The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-09-12
False Hair-CuriOsities Of the Trade.

late London journal gives q curious
account of the traffic in artificial hair, iTon
which we take the following Interesting
details:-
ooLoRs.
"Those who only know false hair from the
curious Jumps OF 1t in the hairdressers windows,
and from general suspicion that they see
1t on the heads of some Of their friends, cannot
form notion of the extent to which the trade
in it is carried on. II has wholesale dealers
with large warehouses and skilled laborers
constantly at work. 1t is manufactured to meet
the wishes and the purses of all classes OF
society, iron the sXpenuy irisett soil to Gil
out the sparse locks of the servant-ot.all-work
to the ten-guinea head of hair made up TO aid
the beauty OF duchess. To visit Que OF
its great empofiums is to become wiser
If not O sadder man. Thele may be seen
samples of hair by the thousand, all OF which
have been cut from living heads lor money, to
be sold again. Here is the irOngrey OF middle
life, the snowy white of old age the brown and
black and faxen OF comparative youth, all
roughly twisted up together like so many pie
bald horses tails. Some of the hair is long,
some short some coarse, some fine, some neg
leCted and dirty, some carefully cOmbed AMI
clean. There is n ready demand for all, and all
will be submitted to some twenty distinct pro.
ce:ses before 1t is offered for sale. 1t is rather
melancholy to lind that grey or white hair
is the most valuable of all; and that false
hair which is long as well as grey commands the
highest price from the number of old ladies
wishing to coun erfelt nature while preserving
the insignia OF years. The finest specimens of
this elderly hair will sell for rs much as two
guineas an ounce; while the very best black or
brown will sell for from eighteen shillngs to q
guinea, and the best haXen at about guinea
and a hall. The latter variety is, be the quality
what it may, about fifty per cent. dcarer than
black or brown harr, while white or Grey fetches
more than the later by one hundred per cent.
Fair Saxon hair is still greatly in demand, and
as the stock OF it must be kept up, many OF the
other colors have TO be stained to the tavoIite
hue,
DYES
"The liquid dyes invented and improved
during the present generation act chemically on
the hair without staining the skin, and are by
comparison clcanly and convenient. Hence,
according to the hairdressers, the enormous
increase in dyed hair, and the reduction in tue
sale of wigs TO men. But it is by no means easy
to insure given shade in hair once cut from the
head and twenty dyengs is no unusual number
for it to go through be ore the coveted color is
attained. Each time II is dipped in the dye it
has to be dried, so that the process is not little
tedious. The variety OF ladies' head-drcsses oi
hair which are sold ready-made is very great
There are the curly rlnglets OF the romp, the
fancy plaits OF the demure school girl, the
pOrter's Knot the sausage roll, the snake, the
caterpillar, the black pudding, the ,parasol, the
door knocker, and the birds nest, all of hair.
EAIBDREssERs' LITERATURE.
"There is, oy the by, in London an interesting
publication called the HdtrdreSSers ChroRicie, Ol
which it ap pears that societies flourish in Lon
don and elseEhere for the promotion OF the ar
of hair-dressing, aud that the most distinguished
professors of the day practise together in tn
elaboration of new cOlfeUrs.
FALSE Boards.
"a considerable trade exists In false boards
moustaches, aud whIskers. During The Amei
can war vast number of these we're sent iron
Europe to the United States, aud a stead,
demand continued until the peace. The fact i
curious that the demand lasted as long as th
wal, aOd gradually dropped off at its close
When art initiates nature so wonderfully, ant
whereas figures and professional witnesse
| prove-a large proportion OF the female po oula
! tion avail themselves of ant, 1t becomes exceed
ingly difficult TO draw the line between the two
many thousands OF heads and being taugh
its use, the belief is pardonable, If morbid, tn a
| false locks are almost as common as real; anl
whenever they are especially beautiful, the.
| should awaken most dlstrust.