Her mother, however, did
not approve Miss Fuller's suggestion that an attempt should be
made to teach her speech. She remained at the Perkins School,
under Miss Sullivan's charge, another year, when the matter was
brought up again, this time by little Helen herself, who said she
must speak. Miss Sullivan brought her to Miss Fuller's school one
day and she received her first lesson, of about two hours'
length.
"The child's hand was first passed over Miss Fuller's face,
mouth, and neck, then into her mouth, touching the tongue, teeth,
lips, and hard palate, to give her an idea of the organs of
speech. Miss Fuller then arranged her mouth, tongue, and teeth
for the sound of i as in it. She took the child's finger and
placed it upon the windpipe so that she might feel the vibration
there, put her finger between her teeth to show her how wide
apart they were, and one finger in the mouth to feel the tongue,
and then sounded the vowel. The child grasped the idea at once.
Her fingers flew to her own mouth and throat, and she produced
the sound so nearly accurate that it sounded like an echo. Next
the sound of ah was made by dropping the jaw a little and letting
the child feel that the tongue was soft and lying in the bed of
the jaw with the teeth more widely separated.
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