Blind Boy Athletes 



How Dr. Hart taught bHnd boys to camp, swim, run 

 races and enjoy themselves just as if they could see 



They are blind but they can "see" just 

 the same — with their fingers. Here they 

 are constructing a tool and chicken house 



?^,^^ 



ONE of the most notable achievements 

 of the year at the Pennsylvania Insti- 

 tution for the Instruction of the Blind 

 at Overbrook has resulted from the develop- 

 ment of a bit of knowledge about the blind 

 which has been current for more than a 

 hundred years — the knowledge that one 

 who loses his sight develops a remarkable 

 sensitiveness in the forehead. 



Examination of a human skull shows that 

 the thick, bony substance in the middle of 

 the forehead is really a mass of small cells. 

 For years the blind have told their instruc- 

 tors that they "feel" the presence of others, 

 the nearness of a wall, even a flying missile, 

 in these cells. The sensation is of a sudden 

 density. Little use was made of this 

 knowledge until a year ago, when Dr. 

 Charles D. Hart, of the Overbrook institu- 

 tion, formed the world's first troop of 

 Blind Boy Scouts, Number io8 in the 

 Philadelphia Council. 



These blind scouts were allowed to camp 

 out just like other scouts. They swam, and 

 went boating. They built fires, went on 

 long hikes, cooked their own meals and set 



up their tents. But even more remarkable 

 was their ability to travel over rough 

 ground without stumbling. The explana- 

 tion of this is to be found in muscle balance; 

 it is not a new discovery. It is an extraordi- 

 nary heightening of the sense of touch in 

 the soles of the feet. But like the other 

 bit of knowledge it never had been put to 

 practical use; in fact, it never had been 

 given a fair test under conditions where the 

 blind could be absolutely removed from 

 the feeling of submission to assistance. 

 Says Dr. Hart in this connection: 



"Balance is made up partly of muscle control and 

 partly of the control made possible by the sense of 

 sight and the accompanying judgment of distance. 

 When the sight is gone, the first thing that the blind 

 person discovers upon atternpting to stand or wallc 

 is that it is extremely difficult to maintain the 

 equilibrium. But Nature quickly compensates for 

 the loss of sight by the increased sensitiveness of 

 the tactile nerves in the soles of the feet. 



"While out on hikes with the Blind Boy Scouts 

 I have witnessed a running boy halt for an imper- 

 ceptible fraction of a second at the edge of a gully, 

 then step into and out of it with all the surefooted- 

 ness of one who could see. There is but one excep- 

 tion to the ability of the blind to feel their way 



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