- Ah! Théophile..., j'en apprends de belles sur ton compte...., d'après le livre de Mr. Desbarolles, je vois que tu as dans la main la ligne du libertinage!..... - Ah!... bah......

Trustman, Benjamin A., Trustman, Julia M. · 1860

A wife reading her husband's palm tells him that, according to her guide to palmistry, the husband is a libertine. The husband isn't bothered by this supposed destiny. CES BONS PARISIENS. (These good Parisians) is a series consisting of 11 prints, of which 10 appeared between March 1855 and May 1858 in the Charivari and one in January 1860. SPIRITISM, FLUIDOMANIE, THE OCCULT. The word „Fluidomanie“ used for this series can hardly be found in a French dictionary... it is a rather spirited invention of one of the Charivari’s journalists and can best be translated as “Ghostly Games”. The so-called fashionable Parisian bourgeoisie had caught on to spiritualism which was already fashionable in the USA and England. Table-turning, chiromancy and necromancy became an entertaining part of an evening invitation. As we can see in Daumier’s prints, some of these activities easily went out of control, creating some beautifully embarrassing situations. DESBAROLLES was a Parisian magician who published a book in 1859 "The art of palm reading".