1. The comb is a well-known instrument, employed in cleansing,
dressing, and confining the hair. It is made of various materials, but
most commonly of tortoise-shell, the horns and hoofs of cattle, ivory,
bone, and several kinds of hard wood.
2. It is impossible to determine the period of the world at which it
was introduced, since history and tradition, the sources from which we
obtain information of this nature, are silent with regard to its
origin. It is evident, however, that the comb is an instrument of
primary necessity; and hence it must have been invented in the
earliest ages. This opinion is confirmed by the fact, that the comb
has been frequently found in use amongst savages, when first visited
by civilized men.
3. Combs employed in fixing the hair, are made of tortoise-shell, or
of the horns of cattle. The genuine tortoise-shell is taken from the
_testudo imbricata_, or _hawk's-bill turtle_; but a kind of shell,
inferior in quality, is obtained from the _testudo caretta_, or
_loggerhead turtle_. These turtles inhabit the seas of warm and
temperate climates; but they are especially numerous in the West
Indian seas, where _shell_ is a valuable article of commerce. That
from St. Domingo is especially esteemed for its brilliancy of shade
and color.
4. The shell of the hawk's-bill turtle was extensively employed for
ornamental purposes by the refined nations of antiquity; although we
have no account of its application to the manufacture of combs. The
Greeks and Romans decorated with it the doors and pillars of their
houses, as well as their beds and other furniture. The Egyptians dealt
largely with the Romans in this elegant article.
5. The general length of the hawk's-bill turtle is about three feet
from the bill to the end of the shell; but it has been known to
measure five feet, and to weigh five or six hundred pounds. In the
Indian Ocean, especially, specimens of prodigious magnitude are said
to have occurred.
6. The shell employed in the arts, grows upon the back and feet of the
animal. That on the back, consists of thirteen laminae, or plates,
which lap over each other, like tiles on the roof of a house. The
plates vary in thickness from one-eighth to one-fourth of an inch,
according to the age and size of the turtle. The quantity of
merchantable shell obtained from a single subject of the usual size,
is about eight pounds, which, at the usual price, is worth sixty or
seventy dollars.
7. The process of making combs from the horns of cattle, is not
difficult to be understood. The tips and buts are first cut off with a
saw, and the remaining portion is also divided longitudinally on one
side with the same instrument. The horns are then soaked for several
days, and afterwards boiled in oil, to render them pliable. They are
next spread out and pressed between hot iron plates. This operation
clarifies the horn, and produces a plate of proper thickness.
8. After the plates thus produced, have been cut in pieces
corresponding in size to the proposed combs, and when these have been
shaved to a suitable thickness with instruments adapted to the
purpose, the teeth are cut either with a _twinning saw_, as
represented in the preceding cut, or with a _twinning machine_.
9. In the former case, the plate is fastened with a wooden _clamp_, by
the part which is designed to be left for the back of the comb; and
when twins, or two combs, are to be formed from one piece, the other
end is bent down, so as to render the upper surface considerably
convex. To this surface the _twinning saw_ is applied by the hand of
the workman, who makes a number of incisions; which are completed both
ways with two different kinds of saws, and the end of each tooth is
cut from the back of the opposite comb with an instrument called a
_plugging awl_.
10. The _twinning machine_ was invented, about twenty years ago, by a
Mr. Thomas, of Philadelphia; but it has been successfully improved by
several individuals since that time. It is, altogether, an ingenious
and useful contrivance. The cutting part consists of two chisels,
which are made to act on the plate alternately, and in a perpendicular
direction, each chisel cutting one side of two teeth, and severing one
from the opposite back, at every stroke. It is impossible, however, to
form a clear conception of the manner in which the machine operates,
except by actual inspection. It performs the work with great rapidity;
since from one to two hundred dozens of combs can be cut in twelve
hours; whereas, not one-fourth of that number can be _twinned_ in the
old method, during the same time.
11. After the teeth have been rounded, and in other respects brought
to the proper form with suitable instruments, the combs are polished
by rubbing them first with the dust of a peculiar kind of brick, then
by applying them to a moving cylinder covered with buff leather,
charged with rotten-stone, ashes, or brick-dust; and, finally, by
rubbing them with the hand, charged with rotten-stone and vinegar.
12. The combs are next colored, or stained; and, as the tortoise-shell
is by far the best and most expensive material for this kind of comb,
the great object of the manufacturer is to produce colors as nearly
resembling those of the real shell as practicable. This is done in
considerable perfection, in the following manner:
13. The combs are first dipped in aqua-fortis, and then covered with a
paste made of lime, pearlash, and red lead. To produce the requisite
variety of shades, both taste and judgment are necessary in applying
the composition, and in determining the time which it should remain
upon the combs. To give the combs a still stronger resemblance to
shell, they are also immersed for fifteen or twenty minutes in a dye
of Nicaragua.
14. The combs having been covered with oil, they are next heated upon
iron plates, and brought to the desired shape by bending them upon
wooden blocks with a woollen list. The whole process is finished by
rubbing off the oil with a silk handkerchief.
15. The general process of making shell combs differs but little from
that which has been just described, varying only in a few
particulars, in compliance with the peculiar nature of the material.
16. On account of the great value of shell, the workmen are careful to
make the most of every portion of it; accordingly, when a piece falls
short of the desired size, it is enlarged by _welding_ to it another
of smaller dimensions. The union is effected, by lapping the two
pieces upon each other, and then pressing them together between two
plates of hot iron. The heat of the iron is prevented from injuring
the shell, by the interposition of a wet linen cloth, and by immersing
the whole in hot water. In a similar manner, broken combs are often
mended; and by the same method, two pieces of horn can also be joined
together.
17. Both horn and shell combs are often stamped with figures, and
otherwise ornamented with carved work. In the latter case, the
ornaments are produced, by removing a part of the material with a saw
and graver. The saw employed is not more than the twelfth of an inch
in width; and, being fastened to a frame, it is moved up and down,
with great rapidity, by means of the foot, while the part of the comb
to be cut away is applied to the teeth. The operator is guided in the
work by a pattern, which has been struck on paper from an engraved
plate.
18. Combs for dressing and cleansing the hair, are made of horn,
shell, bone, ivory, and wood; but it is unnecessary to be particular
in describing the manner in which every kind of comb is manufactured.
We will only add, that the teeth of fine ivory and bone combs are cut
with a buzz, or circular saw, which, fastened to a mandrel, is moved
in a lathe.