Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1893-07-25
THE WHISPERS AND THE MAN.
How the Hair on His Face Dominates tn
,Wearer's Character.


How the Hair on His Face Dominates the
iwearer's Character.
Among the menI meet at inter
walls on the road isa very intelligent
fellow from Boston, said drum
mer. "He is about 35, and with
capacity for raising hair on his face
beyond that of any person l ever
met. He has fun with it, too, and he
has his whiskers in, different shape
every time 1 meet him. Now and
then 1 don't know him, but he al
ways comes up smiling, and / catch
on to the new man without much
difficulty. :,
"It's queer about whiskers, said
he the last time saw him. Don't
you know they change the character
of the manG
didn't know it and said so.
"'They do, however, he continued,
whether you know it or not. Now,
l have been hairy for 20years nearly,
and in that time have been all sorts
of men. For instance, when l wear
large, flowing side whiskers with q
mustache, / grow gradually as they
do, and become quite dignifed and
self important. / can't help it, you
know. Its ''whiskers oblige, as we
say in French, and when l catch a
look at myself in glass as l walk
along / unconsciously swell out and
strut. I'm bound to do it to match
those whiskers. Then, when cut of
the mustache and run the side whls
kers alone, 1 never see that mouth
and chin back there but it makes me
feel pious, and l begin to assume the
demeanor of aminister of the gospel.
Can't help it, either, to save my life.
Sometimes / go smooth faced, and
my character oscillates between
priest and actor, according to the
one of the crowd I'm in. even get
boyish sometimes and frisky when.
see my smooth, round face.
"tOnce, for the fun of it, ! cut my
mustache a la prizehghter, short and
stubby, and, do you know, before Q
week was a yeritable tough, with
my hat cooked over my eye and my
general manner provoking a slug
ging match at every turn. / was
anxious for a fight all the time and
only saved myself by shaving. When
wear full, neatly trimmed beard,
feel exactly like banker or a sue
cessful professional man, and my
manners after a little while fall into
that rut. look it, they tell me, and
/ can't help but be it. If wear
mustache alone, long and silky,
feel like gay Lothario, and want t.
smile at and ogle every woman see
] want to be one of the boys, too
and whoop it up all along the line
When / add an imperial to the mus
tache, / throw my shoulders back
brace my muscles and assume a mil
itary air. In one or two of my town
am known as colonel, for / hav'
alwaysworn my imperial while there
eff l run my beard down to |
point in the French style, / feelquit
diplomatic, and can be as slick as tn
politest of them. feel my shoul
ders shrug ON the slightest provoca
ton, and to all intents and purpose
/ am a foreigner. If / part m.
whiskers in the middle and brpsl
them out TO either side, ] am q Ger
man nobleman or a British LAM
owner, according to my surround
ings. It gives me hale and hearty
middle aged feeling that shows a
once in my manner. If the whisker
are let grow very long, / feel like
patriarchal farmer and become quit
elderly and innocent in my deport
ment. And 30 ii goes through al
the phases.
"'I fancy that the style OF man
whiskers is in consonance with IN
mans character, and that as man
30 win his whiskers be. In my cas-
have reversed the operation, but
feel as grow older and become mon
settled that l shall adopt one style
whiskers and keep to that. Eve
now ! am getting around to II an
have been wearing this close cut fu
beard for almost six months. an
! don't feel hke changing It. ID
tFoif Free Press.