Martinsburg weekly independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1873-1875, 1874-11-21

certainty of restoration. Then
arose the desire TO hasten the gold
~ day of light by pushing aside
whai remained Of the epUqGe lens,
tlat being he only obstacle to Vi
siot. straiglii aneai. inc Doctor
/ tlougpt il pro able that he might
iiad the lens MOI uard enough 10 be
permanently pushed aside; and
! The use OF The KIN fe showed him
o be right For ten minutes sub
s,quent 10 The operation The branch
~ OF he trees ia the street, the
signs across the way and print
OF the books on the Doc of's table
presented themselves with distinct
cess; and then the semi-liquid sub
stance of the dead lens returned to
lis place over the pupil, becoming
a gauZe again.
Never mind" said the Doctor,
| looking into the eye through a
powerful glass. "the new aqueous
humor which will soon form will
resume the work Of dissoiving the
little that ramrins of the lens, aod
NOT long hence you may read" A
fortnight later, with the spectacles
| which / must wear henceforth, !
saw the end of the minute band
OF my watch as / saw Ii IN my
| boyhI cd. Two months later / saw
the street lamps straight ahead
Seen without spectacles, every gas
jet was q neucIus of a hundred
lights. The next operation Yielded
no perciptib!e result at The time.
but north afterward / read the
newspaper.
Aud SO the Doctors cutting was
repeated from month to month
until the field of vision had been
SO far enlarged that | began 10 read
manuscripts with the right eye, and
was ready for the Doctor 10 begin
work on the left. The operation
had not kept me from my worka
single day.
1t was not the glaring gas lights
of morning newspaper Office that
killed my chrystaline lens. What
happened to ne may happen TO
any person Of sedentary employ
ment, even if he works only In
daylight. / had worked incess-
antly for three years from twelve
10 fourteen hours day, taking no
open air exercise, and eating the
innutritious, indigestible vlctuals
that are served in the hotels and
restaurants. Under such course
OF existence-as sheer invitation to
death-could the tides of the blood
have teen expected to penetrate
the hundreds of microscopic veins
that carry life to the eyes? The
crystalline lenses, being remote
from the vascular system, naturally
died OF lack of nutriment. Yet
they might have been saved if /
had changed my course of life
previous to their entire hardening
or death. If when dimness ofsight
first began to manifest itself, had
taken an hour day from my desk
and walked in open air, and at the
same time eaten beefsteaks and
that incompatible food, oatmeal
and cream might have fortified
myself against the insidious march
of death, and if to good living /
had added the wearing of specta-
Giles perfectly fitted to the eyes, /
might have preserved what vision
was left, and possibly, in time my
eyesight might have improved.
MY great old Oculist having re-
tired from active practice, l may
write his name without suspicion
of being his advertising agent. 1t
is Samuel Mackenzie Elliott. Since
he has emancipated himself from
the slavish life which every physi-
clan in his prime must lead, he has
found time to give me.the story of
his career. tie is the pioneer of
the physicians in America who
have made the eyea specially. In
his youth the microscope was his
toy, and the eye the mystery that
he lor ged to master. His earlier
operations were upon the eyes of
fishes; then lie operated upon those
of insects, reptiles, quadrupeds,
and birds, and at length upon
those of men; but he did not ven
ture to touch the human eye until
he had learned how to make Ma
ture his chief motor in the restora-
ton division. And now, on rest
ing after thirt eight years of USE
fulness, he is able truthfully to say,
as he does with honest pride, III