The Sun.
London, England, 1846-03-05 00:00:00

PRINTING FOR THE BLIND.

Major BENIOWSKI'S PRIMER for the BLIND.
A New System for TEACHING the Blind to Read.
The expedient of Columbus for making the egg stand
on its narrow end was (as the sailors said at the time)
no more than they could have used themselves, if they
had thought of it. The experiment by which Major
Beniowski renders the printing types, and the manner of
printing now in use for the Seeing, available for the
Blind, is so obvious, practicable, and easy, that it is
truly a matter of wonder that no one ever thought of it
before. Yet, to effect the desirable object of enabling
the blind to read, great ingenuity has been exercised by
benevolent and accomplished men, and vast sums of
money have been expended to enable them to carry the
laudable purpose into execution. The first step to-
wards the accomplishment of this end, was the printing
of raised or embossed characters to be distinguished by
touch—a sense which, by a happy compensation, is
mostly of peculiar delicacy in the blind, and especially
in those born blind. So much having been achieved,
many difficulties of no trifling magnitude re-
mained to be overcome. Types had to be cast,
in which the face of the letters was sunk, instead of
raised as in the ordinary type, and for this purpose a
costly set of matrices had to be cut. Again, for the
sake of simplicity of form in the characters, and the con-
vquent facility of learning the alphabet, a very clever
somesys timetemof ago
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of the society's pupils at the London Tavern, with very
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great success. It is greatly to be regretted that this in-
genious, and in many respects excellent plan, has been
to a great extent laid aside in consequence
of the difficulty of finding or perhaps of
forming teachers. But the untiring philanthropists
were not checked by this obstacle. New matrices were
cut, of course, at great expense—and new type were
cast of an alphabet in bold capitals, adapted to produce
the embossed letters. Here, then, we might say the
desired (and devoutly to be desired) object is attained.
But the cost is still, and mast continue to be very great.
P. is true, that cost has not been allowed to check the
benevolence of the society in a single effort. Yet for
the sake of the interesting class of bereaved persons
themselves whose solace is designed, to diminish the ex-
p lise is of an importance not to be disregarded.
B'niowski positively reduces it, from first to last, to
the cost of ordinary printing. The books of the society
are necessarily limited to portions of the Scriptures. By
the method illustrated in Beniowski's primer, copies of
any book composed in common type for the seeing, may
be struck off for the blind by a very cheap and inexpen- ,
sive arrangement. Perhaps there is not a more gratify-
ing achievement than this to be found in all the triumphs
of modern ingenuity.

ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF CRlME.—During an inquest
on Wednesday, at the Penitentiary, 'Milbank, Captain Grove, the
governor, stated that within two years and a half they had; trans-
ported from that prison upwards of eleven thousand prisoners. Of
these, there were, males, 9,445, and females, 1,717, besides which
there were Juvenile offenders, Who were koot for twelve mnoths pre-
yiouS to transportation.

SEAMEN'S HOSPITAL SOCIETY.
The 25th anniversary of this corporation was celebrated
veeterday by a dinner at the London Tavern. The chair was
taken by tile Earl of Ellenliorough, the new First Lord of
the Admiralty ; and his Lordship was supported by Lord
Colville, Lord Colchester, Sir C. Malcolm, Sir J. H. Melly,
Admiral Bowles, M.P., Admiral Tomlinson, General Palley,
Li. utenant Waghorn, II N., Captain W. A. B. Hamilton, &c.
There were about one hundred and twenty gentlemen present.
By the report laid on the table, it appeared that the Society
had received on board the Dreadnought, during the last year,
2,421 sick and diseased seamen of all nations (1,349 of whom
were discharged cured), besides affording medical relief to
1,595 out-patients
After the usual loyal toasts, and that of "The Army," the
toast of "The Nay?' was responded to by
Lord COLVILLE, who stated that the navy of this country,
if it should be called upon, would be found in a most efficient
state. It was ready for war, in case of need.—( Hear.)
The CHAIRMAN, in giving "Success to the Seamen's Hos—
pital, and the Committee of Management thereof," observed,
that he was present at the formation of this institution, and
had been a subscriber to it ever since. He mentioned this to
show that his regard for the naval service was not new-born,
not a thing of the day.—(Cheers.)
Admiral BOWLES acknowledged the toast, and proposed the
health of the Chairman.

The CHAIRMAN observed, that the gentlemen of the naval
service were to consider him, as Lord Colville had said, one
of themselves, identified with them in feeling, and resolved to
support the interests of the service and its honour. It would
be a subject of the highest gratification if circumstances
should enable them to add greater triumphs to those already
achieved.— (Cheers.)
In responding to the toast of " The Lords of the Ad-
miralty,"
The CHAIRMAN remarked, that while there was much that
was gratifying in the position in which he bad been placed
there was a great deal that was most distressing ;—day after
day, to see officers, and read their memorial, stating services
which it was perfectly impossible adequately to reward, and
asking employment which it was impossible to give, was by
far the most painful situation in which he ind been placed in
the whole course of his life ; it was only in the discharge of
a great public obligation that he could consent to fulfil the
duties of an office in which so much pain was to be endured.
All he could say was, that he would look to the services of all
officers, be they who they might, with perfect fairness ; he
cared not one rush about the politics of any one of them.—
(Great cheering. ) He had a much higher ambition than
to maintain any party—the ambition to do justice to the de-
serving officer, and maintain the honour and efficiency of the
British navy ; and he would not condescend to perform the
duty at the Admiralty if he could not do this satisfactorily.
The subscriptions of the evening were here announced to
amount to 1,2751., including h, r Majesty's annual contribu-
tion of 105!. ; the Trinity-house, 300/. ; the Merchant
Elder Brethren, 1001. ; the East India Company, 105/. A
donation of 14/. from " the American shipmasters" was an-
nounced amidst some good-humoured laughter, followed by a
hearty cheer.
The CHAIRMAN, in proposing the health of Lieutenant
Waghorn, observed that he never met a man of moreinde-
fatigable energy, and he believed that but for him the pro-
ject of the overland route to India would never have been
carried out.

Lieutenant WAGIIOIOF, who was most enthusiastically re-
ceived, remarked that the Noble Earl in the chair was the
man who, 17 years ago, when President of the India Board,
first suggested the overland route.—(Cheers.) The origi-
nator of the project at that time, his Lordship had been its
patron ever since.—(Hear, hear.) I thank you all (added
Lieutenant Waghorn), but I trust I shall yet receive more
praise from you.—(Loud cheers.)
Several other appropriatb toasts were drunk, and that of
" The Wooden Walls of England" concluded the festivity.