Even in the simple act of shaking hands, one can form conclusions about character.  
Beware of any man or woman whose hand seems to slip from yours when you grasp theirs in greeting. Such persons are deceptive and treacherous. They may smile at you with their lips, but instinctively they regard you as their prey and will only use you for their own object.
 
A soft, fat hand is the indication of an indolent and more or less lazy person.
 
A firm hand is the sign of an energetic, reliable nature.
 
A very thin hand denotes a restless energetic disposition,[Pg xii] but one that is given to worry, and fretting and is generally discontented.
 
A thin hand that feels listless in one's grasp denotes a weak constitution that has only sufficient energy to live.
 
A cold, clammy hand is also a sign of poor health, but generally that of a very sensitive and nervous person.
 
A person who keeps his hands closed while talking, is distrustful in his nature, has little self-reliance and can seldom be relied on by others.
 
A man or woman who gives a good firm grasp of the hand, is self-confident, energetic, and generally reliable.
 
When all the fingers (especially if the fingers be long) are seen always clinging, sticking, as it were, or folding over one another it denotes very doubtful qualities in the nature of their possessor and a decided tendency towards thieving and general lack of moral principal.
 
Remember that the hands are the immediate servants or instruments of the brain. There are more motive and sensory nerves from the brain to the hand than to any other portion of the body and, whether sleeping or waking, they continually and unconsciously reflect the thought and character of the mind or soul of the individual.
 
It will, then, be seen from these observations that without looking at the lines of the hand, one may be able to obtain certain details of character that are more trustworthy than those given by the face, and that these rules, if followed, should be of the greatest assistance and value to people in all walks of life.
 
Many of these observations are further amplified[Pg xiii] in subsequent chapters of this work. There is not a single one of these rules that has not been proved by me in my long professional career, and knowing that they will bear the strictest inquiry and observation, it gives me pleasure now to offer them to the readers of the American Edition of Palmistry for All.
 
Cheiro.
 
London.