND THEIR 
 
 DETERMINATION BY CHEMICAL TESTS. 
 
 The Effect of Age as Manifested in the Appearance of 
 Written Instruments and Documents. 
 
 By WILLIAM K. HAGAN, 
 Expert in Handwriting. 
 
 (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.) 
 
 BANKS & BROTHERS, 
 
 NEW YORK, ALBANY, N. Y. 
 
 1894.
 
 //I*p3«/ 
 
 83+ 
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1894, by 
 
 BANKS & BROTHERS, 
 in the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. 
 
 WEED-PARSONS PRINTING CO., 
 tyfebs, Printers and Binders, 
 Albany, N. Y.
 
 
 (ifoitses (&zlzbvzs. 
 
 THE MOREY LETTER. 
 
 THE DAVIS WILL CASE. 
 
 THE LEWIS WILL CASE. 
 
 THE GORDON WILLfCASE. 
 
 THE THEODORE HUNTER WILL CASE 
 
 6WW
 
 TABLE OF CHAPTER CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Introductory , # . x ,_ 2 _ 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Forgeries, and the modern facilities for producing them — What 
 a majority of the more important ones consist of — The 
 changes in the rules of evidence as to the comparison of 
 handwriting by juries — The origin of the common-law rule, 
 relating to expert evidence, its character and value — Bank 
 tellers and bank cashiers as experts in handwriting — Cause 
 of opposite expert opinions 24-34 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Why persons write differently — How the writing habit develops 
 with individual character — When and under what circum- 
 stances the writing habit becomes a reflex or mechanical ca- 
 pacity — Typical variation in writing of the same person — 
 Effect of practice and different systems of penmanship in 
 modifying or changing individual habit 37 _ 5 2 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 How individual habit becomes manifested in writing— Why there 
 can be no rule for determining personal characteristics other 
 than that which relates to their difference in each person's 
 writing from that of every other — Personal characteristics 
 in the writing of an individual always typical of each other, 
 as to cause and why — The necessity of understanding the 
 muscular functions of the hand and forearm to reach a proper 
 understanding as to the cause of personal details in the writ- 
 ing — The function of hand and forearm in writing — The 
 manner of moving and holding the pen determined by the 
 appearances in the writing consequent upon it — Pen pres-
 
 G INTENTS. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 uan individual manifestation in a person's writing con- 
 
 gidcred The- tement, fatigue, disease and old 
 
 ip on the writing habit -Signature expression as a varia- 
 
 . the ordinary writing of a person — How far mstruc- 
 may modify the writing habit 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 The difference between what constitutes typical parallelism of 
 ime writer, and their simulation by another person — 
 jsity oi c.uv to secure accuracy in making examina- 
 .uid comparisons of handwriting — The importance of 
 having proper standards or admittedly genuine writing of 
 the person whose writing is being disputed — The date of all 
 writings used for the purpose of comparison with relation to 
 thatoi tin disputed writing being examined — Traced sig- 
 natures and how produced — Some of the usual conditions of 
 ! signatures considered — The use of the compound 
 microscope and the importance of its use in the examination 
 of disputed writing — The effect of age. disease and excite- 
 ment to be taken into account in the examination of signa- 
 tures — The analysis of personal habit in writing explained 
 and illustrated in detail by an example — Why simulating 
 capacities are limited — Measure of accuracy attainable — 
 W iing habits classed generically 80-126 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Signatures compared with the ordinary writing of the same per- 
 son — The circumstances attending the production of sig- 
 natures as compared with those under which other than 
 lure writing of the same person is done — Modifications 
 of the same habit of writing, their cause and character as ap- 
 plied to the production of the Junius letters — Disguised 
 handwriting as compared with habitual writing of the same 
 :i 1 )i tliculties attending the examination of disguised 
 handwriting, and the identification of the writer of it by com- 
 parison - Under what conditions a perfect disguise of a per- 
 son's handwriting may be accomplished and the difficulties 
 of doing it — Disguised handwriting as occurring in the case 
 del Whittaker and the process steps employed for its 
 identification explained and illustrated . 133-160
 
 Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Lead-pencil writing and its comparison with pen-and-ink writing 
 of the same person — What details of habit appearing in pen- 
 and-ink writing which do not occur in lead-pencil writing, 
 and the cause of their being manifested in the one and not in 
 the other — The use of a rigid pencil as compared with that 
 of an elastic pen, and the different effects appearing in the writ- 
 ing produced by them — Signatures written with a lead pencil 
 have in them only such features of habit as are susceptible of 
 imitation, and the difference in these respects from ink-written 
 signatures of the same person — The resemblances which the 
 pencil writings of different persons have, and why occurring — 
 The effect which the character of the pencil may have in the 
 appearance of the writing produced by it — Traced signatures 
 made with a lead pencil and the resemblance they bear to the 
 genuine signature from which copied if well done — Why 
 forgeries of pencil written signatures are difficult to determine. 174-185 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Inks and the circumstances under which a knowledge of their 
 composition becomes important — The age of papers or 
 documents determined by the appearance of the writing upon 
 them— How written instruments manifest their age — The 
 causes which retard or accelerate the changes occurring in 
 their appearance — How the fading of inks relates to their 
 composition — Inks historically considered — Ancient inks 
 and their composition — Inks classed as solutions and as 
 containing coloring matter in suspension — The effect of 
 care and the custody of written documents as relates to ac- 
 celerating or retarding the effects of time — The condition of 
 the paper as affecting the changes produced in its age — The 
 facility with which modern inks can be removed — The use 
 of tinted paper as a means of protection — How machines 
 which punch out value amounts are circumvented by 
 forgers — Type-writer work and its safety when original cop- 
 ies are used, and the dangers attending the use of carbon 
 copies 187-203 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 When and how the chemical testing of inks becomes important — 
 How, and with what implements the tests should be made, 
 and by whom made — The identification of the reagents to
 
 Contents. 
 
 be uscl by proof, establishing them to oe what they purport 
 Authorities as to the value of chemical tests as mat- 
 U'iiy a single test of an ink is insufficient 
 composition, and why several tests 
 made — Where the kind of ink becomes import- 
 1 with the purported date of a written instru- 
 t- to the tune when the ink was discovered with an 
 1 — The effect of age upon writing when 
 nk with which the latter was produced is to be tested — 
 When writing has been traced with a lead pencil and then 
 written over with ink, how the test should be made chem- 
 ically to determine it — The effect of reagtnts as applied to 
 writings done with different inks and authorities cited with 
 rtlal Nigrosene inks 205-214
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 To the lawyer having on trial a case in which the 
 charge of forgery forms a feature, a knowledge of the 
 facts relating to forged writings, and their production 
 becomes very important. One understanding the causes 
 conditioning the appearances of genuine, as contrasted 
 with those of simulated writing, is better enabled to 
 try a case of this kind intelligently than another, who 
 has not a knowledge of these facts at his disposal. 
 While it is not necessary that counsel or attorneys 
 should become experts in handwriting to properly con- 
 duct trials of this kind, such of them as are acquainted 
 with the authoritative experiences of those who have 
 made such matters a subject of study, are better fit- 
 ted to examine witnesses in a manner to make their 
 evidence more clearly understood than others who have 
 not this qualification. It has often occurred in the 
 experience of the author when a witness at the trial 
 of cases of this kind, that persons conducting the exam- 
 ination would put their interrogatories in such shape 
 that they could not be fairly answered within the 
 scope of the question, and at the same time convey 
 a clear idea of the matter inquired about, from the 
 fact that the interrogator did not have a proper under- 
 standing of it. While it may take a great deal of 
 2
 
 IO 
 
 Preface. 
 
 study to make a man an educated expert in hand- 
 writing, it does not follow that a person cannot under- 
 
 nd the methods employed to reach conclusions in 
 such investigations without being able to practically 
 apply the process steps herein suggested, and a law- 
 yer by understanding the methods can easily distin- 
 guish opinions founded upon a scientific basis, from 
 those which are empirical and by cross-examination 
 make the difference apparent. 
 
 Directly connected with the determination of indi- 
 vidual habit of writing, there are other matters often 
 calling for expert knowledge, and which, as developed 
 in the experience of the author, the subjects are con- 
 sidered in the following pages. The real age, or the 
 counterfeited appearances of age, which a document may 
 have as to sustaining the question of its authenticity, 
 and the genuine or forged character of the signatures 
 appearing upon it at times become a matter of legal 
 controversy, and the experiences of those who have 
 had to investigate such matters become useful in reach- 
 ing a proper conclusion concerning them. The effect 
 which time has upon the ink with which the document 
 in question was written, the kind of ink, how and why 
 changes occur in ink writings as acted upon by time, 
 are all of them features which at times become sub- 
 ject-matters for the consideration of courts and juries. 
 Inks, and their composition, and how tested to prop- 
 erly determine their sameness or difference, as affect- 
 ing their having been written with cotemporaneously 
 when appearing in different parts of a document, are also
 
 Preface. i i 
 
 matters at times requiring expert knowledge and experi- 
 ence to determine them as to character. 
 
 To bank officers and the tellers of moneyed institu- 
 tions who are desirous of studying the phenomena 
 which gives individual character to the writing of dif- 
 ferent persons, and by which alone the determination 
 of forged from genuine signatures is accurately accom- 
 pjished, this book, if properly studied and with its con- 
 tents made properly applicable, will prove of great 
 value. To this class of persons a knowledge of inks, 
 and their chemical character, as to permanency, and 
 the detailed methods employed for raising the amounts 
 of checks and drafts, will furnish valuable aid in making 
 such examinations of suspected writings of this kind, 
 and prevent the perpetration of fraud.
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 Incidental to the study of a subject for over a quarter 
 of a century, there results as a sequence of such employ- 
 ment a measure of education and experience relating to, 
 and connected with what such a pursuit teaches ; and 
 these acquirements, so attained, better enable an indi- 
 vidual instructed by them to understand the natural 
 phenomena which the subject presents as to its realities, 
 than when considered without the guidance of these 
 qualifications. The most familiar conditions of nature, 
 and particularly some of those which are seemingly 
 simple in their every-day manifestation become complex 
 when studied with relation to their organization and 
 production ; and in the examination of special subjects 
 many apparently unimportant appearances take on a new 
 aspect, and assume a character which would not be under- 
 stood without knowing the relation such features may 
 have, when as effects they are connected with cause. 
 To the inexperienced eye of an observer the deviations 
 in pen movement, which weave inwardly and outwardly 
 in a line forming part of a letter, have no other signifi- 
 cance than as an irregularity in the writing; but to the 
 educated and experienced specialist who has studied the 
 subject-matter relating thereto, such conditions occurring 
 in the writing are indicative of muscular causes which 
 are peculiar to the individual producing them, and are 
 necessitated to so appear as a part of the writer's habit 
 from the organization of the writer's hand. Ordinarily 
 the peculiarities by which the writing of each person is 
 made to differ in appearance from that of every other are
 
 H Introductory. 
 
 considered in their general features of difference alone, 
 and without connecting the apparent fact of their indi- 
 vidual character with the cause of their manifestation. 
 Experience in this field of study will from its teachings 
 consider all the individuality apparent in the writing 
 of persons, as the result of physical conditions by which 
 the personality manifested in the writing is necessitated, 
 as a matter of peculiar muscular coordination, with the 
 latter as the cause establishing the habit, and the writing 
 in its individuality as the effect. 
 
 Indirectly the subject of handwriting has been dis- 
 cussed and considered by medical writers and others in 
 connection with what is termed Scriveners palsy or paraly- 
 as to the effect of the latter, and the cause of its 
 appearance, but so far as relates to the determination 
 of individual habit of writing from the phenomena pre- 
 sented by and accompanying its production apart from 
 its form and general appearance, little has been written 
 or published. In all the publications which have appeared 
 with reference to determining the authorship of the let- 
 ters of Junius, the conclusions reached, and the opinions 
 promulgated concerning who was the writer of them, 
 were based upon the characteristics of form and general 
 appearances ; and in none of them is the attempt made 
 to ascertain the physical habit of the writer by a micro- 
 scopic examination of the details appearing in the 
 writing, and consequent upon it, as a matter of per- 
 sonality. When the letters of Junius were written, 
 the goose-quill was the only implement employed, and 
 this did not give to the writing the strongly marked 
 details of physical habit which are manifested when a 
 metallic pen is used. 
 
 To understand physical habit in writing, and to deter- 
 mine what its individuality consists of, is the problem
 
 Introductory. 15 
 
 presented for consideration in this treatise. The subject- 
 matter is not calculated to interest people generally ; 
 only occasionally will persons be found to devote 
 sufficient time and study to the subject to become 
 proficient in it ; but to the earnest student who is 
 fitted and educated for the work, the process steps, and 
 the system of analysis proposed will prove full of inter- 
 est. With others where rigidity of intellect has so fet- 
 tered the faculties as to render them incapable of studying 
 new and complicated subjects, or with those who are 
 destitute of the education to intelligently apply the 
 means and methods suggested, and who usually "damnant 
 quod non intellzgunt" the system will be of but little use. 
 
 During the very many engagements in expert work 
 in that field where Chirography was the subject, and 
 wherein by the system of examination and analysis 
 hereinafter detailed, the Author has been enabled to 
 determine with accuracy what seemed difficult and 
 doubtful questions, the interrogation has often been 
 made by those who appreciated such efforts. Why do 
 you not publish your experiences and an explanation of 
 the system by which you reach conclusions in regard to 
 individual habit of handwriting ? To these questions 
 and requests the publication of this book is an answer. 
 
 The study of individual habit of writing for the 
 determination of its individuality, with the incentive to 
 the undertaking; stimulated to attain definiteness and 
 accuracy, opens a field for mental effoft where those 
 who enjoy the analysis of complications may find abun- 
 dant material to struggle with, and wherein to possess 
 the soul with patience is one of the first requisites. 
 These conditions are not attendant upon the work 
 where an assumed intuition or fancied innate capacity 
 gives birth to opinions, and where a snap-shot view of
 
 Introductory. 
 
 writing is deemed sufficient to formulate a conclu- 
 n as to its genuineness or simulation. Where the 
 study is pursued with the desire to insure accuracy, the 
 i steps to be employed require the same kind of 
 ictness, and step-by-step verification that guides the 
 mathematician in working out a calculation, or a chem- 
 ist in making an analysis of a substance. 
 
 When it is understood that the field in which the 
 study must be made presents in each case examined a 
 uliar set of facts which belongs to it alone; and 
 that the habitual writing of different persons shows no 
 parallelisms in those features which give individual 
 character to it ; and which causes the writing of each 
 person to differ from that of every other; it follows 
 that the study and determination of individual charac- 
 teristics has to be made independently of every other 
 consideration than those which the writing- being- 
 examined presents, and as much so as in the study 
 of any subject where every detail, and all the phenomena 
 manifested in it, belong to it alone. As a sequence of 
 this condition, no general rules can be formulated for 
 the classification of individual peculiarities, but there 
 can be indicated the use of such rules as designate a 
 mode of procedure in making the examination. 
 
 Closely connected with the fact that no two persons 
 write with the same habit, is the cause why they do 
 not : and why there should be developed in each person 
 a cause that c^ves individual character to the writing 
 habit. With the cause determined, the peculiarities 
 appearing in each person's writings become typical of the 
 cause and established as the product of the latter, in 
 connecting the act performed with the personal way of 
 doing it. Knowing that writing is accomplished as a 
 muscular act done under the prompting of a mental
 
 Introductory. 17 
 
 impulse, it is, in its production by each individual, subject 
 to the same differing conditions that are manifested 
 when all other muscular acts done by different persons 
 are compared ; the cause being that in no two persons 
 are the muscles which do the work, and the mental 
 impulse which prompts their movement organized in 
 such a manner as to produce the same coordinate action 
 excepting in a general manner. This necessary difference 
 occurring in all habitual writing constitutes the field in 
 which the examination must be made to determine indi- 
 vidual habit, and the analysis in each instance must be 
 accomplished by ascertaining from the writing itself, the 
 muscular coordination by which it was done, for the latter 
 constitutes the habit, and the writing itself is but the 
 effect and sequence of the latter. 
 
 To connect with the form of the letters the pen move- 
 ment producing them, constitutes the general work of the 
 analysis, and this involves in its application a very accu- 
 rate study of the writing under the microscope. While 
 the writing of a person may be very closely imitated so 
 far as its pictorial appearance is concerned, the muscular 
 habit of the writer whose signature is simulated cannot 
 be; and the microscope enables the examiner to study 
 the writing in a field where simulation cannot go. To 
 the educated and experienced eye, signatures when thus 
 studied should show all that is necessary to determine the 
 muscular habit of the writer from the writing itself. 
 Examined under these conditions the personal character- 
 istics of the writing become concomitants of the cause 
 producing them, and their variation (in view of the fact 
 that they are never written precisely alike) cease to be 
 real differences. 
 
 To the casual reader the minute details which indicate 
 personal habit of writing, and the muscular coordination 
 
 3
 
 Introductory. 
 
 i individual that are so small in their manifestation 
 lire a microscope to determine them, may seem 
 in their measure to produce either reliable 
 ttisfactory conditions under which to formu- 
 late an opinion with accuracy; yet everything we see is 
 made up of atoms, and all the great substances to which 
 names are given are mere aggregations, in which the 
 ms and their arrangement give character to the aggre- 
 It is the same with that which constitutes indi- 
 vidual habit in handwriting, and gives character to it. 
 h personal habit involves the production of details 
 which arc typical of the habit, and to identify them as the 
 luct of the latter and consequent upon it requires 
 that the examiner is capable of determining them, and 
 their connection with the cause of their production. 
 While the subject involves the application of a kind of 
 knowledge that can only be acquired by experience and 
 patient investigation, the measure of accuracy within the 
 reach of competent examination in this field of study is 
 much greater than is generally believed. 
 
 In the study of chirography, until recently the form of 
 the letters, their connection and general appearance was 
 the only field in which examinations were made to 
 determine individual habit. The idea of connecting with 
 the form produced by the pen, the personally peculiar 
 muscular coordination of the individual by which the 
 writing was done was not taken into account or con- 
 important ; and thus the variations occurring 
 >etween signatures of the same person abnormally pro- 
 duced under the same muscular coordination, when 
 compared with others of the same writer made with 
 •dinary emphasis, were very often considered real differ- 
 ences ; and this tended to embarrass the judgment of 
 such as were called upon to make such investigations.
 
 Introductory. 19 
 
 The general appearances of the writing being examined 
 suggested resemblances or differences, but whether the 
 resemblances were real or simulated and the variations 
 positive differences, was largely a matter of guess-work. 
 Hence signatures well simulated when compared with 
 genuine signatures of the person whose writing was 
 being disputed would be assumed to be genuine, from 
 their resemblance, and signatures of the same person 
 when compared with one another would from abnormal 
 conditions of production be determined as the writing 
 of different persons. Under an examination instituted 
 in the higher plane of study herein suggested, while 
 general appearances of signatures may be taken into 
 account in making comparisons, the manner of making 
 the letters, and the coordinate action of the muscles by 
 which the form is produced, will be maintained in the 
 following pages, furnish a far more reliable field for the 
 determination of the personal characteristics which give 
 to the signatures their individuality than the mere resem- 
 blance in form ; for while the latter may be imitated, the 
 muscular coordination producing them cannot be. 
 
 The individualism manifested in persons as regards 
 their acts, movements, general appearance, and mental 
 processes are no more strongly marked as to personality 
 than are the details which make up individual habit of 
 writing, and which in their manifestation, like the former, 
 have their origin under the operation of the same law 
 which gives to the human form its personal characteristics 
 in other respects. That the peculiar details which make 
 up, and give individual character to the writing of each 
 person are the resultants of physical habit cannot be rea- 
 sonably disputed. The appearance when magnified of 
 the details which cause each person's writing to differ 
 from that of every other will indicate the cooperation of
 
 20 
 
 Introductory. 
 
 muscular factors producing them ; and it would seem 
 
 >nly a question of ability on the part of the exam- 
 
 r making the analysis to determine from these details, 
 
 , of such a physical cause, the muscular 
 
 irdination constituting the latter. 
 
 While human judgment is not infallible, and the same 
 jective matter presented to different persons for con- 
 ration will often furnish a means for disagreement of 
 lion (particularly when the objective part of the sub- 
 considered, admits of a different understanding 
 of what is seen) it would seem in the analysis of individ- 
 ual habit of writing when conducted in the same plane of 
 study, and by examiners equally competent that there 
 should be but very little room for divergence of opinion. 
 Peculiar details appearing in the writing being examined, 
 and found to be necessarily the concomitant of a mani- 
 fested cause, concerning which as to kind and character 
 there could be no mistake, it follows that when these 
 peculiarities are considered as effects, that they must 
 indicate the cause alike to different observers equally 
 competent, and with such definiteness as to prevent 
 disagreement. 
 
 The writing by an individual of his or her signature is 
 a very simple act after the habit of doing it is acquired, 
 and as to how its personality should be established in the 
 writer by comparison is not only a learned and scientific 
 satisfaction as a matter of study, but it at times becomes 
 important with reference to the property interest the 
 signature may create when affixed to an instrument in 
 writing. If people wrote only their own signatures to 
 papers to give value to them, the question of determining 
 the individualism manifested in them would not become 
 so necessary a matter ; and the scientific examination and 
 identification of personal habit in writing as an acquire-
 
 Introductory. 21 
 
 ment, would find a place among those other studies in 
 whicM the satisfaction of knowing the facts relating thereto 
 is the only incentive to their attainment. But there are 
 persons who are not content to write their own signature 
 to papers of importance, but with dishonest intent essay 
 to imitate those of other persons, and hence the identifi- 
 cation of individual habit becomes important to protect 
 property interests, and to punish fraud. 
 
 Based upon an experience derived from the examina- 
 tion and analysis of thousands of specimens of writing 
 in this field of study and research, the means and process 
 steps herein suggested for determining individual habit 
 of writing are not advanced as a mere theory, but as a 
 system which when studied by the competent will estab- 
 lish its own claims to verity and reliability. Intelligently 
 made applicable the method and procedure suggested 
 opens a field for study where something tangible can be 
 reached in the way of facts to verify an opinion, and to 
 formulate a conclusion ; but the Author is aware of the 
 attending condition, that the measure of value attached 
 to all opinions given and conclusions reached through 
 the employment of the system herein proposed will 
 depend upon the skill, and experience of the person mak- 
 ing the examination, and the proper application of what 
 is found to occur in the writing being examined. In the 
 experience of the Author it has occurred that persons 
 learned in the use of the. microsrope would fail to con- 
 nect with the physical cause of their production very 
 plainly manifested, peculiarities in a signature. Seeing a 
 detail that was peculiar to the writing of an individual 
 and found to occur in all movements of the pen in typical 
 delineation, the observer could distinguish the peculiarity, 
 but why it should occur and what necessitated its appear- 
 ance as a part of the writer's habit could not be under-
 
 Introductory. 
 
 >d lor want of experience, and an education that fitted 
 ibserver for the work. 
 
 Necessarily connected with the study of individual 
 habit as manifested in the writing produced by it is a 
 knowledge of how individual habit is developed? Why 
 must there be an individual habit manifested in the writ- 
 ing of each person? And a proper understanding of 
 these conditions is essential to a correct consideration 
 of what individual habit is, and how determined, before 
 proceeding to compare one writing with another, for the 
 purpose of ascertaining whether that which is disputed 
 is genuine or simulated. A study and knowledge of 
 these conditions is important in the fact that peculiari- 
 ties appearing in writing are better understood and 
 determined as to character when connected with the 
 cause of their production ; and a knowledge of how pro- 
 duced enables the examiner to distinguish them from 
 like forms made by the pen under the operation of a 
 different muscular coordination. 
 
 While the writing habit as acquired and specifically 
 conditioned in each individual from physical causes 
 manifests itself as well in the ordinary writing of per- 
 sons as it does in their signatures, the latter are gener- 
 ally written with some peculiarity and more individual 
 in character than other writing of the same person. 
 This occurs from the fact that the signature represents 
 the individual, and when signed to a paper of importance 
 the intention to make its personality apparent becomes 
 connected with its production as a matter of habit. 
 \\ ith the writing of persons other than their signatures 
 their is no incentive to give to it personal characteris- 
 tics as to form and general appearance, nor is there any 
 necessity for doing it. In a succeeding chapter this 
 signature expression (so often occurring in the writing
 
 Introductory. 23 
 
 of individuals) and the relation it bears to the modifi- 
 cation of personal habit of writing will be fully discussed. 
 
 The several branches of the subject are treated in the 
 following - pages in the light of the author's extensive 
 experience, and while it is possible that conditions may 
 be found to occur in the writing of a person where the 
 means herein suggested may fail to connect the writ- 
 ing with the peculiarity of the muscular co-ordination 
 producing it, yet such an experience has never occurred 
 to the Author. Pen writing from the character of the 
 implement used to produce it must indicate the manner 
 in which it was held and operated, and while in this 
 respect writing done with it differs from that produced 
 with a lead pencil, and while the same rules will not 
 apply to an examination of writing done with the latter 
 that are applicable to pen and ink writing, yet even pen- 
 cil writing, as will be afterward treated upon, generally 
 has manifested in it details of habit by which the latter 
 may be determined. 
 
 Individual habit of writing, as made the subject of the 
 ensuing chapters, will be treated upon and principally 
 discussed as relating to such writing when done with a 
 pen and ink with accustomed effort and habitually, and 
 not as relating to unusual or disguised handwriting, or 
 to signatures written with a lead pencil. Other than 
 signature writing and disguised handwriting will be 
 treated in separate chapters. 
 
 William E. Hagan, 
 
 Troy, N. Y.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 FORGERIES, AND THE MODERN FACILITIES FOR PRODUCING 
 THEM.— WHAT THE MAJORITY OF THEM CONSIST OF.— THE 
 CHANGES IN THE RULES OF EVIDENCE AS TO THE COM- 
 PARISON OF HANDWRITING.— THE ORIGIN OF THE COMMON- 
 LAW RILE RELATING TO THE LATTER.— EXPERT EVIDENCE, 
 CHARACTER AND VALUE.— BANK TELLERS AND BANK 
 lSHIERS AS EXPERTS IN HANDWRITING. 
 
 The crime of forgery, like many other offenses against 
 society and the laws enacted for the protection of the 
 latter, has in recent years been compelled to seek out 
 new avenues for its practice, to avoid those precaution- 
 ary means which have been instituted to prevent its 
 being successful, and where punishment is sure to follow 
 detection. Few forged checks are now presented at 
 banks or moneyed institutions for payment, unless they 
 happen to come to the latter payable through exchanges 
 from shop-keeper depositors ; and this class of forgeries 
 is generally the work of bunglers, and for small amounts. 
 Occasionally endorsements of notes are forged, but in 
 the matter of wills and notes against the estate of de- 
 ceased parties, the number of forgeries seems to be 
 increasing. The temptation to forge a will or note 
 purporting to be that of a person who has died and 
 left a large estate, is stimulated by the fact that for 
 this class of forgeries, when detected, the perpetrators 
 of the crime are seldom punished. As a sequence of 
 this condition, forgeries of this class furnish the greater 
 part of the cases occurring in which litigation is had. 
 
 Xot only have this class of forgeries increased greatly 
 within the past few years, but those who commit the 
 crime in the better conditions of its execution have
 
 FORGERIES, AND FACILITIES FOR PRODUCING THEM. 25 
 
 greater facilities at hand for accomplishing it than 
 formerly. The steel or gold pen is a much better im- 
 plement for the work than the goose-quill of fifty years 
 ago ; while materials for tracing and delineating the 
 general appearances of a signature are very easily 
 obtained by those who desire to use them for such a 
 purpose. When the work of pen-artists and scriveners 
 of the present day is examined, and particularly as shown 
 in designs for stock certificates, testimonials, and other 
 work of a similar kind, to the ordinary observer they 
 are difficult to distinguish from engravings. It will be 
 understood that the same means and better facilities 
 which have developed this culture in the use of the pen 
 for honest purposes, when used dishonestly have in- 
 creased the ability to simulate signatures, and to make 
 the determination of the fact whether they are forged 
 or genuine more difficult than formerly. 
 
 It is well known that paper money imitations in the 
 form of greenbacks have been produced by pen-artists in 
 such perfect picturing as to defy identification as such in i 
 the ordinary field of examination. Copies of expensively 
 engraved bank checks, having complicated designs, have 
 been so closely imitated with a pen that ordinary ob- 
 servers could not tell them from the engraved specimens 
 from which they were copied and pictured. While this 
 development of ability has occurred with those making a 
 study of this kind of work, there has been also a gener- 
 ally increased faculty on the part of all who write to 
 control the pen with aptness and more complete com- 
 mand. Two hundred years ago there were but few 
 people who wrote much or that used the pen to any 
 great extent. But for the last three generations a 
 large proportion of the people in all civilized countries 
 have not only learned to write, but to write a great 
 4
 
 Modern Changes in the Rules of Evidence. 
 
 As a sequence of this condition many persons 
 not professional criminals are induced to commit for- 
 
 v on finding out that they have the ability to simulate 
 
 the signature of another, particularly when the tempta- 
 
 to do it is coupled with the opportunity, and when 
 
 the chances of detecting the crime and fixing it upon the 
 
 perpetrator are made doubtful by surroundings. 
 
 Until recently, the comparison with disputed writing, 
 of other writing known to be genuine, was not permitted 
 under the common law in jury trials, unless the admit- 
 
 [y genuine writing was in the case as a part of it, and 
 
 a now in some of the States of the Union this rule is 
 still adhered to. This condition left available for evi- 
 dence a very limited field of inquiry ; and generally the 
 only evidence that could be used for establishing the 
 
 mine or forged character of a signature was the opin- 
 ion of those who had become familiar with the writing of 
 the person whose signature was being questioned, by 
 having seen that person write. Witnesses whose evi- 
 dence as to the genuine character of a signature is based 
 upon having seen that person write, cannot be expected 
 to judge as to its being genuine from anything but the 
 general appearances of the writing, and as a forgery, to 
 accomplish its purposes, must involve the imitation of 
 the signature it is intended to represent, those forming 
 an opinion from such a standpoint are easily deceived, 
 and much more so now than formerly, when forgeries 
 are so successfully made as to deceive even the person 
 whose name is simulated. 
 
 The English common-law rule as to the comparison of 
 handwriting originated centuries ago, and continued to 
 have force in England until 1854, when by statute it was 
 provided that writing proved to the satisfaction of the 
 court to be genuine, might be submitted to the jury and
 
 The Old Common-Law Rules. 27 
 
 by them used for purposes of comparison with disputed 
 writing. This common-law rule (still in force in many 
 of the States of the Union) originated in England at 
 a time when juries could neither read nor write, and 
 on this account were considered incompetent and unfit 
 to compare writings when determining their genuine or 
 forged character, and has strayed down into our times as 
 one of the many excrescences that feudalism and igno- 
 rance had from necessity grafted on to jurisprudence, 
 and which has been remedied by subsequent enactment. 
 Under the old English common-law rule, and even 
 now with the more recent statutory provisions operative 
 as regards the comparison of handwriting by the jury, a 
 witness having seen a person write his name ten or 
 twenty years ago is sufficiently competent under the rule 
 to testify as to the genuineness of a disputed signature 
 purporting to be that of the same person the witness saw 
 write years before ; and evidence of this kind is very 
 often introduced at the present time in the trial of 
 causes ; not only is this the fact, but there are even 
 some judges and lawyers who still believe it to be the 
 best kind of evidence. This class of proof, however hon- 
 estly given, must be based on the condition alone that as 
 the witness remembers the writing he saw done, the 
 questioned signature looks like it. But as a forged sig- 
 nature, to answer the purposes for which it was made, 
 must from necessity look like that from which it was simu- 
 lated ; and as it frequently occurs that an expert forger will 
 simulate a signature so closely that the very person whose 
 name is simulated cannot tell the forged from the genu- 
 ine, evidence of this class of witnesses would seem to have 
 little value. It was to allow the introduction of what the 
 courts of England considered better evidence that statu- 
 tory provision was made for the comparison by the jury
 
 Expert Evidence. 
 
 of the disputed writing with the genuine ; and this change 
 
 an evolved necessity to meet conditions 
 
 which had not developed, and were not in existence when 
 
 1 common-law rule was adopted, and when juries 
 ild not read or write. 
 
 This change in the rule of evidence as regards the 
 lparison of handwriting, first adopted in England and 
 
 . and afterwards in most of the United States, 
 nits the introduction of another class of evidence — 
 that of experts who have made the subject of hand- 
 writing a study, and who testify as a matter of opinion 
 and without any personal knowledge of the writing of the 
 individual whose signature is being questioned, other than 
 that derived from an examination of the writing itself. 
 While this change in the rules of evidence would seem 
 to be a great improvement upon the old common-law 
 rule, yet it is open to many objections in the fact that 
 the same difficulties appear which accompany the trials 
 of all cases where experts are called upon to testify as a 
 matter of opinion ; and more particularly so because 
 there is no established rule or standard as to what con- 
 stitutes an expert in handwriting. As a sequence of this 
 condition the range of ability between the extremes of 
 competency appearing is a wide one. Before an edu- 
 cated and learned court, able to distinguish between the 
 competent and incompetent, there is less difficulty ; but 
 to the average juryman this measure of ability is not 
 taken into account in reaching a conclusion. It often 
 occurs that experts who have had a wide range of 
 
 nee, and possess every qualification to judge 
 intelligently as to the character of the writing before 
 the court, are contradicted by persons posing as experts 
 who have had little or no experience ; and sometimes 
 who lay claim to possess a supernatural gift in being able
 
 Expert Evidence. 29 
 
 to tell genuine from forged writing by merely touching it. 
 
 Where the opinion of experts is given in court uponf 
 disputed signatures, it is not so much the opinion 
 expressed as it is the facts made apparent in the writing 
 by explanation, and upon which the opinion given is 
 based which enables the court or jury to reach a ponclu- 
 sion that gives value to the testimony. These facts in 
 their fair presentation makes the expert the amicus curice 
 of the court in setting before the latter what the educa- 
 tion and experience of the expert finds by analysis and 
 comparison to exist in the writing, that the tribunal 
 before which it is had may consider and take into 
 account in reaching a conclusion. 
 
 Expert evidence given under the most honest con- 
 victions of its verity and conscientious regards to accu- 
 racy does not always receive the credence to which it is 
 entitled, from the fact that this class of proof is so often 
 coupled with conditions which give to it a partisan 
 character. The earnestness and zeal shown at times by 
 experts in emphasising all the apparent facts which tend 
 to establish their opinion, and the avoidance of every- 
 thing that might be considered as adverse to it, affects 
 generally the value of all expert evidence, and so much 
 so that all kinds of it are received cum grano salts. In 
 estimating the integrity of this kind of evidence it would 
 seem that honesty and fairness should be considered as 
 necessarily enforced conditions to make the calling of the 
 experts a successful one in a pecuniary point of view, yet 
 this is seldom taken into account by those who sit in 
 judgment upon it ; nor is the fact that though experts 
 may differ in opinion, they may each honestly testify to 
 what is believed to be true. 
 
 The best appreciated standard of educated expert evi- 
 dence is that which states the facts on which the opinion
 
 ;o 
 
 ert Evidence. 
 
 riven is based without bias, and in perfect fairness to 
 
 5 of the controversy, no matter how strong 
 
 may be the conviction of the expert as to the opinion 
 
 jed, and while the latter may be defended by the 
 
 tal of such apparent facts as go to sustain the views of 
 
 the yet the latter should be equally ready to allow 
 
 to those conducting the cross-examination the benefit of 
 
 all facts to which attention is called that tend to traverse 
 
 the opinion of the witness. 
 
 While there is usually much that can be seen and 
 explained as to what the opinion given is founded upon, 
 there are many features apparent to the experienced eye 
 of an educated observer that cannot be appreciated or 
 understood by persons who have not made the subject 
 being considered a study. Where the evidence of a 
 chemist is given as to formulated reactions, and the pro- 
 cess steps pursued in making an analysis, there is much 
 which must be taken for granted if believed by those who 
 are not chemists, and it is so with an analysis of hand- 
 writing made to determine its individuality, and there 
 may be very important facts stated as occurring, which 
 are only discernable by the eye of one experienced in 
 making such examinations. 
 
 Persons who devote a large part of their lives to the 
 study of special subjects must become learned in them, 
 and when aided by education and having capacity to 
 understand what they see and learn, their ideas of a sub- 
 ject, if honestly given and without bias, may be useful to 
 others in reaching a conclusion upon a matter pertaining 
 to it who have not had this experience. While this is 
 true in respect to all subjects where expert evidence may 
 be of value, it is especially so as regards the determina- 
 tion of individual habit of writing which presents a field 
 for study where peculiar education and experience are
 
 Expert Evidence. 3 1 
 
 very essential to reach a correct conclusion in the matter 
 of an opinion as to its genuine or forged character. 
 Relating to the subject of handwriting as well as all 
 others in which expert evidence is employed, it very 
 often occurs that those having had the most experience 
 as such will agree in their opinions and be arrayed upon 
 one side of a controversy, and those with the least experi- 
 ence and fewest advantages to know of what they testify, 
 will be found upon the other side ; and then there comes 
 from counsel supported by empyrical testimony the usual 
 statement in summing up the case, that these learned 
 experts do not agree. Occasionally it happens that even 
 equally well-educated experts in handwriting will disagree, 
 just as lawyers and even judges do sometimes in their 
 interpretation of the law. As will afterwards be shown 
 where the general appearance of signatures is the only 
 field in which they are studied, formally written signa- 
 tures may be given one set of experts from which to make 
 the comparison, while those employed by the other side 
 of the controversy will be given signatures to letters, or 
 others written where the intention to give them person- 
 ality was not necessary, and this procedure is apt to be 
 misleading when signatures are thus studied, and leads to 
 the development of opposite opinions. 
 
 Amongst the many who appear as experts in handwrit- 
 ing are bank officers ; and when the conditions under 
 which as a class they do business is considered there is 
 but little that occurs in it to make them proficient in the 
 art of determining individualism in signatures. The gen- 
 eral appearance of signatures and the resemblance or 
 difference they have in these respects when compared is 
 the field in which their examinations are made, and this 
 alone does not constitute safe ground for study and the 
 formulating of an opinion ; for both general appearances
 
 I; vnk Oi as Experts. 
 
 and resemblances can be very closely imitated, and in 
 h a manner as to even deceive the very person whose 
 name is simulated. 
 
 Bank tellers undoubtedly do acquire a certain amount 
 perience in determining the genuine character or 
 .iy of the signatures of persons with whose writing 
 :quainted; and yet very little money is paid 
 out over the counters of banks on the knowledge which 
 the teller has of the signatures of customers of the 
 ik. Checks drawn to the order of strangers, if pre- 
 sented by the endorser, require the identification of the 
 latter, and checks for large amounts are seldom drawn 
 payable to bearer. Small checks, presented payable to 
 bearer, when forged, are usually produced by novices or 
 bunglers and are easily detected. Checks and notes 
 coming in with exchanges have the collection endorse- 
 ment of the bank sending them, and thus do not require 
 critical examination. Checks deposited by customers of 
 the bank containing the endorsement of the depositors 
 require no more examination than to see that the endorse- 
 ment is there. Thus it will be seen that while bank tellers 
 may become acquainted with the general appearance of 
 customers' signatures, this measure of experience so 
 acquired by them does not necessarily qualify them to 
 judge of the signatures of persons other than those with 
 whose writing they are acquainted ; and from the further 
 fact that they are not called upon to critically examine 
 such other signatures. Hence the knowledge attained 
 by bank tellers does not fit them by experience to judge 
 of the character of signatures generally, and the value 
 of their evidence in these respects is greatly overesti- 
 mated. This condition does not apply, however, to 
 such bank tellers who, apart from the little experience 
 their routine business gives, make signatures and the
 
 Bankers and Writing Teachers as Experts. 33 
 
 habit of persons in writing a study, and become proficient 
 therein. 
 
 The cashiers and presidents of banks are sometimes 
 called as experts to give evidence as to the character of 
 signatures when their genuineness is questioned, and yet 
 the experience these officers have to fit them to judge 
 intelligently of such matters is very limited. The notes 
 they receive and discount for the bank are taken and 
 received more upon the financial standing of the maker or 
 endorser, than upon any knowledge these officers may 
 have of the signatures upon the notes. How far this 
 class of bank officers are capable of judging of the genu- 
 ineness of signatures, is best answered by the constantly 
 occurring fact that when a series of forgeries are uttered 
 in a community, the banks as victims become loaded with 
 them. This would not occur were these officers who 
 receive and discount the paper qualified to judge of the 
 genuineness of signatures. 
 
 Writing teachers occasionally appear as experts, and 
 the general idea would suggest that they should in 
 their experience acquire a measure of knowledge that 
 would fit them for the determination of individual habit 
 of handwriting ; and yet as a class they furnish experts 
 of the least ability. Generally wedded to some particular 
 system of penmanship wherein form alone is taught by 
 exercises, they never get beyond this limit, and though 
 they may be able to wield the pen so as to produce beau- 
 tiful scrolls, birds and ornamentation, the physical causes 
 which enter into and typify individualisms of habit they 
 are not able to determine by analysis, and consequently 
 conclusions reached by them or opinions given have but 
 little value. 
 
 In addition to the differing measure of ability, experi- 
 ence and education occurring between experts in hand- 
 
 5
 
 34 Signatures Selected for Comparison. 
 
 writing tending to produce difference of opinion upon the 
 genuine or forged conditions of a disputed signature, 
 there are many accompanying circumstances in such cases 
 ling to produce the same effect; and particularly 
 where the general appearance of the writing, and the 
 pictorial resemblance it bears to the genuine, is the only 
 I in which the examination is made. One of these 
 conditions occurs in the character and kind of genuine 
 signatures used for comparison with the disputed writ- 
 ing. Standard signatures offered for the latter purpose 
 are generally selected by those who have an interest in 
 establishing the genuine or forged character of the dis- 
 puted signature. In the experience of those who make 
 such matters a study for the purpose of giving testimony 
 in court, it will very often occur that each- side of the 
 controversy will furnish their counsel with only such sig- 
 natures for use as standards from which to make the 
 comparison, as will from their general appearance best 
 favor their interests in the suit ; and thus experts depend- 
 ing upon mere resemblances or general appearances 
 alone in making the comparison, even when acting under 
 the most conscientious motives, are led to disagree with 
 others equally conscientious, who had a different class of 
 standard writings for examination and comparison before 
 coming into court and giving an opinion. 
 
 It frequently occurs that when experts are being cross- 
 examined in court, that specimens of writing will be 
 shown and handed them for inspection and opinion 
 which they have not before seen or examined ; and 
 where the general appearance of the writing thus pre- 
 sented is all that the expert has to depend upon in 
 formulating an opinion, conclusions reached under such 
 circumstances are often erroneous. Where the expert is 
 capable of determining individual habit of writing by a
 
 Personal Signatures, When Misleading. 35 
 
 microscopic study of it, no opinion should be rendered 
 until the expert has had the same opportunity to exam- 
 ine the writing so presented for the first time, in the 
 same manner that the other writino- in the case has 
 been studied to formulate the opinion given. 
 
 There are so many conditions under which signatures 
 of the same person are produced, that the variations 
 manifested in them seem to be consonant with the 
 impulse suggesting their production, as will be more 
 fully considered hereinafter in another connection. Thus 
 it will appear that signatures signed to checks, if written 
 in a limited field as to room, or signatures written as 
 indorsements, will differ in length and size from signa- 
 tures of the same person when produced at the bottom 
 of a bond or deed, or even a will, where there was more 
 room to write them. Signatures to letters will very 
 often differ in general appearance and resemblance from 
 the more formally written signatures of the same person 
 to papers of importance, such as bonds, deeds, wills, con- 
 tracts or notes, where it is more essential that the person- 
 ality of the writer appear in the signature. Hence when 
 the informally written signatures to letters are given to 
 one set of experts, and those making examinations for 
 the opposite side of the controversy have standards con- 
 sisting of formally written signatures from which to 
 make the comparison, the foundation is laid for a dis- 
 agreement; and this condition is particularly the case 
 where resemblances or differences in general appearance 
 is the only field in which the examination is made. 
 
 Where the resemblance and same general appearance 
 is found to occur in a disputed signature that has a 
 counterpart in the standard used for comparison with 
 many who pose as experts in handwriting, it is deemed 
 sufficient to establish the genuine character of the dis-
 
 36 Why General Appearances are Deceptive. 
 
 puted signature. With experts more experienced, and 
 capable of analyzing writing in a higher plane of exami- 
 nation, while general appearances must be taken into 
 account in formulating an opinion, to make this condition 
 available in establishing the genuine character of the 
 disputed signature, it must appear also that these resem- 
 blances occurring in the writing being examined are pro- 
 duced by the same physical habit ; and for the reason 
 that resemblances and general appearances are very easily 
 imitated. 
 
 The measure of accuracy which may be reached as to 
 the genuine or forged character of a signature when 
 determined by analysis will depend upon the ability of 
 the examiner to ascertain and determine the physical 
 habit of the writer by the details appearing in the writing 
 produced by it. Hereinafter when individual habit is 
 more specifically considered as to what it consists of, and 
 how determined, the measure of accuracy which may be 
 attained in the examination of signatures will be more 
 fully understood.
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 WHY PERSONS WRITE DIFFERENTLY.— HOW THE WRITING HABIT 
 DEVELOPES WITH INDIVIDUAL CHARACTER.— WHEN, AND 
 UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES THE WRITING HABIT 
 BECOMES A REFLEX OR MECHANICAL CAPACITY.— TYPICAL 
 VARIATION IN WRITING OF THE SAME PERSONS.- EFFECT 
 OF PRACTICE AND SYSTEMS OF PENMANSHIP. 
 
 The ability to easily and readily tell one person from 
 another is an inherited faculty which all possess, from 
 the infant a few days old to those of maturer age, and 
 although the human face and form in its composition and 
 make-up contains the same elements in each individual 
 yet among the millions of people living upon the earth, 
 no two of them are exactly alike, and that they are not 
 so is easily determined. No two persons walk, talk, or 
 do any other act which calls for the co-ordinate action of 
 a series of muscular factors in precisely the same manner, 
 and for the same reason no two persons write exactly 
 alike; and all individual habit in handwriting arises from 
 the same predisposing causes as does the differentiation 
 that produces personalities in other respects. 
 
 The development of a personal way of doing anything 
 that calls for muscular response to mental monition 
 becomes individual in its character from physical and 
 mental causes, and the writing habit derives its individu- 
 ality and development from the operation of the same 
 influences. Unlike nearly all of man's other muscular 
 acts, where inheritance manifested as intuition facilitates 
 their acquirement, the writing habit does not take on 
 reflex or mechanical conditions of use readily or uni- 
 formly ; and this arises in a measure from the order in 
 which the functions of the hand have been evolved.
 
 The Writing Capacities, How Developed. 
 
 The time when man first began to write is hidden away 
 in a remote antiquity, but the human hand as developed 
 in function measurably gives the history of its organi- 
 
 on, and thus connects its present condition with its 
 uses in the past. The employment of the human hand for 
 writing was not one of its earliest uses, and as a sequence 
 its adaptation for such work, while one of education, is not 
 so easily acquired as are those muscular functions where 
 inheritance aids their attainment The grasping of pre- 
 hensile functions were the uses in which the hand was first 
 
 rcised by primitive man, and this kind of employment 
 for ages had much to do with its present development ; 
 while those other muscular functions requiring aptness in 
 the manipulation of tools and small implements like the 
 pen, have mainly come through the more recent influences 
 of civilization, and the development of the arts calling 
 for their exercise in this field of use. As an embryology 
 developing stages significantly determine the evolution of 
 the physical form, and the successive changes it has 
 traversed in its elevation from a lower to a higher or^ani- 
 zation ; so the functions of the hand in the order of their 
 appearance and aptness show the relative periods of their 
 development. Thus an infant but a few weeks old has 
 the faculty of grasping objects in contact with the hand 
 by the use of the prehensile muscles of the latter, though 
 it can do but little else with them ; and this indicates that 
 these grasping functions are older and were earlier 
 developed in the human hand than other muscular 
 functions of the latter subsequently evolved by which, 
 after grasping, the object held could be moved with 
 precision and accuracy. These gripping or grasping 
 capacities of the hand occur in every person in varied 
 measure of strength and power, and for the reason that 
 they are the muscular functions of the hand most used,
 
 Muscular Functions Used in Writing. 39 
 
 and in writing with the pen are those which must grasp 
 and position the latter. There are also developed in the 
 human hand muscles which adapt it in connection with 
 the prehensile functions for other uses than those of 
 merely holding the pen ; and when the grasping or pre- 
 hensile capacities are employed, these more delicately 
 organized muscles become subordinate to the former in 
 performing all muscular acts requiring strength, or the 
 development of power. When the hand is engaged in 
 writing it is a question of personal muscular organization 
 whether the prehensile capacities of the hand do the 
 work, without the intervention of the muscles adapted 
 for more delicate uses, or whether both act connectedly ; 
 and whether the prehensile functions of the hand coope- 
 rate with the forearm, and do not call into action the 
 more delicately organized functions of the writer's hand, 
 depends upon the individual condition of it as to muscular 
 development. 
 
 When the rudimentary efforts are made in learning to 
 write, generally the prehensile capacities of the hand are 
 used to guide and move the pen as well as to hold it, 
 although in some instances the beginner will use the pre- 
 hensile muscles to hold the pen, and operate the latter by 
 the forearm movement. It is under these conditions 
 variously modified in connection with the mental monition 
 prompting the act, that the preliminary steps for the 
 establishment of the writing habit are individually exer- 
 cised. Accompanying the acquirement of this habit there 
 is intimately connected the individual measure of coordi- 
 nate action existing between the powers to will and to do. 
 Though the mind may suggest what should be done, 
 the measure of responsive action in persons is widely 
 different. Thus an individual might have a correct 
 conception of the artistic effect of some eminent painter's
 
 4 o How the Writing Habit Develops. 
 
 work, and yet be unable to make a copy of it, though 
 a life-time were devoted to the attempt. The human 
 body through which the mental individualism is mani- 
 fested is an entity in each instance as regards its appear- 
 ance in those respects, which causes it to differ from every 
 other one of its kind ; so, also, is the mental force an 
 entity in each instance, the one as the tenant and the 
 other the tenement, and the manner in which they get 
 along together with coordinate action is conditioned 
 entirely by their organization and mutual adaptation. 
 Thus, the measure of accord existing between the mental 
 monition which prompts, and suggests the forms of let- 
 ters as required, and the ability to make them as sug- 
 gested must be a concomitant of the writing habit. 
 
 When learning to write, and until the habit is acquired, 
 the same struggles occur between the powers to will and 
 to do as are manifested in the efforts made by an infant 
 when trying to reach and grasp something which it sees ; 
 the difference between the movement of the child in so 
 doing, and those made by a person when learning to write, 
 being merely that of degree. In illustration of this con- 
 dition, if a person who has been educated to use the right 
 hand alone in producing his or her signature, will make 
 the effort to write one with the left hand, the efforts and 
 struggles between the mental monition which prompts 
 the act, and the attempted execution of the latter, will in 
 measure be the same in kind as those made by the infant. 
 
 A dozen or more children seated in a row at a desk, 
 under instruction, going through the rudimentary exer- 
 cises in learning to write, will give to an observer a good 
 idea of what causes the development of individual habit 
 of writing. It will be noticed that no two of the children 
 thus engaged will place themselves relatively to the desk 
 in the same manner, if allowed to assume a position sug-
 
 Why Differing Writing Habits Originate. 41 
 
 gested by comfort and convenience ; neither will any two 
 of them hold the pen alike, and the measure of control 
 which each of them has as regards the movement of the 
 latter will be found to be different. If the observer will 
 have the children each place the right hand upon the 
 table with the palm resting on the latter, and look them 
 over comparatively as thus placed, there will be found as 
 much difference in the form of their hands examined, as 
 in the faces of the children ; and it will be readily under- 
 stood that a dozen or more of the latter learning to write 
 from the same copies, and under the same teacher and 
 system of instruction, will each develop a separate and 
 distinct habit, and this will occur from the same cause 
 that makes them talk, walk, or laugh differently. 
 
 The writing habit thus evolved from an exercise of the 
 muscles of the hand, or the latter and the forearm under 
 the restraints of instruction, is directed to the production, 
 by the writer, of a copy-book form and style of the letters, 
 and yet as a matter of free habitual writing, the faculty 
 of doing so accurately is seldom if ever attained. Con- 
 venience and comfort as to the manner of holding and 
 moving the pen become strong factors in the establish- 
 ment of personal habit, and the differing muscular devel- 
 opment in each person will assert itself, and make promi- 
 nent its peculiarities. 
 
 When the writing habit is being developed by exercise, 
 and under the restraints of instruction, its attainment is 
 acquired by learning to copy the standard forms of let- 
 ters ; but after the muscles have become so educated, and 
 the person has learned to write making such copies of 
 the standard form of letters which the muscular coordina- 
 tion of the writer's hand necessitates, the habit generally 
 becomes by practice and continued use in each person a 
 mechanical or reflex capacity ; that is, done without any 
 6
 
 4 j The Writing Habit as a Reflex Capacty. 
 
 copying effort or especially directed mental monition as 
 to details, just as such other physical acts like walking are 
 accomplished without apparent cerebration. While with 
 most persons this condition of the writing habit is so 
 developed, yet with many it always remains as a copying 
 act, and the production of the letters when writing is 
 accomplished by following a form present in the mind 
 from memory. 
 
 The period at which the writing habit passes from its 
 manifestation as a copying condition of its development 
 to one where it operates as a reflex or mechanical act is 
 not a fixed one, and depends largely upon the influences 
 affecting each physical environment. With some per- 
 sons it is never attained, with others the habit exists 
 under both conditions of development. Accountants in 
 writing down figures to represent amounts, and where 
 accuracy is required, will generally produce them from a 
 copy present in the mind as a thoughtful precaution ; 
 while all their other work with the pen will be done 
 mechanically. Persons writing eccentric or peculiar 
 forms of capitals for the embellishment of signatures will 
 generally produce them from an ideal form present in 
 the mind, although the rest of the signature may be writ- 
 ten mechanically. Artisans and farmers as a class, and 
 particularly those who write but little, and generally 
 nothing but their names, never learn to produce the 
 latter as signatures mechanically, and they will write 
 them in manhood and even in old age, with the same 
 characteristics as they wrote them while children. 
 
 1 he development of the mechanical habit of writing 
 depends largely upon the amount of practice in connec- 
 tion with the use of the writer's hand in such employ, 
 ment, as well as upon the measure of coordinate action 
 occurring between the powers to will and to do in each
 
 When Habit Continues as a Copying Act. 43 
 
 person. Thus one who has difficulty in producing with 
 a pen what the mind suggests, must couple with the act 
 the way of doing it, and such a writer cannot make the 
 desired form without an ideal copy present in the mind. 
 As a little child acquires the habit of walking mechanic- 
 ally as soon as the act can be accomplished without a 
 specially directed monition as to how it shall be done, 
 the same condition is in a measure true in the develop- 
 ment of the writing habit as a reflex or mechanical 
 capacity; although inheritance, manifested as intuition, 
 comes to the aid of the child in the establishment of the 
 walking habit, and does not, with noticeable effect, have 
 any thing to do with the development of such a condi- 
 tion with relation to the acquirement of the writing 
 habit. The attainment of the latter, whether in its 
 development as a copying act or a reflex capacity, tends 
 to the establishment of personal characteristics and their 
 peculiar production, as much under the one condition of 
 its manifestation as the other. When the writing habit 
 passes from that form of it considered as a copying act, 
 to become a reflex capacity, it carries with it those feat- 
 ures of individuality which are forced into its composi- 
 tion from physical causes, there being no change in the 
 act or way of doing it, farther than as relates to the 
 mental processes which prompt its production. 
 
 The writing habit is much more easily acquired by 
 some persons than others, and yet the manual dex- 
 terity of persons in other respects does not of necessity 
 indicate an easy attainment of the writing habit as a 
 mechanical or reflex capacity. Individuals whose mus- 
 cles are highly trained, and more particularly in the use 
 of small implements other than the pen, very seldom 
 write a signature as a mechanical act. Thus artists who 
 handle the brush so as to produce an effect that will
 
 44 Individual Capacities to Will and to Do. 
 
 almost* speak from the canvas, are very rarely able to 
 write their signatures otherwise than as the copy of a form 
 appearing in the mind at the prompting of memory; and 
 it is largely so with engravers. This condition arises 
 from educating the muscles to act in response to sugges- 
 tion in producing a form that the artist's genius has con- 
 ceived, or a form present in the mind of the engraver; 
 and thus trained to act in one calling, the muscles follow 
 the same routine of action and connected mental pro- 
 cesses when writing. 
 
 As before detailed, there is as much difference between 
 the relative capacities of individuals to do what the mind 
 suggests, as there are differences in physical personalities. 
 With some beginners there is manifested great difficulty 
 in controlling and moving the pen in a desired direction, 
 with others there is less difficulty. All see the same 
 image, and have the same idea of what should be done to 
 copy it ; yet they all make different copies of it. This 
 varying condition arises from two principal causes, the 
 primary one being that the hands, or the latter and the 
 forearm of each of those doing the work rudimentarily 
 under instruction are differently organized as to muscular 
 coordination, and the second cause being the relatively 
 different measure of responsive action in each person 
 between the powers to will and to do ; with this condition 
 individually manifested in gradation between those meas- 
 ures where discordant action is merely apparent, and in 
 the other extreme where the latter appears as approach- 
 ing a palsied infirmity in character. Where there occurs 
 the most prompt response to mental suggestion, the pen 
 movement is more easily acquired by education and prac- 
 tice ; but if the best coordination between the powers to 
 will and to do is hampered by a deficient muscular func- 
 tion only such pen movements can be acquired by
 
 Rudimentary Efforts When Learning to Write. 45 
 
 exercise and practice as are within the producing powers 
 of the latter. 
 
 The first and rudimentary efforts made when learning 
 to write with a pen are directed to the production upon 
 paper of an image or object impressed upon the brain 
 through the functions of sight. The details of this exer- 
 cise combined with instruction have but one object, that 
 of educating the muscles of the hand or the latter and 
 the forearm to obey the will, and make a copy of the 
 image. Having a representative form of letters by which 
 they 4 are known and recognized as such, their production 
 and connection in a manner by which they may be read 
 by others, as to what they express is the object of writing 
 them. The same letters and arrangement of them when 
 written by different persons to spell out the same words 
 must have that resemblance to the representative form as 
 will condition them to be recognized as such, and in these 
 respects resemble each other, yet the same letters or 
 signatures if written by different individuals (without any 
 attempt at simulation excepting in following copy-book 
 forms) will in each instance show evidences of having 
 been written by different persons ; and these differences 
 as before explained will be due to an individual muscular 
 habit in each of them. The representative form of the 
 letters made by different writers while they must look 
 alike in those respects which give alphabetical character 
 to them, in other respects they will embody in their 
 production by their variation from copy-book standard 
 forms the peculiarities of each individual habit. 
 
 Instruction and studied restraint tend to educate the 
 muscular functions of the hand, or the latter and the fore- 
 arm to cooperate under the direction of the mental 
 impulse ; yet the resulting coordination from necessity 
 will be that in which the best developed and individually
 
 The Development of Individual Habit. 
 
 most responsive muscular functions in each person that 
 are adapted to do the work will become prime factors in 
 the act of writing, and these are relatively different in 
 h person. With some individuals the forefinger is more 
 responsive to intention when writing than the second 
 finger, with others the latter is more so than the index 
 finger, and with many writers the index and second finger 
 cooperate as one factor. These conditions together 
 with the varied development of the thumb, and innumer- 
 able differences occurring in the muscular organization of 
 the hand and forearm will be more fully considered 
 when physical habit of writing is discussed apart from 
 the conditions of its attainment. 
 
 Accompanying the development in the writing habit of 
 those features which give individual character to it in each 
 instance, there are as many personal conditions attend- 
 ant upon their production as there are persons who write 
 them, all of which can be determined by their appearance 
 and their connection with the muscular coordination 
 under which they are evolved. Certain peculiarly 
 developed conditions accompany their manifestation in 
 each instance, which can only be considered as to their 
 character in connection with the individuality of the 
 cause, wherein the latter as incident to their production 
 explains and typifies their origin. 
 
 After describing the conditions under which the writing 
 habit is developed, and in what manner it passes from 
 being manifested as a copying act, to one where it is 
 accomplished mechanically, there are other phenomena 
 connected with its development which accompany its 
 attainment, and become important to a proper under- 
 standing of its individualism. Prominently appearing in 
 this connection is the variation which occurs in the form 
 of the letters written under the operation of the same
 
 Individual Habit of Writing Defined. 47 
 
 habit, the cause of their appearance, their character, and 
 their connection with the well-known fact, that the same 
 person never writes even an habitual signature so precisely 
 alike as to have them exactly coincide in all respects. 
 These variations of the same habit occuring- in the form 
 of the letters, originate during the development of the 
 writing habit, and in the earlier stages of its attainment 
 are more emphatic in appearance than after the habit has 
 become more fixed ; but they are a feature of all habit- 
 ual writing in a greater or less degree of manifestation. 
 In describing these features it becomes necessary to 
 repeat somewhat the subject-matter considered in another 
 connection to make the relation apparent in that now 
 under consideration. 
 
 Individual habit in writing, when acquired, may be 
 defined in the connection in which its variation is studied 
 as a manifestation in each person's writing of peculiari- 
 ties which cause it in appearance to differ specifically 
 from copy-book standard forms of letters, and also to 
 differ in like manner from the individual character of the 
 variations in form which every other person's writing has 
 when compared with the same copy-book standards. 
 
 All who are taught to read writing have to learn the 
 representative form of the letters, and all who learn to 
 form the letters have to be taught to produce them with 
 such an approach to the standard style, that they may be 
 recognized and read by others, and in doing which, indi- 
 vidual habit is developed. Were it possible for every 
 person who wrote to follow with accuracy the copy- 
 book forms of the letters, all definition of individual habit 
 would disappear in this field of examination, and all per- 
 sons would write alike. But from the fact before 
 detailed this cannot occur, as in no two persons are the 
 physical factors which do the work in writing developed
 
 a& Individual Habit of Writing Defined. 
 
 precisely alike, it follows as a sequence that this condition 
 is a concomitant of the writing habit, and gives character 
 to it, for as each person's writing differs from copy-book 
 standards they also differ from each other. 
 
 A standard form is given to the letters in writing copy- 
 books and the form of these letters must be followed in 
 general character in the production of a signature to have 
 the letters spell out the name which as written they rep- 
 resent. The variations in form from copy-book stand- 
 ards will necessarily be individual ones in each person's 
 signature from physical causes, and the variations occur- 
 ring in signatures of the same person if written habitually 
 will be typical ones, that is while varying in form from 
 others made by the same habit, they will indicate in their 
 peculiarity that they are the product of the same muscu- 
 lar cause although modified in appearance. This varia- 
 tion from what would be a copy-book standard form being 
 peculiar in each person's writing, constitutes the general 
 appearance of its individuality, and is the field in which 
 is manifested its difference from that of every other per- 
 son's writing, and the variations which habitually written 
 signatures of the same person have when compared 
 with each other, will be found to be but modifications 
 of the same peculiarities which give to them their indi- 
 vidual character as produced with more or less emphasis. 
 While no one writes his or her signature twice pre- 
 cisely alike, or so nearly so that if one of them be laid 
 over the others that they will exactly coincide in all 
 respects, they will be alike in those features which cause 
 them to differ from every other person's writing, and 
 in the variations which as individualisms they make 
 from copy-book standard forms. These variations occur 
 from several causes, the most common one being 
 the differing conditions under which they are produced,
 
 Development of Individual Characteristics. 49 
 
 which will be made the subject of description herein- 
 after in another connection, and allusion only will be 
 made to them now as relating to such influences which 
 are connected with their development as a part of the 
 writing- habit and tend to their manifestation. 
 
 When learning to write, very prominent, irregularities 
 will occur in the form of the letters, which under instruc- 
 tion and practice become toned down, so as to be less 
 demonstrative and emphatic, although through the efforts 
 made to approach the standard forms of letters, and after 
 the habit has become established, signatures written with 
 less than usual care are apt to revert to these earlier 
 tendencies, which in either instance of their production 
 would be typical of each other, whether produced with 
 emphasis, or so as to be barely discernible. Assuming 
 in this connection that a person in writing his or her 
 signature to a paper of importance, and one in which it 
 is the desire of the writer to have the individuality of 
 the latter represented by the signature, it will be 
 written at the dictation of habit, and in the writer's usual 
 manner of producing it. Again assume this same person 
 to sign a hurriedly written letter where the appearance of 
 the writer's personality is not so important ; these two sig- 
 natures produced under different mental impulses might 
 show manifest differences in their general appearance, 
 and for the purposes of comparison in the latter field of 
 examination alone might be misleading as to their indi 
 vidualism ; but if in this connection it is possible to 
 determine the physical habit of the writer of them it will 
 appear that all the variations of form apparent, are merely 
 due to a relaxation of the restraint which practice had 
 imposed upon the writer's habit, indicating a return to the 
 earlier manifested irregularities of the writer which were 
 developed when the habit was being established. These 
 7
 
 5o Typical Variations of the Same Habit. 
 
 variations in the form and arrangement of letters mani- 
 fested in signatures of the same person will be typical 
 ones, originating from the same physical causes which 
 individual character to the writing, and as thus 
 determined cease to be real differences. While this rule 
 is applicable to that class of variations which are made 
 with emphasis, it is also applicable to that class of them 
 which are less prominently manifested, and generally 
 relate to comparative measurement. 
 
 When it is understood that the features which cause 
 each person's writing to differ from that of every other 
 are due to a different muscular coordination possessed by 
 each person, the resulting individualism will be a concomi- 
 tant of the cause giving it personal character and be 
 typical of it ; hence it follows that all the variations in 
 form which are found to occur in signatures of the same 
 person will be but mere modifications of the same 
 personal characteristics originating from a common cause. 
 These conditions occur in the writing of all signatures that 
 are written habitually, and the rule applies to the signa- 
 tures of those who write with ease and facility, as well as 
 to others who produce them with difficulty. 
 
 The development in individuals of the writing habit 
 thus necessitated to contain peculiarities which are caused 
 by the differing physical habit producing them in each 
 person, while evolving no perfect parellelisms, resem- 
 blances are sometimes found to occur in the writing of 
 different persons. One class of these resemblances occur 
 in a limited measure when the same letters are grouped 
 together by different persons to spell the same word or 
 name, and where the same representative form of letters 
 must be used in the same connection, so as to present in 
 substance the same alphabetical picture to the eye. In 
 some instances resemblances are found to occur when
 
 Resemblance in the Writings of Individuals. 51 
 
 different persons have been taught some like systems of 
 penmanship in which unusual forms of letters are used as 
 copies ; and occasionally resemblances will develop in the 
 habit of different persons where the writing of two of 
 them will approach each other in those peculiarities which 
 give individual character to them. These last-named 
 cases very rarely occur, and though the writings may 
 resemble each other somewhat in general appearance they 
 are never found to be near enough alike to have the one 
 taken for the other, when carefully and competently 
 examined. The resemblances thus happening to occa- 
 sionally appear in the writing of different persons vary 
 materially in character from those produced by simulation, 
 in the fact that where a signature is imitated the form 
 of the letters, and their connection will be consonant with 
 the habits of the simulator producing them ; and unlike 
 that of the writer making the signature from which the 
 simulation was copied ; in other words, the imitator must 
 write them with a habit of his own and produce forms 
 that are inconsistent with its capacities as to details when 
 copying the forms incident to another habit. 
 
 Connected with the development of the writing habit, 
 and to a certain extent the organization of its individual 
 character is the influence and effect which enforced and 
 persistent practice exercised under the arbitrary rules of 
 differing systems of penmanship may have upon it. 
 Under the old rules of fifty years ago the tendency of 
 their enforcement was to develop in the prehensile facul- 
 ties of the hand mainly the habit of writing. Under this 
 old system the pen was directed to be held with its upper 
 end pointing to the right shoulder and with the wrist rest- 
 ing flatly on the table. As thus held, the pen was 
 operated entirely by the action of the common extensor 
 and deep flexor muscular capacities of the hand and fore-
 
 52 Effect of Systems of Penmanship. 
 
 arm, and these are the factors used for gripping objects 
 and for strength. This condition limited and contracted 
 the muscular functions of the hand in writing and made 
 the exercise irksome and accompanied with discomfort to 
 most persons, and much time was wasted in trying to 
 teach beginners to write in a way that they could not do 
 with ease. 
 
 Modern systems of penmanship couple with their 
 instruction the adaptability of the differing muscular 
 capacities of individuals, and recognize in the practice 
 taught these differing conditions ; but none of these 
 numerous systems can give to the muscles employed in 
 writing capacities which they do not possess. By prac- 
 tice they may teach the individual coordination to make 
 lessprominent personal characteristics, and by use give to 
 weakly developed muscular capacities, more aptness. 
 Instruction cannot remedy, or by practice supply the want 
 of a proper coordinate action between the powers to will, 
 and to do, or have any more remedial effect than if 
 applied to treat a palsied infirmity. A person having a 
 thumb that is deficient in its abductor or adductor func- 
 tion, or an index finger that is limited in its extensor or 
 flexor movements, or an inefficient development of the 
 lumbrical muscles cannot have either of these wants sup- 
 plied by any of the so-called systems of penmanship or 
 the rules they establish for the development of the writ- 
 ing habit.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 HOW INDIVIDUAL HABIT BECOMES MANIFESTED IN WRITING.— 
 WHY THERE CAN BE NO RULE FOR DETERMINING PERSONAL 
 CHARACTERISTICS OTHER THAN THAT WHICH RELATES TO 
 THEIR DIFFERENCE IN EACH PERSON'S WRITING FROM THAT 
 OF EVERY OTHER:— PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE 
 WRITING OF AN INDIVIDUAL ALWAYS TYPICAL OF EACH 
 OTHER, AS TO CAUSE AND WHY.— THE NECESSITY OF UNDER- 
 STANDING THE MUSCULAR FUNCTIONS OF THE HAND AND 
 FOREARM TO REACH A PROPER UNDERSTANDING AS TO THE 
 CAUSE OF PERSONAL DETAILS IN THE WRITING.— THE FUNC- 
 TION OF THE HAND AND FOREARM IN WRITING.— THE MAN- 
 NER OF MOVING AND HOLDING THE PEN DETERMINED BY 
 THE APPEARANCES IN THE WRITING CONSEQUENT UPON IT. 
 —PEN PRESSURE AS AN INDIVIDUAL MANIFESTATION IN A 
 PERSON'S WRITING CONSIDERED.— THE EFFECT OF EXCITE- 
 MENT, FATIGUE, DISEASE AND OLD AGE UPON THE WRITING 
 HABIT. — SIGNATURE EXPRESSION AS A VARIATION FROM 
 THE WRITER'S ORDINARY WRITING.— HOW FAR INSTRUCTION 
 MAY MODIFY HABIT. 
 
 Having explained how and why individual habit of 
 writing is developed under the effort made to acquire 
 it, and in a general way considered the conditions 
 attending its attainment, the manner, in which its indi- 
 viduality becomes manifested, the connection between 
 it and the cause of its appearance with the personality 
 of the writing conditioned as an effect, should also be 
 considered before proceeding to explain how the analy- 
 sis of a signature is accomplished. 
 
 While all habitually-written signatures of the same 
 person must resemble each other in general appear- 
 ance, and while this latter condition must be taken 
 into account in determining personal habit, the man-
 
 54 As Many Writing Habits as Writers. 
 
 ner of producing this general appearance is the field 
 in which the examination should be made to properly 
 establish its individuality, from the well-known fact that 
 general appearances as manifested in a signature can be 
 very closely imitated, and the habitual way of writing 
 them cannot be. Thus conditioned as to the source of 
 its individuality, the muscular habit producing the latter 
 must be determined from the writing, by an analysis of 
 its details, and the connection which the latter has with 
 the cause of their appearance be positively established. 
 
 Inasmuch as each person has a peculiar muscular habit 
 of writing, it follows that the same habit cannot exist in 
 two persons developed in the same manner as to indi- 
 vidualism, and that there must be as many personal 
 habits of writing as there are persons who write. With 
 this necessary and established condition confronting the 
 consideration of the subject at the commencement, the 
 seeming labyrinth into which an examination of the sub- 
 ject leads appears interminable, and the seeming diffi- 
 culty of reducing to a system of study the mass of mate- 
 rial presented looks formidable. To designate any spe- 
 cial rules for distinguishing personal habit of writing 
 would be as difficult as to formulate a law for the identifi- 
 cation of individuals apart from their general features of 
 difference, and yet the ability to distinguish one person 
 from another is a common one, and possessed by every- 
 body in a greater or less degree. Men all look alike in 
 those typical features which distinguish them from other 
 living forms, and thus all writing looks alike in the sense 
 that the general and representative form of the letters 
 must appear in it to have the writing read. Mankind 
 have been taught by a transmitted and inherited ability 
 to distinguish one person from another, and while almost 
 every one can distinguish one person's writing from
 
 Why No Positive Rules Can Be Formulated. 55 
 
 another, so far as they are unlike in their general appear- 
 ance when written habitually, but the features which 
 make up the differences when the writing of several indi- 
 viduals are compared are not so easily told with definite- 
 ness. To formulate any one rule for the determination 
 of individual habit of handwriting would seem impossible 
 from the fact that there can be no parallelisms between 
 the writing of different persons, in those features which 
 give individual character to it, and each one's writing 
 becomes under examination an entity in these respects. 
 While there can be no rule for the determination of 
 parallelisms between the writings of persons where no 
 parallelisms exist, there can be rules for discovering those 
 individualisms constituting differences between the writ- 
 ings of persons, and the cause why there are no such par- 
 allelisms, and there must be such differences. With the 
 fact established that a peculiar muscular coordination 
 causes each person's writing to differ from that of every 
 other, and which gives to the latter its personality, the 
 latter as distinctly manifested in the effects produced 
 become indicative of the cause, and the means for deter- 
 mining the individuality of the latter. 
 
 The peculiar features of all writing which give personal 
 characteristics to it are in their appearance indicative of 
 the muscular cooperation that produces them, and as a 
 sequence must be typical of each other, as the product of 
 the same cause. Thus features of peculiarity on the part 
 of a writer in making a capital letter will indicate by its 
 form, appearance, and details the cooperation of the fac- 
 tors that produce the latter, and which muscular coordina- 
 tion when writing the smaller letters of a signature, would 
 make them peculiarly in other respects as sequences of 
 the same muscular effect, yet these features in either case, 
 though different in appearance, would be typical of each
 
 56 Details of Habit, Why Physically Typical. 
 
 other, and as the concomitant of the same conditioning 
 cause. With this phenomena accompanying the produc- 
 tion of signatures understood as stated, the characteristics 
 of individual habit are found to group themselves into a 
 series of classes in each person's writing, that become 
 typical of certain causes, wherein the muscular habit 
 differently exercised in operating the pen with varied 
 movement as to direction, gives them generic character 
 as to derivation. 
 
 These classes of personal details occurring in each per- 
 son's writing thus grouped as incident to the same influ- 
 ence, while varying in their manifestation according to 
 the form produced, will in each instance of their appear- 
 ance be compatible with, and within the capacity of the 
 same muscular coordination writing them, and in their 
 manifested details be indicative of the latter. Thus a 
 peculiar form of oval in the body of a letter, or a loop at 
 the top or bottom of a letter will in either instance be 
 characteristic of, and incident to the same muscular 
 capacity differently exercised. While this occurs when 
 the forms of letters are considered generically as to char- 
 acter in the same person's writing, the same rule applies 
 when the features of individual peculiarity are specifically 
 examined in respect to the relation they bear to each 
 other. Thus a peculiar emphasis necessitated to appear 
 in a person's writing when forming the heavy downstroke 
 in the standard of a letter " h " would, when the same 
 writer was making a curve in a downward direction to the 
 left, produce an emphasis differing from that occurring in 
 the "h," but necessarily typical of it as to cause. 
 
 These conditions as to the generic character of all 
 individualism in connection with their appearance in like 
 manifestation, and their typical character with relation to 
 each other when produced by the same factors differently
 
 Knowledge of Muscular Functions Useful. 57 
 
 exercised as to direction and pen movement, will be found 
 to occur in all habitually written signatures of the same 
 person. These features constitute the basis upon which 
 the analysis must be made, and include the details of 
 form, execution, pen movement, and other conditions by 
 which the individuality of the writer is made apparent, 
 and are the elements from which the muscular coordi- 
 nation constituting the habit is determined. 
 
 To properly ascertain the handwriting in an individual 
 manifestation of it, so as to trace effect back to cause, a 
 knowledge of the physical organization of the human 
 hand, and also that of the forearm are importantly 
 desirable ; for to appreciate effect in the better under- 
 standing of it, evidence and a knowledge of the cause 
 are essential. In the developed capacity of the muscles 
 operating the fingers and thumb of different individuals 
 when writing, as in performing all other work requiring 
 precision and action responsive to monition, there is a 
 wide range of variation. With some persons writing is 
 wholly done through the action of the deep flexor muscle, 
 and the superficial flexor of each finger for bending 
 inwardly the letters toward the palm, with the straighten- 
 ing out of the fingers produced by the common extensor 
 descending from the forearm and its four tendons each 
 connecting with a muscle inserted into, the back of the 
 second and third phalanges of each finger. These are 
 the muscles used for all prehensile or grasping move- 
 ments of the fingers in connection with the adductor and 
 abductor capacities of the thumb. When writing is done 
 by these muscular factors, the pen is grasped by them, to 
 be moved inwardly by the fingers, and outwardly and 
 laterally by the thumb. In addition to the use of the 
 before named muscular factors used to grasp the pen 
 with many writers the lumbrical muscles situated in the
 
 58 Muscular Functions Employed When Writing. 
 
 palm, and each connecting with one of the branches of 
 the deep flexor tendons in each finger, perform important 
 functions in writing, which in their measure of aptness 
 depends upon their relatively developed and responsive 
 capacity in each individual. These lumbrical muscles 
 in each fino-er form their dorsom connection with the 
 extensor tendon to bend the index and second finger at 
 the first and second joint, thus adapting these fingers to 
 perform their greatest acts of precision, and enable them 
 to act in moving the pen laterally on the line on which 
 the writing is done, when the ringers have been drawn in 
 toward the palm. These lumbrical muscles are highly 
 developed in musicians who play the violin and guitar, 
 and in persons who have the most perfect control of 
 the pen in writing. 
 
 A knowledge of the functions, and relative capacity of 
 the muscles of the hand and forearm, their movement 
 and adaptation for varied coordinate action in writing 
 gives to the examiner an advantage in determining indi- 
 vidual habit from the details accompanying its produc- 
 tion. Thus if there should appear in the writing of a 
 person evidence that the pen was not held steadily, and 
 if in its downward movement when writing; exhibited a 
 tendency to rotate on the muscular cushion of the thumb, 
 this fact would indicate that some of the muscular factors 
 were deficient in prehensile function, and an examiner 
 conversant with the relative duty of the factors upon 
 which this work devolved would be enabled from the 
 character of the detail produced to know which of them 
 was deficient in function, and which fact determined as 
 to cause would explain other phenomena in the way of 
 personal details incident to such an influence and typical 
 of it. 
 
 While the hand, arm, fingers and thumb contain the
 
 Individual Muscular Development. 59 
 
 same number of muscles, having the same general func- 
 tion in each person, in no two individuals are these 
 muscles developed alike in their capacity to coordinate, 
 or in their ability to obey the monition of the will. Such 
 as are leading factors in cooperating with others in per- 
 forming certain acts and movements of the pen in one 
 person will be developed in a subordinate capacity in 
 another, with concomitant differences in coordinate 
 work. These differences become innumerable when con- 
 sidered arithmetically, and a perfect parallelism in the 
 writing of different individuals becomes an impossibility 
 on account of this differentiation and its causes. 
 
 With this necessitated variation thus establishing indi- 
 vidualism in the writing of persons, and its essential 
 connection with cause, it will be understood how import- 
 ant a knowledge of the physical organization of the hand 
 becomes in determining personal habit of writing from 
 the details manifested in it. Understanding that the 
 writing habit consists of an individual coordination of 
 muscular factors, with the details that give character to 
 it considered as effects to determine the former by, from 
 the appearance of the latter involves the intelligent study 
 of those features constituting its personality in each case 
 considered, with reference to how they were produced. 
 While the appearances which give individuality to a signa- 
 ture must in each case be studied sui generis the manner 
 of conducting the investigation may be explained by 
 reference to hypothetical cases. If certain peculiar con- 
 ditions of emphasis occur with uniformity in the writing 
 of an individual with every like movement of the pen 
 there must be a physical cause for its appearance, and 
 with the latter determined and traced to the source of its 
 production, a means is at the disposal of the examiner to 
 trace up the cause of other peculiarities incident to such
 
 60 Coordinate Action of the Muscular Functions. 
 
 an influence. Thus where, in a person's writing, the sec- 
 ond finger is in a peculiar manner more responsive to 
 monition than the index finger in cooperating with the 
 thumb to hold and move the pen, the second finger will 
 become the controlling factor in performing certain move- 
 ments of the pen ; and from its relative position to the 
 latter, and the thumb as held, it will produce certain 
 appearances in all downward movements of the pen inci- 
 dent to such a cause. Having a knowledge of the 
 functions of the factors into which this peculiarity intrudes 
 the examiner is enabled to locate not only such a detail, 
 but others consequent upon this condition of the writer's 
 hand to classify them where typical as to origin. Each 
 factor employed tends to individualize the work done by 
 it with more or less emphasis, and produces details that 
 are not only consonant with the function producing 
 them, but to manifest them with individual character- 
 istics. 
 
 In writing a signature there are brought into use a 
 very complicated series of muscular factors and functions. 
 When the writing is mainly done by the movement of the 
 fingers and thumb without the intervention of the fore- 
 arm movement any more than comes from the oscillation 
 of the hand and forearm, the pen is usally grasped as a 
 prehensile act by the thumb, the index, and the second 
 fingers, and as thus held is moved over the paper with 
 the ball of the thumb acting as a supporting cushion 
 against which the pen bears when the fingers and thumb 
 in cooperating action turn inwardly toward the palm of 
 the hand, so as to make the downwardly extended and 
 ordinarily heavy lines of the signature ; while the lighter 
 lines of the latter are produced through the upwardly 
 and outwardly directed action of the thumb and fingers 
 by which the pen is grasped. All the curves and lateral
 
 Coordinate Action of the Muscular Functions. 6i 
 
 movements of the pen thus held when directed upwardly 
 and slanting to the right are produced by the muscles of 
 the thumb acting against the yielding functions of the fin- 
 gers, in the direction of the thumb impulse ; and all the 
 curves in the letters forming the signature thus written as 
 well as the lateral movements of the pen in slanting or curv- 
 ing to the left are produced by the action of the fingers 
 against the yielding movement of the thumb in the direc- 
 tion of the finger impulse. In either instance where the 
 thumb as one of the factors, and the finger cooperating 
 together as the other factor to grasp and move the pen 
 laterally as against each other, the facility with which 
 the yielding of one set of factors to the other is harmoni- 
 ously accomplished, the less prominent will be the deline- 
 ation and emphasis of habitual details in this line of 
 examination and the more want of harmony and coordi- 
 nate action there is, the more prominent will be the 
 details of personal habit. 
 
 When writing is mainly done by the flexure of the 
 fingers and thumb the index and second finger usually 
 act as one factor, in some of the pen movements and 
 separately in others ; while the thumb as the other 
 factor operates in giving direction to, and in pro- 
 ducing the bottom and upcurves of letters as well 
 as the lateral movements of the pen to the right, 
 when the prehensile muscular functions are employed ; 
 but every time a lateral movement is made one of these 
 factors must yield to the other, and immediately change 
 its action and function from that of a factor creating an 
 impulse to a factor receiving one with reverse movement, 
 and still retain its pressure in an opposite direction to 
 that in which it is yielding with reverse motion to hold 
 the pen in position. Every time each of these factors 
 changes its function from one which creates an impulse
 
 6: Coordinate Action of the Muscular Functions. 
 
 with direction, to one that receives an impulse with 
 reverse motion, there is a center or intermediate point 
 caused by this change of function and condition, which 
 will be visible in the writing and generally be accom- 
 pained with an habitual detail. 
 
 While these conditions occur between the cooperating 
 action of the index, the second finger and thumb when 
 writing with their prehensile muscular functions, the fin- 
 gers themselves seldom act in harmony and generally do 
 not cooperate without making details that are promi- 
 nently characteristic of the writer ; in fact their want of 
 harmonious action when occurring produces very positive 
 details of personal habit. When yielding to the thumb 
 impulse by a movement to the right in one direction of 
 curve the index and second finger may do so gracefully, 
 and without marked discordance ; but when thus operat- 
 ing to produce a longer curve, or one in another line of 
 direction the fingers may yield grudgingly and irregularly. 
 Again where the form of parts of the letters of a signa- 
 ture are produced by the movement of the fingers down- 
 wardly to the left, although the thumb may yield without 
 discordance, yet between the fingers there may be strug- 
 gle as to which shall do the major part of the work, 
 and this want of accord will be peculiar in each person's 
 writing, and where occurring, cause the appearance of 
 details having strong individual characteristics. This 
 want of harmonious cooperation on the part of the index 
 and second fingers will be found to more prominently 
 occur in the downwardly projected and heavy lines form- 
 ing the staffs or standards of letters, and when appearing 
 will be individually peculiar in details of production. 
 The index finger is generally more facile in its ordinary 
 work than the second finger from having a muscular fac- 
 ulty developed in its organization that is not found in the
 
 Coordinate Action of the Muscular Functions. 63 
 
 second finger, but this additional function is of little use 
 in writing. 
 
 While this condition as regards the individual action 
 of the fingers in producing habitual details is found in all 
 writing, the thumb and the manner in which its abductor 
 and adductor functions are individually developed causes 
 to appear in the writing well-defined evidences of habit, 
 particularly when the writing is mainly done by it and the 
 fingers. Its position as a factor in the combination is a 
 prominent one, in giving character and form to all curves 
 in the writing extending from left to right, all upcurves 
 connecting the letters, and all loops produced at the top 
 and bottom of the latter. These as thus described are 
 the general functions of the thumb in writing, but they 
 are so widely different as developed in different persons, 
 that the details of habit originating from its individuality 
 are innumerable, and definite as to character. 
 
 The fingers have muscular functions adapted for a 
 strong prehensile work, and the development of strength 
 in connection with the forearm, and they have other 
 muscles adapted for the more delicate duty of playing 
 upon stringed instruments, sewing with a needle, and the 
 manipulation of small implements requiring precision of 
 movement ; but in the organization of the thumb the 
 muscular functions of the latter developed for grasping 
 and prehensile effort are the same ones that are employed 
 in writing. As a sequence of this condition it will be 
 readily understood that the measure of development as 
 to character which fits the muscles of the thumb to per- 
 form their part in grasping a sledge hammer is widely 
 different from that which adapts them to move the pen, 
 and that between these, two extremes of capacity there 
 must necessarily be a wide range of aptness in different 
 persons. As a sequence of this condition of the thumb
 
 64 Coordinate Action of the Muscular Functions. 
 
 when the prehensile functions of the hand are alone em- 
 ployed in writing, it as a factor tends to the production of 
 the more prominently manifested details of personal 
 habit, some of which will appear when giving direction to 
 the pen movement, and in others where it demonstra- 
 tively interferes with the operations of the fingers. 
 
 The work of the thumb as a factor (when the writing is 
 done by the prehensile faculties of the hand through their 
 flexure) occurs where its impulses give direction to the 
 pen movement in forming the curves at the bottoms of 
 letters projected to the right ; also in operating the pen 
 to form the up-strokes, and the lines connecting the let- 
 ters as well as in producing the terminal of the final letter 
 of a signature. The thumb in addition to the foregoing 
 by its movement produces the up-strokes in forming all 
 such letters as "y," "g" and "h" where extending either 
 above or below the line on which the signature is written. 
 When the thumb is operated in connection with the 
 fingers to produce the heavy down-strokes of letters 
 where extending below the line of the writing, there 
 generally appear two or three details that are importantly 
 characteristic of personal habit ; one of them indicative 
 of the flexure of the thumb at the first joint, one at 
 the coming in of its flexure at the second joint, and 
 another indicative of the manner of using the adductor 
 function. 
 
 All writing done with the pen necessitates the employ- 
 ment of the prehensile functions of the hand to grasp and 
 hold it, and when these same muscular functions by their 
 flexure are used in the act of writing and are combined 
 with the employment of the lumbricale muscles, the effect 
 of the latter as manifested will appear in the lateral 
 movements of the pen with the letters produced usually 
 made more full and rotund than in standard forms. The
 
 Coordinate Action of the Muscular Functions. 65 
 
 use of the lumbrical muscles enters into the production 
 of what is termed backhand writing wherein the horizon- 
 tal axes of the letters is increased comparatively, and by 
 which the writer is enabled to put shading into the bot- 
 tom instead of the sides of letters. 
 
 When writing is mainly done by the forearm move- 
 ment of the pen with the fingers and thumb as prehensile 
 factors operating to merely grasp and hold the pen 
 with the latter moved over the paper by the hand as 
 sliding back and forth thereon, the letters will be more 
 broadly rotund in their curves than when written by the 
 flexure of the grasping muscles ; while the density of 
 shading will generally vary but little as between what 
 should be the heavier, or light lines of the letters from a 
 copy-book standpoint. While this is the usual condition 
 of all writing done by the forearm movement yet there 
 are some writers who are capable of combining with the 
 forearm movement of the pen enough flexure of the 
 thumb and fingers to give a measure of shading to the 
 down-strokes of letters. 
 
 When the forearm movement is employed in writing 
 the. elliptical or rounded form given to the letters are pro- 
 duced with the pen bearing upon the paper in one position, 
 and without flexure when forming the tops and bottoms of 
 letters where curved, with the angle which the point of 
 the pen makes with the paper a constant one. When the 
 pen is operated by the flexure of the thumb and fingers 
 as its point is drawn in toward, or forced outwardly from 
 the palm of the hand, its angle with relation to the paper 
 is a constantly changing one, and the two differing con- 
 ditions of pen movement are easily determined by the 
 manner in which, at the point whereat, the splits or nibs 
 of the pen cross each other when forming the top and 
 bottom curves of letters.
 
 66 Manner in Which Pen is Held and Its Effect. 
 
 The position with which the pen-holder is grasped rel- 
 atively as to distance from its writing point, where resting 
 upon the paper, has much to do with giving habitual char- 
 acter to the writing, and this pen grasp of the holder is 
 conditioned in every person's writing from physical causes. 
 When the writer has long bony fingers with weak devel- 
 opment of lumbrical muscles, the writing will be mainly 
 accomplished by the use of the prehensile capacities of 
 the fingers and thumb, and this will necessitate a much 
 higher grasp upon the pen-holder than where the lumbri- 
 cal muscles are aptly developed. This condition of pen 
 grasp tends to the production of angularity, and is accom- 
 panied by other peculiarities incident to such a cause. 
 The manner of holding the pen as appearing in the writ- 
 ing of different persons, become habitually developed at 
 the dictation of comfort and convenience ; that is, each 
 person holds the pen in such position'as is necessitated by 
 the muscular organization of the writer's hand. The man- 
 ner in which the pen is held as regards the position of the 
 nibs or split-points relatively to the paper on which the 
 writing is done, tends to the production of strong personal 
 characteristics. When the pen, at the dictation of habit, 
 is held with the split-points resting evenly and squarely 
 upon the paper, and with the concavity of the pen facing 
 evenly towards the palm of the writer's hand, in the 
 standards or staffs of letters the splits or nibs of the pen 
 will be in horizontal alignment at the tops of the latter, 
 and they will cross each other at the middle of the top 
 and bottom curves of letters. When the pen is held with 
 its concavity facing off to the left from the palm, then the 
 left-hand one of the two split-points will be higher than 
 the other at the tops of all standards or staffs of letters, 
 and just the reverse will be found to occur as to the rela- 
 tive position of the splits when the pen is held and oper-
 
 Manner in Which Pen is Held and Its Effect. 67 
 
 ated with its concavity facing off to the right of the 
 palm. 
 
 When the writing is done with the top of the pen slant- 
 ing off away from the right shoulder in direction, one of 
 the split-points will precede the other in every upward 
 movement of the pen, or when the latter is moved down- 
 wardly, and produce a detail incident to such a cause at 
 the top and bottom of every letter made by it. Where 
 the finish at the top of a letter is a mere line, and made 
 without a loop and produced by the pen as so held, one 
 side of its upper end will be higher than the other, and 
 angular thereat, and when a bottom curve is made in a 
 letter with a pen so held, the split points or nibs will not 
 cross each other until the formation of the succeeding up- 
 curve is commenced, and the curve at the bottom of the 
 letter finished. These conditions of habit are common 
 ones, and are stated that they may be understood as such ; 
 and are only useful for comparison in cases where other 
 and more positive personal characteristics accompany 
 their production as sequences of the same cause, and 
 where they appear in a standard signature and do not 
 occur in a disputed signature, or when found in one of 
 the latter and not in a standard signature. 
 
 The two split-points of the pen with which a signature 
 is written are very important factors in determining the 
 details of a writer's habit. When pressure is applied to 
 the pen in writing, the points elastically spread out to 
 make the downwardly directed heavy lines of the signa- 
 ture, and run close together or side by side, in the 
 upwardly directed movement of the pen to make the finer 
 lighter lines ; and where they cross each other at the 
 roundings of the curves of letters, or where the pen move- 
 ment changes from one direction to another; as well as at 
 the initial movement, they record every break or tremor
 
 68 Details of Habit Produced by the Pen-Splits. 
 
 where the action of the muscular factors doing the work is 
 habitually unharmonious. Not only are the before-named 
 features produced in the writing by the nibs or splits, but 
 the latter indicate with accuracy the manner in which the 
 writer was educated to hold and move the pen. Thus if 
 the pen is held with its outer end slanting to the right, 
 away from the right shoulder, the right-hand one of the 
 splits will, from such a position, make a deeper furrow in 
 the paper than the left-hand one, and more ink will 
 settle into it from its greater depth ; and as another indi- 
 cation of such a position of the pen, the left-hand edges 
 of the writing of all curves will be more ragged and rough 
 than the right-hand one. When the pen is held with its 
 outer end slanting toward the left shoulder the reverse 
 of these conditions will occur ; and when held with the 
 outer end pointing toward the right shoulder the furrows 
 made by each of the split-points will have the same depth. 
 The measure of pressure with which the pen is caused 
 to bear upon the paper on which the writing is done 
 should be always taken into account, in the comparison of 
 signatures, as this is regulated and made necessary in 
 each person's writing as to character from physical 
 causes, and has much to do with establishing the habit 
 of the writer. The measure of pen pressure also gives 
 pictorial effect to a signature taken as a whole, and 
 though the letters of the latter may be skeletally imitated 
 in form and arrangement, yet if the simulation is wanting 
 in density of lines and shading when compared with the 
 writing from which it was copied, the difference between 
 the two is readily discerned. In addition to the general 
 measure of pen pressure found to occur throughout the 
 writing of a signature, there must also be taken into 
 account, in determining individual habit, the measure of 
 comparative density occurring between the lighter and
 
 Pen Pressure as a Characteristic of Habit. 69 
 
 heavy lines of a signature, the points at which the shad- 
 ing emphasis commences and ends, and the facility with 
 which it is accomplished. 
 
 Persons who have the best coordination between the 
 powers to will and to do in writing, use less pen pressure 
 upon the paper than others who must grasp the pen 
 rigidly to have it obey the will, and the consequent 
 muscular actions of the hand or forearm which moves it. 
 When the pen is grasped rigidly it responds to all the 
 tremors occurring from want of harmonious action on the 
 part of the muscular factors operating it, and ofttimes to 
 the arterial pulsation, and the vibration which the latter 
 gives to the hand. When the hand is held with a grasp 
 that is not rigid it is more easily operated and with less 
 pressure upon the paper when writing. Persons who 
 grasp the pen rigidly do so as a matter of necessity 
 because a certain measure of muscular tension is 
 required to enable them to hold it, and without 
 which firm grasp they would have much less control of 
 its movement. The same cause which necessitates the 
 heavy pressure of the pen upon the paper, also makes 
 essential the rigid grasp of the pen, so as to control its 
 movement, and the production in the paper of a deeper 
 furrow than would occur were the pen easily held without 
 rigid grasp. This varying condition of physical habit as 
 affecting the habit of persons in writing is manifested in 
 differing measures of emphasis and originates when not 
 caused by a palsied infirmity, in the differing capacity 
 existing in individuals between the ability to will and to 
 do, and in the measure of promptness with which moni- 
 tion or intention is followed by responsive action. 
 
 The measure of pen pressure which i^ habitual to the 
 writer of a signature is to a certain extent manifested in 
 the general appearance of the latter, and the pictorial
 
 ;o Measure of Pen Pressure, How Determined. 
 
 image which it presents to the eye of an observer, 
 although for accurate determination it should be exam- 
 ined microscopically with the writing so placed as to be 
 seen as a transparency with a strong light behind it, and 
 by which the relative proportion of pen-furrow depth 
 occurring between the lighter and heavier lines of the 
 sienature beinof examined can be determined. When 
 writing is done upon paper with a two-nibbed pen, the 
 ink settles into the furrows made in the paper by the 
 latter, and the measure of density relatively to the depth 
 of the furrow is generally susceptible of measurement by 
 an educated and experienced observer. In estimating 
 the pen pressure as a detail of personal habit it will not 
 do to depend wholly upon the width or density of the lines 
 occurring, because a signature when written with a soft 
 and very elastic pen would form the lines with more width 
 and density of shading than if written with a pen that 
 was stiff and less yielding ; the proportion of furrow depth 
 as between the heavier and light lines of the writing 
 would be the same if written by the same person, whether 
 a soft and elastic pen, or a stiff one was employed. This 
 feature of habitual pen pressure is one of the greatest 
 obstacles in the way of successful forgery, and in most 
 cases where attempted, a second effort has to be made by 
 going over the writing again to finish the simulation with 
 approaching resemblance. 
 
 When a signature is written habitually with the fingers, 
 the thumb and forearm cooperating together, the per- 
 sonal details of habit are quite as well defined as when 
 written by the flexure of the fingers and thumb ; and this 
 occurs from the fact that the greater the number of fac- 
 tors cooperating in the work, the tendency is to increase 
 the number, and to make more emphatically manifested 
 personal characteristics of habit. Not only this occurs as
 
 Writing Done by the Forearm. 71 
 
 a sequence of the coming in of the forearm movement, 
 but a signature so written will in every instance show a 
 more radical departure from copy-book standard forms, 
 and consequently will have more strongly-developed evi- 
 dences of individuality in these respects. 
 
 While the foregoing is true as to signatures written 
 with the combined movement of the pen by the fingers, 
 thumb and forearm the same rule in a varied measure 
 applies to the personal characteristics appearing as details 
 when the writing is done mainly by the forearm, with 
 the fingers and thumb performing the prehensile function 
 of holding the pen, in connection with the application of 
 the shading emphasis given to the lines by the flexure of 
 the grasping functions. Where the writing impulse 
 comes wholly from the forearm and without the use of 
 those muscular factors which exercise their flexor func- 
 tions in close proximity to the pen grasp, the details of 
 habit are more strongly marked in their individual char- 
 acter from the greater distance occurring between the 
 source of the motor influence, and the pen point by which 
 the writing is done ; and consequently signatures written 
 by the employment of the forearm will make greater 
 deviation from copy-book forms, than when produced by 
 the flexure of the prehensile functions of the hand, and in 
 these respects more intensely individual in character and 
 definition. 
 
 There are occasionally found persons who write their 
 signatures with the pen held so as to pass out from 
 between the index and second fingers, in a position to 
 bear against the muscular cushion or ball of the thumb for 
 support and connected action with the latter. This condi- 
 tion of pen grasp relatively to the muscular factors which 
 operate it, generally has the effect to cause the shading 
 emphasis to appear in all the bottom curves of letters,
 
 j2 Characteristics of "Back-Hand" Writing. 
 
 tangential to the line on which the signature is written. 
 When writing is done with the pen so held the index 
 finger is passive, and the details appearing will be indica- 
 tive of the cooperation of the middle finger and thumb, 
 and be personal in character as these factors so coordi- 
 nating have individual peculiarity. This condition of 
 pen-grasp generally has the effect to cause the shading 
 emphasis to not only manifest itself at the bottom of 
 letters, but to occasionally extend into the up-stokes and 
 gives to the letters a convolute or vine-like appearance, 
 and in which the vertical elipticity is less than when the 
 pen is held between the index finger and thumb, and 
 operated by the flexure of the grasping functions, or 
 when held by the latter, and operated by the forearm. 
 Writing of this character generally becomes habitual from 
 physical causes, and is usually the result of a condition 
 of the writer's hand, wherein the index finger is deficient 
 in grasping function, and where the muscular functions 
 for lateral movement of the pen are highly developed, 
 and more so than those of the writer depending upon 
 direct flexure for their impulse. When a signature is thus 
 habitually produced from the position in which the pen is 
 held and the necessary oscillation of the hand accompany- 
 ing such method of writing, the details which give to the 
 writing its individuality become very characteristic. 
 
 In thus discussing what individual habit of writing is, 
 and how determined, there are so many varied conditions 
 under which the writing is done that should be con- 
 sidered, and particularly the causes affecting its varia- 
 tion, and the differing measures of emphasis manifested 
 in its individual features. While signatures of the same 
 person, when written habitually, are always typical of 
 each other, they are never written so nearly alike that 
 when laid one over the other they will exactly coincide as
 
 Modifications of the Same Writing Habit. j$ 
 
 before stated. This modification in the writing of sig- 
 natures by the same person results from the varying cir- 
 cumstances and surrounding conditions under which they 
 are written, together with the constantly varying measure 
 of responsive capacity existing between the power to do, 
 and the suggestion or monition prompting the act. 
 These conditions cause many of the variations or modifi- 
 cations appearing in signatures of the same person, and 
 the measure of responsive capacity varies with the physi- 
 cal condition of the individual so as to produce, with 
 greater or less emphasis beyond their usual appearance, 
 those peculiar features due to the muscular habit of the 
 writer. As before stated, the writing habit of each per- 
 son develops the representative forms of the letters in 
 such approximation to copy-book forms as the muscular 
 coordination of the writer's hand will permit, with the 
 variations therefrom in their execution typical of each 
 other, and the habit of the writer making them. As a 
 sequence of this condition, it occurs that with less than 
 usual control of the pen movement, these individual varia- 
 tions from copy-book forms will appear with more empha» 
 sis, although typical in kind and character with those which 
 were produced when the capacity of the writer was normal, 
 and enabled to exercise more control of the pen movement. 
 Thus considered as to the more demonstrative varia- 
 tions occurring in signatures of the same person caused 
 by other than normal conditions of muscular action, it is 
 also a concomitant of their production that signatures of 
 the same individual when consecutively written, and 
 apparently under the same conditions and surroundings, 
 never exactly coincide ; although their variation will be 
 less than when written at different times under the influ- 
 ence of abnormal tendencies. This want of exact dupli- 
 cation and parallelism in signatures of the same person 
 10
 
 74 Why Signatures of the Same Persons Vary. 
 
 is best explained by an understanding of what would 
 have to occur to accomplish it. When the almost in- 
 numerable conditions surrounding the combination and 
 sub-combination of factors which do the work are taken 
 into account, the chances of reaching exact duplication 
 extend into that realm of arithmetical progression where 
 millions run into billions, and the latter into trillions. 
 
 The abnormal conditions under which signatures of the 
 same writer are caused to vary demonstratively in the 
 production of personal characteristics originate under 
 differing influences, all tending to have a like effect ; and 
 more particularly as having this tendency are those occa- 
 sioned by excitement, fatigue, disease, old age and loss 
 of nervous power ; all of which in varying measure act to 
 intensify and make more prominent those features of per- 
 sonal habit which education and practice had toned down, 
 and made less demonstrative in appearance. In other 
 words, with less than usual control of the pen the writer 
 is apt to revert to those rudimentary prominences which 
 characterized the efforts made when learning to write, 
 and which, under the influence of instruction and effort, 
 have become less emphatic. 
 
 Assuming in illustration that in consequence of a 
 peculiar organization of the muscular functions of the 
 hand or forearm that a person when making the writer's 
 best approach to the representative form of a capital 
 letter " O," was compelled to produce it so as to give to 
 one side of it an angularity of more or less development 
 instead of producing it elliptical ; this same writer who 
 under the influence of instruction may have reduced this 
 tendency so as to be merely discernible, would when 
 writing to form this letter under the influence of excite- 
 ment, or other like cause, make this angularity with more 
 than usual emphasis, in consequence of having less con-
 
 Effect of Excitement and Old Age. 75 
 
 trol of the pen movement. In further illustration of the 
 effects of excitement upon the writing of an individual, if 
 the latter will write an habitual signature immediately 
 before, another immediately after having rapidly run 
 up and down a long flight of stairs, it will be found, on 
 examining the two signatures thus produced, that the last 
 one written will show that the personal details of the 
 writer's habit, which give individuality to it, are made 
 much more prominent in their manifestation than in the 
 signature first written, when the writer had more control 
 of the pen ; and that all those peculiarities in which the 
 writer's habit differs specifically in the form of the letters 
 from copy-book standards will appear with greater 
 emphasis. 
 
 While excitement has the effect to thus intensify all 
 the individual characteristics of the writing habit for the 
 reasons before given, the same effect is generally mani- 
 fest by fatigue, and ofttimes by increasing age, and the 
 decline of nervous power in consequence of the latter. If 
 the signatures of a bank cashier written at the close of a 
 day's work in signing bills are compared with those 
 written in the fore-part of the day when the muscular 
 functions doing the work were fresh and rested, those of 
 them last written will show more prominently the details 
 of personal habit than those first written. With increas- 
 ing age and a decline of nervous power there follows 
 as a sequence less ability to hold and control the pen 
 in writing, and this is accompanied in the latter with 
 increased emphasis and appearance of those features 
 belonging to the writer's habit, although the measure of 
 this tendency as a concomitant of age is not a fixed one. 
 It frequently happens in the writing of persons advanced 
 in years, and in which declining muscular power and con- 
 trol is strongly manifested, that the writer again becomes
 
 y6 Effect of Sickness Upon the Writing Habit. 
 
 a child between the struggles to will and to do, and 
 reproduces the irregularities of form that came with the 
 early efforts made when learning to write. 
 
 The effect which sickness or disease has upon the 
 writing habit of persons in the production of their signa- 
 tures is too varied to be discussed with anything like 
 an accurate consideration of the subject. Some persons 
 suffer greater prostration of nervous power than others 
 under the influences of the same illness ; and occasionally 
 persons having strong will power have the ability to write 
 their signatures with habitual regularity, when others 
 under the same conditions of pain and suffering would 
 be incapacitated for writing in any manner. Rheumatism 
 may so cripple the fingers and hand of a person that 
 the latter cannot write at all ; and again this form of dis- 
 ease in its more moderate forms of manifestation may in 
 various ways act to modify and change a person's writing, 
 so as to make such of it, when produced under its influence, 
 quite different from that done by the writer when free 
 from the infliction. A gouty deposit at the joints may so 
 stiffen the fingers and thumb as to materially change the 
 personality of the signature, when compared with such of 
 the latter as were produced by the same writer before 
 being thus afflicted The most common effect of disease 
 (other than rheumatism) when accompanied with loss of 
 nervous power upon the writing of a person is very much 
 the same as that before described as occasioned by fatigue. 
 
 In addition to the deviation from a representative form 
 of the letters in writing a signature necessitated by the 
 physical habit of the writer, signatures are sometimes 
 written with some peculiarity as to the form of some of 
 the letters of which they are composed, and more par- 
 ticularly the capital letters and their connection, that is 
 not common in general appearance to other than signa-
 
 Signature Expression, Pulsation Tremor. yy 
 
 ture writing of the same person. This signature expres- 
 sion and variation from the other writing of the same 
 person when occurring, originates seemingly as a matter 
 of the writer's fancy and is generally employed to give to 
 the signatures an ornamental and individual significance, 
 or to make them complicated, and difficult to imitate ; 
 and this in effect is often carried to such an extent as to 
 make them obscure and difficult to decipher ; but the 
 forms of letters so used in the production of a signature 
 will embody merely such of them as are within the 
 compass and capacity of the writer's habit, and the eccen- 
 tricity of the forms displayed will be generally an intensi- 
 fied variation from the representative form of the letters, 
 which is natural to the writer made ornately, and given a 
 finish by practice. The condition of signature writing 
 will be more fully considered in connection with another 
 branch of the subject to which it more intimately relates. 
 In connection with the general features that make up 
 the writing habit as developed differently in individuals 
 there are many other features than those already enu- 
 merated which should be taken into account as important, 
 and among them are the effects of the appearance at 
 times in the writing of the arterial pulsation. This occurs 
 more frequently in writing of women than men, and par- 
 ticularly in the writing of persons having bony hands 
 with little development of muscle, and who write with 
 the wrist resting flatly on the table. This effect, when 
 occurring, will appear to have been produced by a lateral 
 vibratory movement of the pen where at the time in con- 
 tact with the paper, so as to create an irregularity thereat, 
 but as these latter occur in any part of the writing where 
 the pen happens to be at the time of the pulsation, in 
 appearance they differ from details manifested with 
 regularity in connection with certain muscular acts, and
 
 ;S Angularity, Slant and Ellipticity. 
 
 are easily distinguished from the latter and other details 
 consequent upon habit. 
 
 The measure of slant or slope of the letters, and the 
 ancrle which the latter make with the line on which the sig- 
 nature is written, as well as the measure of ellipticity with 
 which the curves of the letters tangent on the line of the 
 writing, are largely the result of physical causes, and as 
 manifested become very strongly indicative of personal 
 habit. In addition to the foregoing, the angle or slant 
 which the downwardly directed stiokes of the pen make 
 relatively to the angle of the up-strokes, and with the line 
 on which the signature is written, become importantly a 
 feature of individual habit of writing ; also when the latter 
 is done by the flexure of the grasping functions, the rela- 
 tive measure of ellipticity or curve occurring between the 
 down-curves produced by the pen under the finger 
 impulse, and the up-curves of the thumb impulse, or 
 where the latter moves the pen to form lines connecting 
 the letters, or in producing the terminal of the last letter 
 in like manner manifest individual features of habit. 
 
 Instruction and persistent practice under the prompt- 
 ings of the latter act to change individual habit of 
 writing as to its general appearance, and may to a certain 
 extent modify the coordinate action of the muscles, so 
 that the cultivated habit will differ somewhat from that 
 which had been acquired when learning to grasp and 
 operate the pen, in a manner that the muscular factors of 
 the writer had assumed under the dictation of comfort 
 and convenience ; but the cultivated habit will be in a 
 measure typical of the earlier acquired habit in its charac- 
 teristics, and unless practised and used to a considerable 
 extent, is apt to revert to its former condition and appear- 
 ance. This feature of the writing habit is more strongly 
 manifested in writing other than signatures, and is illus-
 
 Writing Done in Youth and Old Age. 79 
 
 trated by taking the writing of persons produced under the 
 restraints of instruction, that done early in life before the 
 effect of the latter was made apparent, and that written in 
 old age ; and on comparing the several writings it will be 
 found to occur that the writer as advanced in years has 
 in a measure returned to the earlier acquired habit. When 
 writing signatures, where the tendency is generally mani- 
 fested to give to them a representative character, the 
 individuality expressed in them is not so much or so often 
 affected by instruction as other writing of the same per- 
 son. Writers usually adopt a form of signature at a time 
 when business matters require its use in a representative 
 character, and although they may adopt by instruction 
 and practice a change in their writing other than signa- 
 tures they will continue to write the latter without modi- 
 fication to any extent. 
 
 In defining individual habit in writing the causes of 
 its appearance by way of illustration concerning the con- 
 ditions of its manifestation in connection with the sug- 
 gestion where to look for them, as developed in the 
 experience of the author, have been given more to eluci- 
 date and make clear the processes of examination to be 
 employed in the analysis of a signature than as present- 
 ing a specific course to be followed by others engaged in 
 the work ; but to name all the various features which 
 must be taken into account when making an examination 
 of a signature to determine the individual habit of the 
 writer of it, is impossible. Each person writing must be 
 examined by itself as an entity ; taking into account its 
 general appearances, with the details producing the latter 
 traced to a physical cause, wherein as a result of the 
 latter, the details become typical of the cause and are 
 consonant with it.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT CONSTITUTES TYPICAL PAR- 
 ALLELISMS OF THE SAME WRITER, AND THEIR SIMULATION 
 BY ANOTHER PERSON.— THE NECESSITY OF CARE TO SECURE 
 ACCURACY IN MAKING EXAMINATIONS AND COMPARISONS 
 OF HANDWRITING. —THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING PROPER 
 STANDARDS, OR ADMITTEDLY GENUINE WRITING OF THE 
 PERSON WHOSE WRITING IS BEING DISPUTED. —THE DATE 
 OF ALL WRITINGS USED FOR THE PURPOSE OF COMPARISON 
 WITH RELATION TO THAT OF THE DISPUTED WRITING BEING 
 EXAMINED.— TRACED SIGNATURES AND HOW PRODUCED.— 
 SOME OF THE USUAL CONDITIONS OF FORGED SIGNATURES 
 CONSIDERED. —THE USE OF THE COMPOUND MICROSCOPE, 
 AND THE IMPORTANCE OF IT IN EXAMINING DISPUTED 
 WRITING.— THE EFFECT OF AGE, DISEASE, AND EXCITEMENT 
 TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN THE EXAMINATION OF SIG- 
 NATURES.— THE ANALYSIS OF PERSONAL HABIT IN WRITING 
 EXPLAINED, AND ILLUSTRATED IN DETAIL BY AN EXAMPLE.— 
 WRITING HABIT GENERICALLY CONSIDERED. 
 
 Having considered in the preceding chapters why indi- 
 vidual habit in writing becomes a necessary concomitant 
 of the latter ; and having also explained why there can be 
 no positive parallelisms in writing other than that of the 
 same persons, and that there must be positive differences 
 between the writings of different persons, it follows when 
 a disputed signature is compared with genuine ones of the 
 writer, whose name the disputed signature purports to 
 represent, that if habitual parallelisms are found to occur 
 in both the disputed and genuine writings in typical 
 delineation, the integrity of the disputed signature 
 becomes established ; and the reverse condition is made 
 apparent, when instead of such parallelisms positive differ- 
 ences are found to occur between the disputed and gen- 
 uine writings being examined.
 
 What Constitutes Typical Variation. 8i 
 
 The determination between what constitutes typical 
 parallelisms as occurring- in signatures of the same person, 
 and the differences appearing in a simulation of the same 
 signature produced by another, demonstrate the develop- 
 ment of two habits of writing, one of them being done 
 as an accustomed act, in which all the details of its pro- 
 duction are consonant with the muscular habit causing 
 their appearance, and in the other where the form pro- 
 duced as an imitation is not consonant with the muscular 
 coordination by which it is accomplished. Thus A., in 
 producing his signature, is compelled to use the forearm 
 movement of the pen in writing it, and B., who simulates 
 the signature of A., cannot use the forearm movement of 
 the pen, but must employ the fingers and thumb to do the 
 work by the flexure of these factors. While B. may make 
 a good pictorial simulation of the signature of A., it will 
 have to be done by an entirely different habit of holding 
 and moving the pen; and B., to use the latter aptly to 
 make the imitation, is necessitated to employ the pen as 
 accustomed, and this will incorporate into the simulation 
 the details of habit which belong to B., and the forgery 
 will be destitute of the features that in detail are char- 
 acteristic of the writing of A. These conditions in 
 which mere resemblances in form, and general appear- 
 ances are contrasted with those features which are posi- 
 tive parallelisms typically considered, together with the 
 method of making these facts when appearing, and the 
 subject-matter of the preceding chapters applicable for 
 the purposes of analysis and comparison, will constitute 
 mainly the subject of the present chapter. It is in this 
 field of study only, that tangible conditions on which to 
 base an opinion are reached, and though the process-steps 
 by which facts are developed in this line of investiga- 
 tion may seem difficult, they will only appear so to such 
 1 1
 
 82 Ixiatorv Care When Making Analysis. 
 
 persons as will not, or cannot, give to them the study to 
 make them available. 
 
 In the examination of writing where the question to 
 be determined is whether signatures which are disputed 
 as to their genuineness were written by the same person 
 that wrote those produced as standards, or admittedly 
 genuine signatures of the writer whose signature is in 
 dispute, great care should be taken in making the exami- 
 nation if the results of the latter are to be given as an 
 opinion in court. As in analytical chemistry each step 
 in the work must be conscientiously proceeded with at 
 the commencement, to insure accuracy at the end of the 
 investieation ; and the examiner who desires to reach a 
 correct conclusion in determining the personal habit of 
 the writer must verify all the step-by-step disclosures 
 which the analysis reveals, with such positive connection 
 that a conclusion at variance with that one reached 
 would be an impossibility. Each developed fact must 
 be compatible and in harmony with all others ; there 
 must be no hypothesis at the commencement, and the 
 examiner must depend wholly upon what is seen, leaving 
 out of consideration all suggestions or hints from inter- 
 ested parties ; and if possible it best subserves the condi- 
 tions of fair examination that the. expert should not know 
 the interest which the party employing him to make the 
 investigation has in the result. Where the expert has 
 no knowledge of the moral evidence or aspects of the 
 case in which signatures are a matter of contest, there is 
 nothing to mislead him, or to influence the forming of an 
 opinion ; and while knowing of the case as presented by 
 one side of the contest might or might not shade the 
 opinion formulated, yet it is better that the latter be 
 based entirely on what the writing itself shows, and 
 nothing else.
 
 Proper Signatures to Use for Comparison. &$ 
 
 In making an analysis to ascertain the individual habit 
 of the writer as developed in signatures produced by the 
 latter, signatures of the same person are better standards 
 for comparison than other writing of the same individual ; 
 for the reason that generally they are written in a meas- 
 ure different from ordinary pen work of the same person. 
 Sometimes, however, signatures are written habitually 
 with the same details of form and production as other 
 writing of the same individual, and this is more particu- 
 larly the case with persons who write but little else than 
 their signatures. The conditions attending the produc- 
 tion of signatures as compared with those under which 
 ordinary writing of the same person are produced, will 
 be made the subject of part of a succeeding chapter. 
 
 In most examinations of disputed signatures to ascer- 
 tain whether they are genuine or forged, the result 
 reached as a matter of opinion is attained by a com- 
 parison made between the contested signature and stand- 
 ards or admitted writing, furnished by the party to the 
 contest at whose request the examination is made, and 
 before such standards have been proved to the satisfac- 
 tion of the court to be the genuine writing of the person 
 whose signature is disputed. While counsel and attor- 
 neys may be ever so honest, their clients, if trying to sus- 
 tain a forgery, can make the attempt to deceive the 
 expert as well as the counsel in the standards produced 
 for comparison, and the examiner who would reach a fair 
 conclusion must avoid all chances of being deceived, so 
 as not to be the means of misleading others by the opin- 
 ion which he may give when on the witness stand. 
 Hence, too much care cannot be exercised in the exami- 
 nation of the signatures produced as standards from 
 which to make the comparison as to their character, their 
 relative importance in personality to the papers on which
 
 84 Preliminary Study of Standards. 
 
 they appear, the time at which they purport to have been 
 written as compared with the date of the contested sig- 
 nature ; and where there are several standards presented 
 for comparison they should be by analysis determined as 
 the writing of the same person before comparing them 
 with the contested writing. 
 
 These preliminary steps are very important from the fact 
 that persons who will commit forgery will resort to forgery 
 to sustain themselves (particularly where the amount 
 involved is large) and in view of the additional fact that 
 it is quite as easy a matter to produce good imitations of 
 the disputed signature as it was to produce the latter. 
 Hence all signatures examined as standards should be 
 privately marked by the examiner, and in such a manner 
 as to be positively identified when called upon to testify, 
 and all opinions should be withheld until the standards 
 are proved to the satisfaction of the court to be the genu- 
 ine writing of the person whose signature is questioned. 
 
 It very often occurs in the experience of those who 
 make examinations of handwriting preparatory to giving 
 evidence in court, that the party who employs the expert 
 will only furnish such standards for comparison as in 
 appearance best sustain their interest and view of the 
 case ; and where the general appearance of the writing 
 is the only field into which the person making the 
 examination can go intelligently for study, this proceed- 
 ing is very misleading. Where the examiner is educated 
 to determine by analysis the muscular habit of the 
 writer, and whether the general appearances of the sig- 
 nature are real or simulated, a conclusion as to the 
 genuine or forged character of the signature in question 
 is much more likely to be correct. 
 
 Another very important condition to be considered is 
 the date at which the standard signatures introduced for
 
 Date of Standard and Disputed Writings. 85 
 
 comparison were written, relatively to the date of the 
 paper on which the signature in dispute purports to 
 have been produced. Standard signatures introduced 
 for comparison to properly serve their purpose should 
 have been written within three or four years of the 
 date when the disputed signatures purport to have been 
 written, as the greatest limit of interval that is safe 
 to insure accuracy ; and the nearer the standards approach 
 in time the date of the disputed writing the better, 
 unless it is made to clearly appear that the writer's habit 
 has not changed. In the case of aged people a much 
 shorter interval of time between the date of the stand- 
 ards and that of the contested writing is at times nec- 
 essary to insure accuracy in the examination and com- 
 parison. Where the standards are many years older 
 than the date of the questioned writing, the chances 
 occurring from changed habits of life, loss of nervous 
 power, the effects of accidents and disease, with other 
 conditions that might affect physical habit should be 
 taken into account. How far such causes may have be- 
 come operative in changing the character of the person's 
 writing are best ascertained by comparing signatures of 
 the same person recently written with those produced 
 earlier in life. Where persons are well advanced in years 
 so as to be within the precincts of old age, even a year 
 might change the general appearance of a writer's signa- 
 ture to a considerable extent. When an opinion has to 
 be based upon signatures as standards showing a long 
 interval of time between the date of their production and 
 the date of questioned signature, unless it can be shown 
 that the habit of the writer has not been affected 
 materially by age, such an opinion must be more or less 
 modified as to positiveness. 
 
 If the written instrument to which the signature in
 
 86 Formally and Informally Made Writings. 
 
 dispute is appended to a will, deed, note, check, endorse- 
 ment, contract or other written instrument of like import- 
 ance, which would call for the execution of the writer's 
 signature in a formal manner ; or a paper in which it was 
 essential that the writer's personality should appear in the 
 signature with representative form, the proper standards 
 in such cases are the signatures of the writer produced 
 with like import as to their execution, or written under 
 conditions where it was equally important that the writer's 
 personality should be represented therein. As a matter 
 of experience it generally occurs to those who examine a 
 series of signatures produced by the same writer when 
 affixed to deeds, bonds, mortgages or other papers of like 
 character under the form of an acknowledgment, that such 
 signatures will be found to be very uniformly written ; 
 and seemingly as if the mental impulse prompting their 
 production had the effect to make them so appear. 
 
 Signatures produced upon letters written to members 
 of the writer's family or letters of friendship written to 
 others than relatives, as generally made, are not proper 
 standards for comparison with a disputed signature of the 
 same person to a will, or other paper of like importance, 
 when the general appearances of the signature as to form 
 and pictorial effect is the only field of examination, from 
 the fact that it is not necessary that signatures to letters 
 should be formally written, and the mental impulse 
 prompting the act does not suggest the importance of pro- 
 ducing them with representative character. In evidence 
 of the indifferent and generally careless way in which 
 letters of the kind named are signed, an examination of 
 a laro-e number of them will show in the writing of each 
 individual a wide deviation in general appearance from 
 signatures of the same person that were formally written. 
 Where the habit of the writer is strong and demonstrative
 
 Signatures Written Unwillingly. 87 
 
 as to its individualisms, the latter may be determined by 
 the microscope to even include a variety of typical forms, 
 but where the general appearances of the signature are 
 the only features from which to establish resemblances or 
 differences by comparison, any conclusion reached in this 
 field of examination alone must be open to serious ques- 
 tion as to accuracy. 
 
 It would seem at times as developed in the experience 
 of those who make the individualism of handwriting- a 
 matter of extensive study, that some persons will write 
 their signatures in a usual or unusual way so far as gen- 
 eral appearances are concerned, under the influence or 
 character of the mental promptings which make the pro- 
 duction of the signatures necessary. AJ/hen the signature 
 is written as a willing act, and at the dictation of a mental 
 impulse that is satisfactory to the writer it will be pro- 
 duced formally, and with its usual significance as to its 
 individualisms ; but when grudgingly done, or as an unsat- 
 isfactory act, signatures produced under this condition of 
 mental prompting will sometimes show a manifest depart- 
 ure from the general appearances in the writing of the 
 person as usually done, and seemingly as if so made for 
 the very purpose of having them disputed at some future 
 time. Thus a person grudgingly writing a signature as 
 endorser for the renewal of an accommodation note which 
 attending circumstances suggest the endorser will eventu- 
 ally have to pay ; or a person affixing his or-her signature 
 to paper or written instrument against the will or interest 
 of the signer ; or a person signing a will when ill or 
 advanced in years at the pressing importunities of mem- 
 bers of the testator's family present to the prejudice of 
 absent relatives, and when conscious of being influenced 
 to wrong the latter ; will very often (when writing their 
 signatures under such circumstances) seemingly produce
 
 88 Signatures Written Unwillingly. 
 
 them purposely with such variation as if to have their 
 authenticity questioned at some future time. This con- 
 dition appearing in signatures so written when com- 
 pared with formally produced signatures of the same 
 person is a perplexing one to examiners, who alone 
 depend upon mere resemblances or differences in form 
 upon which to base an opinion, as to their genuine 
 or foreed character. A conclusion reached from such a 
 comparison alone can have but little value, and an opinion 
 so formulated, if given with any positiveness, must be 
 deemed empirical if considered honestly rendered. It 
 being understood that a person desirous of avoiding the 
 general appearance and prominent characteristics of form 
 appearing in their usual signature may do so in a measure ; 
 yet it rarely occurs that such writers are able to do any 
 thing more than to make changes in the form of the let- 
 ters ; and generally these variations, when studied in a 
 higher plane of examination than that of comparative 
 form, will be found to be but modifications of the usual 
 form, and in connection typically with the habit which 
 produces the usual, or unusual forms in signatures of the 
 same person, written under the prompting of differing 
 mental impulses. In this latter field of examination rea- 
 sonable accuracy may be attained as to the genuine or 
 forged character of such signatures, when compared with 
 formally written ones of the same person. 
 
 In detailing matters which experience suggests as 
 importantly connected with the examination of disputed 
 signatures, there are none more essential to a proper con- 
 sideration of the subject than an understanding of those 
 characteristics often appearing in forged signatures, and 
 by which, in a measure, they are distinguished as such. 
 When these features, occurring as a concomitant of most 
 forgeries, are understood, their appearance may suggest
 
 Features Common to Most Forgeries. 89 
 
 a short and easy route to reach a conclusion ; yet the 
 careful and conscientious examiner will, even with these 
 indications present in a disputed signature, institute a 
 very careful and detailed study of the latter by compari- 
 son with the standard writings ; and with as much effort 
 as if these indications of forgery were not present. To 
 make these features positive evidence, each other devel- 
 oped detail must also tend to the same deduction, and 
 each detail must be compatible with every other feature, 
 and all point to the same conclusion. 
 
 As forgers differ in their capability as to accuracy in 
 simulation, all grades of its proficiency come up in the 
 experience of those who, as experts, are called upon to 
 make such matters a study. At one extreme will be 
 found to occur signatures written with but little effort to 
 imitate the genuine signatures they purport to represent ; 
 with all the intermediate grades of imitation extending 
 to the other extreme, wherein a skillful forger will, by 
 practice, so simulate the signature of a person, and with 
 such close resemblance that the very individual whose 
 name is imitated cannot, independently of attending cir- 
 cumstances, tell the forgery from a signature which he 
 knows he has written. 
 
 Among the most common forgeries of signatures are 
 those which have been traced from genuine ones, and these 
 are produced in various ways ; the most common method 
 being to place the genuine signature over a plate of glass 
 horizontally arranged, with a strong light behind it, or 
 against the window pane, and then to place over the sig- 
 nature so positioned the paper on which the forgery is 
 to be made. When this has been done, the two papers 
 are held in contact firmly, the pen is dipped in ink and 
 moved over the paper, guided by the lines of the genuine 
 signature beneath, which show through the superimposed 
 12
 
 9 o 
 
 Traced Signatures as Simulations. 
 
 paper, and by means of which the form of the signature 
 is transferred to the paper, which is exteriorly placed. 
 
 While this process of tracing produces very nearly the 
 proper form of the signature thus copied, and if well done 
 by the forger the copy will in general appearance, and 
 to a certain extent, resemble in outline the signature from 
 which it was thus traced, there are usually apparent in all 
 simulations thus made, peculiarities indicating the manner 
 in which they were produced, and by which they can be 
 identified as such. One of the mo^t prominent features 
 of forgeries thus made is the general sameness of the 
 writing as appearing in the uniform width of the lines, 
 and the omission of the usual shading emphasis. The 
 cause of this appearance is the absence of habitual pen 
 pressure, and the necessitated slow movement of the pen 
 held closely in contact with the paper, and by which a 
 uniform and steady flow of ink is deposited thereon; thus 
 making what should be the heavier and lia-hter lines of 
 one width, and density as to shading. This method of 
 tracing is that resorted to by novices and is seldom 
 employed by expert forgers. 
 
 Another condition appearing in all traced signatures 
 is the absence of all evidences of pen pressure when 
 examined as a transparency ; this deficiency occurring as 
 consequent upon the manner of moving the pen over the 
 paper, with the slow copying effort before described ; and 
 while signatures thus made may resemble the one from 
 which copied, the only likeness they have is that of pic- 
 torial resemblance, and it will be found to be destitute of 
 all the appearance and indications of habitual writing in 
 other respects. 
 
 Another method of tracing signatures is frequently 
 resorted to by persons adept in the art, and this consists 
 in making a lead pencil copy of the genuine signature by
 
 How Traced Signatures are Determined. 91 
 
 holding the latter against a window pane beneath the 
 paper on which the forgery is to be produced ; tracing 
 the outline of the signature by means of a pencil, and 
 then with pen and ink to write over the pencil copy ; but 
 as this method necessitates the use of an india-rubber 
 eraser to remove the suplus black-lead where not covered 
 by the ink, evidences of the use of the rubber will be 
 found to occur, and traces of black-lead can be found by 
 the microscope. While these appearances and conditions 
 are common to traced signatures, there are in addition to 
 their presence generally found evidences of pauses made 
 in the writing, the effect of which will appear not as shad- 
 ing of the lines, but as irregularities or excrescences 
 thereon produced by resting the hand in its movement, 
 and by which at intervals more ink flowed from the pen 
 than would occur, when the latter was being moved habit- 
 ually over the paper. 
 
 Where two signatures of the same person exactly coin- 
 cide when one is laid over the other in parallel arrange- 
 ment with a strong light behind them, this condition of 
 their appearance is very positive evidence that one of 
 them was traced from the other, and is a forgery, as it is 
 impossible for such a circumstance to occur in the writing 
 of two signatures produced habitually. In the Silvania 
 Ann Howland case there were found to occur as added to 
 a will three codicils each of which had affixed thereto 
 what purported to be the signature of the testator, and 
 which three signatures when examined as transparencies 
 were found to exactly coincide in all respects as to form 
 and general appearance. A calculation made by Prof. 
 Pierce, a learned and well-known mathematician of his 
 day, as to how often it was possible for such a circum- 
 stance to happen with habitually produced signatures, he 
 gave it as his opinion under oath, from actual calculation*
 
 92 Characteristics of Forged Signatures. 
 
 it could only happen once in two trillion eight hundred 
 and sixty-six billion times. 
 
 Forged signatures often show a copying effort that is 
 manifested in the details of their production. These 
 evidences generally appear, in some instances, as pauses 
 made in the lines connecting the letters of the signature, 
 where the pen rested while the eye of the forger was 
 directed from the writing being done to the copy, that 
 the writer could fix in the mind the form of a succeeding 
 letter. These pauses appear in different measure of 
 prominence in different forgeries, and there is no rule as 
 to their measure or appearance. With some simulators, 
 the pen rests with considerable emphasis, and with others 
 it is lifted from and returned to the paper while the eye 
 of the writer goes back to the copy. With others there 
 will appear but little hesitancy ; and some forgers, well 
 skilled in the art, will, by practising the simulation until 
 they have the form of the genuine signature well fixed 
 in the mind, become enabled to produce a forged copy of 
 a genuine signature that will show no pauses ; hence the 
 absence of pauses is not proof of the genuine character 
 of a signature. Another common characteristic of forged 
 signatures, and particularly such of them as are not 
 traced and are produced by persons not skilled in the art, 
 is found in the studied appearance which they have, as if 
 written under restraint, and without the apparent freedom 
 consequent upon habitual writing ; and still another char- 
 acteristic of forged signatures that are not traced from a 
 genuine signature is that they are written with greater 
 length in proportion to the width and height of the 
 letters, than occurs in the genuine signature from which 
 they are copied in imitation. This want of proportion 
 occurs generally from making the lines connecting the 
 letters of the signature longer than those of the copy.
 
 Characteristics of Forged Signatures. 93 
 
 While these characteristics are common to forged writ- 
 ing, to make them available in formulating an opinion 
 from an analysis they must be substantiated by every 
 other detail occurring in the writing. It must clearly be 
 kept in view that general impressions derived from a cur- 
 sory examination of a disputed signature should have no 
 weight in the mind of the examiner, before proceeding 
 with the analysis ; as such an impression is apt to lead 
 the investigation into a particular line of research, and it 
 should be understood that the work of the examiner 
 must relate to the comparison of the details in each of 
 the writings as to their correspondence or difference. 
 
 In thus considering forged writing, and in detailing 
 some of the most common features which are found to 
 occur in it, as developed in the experience of the author, 
 it must not be understood that all the phenomena attend- 
 ing the production of forged signatures can be given. 
 Inasmuch as each person has a peculiar muscular coordi- 
 nation that is manifested in the production of habitually 
 written signatures, so each forger, from the same cause, 
 has an individual habit that must be used when simulat- 
 ing ; hence there will be as many styles of writing mani- 
 fested in the production of forgeries as there are forgers 
 to produce them. No rule can be laid down for the 
 classification of their peculiarities, excepting as hereinbe- 
 fore stated, and as occurring from the measure of accuracy 
 with which the simulation appearing in them is done. 
 Each case of disputed writing must be examined by itself, 
 and while there are certain process-steps to be followed 
 which experience suggests, as facilitating the analysis, yet 
 the examiner must wholly depend upon what is seen in 
 the disputed signature that is, or is not found in the 
 admittedly genuine writing of the person whose signature 
 is questioned, and the comparison of the one with the other.
 
 94 Use of the Microscope a Necessity. 
 
 In all examinations of questioned signatures to deter- 
 mine the individual habit of the writer, the use of the 
 compound microscope is a necessity to obtain the best 
 field for study and analysis, for the reason that the most 
 important details are ofttimes so minute that they cannot 
 be seen with the naked eye in sufficient size to determine 
 their individual character with accuracy. While a mag- 
 nifying glass or a Coddington lens may be used to a 
 moderate extent, the former has but a limited field that 
 is in focus without distortion, and the Coddington lens 
 is not easily held in position steadily for continued obser- 
 vation and study ; neither has it the requisite power for 
 the work. The lower powers of the compound micro- 
 scope are best available for the examination of signa- 
 tures, for the. reason that when the higher powers are 
 used but little of the signature is in the field of vision, 
 although the power of the lens may be increased when 
 some particular point or feature in the writing requires 
 greater enlargement for more perfect definition. The 
 higher powers of the microscope are sometimes used to 
 ascertain the character of inks with which writing is done, 
 and also to determine the character of the paper on 
 which a signature is written, which at times becomes 
 important. For all practical uses of the microscope in 
 the examination of signatures, the ranges of object 
 enlargement occurring between a three-inch and an inch 
 objective will be found to best answer the purpose, as 
 the various powers of these lenses become important in 
 making the analysis. The microscope stand that is best 
 adapted for use in this work is that designed by C. E. 
 Hanneman of the city of Troy, N. Y., and which is made 
 by Zentmeyer of Philadelphia. This stand has no stage 
 when used for examining writings, although it is adapted 
 to have a stage attached for ordinary work. It is made
 
 Microscope Useless Without Experience. 95 
 
 with an extension tube that is projected downwardly, and 
 the apparatus is so arranged that with a pane of glass 
 laid over the signature, the stand is placed on the glass, 
 whereon it can be moved back and forth without creas- 
 ing or marking the paper on which the signature is writ- 
 ten. Where the ordinary microscope stage is used, the 
 writing has to be folded and creased in being placed 
 upon the stage in a position to be examined, and this 
 procedure is objectionable as it tends to injure the paper. 
 By attaching an elbow and interiorly placed prism to the 
 upper end of the tube used in the Hanneman stand, and 
 the eye-piece on the outer end of the elbow, the examiner 
 seated in a chair can study the writing for a long time 
 without fatigue, which is a matter of great importance 
 where prolonged efforts are necessary. 
 
 While it is a fact that the microscope and a knowledge 
 of its uses is of the greatest importance in ascertaining 
 the character of signatures, where the question of their 
 being forged or genuine is the object of the examination, 
 it does not follow that because a person is learned in the 
 use of the microscope in other fields of research that he 
 is therefore qualified to be considered an expert in hand- 
 writing. A peculiar education made practically appli- 
 cable by experience in this latter field of study is abso- 
 lutely necessary to determine with accuracy what the 
 microscope reveals, and its importance to give value to 
 any conclusions reached by its use. The connection of 
 effect with cause, and the determination of the latter as a 
 matter of individualism cannot be accomplished merely 
 from what is seen under the microscope. The examiner 
 must by experience and education be fitted to ascertain 
 from personal characteristics manifested in the writing of 
 a signature what necessitated their appearance as a mat- 
 ter of individuality.
 
 96 General Appearances When Misleading. 
 
 When comparing a disputed signature with a series of 
 admittedly genuine signatures of the same person whose 
 signature is being disputed, the general appearances and 
 pictorial effect of the writing will suggest as the measure 
 of resemblances or differences predominates, an impression 
 upon the mind of the examiner, as to the genuine or simu- 
 lated character of the signature in question ; and it is 
 under the influence of this impression so made in this 
 field of examination alone, that originate most of the 
 errors in judgment that occur with persons posing as 
 experts, without the requisite experience or qualification 
 to fit them for the work. When it is understood in this 
 connection that to make a forgery available for the pur- 
 poses of its production, it must resemble in general appear- 
 ance the writing of the person whose signature it purports 
 to represent, it follows as a reasonable conclusion that 
 resemblances in general appearances alone must be secon- 
 dary factors in establishing the genuineness of a signature 
 by comparison ; and the fact that two signatures look 
 alike is not always evidence that they were written by the 
 same person. 
 
 To distinguish with any degree of certainty the differ- 
 ences manifested in the general appearance of a series of 
 signatures written by the same person, and that resem- 
 blance produced by simulation of the same writing (if 
 well done) is a very difficult proposition to determine ; 
 and examiners having the most experience will as a rule 
 be guarded and careful in giving an opinion based on any 
 conclusion reached in this field of study, without further 
 verification. As an illustration of the uncertainty of an 
 impression produced by the general appearances, and 
 close resemblance of signatures even to an expert obser. 
 ver is manifested, when the fac simile signatures of the 
 signers of the Declaration of American Independence, as
 
 Effect of Normal or Abnormal Conditions. 97 
 
 executed by different engravers are examined. On com- 
 paring each individual fac simile made by one engraver, 
 with the fac si7nile of the same signature made by another 
 engraver, they will be found to exactly coincide in general 
 appearance as to form and pictorial effect, and so much 
 so that the fac similes of the same signature made by dif- 
 ferent engravers cannot be told one from the other. On 
 examining them by the use of the microscope they may 
 be very easily determined as the work of different persons. 
 While this is likewise true of the resemblances in general 
 appearance which a disputed signature may have when 
 compared with a genuine signature of the same person, 
 it is also true that the measure of difference occurring in 
 the general appearance of a disputed signature when com- 
 pared with genuine ones of the same person are not always 
 evidence of forgery. 
 
 As hereinbefore considered and explained there are 
 many conditions affecting the production of signatures 
 habitually and uniformly, apart from the causes which 
 prevent a person from writing signatures twice precisely 
 alike under the influence of normal conditions of execu- 
 tion. These conditions tending to modify individual 
 habit should be taken into account when making exami- 
 nations for the purpose of distinguishing typical variations 
 from simulation. The effect of fatigue, excitement, haste, 
 or the use of a different pen from that with which the 
 standards were written are well-known conditions oper- 
 ating to materially affect the general appearance of the 
 writing, and may have been in one form or another an 
 attendant cause when the questioned signature was pro- 
 duced, and thus have given to the latter some variation from 
 the signatures of the same person, executed under the influ- 
 ence of normal surroundings. Hence, to know whether 
 these differences are the result of circumstances other than 
 13
 
 98 Analysis Explained and Illustrated. 
 
 normal conditions in the production of the questioned 
 signature (considered to be genuine), or are caused by a 
 forger's "inability to make a good simulation (with the 
 signature in question considered a forgery) become very 
 important elements of study in making the analysis. Too 
 much care cannot be exercised, and all the contingencies 
 that could have happened to vary the general appear- 
 ance of the questioned signature should be taken into 
 account at the commencement of the examination, before 
 any impression as to the genuineness or forgery of the 
 signature in question is allowed to lead the mind of the 
 examiner making the investigation with general appear- 
 ances the only step in the analysis ; unless the disputed 
 signature bears no more resemblance to the genuine 
 writing of the person it purports to represent than the 
 signature written by another person would have without 
 simulation. In the latter case, however, it would be a 
 safer proceeding to verify this difference in the general 
 appearance of the two signatures by a microscopic exami- 
 nation rather than to depend upon it to formulate an 
 opinion. 
 
 Having thus considered some of the peculiarities oc- 
 curring in forged signatures, and some of the essential 
 requirements to be taken into account when making ex- 
 aminations of them to distinguish simulated from genuine 
 signatures, in illustration of the system to be employed 
 there are produced photo-engraved copies of two checks. 
 One of the latter, and that shown on plate I, being a.fac 
 simile representation of a check which was in possession 
 of a forger, and that appearing upon plate II, being a 
 check and signature which was simulated from the other ; 
 and these illustrations are supplemented by a description 
 of the method of analysis employed to determine the 
 forgery. The details of personal habit are shown as
 
 Analysis Explained and Illustrated. 99 
 
 enlarged upon plates III and IV, the latter being 3. fac 
 simile of the forgery, and the former that of the genuine 
 signature of the check shown upon plate I, "with the 
 writing appearing as it is seen under the microscope when 
 enlarged about sixteen times. Plates V and VI represent 
 in fac simile the movement of the pen-splits when writing 
 the word " Cipperly " with the writing examined as a 
 transparency by the use of the microscope, and enlarged 
 by the latter ; that appearing on plate V representing 
 " Cipperly " of the genuine signature, and that upon plate 
 VI the word " Cipperly" of the forgery. Plates VII and 
 VIII represent fac similes of the word " Cole " taken in 
 the same manner as the fac similes upon plates V and VI. 
 The illustration upon plate VII representing the word 
 ''Cole" of the genuine signature, and that upon plate 
 VIII the word "Cole" of the forgery. 
 
 Enlarged photographs when taken properly show 
 writing- in about the same field of observation as the 
 microscope focussed to the same enlargement, with the 
 exception that as the writing is being examined and 
 studied under the latter, the definition is better, and par- 
 ticularly more so than when bromide prints are used 
 instead of ordinary photographs, and though photo- 
 engravings are not so well adapted for making exami- 
 nations as photographs, they are better adapted for illus- 
 tration herein, and are employed on this account. 
 
 The simulation thus selected for the purposes of 
 illustrative analysis was successfully produced and 
 uttered by one Lyman who was one of the ablest of 
 forgers, and for the perpetration of which crime he was 
 tried, convicted and sentenced to prison where he died 
 before the term of his sentence expired. The capacity 
 of this man Lyman in the use of the pen was simply 
 wonderful, and his powers of copying and closely imitating
 
 lOO 
 
 Character of the Forgery Analysed. 
 
 signatures was extraordinary. The very check on which 
 the forged signature is shown is drawn by him with a 
 pen, and so close and deceptive was this imitation of the 
 
 mine check that until an expert examination had been 
 made of it by the use of the microscope, the bank officers 
 and others supposed that the forger must have come into 
 the possession of a blank check printed from the same 
 stone as the genuine check from which it was simulated. 
 
 In thus selecting for illustration and analysis one of 
 the most accurately simulated signatures, executed by one 
 of the most expert of forgers, the intention is to indicate 
 with what accuracy examinations of this kind can be made, 
 the value of evidence based upon them when conducted 
 in this field of study ; and also to show that although a 
 forger may simulate a signature so closely as to deceive 
 the person whose name is simulated, the forger cannot 
 incorporate into the imitation the details of habit belong- 
 ing to the writer whose name is forced, and the best that 
 the most expert forger can do is to imitate general 
 appearances, and thus produce in the forgery a pic- 
 torial resemblance to the signature from which it was 
 simulated. 
 
 When the two signatures thus illustrated are compared 
 and examined as to their general appearance, they will 
 be found to differ no more from each other than some of 
 a series of genuine signatures of the same writer will 
 vary when compared. While there are some differences 
 in the form of some of the letters of the genuine signa- 
 tures when compared with the forgery, yet greater differ- 
 ences were found to occur when a series of signatures 
 produced by the writer of the genuine signature in ques- 
 tion were compared with each other ; so that this meas- 
 ure of difference in form could not have been taken into 
 account to determine whether the signature illustrated in
 
 
 V 
 
 nn i 
 
 : ^ 1 
 
 s 
 
 t> 
 
 V 
 
 -5^ 
 
 
 M 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 X "3 
 
 s 
 
 X s 
 
 .Y 
 Y 
 
 
 ;>V 
 
 X 
 
 
 
 
 
 •v 
 
 X 
 
 s 
 
 \\ 
 
 X 
 
 
 
 «* - 
 
 
 ■ujii^Y- W^* 1
 
 
 
 
 ^N 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 V 
 
 \. ■ 
 
 
 u 
 
 Y\V' 
 
 ; 
 
 rt 
 
 fa 
 
 
 
 w 
 
 H 
 <! 
 
 ex, 

 
 
 \ 
 
 "N^. 
 
 •.?«.".' 
 
 
 
 i 7 
 
 W 
 H 
 < 
 
 a-
 
 .„ 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 
 u 
 
 be 
 
 
 M 
 
 C 
 
 ■O 
 
 3 
 
 
 u 
 
 
 n 
 
 >> 
 
 c 
 be 
 
 Tri 
 
 ft 
 
 
 3 
 
 £ 
 
 CO 
 
 
 <L> 
 
 aj
 
 c 
 b 
 
 P. 
 
 O
 
 Character of the Forgery Analysed. ioi 
 
 fac simile upon plate II was genuine or forged, when com- 
 pared with that illustrated upon plate I. 
 
 So thoroughly are the general appearances of the genu- 
 ine signature simulated in the forgery illustrated, that 
 when some thirty odd checks signed by the same party who 
 wrote the genuine signature from which the simulation 
 was made, were laid in a row so that the signatures upon 
 each underlapped that upon the check immediately above, 
 with the forged check one of the thirty, quite a number 
 of snap-shot experts, including the writer of the genuine 
 signature, made the effort, not one of them picked out the 
 right one as the forged check. This occurred, however, 
 before the ink with which the forged check was written 
 had faded to the extent that it had when photo-engraved 
 for use herein. 
 
 On examining the illustrations shown upon plates V, 
 VI, VII and VIII, in which skeletal appearances of sepa- 
 rate parts of the genuine and forged writings are illustra- 
 ted, they are seen as they appear when examined as a 
 transparency by the aid of the microscope with a strong 
 light behind the paper, and in a field of examination 
 where the skill of the most cunning forger cannot go in 
 imitation. These illustrations show accurately every 
 movement of the pen, and the position which the splits, 
 or nibs of the latter occupy in each movement ; not only 
 this is made clearly manifest, but these representations 
 establish as a matter of fact that the two signatures 
 were written by two differing and well-defined physical 
 habits ; one of them being capable of making letters of 
 the form appearing in the genuine signature by an 
 habitual movement ; and the other to produce a skeletal 
 representation in form, and in sequence to go over the 
 work a second time to put on the shading emphasis. 
 
 The physical habit of the writer of the genuine signa-
 
 io2 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 ture illustrated upon plate I, as manifested by the details 
 of its production, indicate that in making some of the 
 letters of the signature they were formed by the forearm 
 movement of the pen ; while other parts of it were pro- 
 duced by the flexure of the prehensile muscular functions 
 of the fingers and thumb; as if the writer having in mind 
 a representative form that was to appear in the signature 
 as a matter of fancy or selection, was compelled to adopt 
 such a method of producing it, as was adapted to the 
 organization of the writer's hand, and which will be more 
 fully considered hereinafter. 
 
 When the writing of the genuine signature illustrated 
 as a whole upon plates I and III, and skeletally in parts 
 upon plates V and VII is examined to ascertain the indi- 
 vidual habit of the writer of it, the following facts become 
 apparent at the commencement of the analysis ; that 
 although the letters of which the signature is composed 
 are most of them connected, they are in the main pro- 
 duced by separate efforts, in each of which the pen is 
 raised from off the paper upon the completion of the let- 
 ter and then returned again to produce a succeeding 
 letter; and so that when thus returned to contact with 
 the paper it would override the up-curve line of the letter 
 last produced, and thus make the connection of such 
 parts of the signature as where the letters join ; while in 
 other parts of the genuine signature these breaks are 
 shown as occurring independently of any effort to have 
 the connecting lines intersect a succeeding letter. 
 
 The letters "C"in "Cipperly" and "Cole" of the 
 genuine signature illustrated upon plate I, do not connect 
 by a continuity of effort with the next succeeding letter, 
 although made to intersect the latter. The letter " i " in 
 u Cipperly " and its up-curve terminal line was produced, 
 and the pen lifted from the paper, and then returned to
 
 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 103 
 
 the latter to make the staff or standard of the first letter 
 "p," with the top of the latter over-riding the top of the 
 curve leading up to the letter " i." In the same manner 
 the body part of the first letter " p " was produced, and 
 its up-curve continued to where the staff or standard of 
 the second letter "p" should commence; and then the 
 pen was again raised from off the paper, and returned to 
 the latter so as to extend over the top terminal of the 
 preceding up-curve where commencing to make the staff 
 or standard of the second letter "p." This same con- 
 dition is also apparent in the formation of the letters "e" 
 "r" "1" and "y" of "Cipperly" and in most of the 
 letters occurring in "Cole" and " Haslehurst" of the 
 genuine signature shown upon plate I. 
 
 These conditions thus manifested in the genuine signa- 
 ture are positively ascertained by the movement of the 
 split-points or nibs of the pen, and, as shown in the skele- 
 tal illustrations upon plates V and VIII, which represent 
 them as enlarged and as examined by the microscope, 
 with a strong light behind the paper. These details 
 become important at the commencement of the analysis, 
 for they appear all through the genuine signature, and 
 must have their origin from one of two causes ; one 
 being that they were so made as a matter of the writer's 
 fancy or choice, or, the other, that desiring to use such 
 forms of letters, the writer was compelled to produce 
 them in the manner in which they appear from physical 
 causes. If originating from the latter there will be found 
 other details of habit necessitated to appear which will be 
 typical of them. 
 
 From the relative position which the pen-splits must 
 have had in the formation of the letters " C " of the genu- 
 ine signature, where the lines, as produced by their move 
 ment, indicate shading; and where the pen-splits spread
 
 104 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 apart by pressure to produce the latter, and where they 
 cross each other at the top and bottom of these let- 
 ters to produce curves thereat, it is very plainly indi- 
 cated that the pen was held nearly vertical without slant 
 towards the shoulder of the writer, but slightly inclined to 
 the right from a perpendicular. This position of the pen 
 when forming the letters " C " of the genuine signature 
 is also made apparent in the relative position of the pen- 
 slits as they are moved to form the up-curves of these 
 letters, and the shading therein, which could only have 
 been applied by pressure and not flexure, from the verti- 
 cal position in which the pen was held, with its concavity 
 facing to the right. It also appears from the details that 
 when the pen was operated to form the letters "C" of 
 the genuine signature it was caused to bear upon the 
 paper at the same angle during the movement for their 
 production, and, consequently, it must have been rigidly 
 held by the prehensile grasp of the fingers, and, as so 
 held, operated by the forearm movement. 
 
 When a slanting and elliptical form of letter like the 
 letters " C " of the genuine signature is made by the flex- 
 ure of the thumb and fingers, instead of by the forearm 
 movement before described, it will be readily understood 
 that the angle at which the pen bears upon the paper is a 
 constantly changing one ; for the splits of the pen must 
 be drawn inwardly toward the palm of the writer's hand 
 when making the down-strokes ; laterally moved to the 
 right or left when producing the bottom curves, to the 
 left when forming the top curves, and outwardly away 
 from the palm when giving direction to the up-strokes of 
 letters ; with the grasp of the pen forming a pivotal cen. 
 ter around which it is operated to write by the flexure of 
 the thumb and fingers. On examining the skeletal rep- 
 resentation of the pen movement occurring in the produc-
 
 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 105 
 
 tion of the genuine signature it will be found that all the 
 details present indicate the production of the letters lt C ' 
 by the forearm movement, with the pen held as before 
 described. 
 
 After the production of the letters " C " of the genuine 
 signature as thus determined, the letter "i," the first letter 
 "p" and the staff or standard of the second letter "p" 
 were also written by the forearm movement, but with the 
 pen slanting toward the right shoulder of the writer, and 
 with its concavity facing slightly to the left. The whole 
 of " Cole " was written with the forearm movement, with 
 the pen held as in writing " ip " and the staff of the second 
 letter, " p," in u Cipperly," with the exception of the capi- 
 tal letter "C" in " Cole," which was produced in the same 
 manner as occurring in " Cipperly," before described. 
 The "&H " of the genuine signature as well as the body- 
 part of the "a" in " Haslehurst" were written with the 
 forearm movement, the pen being held and operated as 
 when writing " ole " "of Cole," the "ip" and staff of the 
 second letter, " p," in " Cipperly," with all the remaining 
 parts of the genuine signature done by the flexure of the 
 fingers and thumb, and without the intervention of the 
 forearm movement. 
 
 In the production of the before-named parts of the 
 genuine signature by the forearm movement, other than 
 the letter "C," an examination shows that the pen was 
 held, while being so operated, with its outer end and that 
 nearest the body of the writer slanting toward the shoul- 
 der of the latter, with its concavity facing somewhat 
 towards the left, instead of towards the right, as when 
 making the capital letter "C." This condition of pen 
 grasp and the determination of the method by which it 
 was operated, is ascertained by the pen-split furrows, and 
 the position they have relatively to each other, when pro- 
 14
 
 106 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 ducing the tops of, and the bottom ends of the staffs or 
 standards of letters, and the position of the splits where 
 they cross each other, relatively to the curves made in 
 the body-parts of letters, where, upon the line on which 
 the signature is written. Upon an examination of the 
 bottom ends of the staffs or standards of the letter "p," 
 it will be seen that the left-hand one of the two splits 
 descends lower than the right-hand one ; and at the tops 
 of these staffs, or standards, of the letters " p," the right- 
 hand one of the splits commences to form its part of the 
 letter higher up than the left-hand one. These details 
 so occurring could only have been produced as they thus 
 appear by the pen, held as before described, with its con- 
 cavity facing to the left. Having shown that when the 
 pen is held nearly vertical and operated by the forearm 
 movement to produce curves in the tops and bottoms of 
 the letters " C " of the genuine signature, that the splits 
 cross each other after the curves are made, it follows that 
 with the pen operated by the forearm movement when 
 slanting back toward the body at its outer end, and with 
 the concavity of the pen facing to the left, that the pen 
 splits from necessity when making curves that tangent 
 upon the line on which the signature is written must 
 cross each other at the commencement of the up-curve, 
 and this is just the condition found to occur in those por- 
 tions of the genuine signature which have been consid- 
 ered as written by such a pen-grasp and forearm move- 
 ment of it. It also occurs in the curves of the body-parts 
 of letters where tangential to the line on which the sig- 
 nature is written that the pen was held rigidly, and 
 nearly vertical by the prehensile grasp of the fingers and 
 thumb to produce the capital letter "C" of the genuine 
 signature, and so held was operated by the forearm 
 movement as determined from the manner in which the
 
 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 107 
 
 pen-splits cross each other in the production of curves as 
 so differing from those produced in the same parts of 
 letters when made by the thumb and fingers, with these 
 factors by their flexure at the joints moving the pen 
 around the curves at a constantly changing angle to the 
 paper, and with the pen-grasp forming a pivotal centre 
 for the movement. 
 
 Having shown the two conditions of the forearm 
 movement appearing in the writing of the genuine signa- 
 ture as determined by the details accompanying their 
 production ; on an examination of other parts of the sig- 
 nature and features of individual character present, it 
 will be found that some of the letters, and particularly 
 those which have been determined as produced by the 
 two modifications of the forearm movement of the writer, 
 have well-defined bottom curves where tangential to the 
 line whereon the signature was written, while in other 
 parts of the signature there are details occurring which 
 indicate their production by the muscular flexure of the 
 fingers and thumb, and particularly in those parts of the 
 signature where, in place of curves at the bottom of let- 
 ters, there are angles. From an examination of the gen- 
 uine signature and its differently written parts, it is very 
 plain that the whole of it could have been produced by 
 the forearm movement, with well-defined bottom curves, 
 if the writer had desired to so produce it, yet it is appar- 
 ent that such was not the writer's intention, and that to 
 give to the signature a desired representative character 
 the writer produced all the firm signatures written by 
 him in this manner, as an inspection of a large number of 
 them made by him demonstrated very clearly. 
 
 Finding angles at the bottoms of letters in some 
 instances, and curves in the same relative position in 
 other parts of the signature, would not necessarily deter-
 
 10S Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 mine that in the one case they were produced by the fore- 
 arm movement, and in the others by the flexure of the 
 thumb and fingers. If the angles and curves being 
 considered were all produced by the forearm move- 
 ment, they would show details consonant with such 
 a production of them; and if the angular pen-work of 
 the genuine signature being considered is accompanied 
 by the appearance of details indicating their origin in the 
 thumb and finger movement of the pen, that are incom- 
 patible with the forearm capacity, the appearance of 
 such details will establish their production by the 
 former. 
 
 It being understood that the bottom curves of all let- 
 ters written by the flexure of the grasping muscular 
 functions of the thumb and fingers are produced by 
 the thumb as a factor of impulse in moving the pen 
 to the right as it bears against the fingers, with the 
 latter yielding in the direction of the thumb impulse 
 in a downwardly directed movement to the right, and 
 in an upwardly curved direction, so as to continue as an 
 upstroke, or on an incline for connection with the com- 
 mencement of a succeeding letter, or to finish a terminal 
 one, it follows with this understanding made applic- 
 able that the thumb impulse, when performing either 
 of these movements of the pen, is actuated by its indi- 
 vidually peculiar adductor muscular functions, and whether 
 curves or angles are formed at the bottom of letters 
 must depend upon the thumb capacities exercised in mak- 
 ing such movements, and in their adaptability to coordi- 
 nate with the fingers in doing the work. The fact that 
 the writer could produce well-defined curves at the bot- 
 toms of the body-parts of letters by the use of the 
 forearm movement does not establish that the same 
 writer could make them by the cooperative action of the
 
 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 109 
 
 thumb and fingers; for the manner of producing them by 
 the two methods is entirely different. When curves of 
 this class are made towards the right hand by the mus- 
 cular action of the thumb and fingers with the former, the 
 factor of impulse, the pen is moved inwardly towards, 
 laterally to the right, and outwardly from the palm of the 
 writer's hand by the flexure of these factors at their 
 joints ; and this muscular action is accompanied by the 
 appearance of details very different from those manifested 
 in the corresponding parts of letters, when the latter are 
 made with the pen grasped as a prehensile act and moved 
 by the forearm, as before described. 
 
 On examining the bottom curves in the body-parts of 
 letters, as occurring in the letter " i " and first letter 
 " p," shown in the illustration of the genuine signature 
 upon Plate I, and its enlarged representation upon Plate 
 V, it will be seen that the pen-splits cross each other at 
 the commencement of the up-curves instead of after the 
 latter have been formed, and as manifested in the produc- 
 tion of the letters " C." It will also be observed that the 
 concavity of the pen, when forming the body-parts of the 
 letters " i " and the first letter " p," faced somewhat to 
 the left when commencing to make ; and during the pro- 
 duction of the body-part, by the downward movement of 
 the pen until just before reaching the bottom, when the 
 pen was caused to rotate on the muscular cushion of the 
 thumb (against which it was pressed by the fingers) so 
 that the concavity of the pen was caused to squarely face 
 the palm of the writer's hand, producing a detail thereat 
 designated in enlarged representation at Plate V, and 
 this is a peculiarity which occurs in all the habitually 
 produced signatures of the writer. 
 
 When the bottom curves of the letter " i " and the 
 body-part of the first letter "p"in " Cipperly," and the
 
 no Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 body-part of letter " a " in " Haslehurst," of the genuine 
 signature, are compared with the corresponding parts of 
 the "e," "r," and of the "1" and "y" of " Cipperly," 
 and the staff of the "a" in " Haslehurst," of the same 
 signature, there are not only wide differences in the form, 
 of the letters found to occur, but where curves are used at 
 the bottom in some of these letters, angles are formed to 
 take the place of curves in the others. As either of 
 these forms, occurring at the bottom of the body-part 
 of letters, could have been produced by the forearm 
 movement, they are only important in connection as a 
 peculiarity of the writer's habit of writing signatures, and 
 the details consonant upon their production, which estab 
 lishes that the curves were produced by the forearm 
 movement, and the angularity by the flexure of the thumb 
 and fingers. 
 
 Referring to the letters " erly," including the body-part 
 of the second letter " p," illustrated upon Plate I, it will 
 be observed that, after making the staff of the first letter 
 "p," a well-defined pause occurs in the writing of the 
 genuine signature, and that the pen was lifted from off 
 the paper, and from this point, as the pen is returned to 
 the paper to complete the signature, the angularity at the 
 bottom of the body-part of letters commences, and the 
 same condition occurs in the writing of " Haslehurst," 
 after the oval body-part of the letter "a" is made. It 
 will also be seen that from the commencement of this 
 angularity the size of the body-parts of letters decreases 
 as the signature extends to the right, the cause of which 
 will be explained in another connection. In the writing 
 of the part "erly" and " lehurst," including the staff of 
 the letter "a," preceding the latter there are very positive 
 evidences that the thumb of the writer of the genuine 
 signature was a muscular factor in other than prehensile
 
 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. hi 
 
 uses, and that it was peculiarly deficient in adductor 
 function. 
 
 It will be readily seen that the staffs of the letters 
 "p" of the signature illustrated upon Plate I, are carried 
 down below the line on which the signature is written to 
 about twice the distance manifested in the downward 
 extension of the staff of the letter "y," and that they are 
 so extended without irregularity or evidences of discord- 
 ant muscular action in making the movement; but when 
 the bottom of the downwardly extended staff of the " y " 
 is examined under the microscope there is a detail occur- 
 ring at the bottom terminal, indicating that a struggle 
 occurred thereat between the muscular factors, which 
 were thus impelling the pen downwardly, and that factor 
 against which it was bearing when thus operated; and 
 this latter factor was the writer's thumb, which, in perform- 
 ing its functions in responsive cooperation, should curve 
 inwardly towards the writer's palm. The staffs of the 
 letters *' p," as has been shown, were produced by the 
 forearm movement, and have unusual length of down- 
 ward projection, and in the production of . which the 
 thumb of the writer merely exercised its grasping func- 
 tions without flexure ; and in view of the resistance 
 which the thumb made in the downward extension of the 
 staff of the l 'y," it is very clear that its functions were 
 very differently exercised than when forming the staffs 
 of the letters "p." The detail illustrating this struggle, 
 and want of harmonious action on the part of the thumb 
 when resisting the incurving of the fingers to make the 
 staff of the letter " y," is illustrated at Plate V in enlarged 
 representation, and is just such a one as would be pro- 
 duced by the thumb when resisting the incurving of the 
 fingers towards the writer's palm, and which could only 
 happen as it appears, by the action of the thumb and
 
 ii2 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 fingers. This detail, occurring at the bottom of the 
 letter " v." was found to be manifested in all signatures 
 of the writer, and in typical character as to cause. 
 
 When the staffs of the letters "1" in "Cipperly" and 
 " Haslehurst " of Plate I, are examined and compared with 
 the "1" in "Cole," of the same signature, it will be seen 
 that as the pen was moved to make the downwardly 
 extended heavy strokes of these letters, there are appa- 
 rent differences, and evidences that they were not written 
 by the same manner of holding and moving the pen. In 
 the letter "1 " of " Cole," the heavy down-stroke made by 
 the pen is regular in its curve and slope, and was mani- 
 festly produced by the forearm movement of the writer 
 from the relative position of the pen-split appearing in its 
 formation as before described. In the other letters "1" 
 of the genuine signature considered in this connection, 
 there is a bulge or incurve to the right in the down-stroke 
 near their bottom terminal ; and as thus appearing they 
 indicated that as the pen was moved downwardly against 
 the drawing inwardly of the thumb, that the latter instead 
 of yielding to the finger impulse resisted it so as to pro- 
 duce the incurve or bulge to the right. This detail being 
 considered with relation to the one at the bottom of the 
 letter "y" before described, becomes typical of the latter 
 when connected with cause. 
 
 The fact is also apparent that the angularity manifested 
 in the body-parts of letters as indicated in the signature 
 illustrated upon Plate I (where the up-strokes from each 
 letter intersect with the top of a succeeding letter, except- 
 ing that of the terminal letter), commences in the formation 
 of the body-part of the second letter " p " of " Cipperly," 
 and after making a pause thereat, the pen was raised from 
 off the paper, and when returned by the writer to the lat- 
 ter to complete the word "Cipperly," thereafter the size
 
 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 113 
 
 of the body-parts of letters commence to decrease in 
 vertical and lateral measurement until the terminal "y" 
 is about half the size of the body-part appearing in 
 the second letter "p," and the same condition occurs 
 in the production of parts of " Haslehurst," which have 
 been considered as written in the same manner. This 
 decrease in the size of the body-parts of letters where 
 extending from left to right is common to all writing 
 done by the muscular flexure of the fingers and thumb, 
 when a series of letters extending from left to right 
 are produced with the hand resting stationary upon 
 the table. This appearance of writing so produced occurs 
 from the fact, that these muscular factors operating 
 by their flexure have to reach farther from the resting 
 point of the hand to do the work, and consequently 
 become more and more limited in movement as the reach- 
 ing distance at which the writing is done becomes greater. 
 The letters immediately in front of the hand will be larger 
 than those farther off to the right, and the size of the let- 
 ters will from necessity diminish as the distance which 
 the fingers and thumb have to reach increases. In pro- 
 ducing " Haslehurst" after writing "& H" the letters "a" 
 and "s" as before described, then another pause was made 
 before commencing the letter " 1," and the hand of the 
 writer was moved to the right. Both of the letters "1" 
 in " Haslehurst" show the incurve to the right caused by 
 the want of adductor function in the writer's thumb, and 
 from this point the body-parts of the letters commence to 
 decrease in size as extending from left to right, just as 
 they do in the production of a part of "Cipperly" as 
 before described. The terminal of the genuine signature 
 made in lineal connection with the final letter " t " shows 
 a detail wherein the pen is shown to have been caused to 
 rotate in the finger and thumb grasp by the unyielding 
 
 15
 
 ii-l Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 disposition of the writer's thumb. While this angularity, 
 appearing in the genuine signature could have been pro- 
 duced by the forearm movement of the writer so far as 
 relates to its general appearance, it is very plainly 
 apparent that it was not so written from the presence of 
 details which establish it very positively as done by the 
 flexure of the fingers and thumb. These details so appear- 
 ing are considered as typical of each other, though differ- 
 ently manifested, and they originate from a muscular 
 cause that is peculiar to the writer's hand. Having a 
 thumb that was deficient in adductor function the writer 
 could not move the pen by its flexure to produce curves 
 in the body-parts of letters where tangential to the line 
 on which the signature was written ; and could only oper- 
 ate it when forming these parts of letters by carrying it 
 up from the bottom of one letter to the top of another on 
 an angle. All the details relating to a comparison between 
 the curves appearing at one part of the signature in the 
 body-parts of letters, and in the same parts of letters 
 where made angularly indicate that the curves were pro- 
 duced by the forearm movement of the pen, and the angles 
 by the flexure of the thumb and fingers. 
 
 The physical habit appearing in the genuine signature 
 illustrated upon Plate I, was peculiar as regards some very 
 unusual extensor abductor capacities of the writer's thumb, 
 and as developed in the great length of the loops of the 
 letters " h " and "1" in " Haslehurst." In the formation 
 of these loops the up-strokes of the pen are projected 
 upwardly with unusual length and in harmonious coopera- 
 tion with the extensor capacities of the fingers, until in 
 forming the down-stroke under the finger impulse, the 
 writer's thumb as deficient in adductor function com- 
 mences to resist the finger movement, and thus forces into 
 the staffs of these letters the incurve before alluded to.
 
 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 115 
 
 Thus while the writer's thumb was deficient in adductor 
 function its abductor capacities were developed in an unus- 
 ual measure. 
 
 As a summary of the foregoing examination and analy- 
 sis, it appears that the writer of the genuine signature 
 illustrated in fac simile upon Plate I, produced it under 
 three differing muscular operations of the hand ; one of 
 them in which the pen was grasped as a prehensile act by 
 the fingers and thumb, with the concavity of the pen 
 facing to the right, held nearly vertical, and operated by 
 the forearm movement, with the writer's hand as thus 
 actuated sliding back and forth over the table to form 
 parts of the signature ; another condition of muscular 
 coordination in which the pen was grasped by the prehen- 
 sile functions of the hand, with its outer end slanting 
 towards the right shoulder of the writer, with its concav- 
 ity facing to the left, and operated by the forearm move- 
 ment as before described to produce other parts of the 
 signature ; and still another method in which the pen was 
 grasped by the prehensile functions of the fingers and 
 thumb, and operated by the flexure of these factors to 
 complete the remaining parts of the signature. These 
 features of muscular cooperation constituted the habit of 
 the writer in producing and giving to the signature of the 
 latter such an individual character as was desired ; and 
 the details before named as accompanying its production 
 appear as effects of such muscular coordination and inci- 
 dent to it, and there are no details or features suggesting 
 any other. 
 
 Having thus analyzed the writing appearing in fac simile 
 upon Plate I, and having ascertained the personal habit of 
 the writer of it by the details appearing in the production 
 of it, when it is compared with the signature illustrated in 
 fac simile upon Plate II, the following conclusions are
 
 u6 Analysis Made for Determining Habit. 
 
 reached. As to general appearance, and in signature 
 expression there is very little difference between the two 
 writings, and although not exactly the same in form, they 
 are found to be as much alike in these respects as were a 
 series of genuine signatures produced by the writer of 
 that appearing upon Plate I, when compared with each 
 other. Disregarding the faded appearance of that shown 
 upon Plate II, and not knowing that one of them is a for- 
 gery, they must in that field of examination where resem- 
 blances and general appearances are alone considered, be 
 regarded as the writing of the same person. While the 
 loop of the letter "C" in "Cole" does not extend up 
 through the top of the letter as in the signature shown 
 upon Plate I, yet on examining a series of signatures 
 written by the same person who wrote that appearing in 
 fac simile upon Plate I, it was found that the letter " C " 
 was as often made as appearing in the signature of Plate 
 II as otherwise. 
 
 In connection with the general appearances of these 
 two signatures, it will be remembered, as hereinbefore 
 stated, that the writer of the signatures illustrated upon 
 Plate I, could not pick out that appearing in fac simile 
 upon Plate II as the simulated one, when the latter was 
 placed among some thirty odd signatures upon checks 
 signed and written by him and laid in a row with the sig- 
 nature upon each check so placed underlapping the one 
 above it; and quite a large number of bank experts tried 
 to do the same work as to selection, and failed. In view 
 of these facts, the general appearances of the signature 
 shown upon Plate II as a simulation was so well done as 
 to defy detection in the ordinary field of examination, a 
 fact which should be remembered when this disputed sig- 
 nature under a microscopic examination loses all the 
 effect of resemblance ; and when every feature which in
 
 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 117 
 
 general appearance caused it to look like the one from 
 which it was simulated becomes established as the work 
 of another habit, and the writing of a different person. 
 
 Having thus examined the signature illustrated in fac 
 simile upon Plate II, with it considered as a disputed sig- 
 nature, and having made a study of it in that field where 
 many who assume to act as experts can only go to formu- 
 late an opinion as to the genuine or forged character of 
 signatures ; and finding nothing in the general appearan- 
 ces of the disputed signature to lead to the conclusion 
 that it was not written by the same person who wrote the 
 signature illustrated upon Plate I, to sustain this conclu- 
 sion a general and preliminary examination of the signa- 
 ture in question should be made microscopically, for if 
 both signatures are the writing of the same person, the 
 resemblances found to occur in them will be found to 
 have been produced in the same manner, and to contain 
 the same details of personal habit. 
 
 On placing the signature illustrated upon Plate II 
 under the microscope, and on using a low power of 
 lens, it is found that the letters "C " of "Cipperly" and 
 " Cole " were produced by first going over the paper with 
 a lead pencil to line out the form of the letters, and after- 
 wards the latter were written over with ink, so as to fol- 
 low the pencil lines, and then again with ink to put on 
 the shading or heavier parts of the letters. Continuing 
 this preliminary examination it also appears that the rest 
 of the word " Cipperly " was first lined out with a lead 
 pencil, and then written over with ink ; and the same 
 conditions are also found to occur in the production of 
 "Cole" and " Haslehurst," although the lead pencil lines 
 have not been followed with accuracy in all cases where 
 written over with ink, and more particularly in the loop 
 of the letter "C," and the "1 " in " Cipperly," as well as
 
 n8 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 
 
 in the " a," the " 1 " and " h " of " Haslehurst," where the 
 ink does not cover the lead pencil outlining, and in some 
 of which places it remains intact. In the letter "C" of 
 " Cole." the lead pencil furrow remains, although the 
 black lead has been removed by an eraser. 
 
 Finding this condition to occur in the signature illus- 
 trated upon Plate II, the question of its being a traced 
 signature is suggested, and also that of comparative 
 measurement to determine it. On applying a pair of 
 measuring compasses to the pencilings appearing as 
 palimpsest writing in the signature upon Plate II, and 
 also to the same parts of the signature upon Plate I, they 
 are ascertained to not only exactly coincide as to length 
 and size, but the several parts of the disputed signature, 
 when measured and compared with the genuine signa- 
 ture, are found to be the same in length and size, 
 although where in inking in the pencilings the latter 
 have not been closely followed, there are found to be 
 some differences. Where the palimpsest, or underwrit- 
 ing, as determined by the pencil furrows made in the 
 paper is measured, there is exact coincidence with that of 
 the genuine signature, and as shown by the calculations 
 of Prof. Pierce in the Silvania Ann How land will case 
 the chance of such a condition occurring in habitual 
 writing is too remote to be considered. 
 
 Thus it appears that the disputed signature illustrated 
 upon Plate II is a traced signature, and further, that it 
 was traced from the signature illustrated in fac simile 
 upon Plate I, which was in the possession of the forger. 
 But, to pursue the investigation still farther, an examina- 
 tion microscopically should be made of the details of 
 habit appearing in the disputed signature, to show their 
 difference from, or their resemblance to, those appearing 
 as manifested by the muscular habit of the writer of the
 
 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 119 
 
 genuine signature ; and this is done to show that 
 although a forger may make a picture of a genuine sig- 
 nature, the pen must be operated by the forger in an 
 habitual manner, as the muscular functions of the 
 simulator's hand have been educated to act to make an 
 imitation, and which involves the production of details 
 belonging to the simulator's habit, and which are different 
 from those developed by the habit of the writer of the 
 genuine signature. 
 
 It appears when these two signatures are examined 
 and compared under the microscope (apart from the 
 traced features of the forged one) that the details of 
 physical habit manifested in the latter are totally unlike 
 those of the genuine signature, as determined by the 
 analysis set forth in the present chapter. These differ- 
 ences are well defined in their character, and in all their 
 features indicate the employment of a physical habit of 
 writing, radically unlike that developed in the genuine 
 signature. Thus, the letters " C " of the forgery are 
 clearly shown to have been made by the muscular flexure 
 of the fingers and thumb, instead of with the pen held 
 nearly vertical and operated by the forearm, so well- 
 defined a condition of the writing occurring in the forma- 
 tion of these letters " C " where appearing in the genuine 
 signature. It will be remembered that these letters were 
 produced in the genuine signature with the pen held 
 nearly vertical in position, with its concavity facing to 
 the right, by which the heavy shading of the down-strokes 
 occurred below the transverse centres of these letters, 
 and by which the pen so held and operated caused shad- 
 ing to appear by pressure in the up-strokes, and as being 
 rigidly grasped by the prehensile functions of the fingers 
 and thumb without flexure was caused to bear on the 
 paper at an angle that was constant. In the forged sig-
 
 120 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 
 
 nature the ink writing was done by the slow process of 
 going over the pencilings with the concavity of the pen 
 facing the writer's palm, having its outer end slanting 
 towards the right shoulder of the writer, and operated by 
 the flexure of the fingers and thumb, to bear upon the 
 paper at a constantly changing angle, with the splits of 
 the pen running in contact, without spreading, to put 
 shading into the up-strokes. Thus, while a resemblance 
 is manifested in the letter "C" of both signatures, this 
 likeness was produced in a very different manner. 
 
 On examining the enlarged representations of the two 
 signatures upon Plates III and IV, where they are 
 shown in a measure as they appear when seen under the 
 microscope, it will be observed that in the forged signa- 
 ture, upon Plate IV, that the letters " C " were touched 
 up by the pen to complete the shading emphasis, for 
 this second ink application of the pen overlaps the 
 first lining out-done by the latter ; in fact, as thus seen 
 in the enlarged representation at Plate IV, it is evi- 
 dent that three efforts were used to produce the letters 
 " C ; " one of them when the signature was traced with a 
 lead pencil ; another, when first gone 'over with ink, and a 
 third when the shading was applied, the latter application 
 of ink giving to the writing, when magnified, a patch- 
 work appearance. There are no evidences of any such 
 work being done by the writer of the genuine signature 
 when producing the latter. 
 
 In the writing of the connected letters " ipperly " of the 
 forgery the pen was not lifted from the paper, and the 
 down-strokes and up-strokes were produced by a continu- 
 ous effort and movement of the pen ; while in the same 
 part of the genuine signature the pen was raised from off 
 the paper at each termination of its up-stroke, as has been 
 before described. In the letters " e " and "1" in " Cip-
 
 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 121 
 
 perly," of the forgery, well-defined loops are found to 
 occur, and, in which respects, the simulator did not fol- 
 low the tracing accurately. There are no loops in these 
 letters of the genuine signature. In the formation of the 
 letter "y" of the forgery the pen is not raised from the 
 paper until the latter is completed, and its details of pro- 
 duction in other respects are different from those appear- 
 ing in the same part of the genuine signature. In the 
 latter the up-stroke from the preceding letter, "I," is car- 
 ried up to where the first down-stroke of the "y" com- 
 mences, with the pen then raised from off the paper, and 
 again returned to the latter to make the down-stroke so 
 as to override the previously formed up-stroke, with the 
 latter formed so as to intersect the first down-stroke 
 about midway between its top and bottom. In the for- 
 gery the up-stroke of the "1" is carried up to where the 
 first down-stroke in the body-part of " y " is to commence, 
 and the pen is then moved sidewise, and pressure applied 
 to it, as moved downwardly, to form the first member of 
 the body-part, without lifting the pen from the paper, and 
 with the up-stroke of the " 1 " connecting with the first 
 member of the "y" at the top of the latter, instead of 
 intersecting it about half way between its top and bottom. 
 In the production of the connected letters " ole " the 
 writer of the forgery not only run away from the lead- 
 pencil tracing, but began the letter " o " with the concav- 
 ity of the pen facing clear around to the right, so that the 
 splits of the pen did not cross each other until after the 
 bottom up-curve had been commenced, and although a 
 good simulation of the letter " o " was made as to form, 
 it will be easily determined, on a microscopic inspection, 
 to have been produced by an entirely different operation 
 from that employed to write the same letter in the genu- 
 ine signature. It will be seen when examined as enlarged 
 16
 
 122 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 
 
 that the letter " o " of the genuine signature was made by 
 the forearm movement, and with the concavity of the pen 
 facing off to the left, which caused the splits to cross each 
 other at the bottom of the curve, instead of after the 
 curve had been made. The letter " 1 " in " Cole," of the 
 forgery, is shown as made with a well-defined loop at the 
 top, and a continuous movement of the pen in connection 
 with the up-stroke of the preceding letter ; while there is 
 no loop in the top of the "1" in "Cole" of the genuine 
 signature, and in making which the simulator did not fol- 
 low the tracing. It will also be observed that after mak- 
 ing the letter " o " with the concavity of the pen facing 
 to the right, it was, by the simulator, returned to its usual 
 position, facing the writer's palm, to produce the succeed- 
 ing letter " 1." 
 
 In the forged writing of Haslehurst, the same differing 
 details of habit occur as when the other parts of the genu- 
 ine signature before described are compared with the for- 
 gery. These differences appear in the letter "h," which 
 have been described as occurring in writing of the " 1 " in 
 " Cole," and in producing which, as in the other in the 
 other instances alluded to where the tracing was not 
 closely followed. Another feature of prominent differ- 
 ence appears in the production of a loop at the bottom of 
 the character "&," which, as appearing, necessitated the 
 adductor uses of the thumb in which the hand of the 
 writer of the genuine signature was deficient. The letter 
 "a" of the forgery is wanting in the well-developed 
 details of habit manifested in the writing of the signa- 
 ture from which the simulation was made, and which have 
 been described as having been produced partly by the 
 forearm movement and the remainder by the flexure of 
 the fingers and thumb, while in the forgery this letter was 
 wholly produced by the continued flexure of the grasping
 
 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 123 
 
 factors. The letter "s " in the forgery has a well-defined 
 loop at the top, while the same letter in the genuine sig- 
 nature is made without it, and in producing which the for- 
 ger run away from the tracing previously made with a 
 lead pencil. 
 
 The forger made a good fac simile of that part of the 
 signature represented by " lehurst " so far as the general 
 form and size of the letters constitutes a simulation ; but 
 in writing them over with ink the microscope reveals that 
 the tracing was not accurately followed, although the cor- 
 rect form was lined out for the ink overwriting. The fur- 
 rows made by the lead pencil where not covered by the 
 ink are very plainly visible under the microscope, and 
 some of them appear in the fac simile of the forgery 
 appearing upon Plate IV. It will be seen on making a 
 microscopic examination of the standards or staffs of the 
 letters "1" and "h" of " Haslehurst," appearing in the 
 genuine signature as made with an incurve due to the 
 want of adductor function in the writer's thumb do not 
 appear in the forgery as inked over, although they are 
 very well lined out in the tracing. These letters "1" and 
 " h " in the forgery have their top loops made with the 
 ornate finish and copy-book style of the same letters 
 appearing in the engraved representation of the firm name 
 at the top of the check, and in which respects the forgery 
 is not so good a simulation of the genuine signature ; as 
 where the tracing of the latter has been more accurately 
 followed. While the general appearance of that part of 
 the signature in which " lehurst " has been imitated is 
 well calculated to deceive, when it is examined by enlarge- 
 ment all this resemblance disappears as the manner of 
 writing it is compared with that of producing the same 
 form, so clearly demonstrated as occurring in the genuine 
 signature. Well-defined curves are found at the bottom
 
 1 24 Analysis of the Forgery as Illustrated. 
 
 of all of the body-parts of letters in the forgery, features 
 of writing which were not within the capacity of the 
 writer of the genuine signature, who when writing by the 
 flexure of the fingers and thumb was compelled to make 
 angles at the bottom of the body-parts of letters instead 
 of curves ; and that these factors were used by the writer 
 of the genuine signature in producing all those parts of 
 the latter, other than those in which the forearm move- 
 ment was employed, has been well established.. From the 
 foregoing description of the writing habit by which the 
 forged signature was produced, and the differences mani- 
 fested in it when compared with the one from which it was 
 simulated, it will be readily understood that these differ- 
 ences occur from two very unlike methods of producing 
 the same form in both of them, and that these differences 
 are not manifested in their general appearance with 
 enough significance to say from an examination without 
 enlargement that the one is a simulation of the other and 
 a forgery. This condition illustrates fully the necessity 
 of determining the habit of the writer of a signature by 
 microscopic examination, wherein the skill and observa- 
 tion of the expert can enter a field of research where 
 simulation cannot go, and where only definite and accu- 
 rate conclusions can be reached. 
 
 A very important and well-defined condition of forged 
 writing is clearly illustrated by the preceding analysis, 
 and as before alluded to as a feature of it ; that a forger 
 when imitating the signature of another must use his own 
 writing capacities as they have been educated to cooperate 
 and move the pen to make the imitation with any approach 
 to resemblance. It appears in the case analyzed that 
 with the form of the genuine signature correctly lined out 
 upon the paper before him, the forger as necessitated to 
 use his own writing habit when inking in the tracing, was
 
 Why Capacities of Simulation are Limited. 125 
 
 under its influence, as asserted, compelled to deviate from 
 the tracing, and impelled by its impulses to make promi- 
 nent peculiarities of his own habit as features of detail. 
 This forger so expert with the pen that he could produce 
 in such close imitation the simulation of the check on 
 which the forgery appears, could not follow the tracing, so 
 strong was his individual habit in its tendencies when 
 writing. 
 
 In this connection the question may suggest itself. 
 Why cannot the forger imitate these details of habit 
 which are found to occur in the genuine signature, and by 
 which its individuality is determined ? This interrogation 
 is answered by the apparent fact which will appear in con- 
 sidering the matter, that the features determined as 
 characteristic of the personal habit in the genuine signa- 
 ture are ascertained, and made visible under the micro- 
 scope, and most of them are too minute to be imitated 
 with a pen and ink even aided by their enlargement ; and 
 to this condition there is supplemented the other fact, 
 that to imitate even such details, the forger can only 
 operate the pen as his muscular functions have been 
 educated to coordinate habitually, and this involves the 
 production of details that are incident to its employment. 
 In attempting to assume the habit of another when writ- 
 ing (were it possible) the intention must take from the 
 writer all facile use of the pen under the assumption of an 
 unusual way of operating it, and which if attempted would 
 incapacitate the forger for imitating form with any 
 approach to resemblance ; and then as each individual 
 habit is the result of physical causes inherent in the 
 writer, these conditions cannot be assumed by another 
 person. 
 
 The palimpsest writing or tracing evidence while very 
 plainly visible under the microscope could not be seen or
 
 126 The Measure of Accuracy Attainable. 
 
 noticed without the latter when the signature was ex- 
 amined in an ordinary field of vision. Some of these 
 evidences are visible where the forgery is shown in fac 
 simile as enlarged at Plate IV, and in which the writing is 
 seen as a transparency, and under which condition it was 
 photographed to produce the fac simile alluded to. In 
 some places the pencil tracings are seen intact, in others 
 the pencil furrows have cast a shadow, which, by means of 
 a strong side light, was caught in the photograph and 
 made to appear in the illustration. 
 
 In the analysis thus described and illustrated, a con- 
 clusion is reached, concerning the accuracy of which there 
 can be no question, and although the work examined was 
 the production of one of the most expert of forgers, and 
 the details upon which the conclusion is reached are no 
 more distinctly made apparent than will occur in most of 
 the cases presented for examination ; although but few 
 of them will appear where the simulation was so well 
 done, as the one illustrated, or where the forgery is more 
 positively determined. 
 
 Connected with the examination of signatures under 
 the system of analysis herein proposed and illustrated, 
 there is suggested the inquiry, Can this accuracy always 
 be reached ? This question is fairly answered that it can 
 be if the examiner is competent to make it, and to intelli- 
 gently understand what the microscope reveals. The 
 whole procedure and the correctness of all conclusions 
 reached depend upon the examiner's ability to understand 
 the cause of what is seen ; how and by what means that 
 which is seen is produced ; and whether the resemblances 
 which a disputed signature bears to an admittedly genuine 
 signature are the products of the same physical cause in 
 both, or whether these resemblances are merely simula- 
 tions in the disputed signature, made by the muscular
 
 Facts Difficult to Explain to Juries. 127 
 
 habit of another person. The field of examination pro- 
 posed is, however, one in which inexperienced eyes may 
 fail to see the effect of what the microscope reveals ; and 
 even when seeing it aright the examiner, for want of expe- 
 rience and education in this system of study, may be unable 
 to trace what is seen to an individually developed cause, 
 and consequently err in any conclusion reached. While 
 this accuracy seems within the reach of competent analy- 
 sis, the results of the latter are not always easily made 
 plain to courts and juries. In some cases where the courts 
 will permit it, the expert witness may fully explain upon 
 what he bases his opinion, but it oftener occurs that the 
 trial judge will limit the evidence down to a very narrow 
 scope, and the mere relation of such facts as the jury can 
 see; and where a forgery is well executed, the difference 
 in general appearance between it and the genuine writing 
 of the person whose signature is questioned, when com- 
 pared, is small ; this limit put upon expert evidence by 
 the trial judge takes from the effect of the testimony all 
 the benefit of an explanation of the facts upon which the 
 opinion is founded. Juries are generally allowed to 
 examine enlarged photographs of the writing, and some- 
 times to see it under the microscope, but even when so 
 doing, what they see unexplained cannot be appreciated 
 intelligently ; and unless taken for granted as meaning 
 something which the experience of the expert who gives 
 the opinion understands, and which they, without such an 
 education, could not be expected to do, that which the 
 photographs show and the microscope makes visible is 
 just as likely to be misleading as otherwise. The common- 
 law rules of evidence have undoubtedly been evolved from 
 the necessities attending their use, yet in cases of the kind 
 being considered when rigidly enforced by the trial judge 
 the whole effect of an educated explanation of the appa-
 
 128 Writing Habits Generically Classed. 
 
 rent facts is often prevented, and the opinion of the edu- 
 cated and experienced observer, who may have devoted 
 a life-time to a study of the subject, is made to stand on 
 the same level as the charlatan. 
 
 After having illustrated by analysis the method employed 
 in determinine the individual habits of the writers as relat- 
 ino- to the two signatures examined, the method of proceed- 
 ing to do similar work in other cases will be more clearly 
 made apparent, and better understood by the process-steps 
 therein employed, than by naming any special methods 
 differing in character to be employed in other cases. In 
 connection with the fact that the analysis of each person's 
 signatures must be made sui generis, and that there can 
 be no rule for classifying the differences between the writ- 
 ings of different persons, it must also be explained and 
 understood that there are certain conditions of the writing 
 habit which become classed generically. Thus there are 
 three well-defined methods of writing, into which are 
 grouped the various and differing ways of exercising them, 
 as they are developed in individuals. One of these con- 
 sists in writing with the pen grasped by the prehensile 
 functions of the hand, and operated by the forearm move- 
 ment ; another in which the pen is grasped by the pre- 
 hensile functions of the hand and actuated by the flexure 
 of the fingers and thumb ; and still another, in which the 
 pen is grasped by the fingers and thumb, and is operated 
 by the flexure of these factors in connection with the use 
 of the lumbrical muscles. When either of these generic 
 conditions of pen movement are exercised by the writer, its 
 use tends just as much to the development of personal 
 details as the others, and these details, while showing 
 the generic character of the writing in those respects 
 being considered, will be strongly individual in their 
 tendencies.
 
 Writing Habit GeneM ■Classed. 129 
 
 The first step in making the^Hfysis in view of these 
 generic conditions is to ascertain which of them was 
 employed by the writer, and afterwards to study the indi- 
 vidual character of the details incident to their use ; and 
 the peculiar manner in which the generic method adopted 
 by the writer becomes individual in character as to mani- 
 festation. While the forearm movement of the pen, or 
 with the latter operated by the flexure of the fingers or 
 thumb, or with the latter factors combined with the use 
 of the lumbrical muscles constitute the three pfeneral 
 divisions under which all movements of the pen when 
 writing are accomplished, each person in adopting either 
 of them habitually will employ that one of them which is 
 best adapted to the physical organization of the writer's 
 hand, or that of the latter and the forearm. Thus in the 
 analysis made and illustrated, it was found that a peculiar 
 condition of the writer's thumb as appearing in the writ- 
 ing of the genuine signature, forced into parts of the lat- 
 ter details that were indicative of it when used in connec- 
 tion with the flexure of the fingers, and which compelled 
 the writer, when desiring to make a particular form of 
 capital letter, to employ the forearm movement of the 
 pen to accomplish it ; and that when using this generic 
 method of operating the pen the writer was compelled to 
 employ it in a manner which produced strong evidences 
 of its individuality, and in using the forearm movement 
 to write other parts of the signature than the capitals it 
 was employed in a different manner, than when writing 
 the latter, and produced details which determined the dif- 
 ference. 
 
 Referring to the analysis made and illustrated, it will 
 
 be remembered that the forearm movements of the 
 
 writer were determined as such from the position which 
 
 the pen-splits occupied relatively to, and when operating 
 
 17
 
 130 Writing Habit Generically Classed. 
 
 to form parts of the letters, and as to how the concavity 
 of the pen faced when writing, was ascertained by the 
 position of the pen-splits as appearing at the top and 
 bottoms of the staffs of letters, and this, as a conclusion, 
 was verified by examining the relative depth of the fur- 
 rows made by the splits in the downwardly-directed pen- 
 strokes as the concavity of the pen faced to the right or 
 left. The vertical position of the pen when using one 
 modification of the forearm movement was determined 
 by the apparent fact that in the letter " C " of the gen- 
 uine signature analyzed, the shading by pressure was 
 found to occur below the transverse centers of these let- 
 ters, and shading was also apparent in the up-strokes, 
 which could only have been produced with the pen held 
 nearly vertical, with its concavity facing around towards 
 the rio-ht. These facts, and the additional ones demon- 
 strated by the relative position at which the pen-splits 
 crossed each other at the top and bottom curves of these 
 letters " C," not only confirmed the fact that the pen was 
 held nearly vertical, but that it bore upon the paper at 
 an angle that was constant. Thus, the writer of the sig- 
 nature made the subject of analysis and illustrated upon 
 Plate I, used the forearm to produce these letters " C " 
 in a manner which was peculiarly individual to give to 
 them the desired representative character. Such parts 
 of this signature as have been considered as produced by 
 the flexure of the fingers, in connection with the thumb 
 of the writer, were ascertained and determined to have 
 been so made, from the manifested decrease in size of 
 the letters where extending from left to right, and the 
 character of the writing thereat where indicating that a 
 part of it was produced directly in front of the writer's 
 hand, and the remainder by reaching off from the rest- 
 ing-place of the latter to write with a limited scope of
 
 Individuality of Generic Details. 131 
 
 pen movement, and which necessitated a diminishing size 
 of the letters and made the angularity more acute to the 
 line on which the writing was done. In addition to these 
 features there were also found to be manifested in this 
 part of the genuine signature, details which indicated 
 that the writer's thumb was a factor in producing them 
 in other than prehensile functions. These facts deter- 
 mined the generic character of that part of the genuine 
 signature, considered as done by the flexure of the fin- 
 gers and thumb, and the details manifested in its angu- 
 larity, the making of each letter separately, by raising 
 the pen from off and then returning it to the paper, 
 together with the very prominently manifested details 
 appearing as forced into the writing by the want of 
 adductor function in the writer's thumb, and how this 
 condition of the latter affected and interfered peculiarly 
 with the flexure of the fingers when operating the pen 
 sustained the before-named conclusion. 
 
 These generic methods of operating the pen, as 
 adopted by individuals, while they may cause the writing 
 of persons to approach each other, they never lead to 
 parallelisms in other respects in such measure of devel- 
 opment as to be misleading, and the details of personal 
 habit manifested in the writing of different persons pro- 
 duced by a generic method of operating the pen will 
 appear with as strong evidences of individualism, as 
 when races of men are considered Philogenetically and 
 then specifically as to individuality. 
 
 From the foregoing it will be understood that the first 
 step in making the analysis of a signature is to determine 
 the method in which the pen was held and operated, and 
 the succeeding one will be to ascertain from the details 
 by which this fact is determined, the individual character 
 of the latter, as manifested in their peculiarity, the latter
 
 132 Individuality of Generic Details. 
 
 showing in what manner the muscular functions of the 
 writer cooperated to produce them. A determination of 
 these features will connect personal characteristics with 
 the cause of their development, and enable the examiner 
 to enter that labyrinth into which the investigation 
 extends from this point, and wherein the individualisms 
 of each person's writing become different from that of 
 every other, and for the determination of which no rules 
 can be established. 
 
 The foregoing analysis and its illustration makes mani- 
 fest how and in what manner signatures may be exam- 
 ined to ascertain the individual habit of the writer of 
 them, and the means and process-steps to be employed 
 in determining their simulation by another person. 
 When, however, other than signature writing is made 
 the subject of study, there are attending conditions which 
 have to be taken into account, which do not occur when 
 signatures are the subject of analysis, and these features 
 and their connection with other than signature writing, 
 are made the subject of the next succeeding chapter
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 SIGNATURES COMPARED WITH THE ORDINARY AND OTHER WRIT- 
 ING OF THE SAME PERSON.— THE CIRCUMSTANCES ATTEND- 
 ING THE PRODUCTION OF SIGNATURES, AND THOSE UNDER 
 WHICH WRITING OF THE SAME PERSONS OTHER THAN SIGNA- 
 TURES ARE DONE.— MODIFICATIONS OF THE SAME HABIT OF 
 WRITING.— THEIR CAUSE AND CHARACTER ILLUSTRATED AS 
 APPLIED TO THE JUNIUS LETTERS.— DISGUISED HANDWRIT- 
 ING AS COMPARED WITH HABITUAL WRITING OF THE SAME 
 PERSON.— DIFFICULTIES ATTENDING THE EXAMINATION OF 
 DISGUISED HANDWRITING, AND THE IDENTIFICATION OF 
 THE WRITER OF IT BY COMPARISON.— UNDER WHAT CONDI- 
 TIONS A PERFECT DISGUISE OF A PERSON'S HANDWRITING 
 MAY BE ACCOMPLISHED, AND THE DIFFICULTIES OF DOING 
 IT. — THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MODIFICATIONS OF A 
 WRITER'S HABIT AND DISGUISED WRITING EFFORTS OF THE 
 SAME PERSON.— DISGUISED HANDWRITING AS OCCURRING 
 IN THE CASE OF "CADET WHITTAKER," AND THE PROCESS 
 STEPS EMPLOYED FOR ITS IDENTIFICATION EXPLAINED AND 
 ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 In the preceding chapters the writing habit, as exer- 
 cised in the production of personal signatures, has been 
 more importantly considered and discussed, than where 
 employed in the writing of individuals other than signa- 
 tures ; and for the reason that the character of the latter 
 much more frequently becomes a subject of inquiry and 
 investigation, as to their being what they purport to be, 
 and it only occasionally occurs that the ordinary writing 
 of individuals becomes the subject of dispute as to its 
 personality ; and which, when happening under such con- 
 ditions, does not attain, as a matter of investigation, the 
 importance attending the determination of the genuine or 
 forged character of signatures. Generally the question
 
 134 Writing Other Than Signatures. 
 
 as to the individuality of writing other than signatures 
 becomes a matter of legal adjudication in criminal cases, 
 although it sometimes becomes important in others ; and 
 occasionally, as a matter of curiosity for study and con- 
 jecture, such as was made during the latter part of the 
 last century in England to ascertain who was the author 
 of the Junius letters, by their penmanship. 
 
 While the same general methods apply to the study of 
 the ordinary writing of a person which are employed in 
 the examination of signatures, to ascertain the personal 
 habit of the writer; between the production of the two 
 writings by the same person there may be, and very often 
 is manifested, an habitual difference ; that is, a person 
 may usually write his or her name as a signature in a 
 manner that renders it different from the habit used by 
 the same person in other than signature writing ; when 
 having by practice cultivated a method which gives to the 
 signature produced by it such a form and appearance as 
 will suit the fancy of, and be within the muscular capacity 
 of, the writer. 
 
 This manifested intention to give individuality and 
 peculiar expression to their signatures, induces many per- 
 sons to introduce into their composition pen movements 
 and forms of letters which are not common to their ordi- 
 nary writing, and with the intention seemingly to make 
 their personality more prominent than if written as they 
 write every thing else. The signatures of the late F. E. 
 Spinner, so well known from their appearance in fac 
 simile upon government bills, are marked examples of 
 this kind ; and although each signature written by him, 
 apart from /ac simile representation, was the counterpart 
 of every other of them in habitual detail, they were quite 
 unlike his ordinary writing ; and the latter was as uniform 
 in its details as to muscular coordination as was the writ-
 
 Signature Expression. 135 
 
 ing manifested in his signatures. This condition was 
 conspicuously manifested in both kinds of writing done 
 by him, and each modification of habit was clearly shown 
 to be within the compass of the same muscular factors 
 differently exercised. It will be understood that a pecu- 
 liar muscular coordination may be operated in a variety 
 of ways as to the form of the letters produced by it, all of 
 which will be indicative of the muscular factors doing the 
 work, which, in the one case, will take on such character 
 as to demonstrate what the same factors can do, when 
 differently operated, as sequences of such a capacity. 
 Thus a person having an unusual measure of adductor and 
 abductor ability developed in the muscular function of the 
 thumb, when combined with a highly organized develop- 
 ment of the lumbrical muscles of the index and second 
 finger, would, when writing ordinarily, manifest this capac- 
 ity with emphasis, and its presence would establish the 
 ability of the writer to produce in all lateral movements 
 of the pen, to the right or left, prominences and peculiari- 
 ties in a personal signature which would be typical of the 
 cause, while the apparently different writings of the same 
 person would in fact be indicative of the same muscular 
 coordination exercised to produce differing forms of 
 letters. 
 
 The individualism manifested in the writing of per- 
 sons other than their signatures, while conditioned by a 
 differently exercised capacity of the same muscular func 
 tions, is usually more emphatically shown in the latter 
 than in the former, as there is an object in making the 
 signatures prominently characteristic of the writer, while 
 in the production of the ordinary writing of the same 
 person there is no such incentive, it being done by the 
 coordinate action of the muscles in a manner that best 
 suits the convenience and comfort of the writer. This
 
 i*6 Signature Expression. 
 
 j 
 
 signature expression is generally accomplished with 
 stronger evidences of habit than the other writing of 
 the same person, and although often with prominent 
 measure of difference when compared with the latter, 
 there being no rule as to its appearance or the measure 
 of its development. Some persons write their signatures 
 as they do all their other writing. Differing from the 
 latter in their ideas of making their signatures peculiarly 
 individual in character, others will form the capital let- 
 ters of their signature by a method of holding and mov- 
 ing the pen which is unlike that used in their ordinary 
 writing, and produce the remainder of the signature with 
 their usual effort, while others will write the whole of 
 their signature in a manner that is totally unlike their 
 ordinary writing in appearance, just as fancy may have 
 suggested a form and style that suits the individual, and 
 which the latter has adopted and made physically habit- 
 ual by practice. This condition so often occurring estab- 
 lishes the rule which should apply in making analysis of 
 signatures to determine individual habit, that only signa- 
 tures should be used for purposes of comparison, unless 
 it appear that the writer of the disputed signatures 
 usually wrote the latter as when writing, ordinarily and 
 without signature expression. 
 
 This general condition attending the comparison with 
 signatures of ordinary writing of the same person, nec- 
 essarily includes the execution of both of these kinds 
 of writing, though considered separately to be within 
 the compass of the writer's muscular capacity. This 
 also necessarily determines each of these manifestations 
 of it as produced under the operation of the same 
 causes which give to it individuality in other respects. 
 Although each of the forms appearing as modifications 
 may differ from each other in a measure, any unusually
 
 Writing Other Than Signatures. 137 
 
 developed functions, marked peculiarity or muscular 
 incapacity of the writer's hand will incorporate into the 
 modified writings executed by it details, that will be typi- 
 cal of it. 
 
 The attending circumstances under which signatures 
 are written become quite different from those surround- 
 ing the production of ordinary writing of the same per- 
 son, both as regards the mental processes suggesting the 
 act, as well as the execution of it. When the hand is 
 engaged in writing a letter, more time is required in its 
 employment than in the momentary effort in signing a 
 note, check or other writing of like character, and conse- 
 quently a method of holding the pen may be adopted 
 for signature writing, which could not be continued for 
 any length of time without labored effort and attendant 
 discomfort. Not only this occurs, but the mind of a per- 
 son writing a letter is occupied with the subject of and 
 composition of the latter, and as to how it is written is 
 hardly a matter of cerebration. The ordinary writing of 
 individuals is usually accomplished as a mechanical or 
 reflex act, with the forms of the letters making such an 
 approach to standard styles as is within the capacity of 
 the writer's habit. When writing a signature with the 
 intention to give it expression, and by a different method 
 of moving the pen, the mental suggestion not only 
 prompts the performance of the act differently from that 
 attendant upon the use of the ordinary habit, but desig- 
 nates a way of doing it. 
 
 The ability to modify the writing habit from the ordi- 
 nary habit in the production of signatures with personal- 
 ity, also extends in some instances to other than signature 
 writing, and in which the ordinary writing is made the 
 subject of modification, although not for the purpose of 
 giving it individuality. When this faculty is developed, 
 18
 
 i -S The Ability to Modify the Writing Habit. 
 
 it will generally be found to occur with those who use the 
 pen a great deal, and who to a certain extent may change 
 the pen-grasp to relieve a too long-continued strain upon 
 one set of muscular factors. Occasionally scriveners who 
 have to use the pen continuously for hours, to relieve 
 the constant and long-continued strain upon the mus- 
 cular functions of one pen-grasp, are able to change it 
 to another, if within the writer's ability. Thus after 
 usine the index and second finders in connection with 
 the thumb until this condition wearies the muscles, a 
 change may be had by passing the pen up between the 
 index and second, or between the second and third fin- 
 gers, either of which changes of pen-grasp, and the move- 
 ments consequent upon it, will produce details in the 
 writing, which will be characteristic of that modification 
 of the writer's habit thus employed. These modifications 
 of personal habit may each of them be distinctive as to 
 general appearances, and measurably so as to details ; or 
 they may be typical of each other, but when occurring 
 under either of these conditions of production, they will 
 take on such a character as is consonant with the muscu- 
 lar organization of the writer's hand, and be within the 
 peculiarities of its muscular capacity. Thus a person 
 who in writing changes the position of the pen relatively 
 to the finger-grasp must still use the thumb in the same 
 manner in either instance, and the individual details pro- 
 duced by the latter will be typical of each other in both 
 writings. So where in the organization of the writer's 
 hand, the second finger is more facile and more directly 
 responsive to monition than the index finger, all modifi- 
 cations of the writing produced under such conditions 
 will be typical of the cause, although the factors as so 
 organized may be differently operated. 
 
 It will be understood from the foreeoine that the indi-
 
 Study of Writing Other Than Signatures. 139 
 
 viduality of signatures and the personality manifested in 
 them, is much more easily determined than that occurring 
 in other than signature writing of the same person. This 
 arises from the fact before explained that individuals gen- 
 erally write their signatures with the intention to give 
 them personal character and appearance, and this proced- 
 ure leads to their like production ; while in the writing of 
 persons other than their signatures, the only influences 
 tending to the establishment of individuality are those 
 unconsciously evolved, without any especially directed 
 mental monition as to the appearance of personality, or 
 characteristic parallelism. 
 
 This condition of writing other than that appearing in 
 signatures, while necessitating the use of the same process- 
 steps in making analysis of signatures, surrounds the 
 work with more attendant difficulties in the one case than 
 in the other. In examining signatures a few of the 
 latter will answer the purpose of standards for compari- 
 son, as it rarely if ever occurs that people will modify 
 their signatures to any extent in appearance or detail ; 
 but in examining the ordinary writing of persons the ques- 
 tion of intentional modification has to be taken into 
 account, and the examiner should have before him enough 
 writing of the person whose pen work is in question to 
 cover all possible modifications of it. While true that 
 all modifications of the same person will embody details 
 that will be typical of the muscular organization produc- 
 ing it, to insure accuracy this condition should be verified 
 by an examination of enough of the writing, to ascertain 
 whether the writer had the capacity to adopt modifica- 
 tion, and if so, whether such of the latter embodied 
 the features of the writing in question as to habitual 
 tendencies. 
 
 The ability developed in one person to write with two
 
 140 Handwriting of Junius. 
 
 habits neither of which is properly a disguised effort, and 
 with one of them a modification of the other, is strikingly- 
 apparent when the writing produced during the last cen- 
 tury under the nom de plume of Junius is compared with 
 that of Sir Philip Francis, as both writings are illustrated 
 \v\ fac simile in a book entitled " Handwriting of Junius," 
 by Chabot, edited by Twistleton, and published by John 
 Murray of London in 1871. 
 
 To assume that a writing produced with more than usual 
 uniformity, and without wandering effort, is a disguised 
 writing would seem to be the application of a misnomer to 
 it if so entitled ; this seems to be the only feature on 
 which to reasonably disagree with Mr. Chabot, in view of 
 the fact that if a person has the ability to write habitually 
 in two different ways, neither of them can properly be called 
 a disguised writing. It very frequently happens that per- 
 sons will write so as to give the letters the usual copy- 
 book form as regards slant and ellipticity, and the same 
 person will also write back-handed as it is termed, and 
 with both of these methods habitual. The form of the 
 letters in the fac simile writing illustrated in Chabot's 
 book is all there is on which to form an opinion, but the 
 evidence of form all tend to verify Mr. Chabot's con- 
 clusion that the Junius Letters were written by Sir Philip 
 Francis. 
 
 That there are two conditions of the writing habit of 
 one person apparent when the writing of Francis is com- 
 pared with that of Junius is very plain ; but another con- 
 clusion is also clearly indicated, that one of these habits 
 is a mere modification of the other, from the manifesta- 
 tion in both writings of very strongly and peculiar de- 
 veloped muscular conditions of the writer's hand. All the 
 features of form upon which Mr. Chabot bases his con- 
 clusions, and designates as parallelisms become manifested
 
 Handwriting of Junius. 141 
 
 as these demonstrative muscular functions peculiar in 
 character appear in both writings, and which, though 
 exercised differently in the two habits, in both give typi- 
 cal evidence of cause. 
 
 These writings as presented in fac simile in Chabot's 
 book can only be made the subject of examination as to 
 the form of the letters, and their connection, and not 
 microscopically as to details by which the form was pro- 
 duced, from the absence of the originals, excepting where, 
 without the microscope, the direction of pen movement is 
 clearly incident to individual muscular function as to 
 character and kind. Understanding that when writing 
 with the flexure of the fingers and thumb by which the 
 pen is grasped (as manifestly both of the writings being 
 considered were produced), all movements of the pen 
 made to the left are caused by the impulse given to it by 
 the second finger, which when grasping it bears upon its 
 right-hand side ; and that all the curves and lateral move- 
 ments of the pen to the right are caused by the adductor 
 functions of the thumb, any prominently manifested 
 muscular peculiarities which are unusually developed as 
 to capacity in an individual, will in either of these pen 
 movements before named, or when the second finger and 
 thumb coordinate to move the pen inwardly towards the 
 palm, show in the writing evidences of this emphatic de- 
 velopment. 
 
 That the writer of the Junius papers possessed both of 
 these peculiarly individually developed second finger and 
 thumb capacities is very clearly manifested in the fac 
 simile writing of Chabot's book ; and while this is true of 
 the writing over the signature of Junius it is equally true 
 of the writing of Francis as therein illustrated ; although 
 when writing as Junius while the demonstrative adductor 
 thumb capacity is apparent all through the writing the
 
 !42 Handwriting of Junius. 
 
 second finger emphasis only appears occasionally when 
 the writer lapses from one habit into another, from Junius 
 to Francis. 
 
 The two habits of the same writer, as manifested in the 
 fac simile writing thus illustrated, are produced by two 
 different methods of holding and operating the pen, to 
 give to them a modified appearance. The writing desig- 
 nated as that of Junius has less slant or slope than that 
 designated as the writing of Francis, so far as the staffs 
 or standards of letters are compared ; and there is more 
 modification when the writings are compared in this 
 respect, than when the down-curves to the right, and the 
 lines connecting the letters in the two modifications, are 
 compared. It will also be observed that when writing as 
 Junius the body-parts of letters are made smaller than 
 when writing as Francis, thus indicating the employment 
 of less flexor function. With the individually manifested 
 adductor capacity of the writer's thumb, made apparent 
 in both writings, and the individually developed second 
 finger function appearing only, characteristically, occasion- 
 ally in the Junius writings, it is very clearly apparent 
 that some other factor than the second finger was promi- 
 nently employed when writing as Junius, and this factor 
 must have been the index finger, from the reduced meas- 
 ure of flexure occurring in forming the body-parts of let- 
 ters ; although at times the second finger would break in 
 with a lunge to the left in precisely the same manner 
 when writing as Francis. That the writer of both of 
 these fac simile representations was the same person so 
 far as the same can be determined from the fac similes in 
 Chabot's book, seems very clear, and that when writing as 
 Francis the second finger cooperated with the thumb, and 
 when writing as Junius the thumb and index fingers were 
 the prime factors of muscular impulse.
 
 Modification not Dissimulation. 143 
 
 The fact that some persons may write with modification 
 and measurable variation of appearances being estab- 
 lished, the conditions under which it is done should be 
 well understood to distinguish such efforts from those 
 made by persons to dissimulate or disguise their writing. 
 Modifications of the writing habit manifested by the same 
 person are, as has been shown, generally typical of the 
 same muscular causes, and when occurring in the same 
 person, they are usually as much habitual in one modifi- 
 cation as another. Hence neither of several modifica- 
 tions in the habit of the same writer can be consid- 
 ered as a disguised or dissimulated effort, but each of 
 them, where existing, must, as a practiced acquirement, 
 be deemed an habitual one. 
 
 As in the examinations of signatures made to ascertain 
 their individuality, the use of the microscope is essential, 
 its employment becomes equally important when exam- 
 ining other than signature writing with the same object 
 in view. The process-steps are very much the same as 
 regards both kinds of writing, and relate to a determina- 
 tion of the writer's habit, from the manner of produc- 
 ing the forms of letters, the details indicating the pen- 
 grasp, and the pen movement manifested in the writ- 
 ing, in connection with such peculiarities as the individ- 
 ual muscular coordination of the writer may necessitate 
 the appearance of. As the writings of persons other than 
 their signatures vary much more in appearance than do 
 the latter from each other, a greater amount of time and 
 study is required to properly make an analysis of them. 
 The number of forms and the details accompanying their 
 production is much less when making an analysis of a 
 signature than where the general writing of a person is 
 the subject of examination ; and the range into which the 
 latter must extend is more varied and complicated than
 
 144 Unusual Conditions of Production. 
 
 in the other. There must be constantly kept in view the 
 fact that the ordinary writing of persons is not intention- 
 ally given any of the representative character apparent in 
 signatures, and that all the features which appear in 
 other writing than the latter which will cause it to differ 
 from that of every person, must be those necessitated to 
 be so manifested from the effects of individual habit and 
 produced involuntarily. As a sequence of this condition, 
 parallelisms, or differences occurring when comparisons 
 are made, will require more study for their determination 
 than if the writing was intentionally produced with rep- 
 resentative features. 
 
 The capacity to modify the ordinary writing, as occur- 
 ring in different persons, has been explained, and in con- 
 nection with this faculty as a conditioning cause, there 
 must be taken into account when making comparisons, 
 the tendencies which surroundings may have upon the 
 production of the writing, whether apparently written 
 hurriedly or carefully, under the effect of excitement or 
 when composed, together with all the other before-named 
 contingencies affecting the writing of signatures. While 
 accuracy is within reach in most examinations made to 
 determine the author of other than signature writing, by 
 comparison, the conditions surrounding its production are 
 at times so complicated as to put a limit upon the value 
 of any opinion or conclusion reached in regard to it. This 
 condition, when existing, will be found to occur where the 
 writing was so influenced or affected in character by sur- 
 roundings, as to obliterate all positive evidence as to its 
 individualism. Thus, a person writing with a defective 
 pen, or one which would catch in the paper when held as 
 the writer was accustomed to use it, and which compelled 
 the writer to adopt an unusual method of holding it, to 
 be able to write at all, would, if present as interfering
 
 Dissimulated Writing. 145 
 
 causes, render the determination of individual habit not 
 only difficult, but such influences might be so intensified 
 in effect as to render it impossible, although such cases 
 would be the exception, rather than the rule as ordinary- 
 handwriting is usually produced. 
 
 Where, in other than signature writing of individuals, 
 an effort is made to disguise the personality of it by doing 
 the writing in an unusual manner, greater difficulties are 
 encountered when endeavoring to ascertain its individu- 
 ality by comparison, than where as in habitually produced 
 signatures there is manifested the intention to give to the 
 writing a personality ; or, as in other than signature writ- 
 ing, where the details of individual habit are found to occur 
 with small measure of emphasis. When checks, notes, 
 deeds, or wills are signed, the signatures thereto, as has 
 been detailed, are written in the ordinary manner of pro- 
 ducing them, and seemingly as if to represent the person 
 making them. They are so written at the dictation of 
 habit for the purpose of giving them a personality. So, 
 when other than signature writing is done, its habitual 
 tendencies of form and detail will appear in it with more 
 or less emphasis, but when the latter writing is accom- 
 plished by a studied effort to make it appear as unlike the 
 natural habit of the writer as possible, new complications 
 enter into the examination and analysis of it, by which 
 accurate results relating to the determination of the 
 writer of it by comparison, are made more difficult to 
 reach than in the other instances named. 
 
 In the analysis of disguised handwriting instituted for 
 the purpose of ascertaining the author of it by determin- 
 ing the habit of the writer, one of the usually attendant 
 difficulties is the obtaining of proper standards for 
 comparison. The representative character of a series 
 of individually written signatures carries with it in appear- 
 
 !9
 
 146 How Disguised Writing Manifests Itself. 
 
 ance and detail a peculiarity of definition having well- 
 defined habitual parallelisms, while in the examination of 
 other than signature writing the standards used for com- 
 parison vary in their manifestation of habitual details, 
 and consequently there is necessitated in some instances 
 the examination of such a number of standards as will 
 include all possible variations of the suspected writer's 
 habit, for the field into which the examination extends is 
 not one of simulation, but just the reverse of the latter, 
 and comparison in some cases can only be properly made 
 when all the modifications of a suspected writer's habit 
 are before the examiner for study, and such standard 
 specimens are at times difficult to obtain. Where, how- 
 ever, the writer is not an adept with the pen, a single 
 specimen will often answer the purpose. 
 
 Where the intention to disguise a person's writing is 
 made, there is usually no difficulty in determining its 
 character as such, from the writing itself, but to connect 
 its wandering unhabitual manifestations (if well done) 
 with the conditions appearing in other writing used as 
 standards for comparison, with enough definiteness to 
 identify the dissimulator, is a proceeding attended with 
 difficulty, and particularly so where the examination and 
 comparison made is limited to the general appearances and 
 form of the letters alone, and independently of how pro- 
 duced. 
 
 The capacity to disguise writing depends largely upon 
 the ability of the individual attempting it to keep con- 
 stantly present in the mind the intention, and if the writer 
 can do so with every movement of the pen, personal habit 
 will not appear in the dissimulation, so far as its general 
 appearances are concerned ; and the identification of the 
 writer of it by comparison with other writing of the same 
 person will be rendered impossible in this field of exam-
 
 Capacity to Dissimulate Limited. 147 
 
 ination, thus establishing a condition in which seemingly 
 a perfect disguise of a person's writing may be accom- 
 plished. Knowing, however, that any peculiar condition 
 of the writer's hand as to muscular function will necessi- 
 tate the production of details which are typical of the lat- 
 ter, whether the writer produces usual or unusual forms 
 of letters, it generally happens that all erratic or eccentric 
 movements of the pen in disguised writing from necessity 
 will be of a character connecting their production with the 
 physical habit of the writer of them. While what seems a 
 perfect disguise in general appearances of a person's writ- 
 ing is possible, the probability of its occurrence is ren- 
 dered doubtful from the fact so well established by expe- 
 rience, that the writing habit when acquired by practice, 
 and made peculiar in each individual from physical causes 
 is persistent in its habitual tendencies, and although the 
 effort be made to adopt an unusual method of writing for 
 dissimulation, the habit in which the writer has been edu- 
 cated to write (unless the simulation consist of but few 
 words) will unconsciously assert itself in spite of the efforts 
 made to avoid its appearance. In this connection the dif- 
 ference between what have been described as modifications 
 of individual habit, and the attempts to dissimulate in 
 writing and prevent the presence of individuality in it, 
 should be understood as meaning in its application in the 
 one instance, the production of writing in an unhabitual 
 way ; and in the other, as referring to modifications of the 
 same writer constituting differences, but habitually mani- 
 fested. These conditions as thus explained should be 
 kept in view, when considering the effect of the intrusion 
 of what is habitual when writing with dissimulating inten- 
 tion. 
 
 The differences between habitual modifications of the 
 writing habit of an individual, and the efforts made to
 
 1 4S Habitual and Unhabitual Writing. 
 
 avoid the appearance of personal characteristics originates 
 from the unlike conditions under which they are accom- 
 plished. When writing habitually the work is either that 
 of a mechanical or reflex capacity, exercised without 
 thought as to how it shall be done, or by the copying of 
 a usual form of letters present in the mind from the oper- 
 ation of memory. When the effort is made to disguise 
 the habit of the writer by the production of unusual forms 
 of letters, the intention will direct the hand into a wander- 
 ing movement, wherein the letters produced are not only 
 unlike in themselves, but are accompanied with details of 
 form which are destitute of parallelisms ; that is, if the 
 writer be capable of keeping the intention to dissimulate 
 constantly operative, and this peculiarity of disguised 
 writing is by these features very positively determined as 
 such. In habitual writing the details will all be typical 
 of the muscular coordination, producing them as a matter 
 of parallelism ; in dissimulated writing (if successfully 
 done), the writer in avoiding habitual tendencies must 
 assume unaccustomed conditions of writing, and in the 
 production of which the pen from necessity will be oper- 
 ated with a wandering irregularity. 
 
 When dissimulation of the writing habit is attempted, 
 the act calls for the assumption of an unusual way of 
 holding the pen in operating it to form the letters, or an 
 habitual way of operating it for the production of unusual 
 forms of letters, either of which conditions necessitates a 
 struggle between the assumed method of holding and 
 moving the pen, and that in which the hand has been accus- 
 tomed to write. The usual and habitual way of forming 
 letters gives to them parallelisms in all like movements, 
 and these the dissimulator must avoid producing by mak- 
 ing them different, without any accustomed guidance as to 
 what this difference shall be, excepting that it must be
 
 Reversion to Habitual Tendencies. 149 
 
 unlike that ordinarily produced by the writer. If the 
 object can be kept constantly coupled with intention, so 
 far as the writing of a few words are concerned, the gen- 
 eral appearances of the writer's habit may be avoided ; 
 but where the act requires a more extended or pro- 
 longed effort (as in the writing of an anonymous letter 
 of some length), it rarely occurs that the dissimulator 
 can prevent the tendency of reverting to habitual tenden- 
 cies. These intrusions of personal characteristics will 
 not usually appear at the commencement of the writing, 
 nor generally at the beginning of words when the inten- 
 tion of the writer is more carefully kept in mind ; but as 
 the writing progresses towards its end, when the hand of 
 the dissimulator becomes weary of the restraints imposed 
 by the unnatural and assumed movement of the pen, it 
 lapses into habitual tendencies in spite of the effort made 
 by the writer to avoid their appearance. Disguised hand- 
 writing, as thus considered, cannot consist of that which 
 is habitual, as has before been discussed in connection 
 with the production with the famous letters of Junius, 
 and to so name them would seem to be improper, and as 
 much so as it would be to assert that because a person 
 usually writes his or her signature differently from their 
 ordinary writing, that the signature is written in a dis- 
 guised hand. 
 
 Such disguised handwriting as calls for study and 
 examination to ascertain the author of it, generally 
 appears in anonymous letters ; and so widely different 
 are the influences which prompt their appearance that 
 no rule can be established, nor any principle be consid- 
 ered, as to the effect which motive may have had in their 
 production. Unlike the temptation to forge signatures 
 for gain, such of them as necessitate legal consideration 
 have their inception under the influence of revenge,
 
 150 Motive Features of Disguised Writing. 
 
 hatred or jealousy. When written under the prompting 
 of either of these motives, the composition of the letter 
 is apt to employ the writer's attention quite as much if 
 not more than the intended dissimulation, and the appa- 
 rent evidences of personal habit will crop out in the writ- 
 ing. By far the larger number of this class of cases will 
 occur under the promptings of the before-named influ- 
 ences, although they occasionally appear in what are 
 termed "blackmail" character, but in whatever shape or 
 under what circumstances they are produced or written, 
 the ability to dissimulate, as existing in different persons, 
 shows a wide range of variation. Persons who write with 
 a mechanical or reflex capacity are more likely to revert to 
 habitual tendencies when attempting the dissimulation of 
 their writing, than persons who write with a copying effort. 
 In fact, the writer who uses the pen but little, is often 
 better adapted to put a deceptive and prominent meas- 
 ure of distortion into the forms of letters than one who 
 writes with a reflex or mechanical effort, and who has 
 been taught, as a matter of manual practice, to make rep- 
 resentative forms. 
 
 One curious feature of anonymous letters as they occur 
 in the experience of experts who have occasion to examine 
 them, is the fact that females as a general rule will write 
 the most vulgar ones, and their production in this con- 
 dition is not limited to the social position or standing of 
 the writer. It frequently occurs when jealousy prompts 
 their appearance that females surrounded by refinement 
 and having good social position will write them in lan- 
 guage the most obscene. Whether the vulgar emphasis 
 is given to such letters to throw off suspicion, or origi- 
 nates under the influence of passion morbidly excited and 
 uncontrolled by the restraints of surroundings is a ques- 
 tion. When anonymous letters are written by men in
 
 Disguised Writing Difficult to Analyze. 151 
 
 a majority of cases the reverse is found to be the rule, 
 and the composition will exhibit a tendency to give to the 
 writer a position of consequence, and to magnify his 
 standing and influence, as if seemingly to impress upon 
 the recipient of the letter the importance and power of 
 the writer. 
 
 From the conditions surrounding the production of dis- 
 guised writing, and its character as before explained and 
 described, it will be readily understood why it is more 
 difficult to determine the writer of a specimen of it with 
 the efforts of the latter directed to make the dissimulation 
 as unlike the habitual writing as possible than where sig- 
 natures are the subject of analysis ; and wherein either 
 habit or simulation are employed to make them look 
 alike ; and yet the process-steps to be employed are 
 about the same up to a certain point. In the case of sig- 
 natures the examination relates to the manner of pro- 
 ducing the form of letters, whether exercised habitually 
 or in simulation ; in analyzing disguised writing the man- 
 ner of producing an unhabitual form by an habitual 
 method of holding and moving the pen is one of the im- 
 portant steps, and this is' supplemented by a determination 
 of the relation which a distorted form of letters has to an 
 habitual one of the same writer when produced in each 
 instance by the same muscular coordination differently 
 exercised. When, however, the dissimulation is attemp- 
 ted by adopting an unhabitual method of holding and 
 moving the pen, then the analysis must go further and 
 grope for facts to find what there is, if anything, mani- 
 fested in the habitual writing of the suspected person 
 which is indicative of peculiarity in the physical organ- 
 ization of the writer's hand, which would become oper- 
 ative in the assumed pen movement to give personal 
 character to it ; and thus connect the disguised writing
 
 152 What Prevents Perfect Dissimulation. 
 
 with that of the suspected person. Where the attempted 
 dissimulation is poorly done, and strong evidences of 
 habit are apparent, there is but little difficulty in reaching 
 a conclusion, but where the disguised writing shows a 
 wandering movement of the pen that is destitute in 
 parallelisms of form to connect the production of a dis- 
 guised writing so done with the habitual writing of a sus- 
 pected person by the features of physical habit manifested 
 in both writings, accurate determination is difficult of at- 
 tainment. 
 
 Understanding that an unusual and unhabitual method 
 of holding the pen must produce appearances in the 
 writing which will be totally unlike those of the same 
 writer using the pen in an accustomed manner, the only 
 features which will occur to connect the disguised efforts 
 with the usual writing of the same person in general 
 appearance will occur where unconsciously the writer 
 reverts to the usual and habitual manner of producing the 
 same form of letters in both writings. If the dissimu- 
 lator is able to keep the object constantly coupled with 
 intention, this tendency to lapse into the production of 
 habitual forms may be avoided so far as general appear- 
 ances are concerned, and the detection of the individual- 
 ity of the writer in this field of examination be prevented. 
 While this condition confronts the examiner when con- 
 sidering the measure of accuracy to be attained by the 
 analysis, and the difficulties of reaching it, the probabili- 
 ties of such positive dissimulation ever being accom- 
 plished are made very remote, when the chances of its 
 occurrence are taken into account ; but if happening with 
 the examination limited in its application to the pictorial 
 effect of the writing, the chances of reaching accuracy in 
 determining the author of the dissimulated writing by 
 comparison are rendered very doubtful. While these
 
 How Habitual Details Will Appear. 153 
 
 conditions confront the examiner they are not always 
 beyond the reach of competent analysis even where the 
 writer is enabled to avoid the production of the usual 
 characteristics of individual habit, so that the pictorial 
 effect of the dissimulation is in general appearance totally 
 unlike the usual writing of the dissimulator, for it very 
 often happens that the wandering efforts of the latter will 
 be of a character that are positively indicative of, and 
 necessarily the product of some peculiar muscular condi- 
 tion of the writer's hand, and which in the dissimulation 
 are but exaggerations in emphasis, of features that are 
 typical of the same cause appearing in the ordinary writ- 
 ing of the dissimulator. 
 
 All persons who write, as has been already explained, 
 do so by an individual muscular habit which is peculiar 
 as to capacity in each person, and when learning to 
 write, some of the more prominently developed muscular 
 factors which do the work are inclined to do more than 
 their proper share of it, by making peculiar emphasis in 
 such movements of the pen that they actuate, and which 
 by practice and the restraints of instruction, the writer 
 has been taught to avoid producing, when following copy- 
 book forms of letters, but of which muscular peculiarity 
 rudimentary traces remain in the habitual writing though 
 toned down in their emphasis by practice. With this 
 condition prevailing in the writing habit of a person, 
 when a wandering movement of the pen is attempted, and 
 the accustomed method used for such a disguising effort, 
 the writer will usually revert to the production of these 
 same features, with varied measure of emphasis, which 
 by practice and the restraints of instruction have been 
 made less demonstrative in the habitual writing of the 
 same individual. Although these forms thus exaggerated, 
 when used for dissimulation, will show varied meas- 
 20
 
 154 How Habitual Details Will Appear. 
 
 ure of prominence in their manifestation they can usually 
 be traced to, and determined as typical of the rudimen- 
 tary traces appearing in the habitual writing of the 
 dissimulator. Thus where in the writing capacity of a 
 person the second finger is more facile than the index 
 finger it will from its position, relatively to the thumb in 
 ^rasping the pen, give emphasis to all movements of the 
 latter directed to the left hand in forming parts of letters, 
 and although this condition may not be demonstratively 
 shown in the ordinary writing of the individual, yet with 
 the restraints which practice and the effect of instruction 
 removed, the wandering form of letters resulting from 
 the dissimulating effort will be emphatically in the direc- 
 tion which such a muscular peculiarity would institute, 
 and be typical of it. So a person having a thumb that 
 was peculiarly deficient in adductor orabductor function, of 
 which evidences appear in the ordinary writing of an indi- 
 vidual, would, when writing with dissimulating intention, 
 make wandering forms of letters that would be typical of 
 such a muscular condition of the writer's thumb. 
 
 While these features will occur in the best dissimulation 
 of the writing habit, in connection with a peculiar organi- 
 zation of the fingers and thumb of each individual as to 
 muscular function, similar tendencies are manifested 
 when the pen is grasped by the prehensile functions of 
 these factors, and actuated by the forearm movement 
 with dissimulating intention. With the pen thus held 
 and operated, any manifestation of peculiarities which 
 are indicative of an individual muscular coordination, 
 and which can be determined by rudimentary traces in 
 the ordinary writing of a person will generally appear 
 in typical character with exaggeration in the dissimula- 
 tion made by the same writer. 
 
 The most difficult disguise of the writing habit to
 
 The Ability to Will and to Do — Its Effect. 155 
 
 analyze for the purpose of identifying the writer of it by 
 comparison, is that kind which is produced by the substi- 
 tution for the habitual thumb and finger movement of 
 the writer, of an unhabitual forearm movement, or the 
 reverse of these conditions as to educated habit by the 
 use of the one for the other. But, even writing produced 
 under either of these conditions by the substitution of 
 the unhabitual for the habitual generally exhibits a ten- 
 dency to revert to the making of habitual details, in spite 
 of the effort used to avoid doing so. Theoretically it 
 would seem possible to produce, under the operation of 
 either of the assumptions of unusual and unhabitual 
 methods of using the pen, a perfect disguise of the writ- 
 ing habit, yet experience establishes the fact with those 
 making a study of such subjects, that it rarely occurs, 
 particularly where there is enough of the writing to tax, 
 for any length of time, the dual mental effort of keeping 
 the disguising intention operative, and at the same time 
 giving thought as to what is to be written. 
 
 When writing habitually in the production of a letter 
 the pen work requires no more mental effort than does 
 the act of walking, and the mind of the writer may be 
 wholly employed in the subject-matter and its composi- 
 tion, but where trying to write unhabitually the intention 
 must be kept constantly in mind, to make the dissimula- 
 tion, and at the same time the writer must be thinking of 
 what is to be written. It will be readily understood in 
 this connection that writing done as a reflex capacity 
 necessitates the production of forms without any mental 
 effort as to how they shall be made, and what is written, 
 as the subject is the only tax upon the mind of the writer 
 so employed. When the intention is to disguise the 
 writing, not only what is written, but how what is written 
 shall be done, become imperative conditions to the per-
 
 156 When Results of Analysis are Doubtful. 
 
 formance of the act, thus developing two different phases 
 of mental employment which must operate simultaneously 
 and in opposition to the tendency and influence of the 
 practised habit to intrude its peculiarities. 
 
 Although these conditions are present with more or 
 less emphasis in all efforts made to disguise personal habit 
 in writing, and there are in most cases coming up in the 
 experience of those who are called upon to examine writ- 
 ing of this kind, evidences which lead to an accurate 
 identification of the writer's habit by analysis and com- 
 parison, yet it is a field where the most experienced are 
 in some cases compelled to give modified opinions as to 
 positiveness, or no opinions at all. Unlike the examina- 
 tions of signatures which are purposely written to repre- 
 sent individuality with habitual characteristics disguised, 
 handwriting occasionally presents conditions, wherein 
 there is but little shown to connect the author of it by 
 comparison with other writing of the latter, although 
 such a manifestation would be the exception, rather than 
 the rule in regard to it. When the writer has peculiar 
 conditions of muscular coordination which are demon- 
 stratively apparent in the usual writing of the same per- 
 son, these features will extend into all dissimulating 
 efforts of such a writer, and be indicative of it ; but, 
 where the writer is enabled to use the pen with but little 
 evidence of discordance or peculiarity, the best efforts of 
 dissimulation are accomplished, and the determination of 
 the author of the writing by comparison is made difficult. 
 
 From the foregoing description of the causes attendant 
 upon the production of dissimulated writing, and the phe- 
 nomena appearing in it as the effects of disguised in- 
 tention, it will be understood that there can be no rules 
 established for the classification of the appearances accom- 
 panying it, excepting in a general way ; from the fact that
 
 Features that are Generically Habitual. 157 
 
 there are as many methods of disguising writing as there 
 are persons who do it. It will also be apparent after under- 
 standing the conditions under which dissimulated writing 
 is produced, that while the same process-steps which are 
 used in the analysis of signatures so far as the use of the 
 microscope is concerned must be employed, the exami- 
 nation from necessity must extend into the study of 
 wandering forms in letters, and the trend into which the 
 tendency to make them with emphasis is manifested, and 
 from them to ascertain by what muscular coordination 
 they were produced, and the relation which they bear to 
 the muscular habit developed in the writings used for 
 comparison. Although these features require the same 
 study as do the variations of personal signatures (in the 
 fact that they are never written twice precisely alike), in 
 disguised writing the study becomes more difficult and 
 complicated from the fact that personal signatures are 
 always typical of each other in habitual delineation, and 
 in disguised writing the wandering pen movements are 
 produced with intentionally formed differences, extending 
 into a field where to ascertain their individuality (which 
 if determined) will be found to occur, cloaked over with 
 appearances intended to prevent recognition as to per- 
 sonality. 
 
 Although it is impossible to designate a method to be 
 followed in making an analysis of dissimulated writing 
 in all cases that will occur, from the fact that each indi- 
 vidual manifestation of it differs from that of every other, 
 nevertheless there are certain generic relations which dis- 
 simulated writing bears to habitual writing of the same 
 person, which have been made apparent in the author's 
 experience, which in their presentation may suggest to 
 others making such examinations a method of procedure 
 where the analysis extends beyond, and becomes more
 
 1 5S Features thai- are Generically Habitual. 
 
 complicated than the process-steps employed in the 
 examination of signatures. These features, where gen- 
 eric conditions are manifested, occur when any of the 
 muscular functions of the writer's hand, emphatically 
 peculiar, are employed to produce eccentric or erratic 
 forms of letters with dissimulating efforts. Thus, where 
 in the habitual writing, when done by the flexure of the 
 fingers and thumb, there are manifested evidences of an 
 emphatic development of adductor thumb function, the 
 trend of the wandering efforts would be in the direction 
 of its action, with the employment of this function as a 
 factor of impulse. Hence the exaggeration or wander- 
 ing features of the dissimulation would largely occur 
 in all the movements of the pen to the right. In the 
 bottom curves of letters, the lines connecting the letters, 
 and their spacing, where the abductor functions of the 
 writer's thumb had unusual extensor capacities as devel- 
 oped in the habitual writing, the erratic movements occur- 
 ring from such a muscular function would appear in the 
 great length of the staffs and loops of letters, and their dis- 
 tortion. If the writer's thumb had limited adductor func- 
 tions, its extensor capacities would be limited, and the 
 trend of this function would be to reduce the letters in 
 size, as compared with the habitual writing of the same 
 person. If in the writing done by the flexure of the 
 thumb and fingers, the writer had any unusual develop- 
 ment of the lumbrical muscle of the second finger, with 
 the latter a factor of impulse in dissimulation, the exagge- 
 ration and wandering would be manifested in making all 
 the curves in the writing to the left distorted by an 
 unusual rotundity. 
 
 This condition appearing in all disguised writing estab- 
 lishes the fact that the intentional efforts made to pro- 
 duce it by giving to the letters an unhabitual form,
 
 When the Determination of Habit is Difficult. 159 
 
 mainly originates in connection with the use of those 
 muscular functions of the hand or arm which are indi- 
 vidually peculiar to the writer ; and although they may, 
 when recognized, appear rudimentarily in the details pro- 
 duced by them as toned down in emphasis by practice 
 and the restraints of instruction in the habitual writing, 
 or demonstratively therein, they will be in either instance 
 of their development, the muscular functions exercised 
 to give character and direction to the improvised distor- 
 tion of form appearing in the letters. 
 
 From this condition of dissimulated writing it will be 
 understood that there is much more to be studied, and 
 the examination of it to determine its individuality must 
 extend farther and into much more complicated sur- 
 roundings than where signatures are the subject of 
 analysis. This extension of the area wherein the exami- 
 nation must be made is one where the most experienced 
 will go cautiously. The difficulties attendant upon the 
 determination of what the writer could or would do 
 under the operation of the same muscular coordina- 
 tion when dissimulating, from what was done by the 
 same person when writing habitually, at times causes 
 the most experienced to grope with the matter presented 
 as one walking in the dark. The tracks made by a man 
 having a peculiarly deformed foot, when walking shoe- 
 less upon the sand, could be readily identified as to their 
 personality ; but if shoes were put on the feet it would 
 be impossible to determine the tracks as made by the same 
 person unless there was something in the gait of the lat- 
 ter which was demonstratively peculiar, and which gave 
 character to the tracks in either instance. 
 
 To more fully explain and make clear the method 
 employed, and the connected process-steps used in mak- 
 ing an analysis of disguised writing for determining the
 
 160 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 author of it, a celebrated case is selected for illustration 
 and description ; and this is chosen more particularly from 
 the fact that the conditions surrounding the examination 
 were such as to put expert evidence to a very severe test 
 The case alluded to is the well-known one of Cadet Whit- 
 taker which occurred at West Point in 1880. It will be 
 remembered in connection with the latter, that Whittaker 
 alleged that an outrage had been perpetrated upon him 
 by the cadets who were hostile to him on account of his 
 African lineage. He produced a note of warning which 
 he claimed to have received prior to the time of the 
 alleged outrage, but the receipt of which he did not 
 acquaint the officers of the post until after the wrong 
 claimed to have been inflicted on him was done. From 
 other circumstances connected with the case, the author- 
 ities at West Point believed that the claimed outrage was 
 his own work, and that he must have written the note 
 himself, and in consequence of which a Court of Inquiry 
 was ordered to investigate the matter. As the hand- 
 writing of the note claimed to have been received by 
 Whittaker is the only feature that is important herein, the 
 other circumstances connected with the case are omitted. 
 To furnish writings for comparison with the note of 
 warning each of the cadets to the number of two hundred 
 and forty-seven, were required to write with a pencil a 
 sentence, the composition of which was arranged to con- 
 tain the words and letters occurring in the note of warn- 
 ing, which were repeated several times. These slips of 
 paper containing the standard writings of all the cadets 
 were numbered by the recorder of the court, and a record 
 kept by the latter as to the writer of each of them. To 
 prevent communication between the experts employed in 
 the examination as to the characteristics of any of the 
 specimens or standards, the numbers were changed for
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 161 
 
 each expert, so that neither of the latter among the several 
 employed knew the writers by the same numbers as the 
 others ; and the experts were compelled to examine the 
 writing at different times and separately, and without con- 
 ference or communication with each other. Thus it will 
 be seen that the experts could not know the writer of any 
 of the standards. These two hundred and forty seven 
 specimens of the cadets' writings, together with the note 
 of warning, were placed before each expert for examina- 
 tion and report. These proceedings as thus instituted 
 were well calculated to put expert evidence on trial as to 
 its accuracy, and serve to fairly contradict the untruthful 
 statements made by a leading New York city physician, 
 who, in a lecture delivered by him, stated that the experts 
 in the Whittaker case were led to believe that Whittaker 
 wrote the note of warning, more from the influence of 
 surroundings, and that of persons interested in such a 
 conclusion, than from any thing appearing in the writing. 
 In giving an account of the manner in which the examina- 
 tions were conducted before the Court of Inquiry at West 
 Point, the author states the facts as they occurred in his 
 own experience, and from what he learned after the trial 
 was concluded, from the other experts engaged in the 
 case, upon whom the same conditions of examination had 
 been imposed. 
 
 This note of warning was written with a lead pencil, and 
 including the address upon the envelope contained fifteen 
 words. There was but little matter to disguise, and the 
 chances of perfect dissimulation of individual habit were 
 on this account made more easy of accomplishment. The 
 analysis made and conclusions reached as hereinafter 
 given, were mainly taken from the memoranda made by 
 the author at the time of his examination of the subject- 
 matter at West Point. From reading newspaper accounts 
 21
 
 1 62 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 of the alleged outrage before going to the Court of 
 Inquiry, the sympathies of the author were strongly with 
 Whittaker, assuming the statements published to be true 
 concerning his treatment; but the examination was so 
 arranged that neither sympathy nor sentiment could exert 
 any influence as a factor in prejudicing a conclusion either 
 one way or the other ; and so fairly was the trial con- 
 ducted that the author did not know until the Court of 
 Inquiry announced its decision, that the writing which he 
 had picked out from among those given him for compari- 
 
 PLATE IX — Fac simile of the pretented note of warning. 
 
 son, and identified as written by the writer of the note of 
 warning, that was done by Whittaker himself. In the 
 subsequent proceedings when Whittaker was tried by 
 court-martial at his own request, and the same conclusion 
 was reached by the latter that was rendered by the Court 
 of Inquiry, as regards the authorship of the note, the ex- 
 perts examined the writing as in other cases. 
 
 The note of warning which Whittaker assumed to have 
 received is correctly represented by the /ac simile appear- 
 ing upon Plate IX, and the examination of it, as made 
 when Whittaker was being tried before the Court of
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 163 
 
 Inquiry at West Point, developed the following condi- 
 tions : A preliminary inspection of the note led promptly 
 to the conclusion that it was written with dissimulating 
 intention, from the wandering movement of the pencil 
 appearing in the initial efforts in the production of the 
 following letters: the "S" in "Sunday," the " M" in 
 " Mr.," the " Y " in " You," the " B " in " Better " and the 
 letter " b " in the word " be." In all the instances named 
 the commencements of these letters showed wandering 
 efforts. Not only this was ascertained, but it was mani- 
 fested that the intention to dissimulate was better kept in 
 mind when commencing words than when finishing them, 
 a very common condition of disguised writing ; for it was 
 very plainly apparent that in the terminals of all words, 
 as well as the production of other than capital letters, the 
 pencil seemed to have been operated habitually and quite 
 uniformly. It wa| also found that the letters "tt" in 
 "Whittaker" and " Better" were produced with uniform 
 characteristics of form, and the same conclusion was 
 reached as to the letters "p" in "April" and "keep," and 
 also the letters "a" in "Sunday," "Whittaker" and 
 "awake." These parallelisms suggested habitual tenden- 
 cies from their uniformity. After making this prelimi- 
 nary examination of the note and what appeared to be 
 wandering and dissimulating efforts, and such features as 
 had parallelisms of personal habit, the examination was 
 continued with specific relation to the muscular coordina- 
 tion of the writer, and the conclusion was reached that 
 not only all the parallelisms indicated that their produc- 
 tion was accomplished by one peculiar coordination of 
 muscular factors ; but that all the wandering movements 
 were within the compass of the same habit and indicative 
 of it. To understand how such a conclusion was reached 
 will be better understood by explaining the method
 
 164 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 employed for determining it and in what manner the few- 
 words constituting the note indicated it, and to do which 
 the relation which the pencil grasp and its movement 
 bears to the appearances produced should be explained. 
 
 It will be understood that with the pencil grasped by 
 the thumb, the index and second ringers that the position 
 of the pencil relatively to these factors, as thus holding 
 and operating it, is as follows : The second finger bears 
 against the right-hand side of the pencil, and the latter is 
 a rigid and non-elastic implement having no yielding nibs 
 like the pen. The index finger bears mainly upon the 
 top of the pencil and the thumb upon the left-hand side 
 of it. Under this condition of grasp and operated by 
 the flexure of these factors where the pencil is forced 
 emphatically to the left in forming letters, it is so moved 
 by the second finger as a factor of impulse, and this bears 
 upon the right-hand side of the pencil ; and, when 
 directed demonstratively towards the right, the pencil is 
 thus operated by the thumb as a factor of impulse, which, 
 in so doing, bears upon its left-hand side ; and when the 
 pencil is moved inwardly toward the palm of the writer's 
 hand, it is so actuated by the incurvating operations of 
 the fingers and thumb acting together. Applying these 
 rules, as regards the pencil movement and grasp to the 
 parallelism occurring in the writing of the note, it led to 
 the conclusion that the second finger and thumb of the 
 writer appeared to have done nearly all the work, as 
 factors of impulse, and that the features of emphasis 
 appearing in the letters which indicated this condition 
 also established the fact, as a condition of the writer's 
 hand, that the index finger was deficient in function as to 
 flexure, and yielded to that more positively manifested 
 in the second finger for all movements of the pencil in 
 which inward flexure was required. Not only this feature
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 165 
 
 was strongly apparent in the writing, but it was found 
 that the second finger of the writer had unusual functions 
 in connection with an abnormal length of thumb, and 
 these indications were determined and made apparent by 
 the following features occurring in the writing of the note. 
 On an examination of the letters "p," occurring in 
 "April" and "keep," which were found to be habitually 
 alike, it appeared that the staffs or standards of these let- 
 ters were made to have broadly rounded loops at the top, 
 indicating a strong second finger movement towards the 
 left, and a corresponding movement in the upcurve, 
 wherein the thumb, as a factor of impulse, directed the 
 pencil from left to right with emphasis. The lower ends 
 of the staffs of these letters " p," where below the line on 
 which the body-part was written, were found to have 
 broadly rounded curves, produced by a movement of the 
 pencil from right to left, which could only have been pro- 
 duced by the second finger as a factor of impulse, and the 
 same condition appears as applied to the top loops of these 
 letters. The staffs of these letters " p" and their accom- 
 panying loops were ascertained by an examination of the 
 connection manifested where function gives character to 
 form, to have been produced by the peculiarly individual 
 action of the writer's thumb and second finger. This con- 
 clusion was reached from the character of the pencil move- 
 ment as to direction, and emphatic measure of capacity 
 when actuated by the thumb impulse to produce the up- 
 stroke forming a part of these letters ; the coming in of the 
 second finger impulse when directing the pencil movement 
 to form the tpp of the upper loop in rounded curve to the 
 left with emphasis ; the movement of the second finger to 
 the left when forming the rounded curve at the bottom 
 loop of these letters "p ;" and the coming in of the thumb 
 impulse to make the up-stroke of these bottom loops ; in
 
 1 66 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 all of which movements of the pencil, the thumb and sec- 
 ond finger of the writer are shown to have emphatic devel- 
 opment of individuality. These features all of them mani- 
 fest a characteristic capacity to move the pen horizontally 
 when operating the latter at some distance above or below 
 the line on which the writing was done, and could only have 
 been so produced by the flexure of these factors with the 
 pencil grasped by them at transversely opposite holding 
 points, and this indicated an abnormal length of thumb as 
 a peculiarity of the writer's hand. 
 
 These same conditions of muscular habit described as 
 appearing in the formation of the letters "p" were also 
 found to occur in the letters "d" and "f;" while the let- 
 ters "a," "e," "w," "i," "1" and "11" in their form were 
 compatible as to production by the same peculiar muscu- 
 lar functions. After tracing these apparently habitual 
 parallelisms to the muscular cause which made them pecu- 
 liar, an examination was made of the wandering move- 
 ments occurring at the beginning of words, and the 
 conclusion reached in regard to them determined that 
 these disguising efforts were all of them typical of the 
 same individually peculiar thumb and second finger 
 movement which has been described as producing those 
 parts of the writing already considered. Thus the irregu- 
 lar loop at the top of the letter "S" in "Sunday" the 
 initial irregularities manifested in "Mr," "be," " fixed " 
 and the staff of the letter " B" in "Better" were at the 
 time of making the examination determined as typical of 
 the same form appearing in the staffs of the letters " p " 
 before described, but made irregularly, with wandering 
 intention. These prefixes all of them are made in lineal 
 connection with the letter to which they are appendages, 
 and each of them consists of a reversing cyma-recta curve 
 made more pronounced than where produced habitually
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 167 
 
 in other parts of the writing. The curls appearing at the 
 bottom and left-hand side of the capital letters "A" on a 
 microscopic examination were found to have been made, 
 and added to these letters as an after thought, and the 
 same was found to have been the case with the top loop 
 on the standard of the capital letter "Y" in "You," but 
 even when this appendage was subsequently put on, the 
 added loop by examination was found to have been made 
 by the same second finger and thumb movement as was 
 employed in forming the initial curve in the letter " f " of 
 " fixed." Thus the features of disguise became typical of 
 each other, and of those parts of the writing wherein hab- 
 itual parallelisms were apparent. The top lobe of the 
 letter " B " in " Better" found its counterpart in the initial 
 movement producing the "fin " fixed," while the staff 
 of this letter " B " was found, as explained in another con- 
 nection, to be but a modification of the muscular pen 
 movement employed in producing the letters "p." 
 
 The tops of the capital letters " A " appeared to have 
 been made by the second finger and thumb movement of 
 the pencil, from the emphasis given by their horizontal 
 extension to the left at their commencement, and from 
 the parallelisms apparent in the production of these 
 letters in connection with the same conditions as occur- 
 ring in the top loops of the letters " p," the top of the 
 letter "f " in "fixed," and the top lobe of the letter " B " 
 in " Better " were considered to have been made habit- 
 ually. This same muscular coordination was found to 
 have been employed in making the standards of the 
 letters "d" in "Sunday," "friend," "fixed" and in the 
 letters "k." All the broad curves of letters where 
 tangential to the line on which the writing was done, 
 gave evidence of a highly developed adductor function 
 in the writer's thumb ; and the character of the loop of
 
 1 68 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 the letter "h" in "Whittaker" and the length of its 
 standard or staff, indicated in its production an unusual 
 extensor thumb-capacity and function. 
 
 From the apparent fact that the thumb and second 
 finger did most of the work as factors of impulse, and 
 that the index finger did not manifest itself distinctively, 
 and from the manner in which the centrally located and 
 rounded loops of letters such as were found to occur at 
 the junction of the two lobes of the letter " B " in 
 " Better," the " f " in " fixed " and in the body-parts of 
 the letter " k," it was plainly manifested that the writer's 
 thumb must have extended down along the pencil toward 
 its writing point to a position that was transversely in 
 line with the engagement which the second finger made 
 to grasp it, thus indicating that the writer's thumb had 
 abnormal length, and which necessitated a better coordi- 
 nation with the second, rather than the index finger. 
 
 After having reached the foregoing conclusion as to 
 the physical habit of the writer manifested in the note of 
 warning, the examination of the two hundred and forty- 
 seven specimens of pencil writing submitted as standards 
 was entered upon, and at the end of the second day's 
 employment in the work of analysis and comparison, one 
 of the specimens was selected as having been written by 
 the same muscular habit that appeared in the note of warn- 
 ing. The one identified was numbered 189, as designated 
 numerically for the author's use, and this specimen is 
 reproduced in as close fac simile representation as pos- 
 sible upon Plate No. X, but owing to the fact that it was 
 written with a pencil, and had been handled a great deal 
 at the Court of Inquiry, and subsequently at the trial by 
 Court-Martial, before being photo-lithographed for use at 
 the latter, portions of it that were almost obliterated had 
 to be restored by retracing. While this is true as regards
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 169
 
 i 70 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 a portion of the specimen, the greater part of it is cor- 
 rectly shown in fac simile. An examination of this slip 
 made at the time the investigation was being conduc- 
 ted by the Court of Inquiry indicated that a much better 
 disguise of the writer's habit appeared in it than was 
 found in the note of warning. 
 
 Desiring to secure accuracy, and to avoid all possible 
 chances of error in every way, after deciding that this 
 specimen No. 189 was written by the same muscular habit 
 as that which appeared in the note, the author addressed 
 a letter to the Recorder of the Court asking for some 
 more writing of the person who wrote 189, and at the same 
 time requesting that it be sent mixed with other speci- 
 mens of cadets' writing which had been done before the 
 date of the alleged outrage. In reply to this request 
 there were sent several hundred sheets of writing, which 
 had been cut from out the books in which the cadets 
 took down notes of lectures in pencil. From the latter 
 the author selected four sheets containing writing which 
 the author positively identified as having been written 
 by the same person who wrote the note of warning. 
 Having, as the author thought at the time, so thoroughly 
 ascertained the physical habit of the writer of the note, 
 and desirous of knowing whether or not the pen-writing of 
 the same person could be determined from what this 
 physical habit would necessarily make apparent in it, a 
 request was again sent to the Recorder of the Court for 
 pen-and-ink writing of the cadets, with some of that 
 written by the writer of No. 189 mixed with the speci- 
 mens furnished. A large number of sheets of such writ- 
 ing were returned in answer to the request, and from 
 among them the author selected two sheets of pen-and- 
 ink writing, which, in his opinion, were written by the 
 same curiously-organized hand that had written the note
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 171 
 
 of warning. In each instance the specimens selected as 
 the writing of the person who wrote the note of warning 
 (as the author afterward learned) were the writing of 
 Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 Among the two hundred and forty-seven specimens of 
 writing used for comparison, there were two of them 
 which in some of their features of form made an approach 
 in resemblance to the writing of the note ; but on a care- 
 ful examination it was found that these resemblances were 
 produced by a different habit of writing. On an exami- 
 nation of the specimen illustrated \nfac simile designated 
 as No. 189, and shown upon Plate X, there was but little 
 in its appearance that could connect the writer of it with 
 the production of the note, excepting the evidences indi- 
 cating that the same muscular coordination had been 
 employed to produce the latter and this specimen. 
 There were some apparent resemblances occurring in the 
 appearances of the letters "d," "p," " B," the "tt's," and 
 the letters " k," but it was the manner in which these resem- 
 blances were produced, which indicated their identification 
 as the work of the same person. It was the peculiar 
 muscular character of the writer's hand which gave to 
 these features their individualism. When disguising the 
 forms of letters appearing in the writing of specimen No. 
 189 the broad sweep given to the pencil movement where 
 forming the bottom curves of letters tangential to the 
 line on which the writing was done, indicated the same 
 highly developed adductor thumb functions, so also did 
 the lines connecting the letters ; while the broad sweeps 
 of the pencil to the right or left in forming the tops of 
 letters, in connection with the individual manner in which 
 the thumb and second finger cooperated to make the top 
 and bottom loops, and the interior loops appearing in the 
 body-parts of the letters " f," " p," and " B," were features
 
 172 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 
 
 that could not be mistaken as to identity or the origin of 
 their personality. 
 
 From the analysis of the writing thus illustrated and 
 described, it will be understood that it was not wholly due 
 to the fact that the writing of the note and that in speci- 
 men No. 189 was mainly done by the second finger and 
 thumb of the writer that the individual habit of the writer 
 was determined, but from the manner in which these 
 factors did coordinate peculiarly, that the personality of 
 the habit was established ; and that the abnormal length 
 of the writer's thumb necessitated its cooperation with the 
 second rather than the index finger. As it afterwards 
 appeared during the trial that Whittaker wrote with the 
 pencil passed up between the index and second finger, 
 and there grasped by the latter and the thumb, the author's 
 conclusion as to the condition of the writer's hand formed 
 from a study of the writing produced by it was fully 
 substantiated. 
 
 The question will be suggested in connection with the 
 analysis and conclusion reached in the Whittaker case, 
 whether it is possible to attain the same measure of accur- 
 acy in the examination of disguised pencil writing gener- 
 ally, and the answer must be, that it is not. The condi- 
 tions surrounding the production of the Whittaker note 
 were just such as favored the accurate determination of 
 the writer's physical habit ; and these related to the 
 organization of the writer's hand, which in actuating 
 either the pen or pencil gave such strongly marked evi- 
 dences of individual character to its movements, and in 
 such measure of emphasis, that their production could not 
 be avoided by the efforts of dissimulating intention. The 
 generic character of the muscular functions of Whittaker's 
 hand being determined by his habitual writing, and its 
 individuality by the emphasis in which these generic
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker. 173 
 
 functions were exercised, as is usually the case, the forms 
 introduced by him for dissimulation, were all of them 
 made to appear as wandering efforts occurring in the 
 same direction of pencil movement, wherein the generic 
 functions became specialized through the organization 
 of the writer's hand. Such individually demonstrative 
 conditions of muscular function when writing are not 
 common, but when occurring they are easily and posi- 
 tively determined. The finding of the Court-Martial 
 sustained that of the Court of Inquiry, which held that 
 Whittaker wrote the alleged note of warning himself. 
 When in a succeeding chapter wherein lead-pencil writ- 
 ing is made the subject considered, the difficulties attend- 
 ant upon determining the individuality of the writer of it 
 will be made more clearly apparent. The experts em- 
 ployed in this case were A. Southwarth of Boston, 
 Daniel T. Ames of New York, and the author, the 
 two former concurring in opinion with the latter. Dr. 
 Piper of Washington, and one Simpson, an ex-bank 
 teller from Brooklyn, N. Y., acted for the defence, and 
 the latter were aided with ability by David N. Carvalho 
 of New York city, as expert counsel.
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 LEAD-PENCIL WRITING, AND ITS COMPARISON WITH PEN-AND- 
 INK WRITING OF THE SAME PERSON.— WHAT DETAILS OF 
 HABIT APPEAR IN PEN-AND-INK WRITING WHICH DO NOT 
 OCCUR IN LEAD-PENCIL WRITING, AND THE CAUSE. — THE 
 USE OF A RIGID PENCIL AS COMPARED WITH THAT OF ELAS- 
 TIC PEN AND ITS EFFECT AS APPEARING IN THE WRITING.— SIG- 
 NATURES WRITTEN WITH A LEAD PENCIL HAVE IN THEM 
 ONLY SUCH FEATURES OF HABIT AS ARE SUSCEPTIBLE OF 
 IMITATION, AND THEIR DIFFERENCE IN THIS RESPECT FROM 
 INK-WRITTEN SIGNATURES. — THE RESEMBLANCE THAT THE 
 PENCIL WRITING OF DIFFERENT PERSONS HAS, AND WHY IT 
 OCCURS.— THE EFFECT WHICH THE CHARACTER OF THE PEN- 
 CIL MAY HAVE IN THE APPEARANCE OF THE WRITING PRO- 
 DUCED BY IT.— TRACED SIGNATURES MADE WITH A LEAD 
 PENCIL, AND THE SIMULATED CHARACTER THEY BEAR TO 
 THE GENUINE IF WELL IMITATED. 
 
 Writing which is habitually produced with a lead pen- 
 cil will show in its appearance features that are peculiar 
 to the individual doing it, and these personal characteris- 
 tics are sometimes very prominently apparent. They 
 have their origin from the operation of the same causes 
 which manifest habitual details when the pen is used, 
 although they are fewer in number than when the latter 
 is employed and they are not so strongly indicative of 
 personality, while the field in which they appear and 
 wherein determined is more limited in scope. The fea- 
 tures which give individual character to lead-pencil writ- 
 ing mainly relate to the form of the letters and their 
 connection, wherein these manifestations are rendered 
 peculiar from the influences of the same muscular causes 
 which are operative when either of these writing imple- 
 ments are used, but the individual peculiarities in form
 
 Pencil and Pen-and-Ink Writing Compared. 175 
 
 thus appearing will be modified as produced by the pencil 
 when compared with those of the same writer made with 
 a pen, though in a measure typical of the same cause. 
 Apart from these resemblances of form there is little else 
 to depend upon when examining lead-pencil writing to 
 ascertain the habit of the writer from its comparison with 
 other writing of the same person done with a pen. As a 
 sequence of this condition, the field available for the iden- 
 tification of personal habit by analysis becomes limited, 
 when the one kind of writing is compared with the other. 
 This limit, as will be readily comprehended, originates 
 mainly from the differing character of the two imple- 
 ments used in producing the writings, one of them the 
 pen, having an elastic point made with nibs or splits by 
 which the varying density of the lines formed with the pen 
 flexure indicates where and through what muscular 
 means the emphasis of shading is given to the letters, and 
 by the details consequent upon their movement, the 
 position in which the pen was held, and from the manner 
 in which the curves are produced determines the muscu- 
 lar coordination by which the writing is accomplished. 
 With the use of the lead pencil there can be little if any 
 shading or emphasis produced by an elastically applied 
 pressure, with the appearance of the details of habit con- 
 sequent upon it, neither can the manner of holding the 
 pencil be accurately determined from the writing any 
 farther than is shown by the forms of the letters, and the 
 indications belonging to the latter where demonstratively 
 peculiar to the writer of them. 
 
 All the minute and positive details of personal habit 
 which are produced when writing is done with a pen, and 
 which characteristics are indicative of the individual 
 measure of control, as existing between the capacities to 
 will and to do, are not generally present when the writing
 
 176 Pencil and Pen-and-Ink Writing Compared. 
 
 is done with a lead pencil in place of the pen. The former 
 when employed in writing bears upon the paper with a 
 constant and steady pressure, while the pen with its elastic 
 split-points operates with a constantly varying pressure, 
 and thus a person who is compelled to write tremulously 
 with a pen may not manifest this tendency in the least 
 when writing with a pencil. The lighter pressure upon 
 the paper necessitated when using the former, is not 
 required when writing with the pencil, and the latter may 
 be rigidly grasped to bear upon the paper with sufficient 
 pressure to give steadiness to its movements ; and thus 
 tremulousness manifested in the pen-and-ink writing of 
 the same individual will not appear in the writing of the 
 same person done with a pencil. These and other differ- 
 ing conditions occurring between writing produced with a 
 pen and that done with a pencil, narrows down the field 
 in which examinations may be made, to put a limit upon 
 the value of all conclusions that may be reached, when 
 pen-and-ink writing is compared with that done with a 
 pencil to establish its individuality. When habitual pen- 
 and-ink writing is compared with pencil writing of the 
 same person, resemblances in form and general appearance 
 will be usually found to occur, but when examining the two 
 writings so produced, to establish whether or not they are 
 the writing of the same person, these like features cannot 
 ordinarily be depended upon alone, and particularly if the 
 pencil writing in question relates to signatures, in which 
 they are so easily within the reach of simulation. When 
 these features of form and general appearances are dem- 
 onstratively peculiar in their personality, and indicative 
 of some strongly manifested muscular coordination that 
 is intensely individual in character, such features enable 
 the examiner to identify the habit of the writer, whether 
 using either pen or pencil, excepting so far as relates to
 
 Pencil and Pen-and-Ink Writing Compared. 177 
 
 the question of their simulation, and their production with 
 a pencil by another person. 
 
 When lead-pencil writing is compared with other lead- 
 pencil writing, to ascertain its individualism as to habit, 
 while the field available for examination and study is some- 
 what greater than when pencil writing is compared with 
 pen-and-ink writing, still this condition does not furnish the 
 same measure or kind of developed facts upon which to 
 base an opinion as when pen-and-ink writings are com- 
 pared with each other. Most of the details appearing in 
 the latter are distinctively indicative of personal habit, and 
 but few of them occur in pencil writing ; while those appar- 
 ent in the latter will relate to the form of the letters, and 
 their connection alone. This deficiency in the appearance 
 of personal details occurring as a condition of pencil writ- 
 ing is caused by the differing operation of the two imple- 
 ments by which the writing is produced, and which has 
 been before described. In view of this fact, when an 
 examination of a signature written with a pencil is made 
 to ascertain its genuine or forged character by comparison 
 with other signatures, none of the latter should be used as 
 standards for the purpose excepting those produced with 
 a pencil, for the reason that should there be any marked 
 peculiarity or signature expression in the ink-written sig- 
 nature, the use of the pencil to produce it might so modify 
 or change its appearance as to be misleading. 
 
 Signature writing and other writing than the latter 
 done by the same person with a lead pencil will bear 
 about the same relation to each other in their individuality 
 as when the pen is used, that is, a person writing a pecu- 
 liar signature with a pen, when producing one with a lead 
 pencil, and writing both habitually, will usually follow the 
 same general form in the one instance as the other, 
 although from the differing character of the implement 
 
 23"
 
 1 78 Effect of a Rigid Pencil and Elastic Pen. 
 
 used the one produced with a pencil will ordinarily appear 
 as a modification of the other in form, yet the measure 
 of difference may be such as to give to the one produced 
 with the pencil an unlike appearance when compared with 
 the other. The pen-and-ink writing of persons other 
 than signatures, when compared with that done with a 
 pencil, will usually show the same generic differences' 
 that their signatures do when those written with a pen 
 are compared with those produced with a pencil. 
 
 This eeneric difference will be manifested in the effect 
 caused by using a rigid pencil to make certain forms of 
 letters instead of an elastic pen, and the manner in which 
 the same muscular coordination will individually act 
 under the changed character of the implement used. In 
 illustration, if a writer habitually using a pen with a heavy 
 pressure in the down-strokes of letters to produce shading, 
 should, when writing with a pencil, still continue this 
 shading pressure, the tendency would be to make all the 
 down-strokes of letters where the shading would occur 
 with more rotundity of form and curve to the left than 
 would occur when the pen was used under the same pres- 
 sure, and this would constitute a generic difference 
 between the pen and pencil writing of the same person 
 as to cause, and a manifestation of what will occur where 
 the use of the pencil tends to modify the form of letters 
 produced by it. 
 
 Signatures written with a lead pencil do not ordinarily 
 show the details of habit available for comparison through 
 which positive conclusions are reached, and the personal 
 characteristics of form appearing in the letters composing 
 a signature so produced are susceptible of a very close 
 imitation by tracing and otherwise. These features of a 
 signature make up its general appearance when written 
 with a pencil, and give to it the pictorial effect it presents
 
 Why Pencil Writing is Easily Imitated. 179 
 
 to the eye, but they are too easily simulated to be 
 depended upon alone in formulating an opinion as to the 
 genuine or forged character of the writing. Pencil 
 sketches of objects in perspective are very easily made, 
 and the much more simple act of producing a pencil 
 copy of a signature by the use of the same means will 
 be readily understood and appreciated. These conditions, 
 present in all cases were signatures written with a pencil 
 are to be examined, necessarily limit the approaches to 
 accuracy in reaching a conclusion as to the habitual or 
 unhabitual character of the writing appearing in a ques. 
 tioned signature so produced, and although they do not 
 render the attainment of correct deductions impossible, 
 they do establish the general rule of doubt in such 
 cases, and the effect of which must be taken into account 
 in estimating the value of all opinions based on such 
 examinations. 
 
 While this general rule applies to, and should not be 
 overlooked, there are exceptions to it which should also 
 be considered. That the simulation of signatures written 
 with a lead pencil may be so well done as to defy detec- 
 tion is possible from the fact that the pencil does not 
 detail anything in the signature but what is within the 
 range of successful imitation, yet when the attempted 
 simulation is poorly done, and where the forger produces 
 form of letters that are not only unlike those of the 
 standards, but resemble those which are habitual with the 
 simulator ; or where some peculiar characteristics belong- 
 ing to the standards are ommitted in the disputed writing, 
 and other forms which are not habitual with the writers of 
 the standards are used in their place ; or where it is apar- 
 ent that in the writing of the standards there are certain 
 peculiarities of form which are forced therein from physi- 
 cal causes, and which do not occur in the disputed signa-
 
 i So Habitual Details of Pen and Pencil Work. 
 
 ture ; in such cases reasonable accuracy may be had in 
 formulating an opinion when the examination relates to 
 the comparison made between signatures written with a 
 lead pencil. 
 
 Where the lead-pencil writing to be examined is other 
 than signatures, and when the question of simulation can- 
 not come into the case as a matter of investigation, reason- 
 able accuracy may be had at the hands of competent exam- 
 iners in determining by comparison the writer of an 
 anonymous letter, or other writing ; and the same is true 
 as regards the identification of the writer of dissimilated 
 or disguised writing done with a lead pencil ; and partic- 
 ularly when the 'writers show in their habitual writing 
 done with a pencil any marked peculiarity of muscular 
 coordination. It is also true that while many of the 
 details of habit consequent upon writing with a pen, do 
 not appear in writing done by the same person with a 
 pencil, the latter from its construction and adaption also 
 produces details by which an habitual form of pen writing 
 is modified in an individual manner from the rigidity of 
 the pencil and given features that do not appear in the 
 pen-and-ink writing of the same person. As a sequence 
 of this condition, to insure accuracy in making examina- 
 tions of pencil writing to determine its individuality, only 
 the latter kind of writing should be employed as stand- 
 ards. 
 
 In all lead-pencil writing there is a tendency to resem- 
 blance even when produced by different writers, and this 
 sameness in appearance is other than that occasioned 
 by the representation of the letters in their alphabetical 
 character; and it occurs from the effect consequent upon 
 the use of the pencil as a writing implement. These 
 approaches in general resemblance originating from the 
 employment of the latter are sometimes more strongly
 
 Kind of Pencil and the Details Produced. 181 
 
 marked in their manifestation than at others, yet there is 
 more or less of this tendency apparent than occurs when 
 the pen-and-ink writings of different persons are compared. 
 The fact that the pencil is a rigid implement, and is not 
 subject to the flexure occuring with the use of the pen, 
 when the former is employed by different persons, its use 
 tends to the production of sameness in appearance as 
 regards the density of the lines forming parts of letters, 
 the absence of shading, and individual character which 
 this emphasis gives to pen-and-ink writing. The monot- 
 onous density and uniformity which occurs in all pencil 
 writing, and the little difference between what should be 
 the light or heavy lines, as compared with pen-and-ink 
 writing, constitutes a uniformity occurring in all pencil 
 writing, and is a condition of it which is very misleading 
 to inexperienced examiners. 
 
 The kind and condition of the pencil with which the 
 writing is done has much to do with its appearance, and 
 the development of the individual modification of the 
 forms of letters, which are found to occur in the pen-and- 
 ink writing of the same person. If the pencil with which 
 the writing is done be a hard one having a sharp point, 
 the writing executed with it will appear very different 
 from what it will be when produced by the same person 
 if using a soft pencil and a bluntly rounded point. When 
 the hard and sharply-pointed pencil is used the loops of 
 the letters will usually be formed distinctively so as to be 
 characteristic of the writer making them ; but the same 
 person when using a soft pencil having a broadly rounded 
 point will so write with it as to have all the loops of 
 letters disappear in the greater width and density of the 
 lines producing corresponding parts of letters ; and this 
 will be necessitated by the broadly-rounded writing end 
 of the soft pencil. While this condition of the pencil
 
 [82 Pen and Pencil Writings oe Same Persons. 
 
 writings of the same person causes them to vary materially 
 in form from those produced by a pen, it also causes pencil 
 writings of the same person to differ essentially from each 
 other in appearance, thus making the question as to their 
 resemblance or difference dependent upon the kind and 
 condition of the pencil with which the writing was done. 
 
 There are manifested certain differences between the 
 pen-and-ink writing of the same persons which are com- 
 mon ones, arising from causes before explained ; but with 
 all the contingencies taken into account, this tendency to 
 differentiate is greatly increased when the lead pencil is 
 used instead of the pen. Among these conditions so 
 generally apparent is the fact that most persons when 
 writing with a lead pencil will give to the letters more 
 vertical length, make them larger, and with less space 
 between them, and the words will be farther apart than 
 when writing with a pen. Another fact is commonly ap- 
 parent that persons who when writing with a pen will give 
 considerable slant to the letters will, when writing with a 
 pencil, produce the same more upright and with less incli- 
 nation. Another feature that is quite common in its 
 manifestation, and that before alluded to, wherein per- 
 sons employing a heavy shading emphasis in their pen- 
 and-ink writing, will employ this impulse to make parts 
 of the letters that are usually shaded when writing with a 
 pen more rotund when using the pencil. 
 
 In addition to the foregoing conditions of pencil writ- 
 ing and the variations consequent upon its production, is 
 the well-observed fact that some persons when writing 
 with a pen will operate it by the flexure of the fingers 
 and thumb, and when writing with a pencil will employ 
 the forearm movement to operate; it instead of the latter. 
 This change of method, when employed, leads to the pro- 
 duction of so much variation in the form and general
 
 When Habit is Strongly Individual. 183 
 
 appearance of two writings of the same person thus 
 made, that there may be but little if any resemblance 
 between them when compared. 
 
 With some writers, whether the pen or pencil is used, 
 the coordinate action of the muscular factors which do 
 the work will be so intensely individual in character that 
 it can be identified when either pen or pencil writing pro- 
 duced under such conditions are compared with each 
 other. Belonging to this class of writers are those per- 
 sons who never have learned to write mechanically, and 
 who write but little, and always by copying forms of 
 letters as present in the mind from memory. Also be- 
 longing to this class of writers are those who have some 
 prominently deficient muscular function pertaining to the 
 grasping and moving of the pen or pencil, by which very 
 emphatic and personal conditions of habit become mani- 
 fested. This class of writers will be generally very 
 demonstrative in the production of individualisms, even 
 when the letters are produced with a pen or pencil ; the 
 only feature to be considered when examining such writ- 
 ings for the purpose of identifying their personality is 
 the question of simulation. 
 
 Recognizing the fact that perfect simulation of a signa- 
 ture written with pen and ink is an impossibility, and that 
 in the hands of a skilful forger a pencil-written signature 
 can be so well simulated as to defy detection, in all cases 
 where the question of imitation could possibly occur this 
 contingency must be kept constantly in mind. There are 
 two general conditions of motive prompting the simula- 
 tion of lead-pencil writing. One of these is manifested 
 when signatures are forged, and the other where writing 
 is imitated to fix the authorship of it upon some other 
 person than the one producing it. So far as the simula- 
 tion of the few letters composing an ink-written signature
 
 184 Tracings from Pencil-Written Signatures. 
 
 is concerned (with a genuine one before the writer from 
 which to do the tracing), the work may be done by a 
 skilful forger with a lead pencil very accurately, from the 
 fact that the general appearances of the signature is all 
 there is to imitate when the pencil is used ; but where an 
 anonymous letter is to be written in simulation of another 
 person's writing, there are greater difficulties for the imi- 
 tator to contend with, unless the latter has a complete 
 copy from which to trace the writing. When parts of a 
 letter are traced from a copy in the hands of a simulator, 
 and there are other words intervening of which the imi- 
 tator has no copy, the discordance and patched up char- 
 acter of the writing will be apparent and easily discern- 
 ible. Where the simulator has all the words in the form 
 of a copy from which to do the tracing, the imitation may 
 be well done and calculated to deceive. • 
 
 The best simulations of pencil-written signatures are 
 those which are traced from a genuine one ; they are 
 most easily produced and most deceptive in character, 
 from the very close resemblance which may be given to 
 them. Forgeries of this class if well made will show no 
 evidences of their being such, excepting that they will 
 exactly coincide and correspond in measurement with 
 that one of the genuine signatures from which the 
 tracing was made, which fact alone would be conclusive 
 evidence of forgery, as the writing of two signatures pre- 
 cisely alike is not possible if produced habitually. When 
 ink-written signatures are first traced with a pencil as 
 simulations and then inked over by a second effort with 
 the pen, as has been shown, they will bear strong 
 evidences of their being so made ; but when traced to be 
 used as forgeries of pencil-written signatures, they may 
 be so well done as to defy detection in the absence of 
 the signature from which they were copied.
 
 Where Opinions as to Character are Doubtful. 185 
 
 It rarely occurs that signatures are written with a pen- 
 cil to papers of importance, and when so occuring, if 
 contested as to their being genuine, great care should be 
 exercised in their examination, and unless they are 
 plainly different or alike the standards with which they 
 are compared, examiners having the most experience in 
 this field of study will be the least positive in opinion as 
 to their genuine or forged character. Signatures written 
 with a pencil, when disputed as to their genuineness, gen- 
 erally present one of the two conditions of being unlike, 
 or as having resemblance to the standard writings when 
 compared ; and whether these differences arise from their 
 having been produced by different persons, or from vary- 
 ing conditions surrounding their production by the same 
 person, or whether the resemblances occurring are those 
 resulting from their habitual production as genuine writ- 
 ing of one person, or their simulation by another, are the 
 questions to be determined. In view of the conditions 
 under which pencil-written signatures must be produced, 
 these propositions present for solution many features 
 that tend to limit the attainment of accuracy. Only 
 where the disputed pencil-written signature is wholly 
 unlike the genuine ones of the writer it purports to 
 represent ; or if it has a studied appearance that types 
 it as unhabitually written ; or resembles in some of its 
 features the admitted writing, and is very different in 
 others, or where its variations from the standard forms 
 are typical of the same muscular coordination as that of 
 the writer of the standards, in such cases reasonable 
 accuracy may be had in determining the genuine or 
 forged character of the disputed signature ; but where 
 the disputed pencil-written signature looks quite like 
 the genuine writing of the standards as regards the form, 
 spacing, and slant of the letters, and where the variations 
 24
 
 1 86 Where the Results of Analysis are Doubtful. 
 
 in form which appear when the two writings are com- 
 pared may have been produced within and under the 
 action of the same muscular coordination, and the appa- 
 rent differences may have been caused by the use of a 
 differently pointed pencil or a hard or soft pencil, con- 
 scientious judgment in the light of experience will dictate 
 a modified opinion and without positiveness. Where the 
 pencil-written signatures being examined very closely 
 resemble each other, and knowing that accurate simula- 
 tion is possible when so made, the only conclusions that 
 can be reached must include in their expression the con- 
 tingency of being mistaken. 
 
 In thus detailing in a general way the conditions sur- 
 rounding the production of lead-pencil writing as devel- 
 oped in the experience of the author, only such features 
 of it as are commonly apparent in it can be given ; for 
 the individuality of pencil writing like that of pen-and-ink 
 writing, causes each case to stand alone in those condi- 
 tions which give personal character to it, although not so 
 positively in the one case as the other. The occurrence 
 of circumstances under which lead-pencil writing becomes 
 a matter of legal contest are rare, yet they do happen, 
 and from the manner in which evidence relating to their 
 genuine or forged character is often given, is at times 
 surprising. Generally those who have had the least 
 experience will be most positive in their opinions; while 
 others who have devoted a life-time to the study of the 
 subject matter will be the least so. That the conditions 
 under which lead-pencil writing is produced, the contin- 
 gencies attending the identification of individual habit, 
 and its determination from an attempted simulation of it 
 may be clearly understood, is the object of the present 
 chapter.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 INKS, AND THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH A KNOWLEDGE 
 OF THEIR COMPOSITION BECOMES IMPORTANT.— THE AGE OF 
 PAPERS AS DETERMINED BY THE APPEARANCE OF THE 
 WRITING UPON THEM.— HOW WRITTEN INSTRUMENTS MANI- 
 FEST THEIR AGE.— THE CAUSES WHICH RETARD OR ACCELER- 
 ATE THE CHANGES OCCURRING IN THEIR APPEARANCE.— 
 HOW THE FADING OF THE INKS RELATES TO THEIR COMPOSI- 
 TION. —INKS HISTORICALLY CONSIDERED. —ANCIENT INKS 
 AND THEIR COMPOSITION.— INKS CLASSED AS SOLUTIONS, 
 AND AS CONTAINING COLORING MATTER IN SUSPENSION.— 
 THE EFFECT OF AGE UPON INKS, AND AT WHAT PERIOD THE 
 LIMIT OF THEIR CHANGE IS REACHED.— THE EFFECT OF CARE 
 AND THE CUSTODY OF WRITTEN DOCUMENTS AS RELATES TO 
 ACCELERATING OR RETARDING THE EFFECTS OF TIME.— THE 
 CONDITION OF PAPER AS AFFECTING THE CHANGES IN IT PRO- 
 DUCED BY AGE.— THE FACILITY WITH WHICH MODERN INKS 
 CAN BE REMOVED.— THE USE OF TINTED PAPER AS A MEANS 
 OF PROTECTION.— HOW MACHINES WHICH PUNCH OUT THE 
 AMOUNTS ARE CIRCUMVENTED BY FORGERS.— TYPEWRITER 
 WORK, ITS SAFETY WHEN ORIGINAL IMPRINTS ARE USED, 
 AND THE DANGERS ATTENDING THE USE OF CARBON COPIES. 
 
 The composition of inks often becomes very important 
 in connection with the papers or written instruments by 
 which the latter or the signatures upon them are pro- 
 duced to establish their authenticity. It also becomes 
 important at times to ascertain the age of papers through 
 the appearance of the ink with which they were written, 
 and while these matters cannot always be determined 
 with accurracy, in most cases an old writing can be easily 
 told from a recent one. Papers or written instruments 
 purporting to be older than they really are, and in which 
 the effects of age have been counterfeited by purposely
 
 1 88 How Inks Fade and Paper Shows Age. 
 
 soiling them, or in which an aged appearance has been 
 produced by the use of chemicals, are subjects often 
 requiring the attention and adjudication of courts of jus- 
 tice. So also as regards wills purporting to have been exe- 
 cuted many years before being offered for probate, deeds 
 of property, receipts for the alleged payment of money, 
 and the cancellation of moneyed obligations occasionally 
 appear in legal contests affecting property rights, all of 
 which require examination as to their character and age, 
 and in the determination of which expert evidence 
 becomes important. 
 
 All written instruments as they grow older manifest 
 their age in various ways, the change of color and brown- 
 ing of the paper and the fading of the ink being the most 
 prominent features to indicate the effect which time has 
 had upon them. The conditions surrounding the care of 
 papers and instruments of writing have much to do with 
 the permanency or fading of the ink with which they were 
 written, yet changes do take place under all conditions of 
 care, and the measure of change appearing in them is in 
 most cases indicative of their age, particularly when other 
 than carbon inks are used in their production. All the 
 inks in which logwood forms the coloring matter alone 
 fade in a peculiar way, and differently from tanno-gallate 
 of iron inks, while the well-known blue inks, so generally 
 used during the early part of the present century, are 
 affected differently by age from either of those before 
 named, and the same is true of the sulphindylic acid inks 
 of the same period, but all of them indicate in a greater 
 or less degree conditions from which to judge of the age 
 of the writing. The logwood inks fade by turning a 
 yellowish-brown ; the Prussian blue and oxalic acid inks 
 of fifty years ago take on in fading a bluish-grey, 
 and the sulphindylic acid inks when combined with ferric
 
 Ancient and Modern Inks. 189 
 
 sulphate turn a reddish-brown, while inks of the latter 
 group when containing nut-galls as one of the ingredients 
 become a pale brown under the effect of age. 
 
 The most permanent inks are those containing carbon in 
 suspension, and these were the inks used by the. Ancients, 
 their stability as to color being due to the fact that carbon 
 of the form used in their production is not affected by 
 light, or the action of the atmosphere. These carbon 
 inks as described by Dioscorides were made to contain 
 three parts of lamp-black (carbon) and one of gum ; the 
 latter being dissolved in water to make a thick mucilage 
 into which the carbon was mixed and held in suspension. 
 Pliny also historically alludes to the use of the coloring 
 matter of the cuttle-fish (sepia) for writing ink. The 
 ancient carbon inks in some respects resembled the copy- 
 ing inks in use at the present time, in which carbon in the 
 form of lamp-black is suspended, and in their composition 
 they were very much the same as India ink, when rubbed 
 up with water and used for drawings. 
 
 The inks in use during the first half of this century, as 
 well as those in use at the present time, are best arranged 
 for description by being divided generically in two classes ; 
 in one of which are placed those considered as true solu- 
 tions, and in the other those in which the coloring matter is 
 held in suspension by gum or mucilage. Of those classed 
 as solutions were the inks made from the Stephenson for- 
 mula and its modifications. These inks in kindred variety 
 were largely employed about the beginning of and down 
 to about the middle of the present century, when they 
 went out of use ; they were true solutions, and the writing 
 done with them appearing a dark blue when first written, 
 and immediately turning to a deep black. Another ink 
 manufactured by Stephenson and others was produced 
 by dissolving Prussian blue in a weak solution of oxalic
 
 190 Inks Classed as to Composition, 
 
 acid, and this was also a true solution, the writing pro- 
 duced by it remaining a bright blue until acted upon by 
 time or heat, the latter agency obliterating it. Among 
 the solutions most generally used were those made from 
 logwood, and set with chromate of potash. These inks, 
 when written with, gave a dense blue-black color, and 
 were in general use during the early part of the present 
 century, and continued to be employed in a limited meas- 
 ure down to the latter part of it. Lastly, as classed among 
 the solutions, there came into use inks made from nigro- 
 sine, a soluble form of black aniline, and these inks with 
 the latter as a base or body, are very generally in use at 
 the present time on account of their cheapness and the 
 facility with which they can be compounded. These 
 nigrosine inks came into use "in 1870, although other forms 
 of black aniline had been used for making inks several 
 years before the discovery of nigrosine. 
 
 Of those classed as containing coloring matter in sus- 
 pension are those termed tanno-gallate of iron inks, made 
 from a decoction of nut-galls, and set with ferric-sulphate, 
 and they are the inks of this class most generally used. 
 As a matter of fact, historically, their employment dates 
 back several centuries. These inks are sometimes made 
 by reducing the amount of nut-galls and substituting log- 
 wood to cheapen the cost of their production, and occa- 
 sionally lamp-black is added to better adapt them for 
 copying uses. Another kind of inks occurring in variously 
 modified formula, and belonging to this class, were those 
 made from a decoction of nut-galls and set with the salts 
 of Vanadium ; and in addition to those already named 
 there were others termed Alizarine inks, in the manufac- 
 ture of which there was employed a solution of indigo in 
 sulphuric acid, to which iron filings were added, with the 
 mixture allowed to stand, from which the supernatant
 
 Inks Tested as to Qualitative Character. 191 
 
 liquor was drawn off, and thickened with gum to prevent 
 the coloring matter from being deposited. Besides those 
 already named as belonging to this class, were the carbon 
 inks before alluded to, and inks made from a decoction 
 of Archil, and set with ferric-sulphate. 
 
 To give the formula for the production of these inks 
 would not seem necessary, and all that seems really 
 important for the purposes herein considered is to class 
 them generically as to their character and ingrediential 
 composition. All inks made from nut-galls and ferric- 
 sulphate would yield the same results when tested qualita- 
 tively, whatever proportions of these same materials were 
 used in their preparation. So inks made from logwood 
 and chromate of potash, or from Archil and ferric-sulphate, 
 would show when tested what they were produced from, 
 whatever the proportions of these ingredients were 
 employed in making them ; and the same would be true 
 of the sulphindylic acid inks, and also those made from 
 prussiate of iron and oxalic acid. 
 
 While this is true as to the qualitative tests, it is equally 
 true as to the effect which age and surroundings would 
 have upon the inks with which the writing was done ; and 
 although these effects might vary as to the intensity with 
 which they were manifested, they would be generic in 
 kind. Thus all inks in which ferric-sulphate were used 
 would turn brown by oxidation, and the measure of the 
 latter would depend upon circumstances. So all logwood 
 inks would, as affected by time, become a yellowish brown 
 under its influence in measure as modified by surroundings. 
 
 The advent of metallic pens, which supplanted the use of 
 the goose-quill as the latter had the stilus of the Ancients, 
 necessitated changes in the composition of inks, and par- 
 ticularly such of them as were acid in their composition, 
 from the corrosive effect the latter had upon the metal of
 
 192 Inks that are Most Permanent. 
 
 which the pens were made ; hence the sulphindylic acid 
 inks as first made by Stephenson and others went out of 
 use, and their place was supplied by the logwood inks, 
 and those made from nut-galls variously modified to adapt 
 them for use with metallic pens. The latter made their 
 appearance during the third decade, and came into gen- 
 eral use about the middle of the present century. 
 
 Inks containing coloring matter in suspension have been 
 found to be the most durable, and much more so than 
 those classed as solutions. All of the latter permeate the 
 paper on which they are used more than the others, and 
 consequently are in a better condition to be acted upon 
 by time on this account. When writing is done by the 
 use of inks which deposite the coloring matter upon the 
 paper, a portion of the liquid enters the latter at the edges 
 of the writing, and this liquid portion so conditioned is 
 acted upon more readily by the agencies of time, while 
 the body of the writing changes more slowly ; but where 
 the ink is a solution of color it permeates the paper so as 
 to be wholly acted upon more rapidly by those agencies 
 tending to fading and obliteration. Inks that are absorbed 
 by the paper are much more readily affected by conditions 
 of the latter than those which are deposited upon the 
 paper; and while the agencies in the latter tending to 
 accelerate fading act upon all kinds of inks excepting 
 those made from carbon, they act with more force upon 
 the ink solutions than upon those in which the coloring 
 matter is held in suspension. 
 
 Having thus considered inks as regards their history, 
 composition, and in a limited measure the chemical changes 
 made to appear in writing done with them by age, the 
 causes which accelerate or retard these changes are numer- 
 ous, and so irregular in their development as to prevent 
 the establishment of any rule as to the measure of their
 
 How Fading of Inks is Indicated by Age. 193 
 
 occurrence. Thus writing having the general appear- 
 ances of age as apparent in the fading of the ink, may be 
 readily distinguished when compared with that recently 
 written, but whether ten or twenty years older than 
 that with which it is compared is a more difficult prob- 
 lem to satisfactorily determine. The kind of ink used 
 in the writing of a document may connect the produc- 
 tion of the latter with the period when such inks were 
 employed, yet this alone would not establish the age of 
 the written instrument, for the ink could have been 
 recently made for the very purpose of deception, but the 
 fact that a peculiar kind of ink which was in general use 
 years before showed the concomitant effects of age in the 
 changes which the writing of the document had under- 
 gone, would tend to connect the execution of the paper 
 with the period when like inks were generally employed. 
 
 The difference between a written document that pur- 
 ports to be older than it is and what its real age is, may 
 be difficult to determine with accuracy, but the counter- 
 fieited appearances of age when applied to a written 
 instrument are generally easily distinguished, so that 
 competent evidence as to the fraudulent character of 
 such a writing should have value, although it may not be 
 possible to establish the exact age of the paper as to pro- 
 duction. 
 
 Where inks containing coloring matter other than carbon 
 in suspension are used, at the edges of the writing, the 
 liquid is absorbed by the paper so as to penetrate and flow 
 into the latter. This action of the paper filters out the 
 suspended coloring matter so that the liquid entering the 
 paper at the edges of the writing consists mainly of the 
 chemical agencies used in setting the color, and conse- 
 quently these portions of the writing are those first acted 
 upon as regards change or fading. While this is the 
 
 25
 
 194 Period When the Fading of Ink Ceases. 
 
 case with tanno-gallate of iron inks, like conditions are 
 manifested when those made from logwood are employed. 
 At the edges of the writing in which tanno-gallate of iron 
 is used, the liquid filtered when passing into the paper is a 
 solution of iron (for all inks of this class contain ferric 
 sulphate in excess), and this liquid where thus absorbed by 
 the paper will turn brown by oxidation before the other 
 parts of the ink are acted upon to any extent. With the 
 logwood inks the chromate of potash absorbed at the 
 edges of the writing by the paper becomes in a measure 
 converted into a carbonate by the action of the atmos- 
 phere, and the hematoxylin of the logwood takes on a 
 yellowish brown. These changes at the ^edges of the 
 writing make themselves manifested in from seven to 
 ten years, after which the whole body of the writing 
 passes through the changes more slowly. 
 
 There seems to appear in all writing done with other 
 than carbon inks, and particularly with that kind of inks 
 made from nut-galls and ferric sulphate, a measure of 
 change up to a certain period, after which the fading ceases 
 and the color does not change any more. Thus when a 
 letter written with nut-gall ink by George Washington, and 
 dated in 1781 (in the possession of Seymour Van San- 
 voord, Esq., of Troy, N. Y.), is compared with specimens 
 of writing done by B. Van Horike (also written with nut- 
 gall ink), in 1632, and in the possession of the Troy 
 Young Men's Association, the inks in both writings have 
 faded to about the same extent, although the Van Horike 
 writing is about twice as old as the Washington letter. 
 Taking into account this fact and knowing that under the 
 most favorable circumstances the ingredients of which the 
 ink in these writings is composed that it would take at 
 least fifty years to have produced their present appear- 
 ances, such an opinion as a matter of evidence would be
 
 Age of Papers Shown by the Fading of Ink. 195 
 
 good, but as to how much older than that, would be mere 
 guess-work unless there was something else than the 
 appearances of the ink upon which to base an opinion. 
 In the possession of the author there are two letters writ- 
 ten by himself about forty years ago, in the production 
 of one of which nut-gall ink was used, and in the writing 
 of the other a logwood ink was employed, both of which 
 inks were made by the author, and the letter written with 
 nut-gall ink has faded just about as much as that of the 
 Van Horike specimen and the Washington letter before 
 alluded to. 
 
 While it is thus impossible to reach accuracy as to the 
 age of writings, which have passed through all the 
 changes which an age of two or three centuries may have 
 caused to appear in them as indicated by the fading of 
 the ink with which they were written, yet as to the 
 interim between the time of writing them, and when they 
 will reach the limit to which the fading extends, a reason- 
 able estimate may be made as to their age by examina- 
 tion ; particularly when the writing shows at its edges a 
 commencement of fading, or where the less densly writ- 
 ten portions have commenced to fade, and the remainder 
 is still unaffected to any extent. An examiner knowing 
 the kind of ink with which a document was written, and 
 the general condition of its care, has a good basis upon 
 which to make the estimate as to its age and the value 
 of the latter as a matter of evidence will depend much 
 upon the skill, education and experience of the examiner. 
 In all old writings where the fading out has reached the 
 limit of its progress all the parts of the writing have 
 about the same shade ; but where the fading is progress- 
 ing, the parts most readily affected reach the limit of 
 their change before the others, and it is in this field of 
 examination that appearances are found to occur upon
 
 196 When Chemical Tests of Ink are Necessary. 
 
 which an estimate must be made as to the time that had 
 elapsed between the production of the writing and the 
 development of the apparent changes. 
 
 When examining writing for the purpose of reaching a 
 conclusion as to its probable age, it is important usually 
 that a chemical test of the ink with which the writing 
 was done should be made when practicable ; for while 
 the kind of ink may be unimportant in determing the 
 age of the writing considered alone, and with relation to 
 the time when those of its kind were in use, yet having a 
 knowledge of the ingredients of which the ink was com- 
 posed, the effect which time would have upon it can be 
 more closely estimated, and the measure of change cal- 
 culated to better advantage. It being known that inks 
 of some kinds fade more rapidly than others under the 
 same conditions, because of the greater or less effect 
 which light, moisture, and atmosphere have upon the 
 different materials of which they are composed, a per- 
 son knowing the kind of ink with which the paper or 
 instrument, being made the subject of examination, was 
 written, is much better enabled to reach a conclusion as 
 to its age than when making a study of the subject mat- 
 ter without such knowledge. 
 
 The manner in which a paper or written instrument 
 has been kept, or cared for, and the form of the paper 
 are important considerations to be taken into account 
 when examining it to ascertain its age. If the subject 
 matter of the investigation be a will, bond, deed, or 
 other document having a like form and folds, it is neces- 
 sary to examine the ink and paper of the inwardly folded 
 surfaces in comparison with those upon the exterior and 
 much more exposed surfaces as to the effect produced 
 upon the paper and the changes that both have under- 
 gone. Thus, if the ink be of a kind which light causes
 
 Why a Microscopic Examination is Useful. 197 
 
 to fade, the writing upon the outer folded surfaces will be 
 more affected by this agency than that upon the inner 
 surfaces ; and the same rule applies as to inks in which 
 varying hygrometrical causes are more active upon exposed 
 surfaces than upon those where the ink is by the folds of 
 the paper better protected from this influence. The place 
 in which the document has been kept, as to being damp or 
 dry, has much to do with the changes occuring in the ink 
 and paper, as well as giving character to them. Writing 
 kept in a constantly damp atmosphere will not usually 
 fade so rapidly as in one where the conditions alternate 
 between dampness and dryness, although it may affect the 
 paper and its sizing, as will be subsequently alluded to. 
 
 A microscopic examination should be made of all writ- 
 ing wherein the age of the latter is a subject of investiga- 
 tion, for the purpose of ascertaining whether at the time 
 the writing was done, the ink employed was dense and 
 heavily deposited on the paper. If the ink be of that class 
 in which the coloring matter was held in suspension, the 
 deposit will be there retained by the gum minus its origi- 
 nal color. If the ink with which the writing was done was 
 a solution of coloring matter, and the color was dense at 
 the time the writing was executed, it will in its faded con- 
 dition still cover the paper, so as to prevent the latter from 
 showing through the faded writing ; but if the ink was 
 pale at the time the writing was done, the paper will show 
 through the faded-out ink. 
 
 Among the causes tending to accelerate the changes 
 which ink undergoes as affected by time and surroundings 
 is the condition of the paper upon which the writing was 
 done, and the kind of material used in sizing it, as well as 
 in tinting it, when colored ; and to what extent the agen- 
 cies used in bleaching the paper while in the pulp state 
 have been washed out or retained. Thus, if paper turns
 
 198 Effect of Age and Surroundings on Paper. 
 
 yellow with age, which can be ascertained by a comparison 
 with the most exposed parts of those more protected, the 
 fact is developed that the lime used in the form of a chlo- 
 ride to bleach the pulp has not been wholly removed by 
 washing, and this condition of the paper would indicate 
 that the fading out of the ink had been accelerated on this 
 account. Paper tinted with ultra-marine or French blue, 
 which was much used during the middle of the present 
 century, and is at the present time employed to a limited 
 extent in the manufacture of account books, accelerates 
 the fading of logwood inks, but has little or no effect upon 
 those made from nut-galls. Paper that has been sized 
 and calendered, when kept in a dry atmosphere serves in 
 a measure to retard the fading of all inks, from the fact 
 that the latter do not penetrate the paper to the same 
 extent as when unsized and uncallendered ; but sized and 
 calendered paper when exposed to continual dampness 
 hastens the fading of ink and causes the growth of mould. 
 When a written instrument has been wet and stained to 
 give to it an aged appearance, such treatment causes the 
 writing to settle into the paper, and thickens up the latter, 
 thus producing just the opposite effects that age will cause. 
 In all writings in which the effects of age are honestly mani- 
 festated, the ink appears to stand out in relief upon the 
 paper, and this condition and appearance is caused from 
 and by the constantly changing action of the atmosphere 
 as to humidity. Every time that the air contains an 
 increased humidity the paper takes up moisture and 
 expands in proportion to the amount absorbed, and when 
 a dryer condition of atmosphere prevails, it contracts in 
 parting with the absorbed moisture ; and these constantly 
 occurring conditions of expansion and contraction tend to 
 draw the paper away from the ink, until the writing done 
 by the latter appears in relief upon the paper. When a
 
 Whether the Same or Different Inks Used. 199 
 
 recently written instrument is wet after the writing becomes 
 dry enough to prevent the spreading of the ink, the ten- 
 dency is to loosen up andraise the fibre of the paper, and 
 this gives to the writing the appearance of having settled 
 down into the paper. 
 
 It often becomes important as a matter of evidence to 
 determine whether all parts of an instrument were written 
 with the same ink as the body of it ; or as to whether the 
 signatures of witnesses to a will were written by the use 
 of the same ink, as affecting their having been cotem- 
 poraneously written. When competently done, chemical 
 tests may be made of the ink in such cases which will 
 determine the matter with accuracy ; but it so often 
 occurs that these tests are incompetently made that there 
 is a general prejudice against having them done. A 
 small portion of a letter is all that is required to be 
 operated upon, and if the chemical agency employed pro- 
 duces the same effect in both tests, an additional one 
 should be made with another reagent to verify the first 
 one made, to insure positiveness. In a succeeding chap- 
 ter the testing of ink by chemical agencies will be more 
 fully considered. 
 
 All the modern inks, with the exception of those con- 
 taining carbon in suspension, can be easily removed by 
 chemical agencies, and while the latter furnish a means 
 for the removal of blots, they also give to persons desir- 
 ous of falsifying entries and footings a means for 
 temporarily covering up fraudulent work ; and the facil- 
 ity with which ink can be removed enables other dis- 
 honest persons to easily remove the amounts which are 
 written in the body of checks and drafts for the purpose 
 of inserting others expressing greater money values. 
 These chemicals are peddled by itinerants, and are to be 
 found in every drug store. To guard against these facil-
 
 200 Facility with Which Ink Can be Removed. 
 
 ities and means for committing fraud, checks, drafts and 
 sometimes notes are printed upon tinted paper, which 
 latter, under the action of the agencies used to remove 
 the ink, is bleached out white, so as to readily direct 
 attention to the changed appearance of the paper, and in 
 most cases this tinted paper answers the purpose for 
 which it is designed. But it is also well known that 
 where some kinds of this paper are used the ink can be 
 removed and the tinting of the paper restored without 
 restoring the ink. Generally where the ink writing has 
 been removed by chemicals the pen tracks of the writing 
 can be made to appear by photography, although not 
 always. The pen furrows made in the paper can usually 
 be seen under the microscope, and to cause them to 
 appear by photography the paper on which they are mani- 
 fested is placed back of a glass in an ordinary print frame 
 with enough pressure applied to make the paper smooth 
 beneath the glass ; and during the exposure to direct, by 
 means of a mirror, a strong side-light upon the paper, so 
 as to have the pen furrows in the paper make a shadow, 
 which latter will be caught by the negative, and appears 
 in the prints made from the latter. This can always be 
 done when the writing removed was made under pen 
 pressure sufficient to cause furrows to appear in the paper. 
 As an additional means of protection against frauds of 
 this character the figures representing the amount for 
 which a check or draft is drawn are by a machine 
 punched out of the paper with the dollar-mark preceding 
 the figures representing the money amount ; but even 
 this procedure does not afford protection against the 
 raising of the amount by skilful operators which it would 
 seem to provide ; for recently, in a number of instances, 
 it has occurred that the figures following the initial ones 
 next to the dollar-mark have been cut out of the paper,
 
 Permanency of Carbon Inks. 201 
 
 and by working down very thin the edges of the latter 
 where cut out, to insert a patch very dexterously and to 
 punch from it ciphers, by which a draft drawn for sixteen 
 dollars was made to read, as punched, sixteen hundred 
 dollars, with the writing in the body of the draft raised to 
 correspond in amount. This fraudulent work has been 
 very successfully operated, and so closely and accurately 
 done as to require a microscope to detect it. 
 
 To properly test inks so as to determine whether they 
 can be removed, freshly prepared Labaraque's solution of 
 chloride of soda is applied to the ink by means of a cam- 
 el's hair brush, allowing the applied liquid to remain for 
 a moment and then remove it with a clean blotter, repeat- 
 ing this operation until the coloring of the ink is re- 
 moved ; this should be done without rubbing the paper. 
 Ink freshly written with is more easily acted upon by this 
 reagent and more readily removed than where the writing 
 has become dry and hard, but it will remove the coloring 
 from all modern inks in use excepting those containing 
 carbon in suspension. These latter inks when properly 
 prepared are just as fixed and permanent as printing inks, 
 and are the only inks that should be used in the writing 
 of books of accounts, records, and in expressing the 
 value of amounts in checks, notes, drafts and other 
 papers where alterations may be made in the interests of 
 crime or fraud. The fact of the permanency of these 
 carbon inks is illustrated when the appearances of writ- 
 ings done during the 7th, 8th and 9th centuries are com- 
 pared with others of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries; 
 the inks of the latter periods having been made from 
 nut-galls and iron, and those of the earlier periods by 
 the suspension of carbon in liquids. While the latter 
 have retained their color and freshness, the others have 
 faded and at times become almost obliterated by the 
 26
 
 2o: Why Carbon Inks are not Used. 
 
 action of time. The great advantage of using carbon 
 inks is not that of their permanency, but the fact that 
 chemicals do not act upon them for their removal, and 
 the insertion of other written matter to take the place of 
 that obliterated. 
 
 Carbon inks are not much used from the fact that to 
 prevent the carbon from settling, so much gum is re- 
 quired that they do not flow freely from the pen, and 
 they are apt to become thick and difficult to write with. 
 To prevent carbon inks from being affected by the action 
 of the atmosphere or wetting, when properly prepared 
 they should contain shellac dissolved in the water wherein 
 the carbon is suspended ; the shellac having been made 
 soluble therein by means of borax or potash, aided by 
 heat, with the carbon subsequently added and thickened 
 by gum. When carbon inks are thus prepared and writ- 
 ten with, they cannot be removed or changed by washing 
 them, and they are not acted upon by any of the chemi- 
 cal agencies which remove other inks. When parchment 
 was used for all writing purposes centuries ago, and car- 
 bon inks were employed, it is occassionally found to occur, 
 when examining such old documents, that the same sheet 
 of parchment after having been employed for one purpose 
 as a written document, and had served its uses as such, 
 the ink would be by the economical monks washed off, 
 and the same sheet be rewritten upon for another pur- 
 pose with traces of the palimpsest writing still remaining 
 indistinctly visible. While inks could thus be removed 
 from parchment, it would be very difficult to accomplish 
 such a result by washing these carbon inks when used 
 upon paper, on account oi" the constituent difference be- 
 tween the paper and parchment, although, unless the 
 carbon ink was prepared with shellac, it could be ren- 
 dered indistinct by wetting and rubbing it.
 
 Work Done by Typewriter Machines. 203 
 
 With the advent of the typewriter machines the calling 
 of the scrivener and engrossing clerk is fast disappearing, 
 and with their departure the contingencies occurring as 
 to the stability of written documents, in all respects save 
 that of signatures, is becoming no longer a matter of 
 thoughtful care. With the use of the typewriter, all first 
 impressions (not carbon copies) can be made as durable 
 as when printer's ink is used, and all possibility of their 
 alteration by chemical agencies is avoided. But to accom- 
 plish this condition of safety, the ribbons or ink-imparting 
 material should be made to deposit carbon in as near an 
 approach to printer's ink in composition as possible. The 
 carbon copies made by manifolding, while not acted upon 
 by chemicals, can be very easily removed by means of a 
 rubber or cloth eraser, and on this account should not be 
 depended upon for matters of record. Not only can por- 
 tions of a document be removed, but other matter may 
 be inserted in the place of that erased and the whole 
 purport of the instrument changed. 
 
 All typewriter machines, even when using the same 
 kind of type, become more or less peculiar by use as to 
 the work done by them. One of these characteristics 
 which each machine manifests is that produced by vary- 
 ing alignment, in which some of the type make peculiar 
 imprints which very positively connects the work done 
 with the machine by which it was produced, and this 
 occurs more particularly to such of them as have been 
 used for some time, and so distinctly marked does this 
 peculiarity become connected with the printing done by 
 each machine that little skill is required when comparing 
 the work done by a dozen of them to pick out that pro- 
 duced by each of them. A knowledge of this fact some- 
 times becomes important in tracing up the source of an 
 anonymous letter printed by a typewriter machine.
 
 204 Character of Inks as to Their Being Tested. 
 
 Having thus considered inks as to their character and 
 history in a general way, the methods and applied means 
 for testing them as developed in the experience of the 
 author (educated as an analytical chemist), and as set 
 forth in well-known and standard authorities, will form 
 the subject of the succeeding chapter.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 WHEN AND HOW THE CHEMICAL TESTING OF INKS BECOMES 
 IMPORTANT.— HOW AND WITH WHAT IMPLEMENTS THE TESTS 
 SHOULD BE MADE, AND BY WHOM MADE.— THE IDENTIFICA- 
 TION OF THE REAGENTS TO BE USED BY PROOF ESTABLISH- 
 ING THEM TO BE WHAT THEY PURPORT TO BE.— AUTHORITIES 
 AS TO THE VALUE OF CHEMICAL TESTS AS MATTERS OF EVI- 
 DENCE,— WHY A SINGLE TEST OF AN INK IS SUFFICIENT TO 
 ESTABLISH ITS GENERIC COMPOSITION, AND WHY SEVERAL 
 TESTS SHOULD BE MADE.— WHERE THE KIND OF INK BECOMES 
 IMPORTANTLY CONNECTED WITH THE PURPORTED DATE OF 
 A WRITTEN INSTRUMENT AS TO THE TIME WHEN THE INK 
 WAS DISCOVERED, WITH AN IMPORTANT CASE CITED.— 
 THE EFFECT OF AGE UPON WRITING WHEN THE INK WITH 
 WHICH THE LATTER WAS PRODUCED IS TO BE TESTED.— 
 WHEN WRITING HAS BEEN TRACED WITH A LEAD PENCIL AND 
 THEN WRITTEN OVER WITH INK HOW THE TEST SHOULD BE 
 MADE TO DETERMINE IT.— THE EFFECT OF REAGENTS UPON 
 DIFFERENT INKS AND AUTHORITIES CITED WITH RELATION 
 THERETO." 
 
 In all chemico-legal cases where the results attending 
 the testing of inks become important as a matter of evi- 
 dence before courts and juries, there is but little chance 
 for difference of opinion between experts equally well 
 educated and competent, although persons posing as 
 experts in such matters without the requisite education 
 and experience may not only deceive themselves but be 
 the means of misleading- others. All who are conscien- 
 tiously actuated in making such examination will prefer 
 to have the employment of the tests surrounded with all 
 the safeguards and evidences of competency which can 
 be imposed to secure accuracy and exactness, and will 
 make no objection to their strict enforcement.
 
 20b Purity of Reagents and Appliances Used. 
 
 One of the first and most important considerations to 
 be taken into account in testing writing with chemical 
 agencies is the purity and character of the latter which 
 are to be employed ; they should be proved to be just 
 what they purport to be before making the tests, and the 
 latter should be made in the presence of the court and 
 jury. For the purpose of applying the reagents to the 
 writing, a glass or quill pen should be employed, although 
 a clean camel's hair brush may be used, and where the 
 latter is the implement selected, it should be washed in 
 the presence of the court and jury before making the 
 application. The glass or quill-pen are either of them 
 more desirable instruments for the use than the brush, 
 from the fact that by their employment a single line may 
 be drawn across the letter selected for the test, and much 
 less of the writing defaced than where the brush is the 
 implement used. Metal pens must not be used under any 
 circumstances, as they are readily acted upon by the 
 agencies employed, and in a manner that would render 
 doubtful any results attained. In connection with the 
 application of the reagents employed, is the use of a clean 
 blotter which has been tested as to its being free from 
 lime, the function of the blotter being in its application to 
 arrest the action of the reagents and their absorption 
 when applied to the writing. 
 
 Before proceeding to detail the manifested effects of 
 different reagents, some authorities are given with refer- 
 ence to the advantages to be derived from such investi- 
 gations, the measure of accuracy attainable, through their 
 application in such cases ; and these authorities are more 
 particularly selected with reference to the high character 
 and generally recognized abitity of those establishing them. 
 
 William Thompson, F. R. S. E., a well-known scientist 
 of England, in a discourse before the Manchester Liter-
 
 Authorities Cited. 207 
 
 ary and Philosophical Society, and which is reported in 
 the Chemical Neius, of London, Vol. XLII, page 32, gives 
 great weight to the reliability of chemical tests made to 
 ascertain the character of inks. He states that he found 
 no difficulty in determining the inks of different manu- 
 facturers made at different times by means of chemical 
 reagents, although the inks had in some instances been 
 diluted with beer, tea, or coffee, and written at different 
 times. Thompson gives a long list of reagents to be 
 employed, naming dilute sulphuric acid, sulphurous 
 acid, solution of oxalic acid, solution of caustic soda, 
 solution of oxalic acid saturated with lime, solution of 
 calcium chloride, solution of stannous chloride, and 
 solution of stannic chloride. He directs that several 
 letters of the writing to be examined have applied to 
 them arty series of these reagents, that they be allowed to 
 act upon the writing for a few seconds, then to remove 
 them by the application of a clean blotter; and if the 
 effects produced by these reagents is the same in both 
 instances, the identity of the inks in two writings is estab- 
 lished. Allen's Organic Analysis, Vol. Ill, page 128, is 
 given as an authority as to the effects of reagents when 
 applied to writing done with different kinds of inks, and 
 the determination of their character qualitively. As to 
 logwood inks, reference is made to Bloxam's Chemistry* 
 edition of 1890, page 678. As to the composition of inks 
 and their numerous formula, the reader is referred to 
 " Ure's Dictionary;" for those in use generally about the 
 middle of the present century, to " Workshop Receipts," 
 edited by R. Haldane, and published by Spon & Co., 
 London, and to the " Techno-Chemical Receipt Book," 
 edited by Brant & Hall, and published by Sampson, 
 Marston, Searle & Rivington, London, for the formula of 
 inks in general use at the present time.
 
 208 A Single Test Insufficient. 
 
 When an examination is directed to ascertain whether 
 the writing occurring in the body of a written instru- 
 ment was all produced by the same kind of ink, or 
 when the question to be determined is whether the sig- 
 natures to a written instrument were each produced with 
 the same kind of ink as the other parts of it, a test made 
 by a single reagent is not sufficient, as before stated, to 
 reach a correct conclusion. This occurs from the fact 
 that even a different ink will sometimes give a like reaction 
 under the application of the same reagent ; hence, to insure 
 accuracy, there should be several reagents employed, and 
 the inks under examination should each be tested by 
 the same series of chemicals, with each of the latter in 
 each instance of its application producing its peculiar 
 reaction, to establish that the ink with which the writings 
 were done are the same, and with unlike effects tfo estab- 
 lish their difference. Thus if the writings under examina- 
 tion when tested by hydro-chloric acid showed the same 
 reaction in each instance of their application as relating 
 to this reagent, and when oxalic acid or stannic chloride 
 was applied the writings in each instance showed the same 
 effect, and when any other of the series of reagents each 
 produced the same result peculiar to the chemical 
 employed, the sameness of the inks with which the writings 
 were done would be established, and with unlike reactions 
 their difference would be determined. When done 
 expertly these tests can be made without defacing to any 
 great extent the writing to which they are applied. 
 
 Where the question arises as to the kind of inks and 
 their determination as to generic composition, there is 
 required a different application of chemical knowledge, 
 and a recognition of the qualitive character that the tests 
 made by the use of reagents indicate, which is not 
 called for when their sameness or difference is the subject
 
 Qualitative Tests. 209 
 
 of inquiry. Where the investigation is instituted to 
 determine whether inks with which writing was done are 
 the same or different in composition, and which on being 
 treated with reagents developed like or unlike conditions, 
 the composition of the inks was unimportant, but where 
 it becomes necessary to ascertain whether a will purport- 
 ing to having been executed in 1886, was written with 
 logwood or nigrosine inks (with the latter unknown until 
 1870), the process-steps and reagents employed require 
 in connection with their use a knowlege of what the 
 action of the reagents used would be, to determine the 
 ink to have been made from one or the other of these 
 substances, with this knowledge supported by standard 
 authorities. 
 
 Thus in an alleged draft of a will produced in evidence 
 in the Gordon will case tried before Chancellor McGill 
 of New Jersey, in 1891, in which document red ink had 
 been used for interlining portions of the writing which it 
 was assumed had been done about the same time the 
 draft of the will was made, the proof was that this red 
 ink so employed was manufactured from eosine, a coal-tar 
 product and something which had not been discovered 
 until some years after the time the alleged copy or draft of 
 the will and its interlineation, this evidence being given as 
 an opinion by the expert supported by standard authori- 
 ties and substantiated by chemical tests made in the pres- 
 ence of the court. In cases of this kind chemical knowl- 
 edge of what the effect of reagents when applied to ink 
 writings will be in determining their generic composition, 
 becomes important. 
 
 When the formula of inks is determined it has to be 
 
 done by analysis, and by which not only the qualitive 
 
 character of its ingrediential composition is ascertained, 
 
 but their quantitive measure is determined. When writ- 
 
 27
 
 210 Inks Classed for Qualitative Testing. 
 
 ing is tested by reagents, all that can be ascertained is 
 the qualitative character of the materials used to pro- 
 duce the ink by which it was written, and the formula as 
 to the proportion of ingredients used does not enter into 
 the examination excepting as to kind. To facilitate making 
 tests of ink by which writing has been produced, inks are 
 classed generically as to composition, that is they are 
 grouped and arranged with reference to their containing 
 certain well known basic ingredients that are common to all 
 of the genera in which they are classed. Thus inks made 
 from nut-galls and fenic sulphate will be classed astanno- 
 gallate of iron inks, and when tested they will indicate 
 their composition no matter what the proportion of the 
 same ingredients are employed to make them. So inks 
 in which other vegetable substances are used in place of 
 nut-galls and are blackened by ferric sulphate will, when 
 tested, not only indicate the latter but also the presence 
 of some other elements than nut-galls. As relating to 
 all tests made of ink writings, the reactions taking place 
 through the use of reagents attain their specific character 
 as a matter of experience to those making them, and thus 
 become established as chemical facts, and these are gen- 
 erally supported by standard authorities, excepting in 
 some cases where the application has not occurred often 
 enough to become a part of the written law of chemistry. 
 In such cases the effects produced must be taken on the 
 statement of the expert as to their verity if made 
 applicable. 
 
 When making qualitative tests of ink writing through 
 the operation of chemical reagents, there are attendant 
 conditions which at times should be taken into account^ 
 and prominently among them as having a modifying 
 effect is the age of the writing. Thus a very old writing 
 originally produced by a tanno-gallate of iron ink may
 
 Age of Writings as Affecting Tests. 211 
 
 have become so changed by the action of time as to 
 merely show the presence of iron in the form of an oxide, 
 with no traces of the nut-galls apparent. So an old writ- 
 ing done with logwood ink may show nothing but the 
 pale yellow stain of the hematoxylin, and without any 
 traces of the chromate of potash by which it was origin- 
 ally turned black ; a suplhindylic acid ink may show 
 nothing but the iron oxide from the same causes. 
 
 While these conditions are common to the inks of all old 
 writings, others of a more recent date as regards the 
 measure of promptness with which reagents act upon 
 them are affected by age. Thus writings ten years old 
 are not generally so responsive to the action of reagents 
 as those which are two years old, even when the inks 
 with which they were written had the same ingrediential 
 composition, although the reactions will be the same in 
 character, but they will be modified as to the intensity of 
 their reaction. The measure of density with which the 
 ink being tested was deposited on the paper, and whether 
 thick or thin at the time the writing was done, will cause 
 the intensity of the reactions to vary quantitatively rather 
 than qualitatively ; the thicker ink manifesting a more 
 intense effect generally than thin or pale ink of the same 
 kind when tested chemically. 
 
 The great number of formulas in use for the manufac- 
 ture of ink will prevent giving a tabulated statement of 
 tests to be applied to determine that of each manufacturer 
 excepting as classed generically, and even if the kinds of 
 ink most generally used were coupled with a tabulation 
 giving the effect which reagents would have upon writ- 
 ing done by them, there would still be difficulties attend- 
 ing its use to have such tabulation answer in all cases as 
 an authority. The varied conditions under which inks 
 are kept and used, the character of the paper on which
 
 212 Tests Should be Made by Competent Persons. 
 
 the writing appears, and the manner in which it has been 
 cared for, all tend as conditions to vary and modify the 
 action of reagents ; hence, the effect of the latter could 
 be only established in a general way, and such tabulation 
 as relating to the effect of reagents upon the several 
 kinds of well-known inks in the hands of inexperienced 
 and incompetent persons might prove misleading. When 
 chemical tests of ink are to be employed, they should be 
 applied by persons competent to make them, and to judge 
 of the results attending their application ; and such persons 
 being well acquainted with what the effect resulting from 
 the use of reagents should be, would not require any 
 tabulation of specific reactions to even determine the inks 
 of different manufactures from each other, though generic 
 in kind. Thus all inks of a certain manufacturer when 
 made from the same formula would, under the application 
 of reagents, give results as modified by surroundings 
 which an experienced chemist would determine as the 
 same reactions, and though qualitatively the same, they 
 might vary enough in appearance as to mislead an inex- 
 perienced person depending upon a tabulation of tests as 
 authority. 
 
 When writing has been traced with a lead pencil and 
 then inked over with a pen so as to completely cover the 
 tracing, to determine its production in this manner the ink 
 should, on a portion of the writing, be decolorized by the 
 application of chloride of soda or chloride of calcium in solu- 
 tion, and as the carbon or black-lead of which the pencil 
 writing is composed, is not acted upon by chemical agen- 
 cies, the pencil marks will be found intact after the color 
 of the ink has disappeared. To restore the ink (if having 
 an iron base) the paper operated upon should be placed 
 while still moist over the mouth of a Florence flask con- 
 taining hydro-sulphuret of ammonia, which has been
 
 Effect of Reagents upon Different Inks. 213 
 
 sufficiently heated to vaporize and come in contact with 
 the paper, and which procedure will immediately restore 
 the ink color. This test was first applied by David N. 
 Carvalho of New York city, in a suit where the question 
 arising was whether a certain writing made the subject of 
 legal investigation was traced with a pencil before written 
 over with ink. 
 
 All the inks made from nut-galls and set with ferric 
 sulphate are partly decolorized and turned grey by the 
 application of hydro-chloric acid, and a reddish grey by 
 oxalic acid. The presence of iron in inks of this class in 
 the form of a sulphate is ascertained by applying hydro- 
 chloric acid, allowing it to remain on the writing a few 
 seconds, then removing it with a clean blotter, and imme- 
 diately applying, while the paper is still moist, ferro-cyan- 
 ide of potash, when the ink changes instantly into a deep 
 blue, the reaction leading to the production of Prussian 
 blue. This test for iron applies to all inks in which it is 
 used as a sulphate, and very positively distinguishes inks 
 of this class from those made from logwood and set with 
 chromate of potash. All writing done with ink contain- 
 ing nut-galls is turned a deep reddish brown on the appli- 
 cation of potassic hydrate. 
 
 Inks which when written with have a bright blue color 
 that turns black soon after, generally consist of a solution 
 of Prussian blue mixed with a decoction of nut-galls, and 
 to which ferric sulphate is added. When tested with oxalic 
 acid they turn from a black into a bright blue ; they take 
 on a deep reddish brown when tested with potassic 
 hydrate, and the presence of the iron in the form of a 
 sulphate is determined by the test given before. 
 
 According to Allen, before alluded to, writing produced 
 by the use of an ink made from aniline black is turned a 
 reddish brown by the application of hydro-chloric acid,
 
 214 Nigrosine Inks. 
 
 and is not affected by other acids ; they are readily 
 decolorized by bleaching agencies, and when fading 
 under the action of the latter assume a grey color. If 
 during the action of the bleaching agencies, the progress 
 of the latter is arrested by the application of a blotter, 
 and stannic chloride is applied, the ink momentarily 
 assumes a pale green color. Nigrosine inks, as made 
 and as appearing on the market, vary much in their 
 reactions under the application of the same reagents, 
 from the different manner in which the nigrosine is pro- 
 duced by different manufacturers, and it is difficult to 
 define any one reliable chemical test for their determina- 
 tion by such means, although there is a very simple test 
 by which writing produced by their use can be deter, 
 mined. This consists in wetting them with water and 
 gently rubbing them, when they dissolve as usually made, 
 and in dissolving off from the writing turn a dark blue ; 
 thus distinguishing them from inks containing carbon, 
 which, under the same manipulation, are a dead black. 
 When, however, nigrosine is dissolved in a solution con- 
 taining shellac which has been saponified by an alkali, 
 water will not dissovle it, but with diluted alcohol applied 
 it will, and produce the same results. 
 
 While there are many established and well-known 
 kinds of ink in use, those made from well-established 
 formula are constantly being superceded by others, and 
 to enumerate them and classify them, or even a part of 
 them, would require more space than can be appropriated 
 to the work. The matter of their production, and the meth- 
 ods for determining their composition, qualitatively, is all 
 that can be given. Among them there is at present 
 none of them but which in the hands of a competent 
 chemist can be identified and their qualitative composition 
 determined with accuracy.
 
 CAUSES CELEBRES. 
 
 The circumstances attendant upon the production of 
 forged documents and papers are so often but mere repe- 
 titions of others which have preceded them as regards 
 inception, motive and the methods connected with their 
 production, that there is suggested by this condition the 
 perpetuation through compilation of some of the most 
 important cases of this character, in connection with their 
 illustration in fac simile, so that as history repeats itself 
 in the same respects, their description and illustration 
 may be referred to. The cases selected for this purpose 
 have been chosen more from their character as " Causes 
 Celebres " rather than from any relation which they bear 
 to each other, either as to conception or motive. They 
 are not all of them manifestly the product of the same 
 promptings, but some of them are typical in character, 
 and evidently born of like conditions of suggestion. At 
 the time the " Davis Will Case " became prominently 
 known in Montana and throughout the United States, the 
 "Gordon Will Case" and another of like character 
 appeared shortly afterward in New Jersey, all of them 
 purporting to date back twenty odd years before the 
 time they were offered for probate, and involving the dis- 
 position of millions of dollars. That the appearance of 
 the one suggested the emergence of the others would 
 seem a proper conclusion. 
 
 Independently of making a good imitation of a signa- 
 ture there are usually conditions made necessary to have 
 the forgery answer the purposes designed, and which, as
 
 216 Causes Celebres. 
 
 developed in individual cases of like character, take on 
 parallelisms in these respects. Generally the features 
 which make cases typical as to kind occur from the fact 
 that the attempts made to establish the forgery as genuine 
 require like efforts in the way of proof, and this is par- 
 ticularly the case where the names of deceased persons 
 are forged to notes, and for the collection of which suits 
 are broueht against estates. To account for the owner- 
 ship and making of notes of this kind, it will, in various 
 forms of manifestation, occur by implication or attempted 
 proof that the deceased had given the note to compro- 
 mise some wrong-doing which it was desirable should not 
 be known to relatives and the public ; some affair in 
 which a woman was a party, or other escapade which, as 
 will be alleged, the deceased, at the time of its occur- 
 rence, was anxious to conceal, and, as a concomitant of 
 this class of forgeries, this condition is a very common 
 one. Generally notes of this kind have their emergence 
 without regard to the social position of those who pro- 
 duce them for collection ; they are rarely the work of 
 professional criminals, and are often found to be in the 
 possession of assumed innocent holders who occupy a 
 seemingly respectable position in community. 
 
 In the experience of experts who have had a wide 
 range of employment in the examination of disputed 
 handwriting, and wherein the often occurring forgery of 
 notes against the estates of deceased parties become liti- 
 gated, it has occurred at the trial of these cases frequently 
 that on changing the names of the parties, and the wit- 
 nesses, the attempted proofs will be so much alike that 
 the testimony given in one case will be the counterpart of 
 that presented in the others. It will generally appear in 
 pretended evidence that a payment had been made on the 
 forged note according to an indorsement thereon, and a
 
 Causes Celebres. 217 
 
 witness will testify to having seen the payment made at 
 the time it purports to have been done ; and thus cases 
 of this kind become typical in character as to their incep- 
 tion and the means employed to sustain their production. 
 
 Where large property rights are at stake, particularly 
 in the distribution of estates, it will strangely appear at 
 times how emphatically interest will warp judgment, and 
 how easily seeming respectability will be led by it to do 
 disreputable acts. Persons who throughout a lifetime 
 have looked upon crime with apparent disgust will become 
 interested in promoting its successful exercise, where the 
 subject is a will of doubtful character, and by the provisions 
 of which they are to be benefited pecuniarly. Where 
 wills are forged the work is often done bf persons who 
 have no rights in the estate of the deceased by inheritance, 
 but who do the forgery and sell the fraudulent will to 
 those who have. Where an assumed injustice to some of 
 the heirs of an estate occurs from the purport of the real 
 will of a testator, and another will of a later date turns up 
 mysteriously, the tenor of which suits the interests of the 
 dissatisfied heirs, conscience eases itself with the solace 
 that though questionable in character the later will merely 
 corrects an imagined wrong, and those benefited by the 
 forgery become champions to sustain it. 
 
 It is developed as a matter of experience with those who 
 are constantly engaged in the examination of forgeries of 
 this class, that the latter when of any magnitude are rarely 
 the work of professional criminals ; in fact a large majority 
 of the cases occurring are found to appear where the per- 
 petrators are socially in a position to make their work best 
 available for use ; and it often happens that the social 
 standing of an accused is allowed to shield and cover up a 
 fraud of this character, and from this cause the crime 
 oftener originates under the surroundings of good social 
 28
 
 218 Causes Celebres. 
 
 standing than otherwise. Unlike other crimes that demor- 
 alize men and make them known as criminals, forgery in a 
 large majority of cases entrenches itself behind an apparent 
 respectability, and under the assumed protection of which 
 the perpetrator of it expects to escape detection. This 
 condition applies generally to the forgery of wills and the 
 signatures of deceased persons to notes. 
 
 Forgery when perpetrated by persons who occupy good 
 social position has its inception and is committed under 
 one general idea, that in doing it no wrong is intended, 
 and although the conditions under which it developes are 
 somewhat varied, the idea of its being a crime is hardly 
 taken into account. The transition from an assumed high 
 moral perch to that of degradation by the commission of 
 it apart from its exercise as a professional act, is often an 
 impulsive one at first, and particularly where the forgery 
 is the endorsement of a note, and the act is usually coupled 
 with the intention of wronging no one. The first effort 
 is usually made to tide over an emergency which the forger 
 hopes to take care of before the maturity of the note on 
 which the forged name appears. Once done its repetition 
 becomes easier, and conscience solaces itself with the idea 
 that something will turn up to prevent detection. This 
 is the history of most cases where persons occupying good 
 social position make the plunge and become criminals 
 without intending to defraud any one. Where wills are 
 forged by parties in interest, the crime has its inception in 
 the idea that the forgery merely corrects what seems to 
 be a wrong in the mind of the forger, and thus conscience 
 is appeased, and the crime is self-condoned. 
 
 Historically, the cases illustrated and described have 
 significance as representing in what manner their emer- 
 gence took place, the conditions which seemingly prompted 
 their production, and how incentive coupled with intention
 
 Causes Celebres, 219 
 
 led to their occurrence and gave character to them. 
 While crime of this kind as a phase of human effort does 
 not always follow a beaten path, the study of the phe- 
 nomena associated with its development tends to edu- 
 cate those upon whom the duty devolves to thwart its 
 purposes or to punish the perpetrators.
 
 THE MOREY LETTER. 
 
 During the political campaign preceding the election 
 of General Garfield as President of the United States in 
 1880, about two weeks before the election in November 
 of that year, there appeared in Truth, a newspaper pub- 
 ished in the city of New York, a letter purporting to have 
 been written and signed by General Garfield, addressed 
 to one H. L. Morey of Lynn, Mass, and relating to the 
 question of Chinese labor ; a/ac simile of which letter is 
 represented on Plate XI, and upon Plate XII there is a 
 fac simile of a letter from General Garfield denying its 
 authorship, and pronouncing the letter a forgery. 
 
 This " Morey Letter," as it was entitled, caused a great 
 deal of excitement at the time of its advent, and as politi- 
 cal bias influenced the judgment of leading politicians, 
 opinions as to its being forged or genuine became very 
 earnestly expressed, and with oppositely formed con- 
 clusions, as party lines tended to divide and color them ; 
 but after election, and when considered apart from the 
 influence of misguided partisan feeling, the fact of its 
 being a forgery was generally acquiesced in, even before 
 its character as such had been positively determined. 
 Believing some of those persons, who in stating that they 
 considered the letter to be genuine writing of General 
 Garfield, were honest in their conclusions, its appearance 
 gave an object lesson as to how much political bias will 
 at times shackle judgment, and put a limit upon the value 
 of all opinions formulated under its influences. 
 
 When a genuine signature, or the habitual writing of a 
 person other than the latter is compared with simulations
 
 
 
 /IZe& t , — . 
 
 
 
 
 ^*< c*t^ 
 
 PLATE XI — Fac simile of the forged Morey letter.
 
 Mentor. 
 
 o. OU^-^3, / 8$v t 
 a£*Lj 6W 1 - Q^o^y &y ^y^^^J tX^L+4. 
 
 ^^ &- 
 
 
 ( y&ty 
 
 PLATE XII — Fac simile of the genuine writing of the late President Garfield.
 
 The Morey Letter. 221 
 
 of it with many persons the fact that the writings look 
 alike is deemed sufficient to base an opinion that they are 
 the writing of one person, entirely overlooking the con- 
 dition that to answer the purposes of a simulation it must 
 look like the writing from which it was imitated, and this 
 was just what occurred when the signature to the Morey 
 letter was by some persons honestly assumed to be genu- 
 ine. This error is one of frequent occurence, and very 
 often misleads persons who think they know, and do not 
 know how to determine the resemblances produced by 
 simulation from that due to its habitual production in 
 writing done by the same person. The Morey Letter 
 passed into history as a fraud, and when subsequently its 
 writer was run down and identified through the persistent 
 efforts of John I. Davenport, no one was surprised at the 
 result, for with the exception of identifying the author, 
 public opinion had long before decided the letter to be a 
 forgery. 
 
 Studied expertly the letter appearing in fac simile upon 
 Plate XI contains within itself and apart from its com- 
 parison with any other writings internal evidence of its 
 being spurious. Its patch-work appearance, the pro- 
 duction of letter-forms that are not consonant with the 
 habit producing others, all of which conditions lead to 
 one conclusion, that the simulator had in possession a 
 genuine signature of General Garfield's, and a small 
 amount of his other writing, for the only imitations relate 
 to such letters as appear in the signature and the words 
 " truly yours ; " but in producing the letter appearing in 
 fac simile upon Plate XI, when writing other forms of let- 
 ters than those in the possession of the forger, the latter 
 had to use forms which were habitual to him. Thus it is 
 very plain that the simulator had nothing from which to 
 imitate the forms of the connected letters " th " as they are
 
 222 The Morey Letter. 
 
 found to occur in " the," " that," or their," and wherever 
 these letters appear they are formed without studied effort. 
 
 The word " problem," written immediately below " Dear 
 Sir," is in part written with the natural habit of the 
 writer, and the remainder with a simulating effort, thus 
 "pro" is written studiedly and the remainder " blem " 
 naturally. If the words " until," line 10, " action," 
 line ii, immediately below the former, and the word 
 " not," line 12, below " action," and the word " abrogated," 
 at the beginning of line 13, are compared, it will be 
 readily seen that " not " and " until " were written by 
 one studied effort, and "action " and " abrogated" by an 
 habitual effort, so unlike are they in appearance. 
 
 When the letters " J " and "a" in "Jan," at the top 
 heading of the letter upon Plate XI, are measured, they 
 are found to exactly coincide in width and depth with the 
 same letters in the signature, showing that one of 
 them was traced from the other, or both were traced 
 from the same signature. After writing "Ja" of the 
 date it will be seen that the rest of "January" was 
 abbreviated and a. final letter "y" formed like that occur- 
 ring in " yours." On an examination of the word " individ- 
 uals," occurring at line 5 of the forgery, it appears that in 
 writting "duals " as a part of that word, the letters com- 
 posing that portion of it were badly connected and show a 
 studied patch-work effort. The simulator had no letters 
 h, p, c, m or n, nor capital letters M, H, D or S of Gar- 
 field's writing, for where these letters appear in the forged 
 letter they are made in the habitual form of the simulator, 
 and without studied appearance. In making all down- 
 curves of letters tending by direction to the right, as in 
 the final "d" in Garfield, the letters "1," "a" and " s," 
 when either of the latter is a terminal letter, that the 
 simulator's best efforts appear.
 
 The Morey Letter. 223 
 
 At the time of the investigation before Judge Noah 
 Davis, in November, 1880, Experts Daniel G. Ames, 
 Albert Southwarth, Joseph E. Paine and the author, were 
 called as witnesses, all agreeing in their testimony that 
 the writing of the Morey letter was not that of General 
 Garfield, and the signature thereto a forgery. The 
 author at that time gave a modified opinion as to the 
 writing of the letter being that of Kenward Philp, from 
 the fact that the examination had to be made in a crowded 
 court room where the light was such as interfered 
 with the use of the microscope for close work. The 
 writing in parts did resemble that of Philp, particularly 
 the words " Personal and confidential " at the top of the 
 letter. The author was not a witness before the grand 
 jury which indicted Philp. All the notes taken down at 
 the time of making the examination were lost when the 
 building in which the author's office was located was 
 subsequently destroyed by fire, so the results of the micro- 
 scopical examination cannot be given. 
 
 There is but a very small portion of the writing repre- 
 sented upon Plate XI which resembles that illustrated 
 on Plate XII, excepting the signature and the "Ja" in 
 "Jan" before alluded to. Where the letter forms of 
 Garfield are used in the forgery other than the signature 
 they are put into words with such a studied effort as to 
 be distinctively indicative of their character, and the- 
 effect of combining simulated letters with others that are 
 not imitations gives to the writing an irregularity and 
 general appearance quite different from that of the writ- 
 ing shown in fac simile upon Plate XII. All the efforts 
 manifested in the latter that indicate uniformity of effort 
 as to habitual tendencies are wanting in the other. But 
 the most striking difference occurs when the habit of the 
 writer who produced the letter represented by fac simile
 
 224 The Morey Letter. 
 
 upon Plate XI, is compared with that of Garfield as shown 
 upon Plate XII ; all the forms of letters shown in the latter 
 are clearly made with the pen grasped by the fingers and 
 thumb, and moved by the forearm, while in the other all 
 the pen movements are very clearly produced by the 
 flexure of the fingers and thumb. In the fac sifnile of 
 Garfield's writing the pen pressure is uniform, indicating 
 that it was moved over the paper without flexure of the 
 thumb and fingers which held it, and the appearance of 
 shading as a sequence of the latter. In the fac simile 
 upon Plate XI, the lines alternate in density with light 
 up-strokes and heavy down-strokes, indicating flexure of 
 the factors which moved and guided the pen to make 
 manifest this shading-. 
 
 To an expert eye the signature of Garfield upon the 
 fac simile illustrated upon Plate XII, bears on its face 
 the appearance of tracing, and particularly in the produc- 
 tion of the "J," the " f," the " 1 " and the final " d," and 
 these same indications are found to occur when the words 
 " truly yours " are examined. As a photo-lithographic 
 fac simile shows the pictorial effect of the writing of 
 which it is a copy, and does not show in detail the move- 
 ment of the pen-splits, a proper analysis of the writing in 
 the absence of the original cannot be given in detail, 
 excepting as relates to the form of the letters and the 
 evidences they give of the muscular habit by which they 
 were written.
 
 THE LEWIS WILL CASE. 
 
 Romance could hardly have developed under the stimu- 
 lus of a novelist's fancy a more cunningly developed 
 conspiracy than that which was finally unravelled and 
 made manifest in the trial of the before entitled case. 
 All the details of the conspiracy were arranged with so 
 much shrewdness and with such plausable pretensions 
 that at times even those who had believed the efforts of 
 the alleged widow contestant to be fraudulent, began to 
 think they might be mistaken ; so appropriately did all 
 the details of proof, as arranged by the conspirators, 
 answer their purpose. The incidents attending the trial, 
 and the circumstances by which the designed fraud was 
 discovered, are in a condensed form detailed as follows : 
 
 A miserly mulatto, Joseph T. Lewis, for many years a 
 resident of Hoboken, N. J., died at his home in the 
 latter place in 1876, at the age of eighty-seven years. 
 He had been well known by his neighbors and by mon- 
 eyed men as wealthy ; he was something of a dandy in 
 his dress, affected to patronize art, and was a character 
 in his way. He left a will which provided, after paying 
 a few small legacies, the remainder of his estate, amount- 
 ing to over a million of dollars, should go to the United 
 States government, and by the latter be applied toward 
 the payment of the National debt. His African lineage 
 made him an earnest supporter of the north during the 
 war of the rebellion, which in connection with his hatred 
 of slavery that the war had abolished, was thought to 
 have been the incentive prompting this disposition of his 
 property. 
 
 29
 
 226 The Lewis Will Case. 
 
 The testator was shown, upon a thorough investigation 
 made by E. DeGilmore, to have no direct heirs, although 
 there were some claimants. On a careful search suggested 
 by letters and other papers found among his effects, 
 which were kept at the Manhattan Bank in the city of 
 New York, it was ascertained that he had corresponded 
 with persons living at Jamacia, West Indies, and thither, 
 as dispatched by the executors of the will, DeGilmore 
 went on a tour of research. Reaching his destination he 
 put himself in communication with a local lawyer by the 
 name of Nathan, and the latter on making inquiries took 
 him to see an aged and well-known negress, from whom 
 DeGilmore was enabled to get at the early history and 
 parentage of the deceased millionaire. It was ascer- 
 tained that Lewis was the son of a Hebrew by the name 
 of Joseph T. Levy, and his mother was Jane Wright, a 
 mulatto, who was also the mother of several other illegiti- 
 mate children by other parentage than Levy ; and it was 
 with these persons that Lewis had in the past corres- 
 ponded. DeGilmore also ascertained that Levy took 
 the testator when a boy to the city of New York, and 
 after giving him some education at school, that he bound 
 him as an apprentice to an engraver, giving to the boy 
 the name of Joseph T. Lewis. He became a resident of 
 Hoboken in 1820, and resided there until the time of his 
 death. In a short biography of Lewis published in the 
 New York Sun the following occurs : 
 
 " He dressed in well-fitting clothes and was scrupu- 
 lously neat. In one hand he carried a cane and under 
 his left arm was invariably a black umbrella on fine days 
 in winter and a yellow one in summer weather. A flower 
 usually decked his button hole in summer. He seems to 
 have had a few intimate friends, among them the gentle- 
 men named as his executors, and Herman Batjer, of New
 
 The Lewis Will Case. 227 
 
 York, and General Hatfield, of Hoboken, but he was a 
 mystery to them all. His conversation showed that he 
 had travelled in Europe and South America. He dis- 
 played some familiarity with art and was a member of the 
 National Academy of Design, and frequently was delighted 
 to do amateurs small favors in the way of tickets. He 
 was simple in his tastes and habits, but was not averse to 
 letting it be known that he could be a gourmand on occa- 
 sion. His opinions, shrewd and generally sound, were 
 always strongly and sometimes testily maintained. His 
 investments were almost uniformly successful, because he 
 was careful and methodical, and never speculated. He 
 never bought real estate. His whole fortune at his death, 
 over a million and a half of dollars, could be carried in 
 his hat." 
 
 The Lewis will had been drawn in the office of ex-At- 
 torney-General Gilchrist, and the latter was engaged by 
 the executors to sustain it ; the DeGilmore before alluded 
 to was a clerk in Gilchrist's office. Notice of the will 
 being contested having been served, the Chancellor 
 referred the matter to Master in Chancery See, of Jersey 
 City, to take testimony ; and while DeGilmore was at 
 Jamaica, W. I., getting the history of the testator, a puta- 
 tive widow, Jane H. Lewis, with her son Thomas, appeared 
 as one party contestant, with Thomas and John Carhart, 
 brothers, claiming to be nephews of the deceased, as 
 another contestant party ; and counsel also appeared to 
 represent the claims of the Jamaica parties. The claims 
 of the Carharts were very soon disposed of, and so were 
 those of the testator's half-brother and sisters, but those 
 of the pretended widow were not so easily put aside. 
 She was a woman about forty years of age, of respectable 
 appearance and carriage, and she told what seemed to be 
 an apparently plausible story as to who she was and where
 
 228 The Lewis Will Case. 
 
 she came from, although she declined to give her resi- 
 dence. She stated how she came to be acquainted with 
 Lewis, the details of his courtship and how at first she 
 rejected him and afterward accepted his proposals. She 
 produced a marriage certificate to sustain her allegation, 
 and this document, apparently regular on its face, pur- 
 ported to have been made and dated November 18, 1858. 
 This certificate stated that Jane Hastings and Joseph T. 
 Lewis were married according to the laws of the State of 
 New Jersey by Justice of the Peace Ethridge M. Fish. 
 The paper was signed by the latter, and, as it purported, 
 was witnessed by George Brown and George R. Brad- 
 ford, the latter testifying as to being at the wedding to 
 which the certificate referred. 
 
 The pretended widow supplemented the production of 
 the marriage certificate with a statement of how and why 
 she was compelled to separate from Lewis after living with 
 him about six months. She stated that he had deceived 
 her and disguised his African lineage by shaving off his 
 wool and wearing a wig, and that he used rouge to dis- 
 guise his complexion, and that he was cruel and unkind to 
 her. She produced one Schmidt, claiming to be a com- 
 mission merchant doing business at 181 Pearl street, New 
 York, who testified that he had seen her at the testator's 
 house in Hoboken, and that he had been introduced to her 
 bv Lewis as his wife, and there was other evidence of like 
 import. A New York lawyer named Caldwell testified 
 that he had frequently visited Lewis at his house and had 
 seen Mrs. Lewis there. This Caldwell further testified 
 that at onetime he had commenced proceedings on behalf 
 of Mrs. Lewis for a divorce, but that a settlement had 
 been made between the parties at his, Caldwell's, office. 
 The case of the pretended widow at this point seemed 
 so strong that R. W. Russell, counsel for the Jamaica
 
 The Lewis Will Case. 229 
 
 claimants, admitted that her position could not be 
 shaken. 
 
 This condition of the case as thus developed puzzled 
 the executors and they put a detective on her track, but 
 she so magician-like managed her coming and going that 
 it was some time before they were enabled to track her 
 to where she boarded. But it was finally discovered, and 
 also that she was in communication with one Marcus T. 
 Sarcia, who had been repeatedly charged with forgery. 
 Another fact was also ascertained that she was holding 
 communication with a Dr. Park, who, under the pretense 
 of learning the facts of Lewis' life for an article to be 
 published in Harper s Magazine, had been furnished as 
 much of its history as Joshua Benson of Hoboken, a 
 neighbor of Lewis, could give him. It was also ascer- 
 tained that Justice of the Peace Fish had, before his 
 death, moved to Iowa, and while there had been associa- 
 ted with Sarcia, at that time living there, and employed 
 in the office of the recorder of Pocahontas county. It 
 was proved that Sarcia had been seen to be employed in 
 tracing the signature of Fish by holding the paper against 
 the window pane. There was a large quantity of Sarcia's 
 writing at the recorder's office, and all who were familiar 
 with it gave it as their opinion that the pretended mar- 
 riage certificate was in the handwriting of Sarcia ; the 
 latter having left Iowa on account of the suspected for- 
 gery of some bonds. The son of Fish testified that the 
 signature to the marriage certificate was a forgery, and 
 not the handwriting of his father, and also, that the latter 
 was not a justice of the peace in 1858. 
 
 It was proved by the proponents, through the testimony 
 of Mr. Cassillear of the Bureau of Engraving at Wash- 
 ington, that the engraved plate from which the pretended 
 certificate of marriage was printed, had been altered in
 
 230 The Lewis Will Case. 
 
 1S62, and differed from the one used before that time. 
 In answer to this testimony the contestants produced 
 other marriage certificates printed from the same plate as 
 the one produced by the pretended widow, also dated in 
 1858, and they offered to prove by the registry of St. 
 Andrew's church, that persons married there in 1858, had 
 been given certificates printed from the same plate, and 
 they produced one Frank Fleet, who had such a certifi- 
 cate which had been witnessed by one William Arnoux. 
 The latter, Fleet, and Elijah Caldwell, testified to the 
 genuineness of the certificate which was dated in 1858, 
 and gave in apparently reasonable statements the circum- 
 stances attending the issuing of these marriage certifi- 
 cates. 
 
 While the trial was progressing the pretended widow 
 was asked by her counsel if she had any material evi- 
 dences in the way of tokens or relics to show that she 
 had ever lived with Lewis as his wife, and thereupon 
 Mrs. Isabella Harper, a boarding-house keeper, testified 
 to having in her possession an old pillow-case containing 
 a considerable quantity of old laces and scraps of silk, 
 which pillow-case and contents Mrs. Lewis had while 
 boarding with the deponent and which she had left there 
 when she went away. On request the deponent produced 
 the pillow-case before the master, and it was found to 
 have been marked in a good imitation of the deceased's 
 writing. Amongst other articles which the pillow-case 
 contained were several receipts for money paid for board 
 by the pretended widow, and these were signed by Mrs. 
 Harper's daughter. 
 
 The trial was a long one and over three thousand pages 
 of testimony were taken upon the subject of the marriage 
 alone, but every effort made by the proponents was met 
 by a countering one on the part of the contestants. It
 
 
 
 w 
 
 < 
 0- 
 
 ^ ^^ 3^ 
 
 •So 
 
 a in "& 
 
 gcE 
 
 ° * O 
 
 £_ & 
 
 »> — js 
 
 *-Sg 
 
 oxj S 
 
 5j w in 
 
 x J2.S 
 m ™ ^-> 
 
 D £ <u 
 
 -G cj.£ 
 
 _ <L> !> 
 
 (LI 
 
 PJ 
 
 D 
 
 o <= s 
 
 58.S 
 
 5 cu 
 
 a « "" 
 
 4J P3^ 
 
 *> «< S 
 
 o o o 
 
 .£5 G. 
 
 2-0 3 
 
 S "-" O 
 
 X 
 
 c *o 
 o rt a) 
 w bo 
 
 a. c^j
 
 ^ ^ 3K
 
 The Lewis Will Case. 231 
 
 was at this stage of the trial that Joseph E. Paine, of Brook- 
 lyn, then a well-known expert in handwriting, and since 
 deceased, was called into the case. On examining the 
 marriage certificate produced by the pretended widow, 
 and on comparing it as to the writing employed to fill it 
 in, with that of Sarcia, the expert pronounced it as his 
 opinion that all the writing on the certificate of marriage 
 other than the witnesses' signatures was that of Sarcia, 
 and from specimens of the latter's writing, which he pro- 
 cured to be photo-lithographed for the purpose, he pro- 
 duced the fac simile appearing upon Plates XIII and XIV, 
 the one furnished by the pretended widow being shown 
 at Plate XV. 
 
 About this time Frank Fleet, being taken very ill and 
 believing that he was about to die, made a confession 
 that he had been persuaded to swear falsely as to the 
 marriage certificate to which his name appeared as a wit- 
 ness. As the case was now attracting a great deal of 
 attention from the publicity given to it in the newspapers 
 among the persons attracted by the sensational char- 
 acter of the case to attend the trial, there was one who 
 thought he identified, in the pretended widow of Lewis, a 
 woman who had in 1874 personated a Mrs. Jennie Ham- 
 mond in proceedings for a divorce, instituted by a pre- 
 tended husband, in which a well-known gentleman of 
 wealth was named as co-respondent, with the object of 
 blackmailing the latter. This being communicated to 
 District Attorney Keasby he secured the attendance of 
 witnesses to identify the pretended widow of Lewis as 
 Mrs. Jennie Hammond. John Dos Passos, a lawyer of 
 good standing and respectability, and who had defended 
 the gentleman made the subject of the blackmailing suit, 
 on seeing the woman identified her positively as the one 
 who had personated Mrs. Jennie Hammond in the suit
 
 232 The Lewis Will Case. 
 
 alluded to, and his brother and clerk gave testimony of 
 like character. They produced her letters and corre- 
 spondence relating to the divorce suit. Matters had now 
 assumed such a shape that respectable counsel would no 
 longer act for her, or attempt to maintain her claims. 
 Within a short time after this false personation had been 
 proven she made a formal renunciation of her claims as 
 the widow of Lewis. She confessed the whole matter, 
 and stated that her real name was Lewis, and that she 
 had been persuaded to do what she had done in the mat- 
 ter under the direction of Dr. Park, and that he was the 
 chief conspirator. 
 
 There were nine persons indicted for their connection 
 with the attempted fraud, six of them were tried, con- 
 victed and punished by fine and imprisonment ; Dr. 
 Andrew F. Park receiving the longest term. The pre- 
 tended widow pleaded guilty and was used as a witness 
 against the others. The author in the compilation of the 
 foregoing facts is indebted largely to the Penman s Jour- 
 nal of New York City, edited by Daniel G. Ames.
 
 THE HUNTER WILL CASE. 
 
 Theodore Hunter was a bachelor farmer living near 
 Port Henry, Essex County, State of New York. He 
 employed a housekeeper named Anna Murray, who acted 
 as cook in preparing all the food he ate. There was also 
 employed about the house a young girl named Mary 
 Stanton. Hunter was taken suddenly ill with symptoms 
 of poisoning He had medical attendence, died suddenly 
 and was buried. Soon after his death, Anna Murray 
 offered what purported to be a will of Theodore Hunter 
 for probate, by which will with the exception of one 
 thousand dollars left to Sarah and Chilton Trimble each, 
 the remainder of the estate amounting to about twelve 
 thousand dollars was bequeathed to Anna Murray, who 
 was also made sole executrix. 
 
 After the burial of Hunter, relatives living in distant 
 parts of the State became suspicious, they had the body 
 of Hunter disinterred, an inquest was held, and Anna 
 Murray was arrested and indicted by the grand jury for 
 murder. An analysis of the stomach contents of the 
 deceased developed the presence of metallic arsenic in 
 quantity sufficient to have produced death. The chemical 
 analysis was made by Dr. William P. Mason of Rens- 
 selaer Polytechnic Institute. At the first trial of Anna 
 Murray it was proven that she had sent Mary Stanton to 
 buy arsenic, and the druggist refused to sell it. The 
 accused then sent a written order alleging that she wanted 
 to kill rats with it, the arsenic was given Mary Stanton on 
 the order, and she delivered it to Anna Murray; and 
 so
 
 234 The Hunter Will Case. 
 
 this occurred before Hunter was taken sick, and died. It 
 was also proven that prior to Hunter's death the accused 
 had called upon Mr. Stokes, a lawyer of Port Henry, and 
 asked him to prepare a draft of a will, which he did, 
 retaining a carbon copy when printing it on a typewriter. 
 It was also proven that the alleged will was with the 
 exception of the names therein mentioned a copy of that 
 which Anna Murray had obtained from Stokes. 
 
 Immediately after Hunter's death, Anna Murray filed 
 a petition for the probate of the alleged will. It was 
 contested by the heirs at law. Proceedings for taking 
 testimony were commenced May 18, 1891, and termi- 
 nated September 16, same year. The surrogate of 
 Essex county decided the alleged will to be a forgery, 
 but did not promulgate his decision until after the close 
 of the first trial of Anna Murray for murder. The jury 
 disagreed at the first trial of the accused and acquitted 
 her at the second trial. She had in the meantime been 
 indicted for forgery. The defense on the trials, proved 
 by the undertaker who had prepared Hunter's body for 
 burial, that he had used exteriorly upon the body a solu- 
 tion of arsenic, and this raised the question of doubt in 
 the minds of the jury, and they gave the prisoner the 
 benefit of it ; although such an external use of arsenic 
 could not account for the presence of metallic arsenic in 
 the stomach of the deceased. The people were repre- 
 sented by the district attorney of Essex county, A. K. 
 Dudley, and ex-Judge Smith of Elizabethtown, and the 
 defense by P. C. McRory, and Hand, Kellogg & Hall of 
 the same place. Evidence that the will was a forgery 
 and was done by Anna Murray, was introduced by the 
 people as establishing a motive. 
 
 Portions of the alleged will are shown in fac simile 
 upon Plate XVI and also fac simile representations of
 
 b£ "* 
 C t3 
 
 ■c £0 
 
 & O 
 
 
 <0 
 
 '5 as 
 
 l 
 4 
 
 ^ . ^ s 
 
 O j= ° 
 S3 T3 .S"0 
 
 P c cu o 
 
 1,1 '£ 3 .5 
 
 .5 .a 
 
 1) 
 
 1) 
 
 •" o o rt 
 
 "en bD O w 
 S" go 
 
 fe "2 I « 
 
 <u o >- .a 's 
 
 ■a S/rtJs 
 
 H 
 H 
 
 -J
 
 PLATE XVII— Fac similes of the genuine ^signature of , 
 Theodore Hunter and the forged signature to the alleged 
 will.
 
 The Hunter Will Case. 235 
 
 the signatures of Anna Murray, and upon Plate XVII 
 there are shown in fac simile the genuine signatures of 
 Theodore Hunter, and also the forged signature to the 
 will, the latter being that shown opposite the seal. 
 
 On examining the fac similes of Theodore Hunter's 
 writing, and comparing them with the forged signature, 
 the latter can hardly be said to be a simulation of the 
 genuine writing of Hunter in any other respect than as 
 to that resemblance which the writing of the same signa- 
 ture by different persons will have when compared. The 
 form of the letters is very different in the two writings, 
 and no effort appears to have been made to incorporate 
 into the forged signature the habitual forms of the genu- 
 ine by simulation. In the genuine signature of Hunter, 
 the habit of the writer is strong in its personality as to 
 the manner of producing the form of the letters com- 
 posing it ; while the details which characterize the 
 method of writing it are all wanting in the alleged sig- 
 nature to the will. Hunter wrote his name with oreat 
 uniformity, and marked peculiarity as to individual 
 habit, and the signature to the alleged will is so unlike 
 the genuine writing of Hunter as to hardly require an 
 expert eye to determine the forgery. But the question 
 to be considered is, did Anna Murray write it, and can 
 this be satisfactorily determined from the small amount 
 of her admitted writing accessible as standards for com- 
 parison ? 
 
 The alleged will contains the name of Anna Murray as 
 occurring in two places, and there are three admitted 
 signatures of hers from which to make the examination 
 and formulate an opinion. If, however, it can be found 
 to occur that Anna Murray wrote the body of the alleged 
 will by comparing her admitted writing with it, it will 
 very positively appear as a sequence that Anna Murray
 
 2^6 The Hunter Will Case. 
 
 ■3 
 
 wrote the forged signature from the very close resem- 
 blance appearing between the forged signature of Hunter 
 and the words Theodore Hunter occurring in the body of 
 the alleged will, and as appearing side by side upon 
 Plate XVI. 
 
 The words " Anna Murray" contain but seven letters 
 considered apart from their repetition, and hence com- 
 parative form can only be found to occur in the letters 
 " A," " n," " a," " Mur," and "y," from which to connect 
 the signature of Anna Murray with the writing of the 
 alleged will or the forged signature, and this would seem 
 but little material upon which to base an opinion with the 
 forms of but seven letters out of the twenty-six compos- 
 ing the alphabet found to occur in the signatures Anna 
 Murray used as standards. This condition renders the 
 chances of reaching an accurate conclusion as to the habit 
 of the writer based upon the form of the letters alone 
 very remote, from the evident fact that there are no let- 
 ters in the standards with which to compare a large 
 majority of those found in the body of the alleged will. 
 But if the admitted writing of Anna Murray be examined 
 microscopically, and the physical habit of the writer can 
 be determined from the details appearing in it, then all the 
 forms of the letters produced will indicate the habit of the 
 writer whether this habit was employed to make the forms 
 of letters appearing in the standards, or other forms 
 indicative of the same physical habit occurring in the 
 alleged will and signature. 
 
 On examining the signatures of Anna Murray as 
 standards to ascertain the physical habit of the writer of 
 them as to its individuality, very prominent conditions of 
 muscular coordination are manifested with distinct defini- 
 tion. These features are those which designate the 
 manner in which the pen was grasped and operated, and
 
 The Hunter Will Case. 237 
 
 upon which primarily all analysis of writing to determine 
 individual habit must be based, as the manner of produc- 
 ing the form of letters constitutes the habit, and the form 
 is but the sequence of a series of muscularly operated 
 coordinate acts producing it. When the admitted writing 
 of Anna Murray is studied analytically, and with its 
 details enlarged by the microscope, it appears that in all 
 the heavy down-strokes of letters where above the line on 
 which the writing is done, that there was a struggle 
 between the index finger which bore upon the outer 
 face of the pen as this finger curved inwardly towards 
 the palm of the writer's hand, and the thumb of the 
 latter against which the pen was thus moved down- 
 wardly and inwardly. It also appears that when dem- 
 onstratively produced in these downstrokes of the pen 
 it becomes manifested as an angularity, although it 
 does not always appear with the same measure of 
 emphasis. This detail prominently occurs in the letter 
 "A" of "Anna" in the upper signature illustrated in fac 
 simile upon Plate XVI, and in the same part of the letters 
 " M " of all the standard signatures. A close inspection 
 of these peculiarities shows that there accompanies their 
 production a rotation of the pen, and from the manner in 
 which the pen-splits delineate the movement as they are 
 shown to weave inwardly and outwardly while rotating it 
 is plainly manifested that the pen was held nearly vertical. 
 Finding these features to occur in all the heavy down- 
 strokes made by the pen above the line on which the 
 writing was done, another detail indicating this character 
 of pen-grasp is found to occur where period-form dots are 
 produced as parts of letters, and which, when examined 
 microscopically, indicate that they were produced by hold- 
 ing the pen nearly vertical and rotating it with its points 
 resting on the paper. One of these period-form dots
 
 238 The Hunter Will Case. 
 
 appears at the commencement of the letter ''A" in "Anna" 
 of the upper one of the signatures illustrated in fac simile, 
 and also at the termination of the "a" in "Anna" in the 
 upper and middle signatures, also in the crossing of the 
 "A" of the lower signature, also at the commencement of 
 the first "a" in "Anna" of the latter, and at the end of 
 the final "a "'in all the signature fac similes of Anna 
 Murray. 
 
 Continuing the analysis of the standard writing, it 
 appears that this rotation of the pen is found to occur 
 in all of the up-strokes of letters, and in the lines con- 
 necting the letters where tangential to the line on which 
 the writing is done. This rotation of the pen as a mani- 
 fested detail appearing in the standard writing could 
 only have been produced as it appears, by the thumb or 
 index finger of the writer, or by the combined action of 
 both, and to determine from which of these two factors 
 this impulse comes, the following details are apparent. 
 The heavy down-strokes show this peculiarity with more 
 emphasis than the up-strokes, and lines having an incli- 
 nation to the left contain the strongest phases of its 
 development, with the effect of the impulse more promi- 
 nently marked at the upper end of the down-strokes than 
 after the latter are continued down towards the line on 
 which the writing was done. This fact, taken in connec- 
 tion with that which establishes that the thumb must 
 have been the resisting member in all down-strokes where 
 evidence of a struggle appears, also indicates that the 
 thumb, instead of acting with adductor capacity harmoni- 
 ously with the index finger, impeded its incurving, and 
 caused the pen to roll along over its muscular cushion 
 on which the pen was held. 
 
 That the second finger of the writer's hand was a sub- 
 ordinate factor in the production of the standards, and per-
 
 The Hunter Will Case. 239 
 
 formed no function that is apparent, is easily determined 
 from the entire absence of all movements of the pen to the 
 left at the tops of letters ; thus indicating that the thumb 
 and index finger were the operating ones, and produced 
 all the individuality manifested in the writing. Having 
 thus ascertained the muscular factors which operated the 
 pen by which the standards were written and that it was 
 held nearly vertical, another characteristic is apparent in 
 the writing of them which indicates that the index finger 
 of the writer lay across the outer face of the pen, so that 
 it could cooperate with the thumb in making all the lat- 
 eral movement of the pen towards the right. This condi- 
 tion of pen-grasp is ascertained by the formation of the 
 curls at the commencement of the first "a" in "Anna" 
 in all of the standard signatures, the incurl or loop at the 
 tops of the letters "a" in "Anna," the loops at the bot- 
 tom of the letter " y " in "Murray" and the manner in 
 which the offthrow from the period-form dot at the 
 tops of the letters "r" is made tangent thereto. 
 
 Reaching these conclusions as to the habit of the 
 writer of the admitted signatures of Anna Murray, and 
 after giving a few of the more important features upon 
 which they are based, attention is now directed to the 
 forged signature of Theodore Hunter. 
 
 On examining microscopically the staff of the letters 
 " T," " h," " d " and " H " of the forgery in all of the heavy 
 down-strokes there is manifested the same rotation before 
 described as occurring in the standards. In addition to 
 the foregoing there is found at the bottom of the letter 
 " T " a period-form dot made by holding the pen vertically 
 and rotating it with its points resting on the paper ; and 
 this same period-form dot is found to occur in the letters 
 "o" of "Theodore" and at the termination of the "e" in 
 the latter, just as it occurs at the termination of the letter
 
 240 The Hunter Will Case. 
 
 " a " in " Anna " of the standards. The initial curl of the 
 letter "u" in "Hunter" is the counterpart in form and 
 details of production with that appearing at the com- 
 mencement of the "n" in "Anna" of all of the standard 
 fac similes, and at the end of the line crossing the letter 
 "t" in "Hunter" of the forgery there is a period-form 
 dot made by rotating the pen with the latter held verti- 
 cally. The "u" of "Hunter" is formed with its second 
 or right-hand member having more height and with a 
 more broadly-rounded top curve than its first member, 
 just as has the "n" in "Anna" in the fac similes upon 
 Plate XVI. The slant of the writing, the measure of 
 curve, as well as the character and dimensions of the let- 
 ters, the lines connecting the latter, and their spacing, 
 together with the degree of pen pressure, all indicate the 
 same conditions of physical habit in both the standards 
 and the forgery. 
 
 When the words "Anna Murray" as appearing in the 
 body of the alleged will and as illustrated in fac simile 
 upon Plate XVI are compared with the standard fac 
 similes appearing in column at the side of the others, all 
 the characteristics of the one are prominently apparent 
 in the other, and when examined microscopically they 
 become even more clearly established as the writing of 
 one and the same person and fully indicate that Anna 
 Murray wrote the alleged will and its forged signature. 
 The analysis leading to this conclusion extended into a 
 more specific study of this rotation of the pen than is 
 herein given, and it led to the determination that not only 
 did this detail occur in the forgery and the standards, but 
 in both writings it was attended by the same features as 
 to character and kind. 
 
 While in many cases signatures are not the best stand- 
 ards to determine the physical habit of a person as to
 
 The Hunter Will Case. 241 
 
 their writing other than signatures, in the case being con- 
 sidered the evidence appearing indicated that the writer 
 produced the alleged will with the same habit that she 
 did her signatures, and that the latter were written with- 
 out signature expression. In fact the writing habit of 
 the writer who produced the standards was so intensely 
 individual in character, that the staff of a single letter 
 written by her would contain strong evidences of its 
 authorship. 
 
 31
 
 THE DAVIS WILL CASE. 
 
 This case attracted a great deal of attention through- 
 out the country at the time of its being tried at Butte 
 City, Montana, in August, 1891, on account of the cir- 
 cumstances attending the production of the alleged will, 
 the great array of eminent counsel engaged in it, and the 
 large amount of the estate involved, which was estimated 
 at from seven to ten millions of dollars. Andrew J. 
 Davis, the alleged testator, was a native of the State of 
 Massachusetts, and was born in the year 18 19. In 1849, 
 under the influence of the excitement produced by the 
 discovery of gold in California he emigrated to the latter 
 State, and after a residence there of several years he 
 returned to the east without having accumulated any 
 thing. He lived several years in Indiana and Michigan, 
 and in 1858, he settled in Iowa, where he remained until 
 1 86 1, when he moved to Montana, At the time of leav- 
 ing Iowa, while having some money he was far from 
 being rich, but while residing in Montana he accumu- 
 lated money very fast by his mining and other ventures. 
 At the time of his death in 1890, his heirs (as he had 
 never married) were his brothers Erwin, Calvin, John A., 
 one sister, and the children of three deceased sisters. 
 
 About two years prior to his death he made his will, 
 which he deposited with Mr. Knight, cashier of a bank 
 at Helena, Montana, in which bank he was largely inter- 
 ested as a stockholder ; he making the cashier custodian 
 of his will. This latter will, in the presence of the cash- 
 ier, he destroyed about one year before his death, and it
 
 The Davis Will Case. 243 
 
 was proven on the trial by the cashier who drew the will 
 that the name of his brother, John A. Davis, was not 
 mentioned in it. It was also proved on the trial that 
 when the will was read over to him before signing it, he 
 remarked that it was useless to state therein that he 
 revoked all former wills made by him, as he had never 
 made any other will. Soon after the death of Andrew J. 
 Davis, his brother John A. Davis applied for letters of 
 administration upon the estate of his deceased brother 
 before the Probate Court at Butte City, Montana, mak- 
 ing oath that the deceased had made no will. This peti- 
 tion of John A. Davis was opposed by the nephew and 
 nieces of the deceased on the grounds of incompetency, 
 mentally and morally ; that the applicant had no responsi- 
 bility, that he had never been able to manage his own 
 business, was an imbecile and drunkard, and not fitted 
 for so responsible a trust. The Probate Court, however, 
 granted the petition, whereupon the contestants carried 
 the matter by appeal to the Supreme Court of the State ; 
 this court consisting of a chief justice and two associate 
 judges. This latter court sustained the decision of the 
 Probate Court below ; the chief justice dissenting in an 
 elaborate opinion as to the evidenced incompetency of 
 the petitioner, John A. Davis. As a majority of the heirs 
 resided out of the State while preparing to take it into 
 the United States courts, the alleged will was produced 
 by John A. Davis, was offered for proof, and became the 
 subject of contest. 
 
 The will offered by John A. Davis for probate, pur- 
 ported to have been made in Van Buren county, Iowa, 
 in 1866, some time after the alleged testator had 
 removed to Montana, and it singularly provided for the 
 life maintenance of T. J. and " Pet" Davis (natural chil- 
 dren of A. J. Davis) and their mother, Miss Burgett,
 
 244 The Davis Will Case. 
 
 stated in the alleged will as being "all of Van Buren 
 county, Iowa." and bequeathed all the remainder of the 
 estate to John A. Davis, the proponent, thus ignoring 
 the deceased's father and mother then living, and depend- 
 ent upon him for support, as well as his older sister of 
 whom he was very fond and who had cared for him in 
 childhood. It was proven on the trial that at the time 
 the alleged will purported to have been made, that Miss 
 Burgett had, in fact, been married some years, and with 
 her daughter had moved to Texas, a circumstance which 
 the contestants claimed A. J. Davis must have been cog- 
 nizant of, and the misstatement of the facts in the alleged 
 will was an evidence that it was not his act. The case 
 came on for trial before Judge McHatton and a jury at 
 Butte City, Montana, in July, 1891. 
 
 The proponents argued and introduced evidence to 
 prove that the alleged will was in the handwriting of Job 
 Davis, one of the witnesses to it ; the other witnesses 
 being James Davis and J. C. Sconce. The two witnesses 
 Job and James Davis were in no way related to Andrew 
 J. Davis, the alleged testator, and were both of them dead 
 at the time the will was produced and offered for probate. 
 Sconce's other witness was living, and it was on the trial 
 proved that he dallied with both sides of the controversy 
 as to being a witness to the probate of the alleged 
 will, and by his own evidence and cross-examination it 
 was drawn out of him that he had signed a contract with 
 the proponents, by which he was to receive a large sum 
 of money in case the will was sustained ; but to have a 
 liberal per diem in any event. As will subsequently 
 appear, it was proven by the chemical tests made of the 
 ink with which the signatures were written, and at the 
 instance of the proponents, that the signature of Sconce 
 as a witness to the alleged will was written with a differ-
 
 The Davis Will Case. 245 
 
 ent ink from that with which the other signatures were 
 produced, and it was proved by the testimony and the 
 appearance of the Sconce signature that it must have been 
 written at a different time from the others. 
 
 The alleged will was written upon a double sheet of 
 legal cap, which had all the appearance of having been 
 treated with a staining liquid of a coffee color before the 
 writing was done, in the fact that the microscope showed 
 the writing to be on top of the stain with none of the lat- 
 ter on top of the ink with which the document was written. 
 The paper had evidently been treated with a hot flat-iron 
 until it was almost charred in places, and a pot or kettle, 
 the bottom of which was covered with soot, had been 
 applied to the paper in two places to make an imprint 
 thereon, after the writing had been done. These two 
 imprints exactly coincided in measurement, indicating that 
 they were produced by the same implement, and from 
 their appearance it was plainly manifested that after one 
 imprint had been made upon one face of the document, it 
 was unfolded and another made upon a different part of 
 it. The ink with which the writing was done had settled 
 into the paper instead of appearing in relief upon it, the 
 latter condition being that which indicates age ; and the 
 manner in which the writing was manifested in this respect 
 determining it as recently written. Its color was a black, 
 slightly shaded into blue, with every feature indicating 
 that the ink with which it was produced was a modern 
 analine ink. According to the alleged date of the will it 
 was twenty-five years old, and yet the ink with which it 
 was written did not show any fading, and was as bright 
 and fresh as if done within a year. 
 
 The alleged will had been folded on the line in which 
 the date appeared, and this fold was not the first fold made 
 in it, as it did not register with the other fold lines, and
 
 246 The Davis Will Cask. 
 
 where thus first folded both sides of the paper had been 
 rubbed with a wet woolen rag embracing both of its sides 
 until the paper thereat had been balled up by the wetting 
 and rubbing, and particles of shoddy coming from the rag 
 were found adhering to it. This rubbing had been done 
 to such an extent as to make the date, with the exception 
 of the figures stating the year, quite obscure. Pin-holes 
 had been systematically punched through the paper on 
 which the alleged will was written, and this condition of 
 it was by the proponents proved to have been done by a 
 child who was playing with it some years after the will 
 had been made and executed ; but the fact was very plainly 
 manifested that at the time the alleged witness, Sconce, 
 signed the will the pin-holes were there, for the pen with 
 which he wrote caught in two places in them. While the 
 ink with which the alleged will was written showed no 
 evidence of having faded, according to the care the paper 
 had received, as proved by the proponents, it had been 
 subjected to the best possible conditions to cause it to 
 fade. The paper had been scalloped out at the edges as 
 if pinched out by the thumb and fingers, and these scal- 
 lops did not occur where handling or wear would have 
 been likely to have caused them, excepting in one instance. 
 The proponents introduced evidence to show that this 
 alleged will was found in the house of a Mrs. Downey in 
 Iowa ; she was the sister of the late Job Davis, one of the 
 alleged witnesses to the pretended will. It was also 
 proved by her that she suggested to her son James R. 
 Eddy, on hearing of the death of A. J. Davis without a 
 will, that there was a will of the deceased somewhere 
 about the house. This man Eddy was at the time of the 
 trial apparently about thirty years old, which would have 
 made him about five years old in 1866, at the time the 
 alleged will purported to have been made. He was
 
 The Davis Will Case. 247 
 
 accused by the contestants of having forged the will, 
 which when found was in his possession, and as his mother 
 testified, that on finding it he put himself in communica- 
 tion with John A. Davis. 
 
 The theory of the contestants as regards the ink with 
 which the will was written was that it was made from 
 nigrosine, a form of black analyne which was discovered 
 about 1870, and they proposed while their chemical expert 
 was in attendance to make a chemical test of the ink to 
 determine the fact ; but to this the proponents objected, 
 and the court sustained the objection. After the chemical 
 expert called by the contestants had returned to the east 
 and could not have reached Butte City in time to be pres- 
 ent at the testing of the ink, the proponents proposed 
 the making of it, and it was done in the presence of one 
 of the contestants' experts who was not a chemist. Hydro- 
 chloric acid, full strength, was applied to various parts 
 of the writing upon the alleged will and the witnesses' sig- 
 natures, and this reagent turned the ink red, the char- 
 acteristic reaction of this reagent when applied to logwood 
 ink, and to which the contestants' expert present assented. 
 But the fact that it turned the ink red, and this would 
 be the reaction it would have upon logwood ink, did 
 not fully establish the identity of the latter, for accord- 
 ing to the best chemical authority this same reaction would 
 have occurred were it made from analyne black (see 
 Allen's Commercial Organic Analysis, edition of 1889, 
 page 130). One fact, however, was established that if it 
 was a logwood ink as the proponents assumed to have 
 proven why it should have preserved its freshness when 
 the well-known character of logwood inks has long been 
 established as fugitive (see Bloxam's Chemistry, edition 
 of 1890, page 678). There was one fact developed by the 
 chemical test thus made, that the ink with which the sig-
 
 248 The Davis Will Case. 
 
 nature of the alleged witness Sconce was written, was 
 clearly demonstrated to be of a different kind from that 
 with which the other signatures were written. To have 
 made this test properly there should have been applied 
 to the ink acted upon by the hydrochloric acid a supple- 
 mental test by using ammonia, which if the ink was made 
 from logwood would have turned the red produced by the 
 hydrochloric acid to a deep purple. 
 
 Under a statute in force in Montana as interpreted by 
 the presiding judge all expert evidence as to matters of 
 opinion concerning the writing of the alleged signatures 
 of the witnesses or that of the testator, whether they were 
 tracings from other signatures or as to who wrote the 
 body of the instrument by comparison were industriously 
 excluded, but persons who had seen A. J. Davis write his 
 name many years before were considered competent wit- 
 nesses. The contestants were allowed to prove how 
 peculiarly wrong J. R. Eddy spelt the word "give," and 
 this and other individualisms of his writing in the alleged 
 will, but the jury were not allowed to see the writing of 
 Eddy for the purpose of showing that he wrote it, and to 
 contradict the proponents who had introduced evidence 
 to show that it was the writing of Job Davis. It will be 
 remembered in this connection that Eddy was a mere 
 child at the time the alleged will purported to have been 
 made and executed. 
 
 If the Legislature of Montana could have had in view 
 the effect of this statute as interpreted by the presiding 
 judge, that body must have had a very poor understand- 
 ing of jury intelligence in that State, and have considered 
 it much below the ancient standard of some hundred 
 years before, when the common-law rule became neces- 
 sary in the fact that juries then could not read or write, 
 for the Montana statute went even further than the com-
 
 ho 
 
 oj . 
 
 «> 
 
 ■so 
 
 *w 
 
 
 g • \ -W^ &*&& <f ad? ?Sg- /tyt^T >W f~»"S <?^ <h*y*/ ' tffatU 
 
 |o I ' (&&/ ' <£> (U^-et- //«m^ erf- ^ ^£^t J?^*£J -& 
 
 C? dcc*«>U*L GtSCOlSTsi/ erf* ' £&. ■■&C\ J^<i2i^-fc 
 j J8%tc4( erf? Cfo-Corcc,, 'frd**^ **t- ^T '*&&*&£>' 
 
 ttvv&t, sfrx, syne a-^iZ*^. <£***<£. <^e^2ji^^^e ^5te*<a&. 
 W fit, &> Qriff drfrt&fy. &*&%£ V- xJe^j/C^tjfc" 
 'fact*? ■fi6*A*ma£ crt fatfc*/ txf? ^t,v&6*£ cl? -e&cu£ 
 
 \^^a^4e ^^e^ueaZiC srusvu % 'C&*^c>&t. c^ *&r\ &it. 
 
 ijbtiOH£* ^^^tu^w /ot. lASi^ 
 
 PLATE XVIII.
 
 60 
 
 &< 
 
 <5 ^ 
 
 gw 
 
 ■2 ^ 
 
 Cu fr v£o 4~s} -4&4I?- 4vi& ^a^vcY &3-2&'~uW <&, VS^ S%i4i~*4. 
 
 jda*s<<L <*HZ*J<. Co C+^A, <**ty/ 'TV&&' '^<.>x& f &*&***&£ 
 
 
 
 VOASI^ 
 
 
 PLATE XIX.
 
 
 1 o 
 
 — 1 
 
 f Aw o 
 
 ~ 1 
 
 I v 2 
 
 3s ^ 
 
 11 \«>. 
 
 
 1 - 
 
 £. * 
 
 ! 1 «o 
 
 «to vS 
 
 1 *> 
 1 1 cf 
 
 *5 ^J 
 
 ' \ o 
 
 
 \ «^ 
 
 
 L 1 <U 
 
 
 V 1 o 
 
 X 
 w 
 
 H
 
 F&c-5in\iles from Will. ra.c-5inr\»le5 of Eddys writing 
 <?u>%. Pu^.. ^^ /n ^ cTt^y ^t^_ 
 
 PLATE XXI.
 
 The Davis Will Case. 249 
 
 mon-law rule, in the effect which the court in this case 
 held to be the purport of the statute. 
 
 After proving the scientific education and large experi- 
 ence of contestants' expert witnesses in handwriting when 
 asked if from any thing appearing in the signature of A. 
 J. Davis, they could tell how it was produced, on objec- 
 tion the question was excluded. No ingenuity of learned 
 counsel could propose any question bearing upon the 
 handwriting of the alleged will, as to proving the alleged 
 signature of the testator to be a traced signature (which 
 it very plainly was), on objection was excluded. Thus 
 there was no evidence submitted to the jury that would 
 aid them in reaching a conclusion upon such matters 
 relating to the writing concerning which they had no 
 experience, and about which they could not be expected 
 to have any. A person who had seen A. J. Davis write 
 his name many years before, was under the rule a compe- 
 tent- witness, and because the signature looked like that 
 of the testator as remembered, and without taking into 
 account that a forged signature must resemble that which 
 it purported to represent, such person would testify that 
 it was the genuine writing of A. J. Davis, and thus evi- 
 dence which was only calculated to mislead the jury was 
 all that was submitted to it under the statute as inter- 
 preted by the trial judge. The jury disagreed, seven of 
 them siding with the contestants and five with the pro- 
 ponents. 
 
 The alleged will was identified as first in the posses- 
 sion of James R. Eddy, and as to whether he wrote it is 
 best determined by an examination of the accompanying 
 fac similes of the writing of Eddy, when compared with 
 that occurring in the alleged will of A. J. Davis. Eddy 
 was a kind of will-maker for the people of the town 
 where he resided He did the work cheaply and prepared 
 32
 
 25° 
 
 1 in-; Davis Will Cask. 
 
 a number of wills for his townsmen, which came into the 
 possession of the contestants, and it is from one of the 
 latter that the fac similes representing Eddy's writing are 
 taken. Parts of the alleged will and parts of a will writ- 
 ten by Eddy for James Davis appear in fac simile upon 
 Plates XVIII, XIX and XX, illustrating this case and 
 
 Fac similes from alleged will of 
 A. J. Davis. 
 
 Or p fc f f* <F \h 
 (? v* <7 Ch /■ ^ 
 
 a- 
 
 Fac similes of J. R. Eddy's 
 writing. 
 
 <yi^l ^yC^i ^4^14 
 
 G&z) (in)) 
 
 fc IP or <y ftf 
 
 PLATE XXII. 
 
 on which plates the writing is shown in reduced size. 
 On Plates XVIII and XIX and upon Plate XX, in the 
 same size as the originals, there are illustrated in accurate 
 fac simile, two lines from the alleged A. J. Davis will and 
 two lines from another will drawn by Eddy, and also in
 
 The Davis Will Case. 251 
 
 the same size as the originals, fac similes of the witnesses' 
 signatures and that of the testator to the alleged will of 
 A. J. Davis. Upon Plates XXI and XXII there are 
 shown specimens of the writing of Eddy taken from other 
 wills drawn by him, arranged in column, and in another 
 column fac similes of the same words as occurring in the 
 alleged will of A. J. Davis. 
 
 The signature of A. J. Davis to the pretended will is 
 plainly a tracing from its want of shading emphasis, the 
 sameness manifested in the pen pressure, the frequent 
 pauses made by the writer when inking over the lead- 
 pencil lines of the tracing, and the presence of the latter 
 where not covered by the ink, showing a slow and studied 
 movement which occurs in all traced signatures. 
 Although the fact of its being a traced signature did not 
 necessarily call for its comparison with genuine writing of 
 A. J. Davis to determine it, and could be ascertained by 
 an examination of the signature, yet proof this kind as to 
 itself being a traced signature was objected to, and the 
 objection was sustained by the court. 
 
 A very carefully-made analysis of the writing of the 
 alleged will, and also the writing of Eddy very positively 
 identified them both as the product of one and the same 
 individual habit, and so plainly that the chances of being 
 mistaken were too remote to be taken into account when 
 formulating an opinion in regard to it. 
 
 For the Proponents, J. M. Woolwarth, Omaha. 
 
 W. F. Sanders, Helena, Montana. 
 
 H. W. Dixon, Butte, Montana. 
 
 W. Kirkpatrick, Butte, Montana. 
 
 H. H. Trimble, Keokuk, Iowa. 
 For the Contestants, R. I. Ingersoll, New York City. 
 
 Nathaniel Myers, New York City. 
 
 E. W. Toole, Helena, Montana.
 
 252 The Davis Will Case. 
 
 For the Contestants, I. B. Clayberg, Helena, Montana. 
 
 Robinson & Stapleton, Butte, Mon. 
 D. H. Payne, Iowa. 
 
 Statutes of the State of Montana Relating to 
 Expert Testimony, 1887. 
 
 Section 105, page 526: Persons of skill shall be com- 
 petent witnesses to prove that such bill or note is forged 
 or counterfeited. 
 
 Section 617, page 223: A witness can testify of those 
 facts only which he knows of his own knowledge — that 
 is, which are derived from his own perceptions — except 
 in those few express cases in which his opinions, or infer- 
 ences, or the declarations of others are admissible. 
 
 Section 300, page 460 : Persons of skill, or experts, may 
 be called to testify as to the genuineness of a note, bill, 
 draft, certificate of deposit, or other writing ; but three 
 witnesses at least shall be required to prove the fact, 
 except in case of larceny thereof. 
 
 Section 635, page 225 : When the characters in which 
 an instrument is written are difficult to be deciphered, or 
 the language of the instrument is not understood by the 
 court, the evidence of persons skilled in deciphering the 
 characters, or who understand the language, is admissible 
 to declare the characters or the meaning of the language.
 
 THE GORDON WILL CASE. 
 
 The Gordon will, coming to light as it did apparently a 
 concomitant of the prevailing epidemic conditions which 
 led to the appearance of the Davis will in Montana, and 
 the Dempsey will in New Jersey, after the long rest of 
 years during which these documents purported to have 
 slept in each instance, caused it to attract a great deal of 
 attention from these conditions of its emergence apart 
 from any other. Whether the appearance of what pur- 
 ported to be in the one instance the discovery of a long 
 lost document had prompted the appearance of the 
 others, or the surroundings attending the coming to light 
 of the alleged Davis will, and the pretended Gordon will 
 prompted the search which led to the finding of the 
 Dempsey will, the facts of their appearance within a short 
 time of each other, and the circumstances of their 
 assumed age remained the same even if the suggestions 
 prompting the details attendant upon their resurrection 
 were alike or different. Upon the trial of the Gordon 
 will case before the Ordinary in New Jersey, the follow- 
 ing facts were established as to its history and the adju- 
 dication promulgated in regard to its character : 
 
 George P. Gordon died at Norfolk, Va., January 27, 
 1876. He was at the time of his death well known as an 
 inventor and manufacturer of printing presses, from 
 which he realized profits, and he accumulated a large 
 estate. He left a widow, Leonora M. Gordon, and a 
 daughter, Mary Agnes Gordon, by a former wife. Gor- 
 don made a will which was dated July 26, 1873, and
 
 254 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 which when presented for probate before the surrogate of 
 Kings county, New York, was contested by the widow and 
 daughter, and rejected by the surrogate, Henry J. Cullen. 
 The latter was appointed temporary administrator, and 
 subsequently, on May I, 1878, administrator of the estate of 
 Gordon. An attempt was made by the beneficiaries of 
 the rejected will, other than the widow and daughter, to 
 have the surrogate grant another trial after the rejection 
 of the will, but on submitting their new proofs the sur- 
 rogate did not deem them sufficient to grant a rehearing, 
 and the estate of George P. Gordon was settled as that 
 of an intestate. The widow and daughter taking the 
 estate from which, by disposition made through the trus- 
 tees Henry Cullen and Josiah Porter, the contestants, 
 received a share, amongst whom was Adeline J. Gordon, 
 one of the proponents of the pretended resurrected will. 
 The widow, Leonora M. Gordon, died in December, 1890, 
 and Mary Agnes Gordon, the daughter of George P. 
 Gordon by a former wife, died in Paris in the spring of 
 1890, leaving a last will and testament by which she de- 
 vised the bulk of her estate to Pauline Theresa Reitz and 
 Samuel De Ruyssenaer, who with others became con- 
 testants of the alleged George P. Gordon will. 
 
 On the presentation of the will of the daughter, Mary 
 Agnes Gordon, for probate before the surrogate of New 
 York county, it was contested by the next of kin, and is 
 still unsettled. The contest over this will of Mary 
 Agnes Gordon attracted considerable attention and notice 
 in the daily papers, particularly an article relating to it 
 which appeared in the New York Evening Telegram, 
 entitled " Battling for a Fortune," which meeting the eyes 
 of one Henry G. Adams as it appeared in proof, induced 
 him to write to the attorneys of the contestants of the Mary 
 Agnes Gordon will, Messrs. Black & King of New York
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 255 
 
 City, informing them that if they would meet him at a 
 time and place appointed " bringing no brass band, fife 
 or drum," that he could tell them something worth know- 
 ing. On meeting Adams the latter informed these attor- 
 neys that he, Adams, had a copy of a will which he had 
 drawn for George P. Gordon, the original of which the 
 latter had executed, and if the original could not be 
 found, they could, from the copy and by him, prove its 
 contents as that of the lost will. This proposition to 
 attempt the proving of a lost will the attorneys did not 
 like, and they urged him to make search for the original, 
 which Adams assumed to do, and it resulted in his pro- 
 ducing the pretended long slumbering original, finding it, 
 as he alleged, in the house of his brother at Rahway, N. 
 J., which had been formerly the residence of his father. 
 
 This alleged will of George P. Gordon, bearing date 
 July 28, 1868, was admitted to probate by the Ordinary 
 upon the petition of Adeline J. Gordon, on January 16, 
 1 89 1, without notice to the representatives of the estate 
 of the widow, Leonora M. Gordon, or those of the daugh- 
 ter, Mary Agnes Gordon, the only immediate family rep- 
 resentatives of George P. Gordon having died before the 
 alleged will was produced for probate. Soon as the pro- 
 bate was published, by filing the ancillary probate of the 
 instrument in Kings county, New York, application was 
 made to the chancellor to revoke the probate, by W. 
 W. Olds, executor of the widow, Leonora M. Gordon, 
 and Henry J. Cullen, administrator of the estate of 
 George P. Gordon, on the ground : First. That George 
 P. Gordon was not at the time of his death a resident 
 of the State of the State of New Jersey; and secondly, 
 that the instrument purporting to be the last will and 
 testament of George P. Gordon was a forgery. Upon 
 these proceedings the Ordinary directed the probate
 
 256 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 to be made in solemn form, and testimony was taken 
 on the two points submitted by the contestants during 
 the year 1S92. 
 
 After a prolonged trial and the taking of a great deal 
 of testimony, and after months of consideration, the 
 Ordinary rendered his opinion, non-concurring as to 
 the question of jurisdiction raised by the contestants, 
 but sustaining their second point that the will was a for- 
 gery, and the work of Henry G. Adams. For the fore- 
 going history of the case the author is indebted to Theo- 
 dore F. Miller, Esq., of New York City, of counsel for 
 the contestants. 
 
 Upon Plate No. XXIII there is produced in fac simile 
 the signature of George P. Gordon, in connection with 
 the last three lines of the disputed will, and upon Plate 
 No. XXIV there are shown in fac simile formally pro- 
 duced signatures of George P. Gordon, written about 
 the same time as the date of the pretended will, and 
 upon Plate No. XXVI there are shown in fac simile 
 informally written signatures of George P. Gordon. 
 
 Upon examining the writing of Gordon as appearing 
 in his admittedly genuine signatures to business letters, 
 and his more formally written signatures to checks and 
 papers of importance, while to the educated eye they are 
 all typical of the same habit, they manifest some features 
 of difference as to the form of the letters, which to the 
 ordinary observer might be misleading, particularly where 
 the general appearance of the writing furnishes the only 
 field into which the examination can go for comparison. 
 That there are resemblances in the form of so^rne of the 
 letters when the genuine signatures of Gordon are com- 
 pared with the disputed signature is very plain ; but the 
 disputed signature contains forms which have no resem- 
 blance to corresponding parts of Gordon's writing apart
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 257 
 
 o 
 
 60 
 
 X 
 
 X 
 
 H 
 «U 
 
 -J 
 a, 
 
 33
 
 258 
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 <&*&&, 
 
 -j * r 
 
 <J/£^3^<7t^ 
 
 PLATE XXIV — Fac similes of formally written genuine signatures of Geo. P. 
 
 Gordon to checks.
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 259 
 
 V^. <J ^V/T^w 
 
 PLATE XXVI — Fac similes of informally written signatures of Geo. P. 
 Gordon to letters.
 
 2oo The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 from that resemblance which the same letters will have, 
 when written in the same connection by different persons. 
 In view of these conditions the question suggests itself: 
 Are these like features the genuine writing of Gordon, 
 and the unlike portions of the disputed signature his 
 writing done under abnormal conditions of production, 
 or are the like portions of the signature in dispute simu- 
 lations, and the unlike features the interpolations of 
 another habit of writing, and that of the simulator of the 
 like parts? 
 
 Understanding it to be a fact developed by experi- 
 ence, that persons, affixing their names as a voluntary 
 act to papers of importance, where it is essential that the 
 personality of the writer should be represented by the 
 signatures, will write the latter .formally and habitually; 
 and when signing so important a document as a will, that 
 this generally accepted rule is applicable ; and knowing 
 also, when writing is done under the influence of any 
 excitement, abnormal conditions or want of muscular 
 control of the pen, there will be manifested evidences of 
 such an influencing cause apparent in the signature ; the 
 fact whether such conditions were present when writing 
 the questioned signature can be very positively deter- 
 mined by an examination of it. This disputed signature 
 when studied by an educated or uneducated eye presents 
 no appearance indicative of being hastily written, or that 
 the writer, at the time of producing it, was laboring under 
 any nervous want of muscular control; on the contrary, 
 there is a total absence of every thing indicating such 
 a condition. Hence the features manifested in it which 
 bear no resemblance to Gordon's writing cannot have 
 their origin under the operation of such a cause. The 
 fact is also apparent that the variations which are found 
 to occur when the informally written signatures of Gor-
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 261 
 
 don are compared with those formally produced by him, 
 all of them are typical of each other as to the muscular 
 coordination writing them, and the features which make 
 the disputed signature differ from the admittedly genuine 
 writings of Gordon are totally unlike the differences occur- 
 ring between the latter when they are compared. An- 
 other fact also becomes apparent in this connection 
 wherein the features of form occurring in the disputed 
 signature are not typical of the same muscular coordina- 
 tion as those appearing in the genuine signature of Gor- 
 don in their like or unlike features. Sustaining- the 
 position thus made apparent that the unlike features of 
 the questioned signature were not written by Gordon, 
 there is another fact established by experience by which 
 it is demonstrated, that abnormal conditions of nervous 
 capacity on the part of the writer, when occurring between 
 the powers to will and to do, tend rather to make more 
 emphatic those peculiarities which give individual char- 
 acter to the signature, than to the production of new 
 forms, and on an examination of the disputed signature 
 those features of it other than those of resemblance do 
 not appear as emphatic manifestations of that which is 
 habitual with Gordon. 
 
 The features of resemblance which are found to occur 
 when the disputed signature is compared with the ad- 
 mittedly genuine writing of Gordon, relate entirely to the 
 form of parts of letters, and not to the manner of pro- 
 ducing this form. Thus parts of the letters " G" of the 
 questioned signature resemble in a small measure some of 
 the informally written signatures of Gordon, although 
 when compared with those of the latter formally pro- 
 duced, this little resemblance becomes lost in a greater 
 measure of difference. There are no formally or infor- 
 mally produced letters " G " appearing in Gordon's writing
 
 262 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 wherein the densely shaded bottom and terminal curls 
 occur, which are so prominently manifested in the disputed 
 signature ; in fact, there does not appear in either the 
 formally or informally written signatures of Gordon a 
 single letter " G " making even an approach to this feature 
 so demonstratively manifested in the questioned signature. 
 
 In all the formally written signatures of Gorden to 
 checks, the letters " G " are uniformly produced by two 
 distinct efforts of the pen made disconnectedly and sepa- 
 rately. As shown upon Plate No. XXV, where one of 
 the letters "G" of Gordon's writing is illustrated in fac 
 simile and designated at " I," and one of the letters " G " 
 of the disputed signature is also illustrated in fac simile 
 and designated at " D," the one taken from the disputed 
 signature is made by one continuous stroke of the pen, 
 and the other by first forming the body-part indicated at 
 "a," and then raising the pen from off the paper to return 
 it and make the downwardly curved finishing stroke indi- 
 cated by the dotted line " d ; " and not a single formally 
 written signature of Gordon's to a check could be found 
 from out of a very large number, produced in any other 
 way, although in the informally written signatures of 
 Gordon the letter " G" often appears as made by one con- 
 tinuous effort of the pen, and without raising it until the 
 letter was completed. 
 
 The curl at the termination of the letter " n " in the 
 disputed signature is very bunglingly done as a simula-
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 26 
 
 
 
 tion of that appearing in the genuine signatures of Gor- 
 don, and as manifested in the questioned signature it 
 indicates how very difficult it is to copy a form which is 
 in keeping with the habit producing it, by the use on the 
 part of the simulator of an entirely different habit of 
 writing. In the genuine Gordon writing, from the ter- 
 minal " n " a broad curve extends downwardly to the 
 right, and therefrom in lineal projection curves upwardly 
 to be finished by a down-stroke of the pen forming a 
 loop ; the down-stroke of the pen thus actuated crossing 
 the bottom curve near its vertical center at the base-line 
 and in close proximity to the body-part of the letter " n," 
 while in the disputed signature there is extended from the 
 letter " n " a nearly straight line inclining upwardly to the 
 right, and the heavily-shaded down-stroke of the pen 
 intersects the up-stroke at a point horizontally in line 
 with the top of the " n " instead of at the bottom, as in 
 the genuine signatures of Gordon when formally written ; 
 thus making this terminal in a manner that was com- 
 patible with the writing habit of the simulator, but very 
 different in form from its production when written by 
 Gordon's habit. 
 
 The cap forming the top of the letter " P " in the dis- 
 puted signature is made angularly in its lateral projec- 
 tion, and is finished with a heavily-shaded curl, while in 
 the admitted writing of Gordon no such angularity or 
 heavily-shaded curl appears. In the disputed signature 
 the letter " o " appears three times, and in each instance 
 of its occurrence it is made with a dot or period-form fin- 
 ish at the upper end of the final up-stoke of the pen, with 
 the latter rotated half a turn while bearing on the paper, 
 before the line connecting the letters "o" with a succeed- 
 ing letter is commenced. In the genuine writing of Gor- 
 don the tops of the letters " o " are uniformly left open,
 
 264 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 without any apparent pen movement to close the top 
 while finishing the up-stroke, all the closing effort occur- 
 riner at the commencement of the initial downstroke of 
 these letters. The letters " e," " r," and in a measure the 
 letter " d," as retouched by the pen show the best fea- 
 tures of resemblance, and in connection with that appear- 
 ing in parts of the letters " G," is all there is of likeness 
 to the genuine writing of Gordon, unless the bunglingly- 
 made curl at the end of the letter " n " may be said to 
 form a part of it. These conditions so very posi- 
 tively indicated in the disputed signature show that where 
 it differs from the admitted writing of Gordon, it does not 
 manifest such variation from the latter in the same manner 
 that the genuine signatures of Gordon do when compared 
 with each other. These features of difference so apparent 
 in the disputed signature tend to the conclusion that it was 
 not written by Gordon, but by some other person who 
 was capable of simulating parts of his writing as to form, 
 but had not the capacity to produce simulation of all of 
 its parts. 
 
 Pursuing the examination more in detail as to the com- 
 parative form of the letters, and their like and unlike 
 features when compared with the genuine writing of Gor- 
 don, it appears that the capital letters in the disputed 
 signature are made much shorter in length and relative 
 proportion to the remaining letters composing the signa- 
 ture, than occurs when the capitals appearing in the 
 genuine writing of Gordon are compared with the 
 remaining letters of the signatures as to length. In the 
 formally written signatures of Gordon the capitals have, 
 with the exception of the letter " P," about four times the 
 length of the other letters, while in the disputed signa- 
 ture the capitals have but twice the length of the others. 
 In the genuine writing of Gordon, the letters "G" are
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 265 
 
 about twice the length of the letter " P," while in the dis- 
 puted signature the letters " G" and the letter " P " have 
 about the same length. These differences, as will subse- 
 quently appear, become important when determining the 
 differing muscular habits of the writers, and the manner 
 of forming these letters is the subject of analysis. 
 
 The foregoing description of differences and resem- 
 blances when the two writings being examined are com- 
 pared mainly relate to the form of the letters, their 
 general appearance and such features as tend to give pic- 
 torial character to the writing, and not to those minutely 
 manifested details which determine the physical habit 
 exercised to produce them. When comparison is made as 
 to general appearances there is something wanting in the 
 disputed signature to have it make the same impression 
 upon the eye as do the admitted signatures of Gordon in 
 this respect. Undoubtedly this effect in a measure origi- 
 nates from the bungling manner and studied effect which 
 the terminal curl of the letter " n " manifests itself, and the 
 absence of a copied proportion between the length of the 
 capitals and other letters so very strongly characteristic 
 of Gordon's formally written signatures. This measure of 
 indicated difference between the writings when compared 
 was very aptly described by Expert Carvalho when he 
 stated that "the disputed signature lacked the life of the 
 ones written by Gordon." 
 
 Where two widely differing habits of writing are em- 
 ployed to produce the same form of signature, one of 
 them being that of the writer who produces the signature 
 habitually, and the other that of one making a simulation 
 of it, that signature produced by the latter will have 
 features incorporated into it (where not within the capac- 
 ity of the simulator's habit) which will tend to limit the 
 measure of imitation, and the signature produced habit- 
 
 34
 
 266 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 ually will show in the forms of the letters that the latter 
 in their delineation are in keeping with, and indicative of 
 the habit exercised to write them. This condition will, 
 as exemplified by analysis, be found to be strikingly 
 manifested by the contrast apparent between the writings 
 now being examined, where certain interpolations of the 
 simulator's habit are used in place of those appearing in 
 the genuine signature, from the fact that the simulator 
 could not make them as they occur in the latter. 
 
 When the disputed signature to the alleged will is 
 examined analytically as to the habit of the writer pro- 
 ducing it, and by the use of the microscope it appears 
 that the pen of the person writing it was grasped by the 
 muscular functions of the fingers and thumb, and as thus 
 held was operated by the flexure of these factors. When 
 the genuine writing of Gordon is examined by the same 
 means and method of analysis, it is found to appear that 
 Gordon grasped the pen with the prehensile muscular 
 functions of the hand, and operated it when writing by the 
 forearm movement, the hand resting lightly upon the table, 
 as moved over the latter back and forth with the concav- 
 ity of the pen facing the writer's palm. Thus two very 
 differine habits of writing are made manifest when the one 
 by which the disputed signature was produced is compared 
 with that occurring in the admitted writing of Gordon. 
 In the formally written signatures of the latter there is 
 shown but little shading emphasis, and the pen is moved 
 over the paper to form the signature without any flexure of 
 the fingers and thumb, the little shading manifested being 
 apparent in such parts of letters as could be produced by 
 pressure of the whole hand instead of by flexure of the 
 fingers and thumb. In the disputed signature there is 
 strongly marked shading, as indicated by the posi- 
 tion of the pen-splits producing it, and this was caused
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 267 
 
 ' by the flexure of the fingers and the thumb at their joints. 
 Not only is this fact apparent, but the shading occurring 
 in the questioned signature is very plainly marked with 
 individual peculiarity as will subsequently appear when 
 the analysis is proceeded with. Every pen movement 
 manifested in the disputed signature shows that the pen 
 was held with its concavity facing the right, and this 
 caused the left-hand one of the pen-splits to make a 
 deeper furrow in the paper than the other when forming 
 the standards and curves of letters. Not only is this 
 feature apparent, but all the curves indicate in their for- 
 mation that they were made by the flexure of the fingers 
 and thumb as moved around the pivotal point of the pen- 
 grasp, and of which, were the ellipse completed, the curve 
 produced would form an arc. 
 
 As the analysis extends into a minute examination of 
 the details of physical habit appearing in the genuine sig- 
 nature of Gordon and also that of the writer of the dis- 
 puted signature, the development of two different habits 
 become more positively established. One of the most 
 important differences is that in which the shading em- 
 phasis of the letters "eo" and " ordon," of the disputed 
 signature become strongly individual in its character. 
 This feature so prominently evidenced as a part of the 
 writer's habit which produced the disputed signature, is 
 manifested where the pen is moved under the action of 
 the finger impulse against the inwardly turning thumb 
 towards the palm of the writer's hand, to form the heavily- 
 shaded wedge-form down-strokes of the pen, and where 
 just before reaching the bottom of the letters other than 
 capitals, the inwardly directed flexure of the fingers was 
 resisted by the thumb in its adductor movement, calling 
 for an increased measure of finger impulse to overcome 
 this resistance of the thumb, and thus producing an irregu-
 
 268 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 larity or jog in the writing which is plainly manifested ' 
 when the latter is magnified and examined as a trans- 
 parency In other words, when the fingers had curved 
 inwardly as far as the thumb could in its adductor function- 
 act comfortably as positioned, the thumb resisted the 
 downward movement of the pen just before completing 
 the down-stroke, and thus called for a more emphatic 
 pressure on the part of the incurving fingers to complete 
 the pen act, the effect of this want of harmonious action 
 at this point, being the before mentioned irregularity or 
 ioo-. In the genuine writing of Cordon there is no evi- 
 dence of any flexure of the fingers or thumb at all, and 
 consequently no such detail. 
 
 To follow up minutely and describe all the differences 
 produced by the simulator's habit as compared with that 
 appearing as the habit of Gordon, would hardly seem im- 
 portant or even necessary, so thoroughly are the promi- 
 nent features of the two writings distinctly manifested, 
 and recognizing the fact that when a person makes a copy 
 of the signature of another, that the simulator is necessi- 
 tated to use the pen habitually to have it obey the will 
 and retain its capacity to imitate, and that the simulator 
 cannot assume the physical habit of another person, it 
 follows that with two differing physical habits of writing 
 manifested in the signatures being examined, they cannot 
 be the work of the same person. 
 
 As a summary of this analysis it appears in the writing 
 of the disputed signature that the pen was held and 
 operated by a coordination of muscular factors which were 
 entirely different from that shown to have been employed 
 in producing the genuine signatures of Gordon. That 
 this difference in muscularly applied function resulted in 
 typifying all the parts of the disputed signature (whether 
 alike or unlike Gordon's writing in form and general
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 269 
 
 appearance), with details which belonged to the simu- 
 lator's habit, and were totally unlike the characteristics of 
 Gordon's habit. That the incorporation of the heavily- 
 shaded curls at the bottoms of the letters " G " of the dis- 
 puted signature were produced habitually because the 
 broad curves of these letters as made by Gordon were 
 not within the finger and thumb flexure capacity of the 
 writer of the disputed signature. That the difference in 
 the comparative length of the capitals as a feature of 
 difference was necessitated from the limited flexure 
 capacity of the thumb and fingers of the simulator. That 
 the wedge-form given to the shading appearing in the 
 simulation not only established very positively its pro- 
 duction by flexure but gave rise to the formation of a 
 detail which indicated a want of harmonious action 
 between the flexure functions of the simulator's hand that 
 was strongly personal in its character, and, finally, that 
 there is nothing apparent in the disputed signature to in- 
 dicate that it was written by the same person who wrote 
 the admittedly genuine signatures of Gordon. That even 
 the simulated parts when examined as to the manner in 
 which they were formed show very positively that their 
 production was accomplished by some other person than 
 the writer of the genuine Gordon signature. 
 
 One of the important conclusions reached as to the 
 signature of George P. Gordon to the pretended will by 
 the authority officially invoked to determine its validity, 
 was that in addition to its being a forgery, that the 
 latter was the work of Henry G. Adams, the man who 
 found the instrument on which Gordon's name as tes- 
 tator appears, and who admitted that he wrote the 
 body of it. Without going into a recital of the moral 
 evidence which was taken upon the trial of the case, 
 and which tended to confirm the conclusion reached,
 
 270 
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 the following facts appear when the writing of Adams 
 (the man charged with forging it) is compared with the 
 forced signature of Gordon to the pretended will, together 
 with the signatures of the alleged witnesses to the latter, 
 and when the names of these persons appearing as wit- 
 nesses are compared with their genuine writing. 
 
 Upon Plate No. XXVII there are shown in fac simile 
 the signatures of the pretended witnesses, and that of 
 the forged signature of George P. Gordon to the alleged 
 will. Upon Plate No. XXVIII there are shown in fac 
 simile, in connection with the signatures of the pretended 
 witnesses, a part of the alleged will, the latter being 
 admitted to be the handwriting of Henry G. Adams, the 
 man charged with the forgery, and upon Plates XXIX, 
 XXX and XXXI there are shown in fac simile, genuine 
 signatures of the persons whose names appear as wit- 
 nesses to it. 
 
 /&«*%, c^A 
 
 €k*A*sf 
 
 PLATE XXVII. — Fac simile signatures of the pretended witnesses and the 
 forged signature of Geo. P. Gordon.
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 271 
 
 V 
 
 K 
 
 \ 
 
 V 
 
 &
 
 2 7 2 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 
 
 /(Uccn^f *fifaLi*€^f 
 
 PLATE XXIX.- Fac similes of the genuine signatures of Henry Adams, one 
 of the alleged witnesses.
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 
 j^.fl*J£*zJ 
 
 '-#*"■# 
 
 
 
 273 
 
 PLATE XXX. — Fac similes of genuine signatures of A. C. P. Adams, one of 
 
 the alleged witnesses. 
 
 35
 
 274 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 PLATE XXXI. — Fac similes of genuine signatures of John Q. Adams, one of 
 the alleged witnesses. 
 
 The question presented in view of the conclusion 
 reached by the court as to the character of the alleged will 
 and its authorship, independently of the moral evidence 
 produced as affecting - the matter at issue, becomes: 
 What is there in the forged signature of George P. Gor-
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 275 
 
 don to the pretended will, the writing of the latter, and 
 that appearing in the writing of the names appended as 
 witnesses, which indicates that they are all the writing of 
 one and the same person ? With the forged signature 
 of Gordon to the alleged will, and the pretended signa- 
 tures appended to it as witnesses, arranged in close prox- 
 imity, as illustrated in fac simile upon Plate No. XXVII, 
 the general appearance of the writings seems to be the 
 same in all of them. There is manifested the same slant, 
 ellipticity of curve, the same measure of pen pressure ; 
 and when the habitually written parts of the signatures 
 as to form are dissected out and compared with each 
 other and the writing of Henry G. Adams in the body of 
 the pretended will, the likeness becomes very strong in 
 delineation. 
 
 When the writing illustrated in fac simile parts of 
 the alleged will appearing upon Plates No. XXIII and 
 XXVIII, is compared with that of the pretended signa- 
 tures, the resemblance is not so strongly manifested as 
 when the latter are compared with each other ; yet, as 
 will subsequently appear, they are all of them easily 
 determined as having been produced by the same physi- 
 cal habit. When writing the body of the pretended will, 
 it must be understood that the habit of the writer was 
 exercised to produce habitual forms of letters ; and when 
 writing the pretended signatures, this same habit was 
 employed to produce forms of letters in imitation of 
 others which were not habitual to the simulator ; hence 
 the examination now being undertaken, instead of being 
 directed to determine whether or not the forged signa- 
 ture of Gordon, considered as a questioned signature, 
 was written by him, the investigation now must be made 
 to ascertain whether the person who forged Gordon's 
 name also simulated the name of the pretended wit-
 
 270 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 nesses, by a comparison of them with the forged signa- 
 ture of Gordon and the writing in the body of the will; 
 the difference in procedure being in the one case to 
 compare Gordon's signature as disputed, with his writ- 
 iner, to see if Gordon wrote it, and in the examination 
 now to be made, to determine whether Henry G. Adams 
 did the forgery of Gordon's signature and those of the 
 pretended witnesses, from an examination of Adams' 
 admitted writing. 
 
 The forged signature of Gordon to the alleged will, as 
 has been already described, was produced by a writing 
 habit which was strong in its personal characteristics. 
 That these individualisms appear throughout its delinea- 
 tion, and that they very positively did not belong to 
 Gordon's habit of writing is apparent. But can these 
 features of habit appearing as incidental to a simulated 
 effort of writing be determined with sufficient accuracy to 
 formulate an opinion which will identify the forger 
 from an examination of writing done, when the habit so 
 exercised in simulation is employed to produce unhabit- 
 ual forms of letters ? The answer to this interrogation 
 must be, while there might be cases where the measure of 
 accuracy attained in reaching a conclusion as to the iden- 
 tification of the forger under such conditions would be 
 limited, but in the case being considered there is no room 
 for doubt, so clearly and definitely can opinion and 
 deduction intrench itself behind the well-established 
 facts which the habitual and simulated writing being 
 examined presents. 
 
 The habit of the simulator who wrote the forged sig- 
 nature of Gordon to the pretended will as testator has 
 been already described and in detail, and when the writ- 
 ing appearing in the body of the alleged will, as repre- 
 sented mfac simile upon Plates No. XXIII and XXVIII,
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 277 
 
 is examined, it is found to have been written with the 
 pen held and operated precisely as it was used when 
 the simulation of the Gordon signature was made, and 
 that the peculiarly manifested discordant action occur- 
 ring between the thumb and fingers when producing the 
 shaded down-strokes of letters other than capitals is more 
 demonstratively manifested in the writing of the alleged 
 will than when operated under the restraints imposed by 
 the simulating intention appearing in the forged signature 
 of Gordon. 
 
 These features of habit it will be understood, are per- 
 sistent in their manifestation, they cannot be dispensed 
 with by intentional effort, neither can the habit making 
 one person's writing strong in its individualisms from 
 physical causes be assumed by another. Even in the 
 simulation of forms of letters when well imitated they 
 will embody the details of habit belonging to the simu- 
 lator, and be wanting in those belonging to the habit of 
 the person whose writing is imitated. 
 
 On examining the writing of the alleged will-parts 
 shown mfac simile upon Plates No. XXIII and XXVIII, 
 every letter evidences the want of harmonious action 
 occurring between the thumb and fingers of the writer 
 when forming the heavily shaded down-strokes of letters 
 other than capitals. On examining the signature 
 " Henry Adams" (which it will be observed in the pre- 
 tended signature is not written Henry), this want of coordi- 
 nate action is likewise apparent, although some of the 
 standards of letters occurring therein have been gone 
 over twice with the pen to make the wedge-form shading, 
 a concomitant of this discordant action, less prominent. 
 The same condition is manifested when the signature of 
 Alonzo C. P. Adams to the pretended will is examined, 
 and in the production of which the standard of the letter
 
 278 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 "d " has been gone over the second time with the pen, 
 but in the pretended signature of John O. Adams the 
 letter " d" is left as first made by the simulator with all 
 the evidences belonging to the habit of the latter not 
 retouched with the pen. In the forged signature of Geo. 
 P. Gordon the pen of the writer producing it, as has been 
 described, was held with its concavity facing to the right, 
 operated by the flexure of the fingers and thumb, and the 
 details which appear in the pretended witnesses' signa- 
 tures show that the pen was held and operated in the 
 same manner in writing them as when producing the 
 body-writing of the pretended will and the forged signa- 
 ture of Gordon. 
 
 While there are forms of letters occurring in the pre- 
 tended signatures which bear resemblance to those 
 appearing in the body-writing of the pretended will, yet 
 it must be remembered that this will only occur when the 
 simulator unconsciously lapses into the production of 
 habitual forms, and does not exercise the intention to 
 produce other than the latter, and ones which resemble 
 those which belong to the signatures being imitated. 
 Thus when writing the pretended signature of John O. 
 Adams, and making the initial movement of the pen in 
 forming the curl of the letter "J," the writer made it 
 habitually as appearing in " July," on Plates Nos. XXIII 
 and XXVIII. 
 
 It is also apparent that when writing the final "s" 
 to the pretended signature of Henry Adams, spelled 
 " Hemry," the simulator lapsed into his habitual form, 
 and wrote it as appearing in " names " of line 1, Plate No. 
 XXVIII, and the same condition appears when the letter 
 "m"of "Hemry" is compared with the letter " m " in 
 " names" before alluded to. So the letter "d" in John 
 O. Adams in its shading, ellipticity and slant is very close
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 279 
 
 in its resemblance to the same letter occurring in "Wood- 
 bridge," just above the pretended signature of John Q. 
 Adams. When the letters " o " of the forged signature of 
 Geo. P. Gordon are compared with those appearing in 
 the body-writing of the pretended will, they all appear 
 to not only have the same form, but the details show 
 that they were produced by the same habit of holding and 
 moving the pen. All of these letters "o" were closed in 
 at the top by the up-stroke of the pen, and the formation 
 thereat of a period-form dot produced by rotating the pen 
 half a turn. In the forged signature of Gordon the 
 standard of the letter " d " was made by first forming it 
 with a wedge-form shading, and then going over it the 
 second time to make the standard wider at the top. This 
 standard of the letter " d " was first made like the letter 
 '' 1 " in " seal," the second line above it, before being gone 
 over the second time. The letter " n " of the forged sig- 
 nature of Gordon made with its first member longer than 
 the other, which as thus produced is habitual with the writer 
 of the body-part of the pretended will, and is particularly so 
 manifested in the word " names" before referred to. The 
 letter "r" of the forged Gordon signature finds its 
 habitual likeness in ''presence," in line 2, of Plate No. 
 XXVIII. In addition to these resemblances where the 
 habit of the simulator lapses into the production uncon- 
 sciously of habitual forms there is also apparent in the 
 pretended signatures evidence of efforts made to paint 
 them up so as to give to them a changed pictorial effect 
 in places by the addition of prefix and suffix parts. Thus 
 the tail of the letter "y" in " Hemry" was added after 
 the first writing of the loop had been done and the ink of 
 the first writing had become dry. The curl upon the 
 initial "A" in "Alonzo " was added by a separate effort, 
 and the awkwardly made flourish at the termination of
 
 280 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 the name John Q. Adams, was added after the terminal 
 " s " had been written and the ink of the first writing had 
 become dry. 
 
 When these pretended witnesses' signatures are com- 
 pared with the genuine writing of the persons whose 
 names they represent it would seem that the simulator 
 must have copied them from memory rather than with any 
 of the genuine writing of these persons used for the imi- 
 tation, so unlike are they when compared with the genuine 
 writing of the persons they purport to represent. To give 
 all the characteristics of difference which are found to 
 occur, when these pretended signatures are compared with 
 the genuine writing of the persons which they pretend to 
 personate in full detail would not seem important or 
 necessary, so long as it is clearly shown that the pretended 
 signatures were all written by one person, and by the 
 writer of the body-part of the will and the forged signa- 
 ture of Geo. P. Gordon. 
 
 When the genuine writing of Henry Adams, as shown 
 in fac simile upon Plate No. XXIX, is compared with the 
 pretended signature of the same person upon the alleged 
 will independently of its being written " Hemry" instead 
 of " Henry," there is very little resemblance between 
 them as to pen-pressure, shading emphasis, or ellipticity of 
 curve, and they only have that likeness which the same 
 signature will have when written by different persons 
 using like forms of capitals. So when the genuine sig- 
 natures of Alonzo C. P. Adams, as shown in fac simile 
 upon Plate No. XXX, are compared with that appearing 
 upon the alleged will, there is no resemblance at all 
 beyond that which the same name written by different 
 persons will have with the exception of the terminal "s," 
 and so very different otherwise that where dissimilar it 
 needs no explanation as to detail, and the same may be
 
 The Gordon Will Case. 281 
 
 said of the genuine signatures of John 0. Adams, repre- 
 sented \nfac simile upon Plate No. XXXI, when they 
 are compared with the pretended signature upon the 
 alleged will. 
 
 Each of the genuine signatures of the persons whose 
 names appear as witnesses to the alleged will show that 
 they were produced by a different physical habit, and the 
 names purporting to represent them were all written by 
 one and the same habit. Thus Henry Adams held and 
 moved the pen with its concavity facing slightly to the 
 left, and wrote with but little pressure upon the paper. 
 Alonzo C. P. Adams wrote with the pen resting squarely 
 upon the paper with its concavity facing the palm of the 
 writer's hand, and used the flexure of the fingers and 
 thumb in combination with the forearm movement when 
 writing, and John Q. Adams wrote entirely with the fore- 
 arm movement without the flexure of the fingers and 
 thumb. Thus it appears that there are no parallelisms of 
 physical habit found to occur between the genuine writ- 
 ing of the persons whose names appear as witnesses to 
 the alleged will and their pretended signatures thereto 
 which indicate that the latter were written by the persons 
 whose signatures they purport to represent ; on the con- 
 trary, all the facts which an examination of these writings 
 reveals tend to the one conclusion, that they were all of 
 them, including the forged signature to the alleged will, 
 written by one and the same person, and also that the 
 writer of them is very positively identified and established 
 by analysis as being the same person who wrote the body 
 of the pretended will, and finally that there are no details 
 or features of habit indicated in the writings when 
 examined competently which in the slightest manner sug- 
 gest any other conclusion. 
 
 There was developed on the trial of this case a fact 
 ;6
 
 282 The Gordon Will Case. 
 
 wherein a knowledge of the ink with which a writing was 
 done became very important as affecting its age and the 
 time at which it was claimed to have been made. There 
 was produced by Henry G. Adams, and introduced in evi- 
 dence, a document which the latter testified was an origi- 
 nal draft of the alleged will of Geo. P. Gordon, which he, 
 Adams, had made for the latter, and from which, as 
 amended, he, the witness, had copied the alleged will in 
 dispute. This so-called original draft had upon it inter- 
 lineations written in red ink, which Adams testified were 
 made at the time, and that the document as it appeared 
 in court was, so far as the " red and black ink was con- 
 cerned, just as it was originally made " when produced 
 for Gordon's approval. This red ink interlineation was 
 by able chemists, Profs. Morton, Leeds, Hodges, Dore- 
 mus and Stebbins, found to be made from eosine, some- 
 thing which was not known, and had not been discovered 
 until some years subsequent to the time when this so- 
 called original draft of the Gordon will, as testified by 
 Adams, had been made, and after the establishment of 
 this fact, Adams changed his testimony and concluded 
 that he must have been mistaken as to when it was 
 written. 
 
 The counsel in this case were Gilbert M. Collins, of 
 Collins & Corbin, for the proponents, and with whom 
 were associated Booream, Hamilton & Beckitt, and Black 
 & King of New York. For the contestants, Theodore 
 F. Miller of New York City, with Barker Gummere 
 as senior counsel, and W. F. Abbott as Solicitor. The 
 experts employed by the proponents were Dr. Ewell of 
 Chicago, Rausch, McClelland and Cresson ; those 
 employed by the contestants were Daniel G. Ames and 
 David N. Carvalho of New York city, Prof. Tollman of 
 Chicago, 111., Cantwell of Albany, N. Y., and the author.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 A 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Ability to forge, often the incentive 26 
 
 Ability to modify individual habit 138 
 
 Abnormal and normal conditions 97 
 
 Abbott, W. F 282 
 
 Accuracy in determining habit of pen-and-ink writing 126 
 
 Accuracy attainable in determining habit in pencil writing 172 
 
 Adams, H. G 254 
 
 Analysis of writing explained and illustrated 99 
 
 Analysis of writing made for determining individual habit. . . . 103, 104 
 
 Analysis of writing when results obtainable are doubtful 156, 185 
 
 Ames, Daniel F 173, 232, 282 
 
 Angularity, manifested in writing 78 
 
 Arterial pulsation of, when manifested 77 
 
 B 
 
 Back-hand writing 7 2 
 
 Bank officers as experts 3 2 
 
 Booream, Hamilton & Beckitt 282 
 
 Black & Kmg 282 
 
 Capacities of simulation, why limited 125, 147 
 
 Capacities to will and to do, their individuality 44 
 
 Case of Cadet Whittaker 160 
 
 Care to be exercised in making analysis • 82 
 
 Carvalho, David N 173. 2I 3, 26 5> 282 
 
 Causes celebres 2I 5 
 
 Changes in the common-law rules of evidence 28 
 
 Characteristics of forged signatures 9 2 
 
 Chabot 140,141, *4 2 
 
 Character of the forgery illustrated and analyzed 100 
 
 Cantwell, expert 2§2
 
 284 Index. 
 
 PACE. 
 
 Children learning to write. . . 40 
 
 Common-law rule as to expert evidence 27 
 
 rdinate action of muscular functions as to personality 62 
 
 Clayberg, J. 15 252 
 
 Collins, G. M 282 
 
 ( Iressen, expert 282 
 
 Coddington-lense, the use of 94 
 
 D 
 
 Date of writings used for comparison 85 
 
 Davis Will Case 242 
 
 Declaration of Independence, signatures to 96 
 
 Definition of individual habit 47 
 
 Details of habit why physically typical 41 
 
 Details of habit compatible with muscular co-ordination 56 
 
 Details of habit too minute to be simulated with a pen 125 
 
 Development of individual habit 41 
 
 Disease, effect of 76 
 
 Dissimulation not modification 143 
 
 Dissimulated or disguised writing 145 
 
 Dissimulating capacity, how limited 147 
 
 Dissimulation, why difficult to accomplish 147 
 
 Dissimulation and the intrusion of habitual details 153 
 
 Dissimulated writing and the capacities to will and to do 155 
 
 Dissimulated writing difficult to analyze accurately 156 
 
 Dissimulated writing, when difficult to analyze 156 
 
 Dissimulated writing, how determined as such 146 
 
 Documents and the effect of age upon them 198 
 
 Dudley, A. K 234 
 
 Doremus, Dr 282 
 
 E 
 
 Eddy, James R 249 
 
 Effect of differing systems of penmanship on habit 52 
 
 Effect of using an elastic pen and a rigid pencil 178 
 
 Ellipticity of curve as an individuality 78 
 
 English common-law rule 27 
 
 ne........ 282 
 
 Ewell, Dr 282 
 
 Excitement, effect of 75 
 
 Expert evidence 28
 
 Index. 285 
 
 F 
 
 JAGE. 
 
 Facts difficult to explain to j uries 127 
 
 Features common to most forgeries 89 
 
 Features that are generically habitual 158 
 
 Forearm movement of the pen when writing 71 
 
 G 
 
 General appearances in writing, why deceptive 35 
 
 General appearances in writing, when deceptive 96 
 
 Generic features of habit 158 
 
 Generic classification of writing habits 128 
 
 Generic details, individuality of 131 
 
 Gordon Will Case 253 
 
 Gummere Baker 282 
 
 H 
 
 Habit defined as to individuality 47 
 
 Habit as a copying act 43 
 
 Habit as a reflex capacity 41-42 
 
 Hand, Kellogg & Hall 234 
 
 Habitual and unhabitual writing 148 
 
 Habits of writing as numerous as writers 54 
 
 Hanneman microscopic stand 94, 95 
 
 Habitual details and their appearance in simulations 154 
 
 Howland Will Case 91, 118 
 
 Hodges, Prof 282 
 
 Hunter Will Case 233 
 
 I 
 
 Individuality of generic details 131 
 
 Individual habit of writing why developed 41 
 
 Individual capacities to will and to do 40 
 
 Individual habit of writing defined 47 
 
 Individual characteristics, development of 49 
 
 Individual habit, how manifested 53 
 
 Individual muscular development 58, 59 
 
 Informally and formally written signatures 86 
 
 Ingersoll, Col. R. 1 251 
 
 Impossibility of formulating rules for making examinations 55
 
 286 Index. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Inks, and how they show the effects of age 188 
 
 Inks, ancient and modern 189 
 
 Inks as solutions 190 
 
 Inks containing coloring matter in suspension 190 
 
 Inks that are most permanent 192 
 
 Inks tested as to qualitative character 191 
 
 Inks tested with reagents 213 
 
 Inks when their fading ceases 194 
 
 Inks, how their fading indicates age 193 
 
 Inks, chemical testing of, when necessary 196 
 
 Inks made from carbon, why not used 202 
 
 Inks made from carbon, their permanency 201 
 
 Inks, how removed 200 
 
 Inks tested to determine their sameness or difference 199 
 
 Inks classed for testing 210 
 
 Inks made from nigrosine 214 
 
 J 
 
 Junius letters, handwriting of 14, 14° 
 
 K 
 
 Kirkpatrick, W 25 1 
 
 Knowledge of muscular functions of the hand and fore-arm nec- 
 essary 57 
 
 L 
 
 Limited value of evidence under the common-law rule 27 
 
 Lewis Will Case 225 
 
 Leeds, Prof 282 
 
 Lumbrical muscles, function of 58, 64 
 
 Lyman, the forger 99 
 
 M 
 
 Manner of holding the pen 67 
 
 Mason, Dr. W. P 233 
 
 Metal pens, the advent of 192 
 
 Microscope, its use a necessity 94 
 
 Microscope, the use of, requires experience 95 
 
 Miller, Theodore F 256
 
 Index. 28; 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Modification of individual habit of writing 73, 138 
 
 Modification not dissimulation , 143 
 
 Modern systems of penmanship, their effect upon habit 52 
 
 Montana statutes, as to expert evidence 252 
 
 Morey Letter Case 220 
 
 Motive feature of anonymous letters 150 
 
 Morton, Prof 282 
 
 Muscular development as an individuality 59 
 
 Muscular functions used when writing 39, 58 
 
 Muscular function of the hand and forearm, a knowledge of, nec- 
 essary 57 
 
 Muscular functions and their coordinate action 60, 65 
 
 Mc 
 
 McRory, P. C 234 
 
 McClelland, expert 282 
 
 N 
 
 Nigrosine ink 214 
 
 Normal and abnormal conditions effect of 97 
 
 o 
 
 Old age, the effect of ... 75 
 
 Other than signature writing 134 
 
 P 
 
 Paine, Joseph E 223 
 
 Paper and the effect of age thereon 197-198 
 
 Paper, microscopic examination of 197 
 
 Payne, D. H 252 
 
 Pen-grasp, effect of 66 
 
 Pen-splits,*- the details produced by 68 
 
 Pen-pressure, a feature of habit 69 
 
 Pen-pressure, how determined 70 
 
 Pen-and-pencil writing of same persons 182 
 
 Pen and pencil, as writing implements 177 
 
 Pencil writing, how differing from pen writing 175, 1S1 
 
 Pencil writing, details of 180 
 
 Pencil writing, when strongly habitual 183 
 
 Pencil writing, when the writer's habit is hard to determine 185 
 
 Pencil writing easily simulated, and why 179
 
 288 Index. 
 
 PAGB. 
 
 Photographs for purposes of examination 99 
 
 Piper, Dr 173 
 
 Pierce, Professor, his calculations in the Howland Will Case,as to 
 
 the chances of a person writing three times exactly alike 91 
 
 ■r signatures ;is standards. 83, 86 
 
 Pulsation tremor 77 
 
 R 
 
 Rausch, expert 282 
 
 Resemblance occurring in the writing of different persons 51 
 
 Reversion to habitual details when dissimulating 149 
 
 Reflex capacity, development of 42 
 
 Robinson & Stapleton 252 
 
 Rudimentary efforts, when learning to write 45 
 
 s 
 
 Sanders, W. F 251 
 
 Sir Philip Francis 14°, I4*> '4 2 
 
 Sickness, its effect on the writing habit 76 
 
 Signatures written unwillingly 87 
 
 Signature expression . 77> J 35» 1 3^ 
 
 Signatures of the same person when exactly alike, positive evidence 
 
 of simulation 91 
 
 Signatures selected as standards for comparison 34, 83 
 
 Signatures traced 90, 91 
 
 Signatures forged, characteristics of 92, 93 
 
 Signatures written with a lead pencil easily traced 184 
 
 Study of writing other than signatures 139 
 
 Slant or slope of writing and its ellipticity as an individuality 78 
 
 Study of standards made preliminarily 85 
 
 Simpson, expert 173 
 
 Spinner, F. E., signatures of 134 
 
 Southwarth, Albert 173 
 
 Smith, ex-Judge 234 
 
 Statute of Montana relating to expert evidence 252 
 
 Stebbins, Prof 282 
 
 Systems of penmanship, their effect upon habit 51 
 
 T 
 
 Tests of ink when affected by age 211 
 
 Tests of ink should be made competently 212 
 
 Tests of ink qualitatively made 209
 
 Index. 289 
 
 I'AGB. 
 
 Tests of ink, authorities cited for making '207 
 
 Tests of ink, one test not sufficient 208 
 
 Tests of ink, purity of the reagents used for making 206 
 
 Tests of ink, with what implements made 206 
 
 Thumb as a factor in writing 64 
 
 Toole, E. W 251 
 
 Tollman, Prof 282 
 
 Trimble, H. H 251 
 
 Traced signatures as simulations 90 
 
 Typical variations of same habit of writing 50, 81 
 
 Typewriter machines and the work done by them 203 
 
 u 
 
 Unusual conditions attending the production of signatures 87 
 
 Unwillingly and willingly written signatures 87 
 
 V 
 Variation in signatures of the same person 74 
 
 W 
 
 Why specific rules for making analysis cannot be given 55 
 
 Why people write differently 37 
 
 Whittaker, Cadet, case of 160 
 
 Willingly and unwillingly written signatures 87, 88 
 
 Writing capacities, how developed 41 
 
 Writing as a reflex or mechanical capacity 42 
 
 Writing when done as a copying act 43 
 
 Writing teachers as experts 33 
 
 Writing habits as numerous as writers 54 
 
 Writing done with the forearm 71 
 
 Writing backhanded 7 2 
 
 Writing done in youth and old age 78, 79 
 
 Writing habits generically classed 128, 132 
 
 Writing other than signatures compared with the latter 134, 139 
 
 Unusual conditions in the production of habitual or unhabitual 
 
 writing. . * 48 
 
 Writing as taught fifty years ago 51 
 
 Writing habits generically classed 128, 129 
 
 Woolworth, J. M 251 
 
 37
 
 
 
 *§■ 
 
 - .\V". VIII « IIIU//J 
 
 ^fiUDNVSOV^ 
 
 ^^JVIVJ^U'UILIJ^ 
 
 ^uainih^ 
 
 
 ^OFCAilFOfy/, ^OF-CAllFOfti 
 
 
 h 
 
 ^10SANCEI£t> 
 
 <riu'JKvsov^ "%uainih\£ 
 
 1 & 
 
 ^•UBRARYfl/ ^UIBRARYfc 
 
 fy/OJIWDJO^ ^OJIIW-JO^ 
 
 •ANCElfju 
 
 AJNIWfc& 
 
 
 .^0FCALIFl%, ^.OF-CAllFOftfe, 
 
 as 
 
 V^H] 
 
 \WE UNIVERSE 
 
 ^AOSAKCEl^ 
 
 0^ ^OJIIVDJO^ <TiTO-SQV^ "%UAINfH\\V 
 
 
 c\Ff aiiphd./. 
 
 ^OFCAliFOfcfc, 
 
 Bftl 
 
 ^E-UNIVERtoj 
 
 ea 
 
 v>:VOSANCElij> 
 
 o 
 
 %UAJNIHttV N 
 
 ANCElft> 
 
 l § 
 
 ^UIBRARYQ^ 
 
 ^HIBRARYtfr 
 
 ^OJIWJJO^ 
 
 ^OJIIVOJO^ 
 
 
 § 
 
 ^OFCALI FOftfc, a-OF-CAII FC% 
 
 3? 
 
 y 0-JWVH8n-l^ 
 
 y OAavaaiv^ 
 
 BRARYOr 
 
 cM-UBRARYflr 
 
 AVtf-UNIVFRJV/. LOSANCFlf/>
 
 Y. \ -^ju. uunnn i ujr 
 
 I i 
 
 ^ ^Aavaaitt^ 
 
 
 
 ^tUBKAKYtf/- 
 
 <TiU0NVSOV^ 
 
 AVtflWIVERJ/A 
 
 <TiUDNYSOV^ 
 
 ^lOSANCE 
 
 ^tUBKAKYQ, 
 
 
 IFOfy 
 
 
 AA 000 825 356 9 
 
 ^AavaaiH^ y <?Aavaan-^ 
 
 ml 
 
 '4 ^VOSANCElfjv. ^EUBRARYfl/ 
 
 ■^•LIBRARY*?/ 
 § 1 li— 
 
 AWEUNIVERS'/a 
 
 <^ "tyWHAINIHK* 1 * %0JIW3JO^ ^OJIIVJJO^ ^toUDNV-SQV^ 
 
 ^lOS-ANCELft 
 
 
 '4 
 
 vy;lOSANCElfj> 
 
 )5 5 
 
 ^0FCAUF(% 
 
 ^OF-CAllFOJfcto 
 
 y 6»Aavaan# 
 
 ^Aavaaia^ 
 
 awe-univers/a 
 
 <TiU0HVS01^ 
 
 ^AOSMElfj; 
 
 5 6 
 
 "%UAINIUfl 
 
 ^UIBRARY^ 
 
 \WEUNIVERy/A ^10S«1% ^HJBRARYfl/r 
 
 ^OJIIVJJO^ ^fJlBW-SOV^ 
 
 %MAINIH^ 
 
 ^/OJITVDJO^ 
 
 ^tUBRARYQ 
 
 ^0JIW3JO : 
 
 ^ ^.OF-CAIIFOR^ 
 
 ^ ^Aavaain^ 
 
 AWEUNIVER^/a 
 
 ^AOSANGElfj^ 
 
 
 "V/aaAiNiH\\v 
 
 ^•OF-CALIFOflto 
 
 .^OF-CALIFOftj 
 
 3s, >— M I' £• 
 
 ^Aavaam^ 
 
 ^Aavaain^ 
 
 T" O 
 
 '4- 
 
 ^/mainowv 
 
 ^E-UBRARYOr. 
 £? 1 rr' ^ 
 
 ^•UBRARYQ^ 
 
 ^OJIIYDJO^ 
 
 ^KMIIVJ-JO^ 
 
 \WEUNIVERS/a ^AOS-ANCflft 
 
 <TJTO-SQV^ 
 
 e? 
 "fr/fllJAINiHW 
 
 A ^lOSANCElfj^ 
 
 ^ "fywUAINft-MV 
 
 AOFCALIFOftjjA. aOFCALIFO/?^ 
 
 %Aavaan# 
 
 ^Aavaaii-^ 
 
 .\WMINIVER&a 
 5 
 
 
 ^•lOSANCElfj; 
 
 Or 
 
 ^/flUAINIUfl 
 
 ^ ^l-UBRARYOr 
 
 ^ 
 
 •*? 1 i 
 
 \\tf-UNlVER#A ^lOS-ANCflfc* 
 
 ^UIBRARYfl/ ^MIBRM 
 i? 1 ir" £ «*? 1 ir