Evening star., 1902-02-12
TREATMENT OF THE HAIR.
A Physician Speaks Against the Stiff
Brush.

1.-THE man or men who first started the
story which had gone the press circuit a
dozen times, that to stimulate the growth of
the hair. daily and briskly a good stiff
brist!e brush ought to be sought out by a
select committee of bald-headed men and
promptly decapitated upon capture said a
prominent Washington physician to Star
man today.
perhaps you will recall what vogue the
wire bristle hair brush had a few years
ago. They were for sale in every drug store
and department store in the land. Were
much used by both men and women, and
they caused more bald heads on men and
thin hair the heads of the ladies than
any other immediate cause l know Of AS
dandrun producers by reason of irritation
OF the scalp they were uneXcelled.
But they have gone out of use. and it Is
a good thing for all but the manufacturers
While scientists declare that humans will
eventually develop into race of bald
heads. let us postpone the day to the re-
hottest date The wire bristle brush would
have lessened the time by several centuries
THE very stiff pigs bristle brush Is al
most bad. The skin covering the era
MUM is very delicate and easily susceptible
of irritation, and Of eruptiye disease of the
milder type. There are over a score of diff
ferent diseases of the scalp known by diff
ferent medical names. but which are mOdi-
ficattons of the generic term eczema, and
OF which dandruf is one form The con-
stant hard application of the almost needle
pointed modern bristle brush is a fruitful
source of scalp irritations of all sorts, and
especially dandruff yet people will say.
'Oh. l must brush my hair hard to get out
the dandruff'
''And they get the hair out, too especially
the fine, short hairs. the most precious of
all, even where persons have mops on their
heads Reject brush with very stiff brs-
ties, no matter how pretty the back may be.
and select one of moderate firmness: or. If
you are man with thin hair, or falling
hn{r 10, bot all ,lxa o.
and pliable brush as you can find. and use
1t gently on the scalp. Don't dig 1t into the
hair as If you were digging potatoes. no
matter what the beauty doctors tsave the
mark1 may tell you In the Sunday editions
OF the newspapers.
'Irri;ations of the scalp and resulting
badness are so diverse that / cannot tell
you in a word what to do to prevent the
hair from falling or to cure the irritations.
For specific instances always a phys
Clan. but in general terms, simply care for
the hair properly. Do not wash the head
more frequently mot more) than once q
month under any circumstances, and al
ways In warm water followed by cold Use
either imported CASTLE soap. or tar soap, or
better still. and what we usually prescribe.
German green soap, which Is nOn-irritant,
and comes In the form of tincture or in
mass like common soft soap. only more
agreeable and firm to the touch. 1t Is
cheap. and unequaled as a hair wash. Use
enough to thoroughly lather the head and
only little is required. Wash the soap well
off with clear water. The hair. when dry.
will be found to be soft and silky and the
head clean.
Don't dig the scalp with your finger
nails like "A cat scratching at the door to
get In on cold night. but rub 1t gently
brush it gently and dry IL gently. This
treatment. coupled with massage is now
recognized as the best for general purposes
BY massage is not meant the massage of
popular impression. as applied by an at
tendant in a Turkish bath establishment
but by gently taking the scalp under the
control of all Of the fingers and gently NOV
ing the skin over the Uranium This gentle
movement of the scalp. repeated daily, stim-
ulates the circulation of the blood at the
roots Of the hair. and is worth all OF the
tonics made. as 1t promotes the growth of
the hair and tends to save what NAV he
left.
"And last. and most important l repeat
as to all brushing and scalp treatment-go
gently