The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1893-05-26
BALD HEADS In CHINA.

Tho Ingenious Operation known as
clair Planting" is Extensively Emp
ployed.
Have the Chinese any famous inven-
tions? Since the days of their discovery
of the art of printing, gunpowder, per-
petual motion by water, clocks and the
mariners compass? "Why, certainly" :"
was a Chinaman's ready and proud
reply.
One of the most valuable inventions
for the happiness of men and women is
now absolutely owned and n4onopolized
by the Chinese, and they regard it as a
sort of national heirloom. 1t is handed
down from father to son just as the
great dragoned throne of the Emperor
Kwong Swag is handed. No outsider,
much less western barbarian, eyer
dares to pry into this secret
The secret is the art of hair-planting,
called in Chinese "Chi Now Shi Foo"
1t has been a settled fact for more than
five hundred years.
A bald-headed man of almost any age
can, within the space of forty-eight
hours, be transformed into blooming
youth, as far as the hair is concerned;
or a beardless youth of eigh teen can be
made to look like sixty within the same
length of time, by having planted upon
his face a genuine gray beard four feet
long, or an old maid without eyebrows
can be transformed into girl of sweet
sixteen by being fitted out with a beau
tiful pair of brand new eyebrows or
eyelashes of any color. 1t is not very
costly operation in any case, although
it is little painful; but then, as it is
only temporary, what matter dogs it
make to have beauty restored to you if
you do have to suffer a little pain for
only twenty-four or even forty-eight
hours; without it you may have to be
poor and homely all your life
Chinese superstitions made the "hair-
planting business an imperative pro-
fession. Chinese physiognomists say
that the eyebrows and whiskers OF a
man are just as essential in their rela-
tions to his success in life as his other
qualifications If the eyebrows are
thin, or his whiskers are sickly, his luck
will be thin and his health will be poor.
Therefore, in order to stop the train of
bad luck, which nature had unfortu-
nately ordained for him, he orders his
eyebrows changed or replanted by a
''hair-planting" professor. This is done
by first carefully pulling out the rebel
lious or unlucky hair in the eyebrows.
The next operation is to select spot of
hair on the neck of the patient or be-
hind his ears that would suit for fine
eyebrow and reduce them down to the
right length. A fine pair of sharp
pincers is picked up with the left hand,
and selecting a suitable sized hair the
operator jerks it out by the root, and
with the right hand he quickly pierces
a minute hole in the skin of the bald
eyebrow in slanting direction, and
while the point of the needle-like in
strument is still on the edge of the hole
the root of the pulled-up hair is care
of it before the hair is planted the hole
will not be used on that day for fear of
Inflammation and not sufficient nutri-
ment for the hair to take proper root
This operation is repeated until every
hair in the eyebrows is replanted or en-
larged. The patient usually experiences
pain in the eyebrows for about twenty
four hours, after which he goes out and
shows himself to his friends.
The professor charges more for plant
ing eyebrows than for planting whis-
kers, because of the many varied de-
grees of slanting eaoh hair in order to
make the eyebrows look natural to the
man or to suit the ideas of the physiog-
nomist.
Chinese common laws forbid a man
to preside in court of justice; in other
words, to be mandarin of rank, unless
he has a decent pair of mustaches.
This law forces many ambitious men
who are naturally beardless to go to
the ''Chi Now Shi Foo" to make brand
new faces for them. From this it can
be seen that there is no excuse and none
is tolerated in China for beardless faces
or bald heads in cases where it is neces-
sary for those parts of the body to be
covered with hair.
Advertisements are often seen in
American papers for removing hair but
never for planting it. 1t is possible
that in this, as In SO many other inven-
tions, the heather are ahead of the
Christians. Chicago Tribune.