Evening star., 1938-05-24
Barber Quits After 90 Years,
And He Isn't Exactly Sorry
Has Seen Business Fall
to InuasiOn of Home
Operated RazOrs.
BY IRVING LASH.


After 60 years of scraping chins and
evening up ragged hairlines on two
continents, John Gabriel, one of the
Districts real old-time BARRIERS, has
put away his razors and clippers for
good.
And he's not exactly sorry, either,
because he has seen what once was a
f1ourishing trade dwindle-largely be-
cause of "safeties" and electric"
the point where you're lucky to get
two jobs a day."
Mr.. Gabriel, who has rubbed a
smooth palm over some pretty famous
jaws and slicked pomade into many
an unruly head, likes to look back on
the days when barber shops weren't
50 plentiful.
So well thought OF was Mr. Gabriel
that he was elected Mayor of Capitol
Heights just before the World War.
As barber Mayor, he fought a good
fight at home by selling more than his
quota of Liberty bonds-taking more
than slight interest in this task. since
he was born in Alsace-Lorraine.
Learned Trade in France.
It was in France as boy of IL that
Mr. Gabriel learned the proper man.
ner to manipulate a razor and shears,
For two or three centimes he would
denude face-not all of it, of course,
inasmuch as Frenchman's mustache
was not to be trifled with-and trim
a few curls.
With this background he came to
the United States In 1887, at the age
of %, and worked throughout the East
before settling here in 1894. To skip
back a few million shaves to '94 Is
enlightening.
Saturday nights meant more to the
BARRIERS then than now. You couldn't
get a haircut on Saturday night be-
cause everybody was getting shaved.
You we're told to come back Monday
or Sunday. if you wanted to take
chance and slip through the side door.
The side door was necessary on the
Sabbath because the District law
makers had turned thumbs down on
Sunday business hours.
"On Saturday nights we really
worked" Mr.. Gabriel recalled. ITO
make sure nobody was done out of
turn we gave the customers slip
with number on it when he came in.
Then they were free to go out and
toss off few and come back when
their number was up. Yes, sometimes
they forgot to come back"
The regular customers mad their
own mugs, razors, brushes and even
combs. They would leave them at the
shop for their exclusive use. As
sideline q barber could make little
extra money honing razors.
Big Money in Corpses.
But the big extra money was made
on corpses. BARRIERS were called on
by undertakers to provide the last
shave for a man about to be buried.
1t was IS job and there was
nothing squeamish about it from Mr..
Gabriers viewpoint.
I'D just take big drink before
and after shaving dead man." he
explained. Besides they never talked
to you"
Among the other added duties of
a barber along about that time was
administering to customers-or pa
tients-who came away from a swing
ing door or swinging fist with black
eyes. A live leech placed in the right
spot would do wonders with a
sinner" Reduce the puf1ness, tint
the bruise with some fiesh-colored
paint and who could tell?
BARRIERS used to take a funny atti-
tude about tips and perhaps still do.
If you went to q strange shop your
first haircut and shave would prob
ably turn out well. II then you left
without tipping and went back-'look
out" Needless to say, on the second
visit the barber let the hair-and
skin-fall where it may.
lingering q fresh cut on his own
chin, Mr.. Gabriel couldn't remember
that he had been very careless with
his customers.
Another barber shop attraction"
before the turn of the century was
the bathing room" Nearly every
shop had several tubs in the back,
and since every home didn't have q
tub and the roads were dusty, two
bit bath" before going to the chair
was q common occurrence.
Now Mr.. Gabriel is through standing
while the other fellow rests in the
chair. At his home, 1880 Florida
avenue NE, he has his own chair
with rockers on it-and pipe.
It's not who's next2" any more,
It's What next2"