The San Francisco call., 1908-11-08

in two. Again. the weight of the false
hair alone is sufficient to destroy ven-
tilation. Pressing down on the head.
it generates heat. causes alopecia, and
the weight cuts the natural hair. This
is when dead hair is worn. Live hair
is much lighter, is lOoser- and more
open, and its effects are largely those
of natural hair.
A rat made from dead hair Of the
coarse Chinese variety weighs an ounce.
The same sized rat made from live
hair would weigh little more than half
an ounce. A set of dead hair puffs
will weigh three-fourths of an ounce;
made from live hair less than half an
ounce. A switch In dead hair will vary
from two and a half ounces TO four
ounces, according to length. but in the
same lengths of live hair it will weigh
at least a third less. But think of the
difference in the weight even in live
hair when two years ago a woman
wore two ounce switch and was sat
isfied; and now the weight of her cOif-
fure, by an average estimate is at
least 16 ounces-an actual pound.
'sThe style of hairdressing is really go
ing back to the fashion of the eighties.
said the descendant of one Of the most
famous hair dresSers of his time In
1880 there was as much false hair worn
as there is now, but it was in the form
OF wigs. front pieces and switches.
where now il is cOronet braids, rats
and puffs. The hair used to be plas-
tered down to the forehead with bandO-
line-a hideous fashiOn-but no society
dame would be caught in those days
without the necessary bottle of bandO-
line When any. of the big functions
took place my uncle used to pack all
his paraphernalia into a light buggy
and go driving to the houses of his
fashionable patrons, many of whom
were so anxious to be first under his
hands that they had their hafr-dressed
the night before the ball or reception
and sat up all night. never dreaming
of lying down to rest for fear of disar-
ranging a single hair. Hair dressing
then was much more Stin and formal
. than 1t is now, and many coiffure
was not taken down for month after
ward. There is a tale of a woman who
travelled TO New York without putting
brush or comb to her hair. The hair
dresser of those days was a potentate.
If he thought one Of his patrons would
look better in any other color hair
than her own, he said so, and no one
ever thought of evading the edict. As
consequence there were more red
haired women in the eighties than have
ever been since as red locks-the
Titianesque kind-happened to be the
autocrats hobby at that time. and
every woman who was told that she
would look like an angel in a red wig
promptly bought and wore one. Five
dollars a head was the minimum price
for hair dressing in those days.
and for my uncle to make 800 a day
was not uncommon. especially before
a big reception or a bal poudre. The
other day a lady came in here who re-
minded me of those old days. She had
on an enormous hat. and her hair was
spread out very wide under its droop-
ing brim. overshadOwing her face.
looked at her in some surprise. for
knew she must either have wonderful
natural hair or that she must have lib
eral quantities of false pinned on to
make that extraordinary effect When
she sat down for me to take OFF her
hat she said: My hair is really up-
holstered. 1t is only arranged for this
hat. You may be surprised well,
was. On top of a heavy wool rat she
had piled. not one, but two others OF
somewhat lesser size. and as the ends
Of her own hair, were too short to
reach over the mountainous structure.
she had come to purchase more hair to
cover the middle of her head, where
the three rats lOomed up in lonely
glory. / suggested a coronet braid.
though l didn't see how ske was going
to carry all that weight of hair, and
she took joyfully to the idea and went
off happy"
SO. though the San Francisco woman.
like her sisters. literally murders her
hair to produce the fashionable effect.
the cemeteries of China are not rifIed
for her benefit nor are dead bandits
deprived of their coarse locks for her
sake. As even the Chinese cling To
fashion under the guise of custom. n
is asserted that the few pigtails re-
ceived in San Francisco are exclusive
ly for the fengthening of live China
! mans queue, and are put to no other
use. SO saith the hair dresser ana
the collector of the port. But what
saith the spirit of the bandit who
lieth dead in the lonely wilds of DaInv
and Newchwang?