The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-09-09
HISTORY OF SHAVING
ONCE UPON A TIME Att MEN
EVERYWHERE WORE Boards.

Been the First Bnrbor-Beards Have
Been Common During tho History Of
Earliest Races-some Remarks.
To THE EDrToR-Can you tell us when shaw
Ing came into fashion, also something OF the
history OF beardsP BRowN AND JONES.
This question ia apropos. At this
period, when the Nineteenth century is
coming to the end of the division, the
fire has been put out in the box and old
father time has reversed the wheels and
put on the brakes, it is particularly fit
ting that somebody, either Brown OF
Jones or both, should arise and put this
question It is a fin de steele question.
The first instance of shaving originated
from the necessities of war. In the late
autumn Of the year 800 B. c., the Mace
domains got their crops in early, and
after the celebration of the harvest home
things got pretty embarrassing in Mace
donna. II was too cold to fish and too
warm to skate, and the prospect for the
Macedonian on pleasure bent when he
fired up the baseburner and reflected
that skates hadn't been invented yet was
not happy one.
Things continued to drag on until
Thanksgiving time, 300 B. c., when the
Macedonians got together, sailed down
on the Greeks and did them battle. The
Greeks got the worst of it, and for no
other reason than that they sported long,
flowing boards. The marauding Mace
DOMAINS grabbed these Grecian orna-
ments and yanked the poor Greek forty
ways for Sunday, leaving him howl
ing mass on the ground. 1t was this
incident that probably gave rise to the
couplet:
When Greek meets Macedonian
Then comes the tug of beard.
An old veteran by the name of Alex
ander saw at once the weak point of the
Grecian forces and he called in loud
Voice, "Of with every beardg That
settled IL. The next day a committee
called on the army with ripsaw and a
BUCKET of salve and anputated every
beard in sight. This is an account of the
first shave known to history. The rec
ord of the first barbering is frontlet of
curls made for II princess in the east
1900 years ago, now in the British mu-
scum. Homer has the first reference 10
the razor in the Eighth century, b. C.
He says, with some feeling:
Death or life stands on razor's edge.
After the rape of tho boards of the
Grecian army shaving became popular
with some, but not until much later
day. and when Greece had started down
tho toboggan slide of adversely, did il
become general. In fact it is well
known fact among historians that the
~,
has marked the cifcminacy, weakness
and final downfall of all nations. The
Romans were always partial to boards
until the Roman empire became too big
for its clothes and acquired IL swagger,
when Hadrian set the example Of a
smooth chin in 10l a. ID. and gave the
Roman barbers boom. The first men
ton Of BARRIERS ia by Piiny Somewhere
along about FOG b. G. SUpio Africanus
took iaunt to Sicily and there saw
some BARRIERS. They pleased him, ana
he brought 200 back to Rome and had
his beard taken off.
Scipio was a good deal of n Ward Nc
Allistcr in his day, and the Rolnan
swells rapidly followed suit. After that
it got to be II common sight in Rome for
a row of men to sit until 12 O'Clock Sat
urday night and listen for "Nextr But
this was only among tho Four Hundred.
The bone and sinew of the Roman re-
public swore by their boards. All
Through the orient short hair and beard
less chins have always meant eondi-
ton of mourning and servitude. A loag
beard was priceless, and the Moham.
medans still swear by their boards. The
prophet Ezekiel, as early as $50 b. c.,
was directed to take a BARRIERS razor
upon his head and upon his beard in
sign of the ruin to come upon Israel.
4 The men were set free, but were
ASHAMED to 10 to David with any Of
their beard gone. He Found them, how
ever, and sent them ON a vacation TO let
their boards grow out An old Greek,
known among his friends as Zoilius,
who lived in 500 b. c.. and was dropped
off II precipice for eriticising Homer,
had very long bsard. and so solicitous
was he that long hair on his head might
detract from the strength of the beard
that he kept his noddle clean shaven.
After Thomas More had taken leave OF
his daughter mt the foot Of the scaifold.
! in l5S5, his chief anxiety WAS that the
headsman might impure his beard.
/ The finest beard ON record belonged 70
Gillaume the priest, bishop of Clermont,
who founded the college for .Jesuits at
4 Paris late in the Eighteenth century.
! This beard was long, wavy and soft rs
( silk. But his beard was his downfall
His brother bishops became jealous OF
it, AMI decided that it mHst come off
This was decreed at n secret council.
and the next morning when the priest
entered the chapel three men met him
with soap, hot water, a razor and shears
and laid hold of him He broke away,
lEkedaddled and took refuge in II castle.
where he died of vexation.
The only exceptions where boards
have not been considered as advarta-
Beons appurtennnces we're among the
Germans, the Egyptians and ia the early
colonial days among the Puritans. The
ancient German youth was not allowed
to shave until he had slain an enemy in
battle, and among the New England
Puritans long boards were sometimes
Ifereibly reapad, because the idea pre-
vailed that pride lurked behind veneT-
able beard. 1t was not until the begin
ping OF the present century that the
long beard went entirely out If fashion.
since then smooth faces lave been on
the increase, and any person who will
take the trouble 70 notice the men who
pass given point for an hour on any of
the busy streets of Chicago will see bnt
very few long boards. 1t is not i'm
probable that in another century, il the
beard is continually cropped. the long
beard will no longer grow ard will be-
come a thing Of history and story books
i-ChtcaIso Inter Ocean.