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In the spring of '95 when the association now known as the American Blind People's Higher Education and General Improvement Association had its beginning at St. Louis, Mo., the promoters had a single thought, and this was to secure the higher education of the Blind. Methods and means were regarded as secondary considerations. It was in the first Annual Convention, held in September of the same year, that the Special College scheme was adopted as the method. John F. Maher, Esq. Counselor - at- Law, Philadelphia, gave the suggestions, and following this convention, a large edition of a bulletin setting forth the facts and purposes was printed and distributed. It was through this bulletin that the movement was brought to the attention of the Blind of the different states, and letters written in response by such persons as Mr. E.J. Nolan of Chicago, Mr. A. M. Shotwell of Mich. etc. clearly showed the promoters that the Special College idea was not popular.

THE THREE PROPOSED METHODS OF EDUCATING THE BLIND.

The idea of a special college was obtained as a natural development of the existing state schools for the Blind, and proposed the establishment in relation to the whole nation, of a college or university for the Blind, as the state schools are in relation to the states respectively; and the curriculum of this National College was to include all the studies with which the Blind could make -. . .?-

tion being given to Mathematics, Music and Language. Opposed to this were the scholarship and annex advocates.

The advocates of the Scholarship theory viewed the matter much as follows: -- The Blind should not be regarded as a class segregated from the rest of mankind; and if they succeed in life, they must do so not only in contact, but in competition with the Sighted, and the extent of their success of failure, will depend largely upon the thoroughness with which the methods employed by the Sighted are understood and assimilated.

Experience has shown that the sightless student can enter the same classroom with those possessed of normal vision and take a college course on an equal footing with any; the chief assistance required being that of a competent reader. It is true there are branches, the practical mastery of which requires vision, but no special school for the Blind could hope to remove this obstacle. The talents and requirements of the Blind are as diverse as humanity itself; and it is inconceivable how a single school could furnish satisfactory instruction in every line to meet all emergencies; but a Scholarship fund, to be used in purchasing scholarships in this or that institution, as may be required, would remove these difficulties and secure to each student the best possible training either in general culture or in any chosen specialty. Any beyond all this, it must be remembered that the professional standing and general reputation of the leading universities for the Sighted could never be equaled by any school established especially for the Blind; and the credit of having successfully completed a college or university course along with his sighted fellows, would follow any blind student as an irresistible advertising influence, qualified to remove all lingering misunderstanding with reference to capabilities of the Sightless, and would invite success in any walk in Life.

The arguments advanced by the supporters of the Annex Theory were practically the same as those presented by the Scholarship advocates; and while the annex is a compromise between the Special College and Scholarship systems, its tendencies are strongly in the direction of the latter. The students of the annex, would be required to enter the same class room with the Sighted, take the same examinations, and the same degrees under similar conditions. The institution in question would consist merely of boarding and lodging appartments -sic-, a library, reading rooms, and other advantages.

The chief work of the Second Annual Convention held in October '96 was to reconcile these differences of view, for no united action could be secured on the definite plan to establish a Special College for the Blind. The convention was largely controlled by Scholarship advocates and the result of the debate was the following set of resolutions which was so much of a compromise as to please no one, but served to quiet opposition while necessary questions of organization were being settled.

RESOLUTIONS.

Whereas, A convention of blind people has been held for the purpose of discussing principles and methods of providing higher education for the Blind,

Therefore be it resolved, First -- that we are in favor of the higher education of the Blind. Second -- that we believe the National government both should and will furnish the aid necessary to accomplish this great purpose. And third, that we take all necessary steps to bring this to the attention of Congress, to the end that an annual appropriation may be obtained for the higher education of the Blind. And furthermore, be it resolved, that all details with reference to the manner in which the money is to be spent for higher education be left to the judgment of a commission established by Congress, and as matters for future consideration by the Association.

It is doubtful what effect these resolutions would have had upon the development of the Association if they had remained for any length of time the center of attraction, but almost simultaneously with their adoption, a motion to place the existing association upon a national basis and give to it a national rather than a state name, was put and carried. In the minds of many of the members, the work of this convention left everything uncertain and progress impossible and it was felt that the Third annual convention could not do better than to concentrate attention upon the plan of organization, and it was in this third convention that the American Blind People's Higher Education and General Improvement Association came into existence and the plan of voting by mail adopted. The Association now had a national name, a workable constitution, and a voting system by which all members present or absent could be successfully articulated with the movement, and the hour seemed to have struck for some definite action to accomplish the purposes of the organization, but this would have to be the work of a Fourth Annual Convention. Much dissatisfaction was arising as to the slowness of the evolution of the Movement, and it was hinted that nothing practical could be attained or else it would already have been attained.

At about this time Mr. A.M. Shotwell, Braille stereotyper at the Michigan School for the Blind, Lansing, Mich, prepared a number of papers showing the desirability if not necessity of the Association taking immediate action to secure the higher education of the Blind, and suggested certain constitutional amendments, and resolutions by which this could be brought about. The papers were submitted to the Oregon association at its spring convention of '98 and also to the Kansas association in its June convention of the same year. The Kansas Association saw at once that the author of the papers was a clear thinker, shrewd and of benevolent intent. A committee being appointed to formulate a report of the Kansas Branch to be submitted to the Fourth Annual Convention of the American Association, resolutions were drawn up, one urging the American Association to give full consideration to the Shotwell papers, and another, which provided for the establishment of the Commission for immediate action, and named seven commissioners who were to act in case the resolution was adopted by the general membership. Of the seven, only four consented to undertake the work, and they were the Messrs. Shotwell of Michigan, Nolan of Illinois, Ray of Missouri and McGill of Kansas. The resolution which was adopted with almost no opposition, was as follows: --

Be it resolved, That a board of seven commissioners be established to take immediate steps to fit itself for soliciting and administering an education fund. No two commissioners shall be from the same state, and no one shall serve who is not a thoroughly educated blind person of some experience.

The Fourth Annual Convention held in October '98 expressed itself in several resolutions each of lasting importance, but aside from other points of policy, when Miss Luretta V. Bloom, now Mrs. John E. Goens of Kansas City, appointed the seven members of this commission for immediate action, and the general membership of the association confirmed her action, and the action of the convention, by adopting the above resolution, the American Association had taken the essential step that would lead to success. This was a definite policy, and nothing was said about Special College, Scholarship, or Annex, these matters being left to the judgment of the Commission. The general drift of sentiment in the Association from the beginning had been toward the Scholarship idea, and it was merely for the Commission to act with all available wisdom in securing Higher Education. These points were settled. Some influential members have desired the Association to definitely declare in favor of Scholarship as opposed to any other possible method of providing the Higher Education, in the form of a strong resolution, but this has never been done, and may be considered rather unnecessary. The membership of the Association has done clear thinking in these connections, and what was once confusion is now perfect order and security of opinion, and this Harmony and Order was illustrated with equal clearness in both Educational Policy and Organization.

Edward J. Nolan of Chicago is a successful blind attorney, and a man of ability and strength. He proposed a series of resolutions to the other members of the Commission to definitize the policy of the Commission relative to Congress, and after much discussion they became the expressed will of the Commission, and were submitted as part of its report to the Fifth Annual Convention. The Commission found it impracticable to do more than study the conditions of success, until receiving more specific instructions from the General Association, and therefore the Fifth Annual Convention had important work to do. And it did it. The following nine resolutions were suggested in the Report of the Commission, formulated by the Resolution Committee of the Convention, and adopted by the General Association membership almost without opposition, now stand as a clear enunciation of Association policy.