The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1885-11-05
A BLIND ELOPEMENT.
[FRoM pEoK's SUM-

uIdSIeTS hIldI love IL Olllu' 1HeTc
has been an illustration Of the old ad-
age in New Jersey, where the belle OF
Summit has been eloped with by a
blind man. This is a case that ought
to be,looked into. How a blind man
could "i5ok love to eyes which spake
again. is beyond the comprehension
ofold bRck-number lovers, The belle
Of New Jersey might have made love
to him and quoted poetry, Whisper
what thou feelest, darling" but the
blind lover could not see whether the
belle was black or white. How a.
blind man can love one person more
than another, isa thing not easy to
explain. Those who have been in
love say that the whole system OF love
rests on what can be seen, to start ON,
Let man be introduced to woman
in the dark, rnd not be able to see her
and he is not much mashed on her.
He may touch her, and feel that she
may be all that his fancy has painted
her, but he dare not make love for
fear somebody has been putting up a
job on him. He might squeeze her
soft hand, but he would stop squeez-
ing in alarm when he thought that
maybe it was the hand OF some young
man he was squeezing, a boy dressed
up for.the occasion. The poor man
might pat the velvety cheek of the
woman in the dark, and she might
lean her cheek towards him, and seem
to yearn to have him do so some more
but he would want to strike light
first, and see about it. He would, il
he was prudent man, stop to think
that some young fellows, before they
raise beard, have cheeks as velyety
asa woman, and he would reflect that
If she was actually sure enough wo-
man, she might be colored. The sur
face OF the skin OF colored woman is
Just as smoothe and velvety as that OF
awhile one, and it is said man can
not tell the difference in the dark by
feeling Of the face. That has been
tried in the South, at sociables, and
men who have wagered that they
could tell black woman by the touch
from white one, have been invaria-
bly, mistaken and have lost money.
The difficulties that would naturally
surround man in the dark, trying to
spark woman, constantly surround a
man who is blind, who attempts to
spark woman. He is constantly at
the mercy of the designing, and IL
able to be sold in the most cruel man.
ner, One can see how man and wo-
man who were in love when they
- were endowed with good eye-sight,
could love each other even more after
one or both were deprived OF sight
The misfortune would be apt to bind
them more closely together. But
when blind man enters the field to
win wife that he has never seen but
only felt Of her hand, he is to be pit.
tied, because he is going it blind.'
He has to take the whole business foi
granted. II "a woman tells man she
loves him, and he can look into hel
eyes, he knows to dead moral certain
ty whether she does or not, but wo
man might tell blind man she loved
him.and he couldn't tell whether che
was in earnest or laIghinga at him al
the time she was filing him up with
taffy, When she was telling him the
old, old story, another man NIGH
have his arm. around her, and be hug
r ging the daylights out of her, and th'
poor blind man weuld not know it, un
less he happened to stumble on TO th'
other mans arm while skirmishinj
around her waist himself, and if h,
4 found such a.state Of affairs, reason
ably sharp woman could make th'
blind man believe the strange arm h
had found belonged to he-dressmak
or who was measuring her for wed
ing dress. A blind man with goo,
wife who will do his locking for him
and see that he does not tumbleinto tn
brambles Of life, and over the obstacle
in the path, ought to be happy mar
oyenif he has no seeing utensils, bu
blind man who goes around tryin
to be.a masher,. a business that r,
quires two reasonably good eyes an
plenty Of gall, and initiates FOOLS
people with eyes, who elope, is liabl
TO wish that he were dead. Elopin
is a business that requires that bot
the parties to the transaction see VIII,
is going on. "A blind man, to eloE
successfully, must allow the fema
victim to do all the planning. 81
must provide the rope ladder, al
when she comes down cut ot&he wi
dow with her'bundle the blind ms
cannot tell whether he catches 4
girl in his arms, or the bundle, an
he has folded II to his arms and XII
ed it, and said, Darling, We will fJ
If it is bundle Of undercIoshes sh