The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1906-02-28
THE BUYING OF HUMAN HAIR
Big Industry in Some Parts OF the
Country. Where the Best is OBJ
tanned. How 1t Is Sorted.

The death of a worker in human
hair from anthrax, supposed to be en-
gendered by germs in the hair from
China, brings the extraordinary in
creased demand for artificial hair be-
fore the public. Within the last five
years the wearing offalse hair in one
or other of the many artistic and
clever forms in which it is now of
fered has advanced by leaps and
bounds.
A conversation with one of the
leading artifciers in this line elected
many interesting facts. He scorns
hair from Chinese man or woman,
deeming it fit only for the cheapest
and most common of fringes, trans
formations, etc. The markets he and
other good manufacturers of artificial
hair frequent are mainly in Germany,
Austria, France and Italy. The idea
that girls selling their hair deprive
themselves of all their tresses at once
Is, IL seems, erroneous
A girl blessed with long, even,
silky hair, and wishing to make some
money out of it, goes to the hair mer-
chant and tells him exactly how much
Of it she will part with, or she divides
the hair herself and offers it to him
to be cut off, Sad to relate, the hair
merchants as class have the reputa-
ton of sharp, if not actually dishonest
dealings, and they are so lacking in
principle and sympathy that they in
variably clip off more than their al
lowance, the girl having to submit.
1t is only from converts that the en-
tire hair of a woman's head can be
had, and the sale of the hair cut of a
nuns head when she takes the veil is
valuable item in some converts in
comes.
Hair bought from the ordinary mer-
chart of the class described is more
often than not fraudently weighted
with grease and dirty matter and fire.
quently the purchaser loses about 30
per cent before the hair is cleansed
The cost of thoroughly cleaning and
working up this bought hair is enor-
nous and as only skilled workers can
do 1t the seller OF the made up article
must make about so Der cent on the
price he gave to the merchant before
he realizes any profit. Itmay ease the
minds of ladies wearing artificial hair
land it is one in ten who does not
nowdays) to know that the cleaning
of the hair is thorough and etfectually
destroys any danger of disease from
unhealthy germs. Every hair has to
be fastened in, with the root up and
the point down, as it grows on the
head, or it will not lie smooth and
even. The exact shade has to be
matched from many different lots of
hair, and length and texture have also
to be studied.
Women in these isles seldom see
their hair either, because they will
not or because their continental sisters
have more abundant tresses. 1t is
more difficult to get fine black or gray
hair than any other and although the
Italian women have thick, long, black
hair it is coarse-indeed, next lowest
in quality to the Chinese hair. 1t is
the girls in the south of France who
furnish the hair merchant with the
finest and best black hair. AS to
white hair it is next to impossible to
get good crop of long, white hair,
and this color is proportionately cost
ly. Happily, most ladies wearing
smart transformations, fringes and
curls have the vanity to dye their hair
and shun the sign of age indicated by
bleached tresses.