The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1898-05-14
WEARING Gil ASS EYES.
q QrsAt Beneiits Resulting from
Their Use.


never suspected thai they had any
visual trouble except slight optical.
defect until they have voluntarily told
you the truth. But nowadays this is
not considered strange. The duplica-
ton. OF, the human eye in form, color,
motion, in everyth thing except the sight
itself, i one of the great triumphs of
modern art From all time men who
have lost one Of their organs Of sight
seem to have made some attempt to
rsmedy the deformity. Efforts were
even made to Improve the appearance
of the humans corpse, as is shown by
someof the Egyptian mummies. Among
various peoples use has been made
OF gold, brass and porcelain in.
the construction OF artificial eyes, but
until the early portion of the eighteenth
century their wearers must have found
them very unsatisfactory. About that
period the French found that by COM
bination of glass and enamel the requi-
site finish could be secured From that
discovery the manufacturers progressed
gradually until it attained its present
state Of perfection. To-day no one need
be seen with eyelids sunken in and
wearing that totally blank expressions
of countenance which is the inevitable
accompaniment of an absent eye.
The popular idea is that the artificial
eye is in the form of sphere and COM
pletely fills cavity after the removal:
of the natural organ. In point OF fact,
the glass has about. the same shape as
a portion of an eggshell cut of very
close to the smaller end. The sclerotic
part, or the white Of the glass eye, is
ene-fortieth of an inch thick, while the
cornea, or the colored portion, is one
twentieth of an inch thick. The use Of
the enamel gives a perfectly smooth
surface, under which are made, in: ex-.
act Reproduction Of the natural eye,
the minute veins seen covering the
white portion. The cornea has a very
slight elevation, and in color can be
made to match any orb. .Theedge of
the glass is sometimes ground: and used
without any further finish. Ground
edges are liable to produce irritation.
The best glass eyes are those which
!. have delicately enameled edges, pre-
senting, even under the microscope, no
roughness OF surface in any part. The
most favorable condition Tor the: use
of q glass eye. is that in which the or
gan stillremains in the socket, although
.shrunken and destroyed for all pur-
poses Hsight. In the majority OF cases
the oculist tries upon the patient 5first'
an eye smaller than the size required
! to mate with the sound eye: This is,
especially necessary when the parts
are still tender I'm a. short time5this
may be removed and q larger snbsti-
stuted unit 18th required size is.arrfved
at. If there be a sufficient portion ofs
the natural organ remaining it Isl i'm
possible to distinguish the glass eye
from it's mate. ..~G%~.* / =
The remedying of q deformity is
among the slightest of the Advantages
resulting from the use Of the glass
eye. If the organ be lost before: the
patient is fully grown an artificial one
will prevent contraction of the eyelids.
1t obviates the discomfort and irritation
produced tby the turning, in OF the
-lashes. It guards against: the entrance
OF foreign bodies and prevents the ac-
>cumulation of tears in the orbit. Great
care is required by anyone wearing an
artificial eye. It must beEremoved fro
quently and thoroughly cleansed and
then dried with lint or. soft cotton.
II it is placed in cold water the change
+ in temperature is very aptsto crack and
roughen the ename1ed surface. After
being worn some time, particularly if
itEEbes subjected TO anything which ap-
proaches careless handling, the fine
gloss will disappear" The eye is liable
to injure the inner skin fthe lids, and
either<a new one must BE procured, or,
when possible, the old one repolished.
The latter may be often done at slight
expense and the eye put in as good con-
dition1 sas when first purchased. The
cost Of an artificial eye varies from ten
to fifteen dollars. This may seem a
high price, but it is rendered necessary
by the varied and extensive stock the
oculistis obliged to keep On hand. The:
number OF variations produced by color,
formation and cause Of destruction to
theeye.is so great that. even with thou
sandsSof glass eyes instoek, it is often
necessary to manufactures one expressly
to~suitla patients need Phi1adelphia
sssI Put to s1any Uses. 8
Sharks furnish numberpf valuable
products The liver of the shark con-
tains, an#oiI that possesses medicinal
Qualities entlal to thnae az :canf1-l;ver oil