Devil Take The Hindmost by Edward Chancellor (pg. 12)

Vega describes the obsessive-compulsive behavior of a speculator invoking his luck; he “wavers as to how best to secure a profit, chews his nails, pulls his fingers, closes his eyes, takes four paces and four times talks to himself, raises his hand to his cheek as if he has a toothache, puts on a thoughtful countenance, sticks out a finger, rubs his brow, and all this accompanied by a mysterious coughing as though he could force the hand of fortune.”