Year: 1867

A writer in the British Medical Journal In an
article on the Dangers Of Dyeing the Han"
says: ~" .


A few years back, when the mania for altering
the shade of color of the hair first broke out Ia
dies were content with washing their heads witha an
alkaline solution, soda or potash, until considers


BILE portion of the coloring matter was removed,
and with it, Of course, much of the freshness and
silky beauty of the hair This beached hair, which
approached artificial or dead hair in its qualities,
was then polished with little oil, and the process
was complete. But chemistry has noB enabled the
artisans Of hair to move q stage onward-to add q
dye in the place of the absracted color and to con-
vert the head intoa kindof eolored mop -Itcomes
to pass thus: The head is washed with an aka
line solution, and dried near the fire, this part Of
the process occupies nearly an hour. The manip-
ulator then brushes through the hair the dye, an
acid solutionof varying strength and the exhaust
ed and dry hair is made to absorb this fluid by the
aid of hot tongs and hot plates of metal Thislat--
ter part of the process demands care and skill. and
time also it would appear; for our informant, the
lady operated upon, reports that the whole pro-
ceedings occupied seven hours anda half But at
last came the result-not the end, but the begin
ming of the end. When the lady rose from the
operating chair, she was charmed by the vision of
pale gold cherelure her natural color being adark
brown, and she went to her home in perfect de-
light But in very few hours the vision began
to change, first to very bright orange yellow, and
then to a deep yolk of egg yellow, that was per-
fectly hideons To correct this evil another opera
ton was to be gone through-another seven hours
and half of tedious and painful manipulation;
and this time, like the last with SIMILAR result
first the golden sheen of the rising sum; but as
evening advanced, deep saffron and red tint, like
the setting sun portending a coming storm; or
rather like the eifn locks Of the demons Of d pam
tomime The lady's disappointment and vexation
may be more easily imagined than described She
was advised thatnothing more could be done; that
if she disapproved of her present appearance, her
head must he shaved and she submitted to the
necessity and to the consequent annoyance Of wear
ing wig. =


The proceeding we are now discussing is called
the instantaneous process, and we have styled 1t
an operation, having in our mind surgical under
taking. The suffering was 80 severe, says our In
formant, that she was obliged to scream with pain;
the burning was 80 intense that she walked about
the room in frantic state, and sal volatile was ad-
to keep up her strength. More than a
week after this grave operation she came to me 70
be relieved of Inflammation of the scalp and the
effects Of superficial gangenous burn. She COM
planned of a feeling of lethargy, and feared that
some poisonous matter might have been absorbed
through the scalp into the system and 1t was clear
that her nervous system had undergone serious
shock, and that she bad escaped Sby q very narrow
MARGIN from an attack of derangedf functions of the
liver yerging on jaundice. On the 18th day after
the operation, the gangrenous burn gtilTemsined
unhealed.