The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-16
HIT RESTORED, BUT CANNOT SEE
stran 20 Case OF . Woman who Must Learn
to Know Everything as ir She Were . Baby.
From the Philadelphia Times.

~ hNuo" - - ~ 49,
From the Philadelphia Times.
Oculists are greatly interested at present tn
the strange case of q 25-yearold girl. who has
just been endowed with vision after being blind
from birth. and is forced to learn by sight OBJ
jects thoroughly familiar through her sense oe
touch.
Marie Duplessis was born with what IL known
as q congenital double cataract of the oyeas
which deprived her of sight. She could distins
guish light from darkness, but objects were ens
tirely invisible. In cases Of blindness the other
senses are frequently much moro acute than
those Of ordinary persons. and with the girl he8
power of distinguishing objects by touch was
remarkable, and she learned, to know most %
the articles that entered into her daily life. estts
mate their weight. and call them by name,
eyes have become numerous and comparatively
simple, vision being made possible by removing
the vel which has descended between me ttfhis
organ. The cRtaracts were takon from Mt9o
Duplessis's eyes about three weeks sgo, and IN
II few hours floods OF light and color, distances
Objects, We're cast upon, retinas that had neveS
The effect was terrific and extraordinary.
For fully an hour after the operation. was peF-
outlines gradually became visible. For : week
objects were more or less indistinct although
the SHARPNESS Of FORM inSre eaSin S GScn GSE;, aann3
o oSfy hsa ID severe S Sas Fofy tho arSt fe%
days Miss Duplessls could only nnd rehet "
keeping her eyes closed most OF the time, OPEN
ing them at rare intervals for q few moments.
Even then she described the, sensation eIPos
ricnced as OF the objects she beheld striking the
Colors caused her acute suffering. and Of
these red was the most irritating and OF
fcnsive. Tho forms OF things were not such z
complete surprise as their color, for she had
been accustomed to comprehend bulk and shape
by her sense OF touch, while tho hundred diner
ent tints with which we are familiar were
II unnmab i'm nnasihle fnr tho GIRL In obtain any
idea of distance by using her vision. ono or the
her 10 take hold OF 10. She reached out with her
hands aud soizod the empty air several teee
away. Then n bottle was placed on q table AZ
the other end OF tho room. ard when asked ta
reach il Miss Duplessis attended her hands asu
TO grasp 1t within arms reach.
Another curious series of experiments was "
induce her to name a number OF obJcctS placed
before her. with all Of which she was familiar
through her sense of couch. She made errors II
thS names OF almost IHh every Try q mtor wheh aoP @istnf.
duster for "a bunch OF chrysanthemumS. lho--
"H Gsn +, %s ~ i S"s ,o npIn i iSpo %asfr as to what
il was. The bird was placed IN its cage and the
girl identified IL at once by feeling the bars OF
and given in turn each OF the articles that had
previously been placed before her They wore
all designated by name without anerror.
she uses her eyes. While blind her steps were
like those OF an ordinary person, depending, az
they did, entirely upon her sense OF touGn. ShS
little difficulty. Yet she says that whom she
looks at the floor il appears TO have a steep
slope. and she steps out as II COINS upstairs or
Doctors say that it will take several months
for the muscles OF the girls eyes TO DO trainea
even beyond the rHdimehtaTy stage. snu ma
learn. TO know the things about ner "ithoustos
aid Of touch, as II she we're q bapys