The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1900-01-19
See how God honored the eye in the

y
eyelds opening and closing 10000 times
day. The eyelashes SO constructed
that they have their selection as to
what shall be admitted, saying TO the
dust: "Stay out" and saying to the
light: Come in" For inside curtain,
the iris or pupil of the eye, according
as the light is greater or less, contract
ing or dilating. The eye of the owl is
blind in the daytime, the eyes of some
creatures are blind at night, but the
human eye so marvelously constructed
it can see both by day and by night.
Many of the other creatures of God
can move the eye only from side to side,
but the human eye, so marvelously con-
structed, has one muscle to lift the eye
and another muscle to lower the eye
and another muscle to roll it TO the
right and another muscle to roll it to
the left and another muscle passing
through a pulley to turn it round and
round, an elaborate gearing of six mus
Giles as perfect as God could make them.
There is also the retina gathering the
rays of light and passing the visual i'm
preston along the optic nerve about the
thickness of the lamp wick, passing the
visual impression on to the sensorium
and on into the soul. What delicate
lens, what an exquisite screen, what
soft cushions, what wonderful chem
istry of the human eye! The eye
washed by a slow stream of moisture
whether we sleep or wake, rolling i'm
7erceptibly over the pebble of the eye
and emptying into bone of the nos
tril, a contrfvance so wonderful that it
can see the sun 95,O0O,00O of miles away
and the point of pin. Telescope and
microscope in the same contrivance
The astronomer swings and moves this
way and that and adjusts and reaGjusts
the telescope until he gets it to
the right focus. The microscopic
moves this way and that and adjusts
and reaGjusts the magnifying glass I'M
til it is prepared to do its work, but the
human eye without a touch beholds
the star and the smallest insect. The
traveller along the Alps with one glance
takes in Mont Blanc and the face of
his watch to see whether he has time
to climb it. Oh, this wonderful camera
obscura which you and / carry about
with us so from the top of Mount Wash
ington we can take in New England,
so at night we can sweep into our vision
the consultations from horizon to hori-
ION. So delicate, so semi-infnite, and
yet the light coming 95,0O0,0OO of miles
at the rate of 100000 miles a second
is obliged to halt at the gate of the
eye, waiting until the portcullis bell
ed. Something hurled 95,000,O00 of
miles and striking an instrument which
has not the agitation of even winking
under the power of the stroke.
There also is the merciful arrange
ment of the tear gland by which the
eye is washed and through which rolls
the tide which brings relief that comes
in tears when some bereavement or
great loss strikes us. The tear not an
augmentation of sorrow, but the
breaking up of the arctic of frozen
grief in the warm gulf stream of con-
ISOLATION. Incapacity to weep is mad
ness or death. Thank God for the tear
glands and that the crystal gates are
so easily opened. Oh, the wonderful
hydraulic apparatus of the human eye!
Divinely constructed vision. Two light
houses at the harbor of the immortal
soul under the shining Of which the
world sails in and drops anchor.
What an anthem of praise to God is
the human eye! The tongue is speech
less and a clumsy instrument of eX-
preston as compared with it. Have
you not seen the eye flash with indigna-
ton, or kindle with enthusiasm. or eX-
pand with devotion, or melt with sym |
pathy, or stare with fright or leer |
with villainy, or droop with sadness, |
or pale with envy, or fire with revenge, |
or twinkle with mirth, or beam with
love? 1t is tragedy and comedy and |
pastoral and lyric in turn. Have you
not seen its uplifted brow of surprise,
or its frown of wrath, or its contrac-
ton of pain? If the eye say one thing |
and the lips say another thing, you be-
lieve the eye rather than the lips. The
eyes of Archibald Alexander and
Charles C. Finney were the mightiest
part of their sermons. George White
field enthralled great assemblages with
HIS yves, though tnty were cTlpp'eb
with strabsmus. Many military chief
tain has with look hurled a regiment
TO victory or to death. Martin Luther
turned his great eye ON an assassin
who came to take his life. and the VIII
lain fed. Under the glance of the hui
man eye the tiger, with five times
mans strength, snarls back into the
jungle.
How il adds to John Milton's sublim-
ity' of character when we find him at
the call of duty sacrificing his eyesight
studying at late hours and
trying all kinds of medicament to pre-
serve his sight he had for IL years been
coming toward blindness, and after
awhile one eye was entirely gone. His
physician warned him that if he con-
Iinued reading and writing he would
ose the other eye. But he kept on
with his work and said after sitting
IN total darkness: 1.-THE choice lay be-
fore me between dereliction of SUI
oreme duty and loss of eyesight. In
such case 1 could not listen to the
physician, not if Aesculapius himself
had spoken from his sanctuary. could