The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1876-03-27
,a,t,,, yfsior--The M1rvcfs BE.
! $40 Nv q Boy wtsh q Tese,cerfc Eye.

49, 7Erom the New YORK Mefcury.i
professor Gibsins. The president OF the
San Francisco College of Sciences, has been
snves,iyating most remarkable phepome
rnn--sbat Of boy VINO possesses what may
no termed teie6eapic eye A Mercury cor
respopSent eends the repost OF the Professor
nm the case, wttch Is confirmed by the sEns
fares OF Dra. Bryant, Gsdbury, and Gotdson'
and approved By Professor Smyeh, inc ocu
Ns,. So fsr, therefore, 81 autnentic't5 aaa
scientific accuracy are concerned, uEon Tue
faith OF these gentlemen, readers Esy reiy
implicitly upon the ABSOLUTE eorieSsa a ns ~
every fact stated sad conclusion reaeEeu. Ine
report, 10 substance, sets tsfta stIc 'e'io"ine
Tho NOR me OF this remarkable child Is john
palmer. aged nine years, aud place OF resi-
dencs south San Francisco, CUP Hill, near
THE Catholic Orphan Asylum. 1t appears
that the period through which the invests.
1aijon ran was only Gireen days; but IT
seems TO nave been so thorough BY the useI
OF the optba.mosccpe End other modern ap-:
,,iiances ant, tests that no regrets ought to be
sindu,pri ss to the hsgvity'0 the time em.
pioyedi n experiments.
The committee hsvfpg frSy examined the:
boy, ind number Of independent Witnesses
ga 10 the facts, soon ect about o scientiac
investigation Of the trueGauses Of the pneTf
noroenon, The esat'stsp, OF course, Wastol
examine the ladps eye, With the modern op!!
fhaImoseope. by means OF which The depths OF
this organ can bee1piored, and the smanst
variations from q healthy or normal conditson
instan,areously detected.
Op applying the Instrument the commiuee
ascertained In memeat that the boys eye
WINS abnormaEy shaped. A natural, perfect
eve 10 perfectly round. But the eye eaaiu.
ined was exceedingly f't, very Ibid, VIII
large iris, At lens, Immense petifa, anu ~ ~
derfully Diluted pupil. Tine enecs . y. .Jv
shape was 1t once apparent. IL was , s.eiv
impossible 70 see any oeJect Will u.s.,nS
ness at any distance sbortoi maay .noaS ;n
NJ miles. Had the eye been elongated ID.
.nord NJ sh,nedt,lke an egg, to as great an
syien,. the tboy would have been eneesusiiy
Hind. for 40 combination OF horsepower
could have placed the image OF the ooject
bevoud the coat of the retina. 40 otner
words there are TWO common imperteoAobs
of the human organ Of sight-one called
myopia. or near.sightedness," the otner
presbyopia, orr; far-sightedDess."
"Tbe axis being too long," says the re.
mort. ain myopic eyes. parallel rays, sacn as
proceed from distant objects, are oreosncto
a focus At point 30 far IN front OF tue fetioa
that only confused images are formed upon
Il. Such maltormstiop, constituting an eH-
cess of refractiye power, can only be neaEra'-
lied by conceive glasses, which give sAch
direction to rays entering the eye - VIII 81
low OF their being brought to focus AT
proper point for distant perception" fres-
byopta is the reverse Of all this. Tne antero1
pcs:erer axis OF such eyes being 100 snDI.,
owing te the fat liate-liBe shape OF tbe oaii,
their retroactive power is not sufhclent 10 hlng
even parallel rays to focus upon the retMa'
but Is adopted for couyergent rays only. Con
yex glasses, In great measure, compensate
for this quality by rendering parallel rays con-
yergent; gnd such glasses, In ordinary cases.
bring the RAGS to focus at a convenient dis
fance from the glass, corresponding to its de-
gree of curvature. But in the case under
examination no gllss or combination OF
glasses could be inverted sufficiently con-
cave to remedy the msifermatioD. BY o
mathematical problem OF easy solution, It
was computed that the nearest distance
from the unsided eye of the patient at
which distinct image could he formed
upon the retina was 100000 miles-a frac.
ton short of the mean distance Of the moon
from the earth; aud hence 1t Became per-
fectiY clear that the boy could see with mi
mute dlstinctness whatever was
HkrrrNIHo ON TIE SURFACE OF THE NOON.
It was on the night Of January o. 1876,
that the frst satisfactory experiment was
tried, testing beyond all cayil or doubt the
( powers of The subjects eye. 1t was iuii
moon. and that luninary rose clear and daz.
ZlipgIy bright. The committee were on haod
at an early hour, aud the boy was 10 me
condition and exuberant spirits. The inter-
view was secret, and none but the members
OF the committee and the parents OF the child
were present. or course the first proposition
to be settled was the Individuality OF that
sphere, This the boy bad frequently de
clared was the case, and bad on several pre-
yious OCCASIONS described minutely the
form, size, and means of locomotion of the
Lunarians. On this occasion he repeated In
almost the same language what he had De-
fore related to his parents and friends, Du'
was more minute, owing to the greater
transparency OF the atmosphere and the ex
perience In expression already acquired.
THE PEOPLE IN THg NOON.
The Lunarians are not formed at all like
ourselves. They are less in height, and alto
gesher OF different appearance. When full
grown they resemble somewhat chariot
wheel with four spokes convergng at tht
centre or axle. They have four eyes In tn,
head, which Is the axle, 80 to speak, and al
the limbs branch out directly from the cen
ire, like some sea forms known as "Ra
distes." They move by turning rapidly lik'
aWheel, and travel as fast as bird through
the air. The children are undeveloped ir
form, and are perfectly round, like pump
kin or orange. As they grow older they seen
to drop or absorb the rotundity OF the whole
body, and finally assume the appearance of .
chsriot.wheel.
They are of different colors, or nationalt'
ties-bright red. orange, and blue being The
predominant hues. The reds are 10 large
msjorisy. They do no work, but sleep every
four or five hours. They have no houses
and need none. They have no clothing, and
do not require It.. There being no night on
8 the side OF the moon fronting the sun, and
no day on the opposite side, all the inhabit-
ants. apparently at q given signal Of some
kind, form into vast armies and flock in my
RAIDS TO the sleeping-groundso on the shadow
side Of the planet. They do not appear to
go very far over the dark rim; for they re-
appear in inmense platoons In a few hours,
and soon spread themselves over the illnmi-
mated suriaee. They sleep and wake about
six times in one ordinary day OF twenty -four
hours. Their occupations cannot be dis.
cerned- they must be totally different from