1829; so she was almost eight years old when Dr. Howe began his
experiments with her. At the age of twenty-six months scarlet
fever left her without sight or hearing. She also lost her sense
of smell and taste. Dr. Howe was an experimental scientist and
had in him the spirit of New England transcendentalism with its
large faith and large charities. Science and faith together led
him to try to make his way into the soul which he believed was
born in Laura Bridgman as in every other human being. His plan
was to teach Laura by means of raised types. He pasted raised
labels on objects and made her fit the labels to the objects and
the objects to the labels. When she had learned in this way to
associate raised words with things, in much the same manner, he
says, as a dog learns tricks, he began to resolve the words into
their letter elements and to teach her to put together "k-e-y,"
"c-a-p." His success convinced him that language can be conveyed
through type to the mind of the blind-deaf child, who, before
education, is in the state of the baby who has not learned to
prattle; indeed, is in a much worse state, for the brain has
grown in years without natural nourishment.

After Laura's education had progressed for two months with the
use only of raised letters, Dr. Howe sent one of his teachers to
learn the manual alphabet from a deaf-mute. She taught it to
Laura, and from that time on the manual alphabet was the means of
communicating with her.

After the first year or two Dr. Howe did not teach Laura Bridgman
himself, but gave her over to other teachers, who under his
direction carried on the work of teaching her language.