Story of Laura Bridgman.
And now I will tell you about a girl that has had to get all her knowledge with only one of the senses, the sense of feeling. Her name is Laura Bridgman. When she was in her second year she became very sick. Her sickness lasted a very long time. After she got well it was found that she was blind and deaf, and that she had no taste nor smell; only one of the five inlets for knowledge was open. All that could come into her mind was what could be learned by the touch alone. But she had an active mind, and so she went round feeling of every thing, to find out all she could about things.
The only way that she could know people was by feeling them. Her mother was very kind to her, and the little helpless girl liked to be with her all the time. She followed her about the house, and tried to do things just as her mother did them. She would feel of her mother’s arms and hands while she was doing things, that she might find out how she did them. In this way she learned to knit, which was a great comfort to her, for she did not like to be idle.
Laura in the asylum.
A kind physician, who had charge of an asylum for the blind in Boston, heard about Laura. He was much interested for the helpless child, and went to see her. He persuaded her mother to let her come to the asylum. Laura did not feel at home at first, but, as they were all kind to her in the asylum, she soon liked it very much.
She now began to learn many things, and I will tell you a little how the teacher managed with her. He put into her hands different things—spoons, keys, books, etc. Each article had a label on it. The letters on the labels were raised letters, such as are used in teaching the blind. She would feel them all over with the tips of her little fingers, her busy mind all the time thinking about how they felt. Then the labels and the things were put before her, but separated from each other. After a little trying, she learned to put the labels on the things right.
All this time she did not know that these labels had the names of the articles on them. If she were blind only, she would have known this at once, for she could have been told of it; but after a while she in some way got this idea into her mind. She was delighted, for she had now found a new way of learning things, and of telling about things to others.
How Laura learned to read and to converse.
And now Laura went on fast with her learning. The letters were separated, and she would put them together so as to spell spoon, key, etc. This was a great amusement to her. Sometimes, when she carelessly placed the letters wrong, she would playfully strike her right hand with her left one, and then, when the letters were placed right, she would pat her head, as the teacher was apt to do when he was pleased with any thing that she had done.