Morning journal and courier., 1886-01-20
SPECS FOI. HORSES.
Some Very Curious Experiments on
 Near-Sighted Animals.

Near-Sighted Animals
 From the Philadelphia News
 For many years it was disputed question whether or not horses and mules were sub- ject to myopia or near -sightedness. Author ities on matters pertaining to the different diseases of horses eyes differed on the ques- tion, but within late years it has become a settled fact among veterinary surgeons that horses, like humans, are liable to be short sighted The peculiar actions of numerous animals led to an investigation of this affiction. and it was found to exist princi- pally in gray horses and gray mules
 Drivers have frequently found that their horses will jog along the street apparently unalarmed by the objects that usually pro duce terror in tinid horses until within a few yards when they will manifest the great est alarm and immediately rear or balk. In vestigation of the cause of such conduct has lead to the conclusion that they were afflicted with short-sightedness and that their fright was caused by the sudden appearance of the strange thing within their line of limited vision Valuable horses have been so afhict- ed and no remedy has yet been discovered. A gentleman on North Broad street, who owns and drives valuable roadster, was very much annoyed to discover that hls ami nal was afflicted with this rather unusual malady He had plenty of leisure, and he determined that he would, more for amuse- ment than for practical use, investigate the subject and endeavor to find some way of making his horse see as well as any other. He very quickly found that medical reme- dy was out of the question, so he obtained several lenses and head halter-hke arrange ment made for the had, with regular spec tacle frame made for over the eyes. He then went into al series of measurements such as oculsts make to find the lens which would l remedy the defect.
 ssWhen found the right pair of lenses,'' he said to a New-gatherer, ''I had the great est trouble to keep the horse from smashing things. He saw too much His sight was so much improved that he saw objects in the stable which he had never seen before, and when first kept the spectacles on him regu- larly he used to spend most of his time kick ing at blankets, stable coats and harness that were near him. Then he seemed to discover that the spectacles were responsible for the l unusual sights. He used to break them of rubbing his head against the manager or side of the stable. l then changed the frame for A lighter one, and fixed it on in such man ner that he hardly felt it, and he soon grew accustomed to the new order of things. Now he calls for his spectacles as regularly every morning as he does for his breakfast, and he will not allow anything to be done for him un- rather proud of them, and I have had pair of regular nose-glasses made for him, with 8 light chain dangling over one ear, and when he has them on he acts like regular
 dandy"
 ssNo, never put the glasses on him when
 I drive out," continued the gentleman in re- sponse to an inquiry; 'T don't care about be- ing laughed at by the people l meet on the
 road, and horse wearing glasses would cer- l tainlv cause ridicule. I think, though, that l eventually horses wearing glasses will be as common a sight as spectacled men, for am sure that the first man who had the temerity | to appear on the streets wearing 8 pair of
 glasses was as much laughed at as horse l would be now.
 q had considerable fun when started my
 experiments with one of the mules that is
 used at my works, He proved that he was
 near-sighted by his actions on many differ ent occasions I thought would try to ben
 eft him by putting glasses on him. When | I first put them on he came near making a
 total wreck of the stable. While I was ad-
 iusting the harness which held them on his
 :! bead ke stood quiet enough. As soon as l
 let go my hold of his head he just took a
 look around to gauge things. He evidently
 concluded to experiment with them, and talk