The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-06-25

the universal adoption of Crede's method,
the very simple one of applying few
drops of a two per cent. solution OF
nitrate of silver to the baby's eyelids.
FAR-sIGHTED EYES.
AS rule the newly born have hyper
opic, or far-sighted eyes, and savage
races, or rural people making no unnatural
use of the eyes, retain their hyperopic
faculty far into life.
Far-sight is itself. however, distinct
defect of the eyes, when it reaches an
appreciate departure from the normal
condition.
Far sighted people generally flatter
themselves that they have perfect eyes
because they can see distant objects we'll.
Yet, when put to a test for continuous
linear work, - such eyes are found TO be
suffering from hypermetropia, oversight;
ton of the cornea or of the lens, or oil
both, in which latter case the defect is
more serious.
Ii far sighted eyes having these defects
are neglected, the time soon arrives when
neither distant nor near objects can be
seen clearly; they can be corrected by
| using proper glasses in good time.
SHORT SIGHTED EYES.
A serious retroactive error of the eyes is
that of myopia, or short-sigh t-refracture
being the bending or breaking of the rays
of light to bring them to focus on the
yellow spot of the retina, which is the
most highly sensitive portion.
Whereas in far sight, the eyeball is toe
short, in myopia it is too long, and the
change from the hyperopic condition al
birth to the myopic, is one that occurs
very rapidly in numberless instances. II
is also change incidental to civilized life
| and is one of the penalties mankind
pays for education, whether intellectual
or technical.
CHILDREN's EYES AND SCHOOL WORK.
Myopia, as a rule, is caused by oyer
straining or abuse of the eyes during
schooldays. Children go to school with
eyes still hyperopic-far-sight they
come away with eyes myopic, short
sighted; and this is directly the result OF
overstraining at near work. Undoubt-
eddy this is often superinduced by hered-
itary tendencies, an important circum-
stance which eye-surgeons are careful to
| bear in mind.
1t is the duty of parents and guardians
| to have the children's eyes examined be-
fore they begin to learn lessons, and tc
have the examination repeated at certain
intervals as they advance.
| Many child has been set down as hope
lessly stupid or obstinate at school and
made miserable by constant scolding OF
punishment, without any effect, when q
subsequent examination showed that il
had serious optical or retroactive defect OF
| the eyes. There were various distressing
symptoms-pain in the eyes, aching
erows, headache-which had been attrib-
uted to all sorts OF wrong causes or had
been discredited altogether.
| Who that has had much to do with
teaching does not know the spectacle OF
the mulish pupil who won't learn any
thing, the dazed look of despairing stu
pidity, the knitted brows and quivering
face, the helpless 'sniveling," as if tears
were the only solace?
| That child, in numberless cases, is al
| bright as its school fellows, but is simply
suffering from incipient myopia. It il
overstraining its eyes in the effort to ac-
commodate them to new duties. and so is
setting up disturbances which the wor-
ried and wearied teacher little suspects
If it were examined by a surgeon and sup
piled with proper glasses, its pains would
| be relieved, and it would go to its lesson:
with a clear head and light heart.
| 1t is noteworthy fact that supra or.
i bital pain, temporal pain, and pain O.
| the occipital part of the brain, are charac.
| terlstic symptoms of retroactive errors O.
the eyes. Every school teacher can beal
witness that these very symptoms are
what children most commonly complain
of-especially the so-called stupid, null
ish children. who are always screwins
| their eyes with their knuckles or lollins
their heads on their hands.
THE WEARING OF GLASSES BY CHILDREN
| Why is it we see many more children
wearing grasses nowadays than formerly
A generation ago it was an exception TO
a child to wear glasses, and any child tina
did was supposed to be suffering from :
grave affection. Now it is common ans
is becoming commoner. No child is nov
necessarily deemed an object OF compass
sion because it wears glasses. Why i
this?
/ It is not because more children hav
defects of the eyes, but because the sci
ence of ophthalmology has advanced s.
much that we recognize the trouble
which were formerly overlooked or at
tributed to other sources.
But even now the greater number G
sufferers from defects Of the eyes onl
seek advice when the long seated mis-
chief compels them. With adults, tbs
is their own affair; but children have n
them should give them the chance to en-
Joy the blessing of good eyesight.
EYE TROUBLES FROM THE PRINTED PAGE
Germany is the land of myopes, an
that national affiiction is directly trscea
bic to the long and severe curriculum an
the bad, peculiar fantastic style of Jyr
employed there.
The adherence of the Germans to thei
obsolete style of writing and printing
when all reason and expediency al
against it, is unaccounta5le in SO practi
cal a people. 1t is not surprising that til
Emperor William, who has decisive wa
Of doing things, has recently issued 8
imperial edict requiring all governmer
publications and all books for gymnasi
and public schools to be printed in Roma
instead of German type. Alread
many publishers are following the impe
rial lead, and the Improvement is SO sell
evident that the change is bound TO be
come general. The moment the news
: papers adopt it there viii be an end
German lettering, and from that date til
national eyesight viii begin to recover.
The recovery, indeed, has already be
gun, because with schoolbooks the chi
dren and young students are no longt
forced to overstrain their eyes in tryin
to accommodate them to difficult set {
objects. Let any one take a newly-printe
T..