The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1901-10-31
Badness IN JAPAN.
EPIDEMIC or THIS DISEASE m
LAND or MlkAD0.
European Women Lose Their hair
While Residing In the Japanese Em-
pire-Men's Boards Also Fau Out
Speculation As to Cause.

Correspondence OF London Specta-
tor: The following account Of an cpl
demic Of badness in Japan may in
terest your readers European women
who are res.d MS OF Japan must live
In a state Of constant dread. for, ac-
cording 70 reports from that country.
they may at any time lose that greatly
valued possession. the hair A large
number or women have already suf-
fered in this way. indeed, there was
an epidemic Of badness at Chlba last
year. and there base been an even
more serious one quite recently at
Osaka, the same province where, IL
will be remembered. an extensive cpl
demic Of plague. which subsequently
assumed a formidable and alarming
character, prevailed IN the last months
OF 1889 and az the very beginning Of
1900. The clinical course Of the af-
fection under consideration offers
many points OF interest and differs
eminently both as regards extent and
character from the occurrence Of sud
den badness, say. for instance, after
enteric fever or any other acute fever
attack. For II Is stated that during
that epidemic of badness the loss OF
hair comes TO women (and men also)
after very little II any. premonltory
warning. The soap may. 70 all ap-
pearanees. be quite healthy. and az far
as lis external examination is con-
cerned. no morbid signs could be de-
;ected. and there may be no symptoms
either Of actual illness or even Of
slight indisposition: but a woman may
fnd when she combs her hair soon
after rising IN the morning, that Il
falls out In remarkable quantities and
soon she Is party. n not indeed quite
bald. Or Il may be that for some lit
tie time. as Il has been observed in
some Of the more acute cases. there
have been disturbances Of vision.
feeling Of vertigo. diminished appetite
and digestive troubles. but none Of
them being well defined or presenting
any definite character; il may. how
ever, be added that in some cases, at
least, It was noted that a slight rise
Of temperature has preceded the az
Fiction. The effects or the disease ex-
hibit several interesting pecularities.
The bald patches are irregulariy
spread over the head. but the first
large one generally arp avs on the
crown and extends down the back Of
the head instead Of forward: thus It
may be that the back OF the head Is
quite bad and the front covered with
hair-the opposite OF the course OF
badness as we know It IN Europe.
Then. also, mems boards are ravaged
Ia a peculiar manner. The left cheek.
say, may be completely bereft OF hair.
while the rest OF the beard Is as usual.
as also Is the mouslache. which. for
tunately. is but slightly affected By
the disease. Another point which may
be noticed Is that mosi Of the victims
Of the epidemic are women. and more
children are attacked than men.
Strange to say It is men IN the prime
Of life who have 10 suffer. not those
who are advanced in years. The latter
seem TO be immune from the com
plant. for no case Is reported Of man
who had white or gray hair suffering
any loss. and such Is the eccentricity
OF the disease. fair men suffer much
more thar dark men, and dark women
much mere than their blonde sisters
The cause Of this curious epidemic Is
very dificult 10 determine. indeed,
there Is no really satisfactory explain
alton Of IT, Some OF the native ply !
sieians think that the Europeans are
Affected by the climate. and others say
hat the water Is the cause Of tbs /
trouble. and third party are In
,llned to believe that the disease Is
parasitic. Little wonder. then. IN view
II this uncertainty, that fhe treat
nents tried Tor prevention ap well as
.ure, are very far from being efica-
'ious. There Is an opportunity for
physician. native or otherwise. to dis
inguish himself