The Washington times., 1914-02-02
Blind Girl Sets
Type by the
Sound
By FLORENCE E. YoDER.
' ATHERINE L. GRADY, blind
linCtVpe o0erafor

~ proficient in the operation oi
machine that has keys, Catherine
aoN, though totally blind, mas be.
me a linotype operator.
" bright, blue eyes gaze unsee.
3" at the keys, a trained ear i,
NFays ready, and faithful; sensitiy,
gNrs are ever sure, as Catherine
raay manipulates the keys. Thr
cry OF the remarkable effort of th,
30 girl and the kindly patience o,
torn teacher is romantic, and q
Tie sao' too. for after all her effort
only place that could employ her
Is no machine.
b, means ot q dummy keyboard
with only eight weeks practice,
bhnd girl was able to set an ar
PIE for a magazine after only three
uLs practice on the keys of a real
sChine.
Curtis de Neane, her teacher, q
Pong man il his early tweuties,
rough his success in the teaching
Miss Grady has opened another
Dor of progress for the blind. The
iDotype Bulletin for December in
'rses the feasibility Of the use Of
1ot|Pes by the blind. and marks its
'aSion as another evidence of the
p Satillty OF this universal" com
bsrIE machine.
Does Not Know 81 Can't"
sr Il, cheerful, and as sure Of herself
oRe who can see, Miss Grady is q
rhS lesson 10 everyone with whom
comes IN contact. Every opportun-
has been seized eagerly. and the
o7t made of Il. There is no Il can't
her vocabulary. She picks out those
" 50 which she should be able to do.
&c which, when known well, do not
q re vision. Then she borrows the
Fos Of sone one else, until she has
a-7ed. Practice. constant 'sticktuit-
cess and hopefulness bring success
ct.
ne Maryland Institute for the Blind
P zht Catherine Grady all that if
ould. She received diploma and
1en for three years taught music in
pc institution, coming TO Washington
I'Ne ana TO work at the Columbia
ciE technic Institute for the blind
oW she is employed by the National
iDI@Fy for the Blind. in this city. for
Gays each week On the seventh
ne teaches a private class in music at
er home on Twentieth street north
"aen talking 10 Miss Grady. if was
stu 10 keep in mind that she could
not see. Her voice had no dull mono
tony. Her smiles were frequent, and
hibited a spirited self-assUra nce t ed
polse mat was a continual Surprise
der acuteness Of hearing vas tba o1iv
lue 70 her affiiction. She NOT only
eaTd more quickly than the ord,narv
eEson but was a far more intelligent
No courteous listener. Words yere NOT
n only things to which she paid at
enGon, Tor she knew if moved ever
o slightly.
Detects Mistakes By Sound.
" course, I would know il had
NJ e an error on the machine" She
gned arnusedly. s.I know by the
ID whether or not the right key has
c struck. ! have nothing to distract
b, attention"
coming serious. she said. softly.
you zee I had aIr. De Neane as
p teacher. He understands all blind
70 Z so veil that we can learn easily
rom MIN. He was the person who con-
F. ed the idea in the first place and
b insisted upon teaching me upon a
y owed linotype machine.
0ung De Neane looked embarrassed
PHd blushed just like any normal boy,
p his eyes shone with the light of
p omplishment, and ft was not hard to
+ that he Was proud of his work and
b I!s pupil. He has never tried teach
rG. but as secretary OF the institute.
head Of the print shop. ne has
p ven OF invaluable assistance to Mr,
ann; the principal, and to the mem
0e-s Of the institute. He is a wash
i ton boy, and has been associated
II n Mr.. Swami for eight years.
nee there are few organizations
ca would care at first to trust their
= * 70 blind operator, Miss Grady
p es not see her way clear to earn
lr~ living in this capacity until tle
70 Cmbia Institute obtains a linotype
>hine. Then she will be employed
It an operator.
Institute Needs Linotype.
. cached on the subject Of the ma
. &c, Mr. Swami said:
there is no hope for US unless
appropriation is made by Con-
sg. and that Is a hard task.
his institution is semi-self-sup-
}, ting. Given a linotype machine
rich would cost about S3,sOo. and
would become almost self-support-
2.
We do not need to make a great
Il OF money, only enough TO keep
Those who can see do not realize
rW much II means to the blind per
IN 70 De able to earn enough to take
~ the stigma of charity and the
ing OF dependence upon others.
Lhis Is an industrial institution. a
'.fce where blind people may have
. ptoyment. We make broons cane
airs weave, fold circulars, and pub
our magazine, Voices From
- ELand. We can do anything that
"es not require sight.
one young man here is 2 piano
IL we could only get q Ifnotvpe
tchine we could do much more yToTI,
q earn much more money But
ppose IL will be another case ~
sappointment-and we have had so
any"
Mr.. Swann's plea was pathetic II
ought to me the thought that per-
Aps the kind-hearted of the National
Dital-and there are many of them
are-might be willing to help. How