Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1891-03-18
He CAN SHAVE HIMSELF.
But His Experiences in Learning How
Were Rather Trying.

finished an excellent luncheon. He
rubbed his snooth-shaven chin and
seemed to feel triumphant. 81 am quite
proud of the achievement, too. 1t Is
true that it took me about seven years
to master the art, and it is also true
that during that time spilled good
deal of blood. I not only cut my face
with regularity, but slashed myself in
the back of the neck several times.
made painful gashes in the ends OF my
fingers, and recall that on one occa-
sion, by a mysterious combination OF
unfortunate circumstances, l took
slice from my left ankle.
ITO questions by my Office associates
as to how I received so many wounds
merely replied that 1 was learning to
shave and paid no attention to their
gibes. They finally let me alone except
on the rare occasions when / appeared
unscathed, and then they inquired if
was feeling real we'll. My mother and
sisters were seriously alarmed for my
personal appearance. But persevered,
the cuts healed up, and now may say
that l am about as nearly perfect as
could wish to be in the use of razor.
MY motive in learning to shave"
continued the broker, "sprang from a
longing for release from the tyranny OF
barbers. Five or six times n week
was BARRIERS helpless slave. They
thumped me and scraped me, and, above
all, they talked to me. 1 determined to
become my own barber. l was also
actuated by the consideration of eX-
pense. l figured that BARRIERS cost me
about 500 year in money. This, re-
aected, would purchase many little
articles. 1t would help pay my cigar
bill. and it would pay for two, perhaps
three, comfortable suppers.
Somewhat to my surprise, when !
announced my determination to my
barber, he offered no objection. had
| postponed telling him several times,
fearing his high displeasure. But he ex'
hibited none. dimly recall now that,
rs he turned away to get some lather,
an expression of sorrow, evidently due
to the loss Of so remunerative Gus
| toner, passed over his face. But it was
gone when he looked at me again, and
| he proceeded then and there to get as
much money out of me as he could
| while he had me. l meellly allowed
him to infiict upon me all of the opera
tons in the knowledge of barber, and
l bought from him personally two ra-
| zors. He said that they We're his best
and declared that he would have parted
with them to no other man in the world.
He handed them to me when the boss
was looking out of the window. The
boss, he said, would discharge him if
he heard of the sale lie charged me fol
| them eight times the amount they We're
worth, though he convinced me that
was obtaining something that money
alone could not buy. The balance of
my outfit bought from the proprietor
of the shop, also at ruinous prices.
II thought was free. then. Twill
remember this, said to myself as !
went home, AS my emancipation day.
| l thought l would never again enter a
BARRIERS shop except to have my hail
trimmed. That would only be at long
intervals. Premature badness is pecu-
liar to our family. and my bald spot was
already well developed. bought a
diminutive safe, into which intended
to drop twenty-five cents every time
shaved.
"My beard resisted my early efforts
tenaciously. After few weeks con-
Guided that my raZors We're becoming
dull. gave them to n razor sharpener
who haunts downtown offices. He said
that he might possibly put an edge on
them, but that they were of inferior
quality and practically worthless. He
sold me pair at good prices which he
said were two of the best razors he had
ever seen, and he had seen good many.
He wanted to know what sort of q strop
1 used, and when l described mine he
declared it to be no good at all. l
bought one from him, which he swore
would put an edge on n cobblestone.
He also sold me patent lather brush,
which afterwards became bald a good
deal faster than did My beard con-
tinued obdurate. My complexion was
on the high road to ruin. blamed the
razors. My egotism kept from me the
knowledge that the trouble was due tc
my inexperience and awkwardness. /
had cut my strops in my fits of anger at
cutting my face, so that they could not
be used.
II concluded to allow my beard to
grow until my face healed, and took all
of NV razors-they numbered about a
dozen by that time-to a barber, a
stranger. After a preface, in which he
made the entirely irrelevant statement
that he had once shaved the Emperor OF
Germany, he delivered a long lecture In
broken German on the care of razors,
which did not understand at all. But
: he sold me two more razors at what he
called a sacrifice, a regulation BARRIERS
strop for 81, which he said would cost
anybody else 81, and a bottle of expen
,, sive toilet water which would cure my
face in six minutes. He proposed t.
teach me to use the strop for $50 t.
anybody else-and that evening Snug
gled him into my rooms and took les
sons.
'The benefit of this trying experience
began to come to me about three
months ago. suddenly and withou
? apparent reason attained experiences
. Now am happy. The financial par
did not turn out quite as 1 expected