Elflock

It's the only word in The Slave I've come across that I wasn't so sure about. So I googled it. Apparently, it was a colloquial term for a scalp disease that's now known as Polish plait. Or this:

No wonder Jacob thought the peasants who rocked this look were gross. Here's the Wikipedia link. Elflocks are kind of like dreadlocks in that one doesn't wash one's hair to get the look; the hair is knotted up in congealed blood, pus, lice casings, and whatever else might be growing in the rat nest that is the person's hair. Hell, there might even be rat excrement in the hair. It was such a part of Polish culture that there are museums with cut off Polish plaits on display. Anyway, it's gross.