Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-06-14
DEAFNESS SPREAD
SEEN IN SLEEPING
Expert Declares Children Az
fected by Resting on
Backs.


been trained from infancy to sleep on
their Stomachs, instead Of on their
backs and sides, it was declared yester-
day by o. N. Kelly, executive director
OF the American Federation Of Organi-
cations for the Deaf, with headquarters
at 1887 Thirty-flfth street.
Mr.. Kelly quoted DR.. George B. Nc
Auliffe of the Cornell University Medi-
cal College, who declared that when
one lies on ones face "the end OF the
EuStachian tube in the ear is about an
inch higher than the end of the throat"
and anything containing germs tends
to move from the ear toward the throat
instead Of in the opposite direction"
DepIOres Spread OF Defect.
Because impaired hearing is mot a
visible defect, like blindness and lame
ness" the world has been more or less
indifferent to it, Mr.. Kelly said.
He told of a boy whom he called
Horace Wilson. He seemed to be
keen 10 do anything in school except
pay attention to the teacher. When
she scolded him, his only noticeable re-
action was to grin at her in a most eX-
asperating manner
"She finally sent him home. advising
his parents he was too dumb to learn
His mother asked the principal Of the
SCHOOL 10 give MIN dIlOIueT CIlduCS, dIlu
1t was decided to have a physician ex'
anime him, the theory being his
'dumbness' might be due to i'll health.
The examination revealed the boys
hearing was defective. Instead Of being
ousted from school, he was given
private lip-reading lessons. Thereafter,
he progressed satisfactorily. graduating
with honors. Today he is a professor
at a great university.
Unaware of AfflictiOn.
>"Despite the fact biologists claim most
cases of deafness can be cured II
properly treated during childhood, there
are approximately 5000, 900 children IN
this country whose hearing is more or
less defective.
Hundreds of thousands Of school
children are behind in their studies
without knowing what ais Them he
said. And the sad part OF 1t Is that
every one of these cases of impaired
hearing-no matter how seemingly in
significant-is potentially serious and
may be the forerunner of chronic pro-
gressive deafness
THE schoolboy with defective hear
ing" he went on, drops back with
younger children who are his interiors
in physique. No wonder he finds HIM
self out of tune with his environment!
nornic nnisf1t, become a delinquent Oh
end UP as a dependent. In any event.
his lot is unhappy, and so is that OF
those with whom he lives"
Urges Hearing Tests.
In Mr. Kelly's opinion, school officials
''no longer have any excuse for not
providing adequate hearing tests
without some such device as the
~kN,. !, 1nt0RfinO in1nalre0
hearing is extremely difficult. 1T is
possible" Mr.. Kelly said, Ito lose as
much as 40 per cent of our hearing
without realizing It,"
There is a great difference between
deaf child and one who is merely hard
of hearing. however, Mr.. Kelly said.
The former, he added, lis either born
deaf or has become deaf before learn
ing to speak and understand language,
while the latter is nearly normal and
loses his ability to hear only under I'M
usual circumstances"
In this connection it is worth noting
that biologists and psychologists claim
persons who are hard of hearing are
subject to fits of melancholy. Realiza-
ton that their hearing is becoming de-
fective leaves many of them socially
and economically stranded"
Some become suspicious and never
seem able to accept criticism or sights, =
Mr.. Kelly went on, while others be-
come depressed"
Deaf Employees Efficient.
The theory persons who are hard OF
hearing are less efficient than others Is
all wrong, according to Mr.. Kelly.
1.-The hard of hearing employe Is not
distracted by outside noises. He wastes
no time in idle chatter. Fully realizing
his handicap he can be depended upon
to stick to his job and to concentrate
on every phase of 1t" he said.
To help those with impaired hear
ing to overcome their handicap the
federation has organized more than 100
leagues in all parts of the country. AS
for those who live on farms or IN the
smaller toWns-they may affiliate with
the Everywhere League, branch OF the
federation, which furnishes advice, in
formation and small-group contacts
through correspondence.
AS a result of the federations work,
persons with defective hearing now use
dooFlights instead of ordinary door
bells, and their telephones are equip
ped with amplifiers which enable them
to carry on conversations even over
long distances.
the last analysis, is really only feeling,
DR. Robert H. Gault has designed an
instrument called the televator, the
purpose Of which is to teach the deaf
to hear through the palms OF their
hands.
Uses Light Waves,
DR.. Max A. Goldstein, director of the
Central Institute for the Deaf, st.
Louis. Is using the osiso, an instrument
designed by the research department
of the Westinghouse Co. 1t translates
sound waves into light waves, SO ar
ranged that an instructor can talk Into
one microphone and a deaf pupil into
the ether, thus producing actual
INSTALLATION Of speech waves for COM
pafison.
Other instruments make 1t possible
to hear by means of method OF sound
transmission known as bone-eonduc-
ten.
A dispatch from Prague, quoting from
the current issue of CzechoSlovaktan
medical journal, describes how hol-
low tooth provided an "ear" for
deaf person to hear radio program.
Some research work is being done on
the theory poisons arising from incom-
plete digestion may be. the cause OF
many cases Of deafness. Treatments
in some of these cases are said to have
caused startling improvements In hear
ing.
The American biological Society has
has provided a 100000 fund for the
maintenance of a research department
at Johns Hopkins University, Balti-
more washington University, st.
Louis, also is doing research work, as
is the Clarke School for the Deaf,
Northampton, Mass.
Everyone is looking forward to the
| Anchor. Rar Teath