Richard Whately

Essays First Series on Some of the Peculiarities of the Christian Religion Richard Whately

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1850. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... NOTES TO ESSAY V. Note K, page 175. THE following account of a person born blind, and couched by Mr. Chesselden, (extracted from the Philosophical Transactions,) affords an interesting illustration of some of my remarks. "Observations made by Mr. W. Chesselden, on a young gentleman who was born blind, or lost his sight so early that he had no recollection, of ever having seen, and was couched between thirteen and fourteen years of age. "When he first saw, he was so far from making any judgment about distances, that he thought all objects whatever touched his eyes (as he expressed it), as what he felt did his skin; and thought no objects so agreeable as those which were smooth and regular, though he could form no judgment of their shape, or guess what it was in any object that was pleasing to him; he knew not the shape of any thing, nor any one thing from another; but upon being told what things were, whose form he knew before from feeling, he would carefully observe that he might know them again; but having too many objects to learn at once, he forgot many of them, and, as he said, at first, learned to know, and forgot again a thousand things in a day. One particular I will relate: having often forgotten which was the cat and which the dog, he was ashamed to ask; but catching the cat (which he knew by feeling) he was observed to look at her steadfastly, and then setting her down, said, 'So, Puss! I shall know you another time.' "He was very much surprised that those things which he had liked best did not appear most agreeable in his eyes; expecting those persons would appear most beautiful whom he loved most, and such things to be most agreeable to his sight that were so to his taste. We thought he soon knew what pictures represented; but we found afterwards we ...