The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-05
IF MAN WERE C0LOR-BLIND.
PROF. GIBSON OF DUBLIN TELLS
HOW THE WORLD WOULD LOOK.

HOW THE WORLD WOULD LOOhs
Astonishing New Investigations Re-
gnrding COIOr-BIlndness Four
million Americans Are So Affected.
stories of Strange Tragedies Due
TO CoIOr-BIindness-Qu Jews
and Deaf-Mutes Most Troubled.
Inheriting the Dcfect-HOw to Tell
COIOr-IBIind PersOn-COIOr Blind
Dess Is One Mans FOrtune-scien-
tinc Explanation of the Subject.
New York, March s.
"'Tis mind alone that sees and hears
All things beside are deaf and blind"
AFTER all, that quotation sums up the
general condition of the human race as
far as the perception Of color exists.
Really there is no color IN the world, as
most persons understand it. The grass
is not green, the sky is not blue, our blood
is not red Old Glory is not red, white and
blue-its all in our minds eye, and only
in the daytime at that Al night, in alb
solute darkness that is, everything-the
grass, the trees, the national banner and
or, so to speak, that is, If IL is physiolog
icaly awry, the eoloring Of the universe
is gone. The world appears as a steel
engraving, or an etching, without color,
mass of brightness and shade, a news
paper cut. We are them as we say color
blind, and strangely enough, every person
is more or less afflicted-some slightly,
al -
jority. only when endeavoring 10 perform
that suggestive feat known as sleeps
eyes"
The speaker was Prof. ]. Stewart Glib
son, recently associated with Prof. John
Jolly Of Trinity College, Dublin, In the pro-
duction of a successful method of photo
graphing in colors. This method is bas-
ed on the psychological action of the hui
man eye when IL is observing color The
eXperimenters in short endeavOred to make
the camera do mechanically what the eye
does physiologically. They succeeded, but
the feat involved a deep study of the
whole field of color vision. Human color
blindness, its causes and effects, were in
CURED into minutely. and many interest
ing things We're learned about the curious
conditions of the eyesight. ] give only
few of the most important:
United States Has 100000 Color
Blind Persons.
ut is not generally understood how vital
this question of color blindness is to the
human race. For instance, Wilson made
a large number of averages as to color
blindness and found that one person out
OF every seventeen is color blind At this
rate. provided the average is correct, there
must be considerably over 100000 color
blind persons in the United States, not TO
mention our new possessions. At the
same rate there must be upwards of 49,
000 600 color blind persons in the world
more than the whole population of the
United States and all of it's possessions
combined. Now, when you think how
many persons there are whose business in
life depends on their accurate knowledge
of colors-painters dyers, weavers, tailors,
chemists, botanists, biologists, physicians
seamen, railroad employees, etc, the i'm
portance of accurate knowledge on the
subject become quite apparent. The dan
ger arising from this general lack of col
or-vision accuracy is shown by the number
of railroad accidents that have occurred
because of the inability of many engineers
to differentiate colors. Difficulty in elimi-
mating the danger is encountered because
of the ignorance of color on the part of
many of those tested, also because period
ical color blindness is not impossible. Some
persons may be color blind only at times
while at other times they may see straight
enough.
Curious Accidents Owing 20 Color
blindness.
A serious accident occurred in Sweden
some years ago, which. when Investigated,
was found to be due to the color ignorance
of an engineer. Joseph Henry relates
~. - Iffxy
en- almost insane by a temporary lapse in
the color sense. 1t seems she had been
making a brilliant red dress and in sew
ing il had been bending closely over it for
hours. Her child was rolling on the floor
near by. Now the brilliant color of the
dress had so weakened the red perceiv
ing element in her eyes as practically TO
paralyze them for that color. Her ability
to perceive red was gone. So when sud
denly she looked up towards her child she
screamed and nearly tainted All the red
in its little face seemed gone. It's features
had taken on a CHASTITY blue-green monde
script hue. She supposed 1t was rolling in
commissions, and the general effect upon
her nearly unbalanced her mind Picking
il up she ran screaming to the doctor
where the phenomenon was not explained
for some time. Now such combination
as this might at any time precipitate an
accident.
A Quaker who Thought Red Was
Green.
Some very curious situations have result
ed from this inability TO distinguish be-
tween colors. The celebrated English chem
list, Dalton, was red-brnd He could see no
difference between the color of laurel
leaf and stick of red sealing wax. He
thought blood was green in color. He was
a Quaker, and once appeared in meeting