The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1907-03-27
LACK Of VIGILANCE
ON PART Of
BOARDS
A North Dakota Specialist
Writes on Subject of Eye
Treatment.
AN IMPORTANT QUESTION
And One Which Fathers and
Mothers Should Take Good
Care Of.
AN IMPORTANT QUESTION

written by North Dakota Specialist
Tor the Board of Healthy
While there has been a certain
amount Of attention given to the con-
ditions of the eyes and ears of the
children in the public schools in our
state. there has been lack of appre.
citation and vigilance on the part of
school boards, teachers and county SUI
perintendents to carry out assiduously
the efforts made by the state board Of
health, in SO far as the laws of North
Dakota allow.
1t Is rather for the sake of recapitu-
lation than to bring up new subject
that this article is published. 1t is a
fact that the importance of examining
the school children for eye and ear de-
fects has spread far and wide, and
many of the eastern states have en-
acted laws which make such examina-
tons compulsory from year to year,
and 1t is with just pride that the legis-
lature of our sister state, Minnesota,
has given due consideration to the
Timberlake bill (house file $500 requir-
ing the examination of eyes and ears
once a year, in September, and it no
doubt will become a law in Minnesota.
With simplified methods OF examina-
ton, which can be carried out by any
Intelligent and conscientious teacher,
many parents will be notified that their
children are not physically able TO
carry on the work expected Of them,
not because of mental dullness, but be-
cause of defective hearing or eyesight.
1t is indeed pitiable to think of the
hundreds of children with defective
eyesight scolded for their stupidity, or,
suffering from headaches and eye
strain, abused in many ways on ac-
count of their infirnities, because no
one has really taken pains to discover
the nature of their trouble.s
There Is perhaps no truer applica-
ton of the old adage that "a stitch in
time saves nine" than when We con-
slider the diseases which are prone to
attack the eyes and ears OF Adde'S
cents. Children acquire their eye or
ear troubles, in the majority OF cases.
during the first fifteen years OF their
lives, and it has been demonstrated in
so many instances that it is hardly
necessary to mention it. Early atten-
ton in such cases has generally saved
them from ultimate blindness and
deafness. The truant class is largely
recruited from the scholars suffering
such defects, and from the records of
the institutions, such as reformatory
schools and others, it is found that the
large percentage of criminals suffer
from one or both of these Affections.
Realizing these facts and reaping
our information from statistics worthy
OF our observation, no greater appeal
should be needed for the fond parent
than to carry out the warning brought
about by the teachers investigation.
The states of Massachusetts,, Connecti-
cut, Pennsylvania and Vermont have
gone so far in their methods to pro-
tect these afflicted children that they
have requested a card from the physi-
clans who had care of the child, salts
flying the teacher that the child had
been considered free from his afflic-
tons and had received proper treat
ment for the same.
1t would be entering upon a wide
field to discuss at any length the diff
ferent abnormal conditions of the eye
which can afflict the scholar and yet
elude the parent. The fact that a
child can not answer the standard
tests should be enough to necessitate
a medical examination, thereby ascer-
tanning without question whether it
was due to passing dangerous condi-
ton.
1t is true that our most watchful
fathers and mothers are on the look
out for such abnormal conditions and
would not tolerate a headache or eye
ache, dizziness, a sense of strain in the
eyes or a feeling OF mental confusion,
double vision, ETC., in one of their chill
dren very long without giving it due
consideration, and it is for the great
majority that this timely warning is
given.
Statistics of different countries,
where Germany probably excels all
others, showing that Is per cent of
the scholars in some schools were
found to suffer from eye defects alone,
could be gone over and entered into
infinitely to convince our readers, but
such Is not necessary.
Suffice to say that with our close ap-
plication to school work, our many
new occupations requiring keen and
constant eyesight, the number OF at
iASSSo OS CD 10 81 Colly oA LILO SlCdSc,
and il conditions found in the new
born are not checked at an early peri
cd or in a proper manner the coming
generations are bound to suffer from
all the symptoms arising from these
conditions and leave us race with
impaired eyesight, such as Germany is
of today.
While in infancy and early child
hood the predominant abnormal con-
dition is, no doubt, the want of proper
focusing of the rays in the eye, maxi
ing the child either far sighted, astig-
matte, or both, many eyes during the
early years OF school life pass from
that condition into one more to Re
dreaded than the former two, although
1t may be free from many unpleasant
and decided symptoms, namely, near