The Republican journal., 1904-03-10
THE BATH AND THE SKIN.
Different Kinds of Baths and their Effects
The Bath After Exercise and as an Aid to

Keeping the Health.
BY CHRISTINE TERHUNE HERRICK,
Author of Cradle and Nursery, ""First Aids
to the Young Housekeepers, ""Housekeep-
ing Made Easy" "What to Eat" "In City
Tents,' Etc.
/ Copyright, 1904 by Christine Terhune Herrick.)
In the first place, the bath means
cleanliness when properly taken. For
at ALL And when cleanliness is achiev
ed long step is taken towards health
and a still longer towards good looks.
No one can hope to be really attractive
who has poor complexion and no one
can expect good complexion who
! does not keep the pores of the skin
open and free of matter which does
| not belong there.
OF course, any woman thinks she
| knows how to take a bath. Nearly
every one labours under this impress
sion until she has had Turkish bath
and learned what is meant by real
cleanliness. After that she is of a diff
ferent opinion. She may not be able to
| take Turkish baths constantly or even
often, but she will come as near them,
| in the way of making herself clean. as
she can possibly manage.
| Not every woman can stand the reg
/ ulation Turkish or Russian baths, with
their hot air, their steam rooms, their
hard massage and cold spray or plunge
afterwards. The home made imitation
Of such baths even is sometimes too
much for them. Unless they are sure
of themselves it is not worth while to
put good money into Turkish bath
cabinet Or even to compass home
made version with packing box and
little ingenuity. Instead, they seek
substitutes in simple fashion.
The most elementary Turkish bath
Z, is made by wrapping the bather in a
sheet and seating her OF cane bottom
chair under which is shallow tin of
hot water set over an alcohol lamp.
This lamp should be of the sort that
has an asbestos burner protected by
a wire netting. After the bather is
seated, a heavy blanket should be
wrapped around her and the chair, and
she should sit thus until she is in a
drenching perspiration. When this
point is reached she should get at
once into tub of warm water, scour
herself we'll with a flesh brush, so rs
to remove the matter that the pers-
plratlOn has washed out on the skin,
and after this she should try the tonic
effect OF cold spray, unless she pre-
fers the cold plunge. If she does not
| possess a spray she should dash cold
water over her body from a pitcher.
| Then comes a good rub down with
rough towel and a half hours rest.
| Such bath is advantageous to near
ly every one and especially tc the wo-
man who has a poor complexion which
is the result of imperfect circulation.
The chief objection to this bath in the
minds of busy women will be the
length of time it demands. When
woman has stimulated her skin to ac-
ton by vigorous and healthful exer-
else and has thus provoked a flow of
perspiratiOn she does not need the
preliminary session over hot water
The bath in the tub, however, with the
cold spray to follow is an essential
after violent exercise.
Let it be supposed, for instance, that
woman has been out on her wheel.
IT she is An active rider she has I'M
doubtedly achieved the perspiration
and with it a degree of exhilaration
that the period of retirement in the
company Of a blanket and an alcohol
lamp would never bring about. Some
one has called an up to date chainless
bicycle o zeal inspiring wheel for wo-
men. The girl or woman who has
been out for spin on a machine that
is made in such a fashion that she can
come homo with her skirt in as good
condition as when she started can
be done with the right sort of a BIZ
cycle,-does not shrink from the
amount of time she will have to de-
vote to her bath as she would if she
knew dirty and stained frock was
awaiting her attention.
No matter how heated the rider may
be she should never make the mistake
of using cold water the first thing after
ride. In fact, it is very hard to get
clean by the use Of cold water alone,
even when accompanied by hard rub
bing.- 1t is true that the exercise has
opened the pores and that great guam
tity of effete substance has been sluic-
ed out with the perspiration. But the
dash of cold water shuts the pores with
snap and whatever matter is left
there is enclosed, to be re-absorbed by
the body.