The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-01-04
WONDERFUL X RAYS.
Blind Man Sees Through the Top Of
His Own Head.
Remarkable Life and Personality OF
Dr. Cooke. the Experimenter.


effects produced by the Roentgen X rays
have lod to experiments in several scientific
directions, not always with the expectation
of reaching definite results, but sometimes
to simply investigate what could he accom-
plished by their use. Edison has suggested
that, as by these rays solids can be rem
dered transparent, they might produce
some effect In overcoming blindness. Per-
haps be specially intended TO apply the ex-
pertinent to such persons as have been
made blind by tho intervention of a solid
medium, and who have known sight be-
fore-like people whose pupils became
OPAQUE in childhood or lator life. But
these experiments havo been extended and
applied to q person blind almost from his
birth, and ono of such extraordinary de-
yelopment of brain and tho other senses
that the results reached are conclusive In
their way And while nothing like sight
was reawakened or produced, they were
none the less astonishing and Significant
In what they did reach.
One must begin by describing the sub
feet experimental on, for, without that, 10
would be impossible to properly estimate
the value of the experiments. DIR. j. X.
Cooke of Boston Is n present man most
thoroughly conversant with medicine In
all it's various departments, and especially
conyersant with the Oldest as we'll as the
most modern teachings and procedures In
nerve diseases. He has a very large prac-
tice In Boston and accomplishes an enor-
| nous mass Of clinical as well as scientific
work. This man, whom weeks old, had
| his sight destroyed completely by tho ac-
| cidental application of an acid to the eyes.
He never has had q conception OF light
| or of the looks of things. 1t would take
volume to relate how under this difficulty
bis other senses developed to an almost
miraculous acuteness; how he can touch
] a fabric and tell the stripes or figures on
1t and their color; how, by the slightest
sound, he correctly estimates the dimen-
sions of q room; how, by the touch OF the
hand, no can Mt once recognize the person,
and how, by slight feeling, the material,
| color, shape and use of objects are known
and described And yet he has never seen
any of these at ALL and one wonders In
| what shape they present themselves to his
| own sightless mind.
| II we add that this wonderful person,
| who is the most amiable, the most lucid
| and one of the most learned and most vari-
| ously gifted men one can imagine has
| written mum Dor of successful novels, and
| Is at present composing comic opera full
| of the brightest airs, the reader will prob
| ably doubt the veracity of the report His
musical constructiyeness Is such that he
| simply dictates score, and 1t Is as simply
| read to him for correction. No touch on
| the piano as yet Then, when 1t Is played,
| 1t Is found to be n good air In excellent
| harmony. And this person, who earned
| his way through college by testing tobacco
| for the Lorillards by touch for many
years, and has helped himself up from
nothing to an astonishing position, with
! out one of the most necessary senses, Is the
| man who consented to be tested by the x
| rays The X rays have opened new door
| to him, and he enters In it with excited
| interest, not as promising personal benefit,
| but as a study and field for self hvestiga-
ton.
The experiments were conducted IN the
| private laboratory Of the Boston University
School Of Medicine and in the presence OF
| a number Of physicians and professors OF
various medical schools The tube used
| was a specially constructed instruments,
| which gives the most intense Roentgen
ray OF any tube heretofore made. 10 was
attached to u coil which produced an cleo
| trio current OF nearly 1900, 600 volts. Dr.
| Cooke at the beginning of the experiments
noticed this, and said IL was different from
and more intense than any he had previous
| ly experienced.
| Seated In front of the tube glowing with
| yellowish green light, at distance OF four
feet, DIR. Cooke held his head down so that
the rays struck on it's top. He first felt
sensation that he could not describe, GER
tain something which disappeared the mo-
| ment the light was cut OFF and was in
| stantly felt when the tube was In glow A
| pair of cutting pliers were held half way
| between his head, bont down, and tho
glowing tube. He Mt once described them
"a thing with prongs, so long and held In
| this direction When turned, he described
tho change Of direction. When they were
moved rapidly--all without sound or stir
| --he became dizzy and ordered it stopped.
| II made him faint. These pliers were two
fcet from his head and two feet from the
light His descriptions were -'nathemat--
ical-that is he said:
"There are two lines, and their extrem-
tiles, the prongs, meet ut an angle, and
tho lower part Of the lines (the handles)
| are curved"
When he was allowed to touch tho OBJ
| feet, no knew at once what IL was. Then
| he added: "I can't see these things.
only feel their shadow. 1t is just sensa-
ton"
The next, pair Of shears, were held In
! the same position. He described them as
two lines crossing each other and circles at
the end of each (the handles). These were
rapidly but poiselessly removed and a
hammer substituted. He grasped at IL
and cried, "Oh, don'tl" He had an at
tnck Of vertigo, the result OF tho rapid mo-
tion of tho objects. After rest the ham
mor was gently replaced in tho same posi-
ton. He exclaimed: II know that That's
the hammer" The week before they had
tried him with this at the Y rays, and he
instantly remembered the impression. A
scrowdriver was held up now. lie de-
scribcd that an n straight object, up and
| down. 1t was hold at different angles,
| and he described these accurately as IAN
anglo of 90 degrees or cot 80 degrees.
A hand was held mp before him. lie
described that as -four straight masses
parallel TO each other" and told the ro-
| spectlye lengths OF tho little and ring I'm.
| pora IN tho rest Whom tho hand was held