Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1868-12-17
HAIR DYES.


blondes and Brunettes.
In England, the invention of a
new black hair-dye, said to be per-
feet, has produced a long series of
commentaries from dermatologists
and others qualified to speak Mr..
Erasmus Wilson discusses the whole
question in a series of observations
in the Journal Of Cwtane0us Medi-
cine. He observes that the hair
owes its property of dyeing to its
porosity; which is evidently greater
than its physiological structure
would lead US to infer. Another of
its properties-namely, the presence
of sulphur in its constitution-ren-
ders it prone to darken under the
use Of certain mineral substances;
for example, lead and mercury,
whose compounds with sulphur are
black. Thus, if a. weak solution of
lead or mercury be brushed into the
hair. certain quantity Of the solu-
ton will penetrate the hair, and a
dark color will be produced, in con-
sequence of the formation of a sui
phuret of lead or sulphuret of mer-
curry. The depths of the shade or
color will depend upon the quantity
of sulphur present in the hair; and
as red hair and light colored hair
contains more sulphur than dark
hair, the result viii in that case be
comparatively greater. But where
the amount of sulphur is too minute
to produce the dye, science suggests
the means of introducing more sui
phur, as is illustrated, by reversal
of the process, in the following quo
tation from apaper by DIR. Mccall
Anderson on EEzeBaa MdrgfnGtuBl.
"'During the treatment / acct
dentally discovered what promises
to be the most perfect black dye
for the hair which has yet been seen.
After having used the bichloride 10
ton for some weeks, / changed it
for the lotion of hyposulphite of
soda; and the morning after the
first application the hair of the part
which before was bright red, had
become nearly black. One or two
more applications rendered it jet
black, while neither the skin nor
the clothing were stained saw
this patent a couple of weeks later,
and there was not the least deterio
ration of color; although, of course,
as the hair grows the new portions
will possess the normal tint The
reason of the escape of the epidermis,
while the hair was SO thorough
" dyed, is that it contains no sui
phur. $50. i3efffe1 Et0' ,aiieiI .'i
"Mr. Balnanne Squire, in COM
mentary on the above process, OBJ
serves that if instead of the hypO-
sulphite of soda one of the more
common mordants be employed
say, for example, the sulphide of
| ammonium-'instead of black, q
bright red color will result. The
| operation of DR.. Anderson's dye is
| this: The hyposulphurous acid, on
being liberated from the soda, de-
composes into sulphurous scid and
sulphur. The sulphurous acid re-
duces the bichloride of mercury to
the chloride, and the sulphur con
verts the chloride into (bIack) sui
phide. The effect of the sulphide OF
ammonium on biehloride of mercury
is to produce the (red) bisulphide,
which is the common vermillion OF
commerce. 80.
| The chief constituents Of haiI
dyes are metallic bodies and walnut
Juice. The metals chiefly in use
as capillary chrematics' are silver
lead and arsenic; while others appli
cable to similar purpose are gold
bismuth, iron, copper, cadmium, ii
tanium, uranium and molybdenum
Lead, in its crudest form, is repre-
sented by the leaden comb; but a
the process by this means is slow,
compound of oxide of lead or 18th
arge with lime, and made int
a paste with water, is more com
4 monty employed. his Is smeare'
on the hair at night, the evolves
gases being imprisoned by an oil
skin cap, and in the morning tn
F dried paste is brushed out, and tn
hair refreshed with pomatum. Ol
J | if a so called brown, a 'smothereo
! or 'fusty black is required, tn
j | paste should he mixed with milk in
| stead of water. The night is prefer
j | able for these remedies, because tn
! | hair is supposed to exhale NOR
, | sulphur at this period than durin
! the day. ....-re .lEs.
"Brown is produced by the chic
, | rike of gold alone, is also by solr
; ton of sulphate of copper with
| mordant of the prussiate Of potas
: (ferrocyanide of potassium an
titanium, uranium and molybdenun
/, Judged by their chemical behavio
, would give rise to similar result
: The golden yellow color 80 muc
! in fashion of late (says the BIRTHS
4 Medical Journal is produced by
f solution of arsenic with a mordal
. of the hydrosulphate of ammoni
q And cadmium would probably gi'
' rise to similar result. In the ca
Il of dyeing the lighter tiuts, howeve
it becomes necessary to submit Il
hair to aprOcess of bleaching, whi'
is commonly effected by solutiC
le of one or the other of the alkahe
= by chlorine, by the chloride of sot
3 or lime, or by sulphurous acid,
= sulphate of magnesia or lime,
. peroxide of hydrogen. In gener
- the dyes requiring mordants do n
= stain the epidermis."
III ..H.
Oh 1t was believed by MOntPensier Il