Huntsville gazette., 1885-02-07
-rU-UP,THou BAADHEAD.

ri = A.
HE Causes That Produce Baldness'm Z"
Average Man.
Iss Badness is produced by failure OF
normal nutrition in the papill@ at o le
base Of each hair follicle. Iml'erfe ct
work being done in the .capll e1h IS
which are here richly distributed tie
cells which constitute hair-shsdt az Q
not formed in their due proPortie IA, the
old shaft thus feebly sustained becomes
loose and drops away, leaving nothing
in its place. This failure OF nutl atlon
NAV have sudden cause, OF which 1he
effect will be but temporary. For IN
stance, an attack of typhoid 4 ever oiten
leaves the pakilla of the scah SO much
enfeebled that rapid baldna IS ensues.
The papillm, however, still re- tain their
vitality, and, as the system re gains Its
strength, they quickly recover tneir Po-
tentiality. and the haif conaes again,
perhaps thicker than before. IN tne
same manner certain cutaneous ahec-
tions may cause the hair to tall y an
action on the papille' which Is put
temporary; in such cases recovery, "l.
haps with assistance, perhaps wltho !. ut
it, is possible In the great maJorNy
of instances, however, where the heaM
is bald the failure of nutrition OF each
papil1a has come on so gradually, and
has continued so long that the papliia
/ no longer exists; it has passed away by
trophy: its capillaries have become
obliterated. and even the foNlcle no
Longer constitutes depression IN the
cuts, and the scalp has the smooth and
shining appearance which we SO well
recognize. 1T is easy,s therefore, to see
that in such a condition as fflls no re-
| newed growth of the hair ts TO De eA-
| pected, for the anatomical structure
which caused its development and con-
| tinued it has ceased to exist, aud enc
countless remedies which are so freehy
advertised as being able to reJuvenaae
bald heads are utterly OF no. avail;
They served only to illustrate the >greed
and the impudence of the inventors, as
well as the credulity of the purchasers.
But such is the desire to escape tie,
appearance of "growing old'' that no
doubt they will hold their ground for
| all time to come.
But now arises the question, can not
the application of the various agents to
! the scalp, at the time when the hair is
beginning to lose its hold, be of SER
vice in stimulating the follicles and
/ papill@ into renewed and permanent
vigor? To this question it is not pos
sible, on theoretical grounds, to say no,
absolutely; but in practical fact that is
the only true answer to give in the vast
majority of cases.. The cause of the
failing of the. hair has been already
stated, and safe reasoning tells us that
our only hope can be in that which can
restore the failing vitality. and we well
know that we should not expect to Sc
cure this on any other part of the skin
by filthy oils and washes. Proper
cleansing of the scalp is as important
as it is of all other parts; nothing else
should be applied to it but common
sense. There can be little question but
the continued close covering of the
head with hats and caps is one very
constant cause of badness.
/ Women, in our own communities.
seldom lose their hair, except from sud-
den causes; and among those nations
where the head is habitually left bare or
but slightly covered, badness is prac-
tically unknown. At the same time
the beard, which is of the same class of
hair as that of the scalp, but which is
always uncovered, does not fail with
age. A reform in our style of head
gear is very desirable, but it is not at
all likely to be accomplished. The
suggestion was some time ago made
that bald heads might perhaps be COW
cred anew with hair by ''skin grating y
No doubt such bits might be attached,
but the whole matter is merely a wild
fancy, without practical value. We
can make ''skin graft" take hold, but
it is only where the skin is destroyed
and the surface raw and exposed, com-
monty rendered so by disease.
/ Assuming that some person would
consent to have his scalp peeled away
in preparation for the operation, and
then assuming that some other person
could be found who would consent to
appropriate his own scalp to cutting
4 out the proper bits for the work, yet
then the very best possible success must
4 be extremely imperfect. The denuded
surface would heal SO rapidly between
the s'graftsr that no extension on their
part could take place, and head with
small specks of hair here and there
would be the only attainable result.
..Crazy patchwork is fashionable, but
1 perhaps not many would care to wear
it in that way The result of all seems
to be that when badness has come
I Slowly and naturally, it has come to
stay and our only wisdom is to be con-
tent. Springfield n fMuss.) J Repu6h-