The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-06-20
WHY HEADS GROW BALD.
BAD BaciII kin the Hairs and Their
Roots
From l. - York Press.

| bacteriology in every direction TO hunt
up the wandering microbe. with his pro-
/ clivities for producing new and unneces-
sary diseases. The Press has opened up
a nine of useful knowledge in regard to
the dangers Of chiliren's pencils. public
drinking cups, Croton water, soda water
| fountains, public telephone mOuthpieces
( and other sources of bacterial diseases.
Strict regard for truth makes it neces-
sary 10 state that a healthy man, with
a good digestion, can swallow millions
of bacteria in a day. if necessary. and
still thrive, at least for a time. There
have been germs and microbes since the
world began, though not as many varie-
ties as exist at present.
out west before il was much settled,
meat could be kept weeks and months
in the open air, without decaying, because
there were no microbes In cities we
grow accustomed to them to some extent.
The human saliva and the acid of the
gastric juice kills many of them. Those
who get into the system are attacked
by the wandering white blood corpuscles.
whose chief duty 10 IS to act as nolfca
ana eat up bacteria Let a microhe stroll
INTO the circulating blood of a vigorous,
healtny man, and quickly a mysterious
signal such as Is passed between birds
anu beasts OF prey outside in the woods
ana mountains, passes through the body
ana IN minute millions of leucocytes.
the scientific term for white blood cells,
come sWarming down to the place where
the microbes are hiding.
one OF TWO things takes place-either
me HlcEODe mas found place so securely
FENCED In that the leucOcytes can't get at
MN, IN which case he rapidly multipl!es
ana forms a fucus of disease, such as an
aDsce5s a pneumonia, an appendicitis, a
sore throat or some such wel-known form
81 olsease, or else the leucocyte destroys
the mlcrobe and leaves nothing of him,
where he had started to do his mischiev-
Gus work. But II the man who eats mi
crobes IS not strong or happens to "off
MS iced" the leucOcytes don't do their
part and may get eaten by the microbes
themselves, instead of eating them up.
me correct view, therefore, of the mi
crobe question, taken by all intelligent
people, Is, don't swallow any more germs
than you can help, because you never can
ne quite sure Of the leucocytes being en-
tlrely equal to the task of killing the mi
crobes all off, and once let the microbes
get the upper hand and firmly implanted
IN the tissues, and it may take weeks of
ooetorlng 70 make up for little caution
and foresight
If there's one place where germs of all
sorts swarm more thckly than any other
place 1t is in a barber shop. Hundreds
Oh people come and go and are brushed
and combed and lat1ered and shaved with
the same lnstrUm ents. Every customer
brings in his private stock and leaves
contributions for the future customers.
When business is slack, the brushes be-
come stock farms and gardens by them
selves without outside assistance
Here is a field for unlimited cultivation
OF germs. Heads Of hair are fields of I'M
limited possibilities. No gastric Juice or
fierce leucOcyte disturbs the peace of the
microbes THAI grow in hair brushes. Pro-
priety forbids even scientific discussion
of any parasite larger than microbes that
flying glass is needed to show nameless
beasts of prey. He Is not microbe. He
is worse than a nicrobe.
But the more dangerous pests of the
barber shop are much smaller Some are
microbes, but several important ones are
vegetable parasites, minute plants or
The principal diseases of hair are ring
worm, BARRIERS itch, favus and badness,
Ringworm Of the scalp is called by the
skin specialists tenea tonsuras. 1t causes
one or more circular bald patches of va
rious sizes on the head covered With
scales looking like ashes, with NUMEROUS
times there are several such patche@. 1t
is a highly contagious disease, and difi-
cult to cure In fact, It is only curaHle by
diseased hair by the roots with a pair of
pincers, which hurts. This treatment
must be kept up for months.
Ihe cause OF ringWorm Is a fungus call
ed trichophyton tonsuraus, which grows
IN the hair toLicles and the skin, and
hourishes in BARRIERS brushes and combs.
The second disease of hair is barber 5
itch also called tenea sycosis or ringworm
of the beard This comes chiefly from
lather brushes, and causes an inhamma-
ton of the hair follicles, with the forma-
ton of dull red ieshy tubercles. The red
ness and scaliness are at first slight but
increases until the hair becomes dry, brit
| tie and finally drops out. The skin be-
comes thick and sensitive, so that the
unfortunate victim would like to take
chloroform every time he is shaved Bar
! ber's itch lasts long time. and often
| gives rise to permanent disbursement
The cause is another fungus somewhat
| ike the ringworm fungus. 1t is always
caused by the brushes and lather cups
| which become impregnated with the
| fungi.
A third disease is favus, less common
| excavations in the hair looking like rats
| nests. 1t is distinguished by all physicians
! by its odor, which suggests a rat or the
| lions cage in the Central Park menagerie
! in the winter. 1t causes permanent bald
ness, is usually incurable. Unless powerful
| pictures of the fungi causing these
| trouble are drawn from the brushes used
| in barber shops.
BARRIERS either take no special pains
/ with their brushes, in which case the
| brushes become geological gardens or else
! every day with soap and water. In the
| last although free from wild beasts, they
/ become famous botanical gardens 1t is
| the result of a botanical nature that gives
! rise to the microscopic plant collection.
| which cause the three diseases, ring
| worm, BARRIERS Itch and favus.
What the barber should do is to cleanse
! his brushes first with water and a little
ammonia, then dry with a cloth, and then
| bake or sterilize them in an oven Then