Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1869-06-16
ARTICULATION AND SIGN LAM
GUAGE.
experiments in Teaching Deaf Mutes
In New England.

From the Hartford Evening Post
The Committee on Humane Institutions.
accompanied by Gov Jewell, Lieut.. Gov
Wayland and few invited guests, made a
visit, on Thursday afternoon. to the Clark
Institute for Deaf Mutes, at Northampton,
Mass, with view of witnessing the results
OF experiments now III progress there in
teaching deaf mutes articulation and read
lRgB from the lips, as distinguished from
/ the sign language taught at the American
Asylum in this city. The company left
this city III the noon train, dined at Spring
field, and arrived at Northampton about
three o'clocl They went Immediately to
| the lnstltutio1, where they remained wit
Messing the exercises of the pupils for
about two hours, when they took the cars
and returned, arriving here at q quarter
past seven. The company enjoyed the trip
exceedingly, and We're highly entertained
with the exhibition of the school at North
ampton. 81
1t is probably known to most of our
readers that in the matter of instruction
for deaf nutes there are now two systems
proposed, to wit: the one known as the
sign language, so long and successfully
taught at the asylum in this city, the other
instruction in lip reading and articulation,
as given in Northampton It is claimed bv
the advocates of the latter that in all re-
spects theirs is the most desirable method
OF instruction, and they are confident that,
with but few exceptions, all deaf mutes,
cOngen1tal or otherwise, can be taught and
become proficient in it. Others reject thi
theory entirely and look upon the sys-
tenn of teaching articulation to deaf
mutes as entirely impractical and vision
ary. At the American ASYLUM in this
city, instruction is confined. we believe,
entirely in sign language; at North
ampton no instruction in sign language is |
given, but the pupils are taught to depend
wholly upon articulation and lip reading
for conveying and receiving ideas.
The Clark Institution was incorporated
by the Massachusetts Legislature in 1867, |
John Clark, aspilited a citizen of North |
ampton, giving to it the sum of $50, 900 as
a foundation. 1t has been in charge and
under the supervision of Lewis j. Dudley
since It's commencement on the 1st of Oc- |
tober, 1867. There are now thirty-three
pupils under instruction there employing |
four female teachers
Ihe length OF time the pupils have been |
under instruction varies from seven to sew
enteen months, and the friends of this sys-
tenn, although admitting that it has not
yet passed beyond the limits of an expert
mont, believe that enough proficiency is |
shown to convince the most skeptical of |
the practicability of teaching deaf mutes
articulation, and of the superiority of this
over the old system. The exercises in |
which the classes were examined be- |
fore the committee were sufficient to |
show that IN many cases instruction of
this kind was practicable and bene-
iielal but the most promising pupils in
all cases were those who had enioyed to
some degree the gifts of speech and hear
ing. The proportion of eongenital deaf
muteS IN the institution is quite small. |
The success Of this system of teaching with |
those who have lost their hearing, or the |
seml-deaf, seemsnot yet to be fully assured I
and the present effort seems to be directed |
principally to the establishment of that |
point. When this becomes positive GER
tainty, there will be of course greater en-
couragement for pursuing the same plan
with the congenitally deaf.
The American Asylum in this CITY re-
celves pupils from Massachusetts, at
charge of S175 each to that state. The |
object of the visit of the committee to
Northampton, was to see the working of |
that plan of instruction, with the view of
making reciprocal arrangement be-
tween the two states and two institutions,
so that in cases where parents of deaf |
mutes preferred to have their children in |
structed in articulation instead of sign |
language, they could send them to North |
ampton, and receive state aid to the
amount of $175 each, the same as Massa-
chusetts pupils in Hartford receive from
that State. There are already two or three
children from Connecticut in the Clark In
stitution. The institution at Northampton
is an interesting experiment. in new
method. AS yet, however, it is scarcely
more than an experiment, and its firmest
supporters and advocates donot claim more
for it. The most advanced of the pupils
have had but seventeen months instruction,
while the whole course is expected to occupy
about ten years. There are no actual re-
suits yet from which to form correct
Judgment as to its practicabiiity. Indeed,
the institution is, at this stage, so entirely
experimental in its character that the Leg
islature would hardly be warranted in
adopting the proposition under considera-
ton in the committee.