FRIENDS OF THE BLIND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 9540, 5 December 1889, Page 6

FRIENDS OF THE BLIND.

A public meeting of the Association of the Friends of the Blind was held yesterday afternoon at the Victoria Arcade, when there were present: Bishop Come (chairman), lire. Cowie, Archdeacon Dudley, Rev. J. Bates, and Messrs. Mackechnie, Ewington, Wiseman, and Gibbs. The following, report and balance-sheet were read and adopted — On Monday, April 8, ISS9, a public meeting was held for the purpose of considering what could be done to help the blind of Auckland and neighbourhood. The Right Rev. the Bishop of Auckland, ■who had called, ''the meeting, presided. Amongst those present was Mr. J. w. Tighe, who had recently arrived from Australia, where he had been for some years Engaged in teaching ihe blind. The result of the T«sseting was the formation of the association called the Friends of the Blind, and the appointment of Mr. Tighe as teacher of the blind of Auckland and surrounding districts. Mr. Tighe was also authorised to collect .subscriptions in aid of his work. Since then the Committee of the Friends of the Blind has met every month, and has received from Mr. Tighe a monthly report of his ■work. The rule under which the committee has carried on the work of the Association is the following, thus expressed in the minute-book of the committee '"The chief object of the Association of the Friends of the Blind is to afford help to blind persons in indigent circumstances; and a payment shall be required, where it cm be afforded, from these who receive teaching from Mr. Tighe." For the information of subscribers and the general public a brief account of Mr. Tighe's work is here given. During the last eight months a sum of about £170 has been collected —nearly. the whole of it by Mr. Tighe—in Auckland and else where. In August last application was made to the Government for the subsidy usually granted to Charitable Organizations. The application was granted, and on September 27h, the sum of £117 0s lid was paid into the National Bank to the credit of the Association. Since his appointment Mr. Tighe has, in addition to his work in Auckland and suburbs, visited Onehunga, Otahuhu, the Thames, Waiorongomai, To Aroha, and m os of the settlements in the Waikato. In every place lie has found out the blind and given them instruction. Requests were received from Christchurch and Duuedin that Mr. Tighe should visit those towns. Accordingly in September Mr. Tighe left Auckland for New Plymouth and the southern parts of New Zealand. From his reports it appears that he has visited New Plymouth, Waitara, Ingle wood, Hawera, Patea, Wanganui, Marton, Feililing, Palmerston, Wellington, in all which places he has met with much encouragement. Up to the present Mr. Tighe has had under instruction in reading and writing fully CO blind persons. This has involved visiting them in their homes, writing directions for them, embossing, &c., &c. In his first report to the committee Mr. Tighe says:—"During the past 47 days I have paid 125 visits to the blind, for the purpose of imparting instruction or otherwise helping them ; I wrote, or caused to be written, 16 letters of instruction, embossed 50 sheets of music." In his report, 1 dated July 31, he says: "I am pleased to be able to say that all the blind of Auckland and neighbourhood who wished in the commencement of the work to be taught to read, can now read Dr. Moon's books. Eighteen persons in all have been taught to read, and as they are adults would, if in a school, be classed in letter C, which letter means that they thoroughly understand the signs nsed by Dr. Moon, and can read fast enough to connect the sentences. . . . . I may also mention that,'in my opinion, out of the £00 blind persons I have had under my tuition during the last ton years the most promising scholar :is one in Auckland. The progress made by him has been remarkable." Besides learning to read and write, many of the blind have been taught such employments as haltermaking, bone-polishing, netting, etc., and thus have been put in the way of helping to support themselves. A good deal of the teacher's timo has been spent in obtaining materials - for those learning these simple trades, and in endeavouring to get a sale for: the articles made. These few facts will show that something needed to be done to ameliorate the condition of the blind, and that Mr. Tiglie has proved himself a zealous and efficient teacher. Receipts.—April, collected £31 13s 0d; May, do., £16 17s 0d ; June, do., £16 4s 9d ; July, do., £12 18s ; August, do., £21 12s; September, do., £1 lis Od; Charitable Aid Board, refund, £97 15s 9d; subsidy, £117 6s lid; rent, refund, £1; October and November, collected £71 6s 9d; rent, refund, £2: £389 6s Bd. Expenditure.—Mr. Tighe, salary (April 8 to November 30), £8217s lOd; expenses, including wages of boy, £35 18s 9d ; expenses of Southern visit so far, £27 6s 9d ; rent, to be refunded, £4 ; Charitable Aid Board, £97 15s 9d *, Purchas and Co., freight, &c., £4 ; Dr. Moon, for bocks," £12 12s 6d; postage, telegrams, minute book, &c., £2; Auckland Savings Bank (deposited), £50; cheque books, 4s; printing, £4 13s 4d—£32l 8s lid; credit balance, £07 17s 9(1: total, £389 6s Bd.

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