Syphilis is not transferred in the semen like that. It is transferred directly. From bacteria on the skin, pressed against the skin or, more often, a mucous m

Syphilis is not transferred in the semen like that. It is transferred directly. From bacteria on the skin, pressed against the skin or, more often, a mucous membrane. In the initial stage there's usually a skin ulceration which is infectious. In later stages, it's rather generalized (e.g. anywhere a rash or blistering occurs may be able to pass the infection on). It's probably best thought of as a close-contact or mucous-membrane-contact disease. Nonsexual contact is known to pass it. There are closely related diseases [1] [2] [3] that can be passed non-sexually. The eye is one of the places where a primary ulcer shows up - but it's rarely the first site. To have it show up there repeatedly suggests the possibility of an unusual sexual practice yes. Probably more like rubbing the body then the face with the hands than what you were thinking. But that should have come up when they questioned the five women. The hypothesis presented seems plausible: a subtype evolved to be particularly fond of the eyes. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonvenereal_endemic_syphilis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonvenereal_endemic_syphilis [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaws https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaws [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinta_(disease) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinta_(disease)