There is but one direct means by which man's physical being is developed, by which it is maintained in normal condition, and, when broken down, by which it is restored to a condition of health. Hence there is one chief thing to which the various measures employed for the relief of bodily ills should be directed. It matters not what the measures may be; whether they consist of the administration of drugs, the application of massage, electricity, bathing, mental influences, or any other mode of treatment, all are directed to this one thing, viz.: the circulation of the blood.

If the blood current is strong and free, health is assured; if, on the other hand, the general circulation is sluggish, or local congestions occur, morbid processes are of necessity initiated.

There is not a pathological lesion that does not have its beginning in blood stasis. To re-establish and to maintain a normal circulation, local and general, is, therefore, the great problem that demands solution in the successful treatment of chronic diseases, both medical and surgical. - Pratt.

UP to the present time we have been engaged largely in estimating the quality of our subject, and now we naturally consider his quantity. By this I mean his temperament, and the indications of health or disease as shown by the color of his hands. This is so important a matter that you must absorb every word this chapter contains, not memorizing, but catching the idea and fixing it in your mind, so that when you note a certain color it brings to you all the qualities which belong to that color and the physiological conditions that produce it. When we realize that ill-health, which is vital force in excessive degree as in fevers, or diminished quantity as in chills, will have much to do in shaping the course of our lives, we can realize that color, which shows the strength of this vital force, must be mastered before we can scientifically apply the principles of Palmistry. The lack of knowledge on this subject is one of the causes which has made Palmistry so unsatisfactory to many, and it will always be so until a full understanding of color has been absorbed.

Physiologically considered, blood which produces color performs two most important functions. It swiftly courses through our veins and arteries, absorbs and carries away impurities, and at the same time renews and sustains life. These impurities which the blood absorbs carbonize it (which is only another word for devitalization), and unless this life current flowing through us is itself renewed, it will turn to poison. Nature has provided for this emergency a most wonderful machine, called the lungs, whose function it is to take into their cells fresh air, and to throw off the poisonous carbonic gas. This respiratory action of the lungs is the influx of new life into us with the inspiration, the outgo of exhausted life with the expiration; all of the blood in the body must flow through the lungs, leaving with them this poisonous matter, and receiving in its stead oxygen, or new life. Thus renewed it returns through the veins to the heart, which receives it and pumps it out again to all parts of the system. In this manner blood is propelled to the outermost part of the body, the skin, and gives to it its color; it is the amount and quality of the blood that changes the color of the skin.

It is well said, that "blood is the renewer and sustainer of life," and therefore the color of the skin becomes, to the palmist, an all-important subject. Now, suppose this blood throws off only apart of its carbonic poison when it passes through the lungs to be renewed, and is only partially revitalized. Manifestly it will then return through the arteries, carrying not a full measure of renewed life, but only partially able to perform its highest degree of revivification. Suppose blood thus continues to pass through us only partially pure, it will not be long before the health will suffer and, as the health conditions alter or are impaired, the temperament will be affected, the character will become less strong as vital force diminishes, or will be changed in different ways, as different changes in the blood take place. This physiological side of Palmistry is one of which the public knows little. Few have realized the scientific exactitude of indications given by color, nor why they are so exact. White, pink, yellow, blue, red, - each shows a different condition of the subject's health.

You must, of course, have the temperature of the room just right, say 700 F., to correctly judge color, for anything that accelerates or retards the flow of blood will affect the color of the hands, and what you are trying to find is the natural strength and quality of the blood stream.

In examining the hand for color, be guided largely by the palm, not the back of the hand, and look at the lines and the nails as well, from which combined point of view you can very accurately estimate the normal color of the hand under consideration. You must take into account the season of the year, for marked differences will be shown by some hands on this account. In winter the tendency is toward whiter color, and in summer you find sunburn or tan temporarily changing the appearance. These must be taken fully into account, and it is to avoid being misled by such matters that I advise using the palm, which is less susceptible to change from exposure than the back of the hand. Some people burn in summer, and their skin turns red. Others tan, and these hands turn brown. Often between the time when hands have been badly tanned, and the time when they become bleached out again, there is a period when they have a most decidedly yellow appearance. This might, if you did not keep all these matters in mind, lead you to ascribe the qualities of yellow color to hands which were only undergoing the process of regaining their normal appearance.

It is the back of the hand, however, that is thus most often artificially colored, and by using the palm as indicated, you will not be led astray.