The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1886-09-25
HOW HAIR GROWS.
Its Color Depending on the Amount Of
Air Contained in the HaIr-shaft,

Its Color Depending on the Amount OF
Air Contained In the Aair-Shaft,
At birth, almost the entire surface Of
the body Is cover with fine, soft hairs.
These fall off and are replaced by others
smaller and weaker than the first ones,
except over the scalp, the eyebrows and
tho eyelashes. Later on in life in some
situations the hairs become greatly de-
veloped, especially those of the beard of
man, and about the entrances of the
nose and ears In advanced life. The
hairs, like the nails, are simply special
notifications Of the skin; made up Of
the snme materials and, like il, subject
to many diseases. The skin Is made up
of cells which are at first deeply situated,
soft and spongy in structure. but as
they are pushed up toward the surface
by the continued formation of new ones,
become hard and horny. In most situu-
tions the cells of the skin proper be-
4 come loosened, and after they have
served u proper time as a protective TO
the underlying parts, they fall off and
are lost. Those which compose the
hair, on the contrary, become closely
attached to the next one above them,
and push the old ones before them in
the shape of continuous. fibrous col
umn. The lower cells overlap five OF
six of those in advance, and, as they
harden, become practically fused with
them.
The essential parts of hair are the
root and shaft. The root is imbedded
deep below the general surface of the skin
in little sack or pocket, into which
opens small gland that furnishes it
with a natural chair oil'' that keeps it
from becoming brittle. At the bottom
of the sack (follicle) is a collection of
living cells, freely supplied with blood
vessels and nerves. The outer of these
cells are pushed up by tlA growth OF
new ones, and thus the hair is started
on its way toward the surface. The
layer of skin in which the root is bedded
is that which contains the coloring mat.
ter that gives the tint to the complexion
of the different races of men and to in
dividuals in each race. Hence the
means of coloring the hair are supplied
with the materials which make up its
primary structure. The shaft of each
hair is hard and horny externally, but
contains within core of softer, more
spongy material, through which nu-
tritive fluids from the root are able to
find their way, at least during youth
and the younger periods of adult life.
The color of the hair depends on tho
proper color of the hair-oells, the hair
pigment (Which is the same coloring
material as tints the compleXion) and
the amount of air contained in the
shaft The proper color of the hair
cells, according to it's intensity, produces
pale, blonde or deep-red color. The
brownish black coloring matter gives all
shades OF brunette coloration, from pale
brown to ebony black. Combinations
of these two give all shades between that
exhibited by the fairest Saxon and this
blackest Ethiopian. Want of these col
oring materials makes the hair gray and
transparent, and if there be much air
contained in the outer parts of the shaft,
combined with deficiency in coloring
matters, then the opaque whiteness OF
old age is produced. Black is the al
most universal color, blondes being
found only among the Germans, Celts,
Slavs and Firms, and occasionally among
the Armenians and Semites. Red ha r
is found in individuals of all races.
The shape of the hair varies; in some
1t is round-in these it remains straight
Those which are oval or flat curl in
many directions and degrees. The ma
tives of America, the Polynesians and
Malays have the straightest, while the
curliest is found among the Bushmen
and negroes of Africa. The Indo-Eu-
ropean race, or Aryans, have hair talk
ing middle ground between these ex-
tremes. The direction of the hair de-
pends upon that of its root. When it is
permitted to grow long the direction
may, of course, be- changed to some eX-
tent.-St. Louis Globe Democrat.