242 Mr. Alston on Printing for the Blind. 



pgedia. Being encouraged by such competent judges, I visited York 

 Institution, Norwich, London, Bristol, Liverpool, and I had the 

 satisfaction of finding, that all the gentlemen connected with those 

 institutions, with the exception of Liverpool, entered warmly into my 

 plans. 



At that time I only met with five persons who knew letters ; on my 

 second visit, soon after the introduction of our books, a considerable 

 improvement was perceptible. Subsequently I visited the English 

 institutions a third time, and found great numbers reading with ease 

 and intelligence. There are now, I have reason to know, hundreds 

 reading the books both in schools and in private families, and many 

 are in possession of the whole Bible, and I have printed upwards of 

 14,000 vols, from 6d. up to 13s. 



The importance of furnishing this interesting class of our fellow- 

 creatures with the means of moral and intellectual improvement, 

 appears in a striking light, when we consider the proportion generally 

 which they bear to the seeing population. 



We have, unfortunately, no statistics of their number in this 

 country ; but, in the kingdom of Belgium, a government census of 

 the blind was made in 1835 ; the result of which showed, that there 

 were 4117 blind, in a population of 4,154,922, establishing the ratio 

 of one to 1009 ; of this number, 960 were blind from the effbcts of 

 ophthalmia. 



It is worthy of observation, that the same government, with a 

 benevolent liberality deserving to be imitated by others, have enacted 

 that every indigent blind or deaf and dumb person belonging to the 

 country, shall be educated at the expense of the state. In the 

 Prussian dominions in 1834, there were 9575 blind, for a population 

 of 13,509,927, being one to 1410. 



From a careful investigation by Mr. Zeune of Berlin, it appears 

 that the number of persons affected with blindness, is less in the 

 temperate latitudes, and increases either as we advance to the line or 

 to the pole. In the one case, the reflection of the rays of the burn- 

 ing sun producing the same effects on the eyesight, as those from the 

 snow covered plain on the other. 



According to the calculation of Mr. Zeune, from imperfect data, in 

 reference to the numbers of blind in different latitudes. Great Britain 

 ought to have a population of 18,000 blind. It is melancholy, there- 

 fore, to reflect, that in this country there should only be accommoda- 

 tion for 800 in institutions where any provision is made for their 

 instruction in mechanical arts, and for their moral and intelligent 

 training. 



Note. — The accompanying specimen exhibits the mode of printing 

 and writing in use among the blind. By the latter method they are 

 enabled to correspond with each other. 



