New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-11-09
BLIND CHILDREN
MAY GAIN SIGHT
DR.. Richards Says It's No
Longer a Miracle to
Restore Vision.
SCHOOL INSPECTION
RIDICULOUS FARCE"
Children Should Be Examined
Before Being Placed in
Glasses, lie Says.

Long ago IL would have been a mir
sclc Il blind boys and girls had their
sight restored to see the great out-of-
doors. To-day. however, this has been
accomplished for two-thirds Of the 200
in the Board Of Education's classes for
/ the sightiess. according TO DR.. Will
lam Martin Richards, who spoke last
night at the Academy Of Medicine.
"Our school medical inspection is a
ridiculous farce" he said. If our gov
ernments Will give thorough medical
schools inspection-including eye exam
nations, both for diseases and refrac-
fraction Of the eyes-to all children be-
fore they are put in classes for the
blind; if the law compelled all obste-
trical attendants 10 drop a two per cent
solution of nitrate of silver into the
eyes of every new born infant, whether
its parents are susI ected Of diseases
or not, YOU VIII abolish blindness cX-
cept in cases where there has been an
INJURY"
Dr. Richards has been examining
GHIUFtH
treating them with satisfactory re-
suits. They have been cured so gu OK
~. he said. because the commonest
trouble with these boys and girls IL
extreme near-sichtedness, which, mis-
taken for blindness, has led to increas-
ing loss OF vision.
"The next most common trouble is
cataract. sometimes enough advanced
TO be operated upon; and another di-
sease among these children is Excess
sive astigmatism; which so distorts OBJ
jects that the patient is thought :"
be blind. Ulcer Of that part OF the
eye we see through is common and
can be cured"
Jack Reads a Newspaper.
Dr. Richards described groups Of
supposedly blind children who came to
his Office. All had been learning to
read by the touch method. They were
quiet and respondent before, but when
proper treatment and glasses were
given them they laughed and chat
tered.
He put glasses on Jack and asked
II he could read. NO" said Jack, Is
he held newspaper list!essly' ! can I
even see"
But soon his eyes became accus-
toned. and he brought the sheet near
by golly, I can see!" he cried. 81
can see; ! can read!
Glasses were fitted on Gladys, and
she read slowly from the newspaper;
London. November SEVENTH was
oficiallv-announced in-Berlin-to-
day that the army of Von-Von-'
Won" and she stopped before the
mighty Hindenburg.
"How do ! look? How do / look
each would ask when he returned from
that mysterious room where vision
was restored after years Of darkness.
Dr. Richards continued:
in the Sunfowcr Home. Brooklyn,
found a kindergarten with eight chill
dren sitting in a circle, all supposedly
blind. Two of these can be made 70
see with glasses; another, and possibly
a fourth, DR.. Charles W. Kinney can
give sight to by cutting out an arti-
fetal pupil.
Skill and Love Can Aid.
"You will ask INV it is possible that
such a hdeous mistake can be made IN
the cases of two-thirds OF these chl.-
dren. The answer IS very simple. IL
all is a question of skill and love com
bined. Plenty of men in New YORK
have the skill 70 make these little pS-
tients see. but till now no one has htd
the time. skill and love TO hunt out the
real factor in these cases.
"The whole work can be inaugurated
throughout the United States and Cen
ada for $4,000. / intend to save this
amount and push The work through un-
less some one gives me the money in
the mean time"
He concluded that it was cheaper to
spend only Sl,000,000 year for medi-
cal school inspection in this city than
to spend 100000 every year re-edu-
eating the children not promoted-de-
fective children Of to-day who become
the criminals of tomorrow.