JAMES MITCHELL. 145 



acquisition, his alphabet may, from the very beginning, be ar- 

 ranged in lines corresponding to the following order : 



a 



e 



i 







u 



b 



f 



J 



P 



V 



c 



g 



k 



9 



w 



d 



h 



I 



r 



X 







m 



s 



y 







n 



t 



z 



A subsequent stage of instruction will be, to send messages 

 to him, which may be impressed on surfaces of wax, and in- 

 duce him to return answers, or to send other messages. 



Perhaps the art invented by Mons. Hauy for the use of the 

 blind may be found convenient for such purposes, that of im- 

 pressing the letters with direct types on strong paper in a 

 moistened state, so as to give tangible letters in bold relief on 

 the opposite side. Not having seen any of the articles produ- 

 ced by this manufacture, I cannot give an opinion on the ex- 

 tent of its utility as applied to the present object ; but hard 

 casts are probably better fitted to insure success at an early 

 stage of the process, as they are not liable to be injured by fre- 

 quent handling. 



The teaching of the numbers is a separate object, but com- 

 paratively easy, and may be conducted in such a manner as to 

 prove amusing both to him and to his teacher. It should be 

 done entirely by means of our common ciphers, without the 

 use of words. To a person in his circumstances the names of 

 the numbers in letters would be of no use ; and it is easy for 

 every person who afterwards converses with him to employ 

 ciphers exclusively. This rule, witli the omission of the use 

 of capital letters, as already mentioned, would form only two 

 peculiarities in his language, easily followed by his friends. 



Vol. VIII. P. I.' T ' The 



