14 



Dr. T. L. Llewellyn. 



[Dec. 19 r 



It will be seen that the increased cost of charges due to industrial diseases 

 bears a similar rate of increase to that shown by nystagmus. 



In addition to the compensation charges the employers lose the profit of 

 the work done by these men, while the workmen lose a sum in wages which 

 may well be double the sum quoted. In many cases the men are not able 

 to earn as much during the 12 months preceding their failure to work. 



Taking all these factors into consideration I estimate that there is a loss- 

 to the kingdom of at least £100,000 a year due to nystagmus. 



Twenty-four cases tried to work underground and failed. 



This table presents too dark a view for the following reason. My cases, 

 are taken from all over the country, and in many places it was only the 

 worst cases that I saw. 



Historical Account of Miners Nystagmus and Theories of its Causation. 



The first case was discovered by Deconde (12) in 1861. C. Bell Taylor (13) 

 published a paper in 1875 on "Miners' Nystagmus, a JSTew Disease,"' 

 Alf. Graefe, 1873, Nieden(14), 1873, Dransart (15), 1877, were amongst the 

 earliest observers. The chief workers since that date have been Snell (16),. 

 Court, Jeaffreson (18), and Eeid(19), in England; Borniee and Nuel in 

 Belgium ; fellow workers with Meden and Dransart in France and Germany. 



Eomiee points out (1) that the Davy lamp was recommended for use in 

 1851 (10 years before the first recorded case), and states that after the 

 compulsory use of the Mueseler lamp in Belgium in 1876 the cases of 

 nystagmus became more numerous. He says that our forefathers were at 

 least as good observers as we are, and that if the disease had existed then 

 they would have discovered it. 



There are two chief schools with regard to the etiology of nystagmus. One r 

 of which Eomiee, Court, and Thompson (20) are the chief exponents, 

 attributes the disease to the strain of excessive accommodation, the result of 

 deficient light. The second school, to which Snell, Dransart, Meden, and 

 Nuel belong, attributes the disease chiefly to the position assumed by the 

 collier, and thinks that there is a local myopathy affecting the elevator 

 muscles of the eye. 



Eomiee brings forward very strong evidence in support of his theory. He 



Back at old work 



Idle 



Surface work 



Dead 



Table VI.— Disability. 



59 (43 latent) 

 216 (average length of idleness to date, 10'4 months) 

 124 (average time spent on surface to date, 133 months) 



