HE phrenologist is by no means so much sought in the modern city as he was a decade ago. The "bumps" are not exploited so freely as in the day of the mighty Fowler, yet there is in this dawn of the Twentieth Century a decided interest in affairs of the hand, head and heart, as set forth by palmist, phrenologist or clairvoyant. Humanity is naturally bent upon learning something about its own characteristics and probabilities. The present article is concerned mainly with the adventures of a trio of investigators who set out to discover for themselves what a "psychic phrenologist" — for thus the gentleman advertised himself — had to tell them.

      The first to enter the august quarters of the scientific reader of the head was a married woman of gentle mien who prepared to hear just what the various elevations and depressions on her prettily "coiffed" head might betoken. The psychic phrenologist, Mr. Headley, as he shall be called, was a gentleman of medium height, slender form and sprightly manners. He ran his hands hurriedly over the "client's" head, spending hardly more than three minutes in the operation and then spent his energies in expatiating on health disposition and adaptations.

      Strange to say, this gentleman dwelt length upon matters of diet and general physical condition. He began his exhortation with a dissertation on nerves.

      "You are nervous," he said firmly, gazing solemnly at the fair subject. "You want to do everything in a rush. Your great trouble will come from nerves. If you wish to overcome this difficulty, you must walk more slowly and eat more slowly. Be careful of diet. Do not indulge in pork and bacon. Take life more slowly and all will be well."

      In this strain did the worthy adviser continue, for fully half an hour, dilating upon matters of diet until the air was filled with warnings as to what to eat and what not to eat. The subject of this counsel was also informed that at the age of eighteen she was decidedly ambitious and had wide and glorious dreams of the future. With these few vague and glittering generalities, the client departed, to give her place to an unmarried feminine investigator, who had added her mother's wedding ring to the store of jewellery on the significant finger of the left hand, in the hope that the psychic gentleman might notice the golden band and be misled.

THE professor greeted her with a buoyant air of certainty and spent a few fateful moments in passing his hand over her head, coming in contact with two or three combs and a hair net as he did so.

      "Now," he said briskly, "I'll talk to you on the subject of your general characteristics and your health. Your head indicates," he continued, "that you are a very simple subject."

      "Yes," murmured the subject amiably.

      "Nothing complicated at all — just a few strongly-marked qualities. Now as to your health." There was a long pause, and the subject who was comparatively robust, gazed at the slender gentleman inquiringly.

      "Nerves," he said solemnly, even as he had to the former. "You have a high-strung organization and you do things with a rush. You must learn to take life more slowly. You know we have but one life to live."

      The subject assented cheerfully to this solemn statement and the phrenologist continued:

      "You were very ambitious in your youth" — a safe statement to make about most members of the human race.

      Then followed a series of generalities, which would be a matter of certainty about the majority of us. We all like to be told that we are sensitive, artistic, fond of music, of a psychic temperament and sure to succeed if we will only not work too hard. This scientific gentleman, not content with describing the qualities of the person he addressed, ventured upon predictions and also references to the former life. Encouraged by slight suggestions in speech or manner, he becomes quite confident in statements of this nature. For instance, he gave this subject to understand that she was a forlorn widow, her unfortunate spouse having departed from this world after a long and painful illness.

      The third experimenter with Mr. Headley's art, was a business man, who sought the psychic gentleman's services and thus narrates his experience.

HAVING a desire to look into the future and find out what good things or otherwise were in store for me, I visited this phrenologist, who is also reputed to he gifted with sufficient foresight to give psychological readings. The person who was to conduct me into the unseen and to divulge my future, proved to be a man of medium height, smooth-faced, rather high forehead, and was dressed in a smoking jacket and a pair of shepherd's plaid trousers. He welcomed me with a very decided English accent, which led me to ask him if he were not a native of England. This question brought forth the reply that he was born in the United States, partly educated in England, and returned to the United States at a later date. His father had been a Church of England clergyman and had educated his son with the intention of his entering the ministry. He served three years as a curate in Great Britain, where his belief changed to that of a spiritualist, then to theosophy. The spirit again seemed to change his views and he is now a member of the sect known as the New Thought Church.

      Passing a tape line around my head, to obtain the size, he immediately told me that I had a head above the average in size, a fact that I had already known from the size of hat I have always been compelled to wear. Fingering my head gently, he made notes on a pad, sat down in front of me and started to tell me several things that I was already aware of and others that he was quite safe in saying to the average man. Among them was that I was better fitted to earn my living by the use of my brain than by my hands. It was quite evident that he had judged from my hands that I had done little manual labor for some time, and he was quite safe in making the guess.

      He said I had a keen perception, was quick in passing judgment and could keep a secret; my body was physically all right and any trouble that would arise would be from my nervous system.

      So far, I was aware of everything that he had told me. The part that interested me the most was the psychological reading. Although he did not tell me when he divided the two readings, yet I was made aware of the fact by the attitude he assumed and the closing of his eyes. I became rather nervous, as I felt I was face to face with my whole future. He certainly told me things that I never knew before, and I am still busy trying to find out if they are true, and to find out who the persons are to whom he referred.

      One of the first things he told me was that a woman entered my life with a purpose, when I was between the years of eighteen and nineteen. As I had many acquaintances among the fair sex about that time, I confirmed his opinion when he asked me if this was not right. He went on to tell me about this woman keeping in my life and he then described her appearance. She was rather a well built woman, with a straight nose, firm but not thin lips, passably good-looking and of fair education. I became anxious about this time, to know the color of her hair. He told me he was unable to say, as the picture he saw, was like looking at a photograph. This woman had remained in my life and her presence even over-shadowed that of my wife. The startling news was imparted to me that she thought even more of me than my wife, and that should events so shape themselves that it would be possible for her to become my wife, she would even make me more happy than the person whom I favored by making my wife. I tried hard to think of some woman that I had a secret with, but I had to tell him frankly that up to the present my mind was open and I had no secrets with any person. He then described the character of the person whom he insisted was mixed up with me. Some man in her younger years had entered her life and things had been very uncomfortable for her. In fact, he told me that she had at some time been married and that she was either divorced or was contemplating a divorce. This set me thinking, and to obtain further information that I might be able to identify my fair companion, I asked him to again describe the person, that I might recognize her when I met her. He informed me however, that the picture had gone from his mind, and that he was unable to give another description of her. This was the part I was most anxious to learn, as this was a revelation and something that I really should know, as any man has a right to know when a woman enters his life, with a "purpose," more especially as inside of two years' time that woman would become my wife and make me more happy than I am at the present time, owing to her knowing my disposition better than my wife does.

      The phrenologist would insist that in certain years which he named, a very dark cloud had hovered over me, and that I had either a very severe illness or death in my immediate family. I contradicted him in almost every year that he named, until finally I told him that just about one year ago, trouble of this nature had visited me. He was then quite sure of it and told me that he knew something of this nature had happened at some time.

      He told me that my wife and I did not get along very well together. This was owing to our dispositions being at a variance; that we sometimes had our spats, but that we made up and he pretended that she thought a lot of me. He was away off in this case, as we have yet to have our first quarrel. He could not describe the appearance of my wife, neither could he tell me anything regarding my family.

      In my business affairs he said I would make a great success of the business in which I am now engaged; that I had the proper amount of energy and push, and that all I needed was capital. This appeared to me to be a very safe guess with any man.

      I felt when I handed him my dollar, that he had given me much to think about, but very little definite information as to my future, and I intimated. that I should have liked to learn more.

      When leaving, he gave me a very pressing invitation to attend his lecture the following Sunday evening, but as I am still busy trying to find out who the woman is that entered my life, I did not have time to attend the service.

THE conclusion to be drawn from these experiment, so far as Mr. Headley is concerned is that this psychic phrenologist ventures on ground which is comparatively safe, both in personal observation and in advice as to health. It is entirely natural that a young person should be ambitious. Consequently, to inform the mature man or woman that he or she was ambitious in youth is a mere platitude. It is quite safe to conclude that a boy of eighteen was somewhat enamored of a member of the opposite sex, also that a girl of eighteen was admired by one or two juvenile adorers. There is nothing "psychic" about such a revelation. In fact, any ordinary observer of human nature would be in position to make the same statement.

      As to health observations and warnings, the same might be noted. In each case, only the most general and vague remarks were made, with an air of wisdom which Solomon might have envied. Everyone knows that the modern malady is nerves and that it is, perfectly safe to tell any citizen of Canada in the Twentieth Century that he or she must avoid nervous strain in order to keep in a healthy condition. The advice as to diet was also such as any ordinary observer of food values or effects might give without money and without price. The remark that one requisite for business success is capital is also one of utmost commonplace. The conclusion of the whole matter is that it is fairly safe to be a psychic phrenologist.