Part 25

The enumerators reported a total of 101,123 persons alleged to be blind as defined in the instructions contained in the schedules, but this number was greatly reduced as a result of the correspondence directly with the individuals, 8842 reporting that the alleged defect did not exist, and 6544 that they were blind only in one eye but were able to see with the other, and hence did not come within the scope of the inquiry. No replies were received in 19,884 cases in which personal schedules were sent, although repeated inquiries were made; consequently these cases were dropped. In 380 cases the personal schedules returned were too incomplete for use, and in 75 cases duplication was discovered. The number of cases remaining for statistical treatment, after making the eliminations and corrections, was 64,763, representing 35,645 totally blind, and 29,118 partially blind. This number, however, can be considered only as the minimum, as an unknown proportion of the blind were not located by the enumerators, and doubtless a considerable proportion of the 19,884 persons who failed to return the personal schedules should be included in the total.

"Blindness, either total or partial, is so largely a defect of the aged, and occurs with so much greater frequency as the age advances and the population diminishes, that in any comparison of the proportion of the blind in the general population of different classes, such as native and foreign-born whites, or white and coloured, the age distribution of the population of each class should be constantly borne in mind. The differences in this respect account for many of the differences in the gross ratios, and it is only when ratios are compared for classes of population of identical ages that their relative liability to blindness can be properly inferred."

Table II. shows the classification, by degree of blindness, of the blind under twenty years of age, twenty years of age and over, and of unknown age, with respect to colour and nativity, with the number at the specified ages per million of population in the same age-group.

The relationship or consanguinity of parents of the 64,763 blind was reported in 56,507 cases, in 2527 (or 4.5%) of which the parents were related as cousins.

In 57,726 cases the inquiry as to the existence of blind relatives was answered; 10,967 (or 19%) of this number reported that they had blind relatives.

Of the 2527 blind persons whose parents were cousins, 993 (or 39.3%) had blind relatives,--844 having blind brothers, sisters or ancestors, and 149 having blind collateral relatives or descendants.

Of the 53,980 blind whose parents were not related, 9490 (or 17.6%) had blind relatives, 7395 having blind brothers, sisters or ancestors, and 2095 having blind collateral relatives or descendants.

It was found that, of the 2527 blind whose parents were cousins, 632 (or 25%) were congenitally blind, of whom 350 (or 55.4%) had also blind relatives of the classes specified; while, among the 53,980 whose parents were not so related, the number of congenitally blind was 3666 (or but 6.8%), of whom only 1023 (or 27.9%) had blind relatives.

France.

In 1883 the number of blind in France was estimated at 32,056, the total population of the country being 38,000,000; 2548 of the blind were under, and 29,508 above, 21 years of age; of the former 857 were receiving instruction in 21 schools supported by the state, by the city of Paris, by some of the departments, and by some religious bodies. The four Parisian institutions are the Institution Nationale des Jeunes Aveugles, the Ecole Braille (founded in 1883), the Etablissement des Soeurs Aveugles de St Paul (founded in 1852), and that of the Freres de Saint Jean de Dieu (founded in 1875).

TABLE III.--_The Blind, by Degree of Blindness and Age-Periods._

+--------------------------+----------+----------+-----------+ | | The | The | The | | Age-Period. | Blind. | Totally | Partially | | | | Blind. | Blind. | +--------------------------+----------+----------+-----------+ | Number-- | | | | | All Ages | 64,763 | 35,645 | 29,118 | | Under 10 years | 2,307 | 1,262 | 1,045 | | 10-19 years | 6,001 | 2,861 | 3,140 | | 20-29 " | 4,861 | 2,851 | 2,010 | | 30-39 " | 5,024 | 3,077 | 1,947 | | 40-49 " | 6,504 | 3,778 | 2,726 | | 50-59 " | 8,530 | 4,791 | 3,739 | | 60-69 " | 10,507 | 5,835 | 4,672 | | 70-79 " | 11,421 | 6,132 | 5,289 | | 80-89 " | 7,490 | 3,885 | 3,605 | | 90-99 " | 1,596 | 851 | 745 | | 100 years and over | 232 | 163 | 69 | | Age unknown | 290 | 159 | 131 | | Number per 1,000,000 | | | | | population of same age--| | | | | All ages | 852 | 469 | 383 | | Under 10 years | 128 | 70 | 58 | | 10-19 years | 384 | 183 | 201 | | 20-29 " | 351 | 206 | 145 | | 30-39 " | 478 | 293 | 185 | | 40-49 " | 845 | 491 | 354 | | 50-59 " | 1,655 | 930 | 725 | | 60-69 " | 3,396 | 1,886 | 1,510 | | 70-79 " | 8,136 | 4,368 | 3,768 | | 80-89 " | 22,022 | 11,423 | 10,599 | | 90-99 " | 52,746 | 28,125 | 24,621 | | 100 years and over | 66,210 | 46,518 | 19,692 | | Age unknown | 1,446 | 793 | 653 | +--------------------------+----------+----------+-----------+

Germany.

The number of the blind in Germany was about 39,000, or 870 per million in 1885. The number of institutions was 28, nearly all being educational, with a total of 2139 pupils. All these institutions, except two which are supported entirely by private munificence, are largely assisted by the state, the communes or the provinces. Seventeen of them derive their entire requirements from the state, so that they are quite independent of private charity, while the remainder are only supplemented from public funds so far as the private contributions fall short of the expenses.

Saxony system.

The following extracts were made from an official communication from Hofrath Buttner, director of the institution for the blind in Dresden, to the royal commission, concerning the care and supervision (_Fursorge_) of the blind after their discharge from the institution:--

"When twenty years of age, the blind are usually discharged from the institution. Long experience has taught us that the care and supervision of the blind after their discharge from the institution are quite as important as their education and training in the institution. It would, in our opinion, be unjust to remove them from their sad surroundings, educate and accustom them to higher wants, and then allow them to sink backward into their former miserable way of life. After much deliberation it was decided to remain in connexion with the discharged blind, to visit them in their places of abode, to learn their wants, to study the difficulties which they experienced in supporting themselves independently, and, as far as possible, to remove their grievances. Director Georgi began this work in 1843. Director Reinhard continued it from 1867 to 1879, and the present director has followed the same path. With the knowledge of these difficulties the _Fursorge_ (care) for discharged blind steadily advanced, and has won the confidence of the Saxon people. It was decided that, on the discharge of the blind person, the director should select a trustworthy person, residing in his future place of abode, to give him advice and practical help, to protect him from imposition, and to keep up communication with the director. If this guardian is unable to advise or help, he then writes to the director, who, if necessary, comes to the place, and this is all the easier as he travels free on all railways in Saxony. The result of these visits, as well as all communications from the guardian, the letters from the blind person, and every document relating to him, are entered in a register kept at the institution. These guardians are respectable, benevolent, practical men, capable of procuring custom for their wards. But there was no doubt that, in spite of these arrangements, the discharged blind were unable to support themselves without the assistance of capital, whether in money or outfit. The blind man can do as good work as the man who can see; but as a rule he does not work so quickly, and if the man who is not blind has to use every exertion to support himself and his family, the blind man to do the same requires some special help, without which he will either not be able to compete, or will have to lead a life of great privation.

"The first difficulty when a blind pupil is starting in life is to provide himself with the necessary tools and material. These the institution supplies to him, and continues through life to afford him moral and material help; and by this means the greater part of the blind are enabled to save money for sickness and old age. Those who cannot return to their relations cannot at once meet all their expenses, and the weak and old need special help. A part of the money for their board and lodging is paid for those who have to be settled in other places on account of the death or untrustworthiness of their relatives.

"The fund for the discharged blind is administered by the director of the institution. The number of those assisted amounts at present to about 400, who live respectably in all parts of Saxony, are almost self-supporting, and feel themselves free men. For, just as a son does not feel galled by a gift from his father, so they are not ashamed to receive assistance from their second paternal home, the institution."

Holland.

The number of the blind in Holland, according to the census of the 1st of December 1869, was 1593, or one in every 2247 of the general population. The Protestants and Roman Catholics were about equally balanced. No cognizance was taken of the blind in the census of 1879. There is only one blind institution, that of Amsterdam, with 60 pupils, with a preparatory school at Benuchem (with 20 pupils) and an asylum for adults with 52 inmates (unmarried). Besides these, there are workshops at Amsterdam, Rotterdam, the Hague, Utrecht and Middelburg.

Denmark.

According to the census of 1870, there were in Denmark 1249 blind (577 males and 672 females), or one blind for every 1428 persons. One institution has been established by government, i.e. the Royal Institution for the Blind, at Copenhagen; 100 children, aged 10 and upwards, are here educated. There is a preparatory school for blind children under 10 years of age, and an asylum for blind females, most of whom are former pupils of the royal school. An association for promoting the self-dependence of the blind assists not only former pupils of the school but every blind man or woman willing and able to work.

TABLE IV.--_The Blind, by Consanguinity of Parents, Degree of Blindness, and Blind Relatives of Other Classes._

+---------------------+--------+----------+----------+---------+-------+ | | | | |No Blind | | | | | |Collateral|Relatives| | | Consanguinity | | Blind |Relatives |or Rela- | Not | | of Parents. | Total. | Brothers,| or De- |tives by |Stated.| | | |Sisters or|scendants |Marriage | | | | |Ancestors.| alone, | alone, | | | | | | Blind. | Blind. | | +---------------------+--------+----------+----------+---------+-------+ |All Classes-- | | | | | | | The blind | 64,763 | 8629 | 2338 | 46,759 | 7037 | | Totally blind | 35,645 | 4378 | 1215 | 25,349 | 3703 | | Partially blind | 29,118 | 4251 | 1123 | 20,410 | 3334 | +---------------------+--------+----------+----------+---------+-------+ |Parents cousins-- | | | | | | | The blind | 2,527 | 844 | 149 | 1,456 | 78 | | Totally blind | 1,291 | 435 | 78 | 739 | 39 | | Partially blind | 1,236 | 409 | 71 | 717 | 39 | +---------------------+--------+----------+----------+---------+-------+ |Parents not cousins--| | | | | | | The blind | 53,980 | 7395 | 2095 | 43,368 | 1122 | | Totally blind | 29,892 | 3720 | 1090 | 24,541 | 541 | | Partially blind | 24,088 | 3675 | 1005 | 18,827 | 581 | +---------------------+--------+----------+----------+---------+-------+ |Consanguinity of par-| | | | | | | ents not stated-- | | | | | | | The blind | 8,256 | 390 | 94 | 1,935 | 5837 | | Totally blind | 4,462 | 223 | 47 | 1,069 | 3123 | | Partially blind | 3,794 | 167 | 47 | 866 | 2714 | +---------------------+--------+----------+----------+---------+-------+

Sweden.

The number of blind persons in Sweden, according to the census of December 1880, was 3723, being at the rate of one blind person for every 1226 of the general population. At the beginning of the year 1879, the instruction of the blind in Sweden was completely separated from that of the deaf and dumb, on the grounds that it hindered the intellectual development of the blind--a conclusion which experience shows to be tolerably correct. Since July 1888 the Royal Institution of the Blind has obtained a new building at Tomteboda, near Stockholm.

Norway.

The law of the 8th of July 1881, concerning the instruction of abnormal children, has imposed on the state the duty of establishing a sufficient number of schools for the blind in Norway as well as for the other abnormal children. All the blind of the country, from 9 years of age until the age of 21, are compelled to be educated, with a maximum of 8 years of instruction for each pupil.

Finland.

The census of 1873 showed that in Finland there were 7959 blind in a total population of about 2,000,000 inhabitants, the proportion reaching the very high figure of one for every 251 of the total population. Nevertheless there were only 160 of school age. For these there are two institutions, one at Helsingfors where the instruction is given in the Swedish language, and where there are about 12 pupils, and another at Kuopio, where the instruction is given in the Finnish language, and where the pupils number about 30.

Austria.

According to information received from the I.R. Central Commission for Statistics, the number of blind in the provinces represented in the Austrian Reichsrath amounted to 15,582 in the year 1884. Of these, 2345 were children up to 15 years of age, namely 433 below 5, 779 from 5 to 10, and 1113 from 10 to 15 years. The total number of institutions for blind children in Austria amounts to 8. The blind children of school age who are not placed in special institutions are compulsorily taught in the public general free schools, as far as practicable. The number of blind in the whole dominion of the crown of St Stephen was 208,391.

Italy.

The number of blind persons in Italy was 21,718, according to the census of 1881, and those of school age were estimated to form 25% of the whole, or about 5429 in number. But no special cognizance of the blind is taken in the government census. There are 20 institutions, schools and workshops for the blind.

Russia.

Statistics with regard to the number and condition of the blind in the Russian empire are of a very limited character, and it is only of late years that any attempt has been made to draw up any accurate returns with regard to them. The total number of the blind throughout the empire is generally reckoned at from 160,000 to 200,000, thus making 1600 to 2000 per million inhabitants. In Russia there are 21 institutions for the support of the blind.

Egypt

"In Egypt the blind are very numerous in comparison with other countries, and although no exact statistics are at present obtainable on this point, it is computed that the proportion is at least one totally blind person to every 50 of the population. This is principally the result of acute ophthalmia occurring in infancy, and it is fostered by the superstitious observance which prevents the mothers from washing their children from the time of birth until they are two years old, at which late date only they are weaned. There is also a great deal of infection carelessly and ignorantly conveyed direct from eye to eye, by means of unwashed fingers, and this is accountable for the occurrence of much more eye-disease than any that may be caused by the proverbial flies. The only employment followed by the blind, both Mahommedan and Coptic (or native Christian), and that only to a limited extent, is recitation aloud--the former repeating portions of the Koran at funerals, and the latter chanting the church-ritual in their services; the blind girls and women are without occupation. Practically no education is given to the blind as a class, and anything which they learn has to be acquired orally by frequent repetition. The blind were not always so completely neglected, as the native ecclesiastical authorities (Wakf) gave an annual grant of L2000 for the continued maintenance of a school for the blind and the deaf and dumb in Cairo, which taught about 80 day-pupils; the latter years of the school were passed under the ministry of education, and it was ultimately discontinued. Such a condition of affairs appealed to Dr T.R. Armitage, and explains his motive in trying to establish some proper means for affording the blind in Egypt the necessary scholastic instruction and other training. In Egypt, as in other countries, it is occasionally very difficult, and takes some time, to start any enterprise such as this on a satisfactory and practical footing, and it was left for Mrs T.R. Armitage to be the means of successfully carrying out her husband's wishes in this particular. In 1900 Mrs Armitage asked Dr Kenneth Scott to prepare a scheme for the education and welfare of the blind in Egypt, on lines suggested to her. This, through the British and Foreign Blind Association, was submitted to Queen Victoria, who graciously commanded it to be sent, through the foreign office, to the khedive, who in mark of approbation and encouragement generously gave a handsome donation towards its realization. The Institution for the Blind was established at Zeitoun, Cairo, early in the year 1901, through funds provided by Mrs T.R. Armitage. The object of the institution, which is wholly unsectarian in character, is to educate and train the blind mentally and physically and in industrial occupations, and at the same time to improve their moral standard, so that eventually they may become in great measure, or even completely, self-supporting." (Dr Kenneth Scott.)

India.

India has a large proportion of blind inhabitants, ranging from one in 600 in some provinces, to one in 400 in others, with a total of more than half a million. Until recently, little had been done in the way of organized effort to educate them, though many of the missionaries had helped individual cases. At Amritsar a large and well-organized work for the blind has been carried on for many years. This school has now been moved to Rajpur, and helps 70 blind women and children. In 1903 a government school and hospital were established at Bombay as a memorial to Queen Victoria. Reading, writing, arithmetic, tailoring, typewriting, carpentering, lathe-work and carpet-weaving are taught. There are small schools at Parantij, Calcutta, Palancottah, Calicut, Coorg, Chota-Nagpur, and at Moulmein in Burma. The memorial to Queen Victoria in Ceylon took the form of work for the blind. J. Knowles, with the help of L. Garthwaite of the Indian Civil Service, devised a scheme of oriental Braille, which has been adopted by the British and Foreign Bible Society for the production of the Scriptures in Eastern languages.

China.

Blindness is very prevalent in China, and to eye-diseases, neglect and dirt, must be added leprosy and smallpox as causes. Blind beggars may be seen on every highway, clamouring for alms. As in India their pitiful condition attracted the attention of the missionaries. W.H. Murray, a Scottish missionary in Peking, made a simple and ingenious adaptation of the Braille symbols to the complicated system of Chinese printing, in which over 4000 characters are required. It was necessary to represent at least 408 sounds, and each one was given a corresponding Braille number. When a pupil reads the number he knows instantly the sound for which it stands. A school for the blind was established at Peking, and the version of the Scriptures printed at Peking can be read in all the provinces where the Northern Mandarin dialect is spoken (see Miss Gordon Cumming, _The Inventor of the Numeral Type for China_). A Braille code has recently been arranged for Mandarin, based on a system of initials and finals, by Miss Garland of the China Inland Mission. At Foochow there is a large school for boys and girls in connexion with the Church Missionary Society. At Ningpo, Amoy, Canton and Fukien work for the blind is carried on by the missionaries.

Japan.

The blind in Japan have long been trained in massage, acupuncture and music, and until recently, with few exceptions, none but the blind engaged in these occupations. From three to five years are required to become proficient in massage, but a blind person is then able to support himself. In Yokohama, with a population of half a million, there are 1000 men and women engaged in massage, and all but about 100 of these are blind. In 1878 a school for the blind and deaf-mutes was established in Kyoto, and soon after one in Tokyo. Japan has four schools for the blind, and seven combined schools for the blind and deaf-mutes.

Palestine.

As in other Eastern countries, blindness is very prevalent in Palestine. Ophthalmic hospitals and medical attendance are now available in the larger towns, and the missionary schools have done much to inculcate habits of cleanliness, therefore there is a slight decrease in the number of the blind. The home and school for blind girls in Jerusalem is the outcome of a day school opened in 1896 by an American missionary. There is also a small school at Urfa under the auspices of the American mission in that town.

EDUCATION

Early training.

As more sensations are received through the eye than through any other organ, the mind of a blind child is vacant, and the training should begin early or the mind will degenerate. Indirectly the loss of sight results in inaction. If no one encourages a blind child to move, he will sit quietly in a corner, and when he leaves his seat will move timidly about. This want of activity produces bad physical effects, and further delays mental growth. The blind are often injured, some of them ruined for life, through the ignorance and mistaken kindness of their friends during early childhood. They should be taught to walk, to go up and down stairs, to wash, dress and feed themselves.

They should be carefully taught correct postures and attitudes, and to avoid making grimaces. They should be told the requirements of social conventions which a seeing child learns through watching his elders. They have no consciousness that their habits are disagreeable, and the earlier unsightly mannerisms are corrected the better. It is a fallacy to suppose that the other senses of the blind are naturally sharper than those of the seeing. It is only when the senses of hearing and touch have been cultivated that they partially replace sight, and such cultivation can begin with very young children.