The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-09-15

10 BE " OEn DN the NODieS.
Paris Letter Brooklyn Eagle.
For people who hold the belief that hui
manity is improving, it is Instructive Of
tentimes to read of the private habits of
our ancestors. In one Of the books which
treats of the subject I read the astounding
fact that for two centuries the French
had almost entirely lost the habit Of wash
ing themselves. How was that, when the
Romans, who had conquered Gaul, had
introduced their famous baths, of which
ruins still exist? Well history tells us
that the church. to react against pagan
sensualism, rather discredited the idea of
baths and looked upon cleanliness as a
dangerous sin. Monks generally took two
baths a year, on Christmas and Easter
and ST. Benoit made the following rule,
"Invalids alone will be permitted to take
the baths prescribed. For people in good
health, especially if they are young. the
fewer baths they are allowed to take
the better it will be for them."It was the
rule in the monastery of Cluny for the
monks to meet every morning in the clois-
ter to proceed to their toilets 1t must
have been very simple, for three towels
hung on the wall, constituted all the
linen allowed to the community The first
was exclusively reserved to the novices,
the second to the monks and the third to
the father monks. The Benedictines were
permitted each to possess a comb, but as
they had but a thin fringe of hair around
the head, a comb was almost useless.
on the other hand they had permission
E4.tNd 1,aat 1- f,rarrr on Ia
days. 1t seems that cleanliness was not
thought necessary in the converts. To-
ward the end of the seventeenth century,
retired at the Visitandines, Nine. de MAJ
arin one day expressed wish to take
foot bath.
The whole house was in a turmoil at the
extravagant request and she was hatly
refused a vessel in which the bath might
be taken. But the madame generally put
her desires to execution and, getting
wooden box from the dormitory, she put
water in IT, and while she took her bath
the water leaking from the assures of the
box produced a generally inundaton. The
mother superior took care to moralize
upon the consequence of disobedience; for
the box would certainly have not leaked II
the madame had made it reservoir OF
holy water Still, outside of converts, the
better classes of the French kept them
selves moderately clean. The crusaders,
among other habitssa returned from the
Orient with that Of frequent baths, and
here and there bathing establishments,
called etuves, could be found where a bath
for few cents could be had. The system
still exists for it is only in modern luXu-
rious houses that bath rooms are provided,
and the habit of taking sponge baths, tubs
to employ the English word, is restricted
to people who have Travelled and are mi
tiated into the science of additions without
the use of bath rooms. In these numerous
bathing establishments one can now find
all the hydropathic Improvements and
baths of every description, but the plain
bath is what the majority of Parisians go
for They can be had for 10 cents, and the
room. bath tub and establishment are gen.
orally kept very clean. The French who
have some regard for cleanliness go to
these bathing places at least once week.
During the renaissance even royalty
ceased to think cleanliness virtue. The
beautiful Marguerite de Navarro, in
conversation with her lover, thinks t
natural to say, "See my beautiful hands;
although 1 have not washed them for
eight days l am sure they are not as dirty
as yours" At that time the fork was not
yet in use and women of quality held the
pieces of meat in their hands while eas-
ing them. Stin they were taught not to
use the hand with which they blew their
noses. 1t is only in 1880 that handker-
chiefs began to be used Previous to that
time even the women and men of the
and during one period il was fashionable
to make as much noise as possible during
the operation. Some initiated the sound
of the trumpet, others the cry of the cat.
However, people who passed for being
the most refined in blowing their noses
did not make too much or too little noise,
just enough to apprise their friends that
the act was taking place. Even during
the reign of Louis XIV extreme clean
illness consisted in washing ones face al
most not every day. If the famous court
had been obliged 10 submit to examina-
tons as to its cleanliness, it would have
been found wanting. The necessity OF
bathing only began 10 dawn in that CEN
fury and that water might perhaps be
used for washing. Still, when it was in
troduced it was not always considered
agreeable, and the daily baths of modern
times would have made the people throw
up their arms in establishment book
upon the usages of life, printed in 1852,
prohibits the use of water for the toilet
1T is necessary to clean ones face with
a clean cloth; it is not wise to use water
for it renders the face more sensitive to
the cold in winter and the heat in sum-
mer."
The word mustache has singular ORR
gin. 1t was during the reign of Louis
XIII that long hair became again fash
ionable for men. Mustaches We're long
locks of hair tied with a rosette that
the men worn hanging over the lelt cheeh
and oftentimes these mustaches were
long enough to hang over the shoulder.
One of the courtiers of Louis XIII en-
urely covered his heao with mustacheS,
and used from twelve to thirteen yards
of black ribbon to tie them up. But the
other courtiers, wearing the mustache
on the left side, left the right side bare
SO as to show an earring, which generally
consisted of a large pearl After that
time the word mustache was applied to
the hair on the upper lip. and one OF
the chroniclers of the times states that
some Of the courtiers wore their eyebrows
on their upper lip, and it was too ridicu-
lous to see them curled on the ENDS.
The word mustache was then applied to
the beard on the upper lip when the other
parts Of the face were clean shaver.
1t was only through vanity that Louis
XIV adoped the peruke, for up to great
age he had such a thick beard of hair
that the BARRIERS were obliged to cut II,
shave it, to make room for the wig He
was thirty-five years old when he began
TO wear perukes Between the kings
bedchamber and the counsel hall was the