The Helena independent., 1894-06-08
BADNESS AND BRAINS.
10 the Loss Of Hair Necessarily Followed by
Physical Decay

Physical Decay
Tho ulterier causes OF badness are OBJ
scure, but the immediate process Is no
doubt degeneration Of the hair bulbs,
which is due TO failure OF nutrition and
implies impaired vitality or loss Of vigor.
Tho point needs no argument, though
plenty OF medical evidence could bo
brought TO support IL II necessary. 1t Is
universally recognized that an abundance
OF hair gives q look Of youth and vigor,
badness one Of age and decay. This sin-
gle feature will make man of 20 appear
stronger than many one of 80. Every
one will admit this with respect TO physic-
al vigor, but not OF mental. Yet the two
necessarily go together 10 a great extent,
and this Is where the popular mistake
comes In. What Is vigorf II does not Ito
In muscular strength, as many may sup
pose, but In n sound condition Of the
whole machine and its several parts, and
moro particularly Of the nervous centers
in the brain, which move, control and
regulate all the rest. Loss Of yigor means
corresponding impairment of brain pow
or, and though the higher oenters, tho seat
Of intellect, may not suffer obviously at
first they eventually do so. Other things
being equal, the sounder q man Is all
through tho better instrument he makes
for tho performance of mental no less than
OF physical work, and when his hair be-
gins TO go II Is sign that he Is not so
sound as he used to be or might be- True
he may have gained In knowledge und cx-
pericnco and may 80 far be better man
intellectually than he was before, but ho
Ia not 80 good a man as ho would be II ho
had kept his vigor while acquiring his
knowledge. OF two men, equal In moDtal
ability, the one who retains tho more vlgor
possesses In corresponding measure the
greater intellectual potency, whether II
takes the form Of superior energy in tho
present or a moro prolonged period Of ac-
tivity-that Is to say, green old age
This seems 70 bo the correct view on
physiological grounds, and surely ID Is
borne out by experience. Hero arc somo
names which Immediately occur 10 tho
mind as cases Ia point; Carlyle, Newman,
Tennyson, Owen, Liszt, These were all
men OF exceptional intellectual force, who
reached "A very advanced agc-in two cnses
an extremely advanced agc-whilc retain
ing the use OF thclr faculties In an oxtraor-
dinary degree, and every ono OF them car
ried n goodly crown Of hair either TO tho.
very end or far beyond the ordinary span.
Is II possible TO match them with an equal
number OF distinguished men who attain
cd the same length OF vigorous days with.
out natures oovorinRi We may sot John
Stuart Mil against Carlyle, Darwin
against eOwen and Won Bulow against
Llszt. Mill and Bulow were certainly bald,
Darwin Is doubtful, but anyhow thoy all
died earlier by several years than tholr
more hirsuto rivals. Turning to tho liv
Ing, wo have Gladstone, Ruskin. Wendell
Holmes, lbsen, Tolstol, Verdi, Vlrchow,
Pagct, Huxley and many moro tostlfying
In favor OF good head Of hair" and
proving the hbsurdlty Of tho dolusion TINT
badness has any sort Of connection with
intellect or learning.
To the writer II appears that badness
means nothing whatever but decny, In
which thointolloct necessarily shares soon
or OF lator, ThcO have, Of course, been
men OF the most commanding intellect
who have grown bald ehrly In life-c. g.,
Julius Cesar on tho authority OF Sucto-
MUS and prrhapa ShakospgAtc, but nei'
thor lived long -St James Gazette