Evening star., 1935-08-04
Three Members of Congress Who are Blind
Admit No Handicap Because of Affliction

Senator, so he would instantly know
him. Before she could do this, the
man, who hadn't spoken a word. put
his fingers on his lips, bidding Mrs
Gullickson be silent.
Then he turned to Senator Schall
and said, Hello, Tom, how are you?"
"The Senator" says Mrs. Gullick-
son, "hesitated for just the fraction
of a second. Then he smiled, and
said. why, hello yourself, Jim; it's
been a long time since we've met "
SchalI a Wide Reader.
Mrs. Gullickson and her husband,
who also is in Senator Schalls Office,
read to him onstantly-history, eco
nomics, newspapers. They read much
of his mail to him. At night, at
home, Mrs. Schall reads and reads
and reads. For relaxation, it's de-
tective story. More often, it's docua
ments and papers.
When he's preparing speech, he
shuts himself alone in his office and
plans it out in his mind. Often he
holds an indelible pencil in his hand,
jots notes down on pad OF paper.
But usually the pencil is not sharp
ened. II it Is, he uses the unsharp-
ened end. When he Is through max
ing notes, he calls in Mrs. Gullickson
and dictates; often with very little
revision.
When Matt Dunn first came to the
House from Pittsburgh two years
ago, he said to his secretary.s"1 hope
they give me an office with a nice
view; I like nice scenery"
And that was rather startling, TOR
Matt Dunn is blind. But he loves
flowers. His Office is filled with them;
window boxes blossom on the ledges.
He rejoices that If you, not he,
stand at his window you can look
out at a fountain in the green court
yard of the House Office Building.
Representative Dunn, like Senator
Gore, knows the bitter truth that
lightning can strike twice In the same
place. When he was IL years old.
he lost the sight of his right eye,
through an accident. He was news
boy and went to live in NeWsboys'
Home In Pittsburgh. One night, when
he was 20, he was having friendly
wrestling match at the home and lost
the sight of his left eye.
He went through a school for the
blind; he went back to selling news
papers, as a dealer; he joined an in
surance firm, of which he still is a
member. He married. And he went
to the Pennsylvania Legislature in
1926.
Happy Congress Member.
In Congress here, he's one of the
best-matured, happiest members. He's
always Joking. He loves to dance: al
ways does, unless it's too big and too
public a crowd. He loves music; plays
the piano.
Ingenious, he has rigged up pair
of loud-ticking little clocks on the
door frames between his private Office
and his waiting room.
One clock is at the right OF the
door; the other, at exactly the same
level. to the left. BY careful attention
to the tickings, he can accurately esti-
mate just where the opening of the
door is, and walk through with as fast
and as firm step, minus a cane, as
if he had perfect vision.
Blindness has so sharpened his sense
of hearing that he can recognize a
member, who is speaking, from his
voice, whereas his sighted colleagues
can't even tell who it is from looking
at him. So great is the confusion.
His loyal secretary. Miss McChesney.
relates proudly that often member
will pluck Mr.. Dunn's sleeve. as he sits
on the floor of the House listening to
debate, and will whisper Who the
dickens is speaking?" And Mr.. Dunn
always knows.
Miss McChesney reads to Mr.. Dunn
frequently. But he also does a lot of
reading himself, in the Braille books
for the blind. Back In the Pennsyl-
vania Legislature, he worked for PEN
sions for the blind, and other aids to
them. In Washington, as chairman of
the Subcommittee on Unemployment
of the powerful Labor Committee. he
is destined to play an increasingly
more important part in this years
legislation.
fcopyright 1898. by North American
Newspaper Alliance. 1nc.D