San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-05-16
BLIND AND YET SEES.
A BOSTON MAN WHO WOULDN'T
RECOVER HIS SIGHT IF HE COULD.

Marcus Josselyn, an Itinerant Merchant,
and His yaIise on Wheels-Goes Where
He Likes and Avoids All Distractions
without a Guide.
A stone blind man whose vision is perfect
A man who lost his eyesight thirty five years
ago, and wouldn't recover it if he could. A
man who says seeing is quite unnecessary and
a hindrance to the full enjoyment of life A
man who gets along in the world much better
and makes more money than many persons
with two good eyes.
Many of the readers of The Globe have
doubtless seen around the south and west
ends of Boston a thick set, medium sized man,
apparently about 40 years of age, with oval
face, blonde mustache and genial expression,
walking along with confident step, carrying
cane and dragging behind him black valise
on little wheels. He keeps to the right of
other pedestrians, turning out for all OBJ
Stacles, picking his way easily through dense
crowds, and when he comes to a crossing,
picking up his vaiise and carrying it to the
other side, where he sets it down and contin
ueS his course, At the first glance no one
would think he was totally blind but if you
look sharply and notice the peculiar carriage
OF his head, and especially if you see the inces-
SAINT motion of his restless eyeballs, you will
be convinced that the physical sense of sight
is wholly lacking.
This man is Marcus H. Josselyn. He lives
at lS4 Eustis street in neat and tastefully
furnished apartments. Every week day
morning he starts out with his valise to visit
his customers He has his regular routes
and calls on each of his 1000 patrons regu
larly once month. His business, which has
grown to its present proportions as the result
OF twenty years hard and systematic work,
is the selling of needles, thread, tape, safety
pins corset laces and ''such like" articles SO
dear and so necessary to the feminine heart
He derives snug little income from his bust
ness.
WALKED AROUND THE COAL PILE.
Mr. JOSSelyn knows the streets of Boston as
we'll as any policeman, and can find his way
around the town as easily as any herdic
driver. He can start from his home and 90
on foot by the most direct way to Charles
street, for instance, without making any in.
quirieS; or he can walk straight home from
Bowdoin square without asking nybody the
way In the same manner he goes direct to
the houses of his customers, no matter where
they live.
Mr.. Josselyn was one day going along the
sidewalk, when he suddenly stopped, picked
up his valiSe, went out into the street, walked
eight or ten steps and then returned to the
sidewalk to resume his course. Some work
men were watching him, and one of them,
more amazed than the rest, called out:
"Begorry, sir, if yez blind, how did yez
know pile of coal was lynn on the side
walk2"
Mr.. Josselyn did not know anything about
the coal that DISTRACTED the sidewalk, nor
could he explain to his questioner how it was
that he was able to avoid it as we'll as if he
had seen it. On another occasion he was
standing in front of building, when he sud
denly stepped backward close against the
wall. The next moment a huge mass of
snow fell down from the roof right upon the
spot where he had been standing. The blind
man had not been warned by the rustling of
the snow on the roof, but in a very different
manner.
He was stopped one day on the street by
man who said:
See here, sir, they say you're blind, but
I've been following you for an hour, and
watching you closely. If you were blind
you couldn't get along as you do, never run
ming against anybody or anything, walking
fast and always stopping at the right house
without hesitating. l don't believe you're
blind. It's true l never saw eyes like Yours
except in blind man, but then that con-
tinual rolling of the eyeballs must be simply
a trick of yours. Now you might as well be
frank and tell me all about it."
But Mr.. Josselyn very properly refused to
crafty the idle curiosity of a stranger who
had insulted him, and so he merely assured
him that he was in reality as blind as a bat.
a reporter recently visited Mr.. Josselyn
at his home, not to satisfy himself in regard
to his blindness but to ask him how the world
really looked to a blind man and inquire what
mysterious sense it was, what subtle faculty |
what unerring intuition, which supplied the
deficiency of physical sight
OTHERS SEE FOR HIN.
"Oh, I'm not blind" said Mr.. Josselyn, !
cheerily, and don't like to have it thought
that l am. | see as well as anybody, but in
different way Not cIairvoyantly, but actu
ally, although notwith my own eyas, for they !
are si-htIess C.H.rs see for M md. ! rs. |