Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1885-01-02
IMPAIRED VISION.
The Causes That Induce Partial Blindnas
-Injudicious Reading.

The Causes That Induce Partial Blindness
-Injudicious Reading.
"With the single exception of the in.
sane. L don't think any class appeal
more strongly to us for sympathy than
the blind" said a well-known and
philanthropic physician yesterday.
''Truly they are deserving of pity.
But despite their terrible and irrepar.
able loss, it is a great mistake to i'm.
agine that they wander through the
world as if they were shut up in an
iron cage. True, while in the midst OF
light and air, and where laughter is
heard and tears are shed, and where
looks are i~nterchanged the blind are
shut out. But her blind men and
women have much enjoyment in their
own peculiar way. They can appre-
ciate the glories of external nature and
the sweetness of social intercourse as
much as any one. | often think that
when they feel the warmth of thessun a
picture of exceeding brightness is
formed in their minds. The different
tones loved voices have for their cars
bctray to them often more quickly than
the most careful study of a face will do
what is going On in the hearts and
minds of their friends"
"Do you come across many cases OF
blindness in your p~ractice?"
"Well, | encounter many cases OF
impaired vision or partial blindness. i
dare say two out of every three persons
arc troubled with some eye disease,
which materially affects their vision. 1t
is a terrible thing ven to contemplate
the number in this city who thus suffer.
One of the most common complaints is
short-sightedness. The people suffer-
ing from this could not be enumerated,
for their name is legion. l tell you the
American people do not take nearly
enough care OF their eyes. The unim-
paired sense of sight is q priceless
boon, and too much care can not really
be bestowed in order to keep the deli
cate optic organs free from disease"
"What causes this impaired visionp"
'Mainly injudicious reading. Many
people have had their eyes ruined at
school; and teachers, l am bound to
say, are largely responsible for this.
Many instructors of youth permit the
little mes to read with their books
close up to their eyes. This is q grave
mistake, and the practice is productive
in the highest extent of short-sighted-
ness. Then, again, some people con
tract disease by reading by dim and
Pickering lights. This practice can not
be too strongly condemned. The use Of
tobacco in excess will also produce dis.
ease of the eye"
"Are there any intellectual fields Of
labor open to the blind?:"
care THEREOF Yes; more than the
casual thinker might suppose. A blind
man OF woman musically inclined can
earn no inconsiderable income as an
organist or teacher OF Music. Most of
the schools for instructing the blind
recognize this fact. and cultivate to the
utmost their pupils musical powers. I
consider the study of languages, and
especially the foreign tongues, a val
liable accomplishment to the blind. 1t
would afford them lucrative employ
ment, ard would also be comparatively
easy of attainment"
''Any other field of labor?"
eyes; that beautiful and wonderful
machine, the American typewriter. 1t
promises to open a new gate in the
worlds vast workshop for the blind to
enter at. The simple expedient of the
letters and the numbers being carved
upon the keys, instead of being printed,
as is ordinarily the case, makes this
accomplishment easily learned by a
blind person. with but moderate appli.
oalioA."-Albamy Ea7ress.