The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1869-06-24
Griefteo nlis(sIlnIlp.
AN OPTICAL DELUSION.

al TELL you what tbs, Pen, you've just
fallen in luck's way-that's where it is"
had spent the evening with him we
had supped. Penuel Crossley, my old
school fellow, the dunderheadedest boy III
the school, without shilling gsworth OF
brains, or sixpenceworth of expectations,
had, somehow or other, managed to make
q good match u year ago, on the strength OF
which he had just taken the Manor house
an our little village of COpesford, and set
tied down in diguified ease IS a country
esquire" with fOur@heeler OF his own;
whilst I, who used ID write half his exer
cises for him, was still working hard for a
living, and trudging it on foot | didn't
grudge him his prosperity, but wanted
him at least to admit that II came through
no effort Of his own,-that it was, in fact,
nothing but luck.
Luck" cried Crossley, little con-
temptuously, | thought" luck do you
saw? Look you here, nv good fellow I;
my luck is Just this: it is all my eye, -
that's what my luck is"
"Nonsense," retOrted. "Do you m can
to tell me that you've worked for the
money you spend in paying for this place,
Do you mean to say that your gold Is the
fruit of your brains OryOur hands? Thatit
is good money, warm from the sweat OF
your brow, or that"
"Nog, don't" he interrupted, don't |
tell you it's all my eye?"
"Its not all my eye" / continued, if
yon-"
"Hush, | didn't say t was all your
eve; I said it was all mine. Look at me. :"
/ looked at him. saw through the
wreathing clouds of smoke with which he
surrounded himself, great. tall, hand
some, hulking fellow, with close curly
hair, like Roman gladiator, and pair
of very handsome eyes, little constrained
perhaps in their expression, partly, as ]
Judged from s hool antecedents, because
he hadn't much to express, and partly
from his being little far-sighted. l knew
he could not see objects close to him with
out peculiar spectacles.
"You don't see ANYTHING wrong about
me, them" he asked, when had concluded
my scrutiny.
No. didn't. He was toying with a
lead d-penc;l which was in his hand when
he asked the question.
"Nor yet now?" and he deliberately
took the lead pencil, and tapped it against
his left eye-right on the eyebsll-and
played little tattoo upon 1t, Nor yet
now ?" he said.
"Pen, what do you mean" l cried,
aghast-
Just this: I tell you it's al my eye.
It's only glass one, but capital bit ol
window glass it is,-as good as most win
dow-glass You'll find in London, too dark
to see through, but it keeps the draught
out" And he turned away for minute,
whisked bis eye out, and then, covering up
his sightless cavity, brought the eye to me
to examine. II was so thin one could
blow it away with breath, and 1t looked
like fragile shell of porcelain.
"This is my luck" he said, when he had
inserted his eye again. at is my eye
all my eye-and nothing else. If you
want to know how. just light up another
Manila, and listen"
"But which is the artificial eyes"
asked, for | declare | could not tell as
looked at him.
ately. "'T Isn't bad. eh? There are only
three people know it 'beside yourself
namely, the optician, my father-in-law
and my wife, so I've kept my secret pretty
well and you need not 90 and tell every
body about COpseford that the new squire
has q game eyel TwOpennywOrth O
gpnpowder did it, at school, after you left
so it's no wonder you didn't know. l had
loaded small brass cannon which wouldn'
fire; and looking down the muZzle to see
Why it wouldn't go off, the charge went IN
and my eye went out / left school
blown out OF 1T, as it were and having re
covered from the accident, and had my eyt
replaced with this very artistic piece o
china-ware, | went home To Step
minister, 10 study medicine with my ia
ther. Nv father, although called DIR. Cross
ley by courtesy, was not properly quail
fled doctor Of medicine; he was, strictly
speaking, a medical man but folks il
our town were never very particular abOu
what letters prOfessed surgeon wroi
after his name, SO long as he could writ
enough of them.
"Dr Crossley was Medical Inspector t
the Local Board of Health (unkind pei
sons called him Inspector of Nuisances
and had little or no private practice.
was his idea that shol.id keep the loss c
nv eve a profound secret, because b
wished gradually TO work me into his ow
pOsiti0n, for which his falling health wa
rapidly incapactating him. He had som
notion the Board might fancy a man cOul
not inspect enough for the post wit
one eve. For my part | should hav
thought a nose the most needful organ fc
an inspector Of nuissnces; and | hav
found one eye quite enough to see throug
Board and ali their wooden ways. Ate
few years, began to relieve my fatht
of his duties, until. though he still nom
nally held the position of inspector, th
whole of the work was done by me. A
it Was satisfactorily done, the Board mao
no difficulty about transferring the al
pointment to me Onimy fathers retiremen
which only shortly preceded his deaf
One member of the Board In psrtcul,
complimented me very highly on my a
siduity in the discharge of the d,
ties of the Office. He is only