John Adams High School - Clipper Yearbook (Ozone Park, NY)

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HE cycle of history turns con- stantly. Great names are written only to become extinct with the passing of centuries. But there are some that are destined to hold the respect and love of their fellow men until the great volume is finished. These are not the statesmen of blund- ering diplomacy nor are they the gen- erals of armies and industries. These I mention do their work silently and efficiently with little thought of per- sonal gain or compensation. Such a man was Louis Braille. Born in Comoray in 1806 he was blinded early in life. His handicap stimulated him to greater efforts at study and at the age of ten years he was admitted to the Institution For The Blind in Paris. His work there was of the highest standard. Music and science were his greatest interests. Through his life he maintained his musical skill, becoming a distinguished organist. But Braille had a deeper intention in life than to remain a musician. Up to this time the system by which the blind read was difiicult and compli- cated. He set to work earnestly and was able to simplify Charles Barbier's system, introducing it in the Royal Institute. Braille's method is based upon the use of forty-three signs ern- bracing the entire alphabet, dipthongs and all types of punctuation marks LAMPLIGHTERS by RITA McQUILLAN and denotations. The Braille type is somewhat similar to a relief map- that is the points or dots stand out from the surrounding areag the differ- ent arrangements of the dots spell the letters. It is quite simple to read. At the end of one-half hour, I was able to recognize the Hrst ten letters of the alphabet by using merely the tips of my fingers. Braille is also applied to musical scores. The different octaves pre- sented a difficulty at first, but they are now denoted by an odd sign for each octave. In writing there is rather an odd fact, in that it must be done from right to left. A board that is grooved both vertically and horizontally by lines only an eighth of an inch apart is covered by a frame with paper. A bodkin is used to make the reading points. A bodkin is a small pointed instrument often used by printers, to punch holes. The punching is done through a piece of perforated tin. The American Red Cross in its ef- forts to bring books within the reach of all the blind, gives courses in Braille transcription in ten lessons, to enable persons interested and having the time available, to master it. Fol- lowing the conclusion of the course a fifty page trial manuscript is made. If it is considered good enough, the so-

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T the foot of the hill the torches, brilliant in the dark, looked like stars. The height and the lights below gave one the feeling of look- ing down at the sky. The singing grew louder. It spread, encircling the watchers like the wrinkles on water when a stone is thrown. Finally it rose to a pitch of exultation, and many who had not thought of going, sud- denly joined the pilgrimage. Among the pilgrims were those who sought peace of spirit, others escaping prosecution, others seeking a new life, but the goal for all was jerusalem. The day that brought Miriam to the group brought also news in the form of a bearded stranger. Miriam was eager to talk. She spoke of her past life, it seemed, to gain reassurance. She' spoke as if she did not quite be- lieve herself to be right in leaving her home and joining the group. Yet my friend Peter, who had come from Spain a great way, who had suffered much and left for a greater reason than she, thought her to be right. Perhaps it was because of her eyes which looked straight into his own. Miriam had a child called john, a small, silent creature. He did not play like other children but stared long in contemplation of a leaf or a stone. He had one champion, however, the dark stranger who, reticent about his past life, seemed to desire only one THE PILGRIMAGE by DORIS KLUDT thin g-our turning back. Through roads, whose dust quiver- ing in the heat formed strange pictures, we Walked. Ever our number in- creased in size. One day there would be three hundred of us and on the next another ten would be suddenly there. Always the stranger among us would give voice to terrifying things. There was a Crusade, he said, women and many children journeyed to the Holy Land. It was therefore called the Chi1dren's Crusade. They met with the Saracens who slaughtered every one. Q 4- ' He would look up then and watch the faces about him. There was sel- dom any fear shown. Then he would pick up the baby, John, and go off for a time. s On an exceptionally hot day when the water was gone and there was none to be found, a messenger brought terrible word of the approaching Sara- cens. It was not long before they came. We were too weary to give resistance. Peter and'I side by side, saw at the head of the long, winding line, Saladin, the leader, feared and even spoken of with awe. He looked down at our weakened numbers, and called for water to be given us, and food. Our faith does not differ greatly, he said, and rode on. The stranger smiled and walked away.

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ciety awards a certificate of proficiency. The Federal Government lends its cooperation in this cause by permit- ting books for the blind to go through the mail free through special provi- sions of Congress. The books must be those borrowed from or returned to libraries. Man has made great progress in opening the door of the future to the blindg but it remains for man's best friend, the dog, to lead him to the door. Not so many years ago a blind youth read an article by Mrs. Har- rison Eustis extolling-the merits of the German Shepherd dogs for certain type of work. Mrs. Eustis lived in Switzerland where she raised dogs that were used not only by the Swiss cus- tom service, but also by the Italian metropolitan police. The dogs were trained to patrol and to aid in the search for missing persons. The young southerner, who was Morris Frank, ac- cepted Buddy one of Miss Eustis' dogs and put him to a severe test. Buddy took his new master through heavy New York trafic safely. As a result of this successful trial, the Seeing Eye came into ex- istence. It is a philanthropic founda- tion. It is supported entirely by pub- lic donation. The dogs are either pur- chases or gifts to the institution. Ger- man shepherd dogs are trained be- cause they are the most gentle and in- telligent. These dogs have absolutely no strain of wolf in them, therefore they are not inclined to be frightened. It takes a period of four months to train a dog. They generally begin training at fourteen months of age. The exact methods of training the an- imals are not disclosed to the public for one reason. The foundation feels that it is best to keep its own methods confidential, because persons lacking in good judgment, of both men and an- imals, might attempt to duplicate the method with harmful results. It must be kept in mind that it takes three years for a trainer of these dogs to be trained! In one month it is possible to teach the dependent person how to use his guide. The harness by which the an- imal leads his master is held in the left hand. A leather harness is strap- ped around the chest and shoulders of the dog and a stiff handle reaches the person's hand. Through this ar- rangement any movement of either the person or the dog is easily sensed or felt by either one. The dog can understand the direc- tion in which he is to lead the blind man, who, in turn, recognizes any danger because of the forewarning given by the animal. The blind have been given their chance and are deeply grateful for it. In hospitals for the blind all over the world, Braille is honored just as we Americans honor our Abe Lincoln and George Washington. They will for- ever be indebted to their saviour and he will continue to go down in books as the eyes of the blind. Braille and the Seeing Eye are in- deed the Lighters of Lamps for those who walk in darkness.