St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-11-04
FAMOUS BLIND MEN.

Vidal. the Wonderful French
Sculptor, Chaplain MiIburn and
Inventor HePreshOff.
St. Louis Republican.
Vidal. the blind sculptor, Is one of
the wonders of the French capital. He
has been blind since his twenty-first
year. We can quite easily understand
how blind farmer would cultivate the
ground with the plough. spade and hoe.
How he would feel around the tender
plants, and gently loosen the dirt from
their roots. or how the blind BIrmiug-
ham (Ala.) miner tells. with the sense
of touch alone. the direction and to
what depth To drill his holes before put
ting in blast. but the work of Vidal
stands out in bold relief, unique, Won
derful and Incompatible. To be q
sculptor it is generally supposed that
one must have the '"mechanic's eye"
and the artists taste and perspicBity.
The latter faculties Vidal has to an exc
ceDJiOnal degree-even more acute, fI0
believes. than if the former were not
lost to him forever. By slowly passing
his hand over an object he notes its eX-
ternal proportions, and initiates them in
clay i'll manner which strikes the be-
horse, human face or anything alive or
dead, he models with as much ease as
any of the dozens of Partisan seuiptors
who still retain the faculty of sight.
From 1855 to 1875 Vidal received more
medals than any other exhibitor OF
works in the Paris art exhibitions.
Many of his works, made in the solitude
of his perpetual midnight. are now on
the shelves at the great exposition,
where the blind wonder contends in
friendly rivalry with his less unfortunate
brother artists. He never complains, is
always genial and festive when among
his friends. who always speak of and
to him as though ne could see. and we'll
may they do so, for he is one OF the
best art critics in all Paris.
Rev. w. I'll. Mll6urn, known through.
out the civilized world as 1.-The blind
preacher" and who is actively in tha
field at the present time, is one Of the
most remarkable men of the age. He
was born in Philadelphia in 1922. He
totally lost the sight of one eve when
quite young, the other becoming badly
impaired from sympathy, so much so
that it soon darkeHed forever. With
spirit undaunted he studied and was Or
dained as a minister at the age OF TWEEN
ty, and. it is claimed. travelled over 2]0,-
900 miles filling appointments in the
Southern states. Within the last thirty
years he has preached in nearly every
state in the Union and some European
countries. lie has beeu chaplain in the
house of representatives at Washing
ton, besides filling many other impers
taut positions. AS writer he is known
as the author of Ten Years Of
Preachers Life" "Rifie, Axe aid. Sad
dlebags" and "Pioneer Preachers and
People of the Mississippi Valley"
Mr.. Herreshotf. the blind president
of the Horreshoff Manufacturing CON-
pany. of Bristol. r. l., seems as much
out of his element in his present ca
pacity as the blind sculptor. Aside from
Edison. the government has recognized
him as being one of the greatest in-
ventOrs of the times. Many OF the tor.
pedo boats and steam launches now
used by this and all the civilized gov
ernments OH the globe, are the inyen.
tons of this sightlesS genius. His
steam launches have made the highest
speed with but few exceptions, and his
torpedo boats are ranked among the
most efficient in use. He works on his
models in the quiet of the night, shut
up in the darkness of his room. but this
is all the same to HerreShOff-ths
brightest midday would be to him az
black as the darkest midnight. ~: