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THE MADAM C. J. WALKER SCHOOLS

for a tight scalp or what we commonly call a "hide bound" condition, which is directly traceable to the condition of her nerves. Persons whose work causes them to go through the entire day under great strain are often subject to scalp ailments. Earsets worn by telephone operators and radio enthusiast have been known to wear away the hair in patches, which an untrained operator might confuse with Alopecia Areata.
Your conversation with your patron will often give you the necessary information to complete a diagnosis. Kindly advice from the operator is sometimes very helpful in influencing a patron to change her mode of living. The operator's conversation should be pleasant, friendly, soothing and relaxing.

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN
ELEMENTARY CHEMISTRY
The practice of beauty culture continues to make great strides forward and the requirements of operators keep in step with them. So much so that it is quite essential today for the well-trained beautician to have some knowledge of the fundamentals of chemistry.
The oils, salves, cosmetics and liquids we use in the daily practice of beauty culture have been created by persons skilled in the knowledge of the science called chemistry. If we are to be able to use these preparations intelligently and avoid injuries to ourselves and to our customers it is important that we have at least a slight acquaintance with this science that has made their creation possible.
Common, harmless elements can be combined to make most dangerous compounds and highly poisonous elements can be combined to make common, harmless compounds. For instance, our common salt is made up of Sodium and a very poisonous gas called Chlorine. On the other hand Oxygen (a gas we breathe), Nitrogen (essential to plant life), and Hydrogen (found in drinking water), all harmless gases, when combined form Nitric Acid, which is highly dangerous.
By this we see that certain changes take place when we mix different ingredients. These changes are referred to as chemical changes and may prove interesting as well as surprising if carefully observed. But that you may have no disastrous results in your practice as a beautician it is well to avoid mixing one product with another in an effort to create some new concoction unless you are certain of their chemical content and that there is no danger in the resulting mixture. Study the effects of the various applications made upon your customers. You may discover some worth while improvement in the use of well-known chemical products and add to your chemical knowledge as you gain experience.
CHEMISTRY was practiced many years before the coming of Christ. While it was a little used science in those days, the last two hundred years have seen great progress made in it and its accepted as a true science. Late in the last century and in this, the 20th century, its progress has been tremendous and today chemistry is an indispensable science to all humanity.

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