Hello dear forum, my name is Brillenstein and like most of you, I share a certain passion for glasses. Today I would like to introduce you to my little self-written story. A story about a young woman from 1798, when glasses were anything but common. As you will soon notice, English is not my native language. However, I hope that you enjoy my little story and I am looking forward to your feedback.
Baden-Baden, Iffezheim horse racecourse. The Elector’s Grand Prize,1798. “Constanze” - the call clearly came from the crowd on my left. Or was it on the other side? “Constaanzee!” I turned to the right and tried desperately to discover the callers, but it was impossible. A sea of colours and light intermingled. Individual people standing no more than two or three steps away were clearly visible to me: Fine gentlemen in heavy frock coats, elegant ladies in wonderful hoop dresses. But as soon as I let my gaze glide a little further, the frills and brocade fabrics blurred, the shakos became black dots, colourful scarves blurred into streaks like oil on the surface of a pond. “Constanze, you blind duckling!”. I squinted my eyes. It barely helped. I felt like a fish out of the water, but I still couldn’t see the callers. I was so ashamed. Now I noticed exuberant laughter - that had to be Emilia and Auguste - the two stupid geese of all people. If I could have, I wish I’d disappeared into the ground. I would have crouched together very small. But my tightly laced corset forced me to stay upright. I had no choice but to move slowly and carefully forward. “Miss von Meerheim.” Out of nowhere, a young colonel appeared to my left. “Oh, Captain Sternbach… I haven’t seen you.” “But Constanze, we’ve been calling each other’s voices out since hooouuurs!” That was Emilia, the dopey cow. “Well Emily, you know our little Stanzerl. She has her head in the clouds… she only knows her friends when she needs them.” “That’s not true! I… I… really didn’t see you.” “Yes, yes, isn’t that what I said, Sir? Fräulein von Meerheim likes to ‘overlook’ people” The officer fixed me tightly and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Very well, Miss Auguste, you have announced this.”
The horses had now arrived at a pleasant speed and the carriage glided surprisingly quietly back to our little manor house. My parents joked with my two younger siblings, who reported excitedly about their experiences on the racecourse. Everyone was happy about this day at the races - only I sat in my corner and could have cried. Everything hurt: My feet hurt in the high heeled laced boots, my back was a fiery hell in the corsage and in my head I still heard the terrible laughter of Auguste, Emilia and the beautiful Captain. That’s the way it’s always been and that’s how it’s gonna be for the rest of my life, I thought. “Constanze!” my father called me, “Constanze. Rittmeister Sternbach approached me at the betting booths. You seem to make a mighty impression on the Lord.” “Papa!” “Well, it’d be bad if it wasn’t. However, my dear daughter, there is something else that good Herr Sternbach told me: Are you even a little snobbish towards your friends?” “No, that’s not true, Father. I was just… well, I just saw them too late in the crowd.” “Constanze, my dear child, do your old father a favour and read me this article from the Electoral Equestrian Journal.” I stared at my father in disbelief. What was that supposed to mean? I took the newspaper, unfolded it and started reading. That is, I tried to recognize the very small printed font. Impossible. Slowly I brought the text closer to my eyes. Better! At least the headlines now had to be clearly deciphered. But the actual writing faded stubbornly before my eyes. I carefully varied the distance back and forth. But every time I thought I had found the correct distance, the letters blurred again. Tense, I pinched my eyes together. Blimey! This was getting worse and worse. Should I never be able to read again from now on? “Well, dear daughter. I think that’s clear enough: we’ll make you an appointment with our ophthalmologist Dr. Theiss. It seems to me you need one of those new-fangled inventions he brought back from abroad.” “A Lorgnette?” I cried out, terrified. Only now did I realize that the talks in the carriage had been silenced for a long time. My siblings and my mother stared at me. “Never! Father, you can’t ask that of me! I would look like… like…” “An ugly eagle owl!” my little brother barged in.
The salon that Dr. Theiss used as a waiting room was dark. Ugly and dark. It was full of bulky wooden chairs covered with black velvet and smelly. The wallpaper was somehow dark and there were far too few candelabras. “I don’t need Lorgnon, Mother.” “Child. Even if your nose touches the letters, you can’t read anything.” “You yourself sacked my tutor earlier this year and declared my education complete. I don’t need to read any more.” “Constanze… you always liked to read. And your handicrafts used to be so accurate… you loved to paint. Do you remember? You haven’t been for years. You’re always pushing yourself. Run into it somewhere… and last week you didn’t recognize your own mare.” “But only because my unseemly brother deliberately switched stables!” “Frau von Meerheim? Fräulein von Meerheim? How do you do?” About ten or twelve feet away, a door in the wall had opened. Against the light I recognized a human being. Because of the voice, it had to be a man, so it had to be the doctor himself. Didn’t he have a receptionist? What kind of pathetic doctor would that be? “Oh, Herr Sternbach! How do you do. So you could arrange to be here in person after all. What a pleasure, isn’t it Constanze?” Herr Sternbach? I blinked tensely in the direction of the shadow, but couldn’t see anything exactly. That’s why that voice sounded so familiar. But what was the Captain doing here? Completely insecure I stumbled after my mother and was ashamed again. “Fräulein von Meerheim, I’m sure you’ll be surprised to see me again. May I perhaps tell you first that I have been in close contact with Doctor Theiss for years. As you know, the doctor is one of the leading optometrists of the electorate of Baden. In my capacity as regimental doctor of the Baden electoral army… well…. so… to make a long story short, I assist Dr. Theiss. And I sincerely hope you don’t mind?” What a wonderful, sonorous voice. So full and pleasant. I could have listened to the Captain for hours. “Of course, Mr. Sternbach, we don’t mind, do we, Constanze?” I was hot and cold at the same time. Otto Sternbach was here. Was my father right about what he said? But why was he here today of all days? Here, in the place of my greatest shame. Here, where an old fogey was supposed to make me an ‘ugly eagle owl’? God, it was too horrible. Finally we came to the treatment room. Dr. Theiss was actually an old fogey. Even with my weak eyes I realized that he was small and somehow full of hair. He also had a waddling gait and puffed with every movement. His voice was surprisingly soft, almost like that of a young woman. With brief instructions I was asked to sit on a wooden bench. Otto… Mr Sternbach explained to me that this was an optometer. A measuring instrument invented by Christoph Scheiner and used to calculate the accommodation width of my eyes. For this purpose, the distance and the near point would be determined in order to adapt an optimal visual aid. I understood only half of what he said. But I didn’t care, because his voice distracted me from the panting man right in front of me and the unnecessary clucking of my mother behind me.
Finally the examination was finished and Dr. Theiss asked me into another treatment room. Uncertain I stood up and tried to follow the doctor’s voice. Suddenly I felt the captain’s hand in mine. “May I, my lady?” “You’re not taking advantage of my awkwardness, are you, Mr. Sternbach?” “On the contrary, such a wonderful woman as yourself grants me the privilege of serving her.” “Please don’t say such a thing, Herr Rittmeister. At the latest when I am forced to see the world only through a Lorgnette… then I am no longer ‘wonderful’. Then I’m ugly as one-” “No! Constanze! You’ll never be ugly. That’s impossible at all. Besides, you won’t have to wear Lorgnon, trust me. I -” “Sternbach?! Where are you?” In the second treatment room I was allowed to sit in a far more comfortable chair. Dr. Theiss had a kind of type case next to him, full of smaller, well, uh, things. Suddenly the doctor put something cold and metal on my nose. My mother and Otto Sternbach groaned at the same time. Was I mistaken or was there a frightened moan of my mother and a short excited moan of the officer to hear? But I had no time, because next the old optometrist attached a cut glass to the apparatus on my nose. He carefully drew my attention to a poster on the wall that I had never noticed before. It showed playing cards. Yes, clearly: I could recognize playing cards. And this even though this picture had been hung at least six feet away from me. “Tell me what you see.” Dr. Theiss whispered. “Playing cards!” it burst out of me. I was so excited, because at one blow I realized what was happening here. “Lord Jesus Christ! I see playing cards! Mother! I actually see the playing cards way back there. Can you see them too?” “Remain seated. We’re not finished, my lady! We only know very roughly that you suffer from myopia magna. You’re about to see a lot more.” Again and again the good doctor replaced the cut glasses. And almost every time I discovered something new in his beautiful treatment room. There was no end to my happiness. Even my mother cried with emotion when she realized how blind I had been until then. And finally, finally I saw Otto very clearly. He was beaming at me too. His kind face sent me so much warmth and… I didn’t dare to think. After all, I’m an eagle owl now, it shot through my head. Yes, I don’t have to use a terrible Lorgnette, but glasses. An apparatus I had seen before in old folios: medieval scholars, hermits or other old codgers. Suddenly I got scared again. Was my face disfigured now? Could I now only see at the price of hideous glasses in my face? “You’re not ugly, Constanze. I said that to you earlier and I’m gonna say it again. And if you want, I’ll repeat it to you every morning by your side.” Otto must have read my mind. He was now standing very close to me, one arm on the back of the chair, in the other hand he held a small pocket mirror. We looked deep into each other’s eyes. My heart was racing. The throbbing was so loud, I thought everyone had to hear it. But my mother and Dr. Theiss did not seem to notice us and were deepened in a lively conversation. “I’m going to show you your new face, my wonderful Constanze. Your new glasses are made of polished brass. Matt. Extra thin. To make the glasses even lighter, the temples are made of turtle shell. Finest English workmanship from London. I chose the model myself. Since you are nearsighted, the optical glasses make your eyes smaller. They’re pretty strong glasses. You’ll probably have to get used to the new weight first. On the side of your glasses you can see rings. Lots of rings. It’s like a sparkle of diamonds. Constanze, it’s the most beautiful face I know on this earth.” Again I felt the liquid entering my eyes. But this time it was tears of joy. Slowly Otto held the mirror in front of my face: I saw a young, wonderful woman.
https://vision-and-spex.com/nearsightedness-220-years-ago-t972.html