The daily morning journal and courier., 1906-08-15

boards are removed and their chaps kept smooth by singing.
 A plate of iron an Inch in width, three inches long and a quarter of an inch thick is mounted in a handle of horn. This is brought to white heat in the charcoal furnace and is passed evently over the face very close to the skin. This glowing plate produces a close shave effect with luxury of conl- fort to the most tender skin that nc razor yet forged could bring about,
 For shore dwellers the opportunities which several mollusks afford have not been lost upon the barbers One such shell has been commonly designated the razor clam, and while not much of a clam for fritter purposes, it will serve excelently well on q pinch for razor.
 It abounds on the beaches of the northern Atlantic coast, but it Is not altogether easy to dig up even when the little spout of water in the sand be- trays its presence, for 1t takes the promptest alarm and can dig itself out of sight far more quickly than any man can dig 1t into view. The shell is in two valves, each about half an inch wide and some six inches long, the shallower one being preferable for shaving.
 To perpare it for use all that is need ed is to press the edge of the shell from the inner side steadily and evenly with chip; this splits off a sheet of the tough purplish green outer rind and leaves a clean edge of shell that Is sharp enough for comfortable shaving and firm enough to keep the edge at least during the operation. While this razor shell is confined to the North American coast, there are mollusks of similar utility in every sea.
 Another pelagic razor widely em- ployed is the tooth of the shark. While this also has a sharp edge, it differs from the keenness of the shells. They present a true cutting edge so long as it lasts. The small tooth of the shark keeps it's heavily enamelled edge much longer, but it is of the saw type and therefore by no means of smooth ac- tion.
 In inland regions, where sea razors are not easily come at, there may be found mineral substitutes. The most widely found of these mineral razors is the flint
 Another mineral of great value to the primitive folk who shave themselves Is the obsidian or volcanic glass. By careful treatment this may be split into almost any desired shape and It's edges of fracture are found very keen, though quick to lose their cutting edge.
 Even the herb of the soil as well as the sea and the rocks yields its razor, than which there could be none better This is the rind of the bamboo, which owes it's fine polish to the deposit of flint. When the joint partitions are cut off from a node of green bamboo the tube may readily be split. Each silver will be found to carry a thin sheet of the flint casing, sheet so thin that the edge will still appear sharp under a high power of micro- scope.
 It is sharper than any razor of steel can be whetted-so sharp that it must be used with great care to avoid cut ting deep into the skin. It will hold it's edge for any operation of shaving and there is no need to save it for a second time, since the bamboo grows wild all over the tropics and new razor may be had without cost of labor whenever wanted
 In his primitive estate savage man seems to possess all the necessaries of the barber hop except the lather brush and the shop, neither of which he has learned to need and therefore does not miss them.