Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1886-08-19
TIMELY WARNING.
A Near-Sighted Mans Vivid Description OF
His EXPERIENCE.

His Experience
NJ. Francesque Sarcev, the we'll
known French critic, has written lit
tie work which is well worth perusal by
virtue of its charming style, and the
freshness of its force with which he de-
scribes the course and the dangers OF
near-sightcdness.
His book is an autobiography, so far
rs relates to his eyes. He begins: 81
was born near-sighted, dreadfully near
sighted. Many physicians assert that
persons are never born near-sighted,
but only become so. However, science
may think what she pleases, but L was
born myopic.'
The very day on which his infirmitv
was discovered is indelibly stamped on
his memory. and his account of it is
quite Worth transcribing. Zone day,
prompted by the spirit of mischief, 1
got hOl@ of the big silver spectacles
which my father always wore, and
clapped them on. Fifty years have
passed away since then, but the sensa-
ton experienced is keen and thrilling
to this day. l gave cry OF astOnish-
ment and joy. Up to that moment
had seen the lofty dome above me only
as thick, green cloth. through which no
ray of sunlight ever fell. Now, o
wonder and delight, l saw that in
this dome were many little bril-
liant chinks; that it was
made of myriad separate and distinct
leaves, through whose interstices the
sunshine shifted, imparting to their
grcenerv thousand tones of light and
shade. But what amazed me most,
what so enchanted me that l can not
speak of ii t. this day without emotion,
was that l saw suddenly between the
leaves, and far away beyond them, little
@limpses of the bright, blue sky 1
clapped my hands; | was mad with
establishment and delight. -
Very high myopia like Sarceys is
rare, but moderate degrees of myopia
are very common; and myopia, as Sar-
cey states, is increasing and spreading
through Europe like some epidemic dis
ease. Among the ancients it appears
to have been practically unknown. AS
evidence of this M. Sarcey refers to the
amphitheaters, in which thirty thousand
spectators sat and viewed the games
without glass. Perhaps, to be sure,
the myopes of those days might have
learned to stay at home. However,
that myopia is increasing there can be
no doubt. In fifteen years the proper
ton of undoubted myopes in the Poly
technic School of France has risen from
thirty to fifty per cent, and eighty per
cent. of the students have to wear
glasses.
NJ. Sarcey urges his readers with
profound emphasis to remember that
mvopia has a tendency to increase, I'M
To- IL,
and that all myopic eyes are weak eyes,
SCISSOR. In his own case the result of
overuse and misuse of his eyes, es-
pecialiy his attempts to get along with
out glasses, was that he lost the eye
sight of one eve entirely, through de-
tachment of the retina, and that cat
aract developed in the other.
The loss of the eve he attributes to
the effects of studying when a boy in a
badly-lighted school room, and he in
vokes all mothers to examine the school
rooms. IF they be not fairly flooded
with light. take your son home again.
TO leave him bent for ten years over
dimly-lighted books is, if he has the
least tendency to this trouble, almost
certain to lay up myopia for his man.
hood; if he be already myopic, it is tc
assure him blind old age
Sarcey's description of the develop
ment of his cataract and of its removal
is vivid and dramatic The operation
was successful, and he now sees distinct
objects even better than before. The
epilogue to his story is: Remember
that all extreme mFopia ends almost in
fallibly in cataract. and that nearly all
myopia nlay become extreme if the eyes
are abused"
While Sarcey's views are somewhat
tinctured by the bitterness of his per-
sonal experience, his warnings are wise
and timely, and should be widely read. >
-3iedtcak Record