The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1869-07-08
AN AMUSING STORY.
An Optical Delusion.

Tell you WnaC us you've JUST 1di1OH
in luck's way-that's where It's"
had spent the evening with him we
had supped Penuel Crossley, my old
schoolfellow, the dunderheadedest boy In
the school, without a shilling's worth of
brains, or sixpence worth of expectations
had, somehow or other, managed to make
a good match year ago, on the strength
of which he had just taken the Manor
house in our little village of Copsford, and
settled down in dignifed ease as coun-
try esquire, with four-wheeler of his
own while I, who used to write half his
exercises for him, was still working hard
for living, and trudging it on foot |
dn'tFgrudge him the prosperity, but l
wanted him at least to admit that 1t came
through no effort of his oWn-that 1t was
in fact nothing but luck.
o tIuek /" cried Crossley, a little con-
temptuously, thought,-'luckl do you
say? Look here, my good fellow; my
luck is just this Its all my eye,-that's
what my luck is"
Nonsense 1 retorted. "Do you mean
to tell me that you've worked for the
money you spend in paying for this place?
Doyou mean to say that your gold is the
fruit of your brains or your hands That
it is good money, warm from the sweat of
your brow, or that"
e"Now don't!' he cried "don't tell you
its all my eye?" 10 ~, ia 1l
21 "It's not all my eye,' E continued, 'if
you" la l#u g1as eH .su
q "Hushl I didn't say it was all your
eye; said it was all mime. Look at me-"
I 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 con
strained, perhaps in their expression,
partly as judged from school antece-
I1lonts, because he had't much to express,
or partly from his being little far-sight-
led. IL knew he could not see objects
toclose to him without peculiar spectacles.
3f 'eYou don't see any thing wrong about
me, then 2" he asked, when had conclud-
led my scrutiny. Ess s.5 ..egnssf9i
TE3jNo, I didn't. He was toying with a
galead pencil which was in his hand when
= The was asked the question. qv, s4*i b
zCJtENor yet noW?" and deliberately took
20 the lead-pencil, and tapped it against his
8aleft eye--right on the eyeball-and play
ICED little tattoo upon it, "Nor yet now?"
he said. aaa 46lUaa0 3a8 ,fsaa offv Ire
TO I'Pen, what do you mean? Icriedaghast..
9h AUST this Itell you it's all my eye.
wits only glass one, but capital bit of
glass it is,--as good as most win
3ndow glass you'll find in London,-too
% dark to see through, but it keeps the
ldraught out" And he turned away far a
3 minute, whisked his eye out, and then,
Isl covering up his sightless cavity, brought
g the eye to me to examine. 1t was so thin
that one could blow it away with breath
and it looked like a fragile shell OF por-
7 celain. ~ ~ gsqua6tl
"a. ssThis is my luck,n he said, when he
had inserted his eye again. cts all my
eye-all my eye-and nothing else If
you want to know how, just light up an
Mannilla, and LISTEN 9i3 r
$40 "But which is the artificial eye?" I
for I declare could not tell as I
,9looked at him. Il. 6sdgog8a
~ 'Left," said Pen, tapping it affection
p ataly. "'Tisn't bad, eh ?" bn There are
Z only three people know it besides your
self, namely, the optician, my father-in-
law, and my wife, so I've kept my secret
{ pretty well; and yon need not go and tell
everybody about Copesford that the new
squire has game eye! Two penny worth
Of gunpowder did 1t, at school, after you
left, so its no wonder you didn't know it.
[ had loaded small brass cannon, which
wouldn't fire; and looking down the muz'
zle, to see why it wouldn't go off, the
charge went in and my eye went out. |
left school-blown cut of it, as it were
and have recovered from the accident,
and had my eye replaced with this very
. ~
to Stepminster to study medicine with
my father Ny father although called
DR.. Grossly by courtesy, was not proper
ly qualified doctor of medicine; he was,
strictly speaking, a medical man; but the
folks in our town were never very partic-
ular about what letters professed sur
geon wrote after his name, so long as he
could write enough for them.
Doctor Crossley was Medical Inspector
to'the Local Board of Health Onkind
persons called him Inspector of Nuisances)
and he had little private practice It
was his idea that 1 should keep the loss
of my eye profound secret, because he
wished gradually to work me into his po-
sition, for which his failing health was
rapidly incapacitating him. He had
some notion that the Board might fancy
a man could not sipspect" enough for the
< post with one eye. For my part should
Al have thought nose the most needtul or
gan for an inspector of nuisances; and
have found one eye quite enough to see
through Board and all their wooden
ways After a few years, began to re
lieYe my father of his duties, until
though he still nominally held the posi-
4 ton of inspector, the whole of the work
was done by me. As it was satisfactorily
done, the board made no difficulty, about
!. transferring the appointment to me on