To prevent this self-deception skilled oculists do not trust the eye card, but put a drug in the eye that benumbs the muscles of accommodation.
"Civics and Health"
William H. Allen
And, while the men shake their dripping caps, pass their hands on their foreheads to wipe out drops of rain and perspiration that veil the eyes, the first sensation of cold comes to them, of a damp and profound cold; their wet clothes chill them, their thoughts weaken; little by little a sort of torpor benumbs them in the thick darkness, under the incessant winter rain.
"Ramuntcho"
Pierre Loti
I read the other day that Sir John Franklin, the great Arctic explorer, who almost lost his life in being attacked by some huge animal-it must have been a bear, I think-says that the animal when he first gets you in his teeth gives you such a shake that it paralyzes your nerves-this is, it benumbs all your feelings, so, that, strange as it may seem, you really do not suffer.
"Tattine"
Ruth Ogden