The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1945-04-27

a German monopoly on the
worlds glass eye BUSINESS
monopoly which until recently
threatened thousands OF civilians
and wounded soldiers with the ne
cessity OF wearing black patches
instead OF artificial eyes-has been
broken b. American ingenuity.
Officials at McCloskey General
Hospital broke Army secrecy to
disclose full details OF the develop
ment in this country, by three
Army dentists, OF a new plastic
eye superior to anything turned
out by the scientists OF any land.
our new plastic eyes are SUI
perior in every way to the glass
ones the Germans have been turn
ing out for generations. said Mai.
K. A. Mitchell, chief OF the artifi-
cial eye laboratory at McCloskey.
They last a lifetime, they cant
be broken, and they defy detec-
ton"
only 20 Men Qualified
Only 90 men in the u. S. Army
can make the plastic eyes-which
won't be available to civilians until
after the war-and before they
started production late last year
the glass eye situation In the
United States was critical.
Back OF that was the German
monopoly on the glass eye indus
try. Handed down secrets Of their
trade from father to son, a few
German families who did their
work by Land had for years before
the war turned out almost all OF
the worlds artificial eyes.
The entire American supply
came from Germany. When war
came. 1t appeared black patches
would be in order when the reserve
supply ran out. No one in America,
It seemed. could even duplicate the
lifelike appearance Of the German
product
Then three dental officers. who
have turned their patents over to
the government for the duration,
stumbled on the secret of life.like
plastic eyes.
Now every Gil who loses an eye
In combat gets a replacement,
made especially for him to his exact
measurements.
Can't Spot Plastic One
1--WE tried to guess which one
was plastic when I'd see one of
our eye patients" said Brig Gen.
James A. Bethea, head OF McClos-
key hospital. ut can't be done"
The old glass eyes varied slight
ly in shade from a real eye. The
plastic eyes. made individually for
each patient. match perfectly. The
old glass eyes occasionally burst
when the wearer walked from a
hot room into the cold. The new
ones are indestructible. The old
glass eyes pitted and had to be
replaced as body acids wore on
them. The new ones are impervious
to tissue.
The job he's proudest OF, Maj.
Mitchell said. is the pair Of plastic
eyes he made for 1t. Wayland
Swain of Dalton. Ga, a young Of
fcer blinded in the explosion of
land mine in Europe.
He said his eyes were medium
blue, so we made him pair" said
the ma Cor His wife says they are
identical TO his real eyes. And
when nurses who don't know the
man is blind go into the room, they
always hand him something to
read"
Duplicate Eye Shading
First step In manufacture Of the
plastic eyes is painting OF thin
celluloid disc which becomes the
iris OF the eye and duplicates the
exact shading OF the patients ma
tural eye.
The iris disc is imbedded in a
! tiny plastic lens.
Using a new material, an allg
nate plastic mixed with water to
make a paste. the expert makes
an impression OF the patients eye
socket. II is used at body tempera-
ture and causes no pain or discom-
| fort, since il Is removed painless sly.
A wax model then is made, and