30 LETTERS ON NATURAL MAGIC. 



one Harris, a shoemaker at Maryport in Cumber- 

 land, who was subject to this defect in a very re- 

 markable degree. He seems to have been in- 

 sensible to every colour, and to have been capable 

 of recognizing only the two opposite tints of 

 black and white. " His first suspicion of this 

 defect arose when he was about four years old. 

 Having by accident found in the street a child's 

 stocking, he carried it to a neighbouring house to 

 inquire for the owner. He observed the people 

 call it a red stocking, though he did not understand 

 why they gave it that denomination, as he himself 

 thought it completely described by being called a 

 stocking. The circumstance, however, remained 

 in his memory, and, with other subsequent obser- 

 vations, led him to the knowledge of his defect- 

 He observed also, that when young, other chil- 

 dren could discern cherries on a tree by some 

 pretended difference of colour, though he could 

 only distinguish them from the leaves by their 

 difference of size and shape. He observed also, 

 that by means of this difference of colour, they 

 could see the cherries at a greater distance than 

 he could, though he could see other objects at as 

 great a distance as they, that is, where the sight 

 was not assisted by the colour." Harris had two 

 brothers, whose perception of colours was nearly 

 as "defective as his own. One of these, whom 

 Mr. Huddart examined, constantly mistook light 

 green for yellow, and orange for grass green. 



Mr. Scott has described, in the Philosophical 

 Transactions, his own defect in perceiving colours. 

 He states that he does not know any green in the 

 world; that a pink colour and a pale blue are 

 perfectly alike ; that he has often thought a full 

 red and a full green a good match ; that he is 



