"Tell me, sweet eyes, from what divinest star did ye drink in your
liquid melancholy?"--_Bulwer Lytton._
You would think, wouldn't you, that women would be good to themselves?
But they aren't. Not a bit of it! They abuse their complexions with
cosmetics as deadly as Mrs. Youngwife's first plum pudding. They "touch
up" their tresses with acids terrific enough to remove the spots of a
leopard. They paddle around in the rain like ducks in petticoats and
overshoes, and then sit down and chat with the woman next door for a
whole hour, so that the damp skirts can more properly inaugurate a
horrible cold that will settle down and stay for six weeks or more. And
their eyes--but that's a story in itself.
An oculist once said that every dot in a woman's veil was worth $5 to
the gentlemen of his profession. The eye is being constantly strained
to avoid these obstacles in its way, and, of course, it is weakened and
tortured. Think of a woman paying $1.50 for something that will, in
time, destroy her eyesight just as sure as fate! I leave it to you if
she's not a ninny? But women do these things in spite of
everything--except when the overworked eyes begin to pain, and then
they're glad enough to do almost anything for quick relief.
To keep one's eyes in good, healthy condition, rigid laws must be laid
down and carried out, though the heavens fall and the floods descend
and everything gets up and floats out into Lake Michigan. You must not
read in bed, and you must kiss good-by to that becoming black veil of
many dots and spots.
When you crawl out of bed in the morning do not dig your fists into
your eyes and rub and rub until, when at last you do open those sleepy
"windows of the soul," there is two of everything in the room, and big
black spots are whizzing through the air. Pressure on the eyeball
flattens the lens of the eye, and is sure to produce myopia, or
shortsightedness. If the eyes are not inflamed at all they should be
washed every morning in moderately cold water. In case of inflammation
an application of hot water and milk in equal parts will be found most
beneficial. Dry with a piece of old, soft linen, being sure to wipe
inward toward the nose so as not to issue invitations to those horrors
of womankind--crow's feet! Great care should be taken to keep all
foreign substances, especially soap and other irritants, from the
delicate skin of the lids, and particularly from the still more
sensitive eyeballs.
Gaslight brings direful havoc to good eyes, especially when the flame
is in a mood to flicker and splutter, as gas sometimes does. Take a
faint, wavering light and a piece of embroidery and you have as fine a
recipe for premature blindness as can be unearthed in a month of
Sundays. Sewing in the twilight is equally disastrous, as is the habit
of facing the light when writing or reading.
Few women realize the great need of resting the eyes occasionally, and
the unhappy result of trying them to the utmost limit. The very moment
that the eyeballs ache work should be suspended, no matter how
necessary or urgent. Rose-water and plantain in equal parts makes a
refreshing wash, and elderberry water is said to be good when there is
a disagreeable itching.
If the eyes are hot and watery use hot water which has been poured over
rose leaves. Witch hazel, that good old stand-by, is always refreshing
and is especially good when combined with camphor water. It is best
when applied at night and allowed to dry on the lids. Weak tea, which
is the eye tonic of our grandmothers, is also splendid.
A lotion that has been tried over and over again and found excellent
for tired and inflamed eyes, is made by rubbing one teaspoonful of
pulverized boracic acid in fifteen drops of spirits of camphor and
pouring over this two-thirds of a cup of hot water. Stir and strain,
and use as needed.
To brighten the eyes, steep good green tea in rose-water, soak bits of
absorbent cotton in the liquid, and bind on at night.
For granulated lids--and what is more maddening and painful?--make an
alum paste. This is done by rubbing a small piece of alum into the
white of an egg until a curd is formed. Apply to the lids upon retiring
at night, tying a piece of soft linen over the eyes.
So many girls say that they look a fright in eyeglasses, and ask if
they should wear them. Most certainly if the eyes are worn out and
failing. An oculist of the very best reputation should be consulted.
The fee does not exceed that of the quack, and the eyes are tested with
greater thoroughness. Glasses must be chosen with the utmost care, as
ill-fitting lenses can make a great deal of trouble. They are worse
than no glasses at all. Then, after eyeglasses are put on, they must be
changed now and then to suit the changing conditions of the sight. If
the eyes are not in a bad state, wearing spectacles for a few months
may strengthen them so that the glasses can be discarded. Also, if the
oculist knows his business as he should, he can give you much valuable
information concerning the care of your eyes.