Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1910-04-08
HOW EYEST ]NES ACT
Their Movements When Placed
In Lime Juice or Vinegar.
HAVE APPEARANCE OF LIFE.

Their Motion Is Caused by Carbonic
Acid Gas Evolved by Contact With
the Liquid Aeid-The Cleansing Proc.
ess In Journey Over the EyebaII.
The druggist took a small bottle
from n drawer and emptied from Il n
few tiny objects that looked like fiat.
round bits of polished bone He pick
ed up one and banded Ii over for in
spection. One side of IL was marked
with numerous concentric grooves.
Tint is an eyestone." said the drug
gist. He poured Al IN tablespoonful or so
or liquid our of n bottle into a saucer
like dish and diluted IL with water
And this" said he. lis weak soIu-
ton of lime juice" The druggist took
one of the eyeStones and placed Il I'm
the solution. Presently it began to
move as II II were alive. it made It's
way slowly about in different direc-
tons in the liquid in mysterious
manuer.
That strange movement of the eve
stone" said the druggist. when plac-
ed in weak solution of lime Juice or
vinegar has given rise among Ignorant
and SuperStitious people to the notion
that IL has life and that IL loves vine
gar and loves to swim In II above ali
things But there is no more life i'm an
eyeStone than there is in paving
stone. IL * composed of cnIcareous
material and when placed in the solu.
lions named is made TO move about bv
carbonic acid gas. which is evolved by
contact with the liquid acid
These little stones and all genuine
eyestones once were the front doors
so to speak. of the shells of n little
moiiuScous animal that lives along the
South American east coasts The shell
OF that little creature is a univalye.
This cnlcareous formation Is OF the
UP end of the mollusk. and when Il
draws itself into its shell to ESCAPE
danger or go to sleep the eud. OF
course. is the last part that is drawn
INTO the cavity or mouth of the shell
where it fits so closely aud IN SO ha ri
that IL affords perfect protection ,o
the animal against it's enemies from
without
The natives collect these IittIe mo,
iuskS I'm large numbers for no other
purpose than To- secure the evestuues
as we call them. and they hold them
In great awe. believing them TO nos.
sess supernatural attributes Sailors
on tho vessels engaged IN the trut,
trade with those regions obtain IN.
stones from the natives ana brtpn
them mere Tor sale Ia the wholesale
uruEglSts. and there WIS u time when
the demand for them generally was
quite large.
There is nothing better to remove
foreign substances from The eve imam
one of these South American eve.
stones. which use is what gives thpm
their name. Many people think that |
oeiore using them II is necessary To |
put them In vinegar to give Thorn
iife.' but IL is not necessary nj All
The stone is inserted AT one corner Of
the eye. with the grooved side next 10
the lid. The pressure OF the eyebau
FORCES ~ 10 move about In the eye. and |
the grooves collect the foreign matter
and retain 1t. After making n thor |
ough circui. OF the eye the stone will |
come out ut the corner next to the |
nose No Inconvenience is caused nv
its presence
There are other eyestones. In the
mead OF our common crawfish there
are two little bones. just back OF and
beneath the eyes. which resemble the
South American eyestones. about the
only difference being that they are
smooth all over instead OF grooved on
one size. These crawfish bones are
known as eyestones and are used as
such In the west. but they have none
OF the virtues OF the real eyestone
Their proper name Is crab stones. In
roland and parts OF Russia quite a
trade Is found In the collecting OF
these crab stones. The crawfish are
taken and buried in deep pits. where
they are left to die and rot. The refuse
Is then washed and the stones are
picked out They are not used in
those countries as eyestones. but are
taken internally. faith in their benen-
cent stomachic properties being great"
New York Press