The Monitor., 1885-09-25
THE VILLAGE BARBER.
/ sketch Of English Rural Life.

sentations of agriculturists and their wives
made beautiful forever, do not revolve in
his little window Even in this advertis-
ing age the village barber has no need Of
advertising himself No man in the viii
lage is better known. 1t may also be said
that no one knows the villagers better.
The barber is not always at home. He
has many occupations, one of which is that
of gardener; but in the evening he may
generally be found at the receipt of Gus
he is not at home you must call again.
Sunday morning, from to 10, is his busy
time As you pass on your way to church
you notice that the door of the BARRIERS
this gap the rays Of the sun streaming in
are intercepted by the hot and blistered
faces of agricultural laborers peeping out to
see who is passing. That's So-and-so.'
they remark to one another; "a fine weeks
work he's done, he has He'll be another
week, perhaps, a-carrying the horse-close."
Should you look inside, you would find the
little front room of the cottage filled TO re-
space reserved for the operator and his
patient. Even this is in danger of being
overliowed. The ministering priest of this
rustic temple of fashion is a strong built,
for the coloring of which he is indebted to
equal parts of whisky and fresh air His
stalwart arms, barred to the elbows, are
covered with black hair. As he rapidly
sweeps away the weeks growth of stubble
on which he is engaged, you notice that his
action is more that of mower than the
ordinary town shaver. And, indeed, le is
no mean performe with the scythe. What
swath he sweeps from the long cheek of
the foolish-looking laborer now under his
hands, who is probably not so foolish as
he looks, A professor in one of the
large hair-eutting saloons in town would
take twice the time over the job, and do it
no better after all.
Few places are TO be found where some
body is not acknowledged king. To this
rule the village barber's shop is no ex-
eeption; and the throne is the rusty old
sofa which takes up the whole of one side
of the shaving-ro and juts out towards
the middle of the floor. The king is a fat
old man with humorous eye who keeps a
little shop in the village, to half the popu-
lation of which he is uncle, while with the
other half he is connected in some more
roundabout way. He has evidently waived
his kingly right to first shave in order
that he may amuse himself with the other
customers. 1t is considered bad form
to remain the shop after you have been
done. The king chaffs everybody i'm
partially. He has fine vein of rustic wit,
and draws everybody out in turn. He is
fond of propounding question just as the
lather is being laid ON. He has the salts
faction of knowing that in the improbable
case of an answer being ready it would be
intercepted by the brush. The shrewd
eye of the barber twinkles, his tongue pro-
trudes ever so little from the corner of his
mouth. Every now and again he puts in
a word-seldom more Indeed he re-
marks, or ''Ayr' or HUM In the last
there is an aggravating shade of doubt
He is careful not to undertake unnecessary
labor with speech or with razor, and never
goes too far with either
Four or five farm laborers, fine, hardy,
intelligent looking fellows, are awaiting
their turn on bench by the door There
is an etiquette of the village barber shop as
of st. James. 1t is well known that the
king Will not be shaved till he is ready; and
that will be when he is tired of chatting the
other customers, his subjects. But he can
walk up when he chooses. A serious Rad
ieal agitator might be indignant at finding
that everybody does not, as matter of
course. take his turn. One man tenders
himself as by right before another who has
been waiting longer. A small land owner
and farmer looks in on his way to church,
and is operated on at once. He is hale-fel-
low-welI-met with all (by this the inspect
ing Radical would be as much ast0nished
as disgusted); and if on his somewhat hasty
departure he is talked over rather micro
scopically, no one has much harm to say of
him. The barber himself appears to have
no politics. When these, as is often the
case, crop up, he gives each speaker the
impression that he sympathizes with him.
though he never distinctly says so. Few
leaders of society could with less show of
effort turn the talk where they wish it to
go; but the amusement of his customers is
his object, not his own instruction. Very
few matters are talked over in his presence
on which he has anything to learn. His
shop is neutral ground, and it is doubtful
whether he would allow even the kings
ehaff to become offensive.
His aim. more an instinct than an art. is
to keep ,his customers together. He him.
self never offends any one. If old Smith is
getting gray very fast, he is not such fool
as to tell him so. One customer has for
years trained some locks of hair from the
back of his neck to sport luxuriantly over
his forehead He is not going to make an
enemy for life Of that customer by cutting
them off 1t is impossible to detect an ex-
ira smile on his face (Which always wears
/ a cheerful expression) when he is going
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