Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1903-01-07
THE SENSE OF SIGHT. i
HOW INFANTS SLOWLY LEARN
TO EXERCISE IT.
AT FIRST TIE NEW BORN BABE HAS
THE POWER ONLY To DISTINGUISH
BETWEEN LIGHT AND DARK
NESS.

HE row EN- oNLl ~ DtoAA4NOOASh
BETWEEN LIGHT AND DARK
NESS.
The sense most early exercised by
the newborn infant is the sense of
sight, but at first it has the power only
to distinguish light from darkness and
is in comparison with its later devel-
opment blind, while in many of the
lower creatures the senses are at birth
fully developed.
What a difference there is between
the dull eye of the newborn infant and
the sharp vision of the young chick.
which is able to pick up with precision
q grain of corn or even snap up fly
while the eggshell may be still stick
ing to it's back! The eye of the infant.
however, is developed very gradually,
and during infancy and childhood it
learns how to see. In the first few days
it notices the difference between light
and darkness when the light is very
intense, and 1t may even knit its brow
in sleep IL bright light be brought
close to its face.
On the same principle a striking
bright color will also be noticed when
held close to the face.
In all these cases, however, the in
FAINT follows the object by turning its
head and not by the movement of the
eyes.
The eyelids open and shut from birth,
but they are not always moved at the
same time with the movements of the
eyeballs until the infant has reached
the second or third month. Under two
or three months of age infants do not
wink when the hand or an object is
waved before the face, because they
do not see the hand distinctly.
One of the remarkable points of in
terest in the development of the in
fant's power of vision is the way in
which it learns to appreciate the OBJ
jects seen. 1t has to learn to discover
the distance of objects, their shape,
size, character, etc, and this it does
with the assistance of the sense of
touch.
The face of the mother or nurse is
made familiar in that it is brought so
close to the infants face.
After the infant has learned to see
objects distinctly at the distance of
several feet it begins to use both eyes
in common. At first the eyes act indie
pendently of each other, so that it I'M
doubtedly has double vision and sees
everything double. This double vision
can be produced by many at will by
looking "cross eyed"
The infant having reached the point
when it sees an object clearly, 1T must
also begin to understand objects of
three dimensions-that is, to find out
the difference between a fiat surface
and solid body. Here the sense of
touch also assists. The infant grasps
an object and, putting it to its lips and
face, satisfies itself as to the shape,
character, etc.
1t is interesting in this connection to
note some cases in which person born
blind RECEIVERS sight when grown.
In one case a young man who had
lost his sight in early infancy was SO
completely blinded that he could not
distinguish even the strongest light
from darkness.
After on operation on one eye hau
been successfully performed Ne began
to see ooJects WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING
them-not peing apie 10 Juoge their
distances from his eye-and he felt as
If everything was touchlhg MS eye, ~
that 10 touch an OBJECT he al hrs'
would put one hnger OF the mana up
before MS race, pointing at lne opJec'
aimed at, and reach FORWARD untli MS
finger came IN contact WIN 'he op'
ject.
After he had recovered the use OF
both eyes he began TO nnd out that
everything was not nat. but that many
things had a certain thickness as Wen
as length and BREADTH ana IN this way
he began to see solid objects.
But even for year or two after com
plete recovery he was unable TO decide
whether certain inquire was nat sur
20 in a