Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 09.djvu/504

* HAIB. 452 HAIRDRESSING. hair, while Europeans have it sometimes straight and flowing, and occasionally curled and crisp. Negroes present every possible gradation from a completely crisp or what is termed woolly hair, to merely curled and even flowing hair; and a similar observation holds regarding the natives of the islands in the great Southern Ocean. The length to which the hair of the head may grow normally, especially in women, is very con- siderable. A North American Indian of the Crow tribe is said to have had hair that was ten feet seven inches in length. About 1878 there was exhibited in New York City a family of Russians who w-ere almost covered with long hair. Tlieir foreheads, noses, and cheeks were so shagjy that their eyes could scarcely be seen, and their ears were concealed by the hair that grew from them. Cases occasionally occur where there is an abnormal abundance of hair of considerable length in women, on parts where the hair is usually little more than down. A well-known case is that of Julia Pastrana, whose ears and all parts of the face except the e}'es were cov- ered with hair of different lengths. The beard was tolerably thick, the hairs composing it being straight, black, and bristly, the part of it which grew on the sides of the chin hanging down like two plaits. The upper portion of the back of the neck and the hinder surface of the ears were covered with hairs. On the shoulders and legs the hairs were as abundant as they are occasion- ally seen on very powerful men. See Beard ; Wig. On the other hand, there may be a deficiency or even entire absence of hair. The eff'ect may be more or less general or localized, and may be either congenital or acquired. It is stated that about 90 per cent, of cases of baldness (q.v.) are due to seborrhcea, which causes an excess of dandruff. This widespread affection is due to bacterial infection. The symptoms consist in the presence of small grayish-white greasy scales, falling of the hair, and more or less itching, with usually a red scalp. The primary site of the dis- ease is, in most cases, the scalp ; not infrequently, however, it extends to the face, chest, and back (seborrhoeal eczema). Unless treatment is in- stituted, the disease results in permanent bald- ness, by interfering with the nutrition of the hair and by destroying the roots and papillfe of the hair. Seborrhtea is communicable, and there- fore the use in common of combs and hair-brushes should be discouraged. The treatment consists in avoiding much water as well as avoiding fre- quent shampooing, and the local application of sulphur, carbolic acid, chloral, resorcin. some salt of mercury, or some other parasiticide., either in the form of an ointment or a lotion. The services of hair in animal economy are various, though there is reason to believe that the primary use was the maintenance of a uni- form body temperature by preventing loss of heat by radiation. Hair is an excellent non-conductor of he.at, especially in the form of wool, and we thus find wool best developed in those mammals which are natives of cold regions. Its warmth- conserving quality is largely due to the air en- tangled among it. The widespread use among men of the skins of mammals in the form of furs is ample evidence of their value as non-conduc- tors. An important service to man is performed by the hair about the lips and nose in keeping dust and deleterious particles from entering the nostrils and mouth, while the beard forms a pro- tection to the throat and chest against chilling changes of temperature. In the form of bristles and spines, which are simply excessively stiflT hairs, hair often serves a protective purpose, as in the hedgehog and porcupine. In other cases the hair becomes fused with dermal plates, and helps to form a defensive armor, as in the arma- dillo and pangolin. And finally in entering into the composition of some horns, as in the rhi- noceros, hair reaches the extreme of its defensive uses. In many animals, notably the cats, hairs may become organs of touch of great sensitive- ness, especially in the region of the mouth. Sucli hairs, known as vibrissae, are supplied with spe- cial nerves to fit them properly for their pur- pose. Whether claws and hoofs are to be re- garded as modified hair is still an unsettled question. For chemical composition, see table under Horn. Consult: Walsh, The Hair and Its Diseases (London, 1902); Wiedersheim. Com- parative Anatomi) of Vertebrates (New York, 1886). HAIR ( in plants ), See Trichome. HAIR, DisE..SES OF THE, See Hair: Bald- ness. HAIRBIRD. A local name in the Eastern X'nited States for the chipping sparrow {Spizella socialis). in reference to the fact that its nest is now made almost entirely of horse-hairs. ,See Sparrow. HAIRCLOTH. A fabric of horsehair, woven on a warp of cotton, linen, or worsted, and for- merly much used in upholstering furniture. The long hair from horses' tails is chosen for the purpose. The hair is drawn, straightened, and assorted, then woven on power-looms, which in their general appearance, though not in their method of working, resemble the ordinary cot- ton or woolen cloth looms. At the close of the nineteenth century this material was little used for upholstery, but was extensively employed by tailors and dressmakers as a stiffening fabric for interlinings, its superiority to other ma- terials used for the purpose being that it is unafffcted liv moisture. Haircloth is also em- ployed for sieves for expressing oils, etc. HAIRDRESSING. This has always formed an important part of costume. The most ancient monuments of art show coverings for the head which must certainly be wigs, and others in which there is doubt whether the natural hair, worn long and elaborately curled and crimped, or an artificial imitation of it is intended. Hairdress- ing is sometimes entirely decorative in intention, and sometimes has a traditional character in- tended to convey an idea of personal dignity, of having attained a certain age, of a certain rank in the community, of bravery as a warrior or the like, as the curious ring worn by the Zulu war- riors, in which, according to the most exact ac- counts, the short curling hair is, in a circle as large as the top of the head allows, stiffened with gum in such a way that it stands up in a very visible coronet. It is not unlike the tonsure or partial shaving of the head common in many lands, which in the form used by the Roman Catholic clergy is familiar to us. The tonsure used by the Greek Church differs very much from that in the Latin or Roman Catholic Church. It is noticeable that the head, as the most prominent part of the body and the part which cannot be