Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1910-12-21
WONDERFUL WORK
Of AN INDIAN LAD
Who IS BLIND
Newspaper Man Tells of Sue
cesSfuI Education Of Sight
less at New Mexico Institute
for Blind at AIamogordo.
(By l.. l.. k~Iinefelter.)
editor of the Obar PrOgress.)

' 1850 - fAAf NV tN y
about fifteen years of age recite {
humorous selection, and his deliver,
indicated that he thoroughly appre'
eiated the humor. | had always un'
derstood that the American Indian
was devoid of the sense of humor
tsut here was a case of original, not
TO say aboriginal. humor.
Surprise Ne. ,. learned that this
Indian boy could not speak a word
Of English or Spanish a year ago, and
now he speaks and reads and writes
both remarkably well,
Surprise No. 3. This Indian boy
is totally blind.
Surprise No. 4. 1t was in New
Mexico thai ] saw and heard these
things. / had somehow got the idea
into my head hat it is in the east
one must lock for u~p-to-date prog
ress in education. This is clearly a
mistake, however. since this boy was
born at Laguna, New Mexico and
never has been outside Of the terri
tory.
About a year ago he was placed in
the New Mexico Institution for the
Blind at A~lamogordo and his entire
education dates from hat time. |
heard him read the same lessons that
are read by boys of his grade in our
public schools, saw him write, and
saw him do sums" in arithmetic.
All these things did Yiacero
Gashtea, the Indian boy, learn to do
by the use of his fingers instead Of
his eyes. A little further on | will
tell you something about the way he
does this. But just now / want to
say that Yiacero not only reads and
writes and ciphers, but he works, and
fIa We and cin0g and lanaAC and
marches and drills, and takes care
of his rooms, and when | say that
Ylacero does these things, l mean
that about thirty other unfortunate
blind boys and girls ranging from
little tots of six to gentlemen and
ladies of twenty-five or over, all do
the same. And when these young
people leave the school after q few
years, most of them will be able to
earn their own living at some trade
or occupation which they nave been
taught and while at school.
Broom-making is one OF the handi-
crafts In which blind people become
proficient, and l. have been told that
the best judges sof the quality OF
'brish' as the broom straw is called,
are blind persons.
But they learn to do many things.
The boys learn to drive nails and saw
boards; the girls learn to sew, to
roo and to take care of a house.
If they care for music they learn
to sing, to play the piano, guitar,
mandolin and other Instruments.
They learn department and you win
not find in n public school a bet-
ter behaved or more earnest and will
ing body of young people. nor a
more cheerful one either.
sHha ,Il NATHAN thnt ~IlinAKnpe |
somehow Is associated with feeble
ness of intellect is a g~rfevous mis-
take. The case of u. S. Senator GoreI
Is proof Of that.
But ] said | would explain how our
Indian boy (and all the rest) learned
to "a with his fingers.
or course we all know that for
many years books have been printed
with raised letters like those o.
ordinary print and that the blind
to read these by passing the
tips of then fingers over them.
But that is not the way they are
taught nowadays, A page of blind
printing as It is used today is made
up entirely OF small raised points.
The system was invented by Louis
a French teacher of the
blind. 1t Is called "Braile." In his
a modification known as
American Braile" is generally used.
If you or l were to pass our fingers
a page of Braile in the dark, we
might think we had come in contact
a flat nutmeg crater, except
hat the points are not sharp enough
o hurt the fingers.
Now the very simplicity of this
makes it hard to explain.
If o will take a lead pencil
nd napplF furn IAfg an Yan,r 49,,
bout one-sixteenth Of an inch to the
light of the other, then two more
lots directly under these. and two
more under these, you will then have
he six points which form the foun-
Iation Of the Braile OF point" sys-
EN-, and with these six points and
heir positions, not only the entire
lphabet. but all the numerals and
eventy-two contractions or sign
lords are expressed. Every one of
hese dots or points is numbered and
hese numbers lever change. The
PIPER left hand point is L. that be-
Nv it is ? and below hat is 3. The
PIPER right hand point is 4, with 5 r
6 below IT, /
For each letter a different com
nation is made. and to hear a class
{ blind pupils recite the alphabet
'ould sound about like this: "A. l.
"a; CS-6: d, S-2-6," and so on.
BY placing his fingers on a letter
pupil can tell at once by the
osition of the points whether It is
4, or 3-5. or any other combina- L
The advantage of this is hat the L
upil has To learn only six positions, "A
! Of which are directly under his o
myers, instead of learning twenty "
X outlines for the letters and ten L
n the Figures, by the old raised let "
r system. ol
In tho school work the same text n
are used as in the public Is
hools, the same lessons being d,
tinted in Braile. ri
Now | want To saw a word about a
e teachers. LOT
We read much about Helen Keller. bl
e wonderful blind. deaf mute who NJ
the regular Harvard course a n
" years ago. but we seldom read OF
Annie sullivan. the equally w
onderful teacher whose patience ri
ID skill made Helen Keller's sue fof
- possible. Is
And as / listened 10 the recitations "a
ID saw the work OF the thirty blind i'm
.ildren IN the New Mexico Insti- p.
6 Tor the Blind I could not help be
iIHlg that back OF all this is a 81
lrld OF patient and painstakinr
BY conscientious teachers that an
e world does not properly appre- Jo
tte. 4,
Who are the teachers at this New hs