Again, this card reversed, bears a further signification of a good and severe man, when its synonyms would be:

Indulgent severity; indulgence; compliance; condescension; complacency; tolerance; low descension.

When used as the marriage card, and coming out reversed, the king of diamonds signifies primarily difficulties and obstacles imposed in the way of entering upon or consummating the nuptial contract, and through inference vitiation of the married state, when its synonyms are:

Slavery; captivity; servitude; matrimonial ruptures; conjugal infidelity.

QUEEN OF DIAMONDS--_Upright._ When this card comes out in the oracle upright it bears three primary significations: _a country lady_; _a talkative_ or _communicative female_; and a _good, kind-hearted woman_.

As a representative card it designates a very fair female with auburn or blonde hair, brilliantly clear complexion and very blue eyes. A woman of this character will be given to society, and is naturally a coquette.

When the card is taken as a _country lady_ its synonyms will be through induction or inference:

Economical housewife; chaste and honest woman; honesty; civility; politeness; sweetness of temper; virtue; honor; chast.i.ty; a model wife; excellent mother.

When used to designate a _talkative female_, they will be:

Conversation; discourse; deliberation; dissertation; discussion; conference; intellectual entertainment; prattler; blab; idle talk; flippant conversation; table talk; gossip.

QUEEN OF DIAMONDS--_Reversed._ When the card comes out reversed in the oracle its ordinary signification is that of a meddlesome woman, who has interfered in the affairs of the consultant for the purpose of doing him or her injury, and the extent of the injury, contemplated or done, can be estimated from the proximity of this card to that of the consultant, or from the import of those cards intervening between the two. This card has two secondary significations as follows:

_Want of foresight_, whose synonyms are:

Unawares; unexpectedly; on a sudden; napping; astonished; suddenly; fortuitously; unhoped for; surprisingly.

_A knavish trick_, whose synonyms would be:

Roguishness; knavery; cheat; imposture; deceit; sharpness in rascality; trickery; false pretense; artifice; wile; craftiness.

JACK OF DIAMONDS--_Upright._ The primary signification of this card is a _soldier_, a _postillion_, or a light haired _young man, in or from the country_. In addition to these characteristics this card, whether upright or reversed, a.s.sumes another, which is technically called _the good stranger_.

As a _soldier_, its secondary value is expressed in the following synonyms:

Man at arms; swordsman; fencing master; combatant; enemy; duel; war; battle; attack; defense; opposition; resistance; ruin; overthrow; hostility; hatred; wrath; resentment; courage; valor; bravery; satellite; stipendiary.

In the quality of _the good stranger_, its synonyms are:

Strange; unaccustomed; unknown; unheard of; unusual; unwonted; surprising; admirable; marvelous; prodigious; miracle; episode; digression; anonymous.

When employed as a representative of a person, it denotes a light haired, unmarried man, who, although one of your nearest relations, will sacrifice your interests to his own; a person of stubbornness; hot headed and hasty, tenacious of his own opinions and unable to brook contradiction.

JACK OF DIAMONDS--_Reversed._ This card's signification is a public or private servant; and in the latter case, without reference to gender, either a male or female domestic. Its synonyms therefore are in accordance with its acceptation:

Servant; waiter; valet; chambermaid; lady's maid; a subordinate; an inferior; a hireling; condition of one employed; servitude; postman; errand boy; messenger; agent; expressman; newsman; message; announcement; commission; directions; a household; relative to post office and the transmission of messages.

ACE OF DIAMONDS--It is a matter of perfect indifference whether this card a.s.sumes its place in the oracle in an upright or reversed position, as its primary signification is in no wise varied, although of a most comprehensive nature, being, expressing generally, a _letter_, a _note_, a _paper_, a _pet.i.tion_, etc.

It requires, however, a great deal of attention to discriminate between the manifold significations of this all-important card, which is governed in a great measure by the cards coming next to it, otherwise the interpreter may be entirely baffled in comprehending the intent of the oracle.

The general synonyms of the _ace of diamonds_ are:

Epistle; writings; the art of writing; grammar; Holy Writ; text; literature; doctrine; erudition; literary labor; book; correspondence; composition; alphabet; elements of all learning; principles; bonds; bills of exchange; notes of hand; evidence of indebtedness.

With the _seven of spades, reversed_, coming next to it, this card denotes the existence of a law suit, in which case we have synonyms, founded on the following basis:

Deed; covenant; agreement; law paper; writs; warrants; litigation; differences; contestations; disputes; discussions; bickering; contest; strife; discord; contradiction; stratagem; trick; broil; pettifogging; wrangling.

TEN OF DIAMONDS--Like its companion, the _ace_, which with this card form the only two in the pack possessing this peculiar quality, the _ten of diamonds_ preserves its value and signification, whether it emerges either upright or reversed. The primary significations of this card are _gold_, _water_, the _sea_, a _foreign city_, _change of locality_.

As the representative of _gold_ its synonyms are:

Riches; opulence; magnificence; splendor; eclat; sumptuousness; luxury; abundance; means.

When its signification is a.s.sumed relative to _water_ and the _sea_, the synonyms a.s.sume both a specific and general nature:

Fluid; humid; ablution; dew; rain; deluge; inundation; the ocean; river; torrent; stream; fountain; source; lake; pond; cascade; falls.

When the surrounding cards designate this one to be accepted as representing a foreign city, its synonyms are:

Traveler; traveling; foreign parts; beyond the sea; homeless; wanderer; wandering abroad; trading; commerce; a sailor; ships; refuge; exile.

When accepted to signify a _change in locality_, the synonyms, in addition to preservation of its original meaning of a mere change in domicile, or habitation, are inferentially extended to embrace a wider scope, such as:

Departure; displacement; journey; pilgrimage; peregrination; steps; motion; visits; excursions; incursions; emigration; immigration; transmigration; flight; tour; rotation; circulation; deportation; rout; defeat; overthrow; bewilderment; disconcert; to break one's allegiance; desertion; disinheritance; alienation; alien; a foreigner; houseless.

It will be seen that with the varied significations which can be given to this card, it is one of the most important in the pack.

NINE OF DIAMONDS--_Upright._ When coming forth in its natural position, this card is one of particular good omen, as it foretells great success in business operations and consequent gain. Its primary meaning comprehends the grand mainspring to human exertion, _enterprise_, while at the same time it a.s.sures you of the desired result, _advantage_ or _gain_. Viewed as such its synonyms are, as to _enterprise_ in the first instance:

To undertake; to commence; to usurp; to take possession of; audacity; boldness; hardihood; impudence; rashness; speculative; speculation; fearless in trade; in love.

When taken to represent _advantage_, the synonyms are:

Gain; profit; lucre; success; thanks; favor; benefit; ascendency; power; empire; authority; government; rule; glory; reputation; happy results; profitable end; victory; cure; fulfillment; termination; satisfaction.

NINE OF DIAMONDS--_Reversed._ We have the other side of the picture, for this card, coming up reversed portends the occurrence of dire mishaps and abject despoliation with its concomitant poverty. In view of this immense difference in the value and signification of this one and the same card in its two positions, too much care cannot be taken to mark the way in which it emerges.

In its modified signification of _delay_, its synonyms are:

Disarranged; sent back; suspension; variation; wavering; slowness; relenting; obstacle; impediment; misfortune; adversity; accidental injuries; miscarriage.

But viewed in its more bitter light as _spoliation_ and _poverty_, its synonyms are:

Dest.i.tution; violence; ruin; victim of robbery; a fall; ruined honor; bankruptcy; privation; violated chast.i.ty; defrauded; swindled; victimized; separation; sold out by the sheriff; cast upon the town; hopeless.

EIGHT OF DIAMONDS--_Upright._ In its natural position this card is accepted to represent either _the country_ or _riches_, as its signification is relatively determined from its surroundings.

In its signification as the _country_, thereby meaning not only a rural district but the characteristics of a country existence, the interpretation of this card boasts a large number of synonyms: