The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1891-10-27
THE YOUNG WEAR THEM.

} THE YOUNG WEAR THEM.
The Use Of speotaolss l. NO Longer . Sign
OF Old Age.
There is an old saying that a people
whose noses are spanned by spectacles
are a people learned in the several
avocations of life requiring hard study.
At one time German professors. who
were acknowledge to be the hardest
students in the world. held a monopo-
ly upon these adjuncts to the vision.
and the singular idea became current,
Is the number Of gold bowed glasses
increased that the Germans are a
shortsighted people.
Later on when Boston set the pace
and the Beacon hill organ was tightly
clasped by the rimless eye-glass. peo-
pie began to speculate upon the causes
of the failing sight of the Americans
When speculation gave way to invesi-
cation, it was discovered in nearly ev-
cry case that the habits of life, the con-
fuement to Offices and even school
rooms had either fully developed a
latent muscular defect in the eyes or
by straining the retina. nerves and tel
sscopic muscles had produced defect
enot heretofore in existence.
J The extent to which spectacles have
spread over this country Is alarming.
Whore few years ago. gray hairs
or patent defects Of vision were deemed
inseparsble from glasses now nothing
10 more common than to see young
people wearing them, whose eyes. to
all outward seeming. need no artificial
aid in painting correctly the figures
upon the retina In many of these
Gases the vision is perfect when tho
focus can be adjusted. Too much
work over books. with too little exer-
else, has caused q weakness OF the
muscles of accommodation, the result
being that q constant effort, painful
in the extreme. is necessary to adjust
the eyes to long and short range.
They work like pair of telescopes,
Or. to be more specific, opera glasses,
and the distance from the retina to
the pupil is heightened or shortened
to accommodate the focus to the dis
tanoe at which it 10 located from the
object seen.
II the nerves are overtaxed and the
muscles fail to promptly answer the
signals given them. Inflammation. blur
ring, and 1t may be blindness result
Speaking of the prevalence Of diff
Guilty with the eyes recently, says the
Kansas City Journal specialist Of
local reputation remarked: You
would be surprised to note the number
of GASES one meets with. where the
patients are slightly inhamed. but
with no other indication Of serious
trouble. A spark of dust, a cinder or
any foreign body, however small.
would cause intense agony and much
higher Inflammation, yet such cases
as the latter amount to little. as they
are cared for at once. When a per-
son comes to me with tired eyes. too
full in the under lids. complaining of
headache In the forward portion of the
head extending backwards to the base
of the skull. at once test the focus
ing power of the organs to see if astig-
matism is not present In nearly
every instance I find one or both eyes
working badly.
Upon examination. l find that the
patient has been accustomed to make
enormous drafts upon the most deli
cate organs of his body. Constant
application to q set OF books, continu-
Gus reading. fine needle and lace work,
with poor lights. are the originating
causes of the trouble At first there
is a slight burning feeling, temporarily
relieved by applying cold water. but it
surely comes back. The next sensa-
ton is the frequent recurrence of
those nasty. dull headaches. so fire.
auent that in the last stages before q
physician is consulted that they never
leave. They are there, the temples
throbbing painfully upon retiring and
resuming the steady beat as soon as
the eyes again encounter the light
After the burning sensation follows
one as of some foreign body under the
lid. As the eye winks the lid CRATES
over the ball and an immediate effort
is made to dislodge the particle. of
course without success. Finally the
patient consults an oculist and is con-
demned to wear glasses and possibly
to an absolute rest and cessation from
the work that brought about the trou-
ble.
1T is wonderful to contemplate the
number of cases caused by foolish and
even criminal carelessness, not to con-
slider those where the necessity for la
Dor has caused the trouble. In. the
very young school children cases. the
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