ess to the research and
reflection of the author. With no similar work for a guide or model, it
was necessary to derive from the volumes of general and comparative
physiology such facts and deductions as related to the theme; and that
such have been drawn from recognized authorities, the frequent
references to the writings of Carpenter, Wilson, Plumbe, Neligan, Rayer,
and others of like eminence, will show.

Taking these collations of scientific statement as a basis, Dr. Perry
proceeds--after giving some space to anecdotes and historical notes
concerning the _chevelure_ of former times--to speak at length of the
formation and composition of the hair, of the unreasonable and
injudicious treatment to which it is commonly subjected, and of its
proper management. He then passes on to discuss the cutaneous diseases
to which the scalp is liable, and by which of course the hair is
affected to its detriment, devotes some chapters to the discussion of
some diseases peculiar to the face, and concludes his volume with an
Appendix containing an exposition of the constituents of many favorite
and famous cosmetics, pointing out at the same time their true
character, the danger and unpleasantness of which, he says, are
disguised with much empirical skill.

The fundamental principle of Dr. Perry's treatise is, that the hair is
ever in danger of being killed by much cherishing. He regards it as a
delicate vegetable, growing in a tender soil, and amply supplied by
Nature with the elements needed for its support and development. The
skin of the head should not, he tells us, be subjected to any rough
treatment, neither should it be exposed to sudden alternations of
temperature. Cleanliness, gentle usage, and mild, innocuous
specifics--vegetable, whenever possible--are his reliance to keep the
hair in good order, and restore the proper tone when lost by negligence
or disease. The harsh friction of the stiff, "penetrating hair-brush,"
the scraping of the fine comb, "the 'shampooing' operation of the
hairdresser, with his exacerbating compound, a hundred degrees too
violent, and his cataract of cold water at the end," are all condemned
as injurious, together with the myriad nostrums in the form of oils,
pomades, and the like. In dealing with these last, the author is indeed
severe, remarking that "generally they are most mischievous, as well as
common and filthy, mixtures, with nothing refined or elegant about them
but their titles." For gr