The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-02-27
HELEN KELnrn ENyors srArrAnE
The Blind Girls Recent visit TO the Boston
Art Museum.

Nsh
Art Museum.
From the ConoreOaionaifs.
/ had the good fortune to witness the UNIQUE
scene In the Boston Art Museum. two or thre.
weeks ago. when Helen Keller. the beautifu
doat and blind girl. was taken TO sec" tn,
statuary. Helen Keller Is now II years old
She has a beautiful form and her face is OK.
pressive to a most unusual degree. She give,
one an impression Of fresh. happy girlhood
There Is a slight deformity Of the eyes, bu,
every other feature is perfect. and her month
Is especially expressive and winsome. With
smiling, parted lips. she seems TO be filed with
a happy expectancy OF what the future ma,
bring her.
For some time Helen attended q private
school in Cambridge. but she IL now studying
with n tutor and fitting for Radcliffe. Her
careful training In Greek showed during he,
visit TO the museum. She appeared thoroughly
familiar with all the old Greek mythologies
and IL seems that she has Just been reading
the Had. A letter suggesting the visit was
sent her by her friend. Miss Cobb. formeriya
teacher OF the blind. and Helen accepted them.
~vitation. saying that she had always wanted
to see the "silver-bowed god and the white.
armed goddesses."
At the museum the first statue shown heI
was that OF Apollo. A stepladder was brought
and she mounted until she could reach the
face. She put both hands on the forehead
touching 1t lightly with the tips OF her flngers
From the centre OF the forehead she deity fol.
lowed the curves outward. then down the
cheeks until her hands met at the chin; then
both eyes were touched: then the nose. and
lastly the mouth. her hands moving In unison.
Next the arms and other parts OF tho statue
were examined. This was the order pursued
each time. Every new curve was a surprise
ana pleasure. to her; She was as eager as a
thine I pleased easn h her especially ptsSoiSl Would aRp give EaV a q Ths;
forward her whole figure; Helen,s commend
S:S1!,s p !$g $E"@@s and q IN Sod aus sa' Her espr HSs on
The dizziness and auickness with which she
could examine, q statue were wonderful, but
m"rEabl.e was that she Seemed to read the
artists thought through her sensitive, fingers
IS IN rSs2 H ! g,, as a s sSSsin Wss g e6o%n { e0 Sns.rs tnki
Of a mother bidding farewell to her child. In
this the arms Of the m 7! { were missing Hss
arms She shouid:embrace her child" And.
as she was not at first understood, she repeated
Ing rs her SSta arms H% around Miss Z Cobb t" Or the !" m pSi"si
she remarked. She has sorrowiul eyes. wide
open; her lIPs seem to CULVER; she lifts up her
Helen Kellers vocabulary is quaint and
%hookish. quite different from that. OF an or.
transiating, She enunciates slowly and with
an earnest effort to be understood. but In order
to catch every word she says one must give
close attention. There is a slight thickness OF
speech. When she desired explanation about
any Of the statues. she reached for the hand Of
Miss Cobb, who spelled into her fingers what
she wanted to know.
Her, qpickness Of perception astonished
everybody. Upon being shown n bas-relief Of
some dancing, girls she Immediately asked.
Where are the choristers 2" seeming to de-
tect their absence simply by touch even sooner
than It would be noted by n seeing person. The
adjoining basrnreliet represented singers. there
closed. and as soon rs her fingers touched II
she announced. 'One is SILENT A little
further on was a statue of Neptune, and on
feeling the empty hand her, instant question
She Is not without a sense Of hnmor She
handsome as Pericies" The latter she had
previously described rs having "a fine. strong
face, full! OF spirit and thought and .Sappho
Of. sweet, smiling, Sappho." Julius Caesar
looked " inst like what he was" She was es-
pecially pleased with Michael Angeles group
Of mother and child. and after having exam;
ined each Of It's figures separately she placed
that OF the child and remained in that position
for q brief minute. as IL touched with the
gentle picture OF motherhood. Then she said
softly. 1t Is very sweet and lovely
in the big rooms as the blind girl PASSED with
rapt face from statue to statue. The little group
OF students followin her watched her with an
almost, breathless interest rs she stood on the
top of the stepladder. cropping and smiling. They
were eager to catch every word she might say:
With eyes ms siGhtless rs the vacant orbits of
stone about her. yet with n wonderful intelli-
gence disclosed in every motion. she. presented
a picture of extraordinary interest, and one
which will never be forgotten by those who