Wichita eagle., 1888-04-04
{ THE DEAF AND DUMB.
VARIOUS METHODS BY WHICH DEAF
MUTES ARE EDUCATED.

Description OF the Successful Working
of the New York Institution for Their
Instruction-System of Manual Train
ins-Worls Turned Out.
In order to prepare the mute for inter
course with the speaking and hearing world
1t Is necessary to acquaint him with the Ian
guage of words in their forms of script and
speech The system employed for this pur-
pose at the New York institution is tho one
perfected by the present principal, Isaac
Lewis Peet, LII. D., who has been an il
structor within its walls during the past
forty years. The teacher provides himself
with twelve objects, the names of which,
embracing all the letters of the alphabet. are
written upon a blackboard He points to
one OF the objects and then to its name upon
the board, repeating this process until the
pupil catches tie idea that the written word
represents the article, and can himself point
to the word when the teacher touches the OBJ
Ject This is repeated in connection With
each OF the other articles until The pupil is
able to associate the name with the object at
sight Then the pupil is taught to spell the
words by the manual alphabet, after which
the teacher repeats the letters in aiphabetic
order, requiring the pupil to point out each
letter as it occurs in the list of words on the
board. Next the pupil is taught to write
the words by copying them from his books,
and then to write them without q copy when
ever the corresponding words are shown
them.
When this has been accomplished the mute
Is taught the use Of the personal pronouns in
connection with g verb. A simple sentence,
such as Touch the key is written upon the
board, and the pupils are required to pass IL
single file and perform the task designated.
Then the teacher writes the question, What
did you dos" and each pupil is required to
write, Il touched the key" When this lesson
is thoroughly learned the use of the other
personal pronouns is taught in similar man.
ner. Then by degrees the adjective, the rel.
alive and deinonstrative pronouns, the moods
and lenses OF the verb, the varied forms of
the predicate OF the English sentence, the use
of abstract terms and what may be called
Engilsh ldiom are successfully developed or
substantially the same principle.
TAUGHT LIP READING
When the pupil ha. made sufficient pro-
Gress be is prepared for conversation with
speaking people by articulation and lip read
ing. This is impaired by system recently
devised by DR.. Peet. The department de-
voted TO it is under the direction of Professor
E. Henry Currier. 1t is based upon the fact
that all sound has its fixed. definite position
upon the lips, and the mute is taught to
watch the speakers lips and other organs Of
speech SO accurately as to discover the words
uttered, not by context or guess work. bat
by absolute recognition of their phonic ele-
nlentS. Under this system it becomes nos
sible for mute and speaking person to carry
on an extended conversation upon almost
any subject. The articulation of the mute
is, of course, crude. and, in some cases, nm
pleasant 70 a sensitive ear, but il rarely hap
pens that 1t is so indistinct as to be unintellj
gible.
In connection with this system there are
two departments IL the institution for deaf
children. One is composed of children hav-
ing sufficient degree of hearing to enable
them to repeat sounds after the teacher. and
yet not sufficient quickness of hearing TO en-
able them to attach significance thereto. and
thus learn language n the usual wav The
other class, which is larger, is composed of
those to whom the tones Of the human voice.
their own as veil as that OF others. have
been revealed for the first time through a
flexible ear tube.
Not very long ago it was considered i'm
possible 70 educate the bearing and develop
the speech OF these people 50 as 10 place ther,
absolutely upon the same level with sr-.ay
ING and hearing persons. But the seeming
mposslbIhty has been overcome BY a sirnuIe
continuance invented by Professor CI,rrier.
This consists OF an ear risyya and -r,o .,,Lo-
with mouth piece attached 10 each. Tha
pupil places the ear tube in his ear. and ~.
teacher first speaks through one tube Tba-
'he pupil, through the other tube, repeats tas
words or sounds that have been uttered to
nm through the first tube, thus enabling
49, - .--sHs.~ bic A~- ar-,,:.,;... *