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Show THE UTAH SCHOOL TOR THE BUND Sixteenth Year of An Institution Which Has Made a Name For Itselfl Throughout the Country Children Come to Ogden From Distant Dis-tant Points to Gain the Blessings Confessed by a Great School "And verily a miracle hath ken wrought In our day.. The blind aro made to see!" "Have, you ever visited a school for the blind' No? Well, you have some-j some-j thing pleasant and interesting to look J forward to " "One of the first impressions made upon me when I entered the spacious grounds of the Utah School for the Deaf and Blind at Ogden, the most beautiful public school grounds within with-in our state, was the significance of this conversation between two totally blind youths who were passing each other on the sidewalk: '"'Hello! Have you seeu Willie anywhere V " 'No, not since wo were looking at that automobile.' "'Well, I've been looking all over for him. but- can't locate him anywhere.' any-where.' ' On they went for their dally' constitutional, con-stitutional, the one still looking, the other wondering If he might sec. "My erroneous and distorted views, 'of the blind and how they are educated edu-cated were somewhat shattered after a short Inspection within tnc institution, institu-tion, its class rooms, the ployd room, the gymnasium and the sewing room ( soon learned that the Utah School for the Blind le an educational instl-1 instl-1 lutlon a school in every sense of tho word, free to all residents of the stnte of Utah who are too blind to receive an education in the public schools. It is. of course, a hoardlug school, for It would be Impossible for the state to provide special educational advantages advan-tages for all Its blind children unless they were brought to some one place Thus It is necessary In the giving of a free and liberal education that provision pro-vision shall be made tor the care as well as the training of those who do not see. The Btate furnishes a home for the blind as a matter of convenience con-venience and economy, not as an act I of charity. Parents would much prefer pre-fer to havo their sightless children at S home, but in order that they might be 8 educated, send them away to state institutions in-stitutions to grow and develop into intelligent and useful men and women." wom-en." The Utah School for the Blind at Ogden, is a state' institution, receiving 1 Its support through appropriations 1 made biennially by the legislature I The school is conducted as a co-ordl- uale Institution with the Utah School I for the Deaf, the object of such a I plan being one of economy in man agement, an arrangement that will in due time be changed by the separation separa-tion of the two schools. In the present pres-ent Institution die two classes of children chil-dren aro quite apart, the blind having a separate building, with their own teachers, matrons, supervisors, school rooms, dormitories, sitting rooms, play rooms, gymnasium, swimming pools, etc. These conditions for a dual school are ideal and practically insure an monlous atmosphere between the two Institutions. The time will come, however, when It may be advisable to make a separation, but that time is i many years ahead. The Utah School for the Blind Is in Its sixteenth year. Since 1S90. the year of It3 opening, seventy-two blind persons have been admitted. Sixteen of these have remained to complete the grammar grades, and many of these are pursuing high school courses in the institution. Six of these students stu-dents have graduated from the high school department. Tue enrollment ot pupils this year is twenty-eight, twehc males and sixteen females, ranging In ago from six to twenty-nine twenty-nine ears. All of tbcec pupils are from Utah but three, two Trom Wyoming Wyom-ing and one fiom Idaho. The course of study pursued in the blind department comprises the kindergarten kin-dergarten and eight grammar gradeb, also a four ycar3' high school course. In addition to the literary courses, or regular scholastic work, thero are courses in music, including piano, Voice, iolin and orchestra, physical education, sloyd, typewriting and domestic do-mestic science. Piano-tuning, basketry, basket-ry, hammock-weaving, cane-seatlng and cobbling are given when circumstances circum-stances warrant. The aim is to cultivate within the child a love for the true, tho noble Rnd the good, a desire to be kind, generous gener-ous and helpful, and a hoie to become an honorable man or woman. A great deal of attention is given to moral training, and special stress is laid upon 3uch 'mottoes as "Stand for character,"'' ''Love your enemies,'" "Smile" and "Talk of Happiness." One of the important branches of the work Is that of physical development develop-ment so necessary to both the deaf and blind. The school has n well-equipped well-equipped gymnasium, wnere regular and systematic training In physical ' culture Is carried forward daily. Every . child in the school spendb at least thirty minutes per day in the gymnasium gym-nasium under Instruction. It Is be-. be-. cause of these dally exercises that the - pupils are so healthful and are, , therefore, better able to do school work. ' . For the girls of the Institution we have regular courses in plain sewing, 1 knitting, crocheting, fancy work, i dressmaklug, cooking and general I housework. These branchos of study aro very beneficial and necessary in the education of young women. Our girls make most ot their own clothes and do a great deal of mending and sewing for the Institution. j Nearly all of tho blind pupils are students of music. All Instruction in this important otudy is given by note. In piano, violin, voice and orchestra much interest Is shown and improvement improve-ment being made. The blind enjoy music and often become self-supporting as musicians and teachers of music. mu-sic. There are in the United States for the education of the blind forty-four schools, with about 5,000 pupils and 550 teachers and instructors. In Utah we have approximately two hundred blind pertons. Of this number about half aie over sixty years of age; about 15 per cent are under twenty. There are all grades of blindness, from those persons who find It necessary to squint, or use special glasses, to thoie ' who are totally blind. The causes of blindness are numerous, the most frequent fre-quent being accidents, cataracts, sickness sick-ness and congenital blindness. To communicate with the blind 1" an easy matter They can hear, so wc can talk with them without difficulty. diffi-culty. Great care must be taken that proper comparisons are given or distorted dis-torted or wrong impressions will be made. The problem with the blind used to be to piovldo a system bj which they themselves might read and study do It themselves. Tnere arc today four such systems the 'Braille, the New York point, the Line letter and the Moon tpc. Tho first two of theso schemes aie almost alike and arc superior to the others, which art-raised art-raised letters, pr type.' The Braille, used In the Utah school, is composed of six small dots, or points, each about as larse as a pin-head, all togethpr occupying a space three by five-sixteenths inches. These little dots, used In their various combinations, form all the letters of the alphabet, the digits, musical signs and constructions, construc-tions, making possible the printing of all kinds of books. The seemingly impossible im-possible thing is that tho blind arc able to see these points with the tips of their fingers. They do. however, and read them quite as readily and with fully as much expression ar most school boys and girls read their printed books. The aim Is to lead the blind to do everything possible nnd try to make them feel whenever they do a thing as well as a seeing person sees it, thoy aro not blind to that one thing, There Is an Idea, firm set and of long standing, that an Institution for the blind must of necessity be maintained main-tained for charitable purposes must be a "home" or an "asylum." It is the popular belief that the blind aro a distinct order of the human being, and that they are entitled to less ot fraternal sympathy than supercllllous pity. Nothing is. more blighting to tho independence and progress of the blind that these Ideas. They make or blindness a barrier against which no advance is possible. They arouse sentiments sen-timents that arc little les6 than ostracism. os-tracism. If the people can be educated edu-cated to the fact that this school i3 purely educational, that Its alms Is to make of its pupils honest, self-supporting citizens, and not to remove them from the rest of society to the seculslou and confinement of a home; If this can be done much of the embarrassment em-barrassment and a good many of the obstacles and adversities Inciderit to the future of the yourig blind will bo aveitcd. |