The San Francisco call., 1906-09-16

"A EARLY 10000 blind in the
M United States, more than 1000
blind In California alone and
the numbers thus far increas-
ing in inverse rattle to the general in
crease OF population.
Startling ngures Sensational facts
these. and doubly startling. trebly sen
sational. when we learn-ss fortu-
nately we are at last beginning to
learn-that all but an inhnitesimally
small percentage OF these 10000 are
needlessly blind. In other words. to
put IL more explicitly. the vast majority
OF these seven times ten thousand
sightless and cropping ones are victims
not OF original organic diseases OF the
eye, not OF constitutional or hereditary
defects OF the visual organs. but rather
OF Ignorance and gross carelessness.
not on the part Of the miserable vic
tins themselves. which would be bad
enough. bat the Ignorance and gross
carelessness, alas, OF none other than
Levana.
And here word about Levana.
Levana. be il remembered, was that
goddess who in the Roman mythology
presided over the birth OF children.
Levana IL was who. with the symbols
OF her august once IN one hand. en-
tered the darkened birth chamber and
with the other hand opened the eyes of
tae newborn babe; and then. after
raising him aloft for one brief moment.
bore him into the fierce light OF the
sun or blazing aaral so that his Ro-
man kindred might see his baby eye
lids hutter and his baby pupils con-
80. n. - =. 80
which thes Roman midwife performed
IN her name. LeFana became also iden-
tihed as the patron goddess OF chill
dren's eyes, and In consequence thereof
OF their nursery education.
A Classic Instance.
whether in ancient times she per
formed her peculiar function i'll or well
we have no exact knowledge; how
many babies were born blind in the
classic civilizations. how many chill
dren contracted blindness through neg
lect. we have no possible method OF
hnding oDt. We do know. however.
that today. in this age OF civilization
and enlightenment, Levane has de.
generated into a gross and criminal
careiessness in regard TO the eyes of
the newborn babe and the young.
growing child.
Whatever the facts OF the past have
present
tends more and more 10 the scIentihc
theory that practically all blindness is
an acquired and in nearly all cases an
unnecessary defect
No babies. one might almost say. are
born blind; some babies acquire blind
ness, others have blindness thrust upon
them. but fen. very few indeed, come
into the glad sunshine OF the world
sightlesH.
And yet in spite OF these facts. at
tested BY the best modern science. We
have Ia the United States nearly 10000
blind. And Furthermore we have a
large and certainly increasing proper
tion Of population, who, while not
totally blind. or even partly so, at the
same time are subject to not only in
tense physical suffering by reason OF
neglected eyes. bat to grave mental
and moral complications directly at
tributsbie thereto.
Indeed. Il is now generally conceded
that defective eyesight is responsible
for the average case OF youthful mental
fnefnciency. and facts recently brought
10 public notice by the investigations
and experiments OF the Philadeiphta
Medical Society so far 10 proving that
the first step in the reformation Of
the child delinquent is TO correct ard
obviste HIS visual defeets-in other
words. that Il is necessary in order to
'iive straight" that a boy or girl
should see straight"
Such. then, being the case. il Is not
surprising that q movement is on foot
70 make the care Of the eyes OF baby
mood, youth and adolescence the con-
-cern primarily OF society at large
rather than. as in the past OF the
medicsl man and the oculist-
HoWe
The answer is by legislation 1t i.
the only way, and 20 this end the New
York Association for the Blind is pre-
paring statistics based upon a censu,