The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1906-07-12
A Census of the Blind and Deaf
in the United States
is Taken.
The FIGURES ARE THE MINIMUM
Percentage of Blindness per Thousand
of Population is Greater Among
Blacks Than Among Whites.
Deafness Is More Common Defect
in the Northern Part Of the
Country Than in the
Southern.

Washington, July 9.-About one per.
son in every 1900 was blind and one
in every $50 persons was deaf In the
United States in 1900, according to a
special census report on the blind and
deaf. just issued by the census Office.
The inquiry was conducted under
the direction of DR.. Alexander Graham
Bell, who determined the scope of the
investigation and wrote the text of the
report on the deaf.
The total number of blind in the
United States in 1900 was 6i.763, OF
whom 95,645 were totally blind and
29.11S partially blind These figures
however. the report says. can be only
considered as the minimum, as an un
known proportion of the blind were
not located by the enumeraters. OF
the total blind, 37,054 were males and
27,7O9 females. blindness is chiefly
cent. of the blind becoming so after
90 years of age. About one-tenth Of
the total number of blind were born So
The number of blind per 1000 of pop.
ulation was greater among the negroes
than among the whites, and greater
among the foreign born whites than
among the native whites. In about
five per cent. of the cases of blindness
reported the parents of the blind were
cousins. OF the blind whose parents
were so related 25 per cent were con.
eenitally blind, while among the blind
whose parents were not cousins the
proportion contenitally blind was only
6S per cent. OF the blind at least ten
years of age, 90 per cent. we're en-
gagged in some gainful occupation. The
percentage of persons engaged In pro-
fessional pursuits. trade and transpor.
tation and in manufacturing and me-
chanlcal Industries is larger among
the totally blind than among the gen.
eral population.
Deafness, on the whole, the report
says. is more common In the northern
part of the United States than in the
southern. and there are more deaf
of deaf is given as s9,2S7, OF whom 81
426 were totally deaf and 51.s61 par
TALLY deaf From the latter class. how
ever, are eliminated those merely
hard of hearing"
OF the totally deaf 52.5 per cent.
were males. Negroes constitute 11.5
per cent. of the general population and
only 32 per cent. of the deaf. That
the negroes seem less susceptible to
deafness than the whites. the report
says, II probably due In part to less
complete returns from the negro deaf.
OF the totally deaf, 81 per cent. were
so from childhood (under 20 years OF
age), ard SO per cent. from birth. or
the S9,2S7 persons returned as deaf,
55,501 were able to speak well, 9,417
imperfectly and the remainder not at
all. The report presents figures to
show that the schools for the deaf are
doing excellent work In teaching ar
ticulate speech. When the subject OF
deafness is considered from the point
OF view OF consanguinity. Il would seem
that heredity has played a part in pro-
ducing congenital deafness and the
deafness occurring in adult life;
where as deafness occurring in early
childhood, after birth and under age
of FIVE years probably to a large extent
adventitious. OF those at least 10
years of age among the deaf, 3S.5 per
cent were gainfully employed as com
pared with 500 per cent. among the
general population. OF the deaf who
were gainfully employed, s9.7 per cent
were found in occupations in which
perfect or even partial hearing is not
essential. Q.