(SANITIZED)TRANSLATION OF UNCLASSIFIED GERMAN PUBLICATION(SANITIZED)

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 364
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 23, 2010
• Sequence Number: 11
• Publication Date: December 13, 1956
• Content Type: REPORT

 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
this should be the case. Jiow fluctuatin; this concept becomes in
the case of many is shown, for example; by Crepi eux-gamin (loc.
cit., page 65. German edition), who occasionally speaks of partial
similarities cane might call them coincidences. Can similarity
be regarded as a basic criterion for identification, 1. e., for
the basic concept of cornpara ive gruphology? Wha t such does not
suffice herefor can at once be seen if we observe similarity to-
geth.er with its opposing c.Jncept -- unsimilarity. For it is
obviously not a question of two sharp concepts, which comport as
contrary opposites, e. right ana left, true and false. No one
can say- wi;ere similarity ceases and ur~similarity begins, and vice
versa; rather, the two concepts fuse unperceptibly, and it is urn-
pons; 1e to determine exactly where his occurs. h erg from it arises
that the decision as to whether two things, i. e., here, two
writings, are similar or not, remains for the subjective estimation
of the reviewer -- and just this can be made use of the least as a
standard for the comparison of handwriting. Rather, we rust here --
if no absolute standard is available to us -- at least have an ob-
jectively somewhat more secure crutch which excludes mere subjective
opinion. If one holds that similarity is an approximate conception,
that a thing is the more simil r, the more i ; approaches sameness,
and vice versa, this is of course justified and perhaps excludes
pure arbitrariness on the part of the reviewer. But herewith a ad-
vance not a step further in the case of doubtful and nonextraie cases,
for which we are in especial need of a certain standard.
Hereby it remains that the identification of handwriting
would be deprived of solid ground if we were to base it on the
criterion of similarity. (Cf. also Langenbruch, Ztschr. f. Menschen-
kwkde, Vol 3, page 390 f., who likewise comes to the conclusion that
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R0004001
9001 1-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
the concept of similarity cannot be sharply defined. ) Therewith of
course we do not say that wE also could not use this expression,
above all in doubtless cases; e could use it, for example, as a
comprehensive concept, or in the comparison of common writing phenomena,
but not o' fixed characteristics, as, for exap1e, of the "similarities
of movements' of thich Cages speaks, but in individual coricurrences
only if in individual cases it is quite concretely indicated which
type these are from which we conclude such similarity. Thus, we do
not require this concept, as that of sc men ess, to permit the iden ti-
f'{ cation of handwriting to uecline. die must always have a clear
perception that in regard to this concept it is a question of a
concept ?- blunt by its very nature ?- whici cannot be precisely
thf~^rl cn; enty f; nn ~.Lly. T}1. > wp r: thi s concept...~
..:v.w... ~a ~v..~. u... z_-..-"~ 1.....~..... .. n~'i rr?~7 i,)_~wo .r,y. . ......
not as a
uasic one, but at best only as an auxiliary concept in comparative
graphology. Later, in the discussion of the concept of character-
istics, we shall see how p..micious such blunt concepts are in our
field, as they are in every science. Operations conducted with the
vague expression of similarity have already induced many an erroneous
opinion. If one expert considers a form similar, while another eon-
siders it unsimilar, there can be as little dispute over doubtful
cases as there can be over taste, because it is not a question of e
solid objective criterion which can be indCpendent of the opinion
of the reviewer.
As we have already more often than not indicated, as will
becomes ever clearer in the course of our investiga tion, in the
comparison of handwriting it is not merely a question of the com?
parison of outward similarities or unsimilarities of script, in
particular of script forms or of mere letter forms. That the
forensic identifica tion of handwriting cannot be exhausted therein
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R0004001
9001 1-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
will now have become elucidated in that it has become evi den t
what blunt, fluctuating, and relative concepts the expressions
similarity and ur:similarity denote -- concepts by which every
expert ultimately can akin understand something else. Of course
the comparer of scripts will compare someuhing other than mere
similarities. He will ?- and this cannot often enough be
emphasized -~ ascertain whether or not several writings have been
written by the same person. But he can do this only by making an
attempt to penetrate to the living personality which, so to speak,
has written the script in question and sta ds in the background of
the factual script and the script subject to identification.
Nevertheless, he can only be successful in this y detesting the
expressive phenomenon and phy siologicpily=bonditionea peculiarities
of the creator or crea ;ors of the script, ana the way in which such
are manifest. Thus, that j:hich the identification of handwriting
seeks in the script to be investigated is not -- at least not
principally -- the forms ~h ch have fused in the writing pj cture
and which are, so to speak, dead and rigid forms, but rather the
psychical and physical nature of the writer or . riters as it appears
in the total impression of the script, in the ;r,ovement strokes, the
manner of filling in spaces, the peculiarity of he definition of
form, and in all the individual characteristics of he handscript.
Thus, it does not depend or. an outward, quite ambiguously
conceivable similarity, 'which can neither be fully penetrated nor
accurately defined; rather it depends on whether solid clues -- let
us say, signs -- with respect to the individual and unmistakable
nature of the writing personality or person are to be found in the
script, i. e., it depends on solid characteristics in the sense of
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
those to be discussed in the next section. The detection of the
foregoing -- not of. vague similarity -- makes it possible for us
to draw definitive conclusions on the personal identity of perpe-
tra for and suspect. If the agreement of such psycholor, ically- and
physiologlcally-conditioned sins is indicative enough, 1~e can
then drag conclusions on the identity of the writer.
2. The Concept of Handwriting Characteristics Interpretable
All those who previously have seriously concerned themselves
with the basic principles of the identi ication of handwriting have
also been concerned with the gradation of handwriting characteristics.
They have approached the question as to which characteristics are the
easiest and which the most difficult to produce, suppress, or alter;
which characteristics appear oftenest individually or in combina Lon;
which alterations of characteristics are encountered in the majority
of cases of falsification; etc. In accordance with these viewpoints,
they have drawn up an entire succession of degrees, i. e., a grada-
tions so to speak, of characteristics. Nev rthe1ess, it has occurred
to none of them to ask what is actually meant by a characteristic in
the sense of the ientification of handwriting; whether the common
concept of characteristics of comparative graphology could simply be
employed here; whether the latter is sufficient; and the like, It is
downright astounding; that with respect to these questions no one up
to now has properly treated them, for after all these questions are
quite basic for the practice of the forensic identification of hand-
writing. Just as I cannot undertake successfully the simplest measure -
sent without a suitable and established standard, as little can I judge
without such whether a factual script and a suspected script were
written by the same hand.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
Therefore, we should like to proceed further from the question
as to what is actually meant by a characteristic in the usual sense of
graphol ogy.
Virtually from times in~nemorial, thereby has been understood
certain pculiarities of a script which permit drawing conclusions
therefrom on the nature of the character of the writer. Formerly,
conclusions were dra~In directly from the characteristics on certain
peculiarities o' character; today such characteristics are regarded
more as indications of general basic structures or basic attitudes
o?: the personality, from wh .ch individual peculiarities must first
be deduced. The significance of this concept Yeas thus often changed
in the history of graphology. Michon, the founder of modern
grapnoiogy, rvcogi .tz' only "5i5, 1. e., sins, wish tJ.r rc
and nuances (Mehode pratigue de grapholo). Thereunder he under-
stands a series of those phenomena which even today are designated
characteristics. His successor, Crepieux-Jamin (Traite pratique de
wr.r.r.rw~rrta~nrM e.+e~w
hod olo ie anti, later, 'L' ecriture et le characters"), the leader
of the older French school, defines "signe" in his older writings
simply as a "manif esta tion r;raphique, U i. e., a s a phenomenon in
handwriting, then draws up an entire list of such general and specific
signs for characteristics. In his later works he designates those
phenomena, which correspond to the general concept of characteristics,
as "especes" of si pes, i, e., as specific types of graphical mani-
festations which he brings into a subtilized system, and from which
he finally advances a very great number which he divides into seven
main groups, genres. Modern graphology has justifiably deviated from
this pedantic enumeration of characteristics. In this respect heirs
581$t "There is no stroke and no individual igtt in handwriting
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
which is without signilicarice; however, inver$Jy, every stroke
and every individual s1 receives .4 is exact si rlLficance from the
entire wry t.ng 1:icture" (be. cit., page 34). kluwever, lu spite
of this, even the f,-ovt modern interrpret~ tion of handwriting cannot
dispense wI th the concept of characteristic 1ri a sense similar to
that of older interpretation, and so even today protocols and
tables of characteri;3ties play a reat role. }evertheless, even
here, a bona 'icy dei r;ition of characteristic i.s of course no-
where to be ound; characteristics are invaryably merely :>rumerated
and represented in their interrelationst}ip Taittr others. However,
wi
anai,r ticai graphologists a gr`e
that a characteristic is 8
phenoriefon i.n handy;ruing ~dl:ich expresses something, viz., sc thing
of to nature of he ci~drac ter of the tint i trr.
That th.s definition does not suffice for the forensic
identification of handwriting is obvious, since here of course the
character of a writer is riot to be investigated, but rater the
identity or diversity of the creator or creators of several writings
is to ,e determined. Thus, to be defined, this concept requires
a nodifica,ion, and, to be sure, from a two-fold paint of view.
1. Tne practice of pointing out ai:ii enumerating individual
characteristics -- a practice thich was exaggerated in the older
graphology, but still toddy has not yet been overcome and may per'
paps never be overcome, for the very reason that the abundance of
specific characteristics must be brought into a certain order --
has led to a great nuisance which often results in errors in the
art of interpretation, but which has quite deva s to tin g effects in
the i~ientifieation of handwriting. For example, it is of ten thought
that with certain characteristics, e. g., a form of connectednesa,
-81-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
an 'arch, a "festoon," the thin line, breadth, speed, and the like,
one has a fixed quantity before hire, which by no means is the case.
These characteristics have ana this applies to the majority of
them -- such broad free play that they represent more a group of
mere individual characteristics than a group of individual concrete
characteristics whici often eiibody several quite diverse types.
Thus, it depends completely on which of the differentiable indivi-
dual fJnrs is meant in the individual case. If now the factual
script and the script subject to identification are to be inveeti.-
gated on the basis of such an extensive concept of characteristic,
then the comparison will be carried out with a quite blunt standard
z::hich in no case can lead to an exact and certath judgment. This
Lack lI _l tiV1lL1 r "oncrt n?+; ^n than 'i pace; even in the case of the forensic
ti J.uu v.e. +~.. then .. -
identification of handwriting _. again and again to the most serious
erroneous conclusions. This is illustrated by an example which we
have often encountered in the practice. A very animated form, of
connection is the so-called festoon," i? e.; many Writers connect
letters -- more precisely, basic strokes -- 'with an indented curve
which trends downward toward the line (cf. Figure IV ~cf ori. -na1i,
Especially the lpwer line). Again and again to be found in identi-
fica t on opinions is the observation that the "festoon is to be
found us a form of connection in he factual script, as well as in
to script subject to identification. This Is then considered a
token of considerable accord between the two writings. In actuality,
this observation -- at least with respect to its indefiniteness --
signifies, so to speak, nothing at all. Actually there is such an
abundance of diverse types of festoons, e. g., deep and shallow,
tight and loose, drawn-out and contracted, those ,..anifesting long
and those manifesting abrupt ending strokes, to name a few, that the
above mentioned eetabliabment of an accord contains no definite
-82-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
assertion which can be employed in the identification of hand-
writing. hoi ever, irxver$ely, the de tenrdna lion of quite specific
Lic~iiy s>irite,cr in
i_r...e of or of _., fes i_,.._ which is espeei, 't'1.. characteristic of the . i ~ in
typ
the factual script, as well as in the script subject to identifi-
cation, could be, under certain circumstances, quite decisive for
the establishment of the identity of the creator of both ~lritiri:s.
Hcrefrom it arises that in the comparison of handwriting, charac-
teristics must be strictly concretized, for also in the case of al-
most all the other characteristics which function as standards in
graphology, this same ph6nomenon of itiuefiniteness is to ue Found.
Thus these latter characteristics could also be advanced as examples.
In this sense -- of course in this sense only -- the identification
of handwriting is actually a kind of "astrology," inasmuch as its
charactieris Uie ca1111V V Ui+ tJr. c S.Sic
arid concrete enougi...
1./~~ v
2. Thus, if, on the one hand, the concept of characteristic
requires a reduction, on the other it requires an enlargement.
In the case of character-analyzifg graphology it is a
question of expressive phenomena: this is the science of the ex-
pressive content of the personal execution of writing. Thus, a
c .,
chsr~icteristic is a phenomenon hich expresses some t.hi not
Sri ~..
peculiarity of character, of the personal mental life, of personality,
or the a ttitude of the 1 tter to its environment. For the most part
it has been graphology icaily-trained handwriting experts 'who have often
carried over into the identification of handwriting this concept of
the characteristic as a sign of peculiarities of the character, with-
out considering that here it is i'.ot only a question of expressive
phenomena in the eharacterological sense. In the forensic identifi-
cation of handwriting not only, and not above all, are the mental
-83-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
life or the structure of the character of the person subjected to
comparison in the writing to be investigated, but rather his naked
identity, i. e., the question as to whether or nut one deals with
one and the same person. however, the person is to be recognized
not only in the expressive phenomena of his mental life, but rather
in all that which in any war care bring him to light as an individual
entity, in all that which not only is characteristic of his person-
ality in the psychical sense, but also of his person in the physical
sense. However, phenomena of both kinds are to be found in hand.
writing. Such which are the phenomena of the taentul life of the
writer, and such which can be traced to the biological, physical.,
and physiological being of the creator of the script, such which
Pophal in particular has taught us t
look for in tandwriting. Cer-
tainly these are also expressive phenomena in a broauer sense, but
not such which have anything to do with the character of he person
and which could be interpretable herefor.
In any case,. with respect to comparative graphology, all
phenomena in handwriting are of importance, and are suitable and
n r
ti n C
ngrA n~~n~;r nn
fnr nn#a. n T+ r;r$oco
~eamr n
UL 4 L
., ., ,. .r~.w~ ? VWlurJ+l~.u Vl1. .a.. v uw I Gd4, U~la V 1V .L a7 a yuGO US t,/11
of matters of a purely circumstantially-conditioned nature, as
perhaps a scratching or an exceptional slipping of the pen, or strokes
outwardly caused by the effects of, for example, a start due to a
sudden noise or the like. (Orepieux--Jamin calls this latter
phenomenon "signe accidental" and justifiably excludes it from real
characteristics.) Characterology and analytical graphology, as well,
have labored the problem of what is to be understood by character;
comparative graphology has been relieved of this question. Of im-
portance for the latter science is that which is he expression of
the movement of a person, insofar as it is recognizable in handwriting.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
It is of no moment for this science whether or not the specific
manner of movement; manifest as an individual form in the script,
expresses something of character, i. e., any kind of arrangement,
tendencies, motives, or attitudes with respect to environment.
One must differentiate between purely biological functions or actions
of the person as an expression of his physical life, and those ex-
pressing his mental life. The 1Gtter, so to speck, are embedded on
the former and are borne by than, speaking from the viewpoint of
r iPTn vneo of strata" (Erich i xw ~Y _ iEt_. _ 1_ _~~cxer !l1YlLjc of
the so-called y of , li Strata oa
the Personality"), but "the manner of movr;ent, characteristic of
a person, is nevertheless not always expressive of his character.
The primary starting; point i'or reaching character lies outside
corporeality" (H. W'olinik, "Basic Problems of Graphology," 1933).
~lowever; for the comparer, the phenomena of this purely biological
life in handwriting are of equal value -- often even greater -r to
character-expressive phenomena, 'which alone actually interests
analytical graphology which at best still concerns itself with the
latter, inasmuch as through th&m impulsion anc: inhibition and
n ~ 7 1_ tC. 1.
vitality are manifesti a:.~gsT,rr.
Thus, in the identification of handwriting the tenet that
no stroke and no individual sign is without significance in hand-
w itin g is accorded full value. For every stroke and every indi-
vi dual sign can serve as indication of the identity or diversity
of persons, evi though, according to the present-day stand of the
art of interpretation, we cannot directly associate them with
characteristics. I t will be manifest in the course of the present
investigation that, in accordance with experience, the signs in
handwriting which, as such, are not directly utilizable for the
usual interpretation processes, and which are thus not expressive
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
phenomena in the strict sense, possess a particularly great indi-
cative power characteristics for comparison, and represent, in
the hig est sense, "characteristics" for these processes. For
the present, a few examples of such comparative characteristics
will here be advanced. To be mentioned, for exainple, are mall
commencing hooks, or light uncertainties of direction, or un-
steadiness, which by far need not invariably indicate the presence
of diseases, or the placing of individual strokes of letters below
the line, or specific types of commencing strokes of c~ipital letters,
or, finally, ruuiments of letters, e. g., half-strokes occurring in
incomr)?ete forms, aiiu the like. Such handwriting peculiarities
can be quite decisive for identification. Or the following might
1 r ."... . h ca m ran t~.3 ran :., , a U. - --t. ,.,. . ose pi noeiz . ~.; .,.a., i -
hen handwriting wnien calla
not be regarded as independent characteristics in the sense of the
art of interpretation but rather only, so to sneak, as appendages
of indepcndent handwriting characteristics, which are only interpre-
table in to presence of these latter.
Thus, for example, back-stroke hooks in cancellations, or
the anticipation of upper signs, can permit drawink- conclusions on
the speed of execution of handwritiri.. Such handwriting character-
istics, as such, are not inuependent interpretable characteristics,
but are nonetheless independent eomrpa ra tine characteristics, for the
most part of the greatest indicative value. We shall later discus
all this detailedly in the treatment of individual writing pictures,
and above all of movement strokes.
The researches of Pophal have shown us hok important and how
fruitful it is to observe handwriting not only from the psychological
standpoint, but also from the physiological. I t is just this type
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
of observation which indicates an entire series of characteristics
which are of the greatest significance for the person of the writer
in question +? above all in a purely biUal $vi~@ _= aid morph'G
logically for the appearance of the handwriting. For also reflected
in handwriting is his physical make-up, not only his psychical, and
indeed the former, not only the latter, is decisive for the question
of the personal identity of perpetrator and suspect. Therefore, the
characteristics of the more corporeal life, not only of the psyche
or the character, are explicated.
Moreover, for corparison for the purpose o1 iuentification,
it is for to most part virtually of no importance whether the
un derlyinb ca use of a comps ra tive cha ra cteris ti c can inva riably be
. .
precisely determined in indiviuual cases; whether the cause is
psychological, physiological, or both simultineousiy. The latter,
for example, not infrequently can be the case in the occurrence of
fading in the script; indeed this scan be traced to physical fatigue
or to unstableness of character or both, e. g., faux pas of raovem~t,
stroke uncertainties or disturbances, or the like. It rakes rio
difference what their deeper-lying causes are. In any case, each
occurrence of such type in handwriting must be utilized for compari-
son. hereby, it should once again be emphasized that those
characteristics which are conditioned only physiologic&lly -? because
they lie under the threshold of the consciousness of he writer and
are as a rule entirely withdrawn from his discretion -- represent
particularly important comparative characteristics.
3. The Gradation of handwriting Characteristics
It will already have become sufficiently clear to those who
have attentively followed our previous arguments that all handwriting
Sanitized
Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
characteristics are by far not of equal value. Thus, we have sei
in the treatment of the school copy and its significance that
characteristics traceable to the letter are to be found in many
handscripts. In the development of ones handwriting, the more the
individuality of a person is interfused with the school copy, the
more characteristic of him must be the now-appearing characteristics.
Such characteristics are ultimately to be found only in the case of
such a person or one similarly inclined or of a similar nature,
whip; in turn the peculiarities assumed by him from other scripts
will be less singular.
Thus, teen, the first thin; that every comparer of hanoir:riting
1 ea rn S t -------t:,-- ro> ;rh rm rw
r ^' '
or nonconcurrence of certain characteristics is virtually of no sig-
nificance for the question of the personal identity of the creator
of the factual script and the script subject to identification, whereas
the agreement or nonagreement of other characteristics can be quite
decisive for identification. Thus, he will next distinguish the ttfre-
quently-appearing" from the "seldom-appearing:' lie will compare the
nincidentalt` with the 'tcharacteristic." The experiaces of the
forensic practice show that many unfortunately, very many -- hand-
writing experts never really get over these more or less primitive
differentiations. As will shortly be demonstrated, all these concepts
are too vague. In the sense of the practice, one of them is employed
quite falsely, viz., that of the incidental characteristic, as is
shown by the following. A characteristic can only be designated inci-
dental if it has nothing at all to do with the production of hand-
writing, as such, and above all with the peculiarity of the writer,
ill e., those aspects mentioned in the previous section which originate
only from the nature of the waiting material or from outer influences,
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
and which are also called "sides accidentels" by French graphologists,
i. e., "incidental characteristics," as expressed in Orman. These
are the only handwriting characteristics which are completely value-
less for comparison. In one w=cy or another, every of hei character-
istic finds its basis in the pscho1o4ca1 or physiolgical make-up
of the writer, even though we are perhaps unable to point out the
exact reason in each individual case. however, in comparison one
must always attempt to form a clear perception as to how each i.ndi-
vidual handwriting characteristic has originated and how it has been
conditioned, e. g., by primordial writing impulses, certain movement
or formation tendencies, by borrowing from the handwriting of others,
be it the result of a certain choice-relationship or for the attain-
ment of a certain impression, or only by a specific type of function-
ing of the muscles used in t,riting, or by falsification. At the
same tame, the extent of greater connection they have with other
handwriting characteristics must be investigated. Only then is
deeper penetration into the p~ cif'ic "life': of the script under
investigation possible.
If the most primitive comparisoni practice is unable to
manage without d certain gradation of hHndwriting characteristics,
the underlying
ret+son is vV bs`
4: ?.**
.VU11U 3_
loll very nature of to
matter. In the arts -- and graphology also belc!gs in this field --
nothing, as has already been mentioned, is counted, measured, weighed,
or otherwise evaluated in a mechanical manner. For here it is indeed
a question of the fathoming of living personalities -- be it only of
their character, be it of their entire person -- rahich can never be
sounded with mechanical standards, but ra ther only through the ob-
servation of their vital expressions. Therefore, al3 importance is
-89-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
accorded this question, V;hich o1 the expreu2ivc; pi;engr~cr cf the
persor;a1ity or o{' he iridividual ira handwriting are able to render
better, raoro exact, amci more deftite indication than the tilers
wd.th respect to their unmistakable pccriiarity?
Accordingly, it is rio oncer that ~:nalytical, as e1I as
comparative, graphology =va1uates in cjuite Uiverse niauner the
characteristics found by them in hand citing. ,th respect to he
art of thterpretation, it r'.ii it b~ pointed out only briefly that in
his art a greit role is played by dorniimnts, i. e., those cldaracter-
istics i~hich give kl:ndwriting its particular stai'p and c~3uinate it,
as is implied by the tern. Fio~ever, more important to his art are
4iose_charcteristics s which tcli ca tea hai e structure of to
character, e. g., those expressive of only a certain attitude or
focusing in relation to environment, those manifesting a certain
L'orrnative impulse or will. Fence the preference shown to the move-
ment picture, as opposed to tine space or form picture in present-
day graphology.
in any case, in the final analysis, tl.e gradation -- or,
more exactly, he diverse evalua Lion w- of handwriting character-
isti4S si iiaie5 a basic problem for the identification of hand-
writing, for it. is decisively dependent on the answering of this
question how the results of a concrete comparison and its individual
findings are to be judged.
In accordance with all the foregoing, f is quite conceivable
that all previous investigations and publications in regard to our
theme have been almost exclusively -- too exclusively9 in our
opinion -- concerned with the gradation of characteristics. Doubt-
less the bases herefor are the statements of Georg Meyer (see Note
1 below) and Ludwig Kiages (see Note 2).
-90-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
(tote 1i Graphologische Monatshefte, 1900: "The 1orensic
r
identification of }iianow5. i.ting"y "5c .eXltIf C Graphology," gird cdi -
t7 on published by Schne- ckert, i92.)
((Note 21 "The Problems of Graphology." Excursus on hand-
writing Expertise. "Handwriting and Character" in the chapter on
acquired handwriting. )
Trai1-b1azing for the d~rnt.ifi cation of hanchrritiiig hva
Ueen
the
z': aearches of Georz Meyer, who has carried out investiga-
}dons with great care and with an excellent method of proceeding.
Tnvs;hich has previously
been in use entails several basic errors.
1. The previous process was a purely experimental one,
executed by means of the examination of persons selected for ex-
perirnental purposes. However, not one of those who undertook in-
vestna Lions in this field have and de use of forensic naterial. The
fallowing consideration attests the fa et tha t this is a serious
methodological error. Every handscript is the expression of a quite
individual type of specific person. Thus the conaitiori of the handm
script is decisively aependent on the personal source of this expres-
sive phenomenon, and on the outer anu haler state the writer finds
hiinse.lf in the proce s of writing. uelf-evidently, this also applies
to the creation of an artificial script -- perhaps to the greatest
degree. Georg Meyer stressed individual differences in the case of
experimental disguises of handwriting. Quite interesting in this
connection are the arcertainments, mace in the meanhile, with
respect to the greet difference which exists between educated and
uneducated persons in the manner of the creation of artificial
scripts (cf. Reitgerber, krchiv fuer Kriminolor e [Archives of
Criminologyi, Vol 148, page 130 f.). Forgers -- above all, writers
of anonymous s cripts -- are of course to be found among both :gasses.
It is much less a question of such social differences than it is of
the following c the outer and inner state and mental attitude of the
person utilized in experiment and of the real-life forger are
-108-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
conceiva~)ly different. The former finds him$eif in thE3 so-called
state of being examir:ed -- a state in which he is ,,lore or less cooly
prepared to carry out the task assigned him for scientific purposes,
viz., tha t of disguising his handwriting. On the other hax~u, the
"genuine" forger often finds himself in an outer state of d stress.
An example herefor are the frequent falsifications of order forms
executed by poor commercial agents. Almost invariably, he will 'sae
oppressed inwardly, even though unconsciously, by he fear oi' being
discovered, or driven by geed for money, hatred, or envy. ill this
will influence more or less the manner of execution and the condI-
tion of his artificial Landscript. However above all the latter will
depend orl to type and strength of his motives anu the diversity of
inclination. Herefor we need only recall our observations on the
psychology of the hand citing forger. A eertiin recognition of the
type and manner of the actual execution of a forged writing can in
actuality only be obtained through the observation of the criminal
products of actual forgery of documents, i. e., in the atrr,osphere
in which such falsifications really arise, and as reported by the
forensic practice -- not in the vacuum of the experiment with ran-
domly selected persons used in such experiments. (In his above
m& tioned work, Hinder demonetra s ed
VV My
u;J6v 1Rtt4 ydj .L.1
derived
forensic material.)
2. However, previous methods neglected the differences which
result from the psychological condition and situation of the forger
in question, not only in the *aterial by means of whch such methods
were carried out, but also in the establishment and substantiation
of their results. Similarly to the manner in which a machine might
be investigated to determine the number of revolutions executed in
- 109
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
a certain period of time, other' difiticulty of creation,
n .1 t_ _ ~Z
direction of attention, or the "occurrence" or simultaneous oc?
currence of any type of characteristics :-ire quite mechanically
investigated in accordance with their frequent or infrequent ap-
pearance. }iot'Yever, here it is not a question of facts hich can
be comprehended statistically, but rather of? such i hich are of
diverse form each in accordance with the psychological peculiarity
o''' the forger. Neither is it a question of invaria ply constant
handwriting phenomena in the case of one anti the sane: writer, as
we shell see in the discussion of the alternation of characteristics.
~,hereas Georg Meyer, who of course based his findings on a quite
insufficient number of persons selected for exprisr.ental purposes,
invariably stressed individual oifference:, grid Ki.ages invariably
derivec?his fixidiris from the Science of expression and geneal
psychology, their followers again arid again attain only the purely
rnechanical and statistical in their experiments. Nevertheless, it
was a period in which mechUriical direction, which was satirically
culled "psychology ni thout a soul," still had a siron< lingering
effect in psychology. Thus, this direction in the comparison of
handwriting might be called a comparison of handwriting products
t_ t t ~
without euziSidtra GiUli o ~u, writer.
Thereby, It was 11e11 that a
atava vv~
strict method based on natural science was taken up. (See i3. Mueller,
Arch. f. Krim., Vol 10, page 10 f.) It was completely forgotten to
what large extent the mastering of difficulties of creation, the
direction of attention, and the manner of execution of the falsifica-
tion of handwriting depend on the concentration capacity of the
falsifier, his taler for disguise in general, his adroitness and
energy, his attitudes toward the world and towarathimself -- in short,
on an entire series of physical and psychical inclinations,
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
capabilities, and peculiarities, upon which the occurrence of
certain characteristics of course depencts in full degree. Thus it
can be said that the rarity or frequency of the latter, in the
case of a certain number of persons employed for expc;rimentation
purposes, signifies only the presence or absence of corresponding
characteristics or corporeal peculiarities in these persons.
3. In spite of their ne4act of the psychological, these
here-criticized processes on the other hand hold much too close
to the views of characterolo; ical grapholog. This is rnanif'est
in that in the circle ~f their observation they drew for the most
part exclusively on the characteristics of peculiarities worked
out by the older grdp:ology, ana that they neglect the physiological
conditions to which characteristics can be traced, as we have
already seen in the treatment of the concept of characteristic.
hoever, even otherwise, exception cdn often be taken to a bluntness
of this concept. If, in the explanation of the result of these
experiments, simply ?ralteration of fours of connection" are spoken
oi'; ten it it overlooked tha t; for e; raple; the transition of
"festoon" into angle signifies somethin}: psyci ologically quite dif-
ferent from that of the reverse process. Likewise, dil these
comprehensive handwriting characteristics are usually treated as
fixed quantities. If one is seriously concerned with the concreti-
zation of characteristics -- as must be the case in the identifica-
tion of handwriting -- it is then an impossible undertaking to
comprehend statistically the characteristics in question. 1e need
only recall our example of the various types of "festoons"; but
also in the case of many other handwriting characteristics it is
quite a similar matter. Think, for example, of the possible forms
of additions or disturbances of strokes.
? 111 -
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
L4? Yyhereas Georg Meyer and Kiages coped with the essential
problems of the identification of 1iardwritirig ~iith excellent con-
structive methods of proceeding end contributed to the solution of
these problems, to be found in the case of their followers are
solely experiments in regard to which even the object of the in-
vestiE;ations appears to us at least partially little suitable.
Leaving the lirmitation to the frequency or rarity of the occurrence
of characteristics out of consiaeration, questions are sor,ietirnes
here raised, 'with respect to iihich the answer appears to us unes-
sential or self-evident for he comp~risori of Yandwriting. Thus,
for example, the question as to whether "festoons" coincide oftener
with connectedness or width, than do angles in his respect, can
. be solved by to z;irnple consideration that, in accordance with its
.__~?n~Y1n nC? ZYl ~ 1:'3~T.fl
executlonal btroke, tut; .lilt-int;r p1 vvvk s ccc vcunc- andw ..4 th,
while the latter renders both dif'f'icult. It al:pears to us no less
sell'- ;vident tha ; strong connectedness and binding of upper sitxLs
must obligatorily result from the same movement impulse. On the
other hand, the investigation of the connection of characteristics
and their simultaneous occurrence in a handscript does not appear
called for in our opinion, if such characteristics have nothing to
do with each other psychologically, physiologically, or from a
technical point of view with respect to handwriting, e. g., certain
.us~
t;.pes of connection, the naruier of 131 +7UrJ.luu~r.vbut1on a? .. of size in hand-
script. Such experiments appear unfruitful to us.
Of course in regard to these critical observations it should
not be forgotten that the statistical method has also accomplished
much. Our assertion is only that no further progress can be made
in this direction. Certainly it is of some value to know whether
a certain characteristic in general occurs seldom or often in a
-112.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
handscript. Such findings, under certain circumstances, at least
provide certain clues. Nevertheless, it is impossible to construct
a method for the practice on such a basis, since such a method, as
we have seen, insufficiently takes into consicration psychological
and physiological-movement viewpoints and the differentiable
indicativeness of characteristics. The individual results of these
investigations, especially those which relate to frequent and rare
occ~irrence, all of which we of course cannot advance here (see Note
l following), can certainly be made use of by the handwriting expert
as rules of thumb ana leads, so to speak for these results are
quite utilizable as such (see Note 2). ([Note li These results
are summarized by ittlich, loc. cit., pages 159, 16. f.) (iNote 2J
The Rohrschach test, for example, also uses statistics, but only as
7 cvyrn, are} 4' rneol i 4.s ', rvn~'Iiu Ti nn \ +hn, +' ?1Y,e~ '
Yl 1`
in compliance with our method is not superfluous of course appears
questionable to us. how insecure the advocates of the statistical
method themselves feel is attested by a casual remark of Schneickert,
1. e., it will always remain a matter of the personal experience of
the expert as to which characteristics he regards primary, i? e.
important for to comparison process, and which he regards secondary,
i. e., unimportant or nonutilizable for the comparison process.
Ro> ever, of much more interest to us than the previously -
employed method is the question as to what has actually been thereby
accomplished for comparative graphology, and what the identification
of handwriting can undertake therewith in the practice, 1s we have
seen, this method has rendered only one -- for that mater, quite
insecure and, in many respects, improper -- gradation for handwriting
characteristics, but only for the disguise of handwriting, not for
the copying or forging of handwriting. That this does not suffice
-113.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
for equipping the handwriting e .pert rJith the necessary tool is
self-evident. Accordingly, it should not appear surprising that
the comparison processes of the forensic practice of today are
in such a grievous state.
Thus, tae do not need more or less questionable gradations
for he characteristics which are of importance for he comparison
of handwriting, but rather ;a uAt thoci kbich in general renders pos-
sible more certain work on the part of he handwriting expert. To
overcome this lack i s the main concern of this gook. 1 e are in
need of no further experiments for obtaining results which can
perhaps be made serviceable in one way or another for the compari.
son of handwriting. bough has already been effected in this
.-.c. -'
cuycd ~.
The i eSearehes of Meyer end Kiages and, we hope, our own
investigations, as well, have produced quite ample bases for the
recoition of the probiercis of he identification of handwri ting .
Now above all it is a question of finally rendering serviceable for
the practice these findings. In this respect, up to now scarcely
anything has been accomplished.
The Greek expression "methodos," from which the German
word "Methode" [methods ha s derived, means literally "the way toward
something." xo~ard what this way should lead in the forensic
identification of handwriting has always been clear, viz., toward
the exposure of the forger of documents. However, with respect to
the questions of where this way courses, the point of its start,
the direction it is to go, how it is to be controlled in order to
attain the aspired goal, nowhere in the totality of the previous
literature on the identification of handwriting is a practical guide
to be found, leaving out of consideration the already-proved and
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
methodologically quite valuable suggestions of k-iages. Sporadic
counsels, which are otherwise casually made, could in part have
a confusing effect, even then w~;en they coat, uin sornethi of proper,
. g. , the indication tha t one should give a tten ti on to "pa to-
lc~gica1" characteristics, or the suggestion that one s, ou d resolve
forms into movement strokes, not to mention the directions which
a re on the wrong track, such as the mere cornpa ri son of letters, or
the undiscr;minati; employment of mere interpretation standards.
I?', in accord nce with the w~i1-1nown dictum of Kant (see Note fol.
lowing), method signifies a process in accordarice with principles,
then it can be established with rt.:spect to the identification of
handwriting that principles have now' been workea out to a point of
satiety, that up to the present riot one of us has seem a process by
means of which these basic principles could be ir.diviQually applied,
realized, or made serviceable as far as the daily forensic practice
is concerned. i ven in the e~~ se of K1a ges, w e have searched in vain
for a real method for the practice. In our opinion, the distant
separation of theory a n a practice i.: one of the principal reasons
for the fact that the practice, which has been more or less for-
saken by the science, so often today is obliged to get along with
antediluvian means, so to speak.
(lN oteJ "Critique of Pure Reason, of the Transcendental
Theory of Method," fourth main article, Die Ueschichte der reinen
Vernunft (The history of Pure Heasoni, 3.)
If we are now to make available to the identification of
handwriting a method based on sure principles ~- principles
derived from forensic material -- if we are to make available a
method patterned in conformity with the requirements of the
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
r,ially, a _tq t~1 ingression of the essence of
both ariters hould be obtained in oraer to thus be aule to uecide
Whether it is a question of one ana the same p?i'son.
practice, of course this method can only be one >d 1ch takes into
consideration the achievements of modern graphology, one whicby
does not indlscriminantly bind itself to the processes, stadards,
or manner of judgment of the latter science. 5umrnar1zirig briefly,
our method in accordance ~Lith the examination of the factual. script
for the ascertainment of genuineness or falseness, should Uttempt
to fin~a those places in the script in lhI ch the natural hand of
the fdls~.fier is recognizable. Ten, proceeding from the total
picture of the handscript, the factual script, as questA.onabie
script, should be so exEamined that the succession of the stroke
picture, the movement f icture, anc~ the form picture are inveitigated
comparatively ' itr: respect to coforrnative and contradictor
The line of vi;;ion of the comparing hanciwritLng expert, wtsich
now usually proceeds from the completed it ter forms, is thus here
radically reversed. It now proceeds from the vital form of the
handseript, via the i asiie of writing movement ind the tilling in
of space, to forms, allowing the latter to accrue, so to speak,
and thus become perceptible. Only through this subsequent determin-
ation of the formation of these individual handscripts is it
retrosp4ctively possible to penetrate to to person of the perpetrator
which lies concealed, so to speak, behind the forged handscript,
and to decide from the feeling-out of his essence whether he is
identical or not with the suspect, the gonuine handwriting of whew
is under consideration (see Note following).
-
.u6
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
([Note1 Up to n.m, to method drati~n up here lays x where
been rare.; ented or er~lp1oyed in the 1dent5. i. ca ton of handY~riting.
~ only once b. b',.a a n .,.~ro +n
A s far as 1 Y;ave been abie to a;ceryt~1, ., :. pproxi=
mately similar concept bean opened for d~bat,e, and this by the
crirri.rla1ist liana o says that the person iust fr^st be
construcLd from the hanth ritin to be compared, only after ~I~ich
must the t US-ColiwtrUCte( person be Copared (i~tik.. 41X: .t .
3erran i'orc't..stC JouT~1 1J, 19Ox', pge 78L. ,lo
concept mass appareiit.Ly in dener=J deC ir.ed6 (Cf. Gor Meyer in
xclxi' ~u13~;ersucY~ un .: ~:~ Utrcluives Of 1'orexa3ic
~r?ciii.\/i. s.. gex.
). This ta: tr?aiik!l
vesti. atIons of handrithngi, Vol 1, p~ ;o "oL. i' ).
It is obvious that our method holds to ?-- and %nust hold
the basic principles advanced above.
,r . , s'.
iile ui.~/uD J JL ~a
characteristics and their gradation has detalledly represented the
standards applied in this method.
:Ho such f'or he vindicat OIl of he iethOQ, its starting
poiLlt, ana he direc'tiori it moat take. In the second part of our
ork we shall pursue etep by step it . rocess itself, and its in-
? .7,.1 r~ ,piiCa k:Iorjs.
d1."vs.uu
u~. ?~Y~ ~.
3c m: Pig CuCis OF Tt~ J In +V'T'il':cr~TL31i 01 lit.ND It 1'J
in this respect, the following should first be pointed out.
The for?nsic identification of handiritirig consists of the exann.na~
Lion of the factual script and the script subject to identification
for the purpose of determining whether they have been written by
the same person. Handscrfpts, i. e., specifically, original hand"
scripts, should and must be examined ?- a fact which is repcatecf.y
overlooked. Bea process of duplication ever so thorouti, nothing
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
can replace the value of the original for the comparison of hand-
writing. This holds true riot only for the factual script, but also
for the script subject to identification. As sae shall sea later,
a leading role in the comparison process is played by those
charscteristics Y,;ihich are obtained from the condition of the
stroke and of pressure in the hand~Iritirtg. k?owever, in the case
of no reproduction -- not even in the case of the best photostats --
can the details of stroke and pressure be as clear as in the original.
Herefrorn there arises for the e pert the duty of demanding the re?
mittance of a copy of the original e cripts, or, if this i. s impossible
perhaps because they have in the meanwhile been destroyed, of
discharging h.s ,opinion only conditionally. `her? are cases in
~ahicL the incorrectness of ,an opinion with respect to co,r_pari.son
can be traces to he fact that onl r photostats are m.de available
to the handwriting expert. As r la terial for the forensic identifi -
cation of handwriting, photostats are not suitable or are at 1eat
unsatj sfaCtory.
T. The Pr aration of the Actual Com aiison process
Before going into the actual comparison of handwriting, it
appears necessary as a rule, quite independently of already-available
suspected scripts, to examine the factual script in order to deter-
mine whether or not it gives the impression that it might have been
falsified, and to aetermine the extent to which and the direction
in which this has been effected, if a falsification is ascertained.
Above all, his is intended as an introduction to the methodolo-ical
analysis. Only in individual cases will it be possible with certainty
to rule out in advance the possibility of a forgery by means of such
preliminary examination. Quite often, especially in the case of
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
factual scripts ofr greater encompassment, i.t viii appear further
indicated to examine these scripts in order to de tormt.ne which
type of personality of perpretra for could here come into question,
and to establish and limit at the same time the circle of the
suspect in question, thus f'aciiitatirxg the work of the investiat-
ing authorities. Finally, in consideration of the suspected hand-
writing, prei.iminary exarinatton in accordance with the following
question will invariably appear proper. In accordance with the
cap~btlities evident from the handreript, could the suspect have
been able to execute the script in questioi ? (x should not recom-
mend s ?Qrreliminry examination" the exariination of scripts, in
particular of the factual script, from the vie~rpoint of the
writing material, t_. e., of writing tool and paper. Such is to
he considered throughout the entire analysis, grid primarily in
the comparison of strokes. e shall come hack to this i the
treatment of the above, and in other places as eil. )
The second section of this chapter is dedica ted to he
4
detailed discussion of a question which is often quite decisive
for the success of he comparison, I. e., that condition which the
writing materia1 which ei veO for comparison must have in order to
serve as a suitable basis for such comparison, and the way in which
it can best bring about cooperation between the authorities and
handwriting experts on a basis of understanding.
1. The Prelimina k.xarina Lion of Scripts
The common process of criminal investigation in the case of
falsifications of documents is the following. After the reporting
to the authorities and receipt of the factual script on their part,
the informer is asked by the latter whw- he considers to be the
-119-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
perpetra tor. The su,3pect i.e at oc.i e ir.terro ;u tee;, ana, if to sus-
pect denies he pex'pE firs tiQf, the rr~U tt r is Uuc,rtted to the sand"
writing expert for review either afar or before further investi,a-
ti on of the case. Should the opinion of the hanuritir,g expert
rev?b that th GCeilsed is no to pC1?p ti'd BUJ, WL
and cf 'ort have been consumeQ, but he pex?petrator has in the
meanwhile been \ a iz1 b rd ? good. h cool uifg1y, ta.e
crimiiiaL?prosecuti.ot.l aUthOXI.t~ i : iIlouJ.Dk Vi ii th1 )e1Ves
the
help of iiaridwriuii g e.>.per is to to greatest possible extent dlreac y
at tale start of he irivestigGtiQri o a1L cases of the 1aisliICFJti0f1
oi' documents or very o2ten such exerts cn fumien the moet vaiu?
able clues and leads as ttie, shat siiort -y see. It is a more or less
similar manner With respect to civil cases. Here the attorney to
whom the client, brings a presumably .Lorged piece of writth , e. g.,
a i11 or a receipt book and names a suspect, will
crr~ 1 ~~ r. ri : is 7 9 YY111
Y 4 -L 4 Ud- ' v...u,.+
L1I I U 'I ?I -t to
ir;mediately bring charges against this suspect and to leave the
disposal of the identification of the handwriting up to the court.
On the contrary the a ttorney should consult a h mdwriia-ng expert
and see to it that a provisional exaririation be made to ascertain
whether or not the document has been forged and whether or not the
suspect could be the perpetrator.
.
Thus, as has been said, the handwriting expert can aid the
criminal?prasecution authorities or the attorney in they early stages
of the process, viz., in the ascertainment of falsification and in
the search for the perpetrator.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
Ii
whether the eonteattd t~riting zepresunt;: a rorg:ry. This exna-
Lion occurs for the :not part in the cu 5G Of obvi ous1y-di ui sc d
cu1Olyf1UUu ECr'ipta? ht tsriu in u1i. cac~~u~ pia. thc
vi n i. % kS
irrtportarlce is the E>f~ai~:.r~a ,fora u;; to ~Jhich acgr c am in h'wch
cc.r'eC 5.OII the iiecei tfui l ter'atior~ of hucc;ri tiiig ha bet:n curried
out, since such exIrrlnution utmost tnvari bly r;akpossible on-
c usiol~s orl he perpt;tra for lri tht 1ti? i d.? yiC.Uur UX L.L TiS.
1} r,virnii r~n r z.;'veai s uiIAe G G.~ tutr 1e geiuin r'e7rl 1'^ (f .~
im iotialuss , ll/.cr. 6 1nncco
ate cx
aw ri tT '~ vi '~ : ~r respect ry ir:vestigatior; ruO prOCt E Sts caf be Y G oid"d. ?ii,.C, Flo
his eXa1!t':Tta ~Cn, hcweV-r, f must be Str'tssca ~ 1h ui1 riso,'ute-
ness tli& U 1c c~In ier'e wu. y 1.-e ues ion of a provi?"~iona1 judit
l;hich in Iriost cases requix'e > sL1~1S Uanti a t1on~hy moans J.f an e act1n
ana~:sis. Accordingly, th e:uae, then one will not be able
to attribute to his writer a clever, adroit disguise with a
peculiar, cleverly-executed st..-1e of disffuise, or the good copying
of a complicated foreign handscript. Hoever, hereby it should
4~s
also be explicitly pointed out t 2.hat such that n.,~+h aster nnnrtin!i~mWYln~'C can be tl of
quite great indicative value; how ever, that they are not always
certain indications. In the practice one sometimes experiences
quite remarkable surprises. Thus, occasionally the writer of a
quite simple script turns out to be a clever copier of a complicated
foreign script, or the creator of an ima4na tive disguise. In such
a
cases it is to be assumed that the forger must have had quit;
special capabilities which perhaps were not directly perceivable
from observation of his handscript. Likewise, the strength of a
criminallypinclined will and the possibility of previous practice
can be of great consequence. Thus, here caution is required.
13O .
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
Now, with respect to the foregoing, there is occasion to
point out the actually self-evident fact that all these ascer-
tainment in regard to falsiication capabilities invariably have
neF.ative indicative value. If, accordingly, it is to be assumed
that the suspect is incapable of having, perpetrated the concrete
falsification, then this is one of the: hest indications for his
exoneration. If, on the other hand, it can ue assumed that he is
capable of this 'alsification, then of course there are no rounds
for doubting that he could actually have perpetrated the ulsifi-
cation, for the same could be ascertained in the handwriting of
many other persons. I t is a somewhat different matter when not
only are the capabilities present, but the type and manner in
._,t_ ..1...,,_ LL A'n~ r, P,4 nn+.S wv .,n
WLi.L. 4J U14G t..-vu u .,ii arc+~i
H.r . v V U V E. /? ~.. w. w
41' nnnf'nrm~ +,r +h +.ho
writing inclinations of the suspect; when, for exai ple, a strong
tendency to trend toward the ri ht is manifest in the script sub-
ject to identification, and this same tendency, perhaps sorewhat
suppressed, is Lvident in the factual script. In this case, a
certain doubt in regard to identity would arise, which would have
to be confirmed through the valid analysis.
However, a very important observation must be added to the
question as to whether or not a suspect milt have been capable of
a falsification. The judgment of this question depends not only
on the tendencies and capabilities of the writer, but also on the
difficulties entailed in the task which the writer has assumed, ie e.
on the objective difficulties entailed in a falsification. The
significance of the foregoing is in part overestimated, in part
underestimated; therefore, in the following we shall go into this
matter briefly. The afore-mentioned difficulties are greater in
-131-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
Lfl
copying than in disguising. whereas, in the case of the latter,
the disguiser still has some freedom of choice as to the manner
in which he will undertake the disguise, e, g., whether such shall
be undertaken by means of a partial alteration of his own hand or
by means of the creation of a disguise style, whether he shall
choose as a model a decorative handscript or some other; the copier,
for his part, is strictly bound to his copy, i. e., the ha,~useript
to be imitated. Not only must the copier imitate as well as po8-
Bible the distinctive forms of the script to bL imitated, he must
also compel himself to carry out a succession of movements and a
distribution of pressure to which he is quite unaccustomed; he
must also conform to the rhythm of the foreign script. In order to
reader a really .z ood ;,;-,;y to tiori, he must ae cuaiiy fanillarize him-
self with the foreign personality and the latter's expressive
demeanor. In accordance with the striking statement of Georg Meyer,
hardwriting is indeed "a co plicated structure which is not
arbitrarily constructed by means of simple rules, but is something
which develops more or less unconsciously from the total iridivi-
duality of the :ricer in the course of an evolvement lasting
decades" (Archi v,
rier. Schriftver 1eichun 1909; page 32 f.).
The possibility of previous practice, which can compensate for
much which is lacking as far as inborn ingeniousness is concerned,
plays a ea+ role not only with respect to the question as to
great ,~ ,
whether a falsification can be attributed to a suspect, but also
with respect to the ultimate success of a falsifica w.on. This poste
sibility exists when 1Todels of thy: script to be copied are available
to the falsifier -- models which he can copy, the forms and movanents
of which he can assimilate by means of repeated attempts. It also
c.- 0
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
represents a facilitation for him if it is possible for him to
repeat the falsification in the case of its failure, i. e., in
disguising, or in the case of copying in which very many incom-
pletely executed official forms are available to him. On the
other hand, falsification is rendered difficult when the J:aisifier
is obli g;ed t4 adapt his product, e. g., a forj;ed sifr-a ture, to a
certain apace, e. g., when he is obliged to place the forged
product in a certain place on a contract form. Of course the
condition of the script to be copied is also important a, The more
individual the latter, the more difficult will it be to match it
in general -- and of course less aii'ficult iaith respect to forms
than witL respect to the freedom arid multifariousness of movement
trrnkes whi..ch_can be virtually or definitely inimitable. On the
other hand, with respect to forms, the distinctive are of course
still easier to rr,a tch than the quite indistinct. Likewise, the
speed and fluency of a hand.script renders difficult its being copied.
Much easier to copy are he familiar flourishes in a signature
placed there as a protective measure against being copied. In turn,
disguising i~i11 become the more difficult and dangerous for the
forger, the more the latter attempts to maintain uniformly through-
out a quite special atyle of dis wise, he ore he attempts to
render the forms of the dis} vise as dissimilar as possible to those
of his true hand, inverting all aspects wherever possible, since
this leads to distortions, exaggerations, and abortive strokes and
provokes the danger of constant faux pas.
The Procurement of Suitable Material for Comparison
Not a few comparisons of handwriting are doomed in advance
to fail solely because no suitable material for comparison is available --
-133 -
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
material which suffices for the execution of an orderly comparison. Not only
this begin' the 'experieic?of the daily practice; it has also been an
old complaint which from time to time is repeatedly heard in pro-
f essional circles. Manifold indications have been made, partly by
authorities, partly by institutes, as to how succh material i to
be procured anu the manner in which it is to be produced. (The
best such inuica Lion known to me has been brought f ora rd by
Jeserich, Arch. f. Krim., Vol 93, page LL f.) Such indications
have previously been of little avail. One of to reasons for this
is that they have been resigned to subordinate ol'ganc~ which were
not equal to the task. It can simply not be demanded of the
constable or the police officer that he judge which material for
comparison is suitabiE .LcJr idle' h;rt m r iii +g
~Vrdrt d i.$_ Clot.
The grievance with respect to the insuf.t'icient procur~nent of
material can only be allayed by getting at the root of the trob1e,
but the hand riting expert must also be intercalated as Early as
possible. It might here be in order to recall that which has been
said above in regard th the import,,ance of to first leap, and it
;Mould be shortsightedness on the part of the crimina1ist?offici81
or public prosecutor if he were riot to confer with the expert in
the procurenient of c~npax ison ma terial. Finding themselves in the
same position are the defender who seeks to produce material for the
exoneration of the accused, ana the lawyer who intends to institute
legal proceedings on the basis of a document presumed forged. If
strong suspicion in regard to a certain person does not exist, the
expert wU1 attempt to ascert~in something of the type of the
possible perpetrator from the factual script, thus contributing to
the production of proper comparison material. From he handscripts
of several suspected persons, he will, if possible, make a provisional
h~..
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
sel action and it once eliminate all irrelevant material in accorctncc
with t:?,e manner and viewpoints which we knave delineated above. It
skrould once ae ain be ec.lphasiued that these exarnationa of the factual
script or the script subject to identiiIcation are only provisional.
Therefore, much that at i'irst appears unutilizable can nevertheless
become important later. `thus, it is recor;;mended that the findings
of such s:rrovi siosral investi a tior~S be fixed in writing; perhaps a
brief opinion thereon should be made.
To be then subjected to comparison are the handscripts of
those persons comin ; into questi can in accordance with the results
of the y)re1 Lmi.nary exar-inat,ion in connection ~;ith the other as>
cer tairrrnents. (Of course we cr,. nnot procure further factual
scripts. }{owever, in aiJ cases the autoriti es nLOW.u i....e ni u is
selves as to khetkir other fassific~ationa or anonymous writings
of to same type, which could be traced to the same writer, have
not appeared.) It is recommended that one not act too anxiously;
it gill, be easier to find the perpetrator ?rorrl among a greater
number of suspects and their handwritings. One will be in luck
if in a single suspect one has found the right person, if the latter
is the only one coming into consideration. Should there exist
strong suspicion toward a certain person, should it nevertheless
appear improbable that this per:: on could have written the factual
script, then, under certain circumstances, it is recommended that
the scripts of the next of kin or friends be examined. For if the
person in question has not carried out the 'alsification himself,
he could have utilized another person for this purpose. lie will
seek out principally those who are his closest confidants, for
the sake of his own security and due to the danger of being exposed.
The Frocurer~,ent and examination of the scripts of relatives is quite
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
to be recoil ended even if the provisional exar;?ination or the final
analysis shows that the i. erpetrator and the suspect could not be
identical, but that nevertheless there exists a striking similarity:
between the writing strokes of the factual script and the script
of he suspect. here, the hacLdwritirig expert should al~iays keep in
mind the possibility that the factual script could have originated
from a relative of the suspect. In handwriting there are doubtless
at times J:'p1Lily resemblances, dccordinE; to our experience' although
;his has sometimes beers contested. Just as at times relatives can
be sirniiar in facial features, in body build, in outer manifesta-
tions including sinrxl gestures, or in gait; sa can the sameness
' of inherited characteristics be expressed in the movement strokes
of hand~aritinr;, in which latter inborn tendencies ire mirrored
Thus, under certain circumstances; #'rorn this point of view it is
well if one has available the scripts of relatives as material for
comparison. Of course such scripts wi11 only be called into
question if there is suspicion that such relatives might have
participated or might prove subject to investigation, for in
criminal prosecution one must expressly avoid drawing in unneces-
sariiy other persons into the investigation ?- persons who might
peT'tt~~, ~iii~o k more a question of providing
L. is be 1 t.. bs.tiira.~~~ 1ame'es.,. It T.t ~ y lic is he
an incentive to experts to give attention to such possibilities.
The obtaining of the handscripts (even in the manner of searching
for them) or the summons issued to the suspect to produce such of
course represent duties of hose officials conducting the investip
gation; the handwriting expert merely functions as an advisor.
Herefor, in the civil process there is the below-mentioned detailed
process of proposal.
?l36-
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
Which type of comparison material is the most suitable. for
the comparison of handwriting? tidhich scripta of the suspect are
to be advanced? From this point of view, it is to be etressed that
too much evidence can never be obtained. The more comprehensive
the writing materi~ii, the greater the chances of success for the
handwriting expert. Of course, mountains of handscripts should
not be itidiscrimina t,ely produced; rather, one should make a se-
lection as soon as possible from the scripts already found, and
those later produced. According to our e?perience, an analysis
can best be carried out if the x'o:lo'win. scripts which can be
used for comparison are available:
1. kt least such that have been written as ri onchala ntly
as possible, e. g., notes or sketches made for Th wiiter.i own
in%ormation, or diaries, if such are still available, as well as
informal letters to relatives or friends.
2. herever possible, a carefully-executed handwriting,
C. ~;?, petitions to authorities, lettc;rs of application, available
autobiographical sketches, contracts, promissorj notes, Twills, and
the like.
3. handwriting samples especially obtained by the expert
i'or the purpose of this investigation, or several such samples.
From such material one will best recognize the possibilities
of the suupect with respect to forming his handseript in various
manner in accordance with the individual purpose pursued, i. s.,
the breadth of the variation so to speak, of his hanascript for-
mation and his handwriting capability, The establishment of the
foregoing iL of great importance for the comparison of handwritings
137
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
for one thing, as to whether the falsii'ication in question can
be attributed to the suspect in the above-discussed sense. Further,
and most important, one recognizes therefrom the various types of
movement strokes, filling of spaces, dnd forms he diaposes of in
his true hand -? features which, if again found in the factual
script, could attest the identity of the suspect and the creator
of the factual script. The latter will be discussed in more detail
kith respect to the alternation o l' characteris tics and the rani -
(oldness of form.
To the t rea test possible extent, the writing material should
have originated at approximately the same time s the perpetration,
since every individual handscript more or less becomes altered in
the course of ones life, as we have it y in ue~ CbOLbvGe,,..,.a
of the so?cGiled acquired hanuwriti ng, To a special extent, this
applis to very young and to aging people. Since a handwriting can
sudden.L.y be quite strongly altered in the course of ones life, e. g.,
in the presence of inner crises, an opinion on the nasis of old
comparison material is invariably somewhat uncertain, and the ex~
pert will only be able to Faye his opinion with reservations. In
extr :rne rases the expert will be obliged to withhold entirely his
opinion.
The question of the obtaining of handwritink; sac,ples requires
a special and aetailed discussion. Such obtaining of samples is
carried out in all cases, as far as is possible. If such is to be
carried out in all cases, it should be undertaken by the handwriting
expert, since only be can judge which type of handwriting sample he
requires for his comparison processes in the specific case and what
should be looked for in the sample. Thus, for exarAple, it makes
-138 -
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
little sense to obtain a sample in a running hand, in the case of
a factuai script which has bin ?written in prttiteci letters. I t is
a like matter with respect to obtaining a sample in German-style
handwriting, if the factual script has been written in Latin-style.
howtvr, Yhese are only two examples; in turn, each case can make
other demands on the c xidition of the handwriting sample. The ob>
taining of a sa,nple is best carried out by rrieans of dictation. In
this case, the explicit warring should be made tha t the suspect
should not be permitted to copy the factual script or parts of it,
becau'e it would then be easy for a clever 1
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
imperial penal iairiJ 1>, 31), and this of course ~dso applies to
the proceGs of ixlvestiratiori. The imtpt rial high Court alwo do"F
tided that the piece of i ritirig need not be produced before the
judge; it is only to be established that it origirta tes from to
person in question. In our case, his means that the handwriting
sample may be obtained by the expert.
' ith respect to the obtaining of the sample, attention
should be L iven that it be executed by means of he same writing
gaol as has been the factual script, 1. e., 1th 8 sinilarly stiff
or flexible pen, or a ~id1ar pencil, lead pencil, copy pencil,
ink pen, or any other tool which may be pertinent in the specific
case. If the factual script has been ritten with a pencil, it is
............ .................
recommenced that a sample written in ink also be obtained. s a
matt.er of principle, writings for the purpose of comparison should
not be executed with a ball.'point, pen; unless the factual script
as been written with such. hi.s type of writixig renders quite
difficult he examination of the individual condition of stroke and
the distribution of pressure, as we shall see in the discussion of
these handwriting phenomena. The paper itself should resemble that
of the falsified writing, above allith respect to its ;:absorptive
capacity, and should be of the same format. In he case of the
falsification of forms, forms of the same type should be employed
wherever possible, and the handwriting sample should be entered
into the blank spaces in a manner similar to that of the factual
script. On the other hand, with respect to addresses and data con
cerning the addresser, the distribution of space on the envelope
should be left to the suspect, since therefrom, under certain cir-
cumstances, important conclusions can be drawn (this will again be
? 14O
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
discussed later. Self-evidently, if the factual script was found
in an envelope with an address and p erhaps wi t_h a fi cti tious name
for the sender, a handwriting sample should also be taken from this.
To the greatest extent possible, the handwriting samples
should be written in the same situation in which the factual
script was executed. If, for example, it is a question of scripts
whidi have been dra' n or written on a ali, or of notes which have
been tacked to the wail before being written, which, for example,
can be divined from the heaviness of ink iri the ioti t r part of u n-
strokes of to factual script, then the hands rit ng sa,'pie should
wherever possible be written in the same position with the paper
held at the same height.
In accordance with our experiences; the exact text of the
d
factual script is best employed as the text of the dictation. Jn
the other hand, if in exceptional cases there are some hesitations
as far as the foregoing is concerned, then at least the same or
similar words, or at the very least, the same letters as appear in
the factual script should appear in the handi ritIg sample. The
say pies should be written in th G same handwriting system as the
factual script. Should the suspect otherwise tend to use habitually
another writing system, i. e., Latin style in the presence of a
factual script written in German stele or vice versa, then a sa,.ple
should also be taken of a writin in the alternate style. If the
forger uses a specific type of writing, e. g., printed letters, es-
pecially-printed letters, or a specific type of ornamental writing,
then the suspect should be required to prepare a sample in which-
ever of the foregoing types is in question.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
The dictation should first occur at a rl~,rmal tempo; by
anu by the dictation should be a ccelera ted up to a point of rapid
writt . Or several different sarples can be undertaken in various
degrees of speed. For one thing, the foregoing ie necessary,
because it hereby showy much of the possibilities and capabilities
of the writer, as far as his being able to diversify his hand-
i;rit rig is concerned: It is further necessary because rapid
writing most certainly prohibits a disguise of ones hand in
writing he sample.
Much has already b* en >~akrich
is customary in the German civil process with respect to the pro-
duction of documents (the proces which concerns the factual script
and the script subject to identification). This is delineated
detailedly in the ninth title of the 2r0, Article ul~, f. It is
not necessary to represent it here, because it plays a relatively
small :aie in the practice. For the ,Host part, this et teed,
time~consumiflI;, and complicated process is avoided in that the
lawyer of the complaining party files a legal complaint with the
prosecuting authority and leaves up to the latter the production
of documents, just us in the case of the further execution of the
entire process. If the civil process is already pending, then a
move in accordance with Article 149 of the Z O can be proposed on
the settiement of the civil process until the conclusion of the
penal process. Thus practically rernainnr for the process in ac-
cordance with Article u15 If. are only hoCo cases in which the exe-
cution of a penal process is riot possible, e. g., because the per-
petrator has in the meanwhile died, a fact >ithich of course does
not hinder the execution of the civil process against the heirs.
It times, comparison material can also be taken from the collections
of handwritings of many central police stations, e. g., the I eueral
criminal court or the cantonal police authority of #urth, where
the handwritings of all "writing criminals," which have appeared in
a specific district, are kept in accordance with a special registry
system. This system will principally be of use in the case of
writers of a series of scripts. Further, it serves more for the
1414
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
purpose of searches, analogously to fingerprint collections.
(Those who are interested in more details in regard to the fore-
going mi,ht consult the quite informative article on an aduress
given by Lieutenant Bachmann of the cantonal police of Zurich.
This article appears in the Siss paper Der Polizeibeamte {Police
Officials, 1951, pa{se 308 f.}
Only ma rk=finally, a i' e a more rema rks on the trea t~iient of
writing material shall be added to this chapter, because they ap-
pear r~ecessar;; insofar as here the necessary carefulness is often
lacking. Not infrequently the assessor -- and above all, the
hider assessor -- receives the factual script, which in all cases
is irreplaceable, in a state which renders difficult tV an extra-
ordinary degree the technical examination, be it t ,a t itYi~a s in
he i eantime become smeared, be it that it has been distorted by
subsequent additions, in the case of which it is often no longer
to be certatiy established whether the additions are constituents
of the original factual script or >rfheter the:; can be traced to
the official or expert concerned. It should be a basic principle
that the factual script be taboo, so to speak, for both official
and expert, apart from scei ng to it that the original script, or
the script subject to identification, not be distorted by descrip-
tive} indicative, or emphasizing strokes. In those cases in which
the expert cunsiders such, perhaps for the purpose of demonstration,
as absolutely necessary, he should make his notations on a photo-
stat of the original -- not on he original itself -- since such
can have a disturbing effect anti, under certain circumstances, can
distort the entire handwriting picture.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
biith respect to the preservation of the writing material,
we should recommiend that the authorities place the factual script
and the scripts subject to identification in a special envelope
which nhould be large enough to prevent unnecessary folding and
bending. Further, the authorities should assemble everything
along with: the documents in a special portfolio, or they should
so fasten the envelope that the ~:ritings can be removed without
having to take apart the other documents. I'or the pert must be
able to get at and assemble the scripts for examination and com-
parison, independently of the other documents. Most inconvenient
is the custom which is prevalent in ;.any Laerider of the Federal
Republic, i. e., permanently fastening; together the documents
#d t[iti' vi1G1! mtVW.U(ft5 iy ol.noi.rlg or clipp.u uiiein tuge 4ier'.
Should tLis also be the case with the handscripts, then his can
make considerably difficult the examination of therm, because an
extensive leftward--trencing stroke is usually no longer visible.
This has a pGrticulariy disturbing effect if a handscript must be
photog'aphed. There then remains a choice of taking apart the
hole file, which is dangerous as far as the order of the documents
is concerned, or of renouncing the reproduction of the left broiler
and usually a part of the writing of this border as well.
II. The Execution of the Method and the Process of the Co arison
of Handwriting
The Seekin
Ou;t;of Faux Pas on the Part of the Forcer
in the Factual Script
The process of comparison begins whenever the factual' script
and sufficient and suitable comparison material are available. It
has been a point of dispute whether the? handscript of the suspect or
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
the factual script should first be examined. 7e recommend begin-
ning with the observation of the factual script, and for three
reasons. First, because such will already have been examined in
one respect, viz., whether it has indeed been forged; thus, one is
already familiar with it to a certain degree. Second, the comparer
might not be able to approach the factual script quite so iraartlaliy,
if he already has a strong visual imprt sion of the handwriting of
the suspect. Thus, he may no longer receive the appropriate im-
pression of the factual script; rather, he trtay view the factual
script mechani ce i1y in relation to the other from he point of
view of cuniparison. In order to understand the third., anti indeed
the most important, reason why we recommend comr;encing with the
factual script, we must once again stop to considr~r use rnu puipo _
of the comparison. With our method, the intention is. to penetrate
to the person of the perpetrator on the basis of the factual script,
ire order to compare the person manifest in the latter with he pee-
son of the suspect which may be concluded from the script subject
to identification, and thus to be able to determine whether or not
both ure identical. Under these circumstances, is it really worth
while to rigidly take it upon oneself to compare characteristic
against characteristic or even letter against letter, quite without
giving consideration as to whether or not this writing stroke of
the factual script has been artificially produced through the forma-
tive will of the forger, or whether or not this stroke is a natural
part of the phenomenal picture of the actual handscript of the forger?
Of course, basically, the willful and knowing handiwork in the factual
script is of no interest at all to us or only indirectly, for what
we seek is not the peculiarities of the falsification product but
the true essential expression of to forger embodied in the factual
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
script, i. e., the forger's rlatur-il hand which he has concealed
behind the hull o?' disguise or of imitation. The irholra purpose
of the compai Son process is to remove this hull, to remo ye the
makeup from the handwriting i'orger _.. his actor on the stage
of hand~rriting, as it were -- to tear awa~r has mask, i. e., to
expose hirr- in he truest sense of the word. Thus, it wu not our
intention to satisfy ourselves with the mere observation of the
hull thro~.n up by C'aisiiication anu cuisguise, rather we d11 first
of Gil make the a tteinpt to find breaches in this hull through
which we ar able to penetrate, . e., to find starting points by
means of which we are able to remove or expose the hull of diuise.
In addition, w~ must have a clear perception with respect
to the folios irib; arc there such betraying aspects in the fuctuai
script? hat is their cause? whet do they look like, arid how can
~;e find them.7
ire already know that there are such -- such which are the
result of he insuppressability of certain movement impulses and
writing habits which are expY'eGsed partially in complete faux
pas, partially in handwriting; phenomena which make it still apparent
that such forces were indeed suppressed but that their suppression
has not been fully effectuated. e have already represented in de?
tail in the section on movement anct formative forces t1 e reasons for
this phenomenon and have formulated in the first basic principle the
findings of our investigation in this regard. lie might refer to
this latter basic principle, as well as to that which has been said
on the psychology of the handwriting forger, in order not to repeat
ourselves. We have yet to make an analysis with respect to the
diverse foals of phenomena of the faux pas of the forger, anti,
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
therewith, with respect to the type and manner by means of w hich
these can ue: t and rno& t certainly be detected. e have 1ikm i se
already investigated the type, extent, and 1'requEncy of unconscious
and unintentional reversions to the true Land of the 1'aisiiier, and
how such are dependent on the iai is er's u re ux adroi traess,
ability to forge, anu concentra tion capacity. hereby, it migYit
again be stressed that herefor, in addition, the objective diffi-
culties of to concrete fa i cfica ti.on, which have also been
previousl~r treated, are decisive. 01' course, in addition to all
the preceding, it is of great importance to 1aiov, the type of
handwritin habitually employed by the forger. In the case of
disguises, those who normally write an indefinite, lithe
singular, script will be best capable of perpetrating an altera-
-Lion of hand, , ithout having to fear reversions. Such will also
find it rr.c~ t easy to adapt to a eeript kha ch is to be copied.
fi.
kith respect to the phenomemil fonns of faux pas, it should
b established that such z+r~ e :presued quite diversely, each
in accordance ith u-ihether it is a question of a aalsifieation
throu . l disguise of one; true hand or through the copying of a
foreign hand. In the case of the former, such iill ae principally
recognizable as departures from the disguise style, for every dis-
;uiser ultimately seeks to produce he latter in a dis zuice of
handwriting, even though it may be of the most primitive type. In
the case of copying, the faux pas will be e~cpressed as departures
from the foreign handseript which is copied. In this case, above
all with respect to verb, clever but obstinate forgers, at times ap-
pearing will be strokes which correspond to neither the script nor
the forger's true hand. However, such misfires, i. e., unsuccess-
ful places in the copy, by and large are recognizable as having
i49 .
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
been forced by the breaking; trough the barrier of the forgers
awn writi.ri forces, habits, and tendencies. Thus, one may reckon
that one has before one the natural script of tree falsifier.
How now do ti;e find those places in to factual. script in
which the h anawriting forger, au are actor, has stepped out of
his role? r s far as the inetYlod is concerned, it should be men-
wioriea here in antieipa ti.on that we coo not yet concern ourselves
at the beginning of the co;iparison with the examination of the
factual script kith respect to tdividu.1 characteristics, since
this will occur later in he eventual syst~na tic individual ana-
lysis. Rather, we first seek out for the time being entire parts
of the script, i. e., words or word series -- under circumstances,
entire sentences -. but also mere sv11ab1es or letter groups,
which have found their way into the falsification product via the
true hand of the a`orger. Thereby, e shall so proceed that, by
next examining the factual script, we are able to determine >r~hich
places arc not in accordance kith the tot 1 i:^pression of the
script of the falsifier, from the general observation of the ap-
pearance of the factual script. The determina Lion of such becomes
the easier, the more formed out the Factual script, as such, is,
i. e., the more pregnant and uniform in general he style of dis-
guise or the script which is copied appears. Especiai]y striking
are such parts of handwriting which are not altered through faisi-
fication, above all in the case of strongly stylized scripts, such
as printed letters and quite pronounced decora tine scripts (Cf.
Figure III 'With appendix C). However, here their cotipreheneion is
most pressing, because through such stronglystamped form types
the naturalness of formation and even movement strokes are for the
most part extensively suppressed, so that often these places of
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
faux pas, as r~aily certairn starting; points for the comparison
process, escape us. In the case of indefinite hndwritings as
the object of a copying, the reversions to he true t?and of the
forger ti i1 be ?~:posec1 trough s trong ~ r consequenccs of the riove-
merit anti the pregnancy of the form stamp. C)f course such strokes
which ~,re not in accorcance with to remaining h indi ritin : picture,
in the case of dis uises, can ori4nate f.'rom Laisification, i. e.,
they can be inconsistencies :~f the style of disuisirig, be it
exaggerations or mistakes made in he ciis;u1L by the t'orger in
relation to the model assumed by rll.rr-. Therefore, all the parts
of the handwritir~g which are not in agreement with the r?maining
han~-Jriti ng picture must be examined to determine whether or not
they make a na tur~1 impression. Thus, as reversions to the natural
hand of the falsifier, such parts of the handscript which manifest
a lesser degrce of stiffening in relation to the remaining factual
script 9flC which appear more relaxed, i. e., rnanifesting a lesser
number of inhibition characteristics, will above all core intc
question, in correspondence i ith the four experiences set forth
in our basic principle. With respect to he concept of stiffen-
ing, which has been elucidated more detailedly above, it should be
repeated that it is here, in regard to faux pas, above all a
question of the contrast of enforced, artificially-effected uni-
formity to a point of rigidity, in relation to Un animate flowing --
a vibration, so to speak -- of the natural script in essential
characteristics, i. e., here, above all, in sire, position, breadth,
pressure. A se~ingay infallible indication of nonartificially-
written or formed handwriting is the presence of a natural rhythm
in movement and form, i. @., a periodically light, ever-recurring
alteration above all in the above?rnentioned characteristics
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
phenomena which ~e shall later discuss in more detail. In addi-
tion, there is in the natural script almost invariably a certain
flowingness and a natural interconnection of writing strokes in
the whoie. Here, with respect to the artiiicia1 creation of Land-
writing, we come back to the pertinent f'ormulatioi: of Saudek in
regard to the reduction of the wr~iting impulse. The reduction to
the letter-impulse, which usually effect: a certain incoherence,
ii not a disrremberment, of the artificial script, ~:ii1 be lacking
in the unctis ;uised characteristics hhich have crept into the
factual seiipt. These latter characteristics will be borne by a
uniform irrtpulsc: which here extends w iforrniy over several words,
nr_.an ent;.z'e sentence, or at lea; t to a word or a syllable
even to the entir'E u.~dis ?prised piece of writing -- thereby ef'f e;t-
an}j a natural coherence which is not only limited to the so-called
connectedness, but is visible in an overlapping uniformity of he
writing stroke. Also to be given special attention are the fo+_low?
ing, l heti, er the pressure at those points which we are inves~ga=
twig for the determiriatiori of faux pas manifests itstlf as elastically
alternating, in correspondence with the stretching i nd bending of
the fingers participating in he writing; or whether the unrhythrnical
pressure produced by the unnatural writing of the forger is perM
ceptible. Also of importance is the speed of production of hand-
writing. The artificial script ?- be it a disguise or a copying --
can be produced only in the most moderate tnpo: in the case of
the disguise, because of utifaruilia~ity with the forms to be created;
In the case of copying, beeause the copier must be concerned with
accurate matchiri. Thus, if to be found in he factual script are
places which have been written considerably faster than the remain-
lug script, then it can be as?umod with some degree of certaintiy
-
-l2
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
that some natural moverf1 iit impul cs of the forger Lave compelled
this acceleration. It en be a uxmed that, as is said, the
t?mp: ramment of tie forge has pr;nctratea the harrcwriting, i, e.,
thGt ~?Jrj have before us his true hand. It is a like matter with
respect to conr~ectiri; forms anc_ the ctual script fonnatiorl. If
~.ord ceric,s, individual words, and letter series in pronounced
festoon or thin line connections are found in he fctua.l script
i hich is constructed with anivIcr conneeteaness, ten concicierable
suspicion exists tk1]t faux pas are present. Ur +n exaggeratedly
disgaiaed script may suddenly raecolr,p thin and temperate, or the
same phenomena may be manifest in the unsuccessi`ui parts of a
falsification executed by copying. Or a large and broad actual
script may suddenly become sma ier acid mci'e ui.c i1 L1`d ttu.
in the seeking out of reversions of the forger to his true hand.
In many cases, the fact that the f~rer "rat corrected such
yrci 's 'will ?.11 r 11S the U.;.r~ their
~u,nx pas re uuer' easier ~~l.i us detection of ~ ~ of S. _3 ~ .sf'
pl etely erase through caricella Lion that which he first wrote and
the latter remains in evidence, then we have one of the rare cases
in which we can see the forger at pork, as it were, and can pursue
the process he has carried out. Such fortunate Cases, rihich are
not at all seldom, are of .rent value for the coxnparisori of hand-
writing, because, with respect to that which remains in evidence
under the corrections in most cases there can be no doubt that this
is the true hand of the forger ?- a certainty which we otherwise
only rarely attain. Of course one should have a clear perception
that not every correction must of necessity be connected with a faux
pas. It can also be that the forger was not pleased with a script
l3
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
Lion should be given all such phenomena, in order to Find success
presence pill be the more evident. Should the forger fall to com-
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
disguising stroke, arid that he then erased i t. whether this be
the case can u:~uaJ.1y ea ily be determined from the Nt1.1i-r cog.'
nizable strokes. However, ornc nut further have a clear percep-
tion -Uha t here are also ijann1ess correction: , so to speak, by
means of which occasional orthographi ca1 . istakes or other mis-
takes have been rectified. lwioreover, there are many writers who
have tr.e habit of rnakirig rancor corrections after looking over
their writing, as iias already been rneritionec earlier. Such cor-
rections are cosmetic rei:arations, as it Twere, or are effected
for the sake of greater clarity and better lei ibility. Occasionally,
a role can here by played by the phenomenon, long familiar to
grapholog sts, that many persons ake mistakes in writing if the
content of that ich is being i~ritten is farce, e. g., in the
case of writers of arionyrnouc scripts. One need only bring to
mind defamatory petitions. Alterations due to exaggerated self-
control are represented for the most part by corrections of loops,
stronger aefinitior~ of four., and the like, and are easily dif-
ferentiable as such from other corrections. Moreover, such
habit, if it also appears in the script subject to ids itificatior,,
iDrovidcs U direct comparison staridard. (Cf. hero also E;.chneickert,
?the Uraphological Judgment of Corrections in Earrdwriting," Arch. f.
Kam., Vol 113, page 89 f'. ) All these diverse types of mistakes
justify the monition to approach the evaluation of corrections only
with the greatest circumspection and care; to moreover approach
similarly the diseernibility of the incomplete erasure.
It is clcrr how the corrections which are important in ccm>
parison have originated. In most cases the forger does not know
that he hs given himself away or how this has occurred, or how it
can be reOo nixed that +~e urldts wised hands ~ript is at hand. It
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/23 : CIA-RDP81-01043R000400190011-1
is this very i. xiorance 1hi.ch affords the rnost oppor~uriities for
the cumpUrison of handwriting. hoever, it is not infrequent3.y
-tie case teat he dis;: ui er notices that he has reverted this
true hand;riting strokes; li.kei~ise, it is cLot infrequent
h
4Ici v
44.
c
LLLW
copier becomes awnre for he same reason tbat the irti 13t of of
thL fares n Strokes hriot succeeued, or that he at least has a
presentiment tha t this could give him away. Then he will con-
cei.Vab1v attempt to erase to 1'r ms thw arising, aria he does
this usually by st.r5idng out or scratching out. But not always
dogs this eras1ri r become completely effectuated: It may be hat
the cancelling Line eoe& not fully cover that which ii written
beneath; it may be that he era'Ure does not fully blot out the
,.... .~ .r8 ..., .. i . 11 ..~.....r- 1.1...- ?4% .,. 3.
TuL C' .ti. Cis ..L GMCod. t/l Ull' ... J.JW a .3..1. a: 'v
., n