HOW TO CULTIVATE 
THE COMPLEXION 
A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON 
THE CARE OF THE SKIN. 
BY 
MADAME M. YALE. 
FIRST EDITION. 
New York: 
MORTIMER L. WILLIAMS, PUBLISHER, 
42 Duane Street, 
1890. Copyright, 1890. 
By MADAME M. YALE. 
All Rights Reserved. la tfoe 
Who have ever given me their steadfast 
confidence ; 
la gatwma 
Who have rewarded me with their 
gratitude ; 
and 
la thm af my $tx 
Who are seeking the domain of beauty, 
this little volume is appreciatively 
and earnestly dedicated by 
gft* guttfcar. INTRODUCTION. 
The average woman whom Nature 
has not favored with a heritage of beauty, 
is far too often the victim of a distress- 
ing hopelessness over her personal de- 
fects. She stands before the mirror 
and, with a sigh, turns away saying, 
“why was I born with such a plain face, 
such a horrible complexion?” Then 
she sits down, folds her hands and idly 
grieves over her facial misfortunes. She 
does not even try to make the best of 
Nature’s niggardly gifts by endeavor- 
ing to overcome, as far as she can, the 
defects which cause her such mental 
agony and create within her breast the 
desire to hide herself from all eyes ; and 
so her life goes on with none of the 
sunshine of admiration in it, and de- 
spondency and unhappiness in full pos- 
session of her disposition, to her own 
misery and her friends’ discomfort. 
It is to try to persuade these hopeless INTRODUCTION. 
ones into an ambition to become at- 
tractive and thus admired and happy, 
that this little volume has been mainly 
prepared ; though it is also intended to 
teach those on whom the gods have 
bestowed natural beauty how to pre- 
serve and enhance the glorious gift. 
The author’s experience in her own 
case as well as that she has derived 
from a large and successful practice in 
the profession of dermatology, has con- 
vinced her that there is no woman who 
may not greatly improve her personal ap- 
pearance if she sets herself earnestly 
about the task and takes heed of wise 
counsels; and it is in response to the re- 
quests of many friends and patrons that 
the author, through these pages, ex- 
tends a helping hand and offers sincere 
advice to both the plain and the beauti- 
ful. The suggestions presented do not 
rest upon the simple basis of observa- 
tion, but upon the latter and a long and 
practical study of the skin and its defects, INTRODUCTION. 
and the consequent discovery of cer- 
tain rational methods of overcoming 
the blemishes which afflict so many com- 
plexions. 
It is therefore with the utmost pleas- 
ure and confidence that this little vol- 
ume of genuine assistance in the realm 
of beauty, is offered to the public by 
MADAME YALE. Table of Contents. 
CHAPTER I. 
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEAUTY 9 
CHAPTER II. 
THE SKIN : ITS STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONS, I 7 
CHAPTER III. 
THE FOUNDATIONS OF A BEAUTIFUL COM- 
PLEXION 26 
CHAPTER IV. 
HOW TO CARE FOR AND CULTIVATE THE 
COMPLEXION 42 
CHAPTER V. 
NECESSARY AIDS 55 
CHAPTER VI. 
MASSAGE FOR THE FACE 65 
CHAPTER VII. 
HOW TO HARMLESSLY AND EFFECTIVELY 
MAKE UP THE FACE 79 
CHAPTER VIII. 
PROPER CARE OF THE HANDS 87 
CHAPTER IX. 
woman's glory: her hair 97 
CHAPTER X. 
HINTS TO BE HEEDED Io8 “ ’Tis beauty truly blent, whose red and white, 
Nature’s own sweet and cunning*hand laid on. 
Of Nature’s gifts thou may’st with lilies boast, 
And with the half-blown rose.” 
Shakespeare. 
“ The beautiful rests on the foundations of the necessary.” 
Emerson. CHAPTER I. 
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEAUTY. 
At no time in the world’s history has 
beauty ever occupied an inconspicuous 
place upon its pages. From the annals 
of the different eras, we learn that 
monarchs yielded their power to its 
fascinations, and warriors laid their 
weapons at its feet; that statesmen 
have paid homage to its glory, and to 
it all mankind has ever bent the knee 
in subjection, as to a proud sovereign 
of the universe. And yet, who has 
ever comprehensively defined beauty? 
While acknowledging its power, wise 
men, philosophers and poets differ as 
to what it is. Could a composite type  THE COMPLEXION. 
of their ideas be created,the world would 
beheld a woman with the nature of 
an angel, the intellect of a de Stael, 
the figure of Venus and the face of 
Psyche. But Nature is not thus gener- 
ous to her subjects, and she seldom dis- 
tributes charms of mind and person 
collectively, but endows some with men- 
tal attractions, some with physical 
beauty, and others with loveliness of 
feature. Nor does she forget to be- 
stow those tender, womanly traits which 
render even the plain loveable though 
they can lay no claim to the admiration 
of the eye. 
It has been said that “wisdom is 
power,” but none the less so is beauty. 
On beauty’s throne sits a potent ruler 
of all mankind ; but it must not be sup- 
posed that those to whom Nature has 
not been lavish in her gifts are alto- 
gether maids in waiting to the glorious 
queen. Not so. Every woman pos- 
sesses some charm which may be THE COMPLEXION. 
11 
heightened, or some dormant attrac- 
tion that may be quickened into being, 
if only there exists the ambition to be- 
come lovely and the patient action on 
which to successfully rest such an am- 
bition. This being true, every woman 
owes it to herself, to those whom she 
loves and who love her, and to the 
world at large, to become as beautiful 
as is possible from the foundation inherit- 
ance of Nature. She will not be able 
to change the color of her eyes, but 
she can call into them a happy expres- 
sion ; she cannot change the contour of 
her face, but she may illumine it with 
her intelligence and sweetness of dis- 
position. These attractions she may 
enhance until they are components of 
as perfect beauty as woman’s heart can 
desire. And how is this enhancement 
to be accomplished ? Simply by regard- 
ing those hygenic laws which will send 
the blood healthfully coursing through 
her veins to paint a rose upon her cheek 12 
THE COMPLEXION. 
and tint her lips as red as precious 
rubies, and by caring for her complex- 
ion through harmless and certain 
methods, such as have been deduced 
from scientific and successful experi- 
ments. With a beautiful complexion, 
such as any woman may attain if she 
possesses the attributes of patience and 
discretion, no woman need pine for 
that love and admiration so essentially 
necessary to a womanly nature. 
Womankind do not need to be told 
that the outward foundation of that 
beauty which holds the admiration of 
the world is a faultless complexion. 
The features may even be irregular and 
yet the face be fair to see, if the lily 
and rose are but spotlessly blended 
thereon. 
It may not be uninteresting to my 
readers to know why I so positively 
make this assertion, or to learn how I 
came to take up the study of derma- 
tology and apply the results of my THE COMPLEXION. 
13 
labors to an amelioration of those an- 
noyances of my sex which arise from 
imperfections and blemishes of the 
complexion. 
It will be remembered that in the in- 
troduction to this little volume, refer- 
ence is made to my individual experi- 
ence aside from that of my professional 
career. The latter has afforded me 
abundant proof that the former was 
not an exception to the rule, and that 
any woman who will, may remove from 
her complexion unsightly blemishes 
just as I did from mine, and leave her 
face as fair and smooth as mine now is. 
But when she has done so, she must 
care for her complexion as tenderly as 
a mother does for a babe—just as I care 
for my complexion. 
Here is the history of my complexion, 
and my readers cannot but be convinced 
from it that there is hope for even the 
most hopeless. 
When I was a child, fast growing to  THE COMPLEXION. 
14 
womanhood, my complexion was an 
eyesore to myself and everyone around 
me. My face had a muddy tinge 
where it was not disfigured by large 
black freckles and blackheads ; and I 
was bountifully supplied with both these 
disfigurements. At ten years of age 
I was sent from the country town in 
which I was born, to Boston, to acquire 
my education. Just why I should 
particularly fancy the study of chemistry 
has never been quite clear to me, but 
I am willing to believe the inclination 
was given me as a compensation for 
the mental misery I endured over my 
hideous complexion, for it led me to 
the discovery of the remedy which 
made me happy ; and once that state 
was attained my sympathies went out 
to the thousands similarly afflicted, and 
led me to a long study of dermatol- 
ogy, thus enabling me to not only re- 
move those harrowing blemishes just 
mentioned, but also to bid defiance to THE COMPLEXION. 
15 
their return once they were banished. 
Many were the experiments I tried up- 
on my face, and painful were the experi- 
ences. But I knew I could not make 
my complexion any worse than it was, 
and so I applied one after another of the 
results of my chemicals and crucibles. 
I was but fourteen years old when I 
graduated in chemistry and its kindred 
branches. Then I began my experi- 
ments, and at the end of ten years of 
arduous work in my private laboratory 
can say that I am amply repaid for all 
my efforts, and more than ever con- 
vinced that beauty rules the world; 
that the first outer principle of beauty 
is a fine complexion, and that nothing 
is impossible in the matter of improv- 
ing a bad one. I wish to offer you 
advice which is the outcome of practi- 
cal experience, not of theoretical con- 
clusions. Through it, if its suggestions 
are heeded and patiently developed, 
more or less beauty may be attained 16 
THE COMPLEXION. 
and preserved, the health improved, 
and resulting happiness will be the lot 
of her whose existence has hitherto been 
hopeless in tint through her lack of the 
gracious gifts of Nature. CHAPTER II. 
tiie skin: its structure and func- 
tions. 
When the tender foliage of a grow- 
ing plant shows a paleness in tint, and 
the petals of its blossoms lose their in- 
tensity of hue, what does its watchful 
guardian do to restore it to its original 
beauty? He searches for the cause of 
its debility and removes it, and then 
feeds and nourishes the roots until its 
foliage and blossoms glow with health- 
ful tints once more. His experience 
teaches him the best and proper meth- 
ods by which to cultivate and make 
more beautiful his floral collections, 
and he rarely finds a plant that does not 
satisfactorily respond to his wise and 
gentle care. The same principle ap- 
plies to the complexion. It must be 
cultivated if less than perfect, and ten- 
derly guarded when flawless. Though 18 
THE COMPLEXION. 
not as fragile as the petals of a flower, 
the skin upon the face is sufficiently 
delicate to require the most careful at- 
tention, and is often ruined by careless- 
ness and neglect. In taking up this 
subject therefore, it will be well for its 
clearer comprehension by my readers, 
to briefly describe the anatomy and 
functions of the skin ; and thus also 
remove much of the prejudice existing 
against the cultivation of the complex- 
ion by modern methods which are sup- 
posed to be harmful, but in reality are 
beneficial. 
The skin, which is a delicate satiny 
covering for the body, and sufficiently 
resistant to protect the latter from the 
ordinary jostlings and collisions of 
everyday life, is composed of three dis- 
tinct layers, although to the eye but 
one is apparent. Each layer has its 
own particular duties to perform, and 
when in a healthful condition no mech- 
anism of inventor is more complete in THE COMPLEXION. 
its action than the triune mechanism of 
the human skin. 
The layer which is immediately per- 
ceptible is the epidermis or cuticle. 
The term epidermis is derived from 
two Greek words—epi, meaning “upon,” 
and derma, or “true skin.” The word 
thus descriptively explains its own mean- 
ing—an outer skin upon an under one. 
Between the latter and the epidermis is 
a mucous net-work which holds and sup- 
plies the pigmentation or coloring mat- 
ter of the skin, and according to the 
amount of pigment, a complexion is 
blonde or brunette; and it is also be- 
tween this net-work and the epidermis 
that the blood deposits little flecks of 
salts of iron, which the ardent rays 
of the summer sun and the penetrating 
winds of early spring deepen into those 
yellow and brown disfigurements known 
as freckles. The epidermis varies in 
thickness over the whole person, being 
especially thin on parts of the face and 20 
thinnest on the eyelids. It is, apart 
from the true skin, insensible to pain, 
not being, like the latter, supplied with 
nerves and veins; and it is also the layer 
which rises in blisters from friction or 
irritants, and that which peels off after 
one has been severely sun-burned. It 
is constantly and naturally, though very 
gradually, falling off in tiny scales, to 
make room for the new epidermis 
which continuously builds up from its 
own inner surface; and it is also the 
layer which, after maceration in warm 
water, can be removed in small pieces 
from the true skin with no injury to 
the latter. I am writing at length of 
the epidermis, because it is in conse- 
quence of the action of certain really 
harmless remedies upon it, that many 
ladies refuse to make use of the means 
to an end—namely, a lotion to secure 
a fine complexion—and also vigorously 
assail the virtues of potent preparations 
which may have been injudiciously 
THE COMPLEXION. THE COMPLEXION. 
21 
used, but with no permanent ill results. 
If our ladies and lasses sit in the sun 
and the breezes of mountain and sea 
until the epidermis of their faces is 
burned till it eventually peels off and 
leaves a fair skin beneath ; and if for a 
toothache a mustard paste blisters the 
cheek and the consequent denudation 
of epidermis carries away with it a 
muddy tint or hideous freckles with no 
injury to the true skin, how can harm 
possibly arise from a similar process, 
though conducted by artificial means 
intended for the purpose? To a mind 
disposed to be fair, there can be no 
ground for further argument. What 
the elements or the homely prescrip- 
tions for ordinary ailments may safely 
consummate, certainly carefully pre- 
pared medicaments may be relied upon 
to do just as harmlessly and more effect- 
tively. 
Having in partial self defense di- 
gressed from a description of the skin,  THE COMPLEXION. 
22 
I beg my readers’ forbearance and 
again take up the thread of the subject. 
The epidermis is pierced with thou- 
sands of minute invisible openings 
called pores, and each opening marks 
the terminus of a tiny coiled tube or 
canal traversing the mucous net-work 
and ending under the true skin in the 
subcutaneous cellular tissue. These 
tiny canals are the glands by which ex- 
cretion and absorption are carried on. 
Through them much of the waste matter 
of the system is thrown off, and by them 
the skin is nourished by natural lubrica- 
tion from the oil glands, or by applied 
unguents. The blood also deposits its 
impurities in these little ducts which 
carry their effete burden to the surface 
of the skin, where it is either health- 
fully thrown off, or retained by clogged 
pores until decomposed and poisonous, 
when it is reabsorbed or breaks out in 
a rebellion of festering pimples. Re- 
membering that the epidermis is a THE COMPLEXION. 
23 
network of punctures and that a tiny 
coiled tube extends from each, it is 
really not so surprising to learn that 
the skin of an average-sized person is 
traversed by twenty-eight miles of these 
tiny sewer-like canals. And when one 
knows that in a square inch of human 
skin there are three thousand of these 
tiny openings called pores, it is easy 
to understand that the great Creator 
intended the human system to be kept 
in repair by a very wise and thorough 
sanitary arrangement. 
And it is just here that the average 
woman fails to properly support the 
divine intention, by culpable neglect 
of hygienic laws. In its proper place 
in this little volume, the matter of 
bathing will be taken up and discussed ; 
it is only incidentally mentioned here 
as one of the most important points of 
hygiene. Since the structure of the 
skin is now plain to my readers, it will 
be easy for them to comprehend the 24 
THE COMPLEXION. 
methods by which a complexion can be 
cultivated and improved. Discolora- 
tions which lie directly under the epi- 
dermis, such as freckles and moth 
patches, may be overcome by removing 
the epidermis, and it has been clearly 
explained that this insensible covering 
of the true skin can be removed with 
no resulting injury; and it is here as- 
serted that its place is immediately 
taken by a new, fine, clear epidermis, as 
fresh and rosy as that on a child’s face. 
It has also been shown that under the 
outer skin is an immense drainage tract 
whose functions must not be obstructed, 
and that the openings of these ducts 
are the mediums through which waste 
matter is thrown off, and nourishment 
for the skin is supplied. It simply re- 
mains, then, for my readers to study 
the advice found in the following 
chapters, heed its precepts and be 
patient and persistent in their devotions 
at the shrine of personal improvement. THE COMPLEXION. 
25 
Tenacity of purpose cannot be too 
strongly urged. The woman who 
wishes to acquire beauty must resolve 
to be steadfast in her efforts, and must 
not look for a speedy or sudden trans- 
formation. Only through true and un- 
remitting attention can she expect to 
be transformed from an “ ugly duck- 
ling” to a belle. If my earnestness 
upon this point discourages her awak- 
ening ambition to be beautiful, let 
her remember that beauty rules the 
world; and that a sovereign seldom 
ascends his throne without having- 
reached it by a tedious and tortuous 
path, but the ultimate glory is worth all 
the trouble, and would-be rulers of hearts 
should not permit their ambitions to 
succumb to the impediments offered by 
time and a slow progress in the coveted 
direction. Be faithful, be patient, and 
beauty, that potent charm of the uni- 
verse, will sooner or later be yours—if 
not in feature or form, in a complexion 
that will rival the lily and the rose. CHAPTER III. 
THE FOUNDATIONS OF A BEAUTIFUL COM- 
PLEXION. 
While “ complexion ” is a word refer- 
ing particularly to the tint or hue of 
the skin, it also embraces the texture 
and condition of the epidermis. A 
complexion may have the pallor of 
marble and the spotlessness of the lily, 
and be the result of a bloodless state of 
the system; and to a normal taste such 
a complexion is not beautiful. Its 
transparency lacks the pink tinge of 
health and suggests the hue of death, 
and at once stamps its possessor as a 
fragile being who needs the tenderest 
care to bring her to perfect health and 
natural beauty. Good health and per- 
sonal beauty are so closely allied that 
the former is a necessary basis for the 
latter, although an ethereal beauty may THE COMPLEXION. 
27 
exist without such a foundation. When 
ill health or anaemia have rendered the 
skin waxen in appearance and snowy 
or yellow in tint, or the blood is throw- 
ing its poisonous waste to the surface 
in pimples, the cultivation of the com- 
plexion must begin at the root—that is 
the system must be reinforced and 
strengthened by tonics and nourishment, 
and the blood cleared by purifying 
remedies. Without these preliminaries, 
where they are really necessary, a com- 
plexion cannot be permanently improved 
by outward applications. The latter 
may remove accumulated discolorations 
and impurities of the skin that have re- 
sulted from inactive functions or vitiated 
blood, and for a short time cause the 
skin to look fair and clean ; but if these 
hidden enemies are not forced into a 
normal action and a pure condition, 
they will impart their ravages to the 
new epidermis or “ complexion ” just as 
they did to the original one, and then 28 
THE COMPLEXION. 
the outward process of clearing the skin 
will of necessity become a periodical 
matter. 
Take some reliable tonic to stimulate 
the appetite, and then eat nourishing, 
digestible food in order to build up the 
wasted tissue underneath the skin, and 
so give the latter a firm, plump founda- 
tion such as Nature intended it to have. 
Then, if the general condition indicates 
that the blood is disordered, or thin, or 
sluggish, use some reliable purifier to 
remove its obnoxious qualities and 
restore or reduce it to its normal fluid- 
ity. 
It has been explained in a previous 
chapter how the blood drives its effete 
particles into the ducts and glands 
under the epidermis, and how necessary 
in consequence it is that the pores be 
kept unobstructed. Now in its course 
through the veins and arteries the blood 
miht also be strong and active. If it is 
weak from a lack of red corpuscles, it THE COMPLEXION. 
29 
will carry no color to the skin, the 
cheeks or the lips except during violent 
exercise which leaves a delicate person 
thoroughly exhausted and eventually 
with an increased pallor. On the other 
hand, if the blood is of the proper con- 
sistency and is healthy in quality, and 
the circulation is normal, the rich, pure 
blood will give its color to the cheek 
and lip just as ruby wine lends its glow 
to the cup. But if the blood is too 
thick it becomes sluggish, and the veins 
are continuously clogged and sur- 
charged, and the thus impaired circula- 
tion dams up the blood in the extremities, 
just as tight clothing will also do, and 
faces and hands become permanently 
flushed and coarse in appearance ; and 
all the cosmetics in the universe will not 
alone overcome the annoying effect. 
The cultivation of the complexion in 
this case, also, must begin at the root of 
the trouble—the blood. That must be 
cleared of its surplus richness and re- 30 
THE COMPLEXIOX. 
duced to a natural density, before one 
can hope for much improvement from 
external applications. These points 
are presented before coming to the ordi- 
nary care of the complexion, because it 
would be utter folly to assert that every 
complexion, regardless of the conditions 
of system and blood can be cleared and 
improved by proper ablutions, reliable 
lotions, softening creams and healing 
unguents, for such is not the case. 
Even if common sense did not govern 
me in making this statement, my obser- 
vations in the successful practice of der- 
matology for the past eight years would 
convince me that outward applications 
will not permanently remove the com- 
plexional results of seated ailments of 
the system and blood. But this is what 
is true. The system ca7i be strength- 
ened, the blood can be purified ; and 
then the worst complexion that ever 
resulted from such disorders can be 
restored to its original beauty, and even THE COMPLEXION. 
that may be improved by further care 
and cultivation. It is, however, perfectly 
safe to assert that when one complexion 
is bad from a disordered condition of 
the system and blood, twenty, yes, even 
a larger proportion of complexions are 
in a deplorable condition from ignor- 
ance of the hygienic laws relating to 
the skin, or from indolence, exposure 
to the elements, the trying changes of 
temperature both in the outer atmo- 
sphere and that of the average house, 
or from any of the many things which, 
in the daily lives of some, arise to pro- 
duce a grimy, sallow complexion. With- 
out hesitation I assert that there is not 
one of these afflicted individuals but 
what may cultivate her complexion into 
one of beauty, if she will only care for 
it patiently, and on a reasonable basis, 
such as I shall advise. 
In restoring a bad complexion, one 
must begin on the same principle that a 
physician usually writes his first pre- 32 
THE COMPLEXION. 
scription in the beginning of a serious 
illness. This first prescription is pre- 
paratory—that is, it is intended to clear 
the system of accumulated secretions 
that might militate against the remedies 
he intends giving for the quelling of the 
disease itself. He thus makes clean- 
liness his basis, and this is exactly what 
should be done and is done in the treat- 
ment of the complexion by first purify- 
ing the blood. But in complexional 
cases where there is no ill condition of 
the system or blood, the cleanliness is 
secured by proper applications of soap 
and water. I do not wish my readers 
to suppose I imagine they have never 
washed their faces; but I am positive 
that but few of them ever perform their 
ablutions properly. In many cases this 
lack arises from a prejudice which seems 
to extensively exist against the practice 
of applying soap to the face. Even / 
protest against the use of promiscuous 
varieties ; but that a fine soap composed THE COMPLEXION. 
33 
of purified and refined ingredients is 
antagonistic to the preservation of the 
skin is preposterous. The promptings 
of philosophical common sense should 
teach every woman of intelligence that 
she can no more clean her face without 
soap, than she could remove oily, fatty 
matter, such as exudes from the skin, 
from any other texture. She knows 
that the clothing which comes in con- 
tact with her skin accumulates an oily 
deposit that cannot be removed without 
hot water and soap. If she has read 
these pages thus far she knows, too, 
that the pores of the skin must be un- 
obstructed, and that that was the Crea- 
tor’s intention when he planned that 
perspiration should ooze from every 
minute opening. She offers a serious 
impediment to the fulfillment of natural 
laws when she refuses to properly 
cleanse her face with a substance which 
will remove the fatty secretions and 
leave the little pores free to do their 34 
THE COMPLEXION. 
proper work. The refusal to use soap 
upon the face is simply a bigoted rem- 
nant of a custom dating back to the 
half-savage days when ladies declined 
to wash their faces at all for fear of 
spoiling their complexions. I offer no 
apology for these plain words, because 
everyone who has ever made a study of 
the skin not only recommends on scien- 
tific principles the use of soap, but 
insists on it as a necessity for promoting 
the proper functions of the skin. The 
custom of always wiping off the face 
with cold cream, vaseline or sweet 
almond oil instead of washing it, is a 
relic of barbarism and more to be depre- 
cated than the non-application of soap, 
since it is absolute uncleanliness. Cold 
cream, softening balms and lotions are 
necessary to the cultivation of a fine 
complexion, but they are adjuncts—not 
principals in the process. The pores of 
the skin must be open to receive their 
benefits, and this they cannot be unless THE COMPLEXION. 
35 
kept so through proper ablutions. When 
continuously applied with no interrup- 
tions of soap and water, the pores, after 
absorbing as much as possible, become 
so clogged that after a short period 
these continuous inunctions are simply 
a waste of time and material; for it is 
impossible for impeded pores to receive 
nourishment for the skin. This actual 
sin of commission against Nature by the 
omission of soap from the ablutions is 
to a slight extent mitigated when a lady 
occasionally bathes her face in cologne 
or alcohol or bay rum, each of which 
will partially “ cut ” the oily accumula* 
tions ; but for healthful, perfect, absolute 
cleanliness there is no substitute for hot 
water and fine, pure soap. If the water 
is distilled so much the better; but rain 
water or soft water that has been made 
hot by boiling, is fully the equal of dis- 
tilled water and has the advantage of 
being within the reach of all. It has 
been, in a way, distilled, since the boil- 36 
ing process removes all impurities and 
even softens hard water. In boiling 
the latter put an empty two-ounce vial 
in the kettle of water, and the carbonate 
of lime and any impurities will adhere 
to the vial. When the vial is removed 
the water will be as soft and pure as if 
distilled. And now I am going to tell 
you 
THE COMPLEXION. 
HOW TO WASH YOUR FACE. 
Just as the best physicians disagree 
upon the use of certain medicines, so do 
dermatologists differ as to the employ- 
ment of hot or cold water in washing 
the face. Always allowing common 
sense to guide me in or to my convic- 
tions upon all matters, and especially 
those pertaining to my profession, and 
these convictions being amply sup- 
ported by the results of my advice to 
my numerous patients, I strongly advo- 
cate, in this particular matter, the use 
of hot water, and a general avoidance THE COMPLEXION. 
37 
of cold unless the latter be used for rins- 
ing, or as a stimulant for the circulation 
after the skin has been perfectly cleansed 
with soap and hot water, just as the 
cold shower or plunge is taken for re- 
actionary purposes at the end of a 
Turkish or Russian bath. Cold water 
is not a perfect cleansing agent where 
oily secretions are to be removed, but it 
has a mission of its own outside of 
cleansing properties, as explained above. 
Each night and morning bathe the face 
in hot water for about five minutes. 
Then, at night, apply a fine, pure soap 
to the face and with the fingers gently 
rub it into the skin, making a thick 
lather. And, in thus rubbing the skin, 
let all the strokes be upward and back- 
ward, since the tendency of the face is 
to fall into downward lines. These 
strokings in opposite directions will 
prevent the coming of premature wrin- 
kles and aid in removing the incipient 
ones that have outlined themselves on 38 
THE COMPLEXION. 
the epidermis. When the face has been 
well lathered and rubbed, wash it again 
in the hot water to remove the suds, 
and then rinse it well in cooler, but not 
cold water. Then, if desired, a little 
cold water may be dashed over the face 
for its stimulating effect on the muscles 
and circulation. In the morning, if no 
unguent has been applied to the face on 
retiring, simply bathe it in the hot water 
and the tepid, using no soap. But if 
cold cream or any oily application has 
been made the previous night, soap will 
again be needed; and it is always well 
to perform the morning ablution at least 
half an hour before going into the air. 
If a wash cloth is used upon the face, 
let it be of some soft fabric, such as a 
bit of an old merino undergarment, or 
ordinary flannel, either of which fabrics 
is considered better for the purpose 
than linen or Turkish toweling cloths. 
The principle of a soft cloth being best 
is plain. The skin is a tender, delicate THE COMPLEXION. 
39 
structure, and the warm water softens it 
still more, and it thus, and then, requires 
great delicacy of touch so that it may 
not be injured. The towel must also 
be soft and the drying process should 
consist of a series of patting movements, 
and not the vigorous rubbing advised 
by the many who are ignorant of the 
delicate texture of the skin upon the 
face. Friction will do and is advisable 
for the rest of the person ; but handle 
the covering of the face as if it were of 
fragile china. 
While hot water softens the skin and 
dissolves and removes any hardened 
waste matter clogging the pores, it also 
possesses the virtue of rendering the 
skin more receptive and absorbant dur- 
ing the cultivation or treatment of the 
complexion. Remedies applied after 
the facial bath just described are far 
more efficacious, for the skin then read- 
ily absorbs and responds to them. But 
though no lotions or unguents at all are 40 
THE COMPLEXION. 
used, this method of washing the face 
should always be employed. 
Turkish baths are considered excel- 
lent for clearing the complexion since 
they open all the pores by inducing a 
copious perspiration which carries away 
every impediment in the way of the 
hardened secretion which clogs the ducts. 
For those to whom a Turkish bath is 
debilitating, occasionally steaming the 
face is suggested. This is done by 
holding the face over a vessel of boiling 
water and covering both the head and 
the vessel with a towel or cloth large 
enough to prevent the escape of the 
steam. This process opens the sweat 
glands of the face and softens hardened 
matter. After fifteen minutes of steam- 
ing, the face should be washed with hot 
water and soap in the usual manner; 
and during the steaming the water 
should, by frequent additions, be kept 
at the boiling point. 
Ladies averse to using cosmetics or complexion remedies usually extend the 
cultivation no further than cleanliness ; 
but if after thoroughly washing their 
faces, they would bathe them with a 
little toilet vinegar they would exper- 
ience a most refreshing feeling. Toilet 
vinegar or eau de cologne in the rins- 
ing water assists in overcoming the 
greasy look natural to some skins, and 
also stimulates the circulation. If a 
complexion is naturally dry or rou-h, 
then a softening balm or unguent, or 
even cologne, or rose water in which 
there is a small quantity of glyceiine, 
will, if applied after a facial bath, render 
the texture of the skin smooth and 
velvety. 
To ladies who are not satisfied to have 
their faces simply clean and soft, but 
wish them to be free from blemishes of 
all descriptions, I have much of import- 
ance to say in the following chapter. 
THE COMPLEXION. 
41 CHAPTER IV. 
HOW TO CARE FOR AND CULTIVATE THE 
COMPLEXION. 
In beginning this chapter of instruc- 
tions, it seems necessary to refer to the 
preceding chapter in order to still more 
forcibly impress my readers with the 
importance of properly performed ablu- 
tions. Undoubtedly many will still 
hold to their own opinions regarding 
the use of cold water as better than hot 
for washing the face, and I shall regret 
it exceedingly, because I am so well 
fortified through professional experi- 
ence in my assumption that hot water 
is the better of the two. However, if 
they still cling to their theory and will 
use cold water, let it be water that has 
been boiled and then cooled. In its 
crude state unfiltered water contains too 
much animal matter, and usually too 
much alkali to be beneficial to the skin. On the contrary it is detrimental, and 
roughens and makes coarse and harsh, 
even a naturally fine skin; therefore, if 
cold water must’ be used, take advan- 
tage of the hint given and have it boiled 
or filtered to clean it of all impurities. 
Taking it for granted that all has 
been done for the complexion that can 
be accomplished by building up the 
system and purifying the blood; or that 
the complexion is bad while the health 
is good, let us see what is to be done 
first. 
A close inspection of the skin dis- 
closes a muddy tinge, freckles, black- 
heads, light wrinkles, a leathery look, 
and a generally mottled appearance, 
very annoying to the average woman. 
Thorough ablutions, such as previously 
directed, perhaps brighten the tint of 
the skin, but do not remove the blem- 
ishes or clear away the muddy, leathery 
look. Now it has been fully explained 
that discolorations lie on the under sur- 
THE COMPLEXION. 
43 44 
face of the epidermis, and that the lat- 
ter is an insensible texture which the 
elements may remove without harm, 
and which of itself naturally falls off in 
minute scales with no consequent injury. 
The deduction is plain. To remove 
the blemishes, the epidermis or scarf- 
skin must be removed, and why not ap- 
ply the philosophy of Nature to the ac- 
tion of remedies for clearing the com- 
plexion ? Possibly the artificial remedy 
will cause more irritation than the nat- 
ural specifics, but that will be necessary 
in order to the quicker complete the 
cure. Perhaps less pain will be produced 
by the action of a weaker lotion and the 
blemishes will gradually fade away with- 
out destroying the old epidermis. The 
patient must decide whether she will 
adopt the heroic and certain though 
harmless method, or the less painful but 
uncertain one. We will suppose she 
adopts the heroic treatment, faithfully 
and correctly using a lotion intended 
THE COMPLEXION. THE COMPLEXION. 
45 
for clearing her skin of all its impurities. 
In a few days, possibly two or three 
weeks, she will find upon her face none 
of the blemishes, but a soft, fine, velvety 
skin, spotless and wrinkleless; she will 
look years younger if she be an elderly 
woman, and in any event will be ten 
times happier, for she will have begun 
to be beautiful. Then she must care 
for and cultivate the new foundation if 
she would permanently possess it. 
Having shown how discolorations 
must be removed, it remains to be seen 
how their return must and can be pre- 
vented. 
It is well known to all dermatologists 
that freckles can be removed by the 
process just mentioned, but it is equally 
well known that they will soon ap- 
pear on the new epidermis also, unless 
precautions in the way of emollient 
remedies, the wearing of veils, and the 
avoidance of direct sunlight are observ- 
ed. From day to day new discoveries in 46 
THE COMPLEXION. 
the profession of dermatology are being 
made, and the time is not far distant 
when a rejuvenated complexion may be 
retained by the slightest effort in the 
matter of applying protective lotions. 
Until then the remedy which wrought 
the change should be used semi-occa- 
sionally,and the velvety softness retained 
by soothing balms applied during the 
day, and by nightly inunctions of a per- 
fectly refined and properly prepared 
cold cream. And unless a cold cream 
is of this character, it should be avoided; 
for if it is an inferior article sold at a 
low price, it will yellow the skin and 
give it a shiny, greasy look that is in 
every way antagonistic to beauty. 
Glycerine has the same effect upon 
many skins and should always be chem- 
ically pure and never used unless dilut- 
ed by an equal quantity, or even more, 
of rosewater, elderflower water or plain 
soft or rain water. Even then glycer- 
ine will not agree with all skins, and THE COMPLEXION. 
47 
upon the slightest irritation its use 
should be discontinued. Vaseline is not 
an elegant preparation, and in many 
cases not only does not improve the 
skin but makes it rough and coarse. 
Good cold cream is the safest unguent 
to use for softening the skin, as it unites 
several ingredients each of which is a 
healing, softening agent in itself. A 
great deal also depends on how any un- 
guent of this nature is applied. If it is 
simply quickly rubbed over the face, it 
will do very little good. It should be 
well rubbed into the skin by firm but 
gentle movements, all in an upward and 
backward direction, the same as describ- 
ed in the instructions for ablutions. 
Then where lines are forming, rub and 
gently pinch them out, spending ten or 
fifteen minutes each night in this sort 
of facial massage. If the lines are per- 
pendicular, rub them with a horizontal 
movement, and, vice versa. This will 
prevent the premature formation of 48 
THE COMPLEXION. 
wrinkles; and in case the lines are only 
upon the outer skin or epidermis, they 
may, by this massage be removed. But 
if the lines have once formed in the true 
skin nothing will remove them; but lo- 
tions, and inunctions applied with the 
massage movement will lessen their 
depth and render them comparatively 
inconspicuous. 
The use of cosmetics which come 
under the usual head of “whitewashes” 
should never be resorted to, since they 
leave upon the skin a poisonous deposit 
that clogs the pores and creeps into the 
blood. This of course is opposed to 
Nature, who provides a drainage tract 
for the system that must be kept unim- 
peded. The skin of a child is pure, soft 
and beautiful, just as that of an adult 
may be, or become, if subjected to a 
rational treatment in full accord with 
Nature’s plans. The use of nothing that 
will clog the pores but everything that 
has a tendency to keep them free from THE COMPLEXION. 
49 
all obstructions, is the only rational 
method of successfully cultivating the 
complexion. Powder may be used after 
bathing the face in hot water and after- 
ward with a softening balm or lotion, 
but on retiring the powder should be 
carefully washed off and the skin clean, 
sed by hot water and soap. It is a 
well known fact that professional people 
—public singers and actresses—are com- 
pelled to apply cosmetics and rouges 
in lavish quantities; and yet those who 
are careful to thoroughly wash off their 
“ make up ” at the end of the evening, 
usually have fine, soft complexions until 
late in life, while those who are careless 
in the matter soon acquire a leathery, 
stippled skin that can rarely be restored 
to its original fine, smooth texture. 
Just here another point of importance 
must be mentioned and a word of cau- 
tion given. Do not confine your ablu- 
tions to the face alone, but take frequent 
baths in warm water, using plenty of  THE COMPLEXION. 
50 
soap; for if the pores of the body are 
not kept in an active condition they will 
return decomposed waste matter to the 
system, and as such matter must escape 
it will find its way to the pores that are 
kept unobstructed and reach the surface 
through those channels of the skin in a 
state of rebellion—otherwise a festering 
condition which results in a crop of 
pimples. An eminent writer upon the 
subject says that “pimples upon the 
face show either a very bad condition of 
the blood or a great lack of cleanliness.” 
Pimples, however, are often the re- 
sult of those annoying black points or 
specks called “flesh worms” or “black- 
heads,” which may exist with even the 
utmost cleanliness. Black heads may 
be removed by the same remedy by 
which discolorations are obliterated, but 
the results are slow in appearing, and 
a long time may be required to com- 
pletely remove those which are deeply 
imbedded in the skin ; but once thor- THE COMPLEXION. 
oughly removed they will not return if 
the skin is properly cared for. The cure 
may be assisted by steaming the affected 
parts or bathing them in hot water for 
fifteen or twenty minutes before apply- 
ing the remedy. The method of 
daily squeezing out the little black points 
bruises the skin and often breaks one of 
the tiny pores and then a minute flesh 
wart is produced ; and a number of these 
warts will give the skin a rough, grater- 
like surface. The use of the nails 
in squeezing out black heads also irri- 
tates and poisons the skin. The ends 
of these tiny plugs of effete matter, 
coming in contact with the dust of the 
atmosphere become black, and thus 
their name of “black heads” is acquired. 
The removal of moth patches is quite 
a difficult matter, and nearly always 
professional treatment is required. The 
discoloration arises from a derangement 
of the liver which deposits a peculiar 
secretion through the medium of the 
51  THE COMPLEXION. 
52 
blood, under the epidermis and usually 
upon the true skin. Internal medicines 
which act upon the liver are generally 
employed in connection with external 
applications, in the removal of moth, or 
“ mask,” as it is s >metimes called. 
Birth-marks are also difficult to remove 
and sometimes defy all efforts. As they 
are usually deeply seated in the true 
skin, their treatment should be submit- 
ted to professional hands. 
A few general hints on the care of 
the complexion may not come amiss at 
the end of this chapter. 
Moisture is necessary to a healthy 
complexion ; therefore give it all you 
can through ablutions, steaming, and 
even by going out into “the mist and 
the rain for it is the moist air of Eng- 
land and the mists of Scotland that give 
to the women of those countries much 
of the natural beauty of their complex- 
ions. 
If the skin is sensitive and roughens THE COMPLEXION. 
53 
or chaps when exposed to the frosty air 
of winter, annoint it with cold cream 
before going out, wiping off all the cream 
possible with a soft cloth, and then light- 
ly dusting the skin with corn starch, 
rice powder or some reliable face pow- 
der. It is also a good plan in windy or 
dusty weather to wear a thin gauze veil, 
as its meshes will prevent particles of 
dust from lodging upon the face and 
settling into the pores of the skin. Eng- 
lish mothers are said to invariably veil 
the faces of their little ones during out- 
ings in dusty weather; and this un- 
doubtedly has much to do with the deli- 
cacy of English complexions. 
If the skin looks flabby and shows an 
inclination to wrinkle, get the system 
into a good condition and feed and 
nourish the tissues of the face and 
strengthen its ligaments and muscles 
through absorption—that is by inunc- 
tions of fatty substances prepared for the 54 
THE COMPLEXION. 
purpose and applied with the massage 
movements before described. 
If the skin is naturally greasy or oily, 
apply no creams or oily emollients, but 
after bathing the face, rinse it in water 
in which there is a little borax or eau de 
cologne ; or wipe it off with a soft cloth 
moistened with diluted alcoholor bay rum. 
If you insist on using a cosmetic that 
leaves a white or pink deposit on the 
skin, be sure to wash it carefully off at 
bed time, and then rub some sweet al- 
mond oil or some fine cream thoroughly 
into the skin to dissolve any of the poi- 
sonous particles that may have lodged 
in the tiny pores and have not been re- 
moved by the ablutions. 
If you regard all the suggestions con- 
tained in this chapter, success in the way 
of a fine complexion is more than likely 
to attend your efforts, but the latter 
must be patiently made. The easily 
discouraged will never reach the con- 
dition desired. CHAPTER V. 
NECESSARY AIDS. 
In cultivating a fine complexion, 
however, it will be necessary for every 
woman to pay some heed to the laws 
of hygiene. She cannot always expect 
to have a skin with a smooth and satiny 
texture and the bloom of health upon 
it, from simply outward applications of 
beautifying remedies. If the founda- 
tion walls of the most palatial struc- 
ture are permitted to disintegrate and 
crumble, the structure itself will soon 
show the effects of the hidden devasta- 
tion. It is so with the complexion. 
Good health is its foundation, and the 
integrity of its basis must be preserved 
to insure the continuance of the beauty 
of a fine complexion ; and to maintain 
the perfect physicial condition there are, 
in addition to the points mentioned in 56 
a previous chapter, some others whose 
tenets must be gravely considered and 
followed. 
Diet, or the food eaten, is one of the 
most important points. The human 
stomach is almost as idiosyncratic as 
the mind, and the. same kinds of food will 
not agree with all stomachs, even 
though it be of varieties known to be 
easily digestible. 
Space forbids a protracted discussion 
of the whys and wherefores of certain 
kinds of diet. But a few suggestions 
can be offered and they will be perti- 
nent and easily comprehended. 
Greasy foods should be avoided on 
general principles, as they not only 
tend to disarrange and weaken the di- 
gestive organs, but where they do not, 
they rapidly increase the fatty tissues 
of those inclined to stoutness, and also 
cause the skin to become oily, greasy 
and coarse. When they refuse to assimi- 
late with the gastric juices, they ferment, 
THE COMPLEXION. THE COMPLEXION. 
57 
and thus poison or debilitate the blood, 
and the result is likely to be a crop of 
pimples, or a red and mottled skin. 
Too many sweets will produce kindred 
effects, and a constant consumption of 
rich pastries and cakes will soon im- 
pair the strongest digestion, interfere 
with the functions of the liver, and im- 
part a sallow or livid hue to the skin. 
Every observant woman knows best 
what foods produce symptoms of indi- 
gestion in her individual case, and she 
should be wise enough in her introspec- 
tions, and strong enough in her com- 
mon sense tendencies, to avoid such 
foods, even though her palate be de- 
prived of its accustomed gratification. 
Certain it is she cannot habitually eat 
food which does not agree with her 
stomach, and expect to successfully 
cultivate her complexion. Constipa- 
tion and billiousness ruin more com- 
plexions than anything else, and both 
may, by rational habits at the table, be 58 
THE COMPLEXION. 
wholly overcome. Vegetables, brown 
bread, cereals, raw and cooked fruits, 
and rare fresh meats, roasted or broiled, 
should be the customary diet ; but fcod 
fried in or largely composed of fat, 
and all sweetmeats, preserves, rich 
pastries and puddings, should be 
avoided. Milk, where it agrees with 
the stomach, fresh eggs boiled or 
poached, game and poultry, are all nu- 
tritious and easy of digestion. Tea 
and coffee, drunk in large quantities, or 
very strong in quality, have a tend- 
ency to yellow the skin, by impairing 
the digestion. The main rule in the 
matter of diet, is to eat what in no way 
impairs the functions of the body; and 
the kind of food must be decided upon 
from individual experience. 
Exercise is an important factor in 
the acquirement of beauty, as it aids 
digestion, keeps the skin elastic and 
healthy, the muscles active, and the 
blood in good circulation The flesh THE COMPLEXION. 
59 
of an inactive person is always flabby, 
and flabby flesh upon the face means 
a lax and wrinkled skin. A celebrated 
physician not long since remarked to 
a patient who was able to go out, but 
from indolence had remained in several 
days : “ Madam, your face shows that 
you have not been out as I directed. 
It looks pinched and flabby and wrink- 
led, and all it needs to get it out of 
that condition is plenty of fresh air. 
Go out and walk. Stay out two or 
three hours and walk, or ride horseback, 
or row, or play tennis, or do anything 
that will exercise your muscles, and 
send the blood bounding through your 
veins. You are not ill enough to re- 
main confined in the house, and every 
fair day should see you actively em- 
ployed in the open air. Unless you do 
your part I cannot give you, by my 
prescriptions, what you desire in the 
way of restored health and a wrinkle- 
less complexion.” No woman wishes 60 
THE COMPLEXION. 
to become wrinkled while yet she is 
young, and this diplomatic physician 
knew the weakness of the sex on that 
point. It is safe to say his patient 
thereafter followed his instructions. 
And every woman must follow them if 
she wishes to ward off Time’s ap- 
proaches in that guise. Of course 
this little talk is mainly for those who 
have time for exercise and will not take 
it. There are those whose means and 
lives keep them in constant exercise 
from the rosy flush of the dawn until they 
seek their weary couches late at night. 
For these unfortunates, whose exercise 
is excessive and toilsome, but little advice 
can be given, and it is this : sit down 
whenever it is possible, for a brief rest; 
sit whenever you can in doing your 
work, in combing your hair, in dressing 
your children—in fact upon every avail- 
able occasion. You will thus be en- 
abled to husband some of your strength 
to counterbalance the constant drain THE COMPLEXION. 
61 
upon it, and preserve much of your 
nervous force. Both the strength and 
the nerves must be guarded in every 
possible way when the necessary outlay 
of vitality is great. So to the strong 
and indolent I say exercise; to the 
overworked and delicate I say rest 
whenever you have even one leisure 
moment. 
Baths are not only important in a 
sanitary way, but their hygiene includes 
renewed vigor for the strong, and rest 
and strength for the weak. When the 
functions are impeded by indolence or 
excessive toil, the warm bath taken at 
night comes to the rescue and removes 
the obstructions of the drainage of the 
system, so that the latter may throw off 
through the pores matter that would 
otherwise accumulate, and either yellow 
the skin or cover it with pimples as 
suggested before. The strong may 
also take a cold shower or plunge in 
the morning, to stimulate the circula- 62 
THE COMPLEXION. 
tion and bring a bloom to the cheek ; 
but the weak must content themselves 
with a quick sponge bath of cool water 
and a vigorous rubbing afterwards with 
the towel. This process will bring the 
blood into active circulation and at the 
same time give the muscles a brisk 
trial of their elasticity or tension. 
Let there be plenty of good, fine soap 
used with the warm bath, and also throw 
a cheese-cloth bag of corn or oat meal 
into the water ; or use the more ex- 
pensive almond meal, mixed with shav- 
ings of fine soap, and tied in a similar 
bag. Either will impart a delightful 
softness, and provide a nutritive sub- 
stance particularly agreeable to the 
skin. 
Regarding the matter of tight cloth- 
ing I shall simply enumerate its results, 
and let my readers be future-wise or 
foolish, as they see fit. Tight corsets 
send the blood to the flushed face and 
red hands and arms in nine cases out of every ten seen. Tight waists, bands 
and shoes will do the same thing, in 
addition to putting the disposition into 
that glow popularly termed “ irritable” 
—a condition neither conducive to the 
comfort of the surrounding people nor 
the beauty of the individual herself; 
for ill temper brings frowns, and frowns 
make wrinkles, and such wrinkles can- 
not be removed if constantly cultivated 
by the causes mentioned. Tight gloves 
are no longer fashionable, for the wise 
society girl has found that they cramp 
and redden her hands, and leave the 
mark of every seam imprinted upon 
her tender skin for a long time after 
they are removed. Loose gloves allow 
a free action of the hands and leave 
them white and unmarked. Tight 
sleeves, or those that “ bind ” at the arm 
holes, or a collar that is too close, or 
a waist too narrow across the chest, all 
interfere with the circulation and pro- 
duce a flushed face or red hands which 
THE COMPLEXION. 
63 64 
THE COMPLEXION. 
no cosmetic, or lotion, or balm will re- 
lieve. A little loosening of the lacing 
strings or garments would in no way 
take from the attraction of the figure, 
especially as the face and hands would 
thus become normal in hue, and amena- 
ble to further beautifying through trust- 
worthy applications. A word to the 
wise should be sufficient. CHAPTER VI. 
MASSAGE FOR THE FACE. 
It has been said that the unhappiest 
day of an ordinarily happy woman’s life, 
is the one on which she discovers the 
first wrinkle on her face. In times gone 
past this first wrinkle was allowed to re- 
main unmolested until it had imbedded 
itself deeply in the lovely skin and be- 
come ineradicable. Then, anxious peeps 
into the mirror only to see this trouble- 
some arrival, accentuated the line and 
another, and then another came to keep 
it company, till the face seemed but a 
foundation for the lines of age, whether 
they resulted from Time or cares and 
worry. Now all is changed and a wo- 
man may actually drive away the 
wrinkles that cast their shadows before, 
and keep the coming event at bay for a 
long period. 66 
THE COMPLEXION. 
It is said that old age is the result of 
a microbe; and that, if this microbe is 
caught and killed, perpetual youth will 
be the reward of the captor. If anyone 
has succeded in capturing it, history 
has no record of the event; but that the 
microbe has been subjected to restric- 
tions cannot be doubted when we see 
wrinkles vanishing from their fairly es- 
tablished places, or hesitating to put 
their marks upon the face even when 
the age of the individual would fully 
justify their appearance. The cunning 
of the learned and skilful is pitted 
against the inroads of Time, who, 
though he ever travels onward, thus 
apparently treads more lightly than 
of yore, and leaves fewer of those 
traces which prove the bite noir of every 
woman. 
And what is the magic wherewith 
these wonders are worked ? Massage 
of a species developed from that given 
to reduce flesh or strengthen the mus- THE CO Mi LEX ION. 
67 
cles of the body and limbs. The move- 
ments are all adapted to the require- 
ments of an aging face, and calculated 
to restore vigor to weakened ligaments, 
remove an excess of fat from the lower 
portion of the face and render flabby 
flesh firm and elastic. The movements 
of facial massage have been incidentally 
mentioned in other chapters of this lit- 
tle volume, but the matter is one of 
such real importance that it should be 
more thoroughly explained to my read- 
ers. Its proper administration in con- 
nection with lotions and emollients, can- 
not but result to the great advantage 
of a woman who desires to remove the 
telltale traces of Time, when its applica- 
tions alone so successfully diminish or 
lessen those dreaded lines that appear 
about the eyes, and along the cheek 
from nostril to chin. 
Patti, that divine songstress who also 
worships beauty, has become a thorough 
convert to the efficacy of facial massage, 68 
THE COMPLEXION. 
and to her creed of beauty has added 
this effective method of preserving her 
charms of feature, for it has removed 
from her face, lines which she long since 
had supposed were permanent. Among 
its disciples in the city of New York 
there are many society ladies and wo- 
men of note, who do not lightly adopt 
“fads” of any description. The integ- 
rity of its advocates and adherents es- 
tablishes beyond a doubt its just title 
to the claims of efficacy. 
Now in the main this massage can be 
self-given, though one or two of the 
movements require the assistance of a 
second person. In beginning, select a 
seat where a strong light will fall upon 
the face and disclose every suspicion of 
a wrinkle ; and let your first work be 
upon the upright line which forms be- 
tween the eyes and adds five years to 
every face on which it is seen. Unless 
you are possessed of the virtue of pa- 
tience, you would better not begin at all, since only persistent and repeated 
squeezing, pinching and twisting the 
flesh between the fingers will show any 
effect upon the obdurate line. Set some 
number, say one hundred, and to every 
wrinkle apply a hundred manipulations 
at each sitting; and for the first few 
days masste the face two or three times 
daily, devoting about twenty minutes 
to the operation each time. 
When the wrinkle between the eyes 
has been massted, work around to the 
outer corner of the eyes in the same 
way, except that you apply the move- 
ments to the cushions of fat just under 
the hollows, instead of attacking the 
domain of the crowsfeet itself. This 
will crowd the fat upward to fill out the 
hollows and net-work of wrinkles, and 
strengthen and stimulate the flabby 
flesh and muscles whose deterioration 
has allowed the lines to form. 
Just in front of the ears maybe found 
some more lines which will need special 
THE COMPLEXION. 70 
attention, as they are usually unques- 
tionable evidences of advancing age, and 
are particularly noticeable on many 
faces. 
The lines which Time seems to love 
to dwell upon and accentuate without 
any compunction, are those which mark 
the curve of the cheek from the nostril 
to the chin. These lines will require 
heroic treatment, and somewhat homely 
methods, but they can be reduced. 
Taking one side at a time, thrust the 
tongue under the line so that the latter 
may be brought into firm contact with 
the cushion of the hand. Smooth the 
line with this cushion just as you would 
smooth a wrinkle out of a piece of silk 
or satin—gently but firmly and with 
many movements; and then squeeze 
and pinch and push and twist the mus- 
cles all around it, in such a direction as 
will tend to fill up the break or crease. 
When you have ministered to one side, 
take the other and be as thorough in 
THE COMPLEXION. your manipulations as you were with 
the first side, although, as is sometimes 
the case, the wrinkle or crease along one 
cheek is not as deep as along the other. 
Now attack the centre muscle of 
each cheek, and pinch and pull and 
twist it without any mercy, except that 
you must not break or abrade the skin. 
This will strengthen relaxed facial mus- 
cles just as vigorous exercise tones up 
the muscles of the body and limbs. A 
muscle that is inert becomes lax and 
flabby. Give it work to do and it soon 
becomes strong and firm, and contracts 
to its normal length and assumes its 
natural elasticity; and it is this latter 
which brings back to limbs or faces the 
plumpness of health and youth. The 
philosophy of facial massage cannot but 
be plain to all my readers, whom it is 
hoped will profit by the views and in- 
structions concerning it which it affords 
me pleasure to present for their consid- 
eration and benefit. 
THE COMPLEXION. 72 
THE COMPLEXION. 
That part of facial massage which 
cannot be self-applied, is a very import- 
ant detail in the restoration of the 
face. It is a sub-cutaneous massage 
conducted by vigorous, sweeping mo- 
tions of the hands from the centre of 
the chin upward along the outline of 
the jaws and throat. The manipulator 
stands behind her patron, resting the 
latter’s head against her breast to give 
sufficient resistance to the pressure 
of her hands, both of which at a 
time she firmly sweeps over the face 
after the manner described. A growth 
or stimulation of muscle is thus in- 
duced, and the sagging, flabby flesh 
about the chin is apparently swept 
away, though as it disappears the hollows 
in the cheeks fill out and the contour 
of the face becomes round, its flesh 
firm, and its lines gradually disap- 
pear. 
The neck and throat are quick to 
show the footsteps of old Father Time, THE COMPLEXION. 
73 
and when the flesh begins to look de- 
bilitated, and to fall into lines and folds 
and wrinkles, massage should be brought 
to bear upon such advances. All of 
its stroking movements should be from 
the bust upward toward the back of 
the neck, and the lines and muscles 
should be squeezed, and twisted and 
pinched, just as those of the face have 
been. 
It would be advisable for my readers, 
when possible, to take a professional 
treatment or two, and in that way 
they will more quickly acquire the 
proper method. Many societv ladies 
take regular courses of facial massage, 
at. the same time applying to their faces 
some good nourishment for the skin 
in the shape of a balm or cream. In 
fact such nourishment is as necessary 
to a debilitated skin as to a hungry 
stomach. When it becomes flaccid or 
dry, or dead in appearance, this is 
Nature’s way of showing that it needs 74 
THE COMPLEXION. 
food ; and since the natural food of the 
skin is an oilv secretion, the artificial 
✓ 
nourishment must be imitative, and 
therefore of a softening, soothing 
character. With the dry, flabby skin 
just mentioned, a good cream should 
be used in connection with the mas- 
sage ; or if creams are objected to, cocoa 
butter, wool fat, pure olive oil or almond 
oil, may be used. The cream which 
rises upon pure milk, will be found a 
delicate and nourishing assistant in 
facial massage. 
If a skin is naturally very oily, the 
massage may be conducted without 
any unguent at all; or with only the 
slightest moistening of the fingers with 
cream or oil—just enough to prevent 
any irritation of the skin from the fric- 
tion produced by the fingers. It is not 
absolutely necessary to wash the face 
before massteing it, but it is advisable, 
since the hot water and soap used in a 
proper facial ablution will soften the con- THE COMPLEXION. 
75 
tents of the pores and thus the skin itself, 
and render it far more amenable to the 
treatment of massage. 
The adoption of radical and rational 
methods of clearing and improving the 
skin, of building up degenerating tissue 
as a means of holding at bay the ad- 
vances of Time’s attacks, is rapidly do- 
ing away with the former injurious 
practices by which women not only at- 
tempted to simply conceal a bad complex- 
ion, but aggravated its defects and de- 
veloped others at the same time. The in- 
ner walls of dwellings frequently receive 
numerous coats of paint and white- 
wash during the renovating season. 
Perhaps to begin with, these walls were 
imperfect through the hand of the 
workman who created them, and as 
Time rolled on it became apparent that 
the paint and whitewash would only 
cover the defects for a short period, and 
that the concealed deficiencies would 
crowd their way to the surface. Such 76 
walls must be torn away and renewed 
from the very foundation before they 
will be things of beauty and eternal joy. 
It is so with the complexion. Such 
defects and discoloration as are remov- 
able must be removed by such methods 
as reach the foundation of the difficulty, 
and then a watchful eye and willing 
hands must subject and smooth away 
such ravages of Time or climate as may 
appear; and this can be successfully 
done if the foundation is reliable or 
has been built up with care. Between 
the knowledge of dermatologists and 
chemists as to harmless and potent 
balms and lotions for removing the 
foundation of a poor complexion and 
rendering it one of beauty, and the 
methods of preserving it by nourishing 
the skin and giving its muscles invig- 
orating exercise, there is no reason in 
the world why every woman, who can 
take advantage of such aids, should 
not retain or cultivate a fine complex- 
THE COMPLEXION. NHE COMPLEXION. 
ion, and secure to herself flattering 
evidences that she has dominated the 
insidious attacks of malicious Time, and 
can, and will appear years younger than 
she is. In making this statement, a re- 
gretful admission that my sex are sen- 
sitive upon the matter of age, is im- 
plied. It is an inborn weakness that 
cannot be eradicated ; and therefore it 
has become my mission to endeavor to 
smooth the way for those who must 
meet Time’s advances whether they 
would or not, by offering them the 
benefits of the discoveries of study, 
the proofs of these benefits, and such 
other suggestions as I think will aid 
them in always looking at least as young 
as they feel; and in securing for them a 
youthful look, there will creep into 
their hearts, a feeling that “ age can- 
not wither” their charms while they 
hold the knowledge that bids a long 
defiance to the attacks of the hoary- 
headed potentate, who sooner or 
77 78 
THE COMPLEXION. 
later marks everyone as his victim. 
I cannot too highly advocate the 
methods mentioned, nor give facial 
massage too high a rank in the corps 
of assistants in the preservation of a 
naturally, or acquired beautiful com- 
plexion. I strongly recommend you 
to try it for yourselves, but ask you 
not to render an adverse decision upon 
a short trial. Only through the pati- 
ence of great geniuses, have we arrived 
at all the comforts and luxuries of the 
present day. The impatient failed and 
gave up in despair, what the patient 
accomplished. It is the same with the 
complexion, and its cultivation and 
preservation. Patience must be your 
watchword, and persistence your mon- 
itor. CHAPTER VII. 
HOW TO HARMLESSLY AND EFFECTIVELY 
MAKE UP THE FACE. 
A great deal has been said against 
the practice of “making up the face” 
with cosmetics, and generally speaking, 
the protest is fully warranted. The 
use of cosmetics which are lotions leav- 
ing a white or pinkish deposit on the 
skin, and of coarse rouge, and the parch- 
ing mixtures for tinting the lips cannot 
be too strongly deprecated for two rea- 
sons : they injure the skin irreme- 
diably, giving it a yellow or leaden hue, 
and a coarse, stippled or leathery look; 
and they also give a vulgar air to every 
woman who has not submitted her face 
to the manipulations of a genuine artist 
in facial “ make up,” or whose own 
hands are new to the work and whose 
ideas in the matter are crude and unde- 
veloped. If pigments are to be used 80 
THE COMPLEXION. 
an artist should lay them on. But it 
does not follow that a woman cannot 
temporarily beautify her face because 
she must not use white washes and car- 
mine. She can make herself look sweet, 
fresh and wholesome, and so deftly ap- 
ply harmless preparations that she will 
be the only one to know that artificial 
means has been employed to give her 
the complexion of a child, the eyes of 
youth and the flush of girlhood. The 
first detail or preliminary will sound 
very commonplace, I fear, and yet it is 
an absolutely necessary one. It is to 
wash your face, and do it as directed in 
a preceding chapter, except that before 
you begin, rub some cold cream well in- 
to the skin and pinch, and pat, and gen- 
erally massde the face for a few minutes. 
This will dissolve much of the hardened 
matter in the pores, soften the skin and 
lessen the effect of any lines or wrinkles 
that may be on the face. Now with 
the hot water and soap, lather the face THE COMPLEXION. 
81 
thoroughly and then wash off the lather 
and rinse the skin in warm water in 
which a little cologne has been poured. 
If you have the time to spare it will 
improve the skin to go over it two or 
three times with the cream and mas- 
sage, and the washing process, before 
you rinse it. After it is rinsed “dab” 
it dry with bits of soft cloth or a soft 
towel, but do not rub it. Now gently 
apply some softening balm that leaves 
no oily deposit on the skin, and rub it 
in well. Then with a fine camel’s-hair 
brush apply very lightly to the cheeks, 
the tips and lobes of the ears and the 
edges of the nostrils, some liquid bloom, 
studying the face well before brushing 
the cheeks, to learn how to bring out 
the best effect. If the face is broad 
the bloom should be well in front of the 
cheek bones; if it is narrow, let the 
color be deepest over and just back of 
the highest part of the cheek, and shade 
it daintily away toward the temples a” d 82 
ears. If the face is long, let the color 
be lower upon the cheeks than when it 
is short. 
Very lightly rub the lips with a reli- 
able paste, being careful not to give them 
too deep a tint. On no account bite 
them to make them red. The habit is 
not only injurious to the texture 
of the lips, but it is distorting in its ul- 
terior tendencies. Next take a vein pen- 
cil and follow the outlines of the veins 
back of the eye and along the temples, 
going lightly over its marks with the tip 
of the little finger in order to soften and 
blend the tint with the skin. Now with 
a powder puff or a bit of old merino or 
very soft worn flannel, dust the face 
thickly all over with powder of the tint 
best suited to your natural complexion 
—white, flesh, or the yellowish brunette 
powder. With another puff or bit of 
cloth remove all the powder that seems 
superflous, and blend what remains with 
the skin until it is not perceptible as 
THE COMPLEXION. THE COMPLEXION. 
powder, but seems like the natural vel- 
vety bloom of a healthy skin. Now 
take an eyebrow pencil and darken the 
brows as artistically as possible, being 
careful not to mark the skin at each side 
or at either end of the arch, and also 
smooth or blend the color with the tip 
of the little finger. If the brows are 
very thin, a heavier stroke may be 
made, and then a fine comb passed over 
the arch will leave a very fair effect 
of good brows, though this measure is 
advisable rather for evening than day. 
The lashes may also be darkened by an 
application of the pencil; but as this 
is a delicate process and there is risk 
of injuring or inflaming the eyes from 
particles of the pencil, I would advise 
having a second person apply this part 
of the make up, or omit it altogether. 
It must be artistically as well as care- 
fully done. 
A bit of orange juice squeezed into 
the eyes will make them bright, as will 84 
THE COMPLEXION. 
a drop or two of soap suds ; and it is 
known that a few drops of cologne upon 
a cube or lump of sugar dissolved slow- 
ly in the mouth, will make the eyes 
shine like stars. 
This is a “make up” that is almost 
purely hygienic in its details, especially 
the first or foundation one. It cannot 
possibly harm the most delicate skin ; on 
the contrary it will improve it. The 
powder cannot injure the skin because 
the pores of the latter are protected by 
the emollient applied after the facial 
bath ; and, besides, if the instructions 
for the nightly ablutions are followed, 
the powder will be removed from the 
face only a few hours after its applica- 
tion. 
If an elaborate make up is not desired 
and powder only is to be used, it is well 
to provide a foundation for it by apply- 
an emollient of some kind. A very sim- 
ple one is made of the juice of one lem- 
on and five cents worth of glycerine. A still simpler one consists of washing 
the face with good toilet soap and 
water, and drying it without rinsing. 
The slight deposit of soap causes the 
powder to adhere much better, especi- 
ally when “baby powder” is used in 
place of regular face powder. 
The “ make up ” just described is the 
only one indorsed by those who make 
a study of the skin, or who investigate 
the reasonings of common sense for 
themselves. It is clean, not poisonous 
in the matter of ingredients and gives a 
fresh, sweet look that no white cosmetic 
in the world can produce. 
Two important points should be 
borne in mind regarding a “ make up ’’ 
of any description. First, that it must 
not be confined to the face alone, but 
must include all that part of the neck 
seen above the dress. A pink and white 
face set above a yellow or dingy neck 
is not an agreeable sight, though it is 
seen too often. Second, that the mir- 
THE COMPLEXION. 
85 ror before which the toilet is made, be 
so located that an equally strong light 
will fall upon each side of the face ; 
otherwise, the two sides may differ in 
appearance and effect. Be miserly in 
the use of rouges for either the cheeks 
or lips. Lavishness in these respects 
is suggestive of barbaric traits. 
86 
THE COMPLEXION. CHAPTER VIII. 
PROPER CARE OF THE HANDS. 
As defined or sanctioned by custom 
the term “ complexion ” is generally 
applied to the face alone. Strictly 
speaking, it also includes the hands; 
for next to the face, the color and tex- 
ture of these members are sources of 
much concern, and the objects of much 
consideration. It is, indeed, incongru- 
ous in effect, to possess a face with a 
skin like the petal of a flower and hands 
red, rough and coarse. Ladies who 
are not obliged to toil in the domestic 
circle, can easily keep their hands soft 
and white, by using warm water and 
the best toilet soap for their ablutions, 
and annointing the hands on retiring 
with cold cream or a paste prepared 
especially for such a purpose. 
On the contrary the woman who is 
compelled to do her own house work, 88 
must exercise more care, and take 
more trouble to keep her hands in a 
presentable condition. It is principally 
for her benefit and for that of her 
whose hands never appear well- 
kept though they do no work, that 
the following suggestions are offered. 
They will also contain many hints, from 
which she of the fair soft hands may 
derive such benefit as she thinks she 
may need. 
Household duties necessitate having 
the hands in water that alternates in 
temperature from hot to cold, many 
times daily. In consideration of the 
kind of work, it follows that the hands 
come frequently in contact with cheap 
household soaps. These usual condi- 
tions are sufficient to ruin the texture 
of any skin, and such preventive 
measures as are possible should be ob- 
served. Upon completing any labor 
requiring the hands to be in soapy 
water, wash them thoroughly in clear 
CARE OF THE HANDS. CARE OF THE HANDS. 
89 
warm water, also rinsing them well to 
remove every trace of the soap. 
Have a basin of oat or corn meal and 
water standing conveniently near the 
wash stand, and before drying the hands 
rub them with this mixture two or three 
times. An oily secretion exudes from 
the meal which is very softening to the 
skin. Next dry the hands thoroughly 
with a soft towel, and if they are still 
damp, it is an excellent plan to further 
dry them before the fire. This is a 
very good way to prevent their chap- 
ping when one is obliged to have them 
frequently in water, and also in the 
meantime, go often into the open air. 
After drying them with the towel, an- 
other good preventive is to rub them 
in dry oat, almond or indian meal. 
Either of those meals will absorb all 
the moisture and leave a powdery de- 
posit on the hands that is soothing 
and softening. 
Where it is possible, it is advisable to  CARE OF THE HANDS. 
wear rubber gloves in washing dishes, 
and it is also well to wear old gloves 
of cotton or kid when sweeping, or do- 
ing any work of a dusty character. 
The reason is plain. The gloves keep 
the grime and dust from being rubbed 
into the skin and thus irritating and 
poisoning it, if there is any tendency 
to roughness or chapping. 
A very good lotion to use before 
drying the hands after washing them is 
composed of two parts each of glyce- 
rine and rose water to one part of 
tincture of myrrh. Another excellent 
lotion to be used in the same way is 
made of rosewater, three ounces, gly- 
cerine, about one ounce, and carbolic 
acid,ten drops. Either of these lotions 
will keep the skin soft and smooth, but 
possess no whitening properties. Still 
another lotion, and one that is highly re- 
commended is made of one ounce of the 
simple tincture of benzoin precipitated 
in eight ounces of distilled water, with half an ounce of glycerine added. 
Benzoin is the fragrant resinous juice 
of a tree found in Sumatra, and the 
tincture is prepared from the hardened 
juice or gum. Used alone, a few drops 
of the tincture of benzoin in a basin of 
water will produce a milky effect, and 
forms a soothing aromatic wash for the 
hands or face which is also said to pos- 
sess many virtues—one being that it 
calls the blood to the surface of the face, 
and gives to the latter a fresh, healthy ap- 
pearance, and a delightful balsamic odor. 
The plan of using gloves at night, 
first applying a whitening paste or un- 
guent is probably as good a remedy 
for rough or reddened hands as can be 
suggested. Let the embrocation be 
thoroughly rubbed into the skin or ap- 
plied to the inside of the gloves, which 
should be loose and of kid or chamois, 
and have long wrists. The mousque- 
taire style is the better one to use, as 
it is easily slipped on and off. A good 
CARE OF THE HANDS. 
91 92 
home-made paste for removing tan or 
sun-burn and softening the hands is 
made of ground barley, three ounces, 
honey, one ounce, and the white of an 
egg. Spread it on the inside of the 
gloves or rub it well over the hands, 
and then put the gloves on. A sim- 
pler home-made paste, is oat or indian 
meal wet with warm water or milk, 
and spread thickly on the hands on which 
are also drawn coarse large mittens or 
gloves. Oriental ladies use gloves and 
a paste made of barley or rice flour 
and milk, and have lovely, soft white 
hands. In olden days ladies used to 
wear face masks and gloves spread with 
a paste made of bread and asses’ milk ; 
and beauties of a later period have not 
disdained to make use of the common 
bread and milk poultice to whiten their 
hands. Almond meal to be used in place 
of soap or for a paste mixed with water, 
is a popular whitener for the hands. 
Lemon juice is a good whitener of 
CARE OF THE HANDS. CARE OF THE HANDS. 
the skin, and in its condensed form— 
that is, citric acid—is used by cele- 
brated dermatologists in their whiten- 
ing lotions. Fresh lemons are always 
attainable, and cut in two and rubbed 
over the face and hands they will soon 
perceptibly whiten them. Lemon juice 
and glycerine, equal parts, are fre- 
quently combined to make a softening 
and whitening lotion for the hands. 
Red hands are often the result of 
impeded circulation. The clothing 
may be too tight about the waist, or 
the sleeves may be too snugly fitted or 
cut into the flesh at the arm-hole. 
Even tight shoes have been known to 
redden the hands. If, then, in spite of 
the suggestions offered herein for whit- 
ening them, the hands continue red, 
their possessor would better look over 
her wardrobe and find the tight gar- 
ments that are producing the mischief, 
and either loosen them where needed 
or discard them altogether. 
93 94 
A really beautiful hand must be 
well groomed at its finger tips, as well 
as white. Stubby nails, pointed nails, 
too highly polished nails, and nails 
that bear the mark of uncleanliness, will 
spoil the prettiest hand ever seen. 
The nails should be, and may be culti- 
vated to be filbert-shaped—that is ob- 
long and oval; they should be but a 
trifle longer than the finger tip and 
follow it quite closely in shape ; the 
flesh should be pushed down at the 
base of each nail with a coarse towel 
after each washing to show the pearly 
white crescent located there, and the 
nail above the crescent should be of a 
pink like that of the inside of a shell, 
and have about the same luster as the 
latter. The day has gone past when 
the pointed nail and the high polish 
are considered “good form.” Neither 
is natural and each has been developed 
to a degree beyond the line of real re- 
finement. The chamois polisher is 
CARE OF THE HANDS. still used, and the pink paste and nail 
powder occupy as necessary a place on 
the toilet table as ever; but neither 
is as lavishly employed as it formerly was. 
The polisher is at once laid down when 
an opalescent luster is obtained and the 
pink assistants have transferred a 
delicate color to the nails. Remove 
all hang-nails with a small pair of 
pointed scissors, and keep the nails 
of a proper length and shape with 
a nail file. Avoid cutting the nails 
with the scissors or a knife, and above 
all things do not bite them off. The 
most beautiful finders in the world will 
be irreparably ruined in shape by this 
pernicious habit. 
Wear gloves that do not pinch the 
hand, and sprinkle them inside with 
powder before putting them on. 
This will prevent the hands from 
looking red when the gloves are 
removed. A very good glove pow- 
der may be made of finely pulverized 
CARE OF THE HANDS. 
95 96 
starch, or of cornstarch scented with 
powdered orris, or a few drops of oil 
of rose. 
CARE OF THE HANDS. CHAPTER IX. 
woman’s glory : her hair. 
Though not strictly belonging to the 
pages of a book devoted to the cultiva- 
tion of the complexion, my readers may 
not take amiss a few hints upon the 
cultivation of the natural hair, and a 
little advice concerning the removal of 
superfluous growths. I therefore add 
the present chapter. 
The general admiration for beautiful 
hair dates back to Scriptural days, and 
is as fervent as ever in this, the final 
decade of the nineteenth century. But 
the care bestowed upon it is not the 
same as in the former period, when it 
was lavishly anointed with fragrant 
oils ; it is in every way more cleanly, 
and where long tresses were once heavy 
with perfumed lubricants, they are now 
light and fluffy, and each hair shines as 
if separately burnished. The days of 98 
THE HAIR. 
pomade and hair-oils have passed, and 
to use these dressings is considered 
vulgar. 
There is no doubt, however, but what 
in many instances the hair or scalp is 
kept too dry from frequent washings 
followed by no softening tonic or invig- 
orant application. At least this is 
what is claimed by one of the most 
celebrated specialists in diseases of the 
hair and scalp. 
Each hair springs from a tiny follicle 
imbedded in the true skin, and this fol- 
licle or root needs nourishment just the 
same as the root of a plant. Withold 
water from the latter and how soon it 
will fade and die ! It is the same with 
the hair unless the oil glands of the skin 
are active. If they are not, the hair 
will be dry, sparse and brittle ; and a 
further depletion of the natural oil 
by shampoos impregnated with too 
much ammonia or borax will not im- 
prove its condition. THE HAIR. 
Occasional shampoos are necessary to 
the cleanliness of the scalp, but should 
be followed by applications of some 
softening, invigorating mixture which 
will not leave an oily or greasy deposit 
upon the hair. For this reason it is 
better to carefully apply any lotion or 
tonic with the tips of the fingers, rub- 
bing it thoroughly into the scalp and as 
little as possible upon the hair. It will 
stimulate and soften the latter by pene- 
trating its roots and being thus con- 
veyed into the minute hollow tube com- 
posing the interior of each hair and 
holding the natural oil and coloring 
matter. This tube is protected by over- 
lapping scales imperceptible to the 
naked eye, but which may readily be 
seen under a strong glass. No matter 
how fine the hair, this wonderful con- 
struction remains the same ; but as the 
oil glands of some scalps are more fully 
charged and more active than others, 
some hair is much more oily than others 
99  THE HAIR. 
—in fact so much so that nothing will 
be needed to keep it vigorous and lux- 
uriant, except a frequent shampoo with 
some good mixture intended for the 
purpose; or one of castile soap and 
warm water in which a very little borax 
or ammonia has been thrown—just 
enough of either to make the water feel 
silky. Borax unites with the oil of the 
scalp and hair in forming a natural soap, 
and a use of too much of it will leave 
the hair dry and brittle. Ammonia 
cuts the oily matter, and if used to ex- 
cess has a tendency to destroying the 
pigment of the hair and thus turning it 
prematurely white ; and when from any 
cause the pigment is destroyed, the 
color of the hair cannot be restored. 
The white tint may be darkened by 
dangerous preparations containing lead 
or sulphur or both, but the result is 
most uncleanly and unsatisfactory, as 
well as unhealthful. Gray hair can only 
be managed by preventions—the ap- THE HAIR. 
plication of such tonics or invigorants 
as will nourish the follicles, and stimulate 
the natural secretions of the scalp, and 
thus keep the coloring matter normal 
in quality. 
This treatment will also prevent the 
hair from falling and the head from be- 
coming bald ; for falling hair indicates a 
debilitated state of the scalp and fol- 
licles. This debility frequently arises 
from a derangement of the system, but 
to positively state why people become 
bald is as impossible as it generally is 
to promote a new growth of hair upon 
most of the denuded polls. If, from 
some cause which cannot be discovered, 
the follicles shrivel and die, and the hair 
falls, nothing can be done. With some 
baldness is a constitutional tendency; 
with others the result of illness; with 
many it comes from chronic indigestion, 
for the nerves of the stomach are close- 
ly allied with those of the head, and 
debility of the former would naturally 102 
THE HAIR. 
lead to that of the latter. When the 
hair shows a tendency to thinning out 
and the system is low, build the latter 
up and at the same time nourish the 
scalp and hair follicles by a good tonic 
or lotion applied night and morning. 
A shampoo which will cleanse and 
nourish the scalp at the same time, con- 
sists of an egg beaten and rubbed thor- 
oughly into it with the fingers for a few 
minutes before wetting the hair. Then 
wash it out with warm water and castile 
soap and rinse it thoroughly to remove 
every trace of the soap. If the hair is 
naturally oily rinse it a second time in 
water in which there is a pinch of bak- 
ing soda or borax, or a few drops of 
ammonia. The baking soda, which the 
druggist terms bi-carbonate of soda, 
will make the hair soft and fluffy, and, 
if the hair is of a light color, will assist 
in retaining the blonde or golden shade. 
If, however, the hair is already too dry 
in nature, rinse out the soap with plain THE HAIR. 
103 
warm water, and when it is dry brush it 
well and rub a softening lotion into the 
scalp. Sometimes the brushing alone 
is sufficient to render active the natural 
secretions which nourish and lubricate 
the hair; and in any event a daily 
brushing will lend it that fine and lus- 
trous appearance which is the chief 
beauty of any hair, regardless of its 
color or texture. 
A very good domestic stimulant is 
made of a handful of rosemary leaves 
steeped in half a pint of water until the 
latter is hot and then cools. Strain and 
add an ounce of tincture of cantharides, 
and if the hair is very dry add also half 
an ounce of glycerine. A tea made of 
burdock root is also a good invigorant. 
A scalp that is properly shampooed and 
nourished will seldom accumulate dan- 
druff, though in this respect, as in all 
other rules, there are exceptions. An 
excess of persistent dandruff indicates 
an unhealthy scalp, and its debilitated 104 
THE HAIR. 
condition must be strengthened. When 
brushing and shampooing fail to relieve 
the annoyance, apply a reliable invigor- 
ant or some mixture of home manufac- 
ture. The following is an excellent 
simple remedy for dandruff. Take of 
borax (powdered) two ounces, and 
camphor (powdered) one ounce; dis- 
solve them in two quarts of boiling 
water. This mixture may be bottled 
when cold, and a little of it rubbed into 
the scalp daily will greatly help in the 
eradication of dandruff. Kerosene oil 
is often used to remove dandruff, but 
the remedy, from its odor, is almost 
worse than the affliction. Still it is said 
to be efficacious. Rub it well into the 
scalp and after a few minutes wash it 
out very thoroughly, and then rinse the 
hair in warm water in which there is a 
little borax. A good shampoo mixture, 
however, is about the best eradicator of 
dandruff, as it is generally composed of 
many of the ingredients mentioned THE HAIR. 
105 
(kerosene not included) as effective dan- 
druff removers. 
SUPERFLUOUS HAIR. 
Superfluous hair is the bane of many 
a beauty’s existence. She would give 
much in the way of money, if she pos- 
sesses the latter, to have the delicate 
mustache upon her otherwise dainty lip 
removed; or to have her perfectly 
moulded arms freed from their downy 
covering ; or the long straggling hairs 
cropping out from her neck or chin 
eradicated for all time. While she must 
not expect too much in the way of 
alleviation, let her learn that all these 
obnoxious presences may be removed 
—possibly not permanently, but so that 
they will reappear only at long inter- 
vals. Even this mitigation is a gain, 
since it affords temporary relief of mind 
and consequent sunny smiles and a hap- 
py face. I do not advice my readers to 106 
THE HAIR. 
tamper with these difficulties themselves, 
beyond cutting off the long straggling 
hairs mentioned, and even that is not a 
recommendable practice, since the roots 
of these hairs will soon send out new 
and coarser growths. Dermatologists 
who make a careful study of these mat- 
ters will supply reliable depilatories 
which must be applied with all the 
caution given in the instructions for 
their use. Unless the annoying growth 
is very perceptible, I would advise leav- 
ing it alone; for it is not a serious 
blemish, and in fact in many countries 
the tiny shadow upon the upper lip of a 
woman is thought to make her beauty 
more piquant and effective. If, how- 
ever, the growths are excessive, a good 
depilatory will remove them, but it 
must be understood that a harmless one 
will not kill the follicles, and that the 
growth will return after a time. But 
repeated removals will do no harm. 
Depilatories sufficiently strong to per- THE HAIR. 
107 
manently remove the growth would be 
dangerous to use, inasmuch as they 
might burn and disfigure the skin. CHAPTER X. 
HINTS TO BE HEEDED. 
While a fine complexion and pleasing- 
features are the chief constituents of 
beauty, there are many other little 
points necessary to be observed in order 
to render a beautiful woman both love- 
ly and charming. 
First, her near presence should be as 
agreeable as it is at a distance beautiful. 
She must remember that beautiful flow- 
ers sometimes become obnoxious upon 
close inspection, and should see to it 
that scrupulous neatness attends every 
detail of her toilet. Dainty lips fre- 
quently close over neglected teeth or 
unclose only to permit the escape of a 
malodorous breath, either of which de- 
fects will militate against the beauty of 
the loveliest woman in the world. 
There is no excuse for the neglect of 
teeth. They should be thoroughly HINTS. 
109 
cleaned twice daily with a good tooth- 
powder, and oftener if they are decayed. 
In the latter state, the money paid a 
dentist for their repair is simply so much 
capital invested in a paying speculation; 
for just as “ it p \ys to be pretty” it pays 
to be clean and wholesome in presence. 
If the mouth has an acid taste or ten- 
dency after meals, brush the teeth with 
bi-carbonate of soda which will neutral- 
ize the acidity and prevent decomposi- 
tion of any adhering particles of food. 
Or, if there are personal objections to 
the use of proprietary powders, get 
some powdered chalk and mix it, in 
equal quantities, with powdered castile 
soap and camphor or orris ; but brush 
your teeth with something cleansing, if 
castile soap alone, every day. 
If the breath is offensive rinse the 
mouth with camphor and water, or tinc- 
ture of myrrh and water ; or occasionly 
dissolve a charcoal tablet in the mouth 
or eat a bit of lemon. For a temporary  HINTS. 
and fragrant sweetener of the breath, 
chew a bit of Florentine orris which 
gives a perfume like that of violets. 
There are also various mouthwashes 
which may be purchased, and most of 
which contain peppermint or winter- 
green, which sweeten the breath and 
leave a pleasent refreshing taste in the 
mouth. If, however, none of these pre- 
cautions or remedies overcome an of- 
fensive condition of the breath, the phy- 
sician should be consulted, since the 
difficulty probably arises from catarrh 
or a deranged stomach. 
Those unfortunates afflicted with ex- 
cessive perspiration should be particu- 
larly scrupulous in taking their baths. 
A few drops of ammonia or carbolic acid 
in a basin of water will neutralize any 
offensiveness arising from perspiration ; 
and after the person has been thoroughly 
dried, a liberal use of violet or rose pow- 
der, or scented starch powder should be 
indulged in, applying it with a puff. hints. 
Hands that perspire may be washed 
in ammonia and water and then rubbed 
with alcohol or eau de cologne, or toi- 
let vinegar, and afterward dusted with 
starch or rice powder. For the feet 
carbolated talc will be found a useful 
and soothing powder, after bathing them 
in ammonia or carbolic acid and water 
—say two teaspoonfuls of the former, 
or a few drops of the latter to an ordin- 
ary washbowl of water. 
In selecting perfumes choose only 
those of a delicate fragrance and do not 
use them upon your handkerchief. 
Throw a little in the water in which 
you rinse your face, or scatter a little 
here and there among the clothing in 
your wardrobe or dressing-case. Bet- 
ter still, get sachet powder and strew it 
in the bureau drawers; or, put it into 
tiny silk bags and lay them among the 
clothing in the drawers of the dressing, 
case, or hang them in the wardrobe. 
In this way a permanent and delicate 112 
HINTS. 
odor will cling to the garments and dif- 
fuse its fragrance with every motion of 
the wearer. Strong perfumes are unre- 
fined and especially when used upon the 
handkerchief. 
If the lips chap or crack, rub them 
nightly with softened mutton tallow, or 
with cold cream, camphor-ice, or diluted 
glycerine. 
If the eyebrows are thin, their growth 
may be stimulated by inunctions of co- 
coanut oil or oil of cajeput; and if they 
are marred by straggling hairs, cut and 
train the latter in the proper direction 
or remove them, roots and all, with a 
pair of tweezers. The eyelashes may 
be clipped very delicately now and then, 
with a pair of fine scissors in the hands 
of a second person, and a minute quan- 
tity of cajeput oil may be applied with 
a very fine camel’s-hair brush to the lids 
at the roots of the lashes, to stimulate 
the growth of the latter. 
On completing a toilet take a final HINTS. 
113 
look at the finger nails to make sure 
they are in perfect order. On this point 
you cannot be too careful, as the condi- 
tion of the nails is said to be the mark 
of the type of the woman on whose fin- 
gers they are. 
Wear a thin veil on going out, if the 
weather is windy, to protect the face 
from dust; and be sure to thoroughly 
wash the face with hot water and soap 
at the end of a long and dusty ride or 
walk, or at the end of a journey by rail 
first rubbing cold cream well into the 
skin and then wiping it off with a soft 
cloth. 
If there are small moles or warts on 
the face and hands they may be removed 
by applying to them with a toothpick 
or the sharpened end of a match, muri- 
atic acid or glacial acetic acid. Apply 
the remedy two or three times daily and 
the warts will soon turn black and grad- 
ually wear away. It may be necessary 
to scratch the top of a wart with a knife 114 
HINTS. 
before the acid will begin to work well. 
In applying the remedies care must be 
taken not to touch the skin surrounding 
the mole or wart with these acids, as 
the latter will burn and scar the skin. 
A final general caution must here 
be given, though it may incorporate 
some of the sentiments heretofore 
written : If you have a good complex- 
ion take care of it; if it is bad, culti- 
vate it until it is as fair and bloom- 
ing as a rose. Make the most of every 
gift Nature. has bestowed upon you, 
and also cultivate, at the same time, 
a sweet, sunny disposition. Let pa- 
tience and perseverance be your watch- 
words, neatness an invariable habit, 
and sereneness of mind and temper 
the infallible barriers to the premature 
marks Time might otherwise set upon 
your face.