Hearts And Hands Characters



Two young men: one gloomy, dressed shabbily (would've assumed the gloomy guy was the bad guy) - one handsome - Mr. Easton has a 'frank countenance' (honest face) - The glum-faced man says, 'I see you're acquainted with the marshall here.He's taking me to prison.' - The glum-faced man says 'Say marshall.haven't had a smoke all day.' The story “Hearts and Hands” is set on a train, eastbound B. Express, where an elegantly dressed, luxurious pretty young woman Miss Fairchild meets by chance one of his old acquaintances Mr. A heart that only consists of a frame, can be combined with the “Alt” and “9825” insert into the document (see above). If you have no numeric keypad on your keyboard, you can insert symbol by opening the character table and copy the desired character’s heart. Even with Excel can be via numeric keypad or character table to insert a heart. Hearts and Hands' family assistance program has ended as of September 2020, and is no longer taking applications for assistance. For a list of resources available and other nonprofits that may be able to help, please use the Resource Guide located on our resources page. Character Palette allows you to view and use all characters and symbols, including hands, available in all fonts (some examples of fonts are 'Arial', 'Times New Roman', 'Webdings') installed on your computer.

At Denver there was an influx of passengers into the coaches on the eastbound B. & M. express. In one coach there sat a very pretty young woman dressed in elegant taste and surrounded by all the luxurious comforts of an experienced traveler. Among the newcomers were two young men, one of handsome presence with a bold, frank countenance and manner; the other a ruffled, glum-faced person, heavily built and roughly dressed. The two were handcuffed together.
As they passed down the aisle of the coach the only vacant seat offered was a reversed one facing the attractive young woman. Here the linked couple seated themselves. The young woman's glance fell upon them with a distant, swift disinterest; then with a lovely smile brightening her countenance and a tender pink tingeing her rounded cheeks, she held out a little gray-gloved hand. When she spoke her voice, full, sweet, and deliberate, proclaimed that its owner was accustomed to speak and be heard.
'Well, Mr. Easton, if you will make me speak first, I suppose I must. Don't vou ever recognize old friends when you meet them in the West?'
The younger man roused himself sharply at the sound of her voice, seemed to struggle with a slight embarrassment which he threw off instantly, and then clasped her fingers with his left hand.
'It's Miss Fairchild,' he said, with a smile. 'I'll ask you to excuse the other hand; 'it's otherwise engaged just at present.'
He slightly raised his right hand, bound at the wrist by the shining 'bracelet' to the left one of his companion. The glad look in the girl's eyes slowly changed to a bewildered horror. The glow faded from her cheeks. Her lips parted in a vague, relaxing distress. Easton, with a little laugh, as if amused, was about to speak again when the other forestalled him. The glum-faced man had been watching the girl's countenance with veiled glances from his keen, shrewd eyes.
'You'll excuse me for speaking, miss, but, I see you're acquainted with the marshall here. If you'll ask him to speak a word for me when we get to the pen he'll do it, and it'll make things easier for me there. He's taking me to Leavenworth prison. It's seven years for counterfeiting.'
'Oh!' said the girl, with a deep breath and returning color. 'So that is what you are doing out here? A marshal!'
'My dear Miss Fairchild,' said Easton, calmly, 'I had to do something. Money has a way of taking wings unto itself, and you know it takes money to keep step with our crowd in Washington. I saw this opening in the West, and--well, a marshalship isn't quite as high a position as that of ambassador, but--'
'The ambassador,' said the girl, warmly, 'doesn't call any more. He needn't ever have done so. You ought to know that. And so now you are one of these dashing Western heroes, and you ride and shoot and go into all kinds of dangers. That's different from the Washington life. You have been missed from the old crowd.'
The girl's eyes, fascinated, went back, widening a little, to rest upon the glittering handcuffs.
'Don't you worry about them, miss,' said the other man. 'All marshals handcuff themselves to their prisoners to keep them from getting away. Mr. Easton knows his business.'
'Will we see you again soon in Washington?' asked the girl.
'Not soon, I think,' said Easton. 'My butterfly days are over, I fear.'
'I love the West,' said the girl irrelevantly. Her eyes were shining softly. She looked away out the car window. She began to speak truly and simply without the gloss of style and manner: 'Mamma and I spent the summer in Denver. She went home a week ago because father was slightly ill. I could live and be happy in the West. I think the air here agrees with me. Money isn't everything. But people always misunderstand things and remain stupid--'
'Say, Mr. Marshal,' growled the glum-faced man. 'This isn't quite fair. I'm needing a drink, and haven't had a smoke all day. Haven't you talked long enough? Take me in the smoker now, won't you? I'm half dead for a pipe.'
The bound travelers rose to their feet, Easton with the same slow smile on his face.
'I can't deny a petition for tobacco,' he said, lightly. 'It's the one friend of the unfortunate. Good-bye, Miss Fairchild. Duty calls, you know.' He held out his hand for a farewell.
'It's too bad you are not going East,' she said, reclothing herself with manner and style. 'But you must go on to Leavenworth, I suppose?'
'Yes,' said Easton, 'I must go on to Leavenworth.'
The two men sidled down the aisle into the smoker.
The two passengers in a seat near by had heard most of the conversation. Said one of them: 'That marshal's a good sort of chap. Some of these Western fellows are all right.'
'Pretty young to hold an office like that, isn't he?' asked the other.
'Young!' exclaimed the first speaker, 'why--Oh! didn't you catch on? Say--did you ever know an officer to handcuff a prisoner to his right hand?'

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i)The coach of the eastbound train, B & M Express. The only vacant seat left was a ‘reversed one facing the attractive young woman.’ This tells us that the coach was crowded.

ii)Miss Fairchild. She is described as an elegantly dressed, pretty young woman who had all the luxuries and who loved travelling.

iii)The linked couple were Mr Easton and the marshal because they were handcuffed together.
iv)At first, she saw them indifferently with a ‘distant, swift disinterest.’ As soon as she recognized Mr Easton, she smiled at them and started conversing.


i) Mr Easton. His right hand was engaged as it was handcuffed to the left hand of the marshal.
ii)As soon as the lady saw Mr Easton being handcuffed, her look changed to bewildered horror. She was no longer glad; ‘the glow faded from her cheeks’ and ‘her lips parted in a vague, relaxing distress.’
iii)The glum-faced man spoke as if Mr Easton was the marshal. The glum-faced man was a convict being taken to Leavenworth prison for counterfeiting.
CharacterHearts and hands character analysisHands

iv)In reality, the glum-faced man was the marshal who was taking the convict Mr Easton to the prison. The marshal, to save Mr Easton from embarrassment in front of Miss Fairchild, presented himself as the convict.
v)The story begins with two people, Mr Easton and the glum-faced man hand-cuffed together. It is the handcuffing that lends to the ‘Hands’ part of the title. In fact, it is the hands which are significant for revealing the true identities of the two men. Miss Fairchild was misled by the unnamed man about the identity of Mr Easton as he wanted to save Mr Easton from an embarrassing situation by revealing that he was a convict and was being taken by him to the prison. It was an astute passenger in the coach, who discovered that a marshal would not handcuff his own right hand with that of a convict, as was the case with Mr Easton and the marshal.


i)She called Easton, a marshal because she was told so by the real marshal. Moreover, her own fantasies did not allow her to suspect the real marshal’s revelation about Mr Easton.
Easton, in reality, was a convict being taken to a prison on charges of counterfeiting.
ii)He was going to be imprisoned at Leavenworth prison for counterfeiting.

A)Money has a way of taking wings unto itself: Money has the ability to make one feel respected and dignified. Money can make one fly and soar high.
b)To keep step with our crowd: To compete with the crowd or to feel one with the high class society in Washington.
iv)Easton said he was making money but he needed more in order to fit in high society so he took up the position of a marshal in the west.

Hearts And Hands Characters

v)She was not likely to see Easton in Washington soon, because he was to be confined in Leavenworth prison. Miss Fairchild, assumed that he would be extremely busy in his new job as the marshal.


i)The girl was fascinated with the handcuffs. Easton was handcuffed to the marshal, because he was being taken to the Leavenworth prison for counterfeiting.
Hearts and hands charactersAll
ii)Miss Fairchild was glaring at the handcuffs. The glum-faced man asked her not to worry as it was Mr Easton’s business as a marshal to handcuff the convict to keep from getting away.
iii)The word ‘Hearts’ in the title is indicative as relationship something more than friendship between Miss Fairchild and Mr Easton. When she saw Mr Easton, there appeared a lovely smile on her face and her cheeks turned pink. She even told him that she loved the West, suggesting that she would settle down with him in the West.

iv)Mr Easton would be imprisoned in Leavenworth prison on the charges of counterfeiting. “ My butterfly days are over’ signifies that Easton’s good and adventurous days of making money by deceiving people are over.


i)What The glum-faced man interrupted the conversation between Easton and Miss Fairchild and requested Easton that he should be taken to the smoker room.

Hearts And Hands Lesson

To prevent Mr Easton from revealing that he is a convict the glum-faced fellow did so.
ii)The glum-faced man said he was in need of a drink and a smoke. He asked Mr Easton to accompany him to the smoker car as he was ‘half dead for a pipe.’
iii)Generally, an officer’s left hand is handcuffed to the right hand of the convict.
The information is necessary to end the story as it reveals that in reality Mr Easton was the convict, and the glum-faced man was the marshal.


It is the ‘hearts’ part of the title that explains the theme. It is because of having a compassionate heart that the marshal told a lie to Miss Fairchild. He did this to save Mr Easton from the humiliation of being identified as a convict in front of an old friend. He told Miss Fairchild that Mr Easton was the marshal and he was the convict, who was being taken to the prison by Mr Easton. The glum-faced man had golden heart. The effect of the lie was immediate in the response of Miss Fairchild. She showed relief that Mr Easton was not convicted. She was shocked and horrified before the marshal told the lie to her.




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