                       THE BRAILLE MONITOR

                         December, 1988

                    Kenneth Jernigan, Editor


     Published in inkprint, Braille, on talking-book disc, 
                        and cassette by 


              THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND 
                     MARC MAURER, PRESIDENT 
 


                         National Office
                       1800 Johnson Street
                   Baltimore, Maryland 21230 

                             * * * *



           Letters to the President, address changes,
        subscription requests, orders for NFB literature,
       articles for the Monitor, and letters to the Editor
             should be sent to the National Office. 

                             * * * *
 


Monitor subscriptions cost the Federation about twenty-five 
dollars per year. Members are invited, and non-members are
requested, to cover the subscription cost. Donations should be
made payable to National Federation of the Blind and sent to: 
 

                National Federation of the Blind
                       1800 Johnson Street
                   Baltimore, Maryland 21230 

                             * * * *

THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND IS NOT AN ORGANIZATION
SPEAKING FOR THE BLIND--IT IS THE BLIND SPEAKING FOR THEMSELVES

ISSN 0006-8829

                  NFB NET BBS:  (612) 696-1975
               WorldWide Web:  http://www.nfb.org
                       THE BRAILLE MONITOR
       PUBLICATION OF THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
CONTENTS
DECEMBER, 1988

BARBARA PIERCE JOINS MONITOR STAFF 
by Kenneth Jernigan

STRIKE IT RICH IN DENVER: 1989 NFB CONVENTION     

SCHOLARSHIPS FOR 1989

BLINDNESS AND DISORDERS OF THE EYE

PAUL HARVEY SPEAKS TO NFB CONVENTION

TO SEA WITH A BLIND SCIENTIST
by Geerat J. Vermeij

BLINDNESS: A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE
by Barbara Walker

SEVILLE ALLEN TALKS ABOUT BRAILLE
MAPPING THE ENCHANTED KINGDOM: 
REFLECTIONS ON THE TALKING BOOK
by Barbara Pierce

EDITORIAL RESPONSE
by Barbara Mattson

DISTINGUISHED EDUCATOR OF BLIND CHILDREN AWARD FOR 1989
by Sharon Maneki

VACATIONING ALONE: WE CAN DO IT, TOO
by Geraldine Burke

CLARENCE COLLINS DIES
by Hazel Staley

RECIPES

MONITOR MINIATURES

Copyright(c), National Federation of the Blind, Inc., 1988


               BARBARA PIERCE JOINS MONITOR STAFF
                       by Kenneth Jernigan

The  Braille Monitor  has been in existence for more than thirty
years. It started, to be exact, in 1957. But if you take into
account the  All Story Magazine  (which you really have to), the
history stretches far back beyond that.
The  All Story  was around when I was a boy at the Tennessee
School for the Blind, but at that time it was straight fiction.
Somewhere along the line (I'm not sure just when) Dr. Newel Perry
of California began writing a  legislative supplement.  But as
sometimes happens when things compete with the Federation, the
supplement grew and the stories diminished so that by and by the
name  All Story  wasn't appropriate. The transition occurred in
the mid-fifties, and by 1957 the  All Story  was gone and the 
Monitor  was in place.
In its thirty-one-year history the  Monitor  has had quite a
variety of geographic locations and editorial configurations. It
was edited in Wisconsin, in California, in Iowa, and in the
District of Columbia; and of course it is now edited in
Baltimore. During one period Dr. tenBroek was the editor. For a
three-month hitch in 1960
I was editor. For quite some time Mrs. tenBroek did some of the
editing and all of the layout and management. And there have been
others Dr.  Floyd Matson, who is now a professor at the
University of Hawaii; George Card, who fell by the wayside in the
internal struggles of thirty years ago; and Perry Sundquist.
At the time we moved our headquarters to Baltimore in 1978, Don
McConnell was editing the  Monitor . He was located in the
Washington office and was doing an excellent job. However, he
left Federation employment just before the beginning of 1979 to
accept a business opportunity, and I filled in as editor for a
few months until we could find somebody else. That few months has
now stretched to almost ten years, and I am still at it. Editing
the  Monitor  has been and is demanding, time-consuming,
burdensome and wonderfully stimulating and rewarding.  It is just
plain fun with, of course, a dollop of work thrown in.
But fun or not, we have had so much organizational growth that
something has to give. The dynamics of the Federation make it
necessary. I have been looking for a long time (ten years, to be
precise) for an associate editor and I am pleased to tell you
that I have now found her.  Beginning with this issue, Barbara
Pierce, President of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
and long-time leader at the national level, joins the  Monitor 
staff.
Of course, Barbara is no stranger to Federationists or readers of
this publication. She directs our national public relations
campaign, participates prominently in national conventions, and
is sometimes seen at NAC demonstrations. She wrote the  Monitor 
convention articles for the 1987 and 1988 national conventions
and is a frequent contributor to these pages. I believe she will
do an excellent job as associate editor. I suppose I don't need
to say that, for if I hadn't believed it, I wouldn't have asked
her to serve.
To take this assignment Barbara resigned from her position as
Assistant Director of the Alumni Association of Oberlin College,
where she had worked for seven years. In her Oberlin job, which
she tells me was extremely challenging and interesting, she
engaged in an astonishing variety of activities conducted tours
to England, handled the graphics for brochures, designed
commemorative plates, kept minutes for the Alumni board, wrote
bulletins, counseled students, and made
the ultimate sacrifice of serving as wine taster to decide what
beverages should be bought for ceremonial dinners. Just the sort
of background needed for an editorial position with the  Monitor
.
So what will she do in her new position? She will read state and
division newsletters to glean items for publication. She will do
research on assigned topics for articles. She will think up
topics on her own and do original writing. And she will serve as
a sounding board, a copy girl, a work horse, and an ambulatory
and auditory adjunct for the Editor. It would now appear that she
will spend something like every other week in Baltimore and the
remainder of her time working at home. A big order? Yes, but
that's how we are.
                   STRIKE IT RICH IN DENVER: 
1989 NFB CONVENTION
 In preparation for the 1989 National Federation of the Blind
convention in Denver, Priscilla Simmons says:  Here are excerpts
from  Leadville: Colorado's Magic City  by Edward Blair, Pruett
Publishing, Boulder, Colorado, Copyright, 1980:  

The spring of 1849 saw the greatest western migration in American
history. California gold lured men from all over the world.
Colorado in 1849 did not exist, even in men's imaginations. It
was merely a mountainous barrier that lay between the cities and
farms of the East and the waiting wealth of California.
The eastern part of Colorado, along a line south from Denver, was
Kansas Territory. The northeastern corner of the Centennial State
belonged to Nebraska; the rest, except a narrow slice along the
present southern border that in 1850 became New Mexico Territory,
was part of Utah Territory.
After the California excitement died down, a few men remembered
stories they had heard about gold in the Rocky Mountains and
returned to try their luck. By the time they reached Cherry
Creek, near the present site of Denver, a large number had become
discouraged. Only about a dozen stayed on. A couple of months
later, in July of 1858, those who remained struck a pocket of
gold in Dry Creek in what is now south Denver.
Not long after the strike was made, a group of mountain traders
wandered by while the prospectors were working the gulch. The
prospectors' labor only netted about $800 worth of gold, but the
traders carried the word and inflated the value. In Kansas City
they told of a rich
find at the base of the mountains in the western end of Kansas
Territory.  The rush was on!

 After quoting from the book, Priscilla says: In July of 1989,
131 years later, members of the National Federation of the Blind
will rush to Denver, coming together for one week of solid gold!
Come early and visit Confluence Park, where the first gold was
discovered in Denver. Or stay late and journey by bus to nearby
Cripple Creek (another gold town) and enjoy an evening at the
melodrama. Contact the National Center in Baltimore and make your
reservations soon! Rates are low, and the members of the NFB of
Colorado are planning to give you the most enthusiastic
hospitality and the best convention in the NFB's history. 
                      SCHOLARSHIPS FOR 1989
In recent years the National Federation of the Blind has devoted
substantial effort and resources to its scholarship program. This
has been done in the belief that if the blind are to achieve
first-class status in society, they must have the opportunity to
compete with others on terms of equality. This is another way of
saying that the blind must be able to attend institutions of
higher learning. To that end we continue to strengthen our
scholarship program.
In 1989 twenty-six outstanding blind students will receive
scholarships from the Federation, totaling $69,000 in cash plus
payment of their expenses to the National Federation of the Blind
convention in Denver during early July. Ten blind scholars will
receive awards of $1,800; two will receive awards of $2,000; ten
will receive awards of $2,500; three will receive awards of
$4,000; and one (the student judged to be the most outstanding
blind scholar in the nation) will receive a $10,000 scholarship
award.
The Federation's commitment to excellence and achievement is
long-standing.  We have made this commitment real through our
many Federation programs and projects. No Federation activity
spotlights excellence and achievement more than our scholarship
program, through which we honor and encourage America's
distinguished blind students.
The Scholarship Committee for 1989 (their terms expire December
31, 1989) consists of the following thirty-two people: Peggy
Pinder, Iowa, Chairman; Adrienne Asch, New Jersey; Jan Bailey,
Minnesota; Michael Baillif, California; Steve Benson, Illinois;
Jacquilyn Billey, Connecticut; Suzanne Bridges, Louisiana;
Charles Brown, Virginia; Sharon Buchan, Alaska; Dawnelle Cruze,
Virginia; Tami Dodd, Michigan; Joanne Fernandes, Louisiana;
Priscilla Ferris, Massachusetts; Norman Gardner, Arizona; Sharon
Gold, California; Charles Hallenbeck, Kansas; John Halverson,
Missouri; Allen Harris, Michigan; David Hyde, Oregon; Christopher
Kuczynski, Pennsylvania; Melody Lindsey, Florida; Ron Matias,
Indiana; Homer Page, Colorado; Barbara Pierce, Ohio; Ben Prows,
Washington; Mary Ellen Reihing, Maryland; Eileen Rivera,
Maryland; Fred Schroeder, New Mexico; Larry Streeter, Nebraska;
David Ticchi, Massachusetts; Ramona Walhof, Idaho; and Gary
Wunder, Missouri.
Our Scholarship Application Form (copy reproduced at the end of
this article) consists of a single legal-sized page with printing
on both sides. We are making an initial printing of 50,000 of
these forms.  They will be sent to every college and university
in the country, every agency doing work with the blind, every
congressional office, every NFB state president, and every member
of the Scholarship Committee.  They will also be sent to anyone
requesting them. These are worthwhile scholarships, which will be
of real assistance to blind students.
The news about our scholarship program should be disseminated as
widely as possible. To receive forms or to obtain further
information, contact Peggy Pinder, Chairman, National Federation
of the Blind Scholarship Committee, 814 - 4th Avenue, Suite 200,
Grinnell, Iowa 50112; phone (515) 236-3366. Forms can also be had
by writing to: Scholarships, National Federation of the Blind,
1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230. Here is the
Scholarship Form:
____________________
                National Federation of the Blind
                    1989 Scholarship Program

Each year at its national convention in July the National
Federation of the Blind gives to legally blind persons pursuing
or planning to pursue a full-time post-secondary course of study
a broad array of scholarships.  The following scholarships will
be given at the National Convention in 1989:
1. Ezra Davis Memorial Scholarship; $10,000; endowed by Ezra
Davis
and given by the American Brotherhood for the Blind, a nonprofit
organization which works to assist blind persons.  Applicants
must be studying (or planning to study) at the post-secondary
level.  No restriction as to gender, graduate or undergraduate
level, or field of study.
2. National Federation of the Blind Merit Scholarships; nineteen
to
be given; three for $4,000; seven for $2,500; and nine for
$1,800.  Applicants must be studying (or planning to study) at
the post-secondary level.  No restriction as to gender, graduate
or undergraduate level, or field of study.
3. Howard Brown Rickard Scholarship; $2,500.  Applicants must be
studying (or planning to study) law, medicine, engineering,
architecture, or the natural sciences.  No restriction as to
gender or graduate or undergraduate level.
4. Hermione Grant Calhoun Scholarship; $2,500.  Dr. Isabelle
Grant endowed this scholarship in memory of her daughter. 
Limited to female students.  May be studying (or planning to
study) at either graduate or undergraduate level.
5. Frank Walton Horn Memorial Scholarship; $2,500; given by Mr.
and Mrs. Charles E. Barnum, the mother and stepfather of
Catherine Horn Randall.  No restriction as to gender, graduate or
undergraduate level, or field of study, but preference will be
given to those studying architecture or engineering.
6. Francis Urbanek Memorial Scholarship; $2,000; given by Joe
Urbanek in memory of his brother Francis, who died in January,
1986, at age eighteen; limited to blind high school graduates
entering their freshman year of college.
7. Ellen Setterfield Memorial Scholarship; $2,000; given in
memory
of Ellen Setterfield by Roy Landstrom, who says:  During the
course of her life, she gave of herself to defending the dignity
and self-respect of those around her.  Restricted to students at
the graduate level in the social sciences.
8. Melva T. Owen Memorial Scholarship; $1,800; given in memory of
Melva T. Owen, who was widely known and loved among the blind. 
She and her husband Charles Owen became acquainted with
increasing numbers of blind people through their work in the 
Voicepondence  Club.  Charles Owen says:  There shall be no
limitation as to field of study, except that it shall be directed
towards attaining financial independence and shall exclude
religion and those seeking only to further general or cultural
education. 
Criteria: All scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic
excellence, service to the community, and financial need. 
Membership: The National Federation of the Blind is an
organization dedicated to creating opportunity for all blind
persons.  Recipients
of Federation scholarships need not be members of the National
Federation of the Blind.
Deadline: Applications for National Federation of the Blind
scholarships must be received by March 31 of the year in which
the scholarship is to be awarded.
Making Application: To apply for National Federation of the Blind
scholarships, complete and return the application on the reverse
side of this sheet.  Multiple applications are unnecessary.  Each
applicant
will be considered for all scholarships for which he or she
qualifies.  Please provide all the applicable information
requested and attach to the application all the additional
documents requested on the application.  Send the application to:
Miss Peggy Pinder, Chairman, National Federation
of the Blind Scholarship Committee, 814 - 4th Avenue, Suite 200,
Grinnell, Iowa 50112; (515) 236-3366.
Reapplication: We have often awarded scholarships to persons
applying for the second or third time.  Even if previously
submitted, current applications must be submitted to be
considered for current scholarships.  Those who have previously
applied are encouraged to apply again.
Winners: The Scholarship Committee reviews all applications and
selects the scholarship winners.  These winners, the same number
as there are scholarships to award, will be notified of their
selection by June 1 and will be brought to the National
Federation of the Blind convention in July at Federation expense. 
This is in addition to
the scholarship grant.  The winners are America's finest blind
students.  The National Federation of the Blind Convention is the
largest gathering of blind persons (more than 2,000) to occur
anywhere in the nation each year.  You will be able to meet other
blind students and exchange information and ideas.  You will also
be able to meet and talk with blind people who are successfully
functioning in your chosen profession or occupation.  Federal
officials, members of Congress, and the makers and distributors
of new technology attend Federation conventions.  Above all, a
broad cross section of the most active segment of the blind
population of the United States will be present to discuss common
problems and plan for concerted action.  It is an interesting and
exciting week.
Awards: The day before the convention banquet the Scholarship
Committee will meet to determine which winners will receive which
scholarships.  The scholarship awards will be made during the
banquet.

                National Federation of the Blind
                  Scholarship Application Form

Read reverse side of form for instructions and explanation.  Form
may be photocopied but only if reverse side is also included.
To apply for a scholarship, complete this application form and
mail completed application and attachments to: Miss Peggy Pinder,
Chairman, National Federation of the Blind Scholarship Committee,
814 - 4th Avenue, Suite 200, Grinnell, Iowa 50112.  Form must be
received by March 31, 1989.

Name (please include any maiden or other names by which you have
been known):
Date of birth:
School address:
School phone number:
Home address:
Home phone number:
Institution being attended in spring semester, 1989, with class
standing (freshman, senior, etc.): Cumulative grade point at this
institution:

Institution to be attended in fall of 1989, with class standing. 
Send by separate letter if admitted to school after submitting
completed application: List all post-secondary institutions
attended with highest class standing attained and cumulative
grade point average: High school attended and cumulative grade
point:
Vocational goal:
State your major:
Awards and honors (attach list if necessary):
Community service (attach list if necessary):

Attach the following documents to completed application:
1. Send us a letter: What schools have you attended?  What school
do you plan to attend during the coming year?  What honors have
you achieved?  What have you done to deal with situations
involving your blindness?  What are you like as a person?  What
are your goals and aspirations?  How will the scholarship help
you?
2. Send two letters of recommendation.
3. Provide current transcript from institution now attending and
transcripts from all other post-secondary institutions attended. 
If you have not yet attended such an institution or have not
completed one year of study, send high school transcript.
4. Send a letter from a state officer of the National Federation
of the Blind evidencing the fact that you have discussed your
scholarship application with that officer. We prefer that you
discuss your application with the Federation state president, but
a letter from any Federation state officer will suffice.
President's address provided upon request.
               BLINDNESS AND DISORDERS OF THE EYE
Produced in Collaboration with
Daniel Finkelstein, M.D.
Associate Professor of Ophthalmology
The Wilmer Eye Institute
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, Maryland
Published and Distributed by
The National Federation of the Blind
1800 Johnson Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21230
(301)659-9314
Marc Maurer, President
Foreword
I am pleased that the National Federation of the Blind has
revised this useful publication and asked The Wilmer Eye
Institute of Johns
Hopkins University to become involved in its publication. As an
ophthalmologist I have observed that patients usually need one
place to receive information about dealing effectively with
losing their vision beyond the medical advice they are given by
the eye doctor. They frequently, for example, need assistance
with Social Security benefits, aids and appliances, and a myriad
of other things which can ensure continued independence
and productivity. Most of all, they need encouragement in the
maintenance of a positive attitude about themselves. The National
Federation of the Blind, through the National Blindness
Information Center and its network of state affiliates and over
five hundred local chapters, provides such a resource. I urge
readers to use it by calling or writing to the address displayed
on the front of this book for information
about all aspects of what one does and where one goes to receive
assistance with loss of vision and moving beyond misleading 
stereotypes about blindness.
  Daniel Finkelstein, M.D.

                            Contents

Introduction   565

I.   The Normal Eye and Its Function    568

II.  Common Eye Conditions and Causes of Blindness in the United
States    569

III. If Blindness Comes  580

Glossary  584

ibliography    587

                          Introduction

The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) first published
Blindness and Disorders of the Eye in 1977 because there was a
need for a concise and readable publication in a single volume on
common eye disorders and realistic attitudes about blindness.
None existed then, and for the most part little has changed.
However, many excellent works on specific eye disorders are
available from organizations active in prevention of blindness,
and many of them have been consulted in the preparation of this
edition of Blindness and Disorders of the Eye.  The titles of
these are provided as references at the end of this booklet.
We are pleased to present this revised and expanded edition in
the continued belief that better information and adequate medical
care can prevent much blindness or in some cases lead to its
cure. If blindness does come, however, it is possible for those
who are afforded proper training and opportunity to lead normal,
productive lives by using alternative techniques which do not
require the use of sight. Today, therefore, no one need remain
unemployed or dependent solely because of blindness. We invite
you to contact the National Federation of
the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230,
(410)659-9314, for more information about education,
rehabilitation, and general opportunities available to the blind
citizen today.
Who is Blind? There is a tendency to think of only the totally
blind as "blind." A relatively small percentage of blind people
are in fact totally blind. Many more may be termed "legally"
blind (for example,
to determine eligibility for certain governmental services and
benefits) if (a) they have a central visual acuity of 20/200 or
less in the better eye with correcting glasses (that is, they can
see only at twenty feet what a person with normal vision can see
at 200 feet) or (b) have a field of vision which at its widest
diameter faces an imaginary angle no greater than twenty degrees.
In other words one is legally blind if, even with correcting
glasses, he or she has ten percent or less of normal vision in
either of these ways. The width of the visual field, affected by
many of the conditions described
in this publication, is as important as the central acuity, even
though an uninformed person may assume that anyone with 20/20
central vision can see "perfectly."
A different and much more meaningful definition than the legal
one, therefore, says that a person is blind if in a substantial
number
of situations it would be more efficient  to use alternative,
nonvisual techniques (traveling with a long white cane, reading
and writing Braille, and so on) instead of relying on sight,
regardless of the type of visual loss.
The fact that many who are blind have sight which is useful for
some purposes has caused them to try relying on their partial
vision in situations where alternative techniques would be more
efficient for them. Unfortunately they are frequently pushed
along this course by uninformed and misled professionals who do
not really believe that
a blind person can function competently and thus see alternative
techniques as badges of inferiority. The sensible course of
action for anyone with a substantial loss of vision is, of
course, to learn alternative techniques and then to select the
methods that work best for him or her in each situation
encountered.
This is particularly true with respect to blind children who have
some remaining vision and need to obtain such services as Braille
instruction and cane travel . No one would argue that a child's
vision is unimportant and should not be protected or that eye
problems should not be discovered and treated as soon as
possible. A great deal of helpful literature on prevention and
detection of blindness in children is available, a sample of
which is listed in the bibliography.
 However, it is also easy to be misled with respect to the
capacity of a blind child by such arguments as the contention
that eighty-five
or ninety percent of what we learn comes through our eyes. Such
statements standing alone imply that deprivation of physical
sight renders a person incapable of learning or less capable than
the sighted. While (under ordinary circumstances) the brain and
central nervous system rely heavily on and assimilate visual
information, obviously sight is only one of the brain's sources
of information. Blind people thus can and do use the other senses
to obtain information otherwise obtained through physical vision.
One should not, therefore, suppose that a blind child or adult is
incapable of learning or that a blind person's intellectual
potential is less than it would have been had he or she possessed
sight. To
do so would be to exaggerate greatly the impact blindness has on
one's ability to lead a normal, satisfying life.
Parents of blind children seeking to aid their children's
realization of potential will find support and a wealth of
information through the Parents of Blind Children Division of the
National Federation
of the Blind. The work of this division includes publication of
Future Reflections, a quarterly magazine for parents of blind
children, which provides information and insights into all
aspects of rearing blind children from infancy to adulthood. A
free subscription, along with other helpful information, may be
obtained by writing the Parents of Blind Children Division,
National Federation of the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore,
Maryland 21230.
On the other end of the age spectrum, as the average age of the
population increases, more families will likely be concerned with
the problems
of the aging blind. The sections which follow on presbyopia,
"floaters," "dry eye," cataract, glaucoma, and retinal disorders
will be of special interest to those with older family members.
The evidence of public misunderstanding and misinformation about
blindness lies in what we commonly read in surveys on the
subject: the public fears blindness more than any condition
except cancer; children fear only the death of a parent more than
becoming blind; and so on. Because of these attitudes people
often seize upon such intricate and useless devices as electric
or electronic guidance systems for the blind using wires in the
floor and special canes or even wish  for miraculous developments
in artificial sight to escape feelings of helplessness and
hopelessness at the thought of becoming blind. They trust
elaborate and ingenious techniques to get around what they view
as the outright calamity of blindness. It is doubtful, however,
that anything serves the blind person as well as time-tested
alternative techniques and a realistic and positive philosophy of
blindness.

I. The Normal Eye and Its Function 

Anatomy and Physiology of the Eye
The eye begins in the human embryo as part of the brain,
occurring first as a lateral outpouching and then an infolding.
The inner layer of the infolding eventually becomes the retina,
the inner coating
of the eye with nerve fibers connected to the brain through the
optic nerve, which transmits electrical impulse messages to the
brain to produce vision.
The retina is like the film in a camera, receiving an upside-down
light "picture," which is "developed" by the brain. The
photoreceptors of the retina are rods and cones, the rods most
responsible for vision in darkness and for peripheral vision and
the cones more responsible for color vision, vision in bright
light, and central vision. Vitamin A, usually present in adequate
amounts in the diet, is necessary for the photochemical reaction
in the retina to take place.
At the junction of the iris and the choroid there are small
muscles called the ciliary body, which control the shape of the
lens for focusing as well as opening and closing the pupil. What
we see begins as light reflected from some object within our
visual field. It strikes the cornea, the transparent outer layer
of the eye, and passes through the pupil to the lens, which
focuses the light through the transparent, gel-like vitreous onto
the retina. The iris, a circular structure
in front of the lens, changes the size of the pupil--smaller in
bright light ("miosis") and larger (dilation or "mydriasis") with
less light.  The lens is held in place by fasteners called
zonules. A gel-like material , the vitreous body, fills the
cavity behind the lens.  Muscles in the eye control the shape of
the lens for proper focus, making it thicker for close objects
and thinner for distant ones.  The eye receives its blood supply
from the middle layer between the retina and the sclera (see
below), known as the uveal tract. This pigmented vascular layer
is divided anatomically into the iris, from which the eyes get
their color, and a back portion called the choroid.  The amount
of pigment in the iris varies, and in general one can say that a
blue iris represents a lack of pigment while a dark brown iris
displays a normal amount of pigment.
The outer coat or sclera is the "white of the eye" and is like a
strip of tendon in consistency. The cornea is the front portion
of
the sclera. Just below the cornea is a chamber containing a
continuously flowing clear, watery fluid called the acqueous
humor, which is contained by the anterior and posterior chambers
between the cornea and the lens and separated by the iris. Since
the lens and the cornea have no blood vessels, they receive their
nourishment from the acqueous humor, which constantly flows out
of small channels located at the angle where the iris and the
cornea meet. If this outlet of acqueous humor is impeded in any
way, then the pressure  in the eye rises and a condition known as
glaucoma may result (see below).
Muscles on the outside of the eye are responsible for moving the
eye so that it can "aim" at an object. When looking at close
objects, the eyes converge and lens focus changes. This focusing
power for
close work is usually lost or impaired by the time an individual
reaches the age of forty-five, a condition known as presbyopia
(see glossary entry).

                         Visual Function

When we want to see something clearly, we aim our eyes in such a
way as to place the object onto a depression in the central
portion of the retina known as the fovea, which is surrounded by
the macula lutea. The concentration of cones in this area makes
this highly sensitive part of the eye most useful for acute
vision. At the same time, however, we can indeed see objects
below, above, and to the sides in our peripheral field of vision.
The retina, therefore, has
two visual properties: resolution (central vision) and detection
(peripheral vision). A simple example illustrates this. If we
hold up two fingers in front of our eyes and we can tell they are
two fingers, we are demonstrating resolution. At the same time, a
bird might fly overhead so that we could detect there is
something up there, but we would be unable to resolve it and
distinguish exactly what it is. A visual acuity test is for
resolution; a visual field test is for detection.  To determine a
person's visual functioning, an examiner must know both the
visual acuity and the visual field.
Three illustrations of why it is important to know both the
acuity and the field should suffice. An eye with a cataract is,
for example, analogous to a camera with a dirty lens. All the
images are blurred, both central and peripheral. In such a case
visual acuity may test
at 20/200, making the person functionally blind. An eye with a
macular hole, on the other hand, also tests at 20/200 visual
acuity, but it is more analogous to a camera with a small spot on
the film. A person
with such a condition has poor central visual acuity but retains
peripheral vision. Finally, a person with retinitis pigmentosa
(see below) may appear to have excellent vision if his or her
central visual acuity tests 20/20, but the peripheral vision can
be so reduced that there is difficulty in functioning as a
sighted person.
The Snellen chart, used to test visual acuities, consists of
lines of letters and numerals visible to the average person with
normal eyesight at different distances stated on the chart. In
recording visual acuity, the first number is the testing distance
and the second is the distance stated on the chart for the
smallest letters read by the person being examined. For example,
20/20 vision is testing vision at 20 feet for a particular
person, and it also says that the average person can see the same
letter at 20 feet; 20/40 means that the smallest line read by the
person tested at 20 feet was the one visible to the average
person at 40 feet.
Blind spots in the visual field called scotomas do occur,
frequently without being obvious to those who have them. This is
why peripheral field defects are insidious, especially in such
diseases as glaucoma, pointing up the need for routine eye
examinations.

 II.Common Eye Conditions and Causes of Blindness in the United
States

This section includes information on only the most commonly
encountered eye conditions, and it reduces a great deal of
medical and technical detail to language understandable to the
lay inquirer. Many medical facts have, in the interest of clarity
and brevity, been simplified; therefore, this text is not in any
way intended as a basis for self-diagnosis or lay diagnosis of
anyone's eye condition, a job which belongs to the eye doctor. If
you are wondering whether anything is wrong with your eyes, we
urge you to see an eye doctor at once. If you cannot afford to
pay, there are many agencies and funds which can help you.  Some
of the conditions described below are hereditary (passed on from
one generation to another through genes and chromosomes), but
there are many patterns of heredity, even for a single disorder.
Specific questions about the inheritance of a particular
characteristic in an individual or family should be directed to a
genetic specialist.  A family physician can usually provide the
proper referral.
Approximately 500,000 people in the United States are legally
blind--roughly 0.2% of the population. Blindness occurs most
often in the older age brackets, with half of all blind people
generally considered to be over 65; but a significant number of
blind people are children or young adults.
Following are descriptions of the specific eye conditions which
are most common or most generally known in the United States. In
some cases the categories described overlap somewhat, and in most
cases a given disorder has various forms and patterns, depending
on the circumstances. In addi-  tion, the anatomical diagram and
text in   Section One explain terms used to describe parts of the
eye, and brief explanations of other eye conditions not generally
considered  to be leading causes
of blindness may be found in the glossary. Generally we have not
attempted to rank causes by percentages or numbers of cases since
such statistics are constantly changing, and the analysis of them
is a complex matter.  The bibliography lists a few of the many
references which may be used for further study

                            ALBINISM

Albinism is a hereditary condition in which there is a lack of
normal pigment in part or all of the body. The hair is white, the
skin very fair, and the iris of the eye white or pinkish. The
person with albinism usually has poor vision, an imperfectly
developed retina, oversensitivity to light, and nystagmus
(abnormal muscle movement causing constant twitching or jerking
of the eyes).
Specially treated lenses can improve vision and can also lessen
discomfort by reducing the amount of light entering the eye.
There is no cure for albinism.

                            AMBLYOPIA

The general term amblyopia applies to poor vision which is not
due to any observable disease and which cannot be corrected by
glasses.  It may be congenital (present at birth) or may develop
later.
Sometimes the cause is unknown; however, blindness can often be
prevented if proper steps are taken. A common example is "lazy
eye" or amblyopia ex anopsia, affecting perhaps one to two
percent of children. This condition occurs in a young child if
one eye becomes so dominant that the other is suppressed and
deteriorates through lack of use. This
is likely to happen if the two eyes focus differently because of
strabismus (see below) or because one eye is much more
nearsighted than the other.  One eye may fall into disuse as the
person relies on images from the other. However, the eye may
appear perfectly normal to others. If this problem is discovered
and treated early enough (generally before the age of six or
seven), often the unused, weak eye will regain its strength.
Otherwise permanent loss of vision may result.
 Many service organizations provide free preschool screening
tests in an effort to find and refer these children before the
vision of one eye is completely lost. Treatment generally
consists of correcting the basic inequality of the eyes through
surgery or corrective lenses and/or putting a patch over the
strong eye temporarily to force the weak one to work again. Eye
examinations at birth and again by three years of age are
recommended to increase chances of early detection and effective
treatment.

                            CATARACTS

The lens of the human eye is comparable to the lens of a camera
or magnifying glass, and for obvious reasons it needs to be
transparent and free of flaws. The development of what are called
cataracts, or opacities and clouding of the eye's lens, blocks
the passage of light through the eye. Various forms of cataract
make up one of the leading causes of blindness in this country
today. Although some cataracts are congenital (present at birth),
likelihood of developing them increases with age. Chemical
changes in the lens and diabetes have also been associated with
development of cataracts, and chemical burns and heredity may
cause them. All of the causes, however, are not known. Like the
majority of eye conditions, they are not contagious.
Cataracts are not painful. In fact the only symptom as far as the
patient is concerned is from very slight to virtually total
interference with vision. Cataracts may be manifested in dimmed,
blurred, or double vision or a need for frequent changes of
glasses .  Typically a person with cataracts experiences
difficulty in satisfactorily adjusting light for activities like
reading while at the same time having to avoid glare. Driving at
night may for this reason become very difficult.  Not all
cataracts require surgery, some being small enough that they do
not seriously affect vision. For those large enough to cause
visual problems, medication does not help; and the only effective
treatment is surgery to remove the affected lens, implantation of
an intraocular lens,  and the subsequent wearing of conventional
eyeglasses or strong contact lenses.
 Much progress has been made recently in the development of
improved forms of cataract surgery, including use of freezing
probes and ultrasonic (not to be confused with laser) devices
which make possible removal
of the lens through a small opening in a process called
phacoemulsification.  The decision about whether and when to
operate is dependent on factors such as the patient's age and
occupation. The likelihood of regaining useful sight is generally
good, with some estimates placing it as high as 95%, although
complications may prevent successful treatment in some cases. It
is no longer necessary to wait for cataracts to "ripen" before
operating, and convalescence from the surgery is faster and safer
than ever before.

                         COLOR BLINDNESS

This familiar condition is predominant in males (in about 8% as
opposed to around 0.5% of females) and most commonly is a
sex-linked inherited characteristic transmitted through the male
chromosome, although it may also result from poisoning or retinal
disease. Generally affecting both eyes, it most often takes the
form of a loss of perception of one or two fundamental colors
(red-green color blindness is the most common congenital
variety), but occasionally it is complete, so that the individual
literally sees only in black and white.
The exact mechanism of color blindness has not been fully
explained, but some writers simply attribute it to an absence of
one or more of the cone pigments or an abnormal presence of a
mixture of two of the color-sensitive pigments in one cone. In
any event, use of various charts to test for color blindness is
commonly included as part of an eye examination, especially for
drivers and workers in industry and transportation, where the
ability to distinguish colored signals is important. One of the
most familiar tests consists of a circle containing dots of
different colors, in which the subject with normal color vision
is supposed to discern one number, while a person with defective
color vision is likely to see another.
Some have found the pattern of inheritance for this recessive
characteristic confusing. To put the matter simply, a female will
usually not be color-blind herself unless there is an abnormal
gene for color blindness on both of the X chromosomes carried by
all females. On the other hand a male, who carries only one X
chromosome, will be color-blind if it contains an abnormal gene.
Moreover, the female with only one abnormal gene inherited from
her father can become a "carrier" and
pass the trait on to a male offspring without being color-blind
herself.  There is no treatment for color blindness, and it
cannot be overcome through any type of eye exercises.

                     CONGENITAL EYE DEFECTS

The term congenital means "present at birth"; hence, this term
includes some or all cases of many conditions listed under other
headings in this publication. Some congenital eye conditions like
retinoblastoma are truly hereditary (passed on through the genes
and chromosomes),
while others are the result of a disease or deficiency during
pregnancy--for instance, German measles (rubella).
Often the exact cause of a congenital defect is unknown.
Following
are examples of conditions which may be seen at birth as a
developmental deficiency of unknown cause:
aniridia--absence or near absence of the iris
microphthalmos--an abnormally small eye, usually with poor vision
megalophthalmos--an abnormally large eye present at birth
anophthalmos--absence of the eyeball (an artificial eye can
usually be worn, and the eyelids are usually present.)
coloboma--a cleft or slot in the iris and/or retina, as a result
of incomplete growth.

             CORNEAL DISEASE AND CORNEAL TRANSPLANTS

The cornea, a transparent layer over the front of the eye,
functions as a refracting and protective "window" membrane
through which light rays pass on the way to the retina. While
there are no blood vessels in the cornea, there are many pain
fibers, so that most injuries do cause severe pain. In addition,
blurred vision results from injury to or disorder within the
cornea. Problems in this area, resulting as they can in
permanently blurred vision or blindness, are extremely serious
and should receive immediate attention from an eye specialist. 
Corneal ulcers--Scarring or perforation due to corneal ulceration
is a major cause of blindness throughout the world. Usually such
ulcers can be treated if attended to quickly. Ulceration may be
caused by bacteria such as streptococcus, viruses (herpes simplex
keratitis being one of the most common), fungi, vitamin A
deficiency, or other disorders. New drugs have aided the
treatment of many of these conditions.  Degenerative corneal
conditions--Keratoconus, a rare degenerative condition which is
inherited, causes a general thinning and an abnormal protrusion
of the central cornea, as well as some scarring. Blurred vision
results, and in advanced cases there may even be perforation of
the cornea. While contact lenses (especially the new soft types)
can aid vision in the early stages, corneal transplants are
sometimes performed before extreme thinning takes place, and in
such cases reading vision can usually be obtained.
Other degenerative conditions include corneal dystrophy and arcus
senilis, an extremely common condition in elderly people.
Other types of corneal disorders may be indicated by pain,
irritation, or blurred vision; however, some corneal ailments can
be detected only by a trained eye specialist.
Corneal Transplant (Keratoplasty)--When the cornea becomes
scarred, hazy, or opaque or when there is danger of perforation
of a corneal ulcer, an ophthalmic surgeon may remove the affected
cornea and replace it with a healthy one taken from a donor. In
many states it is easy for one to donate eyes for this purpose at
death. Only the cornea is used in such cases. There is no
immediate prospect of successful whole eye transplants. Surgeons
would prefer to use the donated cornea immediately, but it may 
be used within sixty to seventy hours after death if handled
properly. New techniques for this procedure involving surgery
under a microscope and use of finer suture material have
constituted a major advance in treatment of corneal disorders.
 Ordinarily using a knife called the trephine, which functions
rather like a cookie cutter, the surgeon performs what is called
a "penetrating keratoplasty." The defective cornea is cut with
the knife and lifted out. A matching piece of the donor cornea is
cut with the same knife , used to replace the excised piece of
the defective cornea , and
held in place by very fine sutures. The convalescence from this
surgery is relatively brief and uncomplicated these days. Best
vision returns when the sutures are removed about one year after
surgery. Chances of rejection of the new cornea are rated by most
authorities at from one to five percent.

                      DIABETIC RETINOPATHY

 This eye condition, a very common complication of diabetes,
rivals glaucoma and cataracts as a leading cause of blindness in
this country.  Its incidence is rising as a result of the
increased lifespan of diabetics, which has been made possible by
improved medical technology and particularly by the synthesis of
insulin in the early years of the twentieth century.  The
likelihood of retinopathy increases with the length of time a
given person has had diabetes, so that many who have been
diabetics for twenty or more years do become blind.
Long-term diabetes often brings about changes in the tiny blood
vessels in the retina (the lining of the back of the eye). There
are two forms of diabetic retinopathy. The milder form,
background or nonproliferative, is the more common. It involves
development of microaneurisms in retinal capillary blood vessels,
which usually do not cause serious vision loss.
A relatively small number of diabetics develop the more severe,
or proliferative, form of retinopathy, which can cause blindness.
With its onset new, abnormal blood vessels may be formed; blood
vessels may become engorged with too much blood and burst, or the
retina may
break loose from the back of the eye. In addition to the direct
interference with vision caused by these events, blood from the
burst vessels enters the vitreous (jelly-like) part of the eye
and makes it cloudy instead of transparent.
Modern medical treatment administered as early as possible in the
course of the disorder can often slow the course of diabetic
retinopathy.  Laser treatments sometimes can seal or "weld"
broken blood vessels
or seal a detached portion of the retina back into place.
Photocoagulation treatment consists of scattering hundreds of
small, quick flashes of intense laser light across the retina in
order to seal or dry up new blood vessels. It must, however, be
undertaken before there is bleeding into the vitreous or
detachment of the retina. Although in
many cases these kinds of treatment are wholly or partially
unsuccessful, the techniques are continually being refined.
Medical science does not yet fully understand just what
characteristics of diabetes bring about retinopathy. Although
good adherence to a diet, regular administration of insulin, and
other prescribed regimens will improve the patient's general
health and help to lower the likelihood of complications in
general, the most careful and conscientious patient may still
become blind. On the other hand, some people have severe diabetes
for many years and never develop eye problems.

                             DRY EYE

Tears help keep the eye's surface clear and smooth. There are
actually three layers of tears on the surface of the eye, and
there are two kinds of tears: those intended as lubrication and
those prompted by intrusion of something from outside the eye or
by emotion.
If one for some reason does not produce enough of the first kind
of tears, symptoms such as burning and irritation may result.
Then, the second kind of tears may be produced as a reaction to
the irritation.  A certain degree of decrease in tear production
occurs normally with age, but some physical conditions like
arthritis and some drugs may also contribute to development of
dry eyes. Through examination of the eyes and in some cases
testing the rate of tear production, an ophthalmologist can
determine whether treatment with artificial tears
in the form of eyedrops is necessary. The doctor may also seek
preservation of natural tears through closing the channels which
drain them from the eye.

                    GERMAN MEASLES (RUBELLA)

Many readers may be surprised to find that German measles is
associated with blindness since it is commonly thought of as a
very minor disease.  Neither child nor adult is likely to be
harmed permanently by a case of German measles, but an unborn
baby may be very much affected. If an expectant mother has the
disease during the first three months of pregnancy, she herself
will probably hardly feel sick at all, but the disease is likely
to infect her unborn child through the placenta, with serious
results.

Many of these babies are born mentally retarded, and they also
are likely to have physical problems. Heart disease, hearing
disorders, and respiratory difficulties are particularly common.
Many rubella children have cataracts or other eye problems like
glaucoma, abnormally small eyes, or defects in the iris or
retina.
A number of preventive efforts  have been made to minimize this
threat to the unborn. Children--especially girls--should be
exposed to the disease or vaccinated if possible so that they may
have mild symptoms and develop resistance to German measles for
the future. Women who might be in the early stages of pregnancy
should avoid contact with cases of German measles.

                            GLAUCOMA

Glaucoma is another of the leading causes of blindness in the
United States, perhaps accounting for one in every seven or eight
cases.  In this condition, the transparent fluid inside the
forward part of the eye does not drain normally, and excess
pressure is built up within the eye. If the pressure is not
controlled, the delicate structure of the eye is increasingly
damaged, resulting in blurred vision, a narrowed field of sight,
and eventually total blindness. Symptoms may include intermittent
blurred vision, nausea, inability to adjust eyes to darkened
rooms, seeing colored halos around lights, and reduced side
vision.
The causes of glaucoma are not fully understood. Some cases are
hereditary, while others arise as complications of other eye
disorders. Glaucoma, not a contagious condition, is most common
after the age of thirty-five.  The acute type of glaucoma appears
as a sudden attack, characterized by great pain and discomfort as
the eye pressure rises quickly from blockage of drainage canals.
Such an episode can damage the eyes severely in a short time.
More common, however, is the chronic type (affecting perhaps 2.5
million Americans), in which there is no pain and in which the
damage to vision is so slow that it may not be noticed by the
patient for a long time. The intraocular pressure rises because
the drainage canals are blocked and the fluid cannot drain
properly.  Many cases are controlled by medication which relaxes
and unblocks
the drainage channels for the eye fluid. Sometimes surgery is
necessary.  In many cases, although not all, modern medical
treatment can control the disease completely. As with other eye
conditions, early detection and treatment to stop the progress of
the disorder are important.  Many sources recommend an eye
examination every two or three years, especially for those over
thirty-five. Developments such as optic disk topography mapping,
the laser scanning ophthalmoscope, and color perimetry may assist
in early detection and treatment of this disorder.

                    INJURY (TRAUMA) AND BURNS

In an era when cures for disease are constantly being developed,
injury remains a prominent cause of disability, and eye injuries
are no exception.  Preventable accidents injure the eyes of
approximately 500,000 Americans each year.
Adequate protective eye guards (not just any goggles or
eyeglasses) should always be worn during welding , in factories
and laboratories, and in any other situation where the danger of
burns or other injury exists. Children must be effectively taught
not to point arrows, BB guns, or other sharp or dangerous objects
toward the face. Farmers using anhydrous ammonia or other
chemicals must observe suitable safety precautions since chemical
burns are an important cause of injury on farms.
Everyone should know the basic principles of emergency first aid
in case an injury does occur. In case of a chemical burn, the
eyes should immediately be rinsed thoroughly with water for at
least fifteen minutes, and emergency medical care should be
secured at once. For other injuries, it is generally best to
leave the eye alone or if necessary to cover it with a loose
bandage while securing emergency medical care. Hyphema, a
hemorrhaging into the anterior chamber, is a sign of serious
injury.  In such a case blood will be visible through the cornea,
and a doctor's help should be sought at once.
In addition to direct damage due to the injury itself, the danger
of infection is always present and may be even more serious.
Moreover, injury to a single eye may result in pathologic
symptoms in the other, a condition called sympathetic ophthalmia,
which in the past often meant that total blindness ultimately
resulted from injury to a single eye. Although the exact cause of
sympathetic ophthalmia is not fully understood, it can usually be
prevented today by prompt medical care.  We do not have the power
to foresee and prevent all injuries. With proper precautions,
however, a great many accidents can be prevented, and the effects
of those which do occur can be minimized.

                      MACULAR DEGENERATION

As the inner surface or lining at the back of the eye, the retina
serves a function similar to that of the film in a camera. The
macula (the proverbial "apple" of the eye) is the part of the
retina which forms the center of the "picture" and the sharpest
image.  Degeneration or breakdown of the macula may come from
many causes.  Some cases are hereditary, and others are caused by
diseases such as arteriosclerosis. The course of the
deterioration may be slow or rapid; however, the patient
generally keeps good peripheral vision--that is, he can still see
well around the edges of his visual field, although his central
vision is blurred.
The most common form of this condition occurs in the elderly. In
severe form this is called "age-related macular degeneration"
(AMD), which occurs mostly in people over fifty years old. While
a person with macular degeneration may retain substantial
peripheral vision, the ability to read, sew, or drive may be
seriously impaired. Magnifiers may help, and a small percentage
of cases of a rare form of AMD may be candidates for laser
treatment to seal off blood vessels which have grown beneath the
retina or to repair the macula's weak spots by removing worn-out
tissue and allowing new tissue growth.

                    MYOPIA (NEARSIGHTEDNESS)

Myopia results when the eyeball is longer than normal or when
there is some change in the eyeball which causes the light rays
to be bent abnormally. In either case when a distant object is
observed, the parallel light rays passing through the lens into
the eye tend to be focused in front of the retina rather than on
it, and the result is a fuzzy image. Rays coming from nearby
objects are more easily brought into focus, and thus the person
is described as "nearsighted."
 Most nearsighted people  need only wear properly prescribed
corrective lenses in order to see normally. These people are said
to have simple myopia, which hardly ever causes blindness. A much
less common condition, generally hereditary, is degenerative (or
progressive) myopia.
Persons with this condition may not see well even with glasses.
Complications such as retinal detachment, cataracts, or secondary
glaucoma may appear with degenerative myopia.

                            NYSTAGMUS

Continuous jerky, involuntary movements of the eye muscles are
called nystagmus. These oscillations may be in any or all
directions, but are usually more pronounced in some directions
than others and are usually fairly consistent in a particular
individual. Sometimes dizziness is associated with nystagmus. The
person with nystagmus has reduced visual acuity from being unable
to maintain steady fixation on objects.  The exact cause of
nystagmus is not fully understood, but it seems
to be associated with poor vision in a kind of "vicious cycle"
that is, nystagmus makes it more difficult to see, while at the
same time poor vision increases the likelihood of nystagmus.
Usually this disorder cannot be cured. The individual may find he
or she is more comfortable and sees better if the head is tilted
or moved slightly to compensate for the involuntary movements,
and often this will be done unconsciously.

                      OPHTHALMIA NEONATORUM

The well-chosen name of this disease  means "inflammation in the
eyes of the newborn." Once a dreaded and very common cause of
blindness, it is now preventable by means of modern hygiene and
medical care.  Ophthalmia neonatorum appears soon after birth,
but it is not hereditary.  It is caused by the entrance of
bacteria from the mother's birth canal into the baby's eyes.
Inflammation appears in the eyelids and cornea and may spread
further if not treated. Often the bacteria are those of
gonorrhea, but other bacteria  (such as staphylococcus) may be
the cause as well.
A successful treatment to prevent the development of this disease
was discovered in 1880, and this treatment or its equivalent is
now required by law. The eyelids of every newborn baby are
cleansed, and drops of a silver nitrate solution (sometimes
penicillin and other antibiotics) are put into the eyes. Effort
is also directed, of course, to promoting good health on the part
of the expectant mother so that she will not transmit harmful
germs to her baby.

         OPTIC NERVE ATROPHY AND OPTIC NERVE HYPOPLASIA

These two conditions of the optic nerve have become a special
concern of those who work with young children. In optic nerve
atrophy the problem is damage to or degeneration of the optic
nerve. Generally it results from a condition occurring after
birth, but it can also be hereditary. Frequently, it results from
pressure against the optic
nerve and resultant loss of blood supply to it, for example from
hydrocephaly or tumors. Without blood the nerve cells die from
lack of nourishment.  In optic nerve hypoplasia there is a
congenital deficiency of optic nerve fibers, which may exist
independently or in association with other disabilities or
defects. There is some evidence to suggest that this disorder is
related to alcohol or drug use by mothers during their
pregnancies, but in many cases the cause is unknown.

                   PRESBYOPIA (See glossary.)

                  RETINAL BREAKS AND DETACHMENT

Sometimes as part of the aging process, sometimes through
inheritance of a predisposition toward them, and sometimes from
other causes, people may develop breaks in the retina which often
lead ultimately to detachment of the various layers of the retina
from each other.  As with other eye conditions, early detection
and treatment of these problems can help prevent blindness.
Sometimes there are not any dramatic symptoms associated with
these breaks in the retina; however, such noticeable symptoms as
"floaters," haziness or smokiness, or light flashes in the eye
may indicate
retinal problems. An immediate examination by an eye doctor is
recommended.  Treatment for retinal breaks involves use of
cryotherapy or lasers.  In the former, a freezing probe is
applied to the surface of the eye over the point of the retinal
break. Only the area around the break is frozen, prompting the
growth of scar tissue and reattachment of the separated retinal
layers at the edges of the break. Lasers are used to burn tissue
selectively so as to reattach the separated retinal layers in a
process similar to welding.

                      RETINITIS PIGMENTOSA

This condition is characterized by degeneration of the retina and
the choroid, usually involving an abnormal development of excess
pigment.  It is hereditary, with a variety of patterns of
inheritance and development.  The pattern of development most
frequently observed is as follows:
At approximately age ten or twelve, the youngster begins to
experience some difficulty in seeing at night and in poorly
lighted areas. His or her visual field also begins to narrow,
although he or she may not realize this at first. The visual loss
is progressive, so that the individual usually becomes legally
blind by young adulthood and slowly loses more and more vision
thereafter. Many adults with retinitis pigmentosa have a very
tiny field of vision in which they see well under a good light
but which is so small as to be of little use. Total blindness
often results. There may or may not be additional problems, such
as cataracts. There is no known treatment.

                   RETINOPATHY OF PREMATURITY

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), which sometimes advances to a
condition known as retrolental fibroplasia (RLF), was thought for
a long time to be caused by exposing a newborn (frequently
premature) baby to a high concentration of oxygen in an
incubator, but there is now less agreement and certainty about
the cause. In any case, an abnormal proliferation of blood
vessels in the eye occurs, and there may be subsequent
development of scar tissue , with bleeding and detachment of the
retina. Total blindness may result. Glaucoma, uveitis, cataract,
and degenerative lesions of the eye may occur months to years
after onset of the RLF stage. Strabismus and myopia are commonly
associated with cases in which the blood vessels partially heal.
In the large majority of ROP cases (about 80%) abnormal blood
vessels heal completely in the first year of life. In other cases
scars from incompletely healed ROP result in either mild or
severe RLF. In the most severe cases (about 5%)  retinal
detachment results from formation of scar tissue and the
resultant pulling loose of the retina from
the normal position in the back of the eye. Recently cryotherapy
(freezing part of the retina while it is immature) has drawn some
interest as a possible treatment for ROP and is currently under
study.
The history of ROP/RLF has affected the education of blind
children in the United States. Because of the surge of RLF cases
in the 1950's, large numbers of blind children reached school age
at a time when social sentiment began increasingly to favor the
"mainstream" placement of children with disabilities in the
regular classroom. The parents of many RLF children worked
successfully to arrange for education in the regular public
schools, a trend which continues today.

                           STRABISMUS

Commonly called "crossed eyes" when the eyes turn in and "wall
eyes"
when they turn out, this condition is frequently due to muscle
inequality.  It can also result from trauma at birth, hereditary
factors, or other disorders. It must be treated-- usually with
corrective glasses, medication, surgery, patching of one eye,
orthoptic exercises, or some combination of these.

                            TRACHOMA

Trachoma is a contagious disease, caused by a virus, which
affects the eyelids and the cornea. Though still common in many
less developed countries, it has become rare in the United
States. It can be prevented through modern sanitation and medical
care.
The exact pattern of development varies with the individual, but
the following symptoms are typical: The eye becomes painful, with
burning sensations and oversensitivity to light. Vision is
disturbed (or in some advanced cases destroyed) as the cornea
becomes more and more opaque. An excess of tears is produced and
often an additional discharge.  The eyelids develop muscle
spasms; and the eyelashes may be turned inward, further
irritating the cornea.
In its early stages a case of trachoma can usually be cured by
administration of suitable drugs and improved cleanliness and
general health. Surgery is helpful in some cases. However, if the
case is far advanced or
if complications have set in, successful treatment may be
impossible.  Prevention is the best way to control this disorder.

                             TUMORS

Not all tumors and growths are cancer. A "benign" or
"nonmalignant" tumor is not much different from the surrounding
tissue. It stops growing after it reaches a certain size and does
not spread to other areas of the body. Some benign tumors in or
near the eye cause no trouble at all. Others, however, do
interfere with sight or cause pain. Such a tumor may be removed
surgically, and in many cases the eye recovers to become
completely normal.
A cancerous tumor is much more threatening than a benign tumor.
It is greatly different from surrounding tissue, grows rapidly
without stopping, and often spreads through the lymph system to
sprout growths in other parts of the body.
 There are many different kinds of cancers which may appear in or
around the eye. The most common is melanoma, a malignant spot of
color. (Note: Some benign tumors are also called "melanomas.")
Retinoblastoma is a cancer of the retina. Usually hereditary, it
appears in very young children and is believed to be present at
birth in an incipient stage.
 If any history of this disease is known in a family, it is vital
that each baby be examined frequently by an ophthalmologist. The
eye specialist can detect the cancer before it is visible to the
layman and before it causes any discomfort to the child. If the
condition is untreated, the cancer will spread to the brain and
elsewhere, causing death.
Successful treatment of a tumor is always much more likely if it
is begun early. Radiation, drugs, and/or surgery may be used, but
frequently complete removal of the eye and any other affected
tissue may be necessary.

                        USHER'S  SYNDROME

An inherited disorder present at birth or early in life, Usher's
Syndrome involves hearing loss and a progressive loss of vision
caused by retinitis pigmentosa (discussed above). The hearing
loss associated with this disorder, which may be from mild to
profound, usually does not progress.  The retinitis pigmentosa,
however, follows the usual pattern of progressive loss--first of
night vision and gradually of peripheral vision.  The incidence
of Usher's Syndrome is estimated by the RP Foundation at about 1
in 15,000 to 30,000 births. There is no treatment for this
disorder, but there has been some benefit from cochlear implants
for those with severe hearing loss.

                             UVEITIS

Inflammation of the uvea, the middle layer of the eye between the
sclera and the retina, is called uveitis. Symptoms include light
sensitivity, blurring of vision, pain, and redness of the eye.
This condition can affect other parts of the eye-- cornea,
retina, sclera, for example--and may be serious enough to lead to
loss of vision.  It may come on slowly with little pain but with
blurring of vision, or it may appear suddenly, accompanied by
pain and redness of the eye.
Uveitis near the iris in the front of the eye is called iritis;
that near the ciliary body is called cyclitis; and that in the
choroid near the back of the eye is called choroditis.
Many causes of uveitis have been identified, ranging from viruses
like shingles, mumps, or herpes to funguses or parasites.
Arthritis and injury have also been associated with uveitis. This
disorder is generally treated with medication, although some
complications may make surgery necessary.

                        VENEREAL DISEASE

With modern medical care, most cases of venereal disease can be
cured.  Ignorance and other barriers, however, often encourage
the development of these diseases, and blindness can be the
result. Advanced gonorrhea can cause pain, discharge, severe
irritation of the eyelids and eyes, and corneal ulceration. As
indicated earlier, the germs of gonorrhea may even infect the
eyes of a newborn baby as the child passes through the birth
canal of an infected mother.
Advanced syphilis may cause a rash on the eyelids, irritation of
the cornea or retina, muscle paralysis, and degeneration of the
nerves.  Babies may be born with congenital syphilis acquired
from an infected mother.

III. If Blindness Comes


Modern medicine can prevent or cure many diseases and conditions
which formerly blinded large numbers of people if it is given the
chance.  We urge all readers to take advantage of the  excellent
medical care available today and to protect their eyes from
injury so that unnecessary blindness may be prevented.
When medical care cannot prevent or cure blindness, the National
Federation of the Blind assures the reader that another course of
action which leads to normal, productive living is available.
That course is to secure good education and training in the use
of alternative techniques and to develop the attitudes and
beliefs necessary to reduce blindness from the level of a tragedy
to a level which does not prevent the leading of a normal life,
with full participation in economic and social activity. In this
connection the following information should be of assistance:
(1) Although sight is not the single most valuable thing in a
person's life, it is by all means to be protected carefully. One
should, therefore, select a competent eye specialist with
appropriate training and visit him or her for regular eye
examinations to detect problems before they become acute. If one
experiences problems with the eyes, he or she should visit the
specialist immediately for diagnosis, treatment, or referral to
avoid needless loss of vision. In that regard it may be helpful
to point out that an ophthalmologist is a physician (Doctor of
Medicine) who specializes in medical and surgical treatment of
conditions of the eye and prescription of corrective lenses; an
optometrist (Doctor of Optometry) is a specialist in examining
the eyes and prescribing corrective lenses but not medication;
and an optician (not a doctor) is a person skilled in grinding
lenses and fitting them according
to prescriptions written by optometrists or ophthalmologists.
Ophthalmologists, formerly known sometimes as "oculists," are (in
most parts of the country) the only eye specialists permitted to
prescribe medication or perform surgery.
(2) If serious problems do develop, one should insist on candor
from the doctor about his or her eye condition and the best
estimate of where it will lead.
(3) If one discovers that he or she is, in fact, losing sight, he
or she should not delay learning the alternative techniques which
will be the passport to independence as a blind person. A call or
letter to the National Federation of the Blind at the address
shown on the front of this publication will enable us to put the
newly blind person in touch with local educational and
rehabilitation services and with local and state affiliates of
the National Federation of the Blind. Through the Federation one
learns the very fundamental truth that the real problem of
blindness is not the loss of eyesight but rather the
misunderstanding and lack of information which exist.  We believe
that if a blind person has proper training, and if he or she has
opportunity, blindness need not prevent the leading of a normal
life, with full participation in economic, civic, and social
affairs.

              THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

The National Federation of the Blind is the largest organization
of the blind in the United States. Interested sighted persons
also join.  Founded in 1940, the Federation has grown to include
more than ten percent of the nation's blind (over 50,000
members).
The Federation is organized in every state and has local chapters
in almost every community of any size in the nation. Where there
is no local chapter, there are members at large. Each year the
National Convention of the Federation is attended by
approximately 2,500 blind persons, which makes it the largest
gathering of blind people in the history of the world and one
which is growing each year.
The ultimate purpose of the National Federation of the Blind is
the complete integration of the blind into society on a  basis of
equality.  This objective involves the removal of legal,
economic, and social discriminations; the education of the public
to new concepts concerning blindness; and the achievement by all
blind people of the right to exercise to the fullest their
individual talents and capacities. It means the the right of the
blind to work along with their sighted neighbors in the
professions, common callings, skilled trades, and regular
occupations.
There are numerous governmental agencies and private charitable
organizations and foundations providing services for blind
people, but only the blind themselves (acting through their own
organization) are able to speak for the blind. This is a basic
concept of democracy.

                         The Newly Blind

Blindness knows no discrimination. Any child can be born blind.
Any individual can become blind in childhood or later life. It is
in the best interest of every individual to understand blindness
and how to cope with its problems.
The newly blinded person faces a difficult adjustment. Studies
have shown that only cancer is feared more than blindness.
However, blindness does not need to be the tragedy which it is
generally thought to be.  One of the best medicines is to meet
other blind people and learn of their jobs and the techniques
they use in doing things without sight. Membership in the NFB
provides this common meeting ground and,
even more important, a sense of participation and restoration of
confidence.  Members of the NFB contact newly blinded persons to
help them with problems of adjustment and orientation. Local
chapters ordinarily hold monthly meetings, and state
organizations usually meet annually.  The National Convention is
held each summer in a major American city and is the ultimate
authority of the Federation, which establishes all policy.
The newly blinded person must also know where and how to get the
training and services he or she needs. The National Federation of
the Blind can work with the person to find and provide
information on available services from governmental and private
agencies, as well as facts about laws and regulations concerning
the blind. More and more of
the governmental agencies and private foundations are becoming
responsive to the views and needs of the blind and are learning
new concepts and attitudes about blindness. The future looks
bright. There is an overwhelming feeling of goodwill and a wish
to help on the part of the general public. Most important of all,
the blind are moving forward to speak for themselves and take a
hand in the management
of their own affairs through their organization, the National
Federation of the Blind.

                      Programs and Services

Public Education-- By means of speeches, pamphlets, and radio and
TV appearances, members of the NFB strive to educate the general
public to the fact that the blind are normal individuals who can
compete on the basis of equality with their sighted peers.
The Braille Monitor is a monthly publication of the NFB devoted
to issues, news, and events which have special significance to
the blind. It is published in Braille, in print, on record, and
on cassette and is available without cost to the blind and
sighted alike upon request to the National Office at the address
on the front of this book.
Job Opportunities for the Blind-- Blind persons seeking
employment
may use regular public and private employment agencies. However,
because of widespread misconceptions about the abilities of the
blind, special employment services may be helpful. Blind people
today work as lawyers, psychologists, machinists, farmers, and
hairdressers; but the best estimates indicate that 70 percent of
those who are able to work still do not have jobs or work only a
few days a month in sheltered workshops.  Many thoroughly capable
blind persons have never had a job.
To respond to this critically high unemployment rate, the
National Federation of the Blind, in cooperation with the United
States Department of Labor, developed a program called Job
Opportunities for the Blind.  JOB helps qualified blind people
who are looking for work find employers with job openings. JOB
also helps employers seeking competent workers and compliance
with affirmative action requirements for hiring the handicapped
find truly qualified employees. JOB conducts educational seminars
about blindness for employers and career planning seminars for
unemployed blind people.
Protection of Rights-- There are barriers to full participation
in society by the blind. The National Federation of the Blind
stands ready to help blind people overcome these barriers when
collective action is necessary to invoke protection of applicable
state and federal laws in such areas as employment, education,
housing, insurance, public transportation, and public facilities.
Social Security Benefits-- Legally blind persons who have paid
into
the Social Security system may be eligible for Social Security
Disability Insurance (SSDI) under the special rules which apply
to the blind.  Legally blind senior citizens considering early
retirement should first learn if they might qualify for more
benefits under SSDI. Blind persons who have little or no regular
income or savings may qualify for monthly payments under the
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. Again, there are
special rules which apply only to the blind.  Local Social
Security offices have information and applications. The National
Federation of the Blind can help with problems in understanding
the regulations, incorrect denial of benefits, or related
problems.  Rehabilitation-- Every state has a public
rehabilitation or vocational rehabilitation agency which provides
training, counseling, and employment placement services to the
blind. Sometimes the service is provided directly, and sometimes
it is contracted out to private rehabilitation facilities. Some
funds through the rehabilitation agency are usually available to
students for college education or other post-secondary training.
Our National Office can provide information about where to apply
for services in your area.
Library Services-- Every state has free library services  for
those who because of a physical or visual defect cannot read
ordinary print books. Books and magazines are available (on loan
or free of charge)
in Braille, in large print, and on cassette and record. Special
cassette machines and record players to use in listening to the
taped or recorded reading matter are also loaned without cost to
blind library users.  For details about where and how to apply
for services in your area you may contact us or your local
library.
Free Reading Matter Mail Privilege-- Recorded, Braille, and large
print reading matter (including library books and magazines) may
be mailed to and from blind persons free of charge if "Free
Matter for the Blind" is written or stamped on the envelope or
package. Braille watches, white canes, or other special
appliances for the blind are included in this privilege. We will
be happy to answer questions about the Free Reading Matter mail
privilege.
Education of Blind Children-- The passage of Public Law 94- 142,
the Education of All Handicapped Children Act, established
certain rights and protections for blind children and their
parents. Blind children are now entitled to a free public
education in the "least restrictive environment," and parents
have the right to help plan their child's educational program.
Contact us for more information
about the education of blind children, parent organizations,
newsletters, etc. Also, the National Federation of the Blind
publishes a magazine for parents of blind children. This
publication provides information and insights into all aspects of
raising blind children from infancy to adulthood. A free
subscription is available to parents and other interested persons
by writing to Future Reflections at the address on the front of
this publication.
Scholarships-- Blind students can take advantage of the same
scholarship programs that are available to sighted students and
should be encouraged to do so. However, there are also
scholarships which are only available to blind students. The
National Federation of the Blind, for example, awards over
$60,000 a year in scholarships to worthy blind students.  Contact
us for further details about these and other special scholarships
for the blind.
Products and Aids-- Technology has made many useful products
available to the blind. Some aids make daily life easier (for
example, the Braille watch) while others have opened up more
employment opportunities for the blind (for example, talking
computers). We can supply more information about local and
national resources regarding products and technology for the
blind.

                            GLOSSARY

Accommodation. The adjustment of the eye for seeing at different
distances, accomplished by changing the shape of the crystalline
lens through action of the ciliary muscle, thus focusing a clear
image on the retina.
Artificial Eyes. See prosthesis.
Astigmatism. A refractive error which prevents the light rays
from coming to a single sharp focus on the retina for near or
distant vision.  Binocular vision. The ability of a person's two
eyes to focus on one object and to fuse the two images into one.
Blepharitis. An inflammation of the eyelids.
Buphthalmos. Abnormally large eyeball in infants, usually in
cases
of infantile glaucoma.
C.F. Abbreviation used in eye reports to note that the person
tested
counted fingers held up by the examiner.
Coloboma. A congenital cleft due to failure of some part of the
eye to complete its growth.
Concave lens.  Lens having the power to diverge rays of light;
also known as diverging, reducing, negative, myopic, or minus
lens, denoted by the minus sign.
Cones and Rods. The two kinds of receptor cells in the retina.
Cones receive information related to visual acuity and color;
rods receive information related to peripheral vision and vision
under low illumination (e.g., night vision).
Conjunctivitis (pink eye). Inflammation of the mucous membrane
which lines the eyelids and covers the front part of the eyeball,
ending at the cornea.
Convergence. The process of directing the visual lines of the two
eyes to a near point. The near point of convergence is defined as
the nearest point at which the two eyes can direct their gaze at
the same time. Usually this is about three inches from the nose. 
Convex lens. Lens having the power to converge rays of light and
bring them to a focus. Also known as converging, magnifying,
hyperopic, or plus lens, denoted by a plus sign.
Corneal graft (Keratoplasty). Operation to restore vision by
replacing a section of opaque cornea with transparent cornea. 
Dacryocystitis. An infection or inflammation of the lacrimal
(tear) sac.
Diplopia. Seeing one object as two, i.e. "double vision."
Dyslexia. A reading problem which may be neurological in origin
rather than strictly visual.
Enucleation. Complete removal of the eyeball through surgery. 
Evisceration of the eyeball. Surgical procedure in which the
cornea
and entire contents of the eyeball are removed, leaving only the
sclera.  This procedure is seen to leave more support for an
artificial eye than does enucleation.
Exophthalmos. Abnormal protrusion of the eyeball.
Field of Vision. The entire area which can be seen without
shifting one's gaze or turning the head, about 150 degrees.
Focus. The point to which rays converge after passing through a
lens. The focal distance is that distance between the lens and
the focal point.
H.M. Abbreviation used in eye reports (where visual acuity tests
1/200 or less) to note that the person tested can detect hand
movements.  Iridectomy. Surgery in which a piece of the iris is
removed, particularly in some procedures for cataract extraction
or treatment of glaucoma.  Iris. The colored circular membrane
suspended behind the cornea and immediately in front of the lens.
Iritis. Inflammation of the iris. Additional symptoms include
pain and discomfort from light.
Laser. A generated light of one wave length, all of which has the
same energy and can be focused to a pinpoint to seal tears,
breaks, etc. in the eye.
L.P. Abbreviation used in eye reports where visual acuity tests
1/200 or less to indicate that the individual can detect light,
though without localizing the source. Occasionally one encounters
variants such as "PLL" for "perceives and localizes light," and
"No LP" or "nil" for total blindness.
O.D. Abbreviation for oculus dexter, the medical designation for
the right eye.
Ophthalmoscope. An instrument with a special illumination system
for viewing the inner eye, particularly the retina and associated
structures.
Optic atrophy. An atrophy (wasting away) of the optic nerve
tissue, which carries impulses from the retina to the brain,
leading to visual loss.
O.S. Abbreviation for oculus sinister, medical designation for
the left eye.
O.U. Abbreviation for oculus unitas, medical designation for both
eyes.
Peripheral vision. Ability to perceive the presence, motion, or
color of objects outside the direct line of vision. The
measurement of this ability is just as important as that of
central visual acuity in determining a person's total visual
functioning. One may, it will be recalled, have 20/20 central
vision with a loss of peripheral vision so severe that he or she
is legally and functionally blind.  Photophobia. Abnormal
sensitivity to light and the attendant discomfort.  Presbyopia.
Decreased ability of eyes to focus on near objects and loss of
elasticity in eye's lens, commonly associated with aging and
generally corrected with reading glasses or bifocals. 
Prosthesis. An artificial eye and/or the procedure by which it is
used to replace a missing eye. Artificial eyes can be made and
fitted for normal appearance and movement by the eye muscles. Two
artificial eyes or one in combination with a natural eye can
usually be made to move together normally without special effort
on the part of the individual. A properly fitted artificial eye
is not uncomfortable to wear and is perfectly attractive in
appearance.
Refraction. (1) The bending or deviation in the course of rays of
light in passing from one transparent medium to another of
different density. (2) The determination of refractive errors of
the eye and correction by glasses.
Refractive error (ametropia). A defect in the eye that prevents
light rays from being brought to a single focus on the retina. 
Refractive media. The transparent parts of the eye having
refractive power: cornea, aqueous, lens, and vitreous.
Retinal detachment. A separation of the retina from the choroid
(vascular layer behind the retina). This results in a break in
the connections between cones and rods and the pigmentary
epithelium.  The condition often results from holes and tears in
the retina.  Retinoscope. An instrument especially designed to
determine the refractive state of the eye by projecting light
onto the retina.  Rods. See Cones and Rods.
Scotoma. A blind or partially blind spot in the field of vision. 
Snellen Chart. The familiar chart seen in most doctors' offices,
consisting of lines of letters or numbers in different sizes.
Each line is labeled with the distance at which a person with
normal central visual acuity can read it, most generally when he
is standing or sitting twenty feet away from the chart. (See also
Visual acuity.) Sympathetic ophthalmia. Inflammation in one eye
following injury to the other. This condition can thus lead to
total blindness.
Tunnel or "gun barrel" vision. Popular names for the severely
contracted visual field associated with such conditions as
retinitis pigmentosa.  The loss of peripheral vision and
retention of central vision gives the impression of looking
through a long tube or tunnel.  Uveitis. Inflammation of one or
all portions of the uveal tract (includes iris, ciliary body, and
choroid).
Visual acuity. Term commonly used to mean central visual acuity,
the degree of sharpness with which one can distinguish detail in
his or her direct line of central vision (that which registers on
the small part of the retina called the macula). Distant visual
acuity is expressed in terms of the test situation relative to
the Snellen chart, using a number such as 20/100. This simply
means that on the test the subject saw at 20 feet what a person
with normal vision would see at 100 feet. For acuities less than
20/200, the first number becomes the actual distance at which the
subject can read the 200-foot letter (for example, 5/200). Near
visual acuity is tested using another chart of lines printed in
different type sizes. (See also Peripheral vision and Snellen
chart above.)

                          BIBLIOGRAPHY

This listing includes both works consulted and references for
further reading. Items marked with an asterisk (*) may be
obtained free of charge or at nominal cost from the National
Federation of the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland
21230.

Adler, Francis H. Textbook of Ophthalmology. Philadelphia:
W.B.   Sanders Company, 1962.
     The Aging Eye. New York: National Society to Prevent
Blindness,   1980.
     Allen, James H. May's Manual of Diseases of the Eye.
Baltimore:   The Williams and Wilkins Company, 1968.
     Amblyopia: Lazy Eye. Baltimore: Maryland Society for the  
Prevention of Blindness, 1979.
     AMD (Age-related Macular Degeneration). Schaumburg,
Illinois:   National Society to Prevent Blindness, 1987.
     Answers to Your Questions About Usher's Syndrome. Baltimore: 
RP   Foundation Fighting Blindness, 1988.
     Beauchamp, George R., M.D. "Signs and Symptoms of Eye
Problems in   Infants and Children." NFB Newsletter for Parents
of Blind   Children 1 (January 1982), 8-9.
     Berland, Theodore and Richard A. Perritt. Living With Your
Eye   Operation. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1974.
     Burde, R., M.D., "Neuro-Ophthalmology," Lecture given to
the   Institute on Diseases of the Eye, St. Louis, Missouri,
October   26, 1971.
     Cataract--What It Is and How It Is Treated. Publication
Number G-  4, 1/74. New York: National Society to Prevent
Blindness, 1986.
     The Cataract Book. Daly City, California: Krames
Communications,   1986.       "Causes Of Visual Impairment In
Young Children: Optic Atrophy and   Optic Nerve Hypoplasia." VIP
Newsletter 4 (January 1986):  2-3.
     Chalkley, Thomas, M.D. Your Eyes: A Book for Paramedical
Personnel and the Lay Reader. Springfield, Illinois: Charles C.  
Thomas, Publisher, 1974.
     Contact Lenses. Daly City, California: Krames
Communications,   1983.       Davis, Matthew D., M.D. "Eye Care:
Focus on Prevention." Mahopac,   New York: American Diabetes
Association, 1987.
     Department of Ophthalmology, Washington University School
of   Medicine, "Institute on Diseases of the Eye." St. Louis,  
Missouri:  Washington University School of Medicine, 1973.  
(Mimeographed)      Diabetic Retinopathy. San Francisco: American
Academy of   Ophthalmology, 1987.
     Dry Eye. San Francisco: American Academy of Ophthalmology,
1987.
     Estimated Statistics on Blindness and Vision Problems.  New
York:   National Society for the Prevention of Blindness, Inc.,
1966.
     Estimated Total Cases and New Cases of Legal Blindness
By State,   1971. New York: National Society for the Prevention
of   Blindness, Inc., 1972.
     The Eye and How We See. New York: National Society to
Prevent   Blindness, 1981.
     Fenly, Leigh. "Taking an Earlier Look at Glaucoma." The San
Diego Union (March 27, 1988), pp. D1ff.
     The First Thirty Years: A History of the National Federation
of  the Blind. Des Moines, Iowa: National Federation of the
Blind,   1970.      Glaucoma...Sneak Thief of Sight. New York:
National Society to   Prevent Blindness, 1984.
     A Guide to Understanding Strabismus and Amblyopia. Daly
City,   California: Krames Communications, 1986.
     *Jernigan, Kenneth. Blindness: Concepts and Misconceptions. 
     *_______. Blindness: The Circle of Sophistry.
     *_______. Blindness: The Coming of the Third Generation.    
*_______. Blindness: The Corner of Time.
     *_______. Blindness: Discrimination, Hostility, and
Progress.      *_______. Blindness: Handicap or
Characteristic.     *_______. Blindness: Is History Against
Us?       *_______. Blindness: Is Literature Against Us?    
*_______. Is the Public Against Us?
     *_______. Blindness: The Lessons of History.      *_______.
Blindness: The Myth and the Image.      *_______. Blindness: The
New Generation.     *_______. Blindness: Of Visions and Vultures. 
     *_______. Blindness: The Other Half of Inertia.   *_______.
Blindness: The Pattern of Freedom.
     *_______. Blindness: Simplicity, Complexity, and the Public
Mind.
     *_______. Blindness: That's How It Is at the Top of the
Stairs.
     *_______. Blindness: The Triple Revolution.       *_______.
A Definition of Blindness.
     *_______. Disability and Visibility: Uncle Tom, Blind Tom,
and   Tiny Tim.
     *_______. Jargon and Research--Twin Idols in Work with the
Blind.
     *_______. A Left-handed Dissertation
     *_______. Milestones and Millstones.
     *_______. To Everything There is a Season.
     *_______. To Man the Barricades.
     *Maurer, Marc. Back to Notre Dame.
     *_______. Preparation and the Critical Nudge.
     The Retina Book. Daly City, California: Krames
Communications,   1984.       *"Retinopathy of Prematurity."
Future Reflections 5   (Spring/Summer 1986), 21-23.
     Rogell, Gerald D., M.D. "Vitrectomy for Diabetic
Retinopathy."   American Diabetes Association, 1987.
     Seeing Well As You Grow Older. Washington, D.C.: American  
Association of Ophthalmology, n.d.
     Seeman, Bernard. Your Sight: Folklore, Fact, and Common
Sense.   Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1968.
     Understanding and Living with Glaucoma: A Reference Guide
for   Patients and Their Families.  San Francisco: The  
Foundation   for Glaucoma Research, 1986.
     Uveitis. San Francisco: American Academy of Ophthalmology,
1985.
     Vaughan, Daniel, M.D., Taylor Asbury, M.D., and Robert Cook,
M.D.  General Ophthalmology. Los Altos, California: Lange Medical
Publications, 1971.
     Vision Loss: Information and Resources. Baltimore: The
Wilmer   Institute/Johns Hopkins Hospital, 1982.
     Vocabulary of Terms Relating to the Eye. Publication Number
P-  607, 4/73. New York: National Society for the Prevention of  
Blindness, Inc., 1973.
     *Who Are the Blind Who Lead the Blind? Baltimore: National  
Federation of the Blind, 1982.
     *Willoughby, Doris. Your School Includes a Blind Student.2d
ed.   Baltimore: National Federation of the Blind, 1981.
     Your Child's Sight: How You Can Help. New York: National
Society   to Prevent Blindness, 1978.
     Your Eyes...For a Lifetime of Sight. Publication Number
G-510,   12/83. New York: National Society to Prevent Blindness,
1983.
                                 
PAUL HARVEY SPEAKS TO NFB CONVENTION
 One of the highlights of the 1988 convention of the National
Federation of the Blind in Chicago was the appearance Thursday
afternoon, July
7, of radio celebrity Paul Harvey. In the past some of Harvey's
remarks have drawn criticism from the blind, but he demonstrated
by what he said at the convention that he had read and understood
our message.
The response of the more than 2,500 delegates was tumultuously
enthusiastic.  Introducing Paul Harvey, Dr. Jernigan said: 

Paul Harvey broadcasts and newspaper columns have been reprinted
in
the  Congressional Record  more than those of any other
commentator in this country. He has been the recipient of many
honorary degrees, has earned eleven Freedoms Foundation awards,
and has been elected to the National Association of Broadcasters
Hall of Fame. A Gallup poll found that he was on the list of
America's most admired men.  Paul Harvey News is the world's
largest communications conglomerate, comprised of 1,350 radio
stations, plus an additional 400 stations of American Forces
Radio around the world, and 300 newspapers. Those are the
statistics, but they don't really show the impact that Paul
Harvey has on the lives of people through his radio broadcasts. I
can remember back in my days in Tennessee listening to Paul
Harvey on the radio; and, whether for good or bad, Mr. Harvey, I
thought that if Paul Harvey said it, it must be so. I am pleased,
as I am sure all of you are, that Paul Harvey is here to speak to
us. I want to present to you now Paul Harvey.
____________________
Good afternoon, Americans.  Dr. Jernigan, thank you for your
infectious enthusiasm but Diane, (dear Diane), I've been sitting
back hearing about repelling off one hundred foot rocks, and have
you any idea
how inadequate that makes your speaker feel? I had thought that
Captain Hank Dekker was something, negotiating stormy pacific
seas with Braille charts and a Braille compass, but I'm going to
tell you something.  If Hank is not here, he's a sissy. I mean
he's a sissy compared to some three thousand uncommon Americans
I've watched most of the week gracefully navigating escalators,
transportation, and traffic on Michigan Avenue.  You have all
been properly preoccupied today. Let me remind you that as usual
our world was shaken awake by noisy headlines:  Fear one hundred
and fifty dead in North Sea fire.   Muggy heat
persists nation wide.   Former Miss America arrested for
shoplifting.   Post Office crisis in Land of Lakes, Florida.  The
Postmaster is refusing to allow mail deliveries to Paradise Lakes
Resort. That is the area nudists colony.  Postmaster Henry
Thompson says that he
cannot and will not compel his letter carriers thus to expose
themselves that is, he says, to expose themselves to possible
embarrassment.
Paul Harvey, why in the world don't you news men use more good
news?  Why does it always have to be tragedy and destruction and
discord and disaster and dissent?  Well, now, my own network
tried broadcasting
a program of just good news.  Do you know how long that lasted? 
Thirteen weeks.  It was cancelled because not enough listeners
wanted to listen to just good news.  In Sacramento, California, a
tabloid called itself the  Good News Paper , printed nothing
else, lasted thirty-six months and it went bankrupt.  As far as I
have been able to ascertain, there's only one newspaper in the
U.S.A. today printing good news.  It's a little tabloid that
comes out down here in Indiana once a week, and they have to give
it away because the good news that people say they want, they
just won't buy. And that's at least one of the reasons why you
can listen to any broadcast, and records are crashing, and it's
the worst drought, and the most pollution, and the recession is a
depression, and don't just sit there worry! My goodness, some
broadcasters make a collision of two bicycles sound like the
collapse of civilization.  Performing weathermen in Chicago in
the winter they never tell us it is zero any more, without adding
that the  chill factor  is forty below.  We never were so
uncomfortable in the winter time until somebody invented the
chill factor.
Let me in fairness say this in deference to our Chicago
weathermen:  They did predict seven of last winter's two snow
storms. And with increasing competition for your attention from a
multiplicity of media, the agitation is worsening.
Birth control pills are bad for you; birth control pills are good
for you; take your choice. In Jackson, Mississippi, the Internal
Revenue Service got a call the other day.  Somebody wanted to
know if birth control pills are deductible, and the alert IRS
agent on the other end of the phone said,  Only if they don't
work. 
News isn't news any more. News is an around-the-clock warning. 
Don't breathe. The air is toxic, and it's worse indoors than out. 
Don't eat. The food is contaminated. And don't drink water with
chemicals in it. And for goodness sake don't drink water without
chemicals in
it.  Coffee can cause pancreatic cancer. Coffee does not cause
pancreatic cancer. Harvard Medical just reversed itself.  Now,
the FDA wants
to declare mother's milk unsafe.  Honest.  The Food and Drug
Administration suspects mother's milk may be unsafe, but so far
they have not been able to ascertain where to put the warning
label.
Let me see if I can help you better to understand today's
headlines.  Bad news pays.  I'm on a foundation board which
dispenses large sums for research, and many scholars and many
institutions secure money for research by producing bad news,
about population, resources, environment.  And there is a
demonstrable fascination with (there's a proved public preference
for) bad news, because what's bad news to somebody is good news
to many.  The listener or reader of bad news can say to himself, 
Well, at least I'm not as bad off as those people. 
Then the printer whose printing machine broke down, or the
salesman who bid too low, or the farmer who lost a crop, or the
wild catter who drilled a duster can see his problem as not so
bad after all.  Bad news is good news.  The reader doesn't want
to read about some rich man who's healthy and happily married. 
That would tend to make the reader feel sorry for himself. But if
that rich man is divorced
or diseased or losing his money, that's more interesting reading
because the reader can feel himself to be better off.  There's
always somebody
in any hospital ward who is enough worse off to help us to feel
comparatively fortunate.  And thus, Americans, the plane crash
which does not involve you, the beautiful actress with a
mastectomy, the super rich car maker caught trafficking in
cocaine, and the public official in hot water, and the
ex-president in exile these will continue to be on page one for
as long as the fire that burns them warms the rest of us.  Before
the blind person is reconciled, he has to ask himself,  Why, God?
Why me?  Does a friend of yours (Paul Harvey) dare to presume on
some soon broadcast, to try to answer that question with a
question for those in his radio audience who are not blind to
confront those less adequate than you with this question: 
Whatever you are doing, could you do it with your eyes closed?
Dave Johnson graduated from high school and Louisiana State
University.  For fourteen years he did data processing.  He
married what he calls the prettiest girl in New Orleans, and
there's a lot of pretty in New Orleans.  Dave hosted a weekly
radio program in Dallas.  For seven years, he was one company's
top salesman in the southwest. So what?  But could you do it with
your eyes closed?  Dave Johnson has been blind since he was
eight. Then Dave, who loves animals Dave got this idea for
building and operating a boarding kennel for dogs and cats, and a
pet cemetery called Avelon Gardens, which local folks called
the loveliest pet cemetery anywhere.  Camelot Kennels and Avelon
Gardens near McKinney, Texas, serving a five city area including
Dallas. Dave and his wife Judy with their four sons give seven
day twenty-four-hour care to the pets in their charge. I want to
ask my listeners,  Of course you could, but could you do it with
your eyes closed?  Last autumn I mentioned on the air that
residents of the neighborhood in which I live had been advised
there would be no more door step deliveries of newspapers.  Now,
somebody in a truck is going to toss the paper to the curb side. 
The explanation was that no youngsters wanted to work as
newspaper delivery boys and girls any more.
Then, I heard about John Miller of Omaha, a high school senior,
newspaper carrier of the year. Remember it was March, five years
ago.  John, thirteen, decided that it was time he had a job. 
There was nothing special he wanted the money for, he just wanted
to work. I don't know if you know the preparation that went into
that, because in Omaha, when a boy decides to become a paper
carrier, the newspaper sends
a counselor to talk to him.  The counselor who visited John was
tough, but he was fair.  Would John take his job seriously? 
Would he be conscientious? Would he be responsible?  Would his
job interfere with his school work?  But after the interview was
over, the counselor
had to agree that John would make a fine newspaper delivery boy
and was he ever right.  It took John about a week to learn the
route from brother Dan.  After that, he was on his own.  Each day
he would come home from school, collect his newspapers, and start
out.  He didn't own a bicycle. He walked every inch of the way. 
It gave him a good opportunity, he said, to get to know his
customers.
It took him about forty-five minutes to complete his rounds, and
when he was through, each newspaper had been carefully deposited
at each front door step all 150 customers.  John Miller had had
that route all through high school.  It brought him a stereo and
a trip to the National Boy Scout Jamboree in Virginia among other
things.  It's brought him something that he treasures more than
all of those things that money could buy a singular honor, the
distinction as the newspaper carrier of the year.  And his
customers say that it couldn't have happened to a nicer boy. But,
I intend to ask my audience, just how gifted are you?  Could you
do what he did with your eyes closed?  He did.
Americans in this room, I am going to say something right now
which is not said just for the audience in this room.  The
following word, I promise, will be repeated on some soon
broadcast when the world
is eavesdropping.  Your National Federation of the Blind with
vigorous leadership is helping its members to better understand
their job opportunities and their legal rights, but I'm going to
tell you something. It's helping the rest of us also. For one
thing, it's been helping me to recognize how selective we have
been in our concerns.
Americans somehow imagine that the good neighbor philosophy
obligates us to assist those farthest from home, often to the
neglect of the neighbor right next door.  We weep crocodile tears
over discrimination in South Africa, and yet we tolerate
sheltered workshops in our own country, where blind people are
allowed to make brooms for a dollar an hour. Now, that is
selective indignation. Americans in their courts make much to do
about equal rights for every race, every religion,
every sex. That's fine, and yet we allow blind Americans only
back-of-the-bus seating on airliners. Ever so carefully, our
politicians make certain that the homeless and the junkies have
help, and that convicts are made comfortable while dues paying,
behaving blind people are having their children taken away from
them by social workers.
We must be ever so careful oh, we must be careful never to offend
any of these high paid athletes by invading their privacy to
check their urine for drugs, and yet  Listen to this: if you
don't already know, Christen Knouse of Rutgers University,
champion equestrian athlete, is barred from national competition
because she's blind.
Make certain make absolutely certain, our misleaders insist, that
employment opportunity is better than fair for some Americans who
are disadvantaged, and yet employers (and this includes some of
the biggest) still find reasons not to hire the work able blind.
Prove it?  Well, today, as you know, we celebrate a national
unemployment rate of less than seven percent. Seventy percent of
employable blind are without jobs.  That's a tragic waste of our
nation's most precious natural resource. Again, this is a
preview.  This is not just said for the applause in this room. 
This is to help enlighten a nation, as I have been enlightened.
Election year legislation guaranteed that Social Security must be
expanded for everybody.  Everybody?  In Illinois, right now,
rehab agencies distribute billions of taxpayers' money while
denying services to the impoverished blind.  Americans are made
to feel guilty and spend millions to rescue some endangered
specie of snail-darter or bottle- nosed lizard while cruise lines
refuse to book passage for the blind, and insurance companies
(despite state laws which state otherwise) may refuse to sell
them coverage, or charge them extra
if they do. And has it bothered you?  It sure does me.  We send
translators half way around the world to help some tribe rewrite
books in its native language, and yet American educators (and
even American educators of the blind) force the blind to use
sight they don't have rather than teach them Braille, which they
can read.
This flattering invitation to address you today and my
preparation for it have added a new dimension to my own
comprehension.  You'll
be noticing it during subsequent broadcasts. Through this recent
association with the officers of your Federation I cannot be an
instant expert,
but maybe I can help some sighted person to see. Of all of the
disabilities that flesh is heir to, the one dreaded most is the
loss of eyesight.  Of all of those who are different from what we
consider normal, we have the most universal compassion for the
blind, and I know you appreciate that.  But I know that a lot of
folks are more solicitous than is comfortable for you or useful
for them.
I learned tardily about the phenomenal independence of blind
people in these last few days.  I'm going to share what I have
learned.  As a matter of fact, one of the lovely things I have
learned is that he or she may use a white cane or a guide dog, or
in traffic may ask to take my arm, and I am to let him decide. I
am not to grab his arm.
And I have learned from my long time pilot friend Bill Cleo that
sometimes he may prefer to lay his hand on my shoulder while he
walks half a step behind to anticipate curbs and steps.  And I am
not going to talk to my audience about the wonderful
compensations of blindness, because though there are
compensations, they are nothing those folks would know anything
about.  But so dependent are most of us on our eyes, so
enraptured are most of us by a sunset or a sunrise, that we dread
perhaps more than anything the endless dark.  And yet you know,
when there is an experience that we want really to plant
indelibly on our awareness, when there is an experience we want
ultimately to enjoy and permanently to remember (maybe a measure
of magnificent music, or flavor, or fragrance, or a kiss), we
close our eyes.  Americans, my new found friends of the National
Federation of the Blind, it is dark in my own world when my work
day begins at 3:30 in the morning and I must face another day,
sorting with bare hands through the mud and blood we call news. 
And it is then that I rise to wash and dress and eat and drink
and look at things and talk, and only God knows why but tomorrow,
and tomorrow, and for all the tomorrows, I will remember this day
and you and that you are but a scant half step behind me, and I
will feel your hand on my shoulder, and with my eyesight and your
vision, together, we're going to go as far as we want to go.
____________________
As Paul Harvey concluded, the delegates stood to give him an
enthusiastic, cheering ovation. Harvey did not know that John
Miller, who had been so prominently featured in his remarks, was
present, but most of the audience knew. It seemed a fitting
climax to the afternoon session for John Miller to come to the
stage and be publicly recognized. It was an afternoon which will
long be remembered and true to his word, Paul Harvey did as he
said he would. He told the nation and the world about it, not
once but several times. And as a result the lives of the blind
will (at least to some extent) forever be better for it.
                  TO SEA WITH A BLIND SCIENTIST
                      by Geerat J. Vermeij
 The following address was delivered at the convention of the
National Federation of the Blind in Chicago, Wednesday morning,
July 6, 1988, by Dr. Geerat Vermeij, a professor at the
University of Maryland at College Park.) 

How, a skeptic might ask, could a blind person ever hope to be a
scientist?  After all, science is difficult if not impenetrable
even for many sighted people; and, in any case, there is almost
nothing in the way of books
about science available to the blind.  How would one carry out
experiments?  How would one gain access to the huge scientific
literature? Perhaps a blind person could be a physicist, at least
a theoretical physicist, but surely not a biologist.  Why would
the blind willingly choose biology, that most visual of all the
sciences?
The answer is very simple.  Science, and for me biology in
particular, is absolutely fascinating.  Someone is actually
paying me to study shells some of the most beautiful works of
architecture in all
of nature in the expectation that broad principles with
implications for our own species will emerge.  What is more, I
get to travel to exotic places, to read the scientific literature
in all its fantastic diversity, to see my own papers and books
published, and to teach others about science, that most powerful
of all ways of knowing.  What more could one ask of a profession?
Like many of my colleagues, I came to science early in life. 
Even as a small boy growing up in the Netherlands, I picked up
shells, pinecones, pretty stones, and the like.  My parents, both
of whom are avid natural historians, took pains to acquaint me
with all kinds of creatures that lived in the grassy polders and
in the innumerable ditches that crisscrossed the low land.  The
fact that I was totally blind made no difference at all.  At the
age of ten, shortly after
moving to the United States, I became seriously interested in
shells.  Almost immediately I started my own collection, which
soon grew to include all manner of other objects of natural
history.  My parents and brother were enthusiastic; they read
aloud, transcribed, or dictated every book on natural history
they could find.  The reactions of my teachers in the local
public elementary school ranged from polite acquiescence to
genuine enthusiasm when I told them of my intentions to become
a conchologist, a malacologist, or a biologist.  If they thought
about the incompatibility between blindness and biology, they
kept it to themselves, or perhaps they expected my obsession to
be a passing fancy soon to be replaced by more realistic plans.
The interest in biology did not flag.  As counselors more openly
expressed their fears that I would be unable to find employment
if I persisted
in my plans to study biology, I entered Princeton University to
concentrate on biology and geology.  There I received strong
support from nearly
all my professors; they were giants in their fields, and their
enthusiasm sustained my youthful confidence.  I applied to do
doctoral work at Yale.  When I arrived for my interview in the
biology department, the director of graduate studies was more
than a little apprehensive.  During my talk with him, he took me
down to the university's shell collection in the basement of the
Peabody Museum.  Casually he picked up two shells and asked me if
I knew them.  He fully expected me to draw a blank, in which case
he planned to tell me as gently as possible that biology was not
for me after all.  Fortunately, however, the shells were familiar
to me.  All of the misgivings of the director instantly
evaporated. Thanks to his enthusiastic endorsement, I was able to
enter Yale with a full graduate fellowship that left me free to
travel and to carry out an ambitious research project culminating
in the Ph.D. dissertation.
After Yale, I joined the Department of Zoology at the University
of Maryland at College Park in 1971, first as an instructor. 
Moving
up through the academic ranks, I was appointed Professor in 1980. 
Along the way, I married Edith Zipser, a fellow biologist whom I
had met
at Yale, and we had a daughter Hermine, who is now six.  Very
recently I accepted a new appointment to become Professor of
Geology at the University of California, Davis.
What do I actually do in my job that seemed so improbable to the
skeptics?  Again the answer is simple.  I do what my sighted
colleagues do: research, teaching, and service.
My research centers on how animals and plants have evolved to
cope
with their biological enemies predators, competitors, and
parasites over the course of the last six hundred million years
of earth history.
When I was still a graduate student, working at the University of
Guam Marine Laboratory, I noticed that many of the shells I was
finding on the island's reef-flats were broken despite their
considerable thickness and strength.  It soon became clear that
shell-breaking predators, especially crabs and fishes, were
responsible for this damage.  I began to suspect that many of the
elegant features of tropical shells their knobby and spiny
surfaces, their tight coiling, and
the narrow shell opening often partially occluded by knob-like
thickenings were interpretable as adaptations which enabled the
snails that built the shells to withstand the onslaughts of their
predators.  Most interestingly, the shells I had collected in the
West Indies and the Atlantic coasts of South America and Africa
seemed to be less well endowed with this kind of armor than were
the shells from comparable sites in the tropical Western Pacific.
Armed with these observations and hypotheses, I applied for
funding from the National Science Foundation to continue my work
upon my arrival at Maryland.  When the program director called me
to say that I would be funded, he also informed me that the
Foundation would not sponsor my proposed field work in the Indian
Ocean because he could not conceive of a blind person's doing
field work. I reminded him that I had already worked in field
situations throughout the tropics, and that the proposed research
critically depended on the work in the Indian Ocean. After a few
minutes of conversation he relented and awarded me the full
amount.
The research eventually led to laboratory studies of several
large-clawed shell-crushing crabs in Guam and Panama, as well as
to museum studies of claw sizes and shapes in crabs.  In 1975 it
occurred to me that
the type of armor which is so widespread in today's tropical
shallow-water snail shells was much less evident during the first
four hundred million years of the history of snails.  This
observation led to studies of fossil shells and fossil predators,
as well as to more work with living snails and clams, including
aspects other than armor. Further research quickly showed that
armor was only one of a host of enemy-related attributes of
organisms that have changed greatly over the course of earth
history.  I published a synthesis of my findings and those
of others in a book entitled  Evolution and Escalation, an
Ecological History of Life  (Princeton University Press, 1987).
At present I am trying to understand what happens evolutionarily
and ecologically when species from two previously separated
regions come together after the barrier between them disappears. 
Of particular interest is the so- called Trans-Arctic
interchange, the invasion
of marine plants and animals from the North Pacific to the North
Atlantic Ocean following the opening of the Bering Strait about
three million years ago. This kind of research has important
implications for Central America, another area in which I have
long been interested.  If a salt-water sea-level canal were
constructed across the Central American isthmus linking the
Eastern Pacific and Western Atlantic Oceans, species from these
two oceans could freely invade each other's ranges for
the first time in at least two and a half million years, with
potentially very serious consequences.
How do I do this research?  It is a combination of field,
laboratory, museum, and library work that has taken me all over
the world to coral reefs, mangrove swamps, mud-flats, rock-bound
open coasts, deserts, rain forests, research vessels, marine
biological stations, secret military installations, great
libraries, and big-city museums.  I make large collections of
specimens in the field, work with living animals in laboratory
aquaria, measure shells in museums and in my own very large
research collection, and read voraciously.  Wherever I go I am in
the company of a sighted assistant or colleague.  Often this is
my wife, but there are many others as well my long-time research
associate Elizabeth Dudley, various graduate students, a
technician from Singapore, even a fourteen-year-old Fijian boy. 
There is nothing unusual about this; every scientist I know has
assistants.  I keep detailed field and laboratory notebooks in
Braille, usually written with slate and stylus.  Once a week I go
to the U.S. National Museum of Natural History, part of the
Smithsonian Institution in Washington, in order to work with the
outstanding collection of mollusks and to peruse carefully all
the scientific periodicals that came into the library the
previous week.  While Edith or Dr. Dudley reads to me, I
transcribe extensive notes on the Perkins Brailler. Sometimes I
will make just a few notations of the main point of a scientific
paper, but at other times I transcribe all the data contained in
a paper.  My Braille scientific library now comprises more than
eight thousand publications compiled in more than one hundred
forty thick Braille volumes.
Like many of my colleagues, I spent a great deal of time writing. 
First, I prepare drafts on the Perkins Brailler, using the
seemingly inexhaustible supply of memos and announcements that
flood my mailbox daily.  Once I am satisfied with the text, I
type the manuscript on an ink typewriter. Dr. Dudley proofreads
and corrects the manuscript, which is then submitted to an
appropriate scientific periodical or book publisher for a
thorough evaluation.
In all my work I find Braille to be vastly more efficient than
any
other form of communication.  I also prefer live readers to tape
recorders.  How can you ask a machine to spell words, to ferret
out a detail in a graph or table, and most importantly to skip
whole sections or to scan the text for a particular point?
Teaching has always been inextricably intertwined with research
for me.  I can point to several papers that would not have been
written were it not for the fact that I was forced to think about
problems in connection with a lecture on a topic quite far
removed from my immediate research interests.  Over the years I
have taught a great variety of courses animal diversity,
evolutionary biology, ecology, marine ecology, malacology, the
mathematics and physics of organic form, and a seminar on
extinction ranging from the introductory to the advanced graduate
level. In the large introductory courses, teaching assistants
take charge of the laboratory sections and help
in grading papers.  Again, there is nothing unusual in this.
Professors in science departments at most universities depend
heavily on teaching assistants.  Like other research-oriented
professors, I train graduate students.  Thus far, seven students
have received their Ph.D. degrees under my direction.
The service part of the job is highly varied as well.  There are
the inevitable odious committee meetings and the many tasks that
help make the department or the university run smoothly.  I head
search committees to find new faculty members, I conduct reviews
of faculty performance, and I write as few memos as I can.  An
important service to the profession is the review of dozens of
manuscripts and grant proposals.  If one writes them, one ought
to be willing to review them as well.
Of course, science isn't all fun and games.  Science is
competitive; it is hard work, full of tedious calculations,
revising manuscripts
for the nth time, of coping with the disappointment of having a
cherished paper or grant proposal summarily rejected, and of
quibbling about grades with a frustratingly inept student. 
Nobody in science is exempt from pressures and feelings such as
these, but in the end the work is immensely rewarding and
intellectually fulfilling.
In short, there is nothing about my job that makes it unsuitable
for a blind person.  Of course, there are inherent risks in the
field work; I have been stung by rays, bitten by crabs, and
detained by police who mistook my partner and me for operatives
trying to overthrow the government of their African country, and
I have slipped on rocks, scraped my hand on sharp oysters and
pinnacles of coral, and suffered from stomach cramps. There isn't
a field scientist alive or dead who hasn't had similar
experiences.  Life without risk is life without challenge; one
cannot hope to understand nature without experiencing it
firsthand.  The blind, no more than the sighted, must act
sensibly
and with appropriate caution. Along with independence comes the
responsibility of assuming risks.
What would I say to a blind person who is contemplating a career
in science?  Very simple. I would tell that person exactly what I
would tell a sighted one: Love your subject, be prepared to work
hard, don't be discouraged by doubters and by the occasional
failure, be willing to take risks, get as much basic science and
mathematics as you can take, and perhaps above all display a
reasoned self-confidence without carrying a chip on your
shoulder.  You will need stamina, good grades, the support of
influential scientists, and a willingness and ability to discover
new facts and new ideas.  It is not enough to do well
in courses; one must make new observations, design and carry out
tests of hypotheses that have been carefully thought out, and
interpret
and present the results in such a way that the work is both
believable and interesting to others. Science is not for
everyone, but I can think of no field that is more satisfying.
What would I say to the educational establishment?  I would tell
them that the prevailing attitudes about science and the blind
must be reformed. For too long the scientifically inclined blind
have been
steered only toward the social sciences and other  safe 
disciplines, and away from fields in which laboratory and outdoor
studies are important.  I believe that the chief factor holding
the blind back from science
is ignorance, not only by virtue of woefully inadequate reading
materials in the schools and libraries, but also because of the
pervasive fear and discouragement by the establishment to let the
blind observe nature firsthand. I once met a blind woman who
professed an interest in biology, yet she had never been
encouraged to touch the spiny leaves of the holly.  Observation
is the first, and in many ways the most important, step in a
scientific inquiry.  Without the freedom and encouragement to
observe, a blind person (or anyone else, for that matter) is
subtly but decisively turned away from science.
The key to this freedom is equality, and the key to equality is
opportunity and respect.  The National Federation of the Blind
has long championed the philosophy that the blind are fully as
capable as the sighted
given sufficient opportunity and training.  Education with this
philosophy as its cornerstone is built on the assumption that no
discipline is closed to the blind.  By a logical extension, this
basic respect will open more doors to the world of science as we
continue to press for full participation in society.

 (Note: See the sixth  Monitor Miniature. )BLINDNESS: A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE
                        by Barbara Walker
 The following paper was a presentation made during a panel on 
Blind Children: Problems, Opportunities, and Tomorrow,  at the
1987 National Convention of the NFB in Phoenix, Arizona. 

 I had a headache this big! I took two Excedrin, and now it's
gone.  Based on these words from a recent television commercial,
what's gone the headache or the Excedrin? It depends, of course,
on your perspective. Most things do, including the way you deal
with blindness.
But perspective doesn't have to be a stagnant thing. Take, for
instance, my perspective on travel and the use of the long white
cane. As a child with light, minimal color and no object or depth
perception, with an immeasurably narrow field of vision, I was
encouraged to use my sight for detecting contrasts between, for
instance, a sidewalk and grass. As I grew, and the distance
between my head and the ground increased, I began to use other
things following directly behind someone else, foot shuffling,
quick reflexes which allowed me to miss a top step and still land
on my feet at the bottom, walking with one foot on the sidewalk
and one on the grass, etc. to get places.  When I was introduced
to the cane in junior high, I was told that
I wouldn't need it in familiar surroundings but should take it
other places as a signal to drivers to stop for me, to
pedestrians to move out of my way, and to anyone who saw it that
I might need help. I kept it with me as little as possible and
used it as quietly and as inconspicuously as I could. I carried
this perspective through adolescence, through college, and into a
job training the adult blind.
In December of 1974, accepting an opportunity to broaden my scope
professionally (and personally to verify my belief that the
National Federation of the Blind and the Iowa Commission for the
Blind probably weren't all that they were cracked up to be) I
visited the Iowa Commission for the Blind. The perspective I
gained from a few short days in an environment where the bottom
line was that it is respectable to be blind genuinely changed my
life. With specific respect to cane travel, I began always to use
my cane in unfamiliar places and oftentimes in familiar ones,
especially at work, where I was a role model. And I discovered
how much simpler it was to detect with one confident sweep of the
cane the identity of something which, if I noticed it visually at
all, might have been a hole, a shadow, a mud puddle, or a
dark-colored object. And I now do everything I can to encourage
parents and educators of blind children to get a white cane a
tool for truly independent travel into those children's hands as
early as possible.
Knowing that it is respectable to be blind also changed my
perspective on other things. As a blind adolescent and college
student, I was advised neither to date nor to spend too much time
with blind friends,
but rather to cultivate friendships with sighted people. One of
the  stated reasons for this was that I should avoid the
potential of falling
in love with a blind man because, in such a relationship or
marriage, who would read things, drive, and do other essentials?
Although I didn't totally buy into that perspective, it did
affect me to the extent that I saw myself as an unlikely partner
for anyone.
With my change in perspective about blindness came a change in my
approach to others, and theirs to me. As I gained
self-confidence,
I earned respect from others. Blindness itself was no longer a
liability in my own mind. But people's attitudes about blindness,
including
my own, were of utmost importance to me in developing and
maintaining relationships.
The man I married almost ten years ago also believes that it is
respectable to be blind. We get where we want to go. We get
things read. We do
all those other essentials which were said to be so out of the
question for blind people.
And we are both blind. I am now a homemaker and mother in
addition
to being President of the National Federation of the Blind of
Nebraska.  My husband, Jim, and I have two small children. Marsha
JoAnn was born on July 2, 1981, and John Peter arrived on
November 16, 1983.
As a blind parent, I am, of course, faced with dealing with the
age-old misconceptions about blindness sometimes even from my own
children.  There was a time, for instance, when Marsha, age five,
said, while we were coloring together:  That's a pretty good
triangle for a blind person.  I asked her what she meant. She
said that the lines went too far, but that was okay because I
couldn't see them.  We had a short discussion about how I could
remedy that problem and make a triangle that would meet her
standards, whether or not I could see it. I placed my fingers at
three points and drew among them. I put dots at three points and
drew among those. I explained that I could get or make something
triangular and trace around it, depending upon what I used. She
became enthusiastically involved in what had become a game, and
came to the conclusion that some of those methods also helped her
to make specific kinds of triangles more easily and/or more
quickly than doing it freehand.
All parents are tested by their own and by other people's
children.  With me, oftentimes these tests involve their
perspective on blindness.  On one occasion, after the completion
of a project which included Marsha and two neighbor girls close
to her age, I asked for volunteers for clean-up. The older of the
two girls agreed to put away some dishes.  After I left the room,
she asked Marsha to do it. Marsha refused, reminding her that she
had volunteered. The girl's response was:  Her voice is a lot
like yours. She won't know the difference.  I did, of course,
know, and the girl did the work.
I have encountered so many and varied reactions from people with
respect to my parenthood that it is hard to choose which to
relate. Before Marsha was born, for instance, someone called
wanting to observe my labor and delivery in order to draw some
conclusions about how a blind person bonds with a baby.
Practically from the moment of their birth, people have made
reference to how wonderful it is that we have them to watch out
for us, take care of us, be our eyes, etc. They have also been
thought, without having observed them, to have innately exemplary
behavior, making it unnecessary for us, for whom it would be so
difficult, to discipline them. There are times when I think
John's main goal in life is to dispel that theory. One day, for
instance, while I was baking cookies, he went into the neighbors'
yard and, when questioned by me, denied it. He had a bell pinned
to his shorts, and it was obvious where he had been. I confined
him to the house for one-half hour. After several minutes I
couldn't hear him. After calling his name several times, I said
that if he didn't answer by the count of three, he would be in
real trouble. His response came from outside the locked front
door. Before I could ask how he got there, he announced
triumphantly,  I went out my window, Mom.  And that time he was
telling the truth.
One of the most blatantly negative comments made about my role
happened one day while my children and I were waiting for a bus.
A woman said,  I think gals like that ought to be sterilized! 
Although I was a bit taken aback by the statement, I was
immediately able to get perspective. After thanking God that my
children weren't old enough to know what that meant, I thought of
Diane McGeorge's experience in which someone, in the presence of
her children, said to someone else,  It's the children of those
people I feel sorry for.  And I thought about Dave and Debbie
Robinson's doctor telling them that their daughter's digestive
problem was related to their blindness; and the Eckerys'
daughter's teacher saying that it wouldn't be safe for them as
blind people to be in charge of another person's child at a party
because that child wouldn't be trained in how to interact
with blind people; and the Wurtzel's difficulty in reaching a
satisfactory solution to their son's problems in elementary
school primarily because the school personnel were so convinced
that his problems were the result of his parents' blindness, and
situations in which children have been taken from parents solely
on the grounds of their parents' blindness and on and on. I'm not
glad that the McGeorges, the Robinsons, the Eckerys, the
Wurtzels, and countless others have had those frustrating and
humiliating experiences. But I am glad, for all of our sakes,
that they have shared those experiences and their responses to
them, not in some  misery loves company  sort of way, but in ways
from which we can all benefit. Because of the perspective on
blindness which I have learned through my involvement in the
National Federation of the Blind, I was able to understand
that comment for what it was a misguided response from an
uninformed person. I walked away from the incident with my head
held high, my self-respect intact, and renewed resolve to do
whatever I could to promote our cause and help make that opinion
of us obsolete. I educate plumbers, pest controllers, insulation
experts, church and recreation people, other parents and their
children, etc., about blindness and parenthood every day. Things
like tying little shoes, bandaging cuts, slicing watermelon,
refereeing disagreements, going places on foot or by public
transportation, etc., go a long way toward convincing children
that blind people can take charge.
As a family in which both parents are Federationists, we also
find ourselves involving our children in many of our activities.
They have both been diapered and/or fed by blind teen-agers and
adults who had previously been denied those opportunities. They
have attended conventions, public speaking engagements,
legislative functions, and the like.  They have participated in
assembly lines for stamping, sorting, or addressing items. They
have helped to prepare and/or sell things to raise money for or
to publicize our organization.
The opportunities for changing what it means to be blind in a
positive way are endless. And there are people out there,
including my own parents, who, whether or not they have had
previous experience with blindness, are willing to ask questions
and accept our lives and materials as evidence that we can
participate equally in society, given the proper training and
opportunity. The presence and support of such people, coupled
with the lives we live today before children (both blind and
sighted) and the time we spend nurturing them and cultivating
their attitudes, will do much toward carrying our message into
the future that it is respectable to be blind.
                                 
SEVILLE ALLEN TALKS ABOUT BRAILLE
 As Federationists know, Seville Allen is one of the leaders of
the National Federation of the Blind of Virginia. Writing in the
September, 1988, newsletter of that organization, she says: 

Ed Peay, of our Richmond Area Federation, spent his summer
conducting a Braille survey of Virginia's public schools. As
Federationists know, Braille is an essential tool. This
alternative to inkprint reading makes us literate; not knowing
Braille and being blind equal illiteracy.  We often hear the
argument, when we raise the question of teaching Braille, that
students don't want to learn it and/or that the student doesn't
need it. One would wonder: Does a six- year-old have the
experience to know whether or not he/she wants it or should learn
it? Do parents, who are given the choice as to whether or not
their legally blind child should learn Braille, have enough facts
upon which to base a
sound decision? Are adequate Braille skills required in special
education curriculum?
Most pathetically, school officials tell parents that their child
has too much sight and, thus, doesn't have to learn Braille.
While professional educators of blind children believe they are
doing blind kids a favor by helping them  hide  their blindness,
they
are really reinforcing fear and prejudice. The denial of Braille
keeps students from reaching their academic and often social
potential.  Blind students frequently fail in school or are
passed  on age  to the next class. Intelligent students often
become frustrated and develop inappropriate behavior and get
labeled  trouble makers.  Blind students struggling to read print
they can barely see, lose interest in school, drop out, and
become dependent on welfare checks.  Without Braille, one is most
often also without self-respect due to inefficiency and inability
to function alongside peers.
One of our top priorities during the coming year is to see to it
that Virginia assures Braille as an alternative to inkprint
reading. Ed Peay has set the pace, and we will take the results
of his survey and use them to show that, once again, we know what
we need and will work to make it happen.
                 MAPPING THE ENCHANTED KINGDOM: 
REFLECTIONS ON THE TALKING BOOK
                        by Barbara Pierce
When I was nine, my father walked in from work one day carrying a
large, heavy case.  My brother and I were consumed with
curiosity, and my smugness and self-importance knew no bounds
when he explained that the box was for me.  Nothing, however,
could have prepared me for the revolution that the heavy gray
case would create in my life.  The year was 1954, and the box was
a Talking Book record player from the Library of Congress.  If
the President himself had presented me with the machine, I could
not have been more astonished.  I now know that, two years
before, Congress had amended the Pratt-Smoot Act to include
children in the Talking Book Program.  But as I remember the
lecture I was given that day, special arrangements had been made
[I was certain that these had been at the highest levels of
government], and it had been decided to allow me to read books on
records because everyone knew what a careful and responsible girl
I was.  If I failed to operate the machine properly or
(inconceivable catastrophe) if I broke one of the records, no
other child would ever be given the privilege that I now saw
shimmering on my horizon.
The record player was set up in the downstairs bedroom, and I
began to read.  The Privateer  by Gordon Daviot,  Little Men  by
Louisa May Alcott, and  Bless This House  by Norah Lofts:  these
were the first three books.  I promised myself that I would
memorize the author of every book I read and the order in which I
had consumed their work.  I did pretty well at it for the first
twenty books or so, but then I began to understand just how many
books a person really could read, and my good intentions
dissolved.
Within a week the Talking Book machine was moved to my room so
that the rest of the family didn't have to listen along with me. 
My bedroom never had much heat, and that winter I could only keep
my hands warm by holding them over the glowing red light that
indicated that the machine motor was turned on.  I was lucky that
those record players in the fifties threw out so much heat;
otherwise frost bite would have found a contented victim.
Until that intoxicating day when the Talking Book program walked
into
my life, I had had two choices when I wanted or needed to read a
book.  [I
was not blind, of course, so no one ever thought of teaching me
Braille.]  First, I could don a pair of heavy glasses with
tremendous magnification
in one lens; hunch over the page of print in very bright light;
and struggle letter by letter to decipher the text, praying the
while for a picture or, better yet, lots of pictures to take up
space.
My other alternative was to lie in wait for a member of my
family.  My brother, seven at the time, was good for comic books
and not much more.  Unfortunately, he favored Superman, and I
preferred Scrooge McDuck.  His verbal skills were taxed acutely
by describing the pictures, and altogether Bobby was less
satisfactory than my parents, if I could get them.  I had already
read  Heidi  and  Charlotte's Web  in ten-minute snatches, my
mother's method of bribing me to do wretched eye exercises every
day.  My parents were generous with their time, but they were
already helping me with every bit of my considerable homework,
and there were limits to what even I was prepared to request.  So
the Talking Book machine and those amazing twelve-inch records
played at 33 1/3 rpm really did change the topography of my life.
I became the envy of my classmates.  Not held down by such
annoyances as vocabulary and spelling, I sailed into uncharted
waters beyond my years.  Teachers could easily be dazzled by book
reports on the works of Dickens, Hawthorne, and Dostoyevsky. 
There were also those occasional passages which I found very
illuminating but which I knew instinctively my parents had much
better not overhear.
I know now that, had Braille been offered me in these formative
years, I would today be a much better educated person, but it was
to be another twenty years before I heard of the National
Federation of the Blind, and there was no one in my life warning
me that Braille was essential to my education.
These were the personal recollections that drifted through my
mind
as I read  Talking Books: Pioneering and Beyond  by Marilyn
Lundell Majeska, RC27607, BR7378, published by the Library of
Congress, National Library Service for Blind and Physically
Handicapped (NLS).  This book will evoke memories in everyone who
has ever read Talking Books through the years.  For example, have
you ever tried to remember when the Talking Book Program really
began?  October, 1934.  When the first Cassette players were
distributed? 1,000 commercially produced cassette recorders were
issued in 1968.  When the last rigid disk book was produced? May,
1987.  Such tidbits of evolutionary history dot the one hundred
pages of this interesting little book.
Majeska traces the progress of the Talking Book Program from an
impractical dream of phonograph books for the blind in the
twenties to the production of light-weight, portable machines
that provide hours of reading to blind and physically handicapped
readers today.  The history of turn table speed, needle
standardization, record size and composition, magnetic tape, and
tape cassettes is discussed with clarity and minute detail.  It
is all too possible today for readers on the receiving end of
these technological advances to remain happily unconscious
of the complexities underlying them.  Without getting too bogged
down in statistics and technical detail, Majeska manages to tell
her story entertainingly.
She remains factual throughout the text.  Her concerns are when
things happened and what research went into them.  The
technological, budgetary, and philosophical issues that have
rocked the program from time to time are never so much as
mentioned.  The effect is to suggest that the Talking Book
Program has rolled down the years, shedding light
on all and consistently bestowing wise benevolence on the blind. 
Nevertheless, as far as I can tell, Majeska does what she sets
out to do with admirable accuracy.  She has done her research,
and the book is a treasure trove of useful statistics and
interesting facts.
She provides the reader with a list of the Librarians of Congress
since 1897 when the Library first began serving blind patrons,
and also a list of the directors of the Project, Books for the
Blind, later renamed NLS.  The appendix lists in order the model
numbers
of every record player and cassette machine ever produced by NLS. 
The bibliography seems to be admirably thorough for the topics
she considers.   Talking Books: Pioneering and Beyond  provides
an entertaining and informative evening of  reading.  The program
it chronicles has opened doors to thousands of people who all too
frequently had been trapped in empty lives.  It would be hard for
blind Americans today
to conceive of life without the Talking Book Program, and it is
instructive to look back on its development. Also, as readers of
this publication know, the members of the National Federation of
the Blind can take pride in the fact that they have played a
substantial role in helping
shape this program which serves as one of the instruments of the
advancement of the blind from second-class citizenship to
first-class status in society. Our partnership with the libraries
has been a significant step on our road out of slavery, a
noteworthy milestone on our journey to freedom.
                       EDITORIAL RESPONSE
                       by Barbara Mattson
 Barbara Mattson is a  Monitor  reader, who lives in Spartanburg,
South Carolina. She has written an editorial response to a recent 
Monitor  article. Here is what she has to say: 

In the September-October, 1988,  Braille Monitor  Charlene
Groves' article entitled  Why Do They Have To Break Everything 
addressed independence. Her point was that independence can be
carried too far and that we can give, as well as receive. Thus,
even though you may be capable of crossing a street by yourself,
you can accept assistance by simply saying,  I can cross streets
by listening to the traffic, but I'll be glad to walk with you. 
This informs the helper of how you adapt but also allows him to
feel somewhat helpful and not totally rejected. He will,
therefore, not hesitate to assist another blind person who may
really need help.
Another article in the September-October  Monitor  entitled  Of
Elevators, McDonald's, and the Speed of Braille  talked about the
availability of Brailled menus and elevator buttons which permit
a certain amount of independence. But the purpose of the Braille,
my brother showed me, on the McDonald's drink lids puzzles me.
Instead
of labeling the kind of drink it is, the  other  and  diet 
simply identify a beverage as regular or sugar-free. Searching
for a reason for this, my brother said,  Oh, maybe some irate
blind person protested that his civil rights were being violated. 
This brought home to me the public's negative attitude toward
what they may see as superfluous accessibility and reasonable
accommodation.  Before we can convince people that money is not
wasted on accessibility, let us define what  we  think it is.
Here is  my  opinion.  Regarding Brailled elevators, or room
numbers, if a blind person can't read them or doesn't know they
are there, what good are they? Some places have raised numbers
and letters which not only serve the blind but also the public.
These, however, are not necessary in buildings that we frequent
as long as someone is easily available to orient us to the room
numbers and elevator on our first visit. Tour areas, however, are
a different matter, so the ink print information should be
available in Braille and/or audio.
Now, don't get me wrong. Ramps and restrooms for the
orthopedically handicapped are certainly needed. The blind,
however, can (at least, independently) enter a building with
steps and use the baths with
no problem. Thus, for us accessibility is simply being able to
obtain the same information as others.
Regarding reasonable accommodation, we should ask for only
minimal adaptations for our job. If we want no pity, we should
adjust to the world, and not the world to us.
We need, therefore, to be aware of the public places, and even
businesses, that are being built or renovated. Let us help them
eliminate superfluous accessibility expense so they can provide
adaptations where necessary.DISTINGUISHED EDUCATOR OF BLIND CHILDREN AWARD  FOR 1989
                        by Sharon Maneki
 Sharon Maneki is President of the National Federation of the
Blind of Maryland. She also chairs the committee to select the
Distinguished Educator of Blind Children for 1989. 

The National Federation of the Blind will recognize an
outstanding teacher of blind children at our 1989 convention,
July 3-9 in Denver, Colorado. The winner of this award will
receive an expense-paid trip to the convention, a check for $500,
an appropriate plaque at the banquet, and an opportunity to make
a presentation about the education of blind children to the
National Federation of the Blind's Parents Division early in the
convention.
Anyone who is currently teaching or counseling blind children or
administering a program for blind children is eligible to receive
this award. It is not necessary to be a member of the National
Federation of the
Blind to apply. However, the winner must attend the national
convention.  Teachers may be nominated by colleagues,
supervisors, or friends.
The letter of nomination should explain why the teacher is being
recommended for this award.
The nominee must meet two additional requirements: write a
one-page letter describing his or her beliefs and approach to
teaching, and answer the following ten questions:
1. List your degrees, the institutions from which they were
received, and your major area or areas of study.
2. How long and in what programs have you taught blind children?
3. In what setting do you teach? (Example: classroom in school
for the blind, special education classroom, itinerant program,
etc.)
4. How many students do you teach regularly this year? What
subjects do you teach?
5. How many of your students read and write primarily using: a)
Braille,
b) large print, c) closed circuit television, d) recorded
materials,
e) small print?
6. How many of your students use both print and Braille?
7. At what age do you recommend that your students begin: a)
reading Braille, b) writing with a slate and stylus, c) writing
with a Braille writer?
8. At what age do you recommend that your students begin to learn
independent cane travel?
9. How do you determine which children should learn cane travel
and which children should not?
10. a) At what age do you recommend that students begin typing?
b) When do you expect them to be able to hand in typed
assignments?  Send all material by April 15, 1989, to: Sharon
Maneki, Chairman, Teacher Award Committee, 9736 Basket Ring Road,
Columbia, Maryland 21045. Telephone: (301) 992-9608.
The education of blind children is one of our most important
concerns.  Attendance at a National Federation of the Blind
convention will enrich a teacher's experience by affording the
opportunity to meet other teachers who work with blind children,
to meet parents, and to meet blind adults who have had
experiences in a variety of educational programs. Help us
recognize a distinguished teacher by distributing this
announcement and encouraging teachers to submit their
applications.
We are pleased to offer this award and look forward to receiving
nominations from many well-qualified educators.
              VACATIONING ALONE: WE CAN DO IT, TOO
                       by Geraldine Burke
 This article (which appeared in the September, 1988, newsletter
of the National Federation of the Blind of Virginia) was written
by Geraldine Burke, one of the long- time leaders of the
Federation in that state. 

Have you ever wanted to go on vacation and just get away from it
all, but decided against going anywhere because you could not
find anyone to go with you? Believe me, I have done just that on
more than one occasion, so last May (when I began dreaming of a
ten-day vacation
in Miami, Florida, a place I had not seen in almost twenty-five
years) I decided that it would be different this time. I would go
alone, not only to prove to myself that I could do it, but also
because I really needed privacy just to rest, relax, and refresh
my spirit.
Having decided to go, I made my hotel reservations and bought my
nonrefundable airplane tickets, before I could change my mind.
Then, the terror set in. I was going to Miami! Alone!
Since I was now committed, I started planning my vacation. My
mother always said that where there was a will, there was a way;
and with this in mind, I tried to anticipate the situations I
might face and the tools I might need in each situation. My hotel
was on the beach, because I knew that I would be spending a lot
of time at the ocean.  I needed a way to mark the place where I
had spread my beach towel
so that I could return to it after taking my periodic plunges in
Miami's wonderfully warm water.
I brought a radio with me; and whenever I decided to take a dip
in the ocean, I would turn it on and raise the volume slightly. I
thought my beach neighbors might complain, but they did not. I
think they understood what I was doing. I must say that my beach
marker worked pretty well, except on those rare occasions when I
drifted too far from where I had entered the water, or when there
was someone nearby who liked the same radio station I did. Oh
well, that's one way to meet people.
On the whole, I had a great vacation! I toured Miami, both by bus
and by boat, and saw the winter homes of several famous movie
stars.  I took a tour of the Everglades and rode in an air boat,
which can travel on water no more than six inches deep. I went to
Key West and explored the town for three hours on my own, and I
took a one-day cruise to the Bahamas, but that story is too long
to tell here.  Just don't let anyone tell you that you can't
vacation alone. You can! It just takes some planning and the
desire to have fun.   CLARENCE COLLINS DIES
                         by Hazel Staley
 As  Monitor  readers know, Hazel Staley is the President of the
National Federation of the Blind of North Carolina and one of our
most dedicated national leaders. 

It is with deep regret that I must report the death of Clarence
Collins on October 22, 1988. Clarence was the first president of
our affiliate when it was reorganized in 1969. For years he and
Helen were the only representatives from North Carolina attending
national conventions, but they went faithfully. Clarence was my
mentor when I first joined the Federation. I served as first vice
president under him, and he taught me a lot. He has not been able
to attend our state conventions for the last few years, but he
attended our local chapter meetings until last month. Clarence
was a good man and a good Federationist.  Our lives were enriched
by our association with him. A great leader has been taken from
us. We can best serve his memory by picking up where he left off
and carrying on.
His obituary in our local newspaper says in part:  Mr. Clarence
Eugene Collins died Saturday, October 22, 1988, at home. He was
born February 6, 1904, in Lillington, North Carolina. Funeral
services will be 11 a.m. Monday, October 24, 1988, at McEwen West
Chapel. Mr.  Collins attended the State School for the Blind in
Raleigh, North Carolina, and Central High School in Charlotte. He
was employed by the High Point Mattress Company, and the C.C.
Coddington Buick Company in Charlotte before opening his own
business in 1929. In 1931 he married the former Helen Starling, a
teacher in public schools in Johnston County. Together, they
owned and operated the Collins Service Station and later the
Collins Mattress Company on Statesville Road. Mr. Collins
organized the National Federation of the Blind in North Carolina
and served as its president for four years. He maintained
membership in the National Federation of the Blind and the state
and local affiliate
up until his death. For four years he was Editor of the  Open
Forum , a monthly newsletter containing articles and news of
interest to the blind and interested persons. It was published in
inkprint and Braille and had a statewide circulation. 

                             RECIPES
                       by Barbara Cheadle

 As  Monitor  readers know, Barbara Cheadle is the mother
of a blind child; the President of the Parents of Blind Children
Division of the National Federation of the Blind; and the Editor
of  Future Reflections,  the magazine for parents and educators
of blind children.  She is also a first-rate cook. 

                        APPLE   DUMPLINGS
Pastry:
2 1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup shortening
Ice water, about 7 to 8 tablespoons
(just enough to make dough stay together)

Filling:
6 medium-sized tart, firm apples
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
butter

Syrup:
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
4 tbs butter
2 cups water

Pastry: Mix flour and salt in mixing bowl. Add shortening and mix
with a pastry blender, table knives, or fingers until crumbly (do
not overmix). Sprinkle water lightly over mixture, blending it
quickly with a fork or fingers just until  dough can be formed
into a ball (the less the dough is handled, the better the
results). Roll out dough and cut into six, 7-inch squares.
Filling: Peel and core apples. Place an apple on each pastry
square.  Fill center of each apple with sugar and cinnamon 
mixture. Dot with butter. Fold pastry around the apple, sealing
edges. Place about 2-inches apart in an 8x10 baking pan. Chill.
Syrup: Mix sugar, cinnamon, butter and water in a pan and boil
for three minutes.
Bake: Pour hot syrup around chilled dumplings in baking pan. Bake
immediately for 5 to 7 minutes at 500 degrees. Reduce temperature
to 350 degrees and bake about 30-35 minutes. Serve warm with
syrup spooned over dumplings.

                           APPLESAUCE
Apples
Lemon, if desired
Sugar, if desired
Cinnamon, if desired
Nutmeg, if desired
Water

Peel and core apples. Cut into chunks and put into kettle or
heavy saucepan with a very small amount of water so that it
covers about 1/4 of the apples. (The apples will release a lot of
water and juice so it iS best to start with too little water and
add more if needed).  Cover and let simmer until tender and mushy
(about 10-20 minutes).  Lemon juice will improve the flavor if
the apples are not tart. Add sugar and spices according to taste.

                       HOT APPLESAUCE CAKE

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 9-inch round
cake
pans or two 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaf pans.

1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground cloves
2 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp mace
2 cups hot applesauce
2 cups raisins
2 cups chopped walnuts

Cream shortening and sugar until smooth. Add eggs and mix. Mix
together the dry ingredients and add to the creamed mixture along
with the hot applesauce, nuts, and raisins. Beat until well
blended.
Spread evenly in pans. Bake cake layers for about 40 minutes and
loaf cakes about 1 hour. Let cake layers cool about 5 minutes and
loaf cakes about 10 minutes before removing from pans. This is
good even without the nuts and raisins.



                       DEEP-DISH APPLE PIE
Pie dough for one 8- or 9-inch pie shell 2 1/2 quart baking dish
or casserole dish
 (must be at least 2 1/2 to 3 inches deep)
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

10 cups apples, peeled, cored,
and sliced into tenths
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup sugar
2 tbs cornstarch
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tbs (1/2 stick or 1/4 cup) butter

Roll pie dough to the shape of, and 1 inch larger than the size
of, the top of your baking dish.
Mix together in small bowl the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon,
nutmeg, and salt. Put apples in large bowl, sprinkle with lemon
juice, then add sugar mixture and toss apples until well coated.
Put apples in baking dish, dot with butter, and place pie dough
over the apples.  Fold the extra inch under the edge and crimp.
Prick crust with fork or cut 2 or 3 vents for steam. Bake for
about one hour until apples are tender.
*This can be a very juicy pie. To avoid a messy oven you can
either place the pie on a cookie sheet to catch the overflow, or
you can put an oven-proof custard cup or cup upside down in the
center of the baking dish before you add the apples. This not
only draws the juices, but helps support the crust and keeps it
from sagging.

The following two recipes are great fast and nutritious snacks
for children:

                    CINNAMON DIP APPLE SNACKS
Mix together about 1/2 cup of sugar with 1 or 2 tablespoons of
cinnamon
(vary amounts according to taste and need).
Slice or cut apples into bite-size chunks. If cut into chucks,
put a toothpick in each.
Dip apples into cinnamon/sugar dip, and eat!


                   PEANUT-BUTTER APPLE WHEELS
Wash and core whole apples. Stuff apple cavity with peanut-
butter
and slice apples into  wheels. 
Variations: Add to peanut-butter any of the following: Coconut,
nuts,
raisins.


                       Monitor Miniatures

**Twice Blessed:
Recently good things have been happening to the Povinellis. Susan
Povinelli is a materials engineer in the Corrosion Control
Section of the Materials and Processes Branch of the Air Vehicle
Division of the Naval Air Systems Command at the Department of
the Navy. She is also one of the leaders of the National
Federation of the Blind
of Virginia and the wife of NFB of Virginia Treasurer Larry
Povinelli.
A recent memorandum from the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for
Manpower and Reserve Affairs to the Commander of the Naval Air
Systems Control says in part:  I am pleased to notify you of the
selection of
one of your employees, Mrs. Susan K. Povinelli, as the 1988
Department of the Navy Outstanding Handicapped Employee of the
Year. Her nomination package will be forwarded for consideration
for the Presidential level awards. 
Good news, indeed, for the Povinelli family but there is more;
and even better. Susan and Larry announce that a baby girl was
born to them at 9:47 p.m. on October 19, 1988. She is Stephanie
Elaine.  She weighed 6 pounds, 14 ounces, and was 19-1/2 inches
long. All are
doing well. The  Braille Monitor  says: Congratulations to
Federationist Susan Povinelli.

**Thirty-Fifth:
Federationists Tom and Marilyn Beach from Evansville, Indiana,
write to say that the thirty-fifth annual convention of the NFB
of Indiana
was held in Evansville October 7-9, 1988. The meetings were well
attended, and NFB Board Member Gary Wunder represented the
National Office.

**Not Governors But Presidents, Not Democrats But Federationists: 
Maybe about other minorities and other organzations, but not
about women and the NFB. As a result of the fall elections, the
democrats gained in the state houses, and the women gained in
Federation state presidencies. Of the fifty-one state
presidencies (the District of Columbia has an equal voice),
twenty-eight are now held by women and a scant twenty-three by
men. It might also be noted that as of last summer's convention
three of our five national officers are women.  Even so, we have
not yet observed a move to form a committee on men's issues.

**More New Presidents:
In the November, 1988,  Monitor  we reported the election of
three new state presidents. In this issue we report five more a
change of more than fifteen percent. On the weekend of October 1
Janet Holtz replaced Gay Mohr as President of the NFB of North
Dakota. On the weekend of October 15 (White Cane Safety Day)
Charlotte Bellmyer replaced Mark Noble as President of the NFB of
Oklahoma. On the weekend of October 22 there were two changes.
Doug Elliott replaced Joan Abraham Tait as President of the NFB
of Nevada and Ben Prows replaced Gary Mackenstadt as President of
the NFB of Washington. On the weekend of November 12 Ted Young
replaced Terry McManus as President of the NFB of Pennsylvania.
The  Monitor  says: Congratulations to the retiring presidents
for jobs well done and to the new presidents upon their election
to office.

**Muddle in the Middle:
During recent years when anybody throughout the country has
wanted a little comic relief to while away the tedium of a dreary
day, all he or she has needed to do is think about the situation
in Iowa. In the mid-80's the Iowa Commission for the Blind was
plopped into a hodge-podge called the Department of Human Rights,
not to be confused with the state's giant welfare department,
which is called the Department of Human Services. One Nancy
Norman (wife of one of the governor's inside cronies) had been
the director of the Iowa Commission for the Blind but now became
a coordinator of the Department of Human Rights.  Then, a year or
so ago she was made director of the Department of Human Services,
a lucrative job and supposedly a political plum. An individual
named Gretchen Hamlett was made coordinator of Human Rights. 
Now, it developed during the first part of last year that
Hamlett's husband was widely publicized for violations in the
slum housing he owned, and the newspapers had a field day. Not to
be outdone, Norman followed suit. Last summer her husband was
exposed as being an even bigger slumlord, having all kinds of
building violations and owing
a sizable chunk of back taxes on his property. In the meantime
Norman was keeping up her end of the bargain by showing that she
could embarrass the governor as much as her husband could.  There
were razzle-dazzles about mishandling of foster children (to the
point that  60 Minutes  got involved) and a variety of other
public snafus. It was farce and slapstick and poor-taste
carnival. The conclusion of the whole sorry mess is this: Norman
has had to resign and take a newly created job at Iowa State
University, and her husband apparently continues as a member of
the Governor's kitchen cabinet. Presumably Norman will
be relatively harmless where she now is and will not be further
involved with the blind. Oh, incidentally, the blind of the state
got the Commission for the Blind taken out of the Department of
Human Rights last year and reconstituted as a separate agency. It
is now the Iowa Department for the Blind.

**Read and Lead:
The Parents of Blind Children Division of the National Federation
of the Blind and the National Association to Promote the Use of
Braille announce the 1988-89 Braille Readers Are Leaders contest
for students kindergarten through twelfth grade. The purpose of
this contest is to encourage blind school children to read more
Braille. It is just as important for blind children to be
literate as it is for other children.
The contest dates are December 1, 1988, to March 1, 1989. All
entries must be received no later than March 10. Students may
enter the contest in any of five categories: (1) Print to Braille
beginning readers (those who have read Braille for two years or
less); (2) Kindergarten through first grade; (3) Second through
fourth grade; (4) Fifth through eighth grade; and (5) Ninth
through twelfth grade. Prizes will be awarded in each category.
In addition, awards will be given to those five contestants who
have shown the most improvement since last year's competition.
Contest details and entry forms are available from: Braille
Readers Are Leaders, National Federation of the Blind, 1800
Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230; or by calling Barbara
Cheadle, President of the Parents of Blind Children Division at
(301) 659-9314.

**Appointed:
On August 8, 1988, Barbara Walker (President of the NFB of
Nebraska) was appointed to the Advisory Committee to Nebraska
Services for the Visually Impaired. Writing in the fall, 1988,
issue of  News From Blind Nebraskans , (the newsletter of the NFB
of Nebraska) Barbara says to the blind of the state:  As your
representative, I intend to do what I can to re-establish the
credibility of a committee we brought into being in 1975. 

**Need Brailler:
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:  Wanted;
Perkins Brailler; contact Richard Bennett, 408 North James
Street, Lot 13, Newport, Delaware 19804. Phone (302) 999-7242. 

**New Baby:
Michael and Gloria Taylor write:  The Taylors now have their
second child in five months and one day apart. Michael Levi and
Keven Stanford now bless our home. This makes three children the
Taylors have adopted in the past three years, two of which are
living. What a happy couple.  The parents, Michael and Gloria
Taylor, are active members of the Salt Lake Chapter of the
National Federation of the Blind of Utah.  Name: Keven Stanford
Taylor; Date: September 18, 1988, 7:55 p.m. (we picked him up on
September 19, 1988); Weight: 10 pounds, 6 ounces, 22 inches long.


**From Japan:
                                               September 6, 19188
Dear Mr. Maurer:
On behalf of the Kawasaki Delegation of the Handicapped and
Helpers,
we must express our sincere appreciation of your hospitality and
kindnesses which we had during our stay in Baltimore.
All members of our delegation returned back to Japan in safety
and good condition, and especially with good memories of
Baltimore. It is about one month since we left Baltimore, our
splended sister city.  We have had couple of meetings to have a
talk about our nice trip and exchange photos each other since
then. We can never forget that we were particularly honored as
the Delegation from Kawasaki City.  We are so glad to have
visited your splendid facilities and have had a nice opportunity
to tour the National Center for the Blind. We were so greatly
impressed by your facilities and your generous instructions which
were so interesting and instructive for us. We don't know how to
express our thanks.
Taking advantage of this trip to Baltimore, we are firmly
determined to do much more for having our relationship between
both cities much deeper.
We have a plan to publish a memoir of our visit this time. We
have had meetings couple times about that. We must apologize for
writing too late. We hope our relationship may continue in good
condition and be prospering forever. Thanks again.

                                                Very truly yours,
                                                     Minato Ogawa
                                              Chairperson of the 
Kawasaki Health Volunteers Club

                                                  Masao Kashikura
                                              Chairperson of the 
Kawasaki Handicapped Association

**Dies:
From the Editor: I am sorry to have to report the death of Arthur
Leading, one of the long-time leaders of our movement in Ohio. I
am not sure when I first came to know Art, but I corresponded
with him through the years. In his death I have lost a personal
friend, and the Federation has lost a staunch member. He died at
the age of eighty and (considering his dedication to the cause of
the blind) appropriately on October 15, White Cane Safety Day.
Through a long and active life Art Leading was a good and
generous man. Perhaps no greater tribute can be paid to any of
us.

**Rehabilitation Under Investigation by Government Accounting
Office:
In a memorandum dated September 12, 1988, the President of the
Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation
(CSAVR) says in part:

GAO Investigation of OSERS Continues All State Directors to be
Interviewed:
Officials of the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) have
informed the CSAVR Washington office that they have now, after a
number of delays, allotted the necessary time to conduct
CONFIDENTIAL telephonic interviews of all State Vocational
Rehabilitation Agency Directors, as a part of the GAO's ongoing
investigation of the management of the Office of Special
Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS).  The GAO, the
investigative arm of the Congress, has asked the CSAVR Washington
office to advise State Directors of the timing of the upcoming
interviews.
Thus far, approximately six such interviews have been conducted,
according to GAO officials. The GAO hopes to complete all
interviews with State Vocational Rehabilitation Directors by late
September, or early October, 1988.
GAO investigator Darlene Bell will be conducting these
interviews.  The GAO investigation was ordered in December, 1987,
by Congressman Major R. Owens, Chairman of the House Select
Education Subcommittee, following a Subcommittee Oversight
Hearing at which RSA Commissioner Justin Dart and others
delivered severe critiques of the management of programs
administered by the OSERS.

**It Seems Worth Noting:
In a letter dated September 1, 1988, to its  corporate members, 
NAC (the National Accreditation Council for Agencies Serving the
Blind and Visually Handicapped) said concerning the proposed
re-election
of one of its board members:  Allen Jenkins; Berkeley,
California; Consumer Category; Administrator, Orientation Center
for the Blind, Albany, California; Elected to NAC Board of
Directors 1986; Member, NAC Commission on Accreditation; Member,
Board of Directors, California Council of the Blind. 
**Appointed:
We have learned that on Wednesday, October 5, 1988, the Mahoning
County Commissioners passed a resolution appointing Thomas
Anderson (Second Vice President of the NFB of Ohio) to the
Mahoning County Human Services Advisory Board.

**Gets Grant:
We recently received a news release from Recording for the Blind
saying:   Recording for the Blind has received a $750,000 grant
from the National Science Foundation to help meet increasing
demands by blind junior high and high school students for
recorded books in mathematics
and science. The grant will be issued to RFB over a three-year
period. 

**Life Options:
We have been asked to carry the following announcement:  Life
Options is a company which is committed to helping people grow,
especially those who are blind or visually impaired. In February
we begin the publication of a magazine called  Options . In
addition to offering new software and hardware for computer
users, we will be offering
a new concept called `GOING, GOING, GONE.' This section will
highlight items you don't need or can't use any more: magnifiers;
that extra Brailler you have been trying to sell but for which
you can't find
a buyer; a speech synthesizer you don't use anymore; items which
only another blind person might want including services such as
Brailled greeting cards, etc. Whether you want to buy or sell,
this is your chance. At the present time we are planning four
issues of the magazine per year at a cost of $10. Through June of
1989 we are also including two free ads in the price of your
subscription. The magazine will be published on four-track
cassette. For further information or for your subscription
contact Fred Olver at: Life Options, Post Office Box 206,
Wilmington, North Carolina 28402, telephone 919-343-9931.  Orders
will be accepted in Braille, on cassette, or in print. 

**International Cook:
Cheryl McCaslin writes:  We (the Cultural Exchange and
International Program Committee) are going to start a new
fundraising project. We will be producing an `International
Dining' cookbook. This book will be sold in both Braille and
print by all CEIP Committee members. Any of you can buy this
cookbook, and all of you can be part of putting it together. We
need your foreign recipes. Gather them together and send them to:
NFB of Minnesota, Attention: Joyce Scanlan, 15 5th Street Suite
715, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402. We will be looking forward to
hearing from each and every one of you with those delicious and
tantalizing adventures. 

**New Student Division:
Alvin Cohen, Secretary of the newly formed student division of
the National Federation of the Blind of Florida, writes to say
that this student division came into being during the convention
of the National Federation of the Blind of Florida, September 28,
1988. The following people were elected to office: Melody
Lindsey, President; Beth Bowen, First Vice President; Daniel
Weiner, Second Vice President; Alvin Cohen, Secretary; and Gary
Chambers, Treasurer.

**Excogitating:
Loraine Stayer writes: Excogitating, delightsome, and impecunious
members (we rarely have any other kind) of the Writers Division
of the National Federation of the Blind invite interested
individuals to join the Division. Our quarterly magazine,  Slate
and Style , contains articles of interest to blind writers,
poetry and short stories by members, a resource corner, contests,
and a letters column. A one-year subscription (four issues on
cassette or in large type) costs $5, or in Braille $10. The
membership fee is included in the magazine
fee. Back issues are $2.50 per copy as long as the supply lasts.
Please make your check payable to the  Writers Division NFB, 
note the medium you want, and mail to:  Slate and Style , NFB,
2704 Beach Drive, Merrick, New York 11566.

**Elegant:
Dottie Neely writes:  Thanks to those persons who worked for,
donated and made items for, and purchased items at the Elegant
Elephant table during the Chicago convention of the NFB. Your
contributions made this particular sale the best ever. Please
accept my invitation to do the same great work next year at
Denver, and perhaps we will raise an even larger amount to
support the tenBroek Fund. 

**Elected:
Stephen Benson, President of the National Federation of the Blind
of Illinois and a member of the Board of Directors of the
National Federation of the Blind, writes to say that elections
were held at the 1988 convention of the NFB of Illinois. Those
serving on the board are: Stephen Benson, President; Cathy
Randall, First Vice President; Steve Hastalis, Second Vice
President; Ruth Isaacs, Secretary; William Hafer, Treasurer;
Bruce Breslauer, Patty Gregory, Chip Johnson, and Bill Isaacs,
board members.

**Appointed:
The members of the National Federation of the Blind of Virginia
have tried for a long time to bring reform and modernization to
the Virginia Department for the Visually Handicapped, but until
recently no Federationist had ever been appointed to the VDVH
board. Under date of September 29, 1988, Virginia Governor Gerald
Baliles wrote to Charlie Brown (President of the NFB of Virginia)
as follows:
It is with pleasure that I inform you of my selection of Seville
Allen
for appointment to serve on the Virginia Board for the Visually
Handicapped.  Your interest in this administration is greatly
appreciated, and I hope that you will continue to provide me with
recommendations of potential appointees. With kindest regards.

                                                       Sincerely,
                                      Gerald L. Baliles, Governor
                                         Commonwealth of Virginia

**Re Signed:
In the September-October, 1988, issue of the  Monitor  we
reported that the sign which had adorned the roof of the National
Center for the Blind since November of 1987 was torn from its
moorings on July 26, 1988, in a violent windstorm, doing
considerable damage to the building as it fell. We are now
pleased to be able to announce that the sign (more securely
mounted) once again occupies its former place of centrality and
splendor, shining forth to illumine the night and proclaiming its
message throughout the day for all to see who pass through the
purlieus of the City of Baltimore. Long may the sign and the
principles for which it stands endure.
