The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1909-11-03
TIRED EYES.
Some Of the Ways In Which They Gel
Needed Rest.

Needed Rest.
The eye may be rested after pro-
tracted use by merely closing the lid.
A photographer who does a good deal
Of delicate and trying work Of retouch-
ing negatives tells me that the sim
pie habit Of closing her eyes when
they begin to feel tired from the work
has helped her to keep them In very
good condition. But further rest may
also be obtained by the playing OF,
so to speak, OF one sense against an
other by diverting activity. II We
stand and watch q circus parade fos
any length Of time our eyes soon be-
come tired by the sights and fea-
tures," but the bursts Of music from
the bands. by stimulating the ear, re-
leave and freshen the eye. Musical
comedy Of the present day presents an
excellent opportunity to show how the
tax upon the eye by the costumes,
colorings and lights Is relieved by the
Interpolation Of music and songs. In
other words, opera, light or heavy, fs
complex OF song and color harmo-
MES so adjusted as to balance admir-
ably Of strain of stimulation on the
senses OF sight and hearing. 1t does
not require very sensitive organism
to be fatigued by the chatter and clat.
ter OF an afternoon tea" by the
sound of many voices all pitched In
the strained keys Of excitement. But
the refreshments served on all such
occasions perform useful function.
They relieve the tax on the ear by
exercising the sense Of taste as well
as the muscles Of digestion. The
writer experiences very much
stronger desire for food after an oper-
attic performance. In the former case,
stimulation is applied to one sense
with the consequent result Of over
exercise; in the latter the distribu-
tion of stimuli between two senses Is
less likely to produce overtaxation.
The popular concert where foods are
served has a physiological basis.
A person who had been a proof read
er for twenty years states that he be-
lieves his good eyesight is due to the
fact that he early formed the habit OF
looking up from his work every two
or three minutes and allowing his eyes
to gaze at some distant object through
the window. Such habits are probably
very common among those engaged in
work which requires such short TO-
cusing of the eyes. They have uncon'
sciously acquired the habit Of gazing
1t rested the eye. Drivers and motor
men, as a class, have unusual sight
The demand of exercising the eye in
those occupations by change of focus
seems to have tonic effect. Looking
from one object to another not only
affords muscular but sensory exercise
A change of form affords a change OF
stimulation for the retina. Different
colors may be said to afford qualita-
tive variations in stimuli. The colors
of the spectrum stand for variation
of wave length. Under ordinary condi-
tons, red tires the eye sooner than
green or brown. In the summer, the
eye Is rested by the change from the
glare of city payements and red brick
walls to the green of the country or
the greenish-blue Of the ocean. The
first snow of winter affords u great re-
lief to the eye which has seen so much
Of the brownness of fall. A child Is
so affected upon rising in the morning
to find the ground covered with snow
that he shouts with glee. A new world
has been brought to him by a change
of dress upon ,he ground. A teacher
describes her feeling one morning
upon discovering as she looked out of
the window that a warm rain had re-
moved the snow which had lasted so
long She welcomed the sight of brown
ground as a contrast to the previous
white covering and said. "The SEN
satIon experienced was like a vaca-
tion to the eye."-Dr. Paul w. Colds
bury in Boston Medical and Surgical
Journal.