BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 

 CEREBRAL HYPERÆMIA: THE RESULT OF MENTAL STRAIN OR EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCES. 16mo, cloth . .. $1 00

 "Under the disguise of these hard words, Dr. Hammond presents a variety of admirable counsels, with regard to an excess of blood in the head, pointing out its causes, its symptoms, the mode of its medical treatment, and the means of its prevention. "--_N. Y. Tribune. _

 "The work is not only of interest to the medical man, but also is one easily understood and to be read with profit by brain-workers of all classes, whether in profession, in literature or business. It treats of the cause of headaches, the wakefulness, the illusions or delusions, and feelings of tightness in the head, which so many of our American writers and thinkers experience, and it gives valuable information available by laymen as to the prevention and remedy for this affection, which later on leads to insanity or death. "--_Boston Traveller. _

 G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK. 

 FASTING GIRLS;

 THEIR PHYSIOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY

 BY

 WILLIAM A. HAMMOND, M. D. 

 PROFESSOR OF DISEASES OF THE MIND AND NERVOUS SYSTEM IN THE MEDICAL DEPARTMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, AND IN THE UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT. ETC. 

 "There is no new thing under the Sun. " --_Eccl. _ I, 9. 

 "Nil spernat auris, nec tamen credat statim. " --PHÆDRUS. 

 NEW YORK G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS 182 FIFTH AVENUE 1879

 COPYRIGHT BY G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS. 1879. 

PREFACE. 

In issuing this little book I have been actuated by a desire to dosomething towards the removal of a lamentable degree of popularignorance. 

It seems that no proposition that can be made is so absurd or impossiblebut that many people, ordinarily regarded as intelligent, will be foundto accept it and to aid in its propagation. And hence, when it isasserted that a young lady has lived for fourteen years without food ofany kind, hundreds and thousands of persons throughout the length andbreadth of a civilized land at once yield their belief to the monstrousdeclaration. 

I have confined my remarks entirely to the question of abstinence fromfood. The other supernatural gifts, the possession of which is claimed, would, if considered, have extended the limits of this little volumebeyond the bounds which were deemed expedient. At some future time I maybe tempted to discuss them. In the meantime it is well to call to mindthat a proposition (_see_ Appendix) which I made solely in the interestof truth was disregarded, ostensibly with the desire to avoid publicity, when in fact the daily press had for weeks been filled with reports indetail, furnished by the friends of the young lady in question, of themarvellous powers she was said to possess. 

A portion of this essay, which bore upon the matter discussed, has beentaken from another volume by the author, published several years ago, and now out of print. 

 WILLIAM A. HAMMOND. 

 43 WEST 54TH STREET, MARCH _1st, 1879_. 

CONTENTS

 PAGE

 I ABSTINENCE IN THE MIDDLE AGES 1

 II ABSTINENCE IN MODERN TIMES 6

 III ABSTINENCE FROM FOOD, WITH STIGMATIZATION 31

 IV THE BROOKLYN CASE 48

 V THE PHYSIOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY OF INANITION 59

FASTING GIRLS. 

I. 

ABSTINENCE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 

Among the many remarkable manifestations by which hysteria exhibitsitself, for the astonishment of the credulous and uneducated portion ofthe public, and--alas, that it should have to be said, --for thedelectation of an occasional weak-minded and ignorant physician, theassumption of the ability to live without food may be assigned aprominent place. I am not aware that this power has been claimed in itsfullest development for the male of the human species. When he isdeprived of food he dies in a few days, more or less, according to hisphysical condition as regards adipose tissue and strength ofconstitution; but if a weak emaciated girl asserts that she is able toexist for years without eating, there are at once certificates andletters from clergymen, professors, and even physicians, in support ofthe truth of her story. The element of impossibility goes for nothingagainst the bare word of such a woman, and her statements are acceptedwith a degree of confidence which is lamentable to witness in this eraof the world's progress. 

The class of deceptions occasionally induced by hysteria, and embracingthese "fasting girls, " has been known for many years, though it is onlyin comparatively recent times that the instances have been taken attheir proper value. Görres[1] gives a number of examples occurring amongmale and female saints and other holy persons, in which partial or totalabstinence from food was said to have existed for long periods. 

Thus Liduine of Schiedam fell ill in 1395, and remained in that statetill her death, thirty-three years subsequently. During the firstnineteen years she ate every day nothing but a little piece of apple thesize of a holy wafer, and drank a little water and a swallow of beer, orsometimes a little sweet milk. Subsequently, being unable to digest beerand milk, she restricted herself to a little wine and water, and stilllater she was obliged to confine herself to water alone, which servedher both as food and drink. But after nineteen years she took nothingwhatever, according to her own statement made to some friars in 1422, she averring that for eight years nothing in the way of nourishment hadpassed her lips, and that for twenty years she had seen neither the sunnor the moon, nor had touched the earth with her feet. 

Saint Joseph of Copertino remained for five years without eating bread, and ten years without drinking wine, contenting himself with driedfruits, which he mixed with various bitter herbs. The herb which he usedfor Fridays had such an atrocious taste, that one of the brethren, bysimply putting his tongue to it, was seized with vomiting, and forseveral days thereafter everything he ate excited nausea. He fasted forforty days seven times every year, and during these periods ate nothingat all except on Sundays and Thursdays. 

Nicolas of Flue, as soon as he embraced the monastic life, subsistedaltogether on the holy eucharist. The pious Görres in explanation ofthis miracle says:

"In ordinary nourishment he who eats being superior to that which iseaten, assimilates the aliments which he takes, and communicates to themhis own nature. But in the eucharist the aliment is more powerful thanhe who eats. It is no longer therefore the nourishment which isassimilated, but on the contrary, it assimilates the man, and introduceshim into a superior sphere. An entire change is produced. Thesupernatural life in some way or other absorbs the natural life, and theman instead of living on earth, lives henceforth by grace and byheaven. "

This is about on a par, as regards lucidity and logic, with theexplanations which we are given of the alleged case of prolonged fastingin Brooklyn. 

Doubts arose in regard to Nicolas, and the bishop had him watched, butwithout detecting him in fraud. Finally he ordered him to eat a piece ofbread in his presence. Nicolas did as he was commanded, but at the firstmouthful he was seized with violent vomiting. The bishop inquired of himhow he thus managed to live without eating, to which the brotheranswered that when he assisted at mass, and when he took the holyeucharist, he felt a degree of strength and suppleness like that derivedfrom the most nutritious food. 

Still the doubters continued, and the inhabitants of Underwold, whereNicolas lived, appear to have been at first very much inclined tosuspect him of deceit. But they were finally converted, for havingduring a whole month guarded every approach to his cabin, and havingduring that time detected no one in taking food to him, they wereconvinced that for that time at least he had lived without food. Thesceptical reasoner of the present day would probably regard the test asinsufficient. 

In 1225, Hugh, Bishop of Lincoln, having heard that there was atLeicester a nun who had taken no nourishment for seven years, and wholived only on the eucharist, which she took every Sunday, gave at firstno faith to the story. He sent to her, however, fifteen clerks, withdirections to watch her assiduously for fifteen days, never for aninstant losing sight of her. The clerks reported to him that they hadstrictly obeyed his commands; that she had taken no nourishment, andthat yet she nevertheless preserved her full strength and health. Whereupon the Bishop declared himself convinced, "as, " adds Görres, "itwas proper for a sensible man to do. "

Among others of the holy persons who acquired the power of living on thesacramental bread, may be mentioned St. Catharine of Sienna, Saint Roseof Lima, Saint Collete, Saint Peter of Alcantara, and many others. 

But if saints and other holy people were able, through miraculous power, to live without food, the same ability was claimed for those who wereunder the influence of demons and devils. Görres[2] states that a personpossessed by a devil often loses all taste for food of any kind, and canretain no nourishment in his body. Another symptom is a disgust whichis formed for the companionship of other persons. Thus a man wastormented by a demon, who forced him to fly into the forests, where hehid himself from mankind. One night he quit his house, and concealedhimself in a cavern, remaining there entirely without food for sixteendays. Again he remained in the woods twenty-four days, neither eatingnor drinking during this period. Finally his children found him, andtaking him to a priest, had the devil exorcised, and he was cured. 

Saint Prosper, of Aquitaine, speaks of a young girl possessed by adevil, and who went seventy days without eating. Notwithstanding thislong fast, she did not become emaciated, because every night at twelveo'clock a bird sent by the devil took a mysterious nourishment to her. 

An astonishing feature in the cases of the diabolical abstaining fromfood, is that, as in the holy instances, they exhibit variousmanifestations of hysteria. Görres, with a charming degree ofsimplicity, details these symptoms and failing, under the influence ofthe predominant idea which fills him, to recognize their real character, ascribes them without hesitation to devilish agency. Thus he says:

"The functions of the organs of nutrition are sometimes profoundlyaltered in the possessed, and these alterations are manifested byviolent cramps, which show the extent to which the muscular system isaffected. The hysterical lump in the throat is a frequent phenomenon inpossession. A young girl in the Valley of Calepino had all her limbstwisted and contracted, and had in the œsophagus a sensation as if aball was sometimes rising in her throat, and again falling to herstomach. Her countenance was of an ashen hue, and she had a constantsense of weight and pain in the head. All the remedies of physicians hadfailed, and as evidences of possession were discovered in her, she wasbrought to Brignoli (a priest) who had recourse to supernatural means, and cured her. "

Strange to say, the ability to live on the eucharist, and to resiststarvation by diabolical power, died out with the middle ages, and wasreplaced by the "fasting girls, " who still continue to amuse us withtheir vagaries. To the consideration of some of the more strikinginstances of more recent times the attention of the reader is invited, in the confidence that much of interest in the study of the "History ofHuman Folly" will be adduced. 

FOOTNOTES:

[1] La Mystique Divine, Naturelle et Diabolique. Paris, 1861. T. I. , p. 194, _et seq. _

[2] Op. Cit. T. IV. , p. 446. 

II. 

ABSTINENCE IN MODERN TIMES. 

Among the more striking cases under this head, is that of MargaretWeiss, a young girl ten years of age, who lived at Rode, a small villagenear Spires, and whose history has come down to us through variouschannels, but principally from Gerardus Bucoldianus, [3] who had themedical charge of her, and who wrote a little book describing hispatient. Margaret is said to have abstained from all food and drink forthree years, in the meantime growing, walking about, laughing, andtalking like other children of her age. During the first year, however, she suffered greatly from pains in her head and abdomen, and, a commoncondition in hysteria--all four of her limbs were contracted. She passedneither urine nor fæces. Margaret, though only ten years old--hysteriadevelops the secretive faculties--played her part so well that, afterbeing watched by the priest of the parish and Dr. Bucoldianus, she wasconsidered free from all juggling, and was sent home to her friends byorder of the King, "not, " the doctor adds, "without great admiration andprincely gifts. " Although fully accepting the fact of Margaret'sabstinence, Dr. Bucoldianus appears to have been somewhat staggered, forhe asks very pertinently: "Whence comes the animal heat, since sheneither eats nor drinks, and why does the body grow when nothing goesinto it?"

Schenckius[4] quotes from Paulus Lentulus the "Wonderful History of theFasting of Appolonia Schreira, a virgin in Berne. " Lentulus states thathe was with this maid on three occasions, and that, by order of themagistrate of Berne, she was taken to that city and a strict guard keptupon her. All kinds of means were set in operation to detect impostureif any existed, but none was discovered, and she was set at liberty as agenuine case of ability to live without food. In the first year of herfasting she scarcely slept, and in the second year never closed her eyesin sleep; and so she continued for a long while after. 

Schenckius also advances the case of Katharine Binder, of thePalatinate, who was closely watched by a clergyman, a statesman, and twodoctors of medicine, without the detection of fraud on her part. She wassaid to have taken nothing but air into her system for nine years andmore, as Lentulus reported on the authority of Fabricius. Thislast-named physician told Lentulus of another case, that of a girlfourteen years old, who certainly had taken neither food nor drink forat least three years. 

"But, " says Dr. Hakewel, [5] "the strangest that I have met with of thiskind, is the history of Eve Fliegen, out of Dutch translated intoEnglish, and printed at London, _anno_ 1611, who, being born at Meurs, is said to have taken no kind of sustenance for the space of fourteenyears together; that is, from the year of her age, twenty-two tothirty-six, and from the year of our Lord 1597 to 1611; and this we haveconfirmed by the testimony of the magistrates of the town of Meurs, asalso by the minister who made trial of her in his house thirteen daystogether by all the means he could devise, but could detect noimposture. " Over the picture of this maid, set in front of the Dutchcopy, stand these Latin verses:

 "Meursæ hæc quam cernis decies ter, sexque peregit, Annos, bis septem prorsus non viscitur annis Nec potat, sic sola sedet, sic pallida vitam Ducit, et exigui se oblectat floribus horti. "

Thus rendered in the English copy:

 "This maid of Meurs thirty and six years spent, Fourteen of which she took no nourishment; Thus pale and wan she sits sad and alone, A garden's all she loves to look upon. "

Franciscus Citesius, [6] physician to the King of France and to CardinalRichelieu, devotes a good deal of space and attention to the case ofJoan Balaam, a native of the city of Constance. She was well grown, butof bad manners. About the eleventh year of her age she was attacked witha fever, and among other symptoms vomited for twenty days. Then shebecame speechless and so continued for twenty-four days. Then shetalked, but her speech was raving and incoherent. Finally she lost allpower of motion and of sensibility in the parts below the head and couldnot swallow. From thenceforth she could not be persuaded to take food. Six months afterwards she regained the use of her limbs, but theinability to swallow remained and she acquired a great loathing for allkinds of meat and drink. The secretions and excretions appeared to bearrested. Nevertheless she was very industrious, employing her time inrunning errands, sweeping the house, spinning, and such like. This maidcontinued thus fasting for the space of nearly three years, and then bydegrees took to eating and drinking again. 

Before coming to more recent cases, there is one other to which I desireto refer for the reason mainly that in it there was probably organicdisease in addition to fraud and hysteria. It is cited by Fabricius[7]and by Wanley. _Anno Dom. _, 1595, a maid of about thirteen years wasbrought out of the dukedom of Juliers to Cologne, and there in a broadstreet at the sign of the White Horse exposed to the sight of as many asdesired to see her. The parents of this maid affirmed that she had livedwithout any kind of food or drink for the space of three whole years;and this they confirmed by the testimony of divers persons, such as areworthy of credit. Fabricius observed her with great care. She was of asad and melancholy countenance; her whole body was sufficiently fleshyexcept only her belly, which was compressed so as that it seemed tocleave to her back-bone. Her liver and the rest of her bowels wereperceived to be hard by laying the hand on the belly. As for excrements, she voided none; and did so far abhor all kinds of food, that when one, who came to see her privately, put a little sugar in her mouth sheimmediately swooned away. But what was most wonderful was, that thismaid walked up and down, played with other girls, danced, and did allother things that were done by girls of her age; neither had she anydifficulty of breathing, speaking or crying out. Her parents declaredthat she had been in this condition for three years. 

A great many more to the same effect might be adduced, but the foregoingare sufficient to indicate the fact that belief in the possibility ofsuch occurrences was quite general, and that if doubt did exist inregard to their real nature, it was not so strong as not readily to beovercome by the tricks and devices of hysterical women. 

In the following instances of more modern date the reader will perceivethe view which is taken of them by physicians of the present day, andwill doubtless discover their real nature. 

About sixty-five years ago, a woman of Sudbury, in Staffordshire, England, named Ann Moore, declared that she did not eat, and a number ofpersons volunteered to watch her, in order to ascertain whether or notshe was speaking the truth. The watch was continued for three weeks andthen the watchers, as in other instances, reported that Ann Moore was areal case of abstinence from food of all kinds. The Bible was alwayskept open on Ann's bed. Her emaciation was so extreme that it was saidher vertebral column could be felt through the abdominal walls. This sadcondition was asserted to have been caused by her washing the linen of aperson affected with ulcers. From that time she experienced a dislikefor food, and even nausea at the sight or mention of it. 

As soon as the watchers reported in favor of the genuineness of Ann'spretensions her notoriety increased, and visitors came from all parts ofthe country, leaving donations to the extent of two hundred and fiftypounds in the course of two years. Doubts, however, again arose, and, bold from the immunity she had experienced from the first investigation, Ann in an evil moment, for the continuance of her fraud, consented to asecond watching. This committee was composed of notable persons, amongthem being Sir Oswald Mosley, Bart. , Rev. Legh Richmond, Dr. Fox, andhis son, and many other gentlemen of the country. Two of them werealways in her room night and day. At the suggestion of Mr. Francis Fox, the bedstead, bedding, and the woman in it were placed on a weighingmachine, and thus it was ascertained that she regularly lost weightdaily. At the expiration of the ninth day of this strict watching, Dr. Fox found her evidently sinking and told her she would soon die unlessshe took food. After a little prevarication, the woman signed a writtenconfession that she was an impostor, and had "occasionally takensustenance for the last six years. " She also stated that during thefirst watch of three weeks her daughter had contrived, when washing herface, to feed her every morning, by using towels made very wet withgravy, milk, or strong arrowroot gruel, and had also conveyed food frommouth to mouth in kissing her, which it is presumed she did veryoften. [8]

In a clinical lecture delivered at St. George's Hospital, [9] Dr. John W. Ogle calls attention to the simulation of fasting as a manifestation ofhysteria, and relates the following amusing case:

"A girl strongly hysterical, aged twenty, in spite of all persuasion andmedical treatment, refused every kind of food, or if made to eat, soonvomited the contents of the stomach. On November 6th, 1869, whilst thegirl was apparently suffering in the same manner, the Queen passed thehospital on her way to open Blackfriars Bridge. She arose in bed so asto look out of the window, although up to this time declaring that everymovement of her body caused intense pain. On December 29, the followingletter in the girl's handwriting, addressed to another patient in thesame ward, was picked up from the floor: 'My Dear Mrs. Evens, --I wasvery sorry you should take the trouble of cutting me such a nice pieceof bread and butter, yesterday. I would of taken it but all of them sawyou send it, and then they would have made enough to have talked about. But I should be very glad if you would cut me a nice piece of crust andput it in a piece of paper and send it, or else bring it, so that theydo not see it, for they all watch me very much, and I should like to beyour friend and you to be mine. Mrs. Winslow, (the nurse) is going tochapel. I will make it up with you when I can go as far. Do not send itif you cannot spare it. Good bye, and God bless you. ' Although sheprevaricated about this letter, she appears to have gradually improvedfrom this time on, and one day walked out of the hospital and left italtogether. She subsequently wrote a letter to the authoritiesexpressing her regret at having gone on as she did. "

One of the most remarkable instances of the kind, is that of SarahJacob, known as the "Welsh Fasting Girl, " and whose history and tragicaldeath excited a great deal of comment in the medical and lay press inGreat Britain a few years ago. The following account of the case ismainly derived from Dr. Fowler's[10] interesting work. 

Sarah Jacob was born May 12th, 1857. Her parents were farmers and wereuneducated, simple-minded, and ignorant persons. In her earlier yearsshe had been healthy, was intelligent, given to religious reading, andwas said to have written poetry of her own composition. She was a verypretty child and was, according to the testimony of the vicar, the Rev. Evan Jones, a "good girl. "

About February 15th, 1867, when she was not quite ten years of age, shecomplained of pain in the pit of the stomach, and one morning on gettingup, she told her mother that she had found her mouth full of bloodyfroth. The pain continued, and medical attendance was obtained. Soonafterwards she had strong convulsions of an epileptiform character andthen other spasms of a clearly hysterical form, during which her bodywas bent in the form of a bow as in tetanus, the head and heels onlytouching the bed. Then the muscular spasm ceased and she fell at fulllength on the bed. For a whole month she continued in a state ofunconsciousness, suffering from frequent repetitions of severeconvulsive attacks, during which time she took little food. Mr. Davies, the surgeon, said in his evidence, that she was for a whole month, in akind of permanent fit, lying on her back, with rigidity of all themuscles. For some time her life was despaired of, then her fits ceasedto be convulsive and consisted of short periods of loss of consciousnesswith sudden awakings. For the next two or three months (till August, 1867) she took daily, from six, gradually decreasing to four, teacupfulsof rice and milk, or oatmeal and milk, which according to her father'saccount, was cast up again immediately and blood and froth with it. During this time the bowels were only acted on once in six or nine days. "Up to this time, " said her father, "she could move both arms and oneleg, but the other leg was rigid. "

By the beginning of October, 1867, her quantity of daily food had, itwas affirmed, dwindled down to nothing but a little apple about the sizeof a pill, which she took from a tea-spoon. At this time she made waterabout every other day; she looked very bad in the face, but was notthin. On the tenth day of October, it was solemnly declared that sheceased to take any food whatever, and so continued till the day of herdeath, December 17th, 1869, a period of two years, two months, and oneweek. 

"Of the veracity of the assertion in respect of _the one week_, " saysDr. Fowler, "there is unfortunately plenty of evidence. To the absurdityof believing in the barest possibility of twenty-six months absoluteabstinence, it is sufficient to reply that when to our knowledge, shewas completely deprived of food, the girl died! The parents mostpersistently impressed upon every private as well as official visitor, both before and during the last fatal watching, that the girl did nottake food; that she could not swallow; that whenever food was mentionedto her she became as it were, excited; that when it was offered to hershe would have a fit, or the offer would make her ill. The sworntestimony of the vicar, the Rev. Wm. Thomas, Sister Clinch, Ann Jones, and the other nurses, is sufficiently confirmative on this point. Furthermore, the parents went so far as to expressly forbid the meremention of food in the girl's presence. "

Towards the end of October, 1867, the case had attracted so muchattention that the inhabitants in the neighborhood first began visitingthe marvellous little girl. 

"In the beginning of November of the same year, the Rev. Evan Jones, B. D. , the vicar of the parish, was sent for by the parents to visitSarah Jacob. He was at once--by the mother--told of the girl's wonderfulfasting powers; it was admitted she took water occasionally. He was alsoinformed of the extraordinary perversion of her natural functions (thesuppression of urine and fæcal evacuations. ) He found her lying on herback in bed, which was covered with books. There was nothing thenremarkable about her dress. The girl looked weak and delicate, thoughnot pale, and answered only in monosyllables. 'The mother said her childwas very anxious about the state of her soul, that it had such an effectupon her mind that she could not sleep. ' I asked her myself if she had adesire to become a member of the Church of England? She said, 'Yes!' Shecontinued to express that wish until July, 1869. At this time thereverend gentleman did not believe in the statements relative to thegirl's abstinence. 'Every time, ' he says, 'that I had a conversationwith her up to the end of 1868, the parents both persisted that shelived without food, and continued their statements in January andFebruary, 1869. I remonstrated with them and dwelt upon the apparentimpossibility of the thing. They still persisted that it was a fact. '

"Even as late as September, 1869, the vicar reiterated his ministerialremonstrances. When, in the beginning of the spring of 1869, he observedthe fantastical changes the parents made in the girl's daily attire, hetold them about the remarks made in the papers about this dressing anddwelt upon the impropriety of it. They replied, 'She had no otherpleasure--they did not like denying it to her. ' During the followingsummer, finding that the girl looked more plump in the face and that hergeneral improvement was more conspicuous, he said, 'Sarah is evidentlyimproving and gaining, and you say she takes no food; you are certainlyimposing on the public. ' I then dwelt on the sinfulness of continuingthe fraud on the public. I said there were on record several cases ofalleged fasting, some of which had been put to the test and had beendiscovered to be impositions; that those families would ever be held inexecration by posterity, and such would be the case with them wheneverthis imposture was found out. The mother then assured me no impositionwould be discovered in that house, because there was none. "

The father and mother both said that the Lord provided for her in a mostnatural way, and that it was a miracle. The father always talked aboutthe "Doctor Mawr, " meaning God Almighty; that she was supported by that"Big Doctor. "

Then soon began the custom of leaving money or other presents with thechild, till at last every one who visited her, was expected to givesomething. Open house was kept and pilgrims came from near and far tosee the wonderful girl who lived without food. 

When money was not forthcoming, presents of clothes, finery, books, orflowers, appear to have been substituted. Advantage was taken of thesepresents to bedeck the child in every variety of smartness. At one timeshe had a victorine about her neck and a wreath about her hair, thenagain, ornaments and a jacket on, and her hair neatly dressed withribbons. At another time she had a silk shawl, a victorine around herneck, a small crucifix attached to a necklace, and little ribbons abovethe wrists. She had drab gloves on and her bed was nearly covered withbooks. 

Notwithstanding the alleged fasting, Sarah Jacob continued to improve inhealth. 

And now comes an astounding feature of this most remarkable case. Thevicar became convinced that the instance was one of real abstinence. Alittle hysterical girl twelve years of age, by her perseverance inlying, had actually succeeded in inducing an educated gentleman toaccept the truth of her statements! The following letter which waspublished on the 19th of February, 1869, speaks for itself:--

 "A STRANGE CASE. 

 "To the Editor of the _Welshman_. 

 "Sir: Allow me to invite the attention of your readers to a most extraordinary case. Sarah Jacob, a little girl twelve years of age, and daughter of Mr. Evan Jacob, Lletherneuadd, in this parish, has not partaken of a single grain of any kind of food whatever, during the last sixteen months. She did occasionally swallow a few drops of water during the first few months of this period; but now she does not even do that. She still looks pretty well in the face and continues in the possession of all her mental faculties. She is in this and several other respects, a wonderful little girl. 

 "Medical men persist in saying that the thing is quite impossible, but all the nearest neighbors, who are thoroughly acquainted with the circumstances of the case, entertain no doubt whatever of the subject, and I am myself of the same opinion. 

 "Would it not be worth their while for medical men to make an investigation into the nature of this strange case? Mr. Evan Jacob would readily admit into his house any respectable person who might be anxious to watch it and to see for himself. 

 "I may add, that Lletherneuadd is a farm-house about a mile from New Inn, in this parish. 

 "Yours faithfully, "THE VICAR OF LLANFIHANGEL-AR-ARTH. "

The suggestions of the vicar relative to an investigation, were soonafter afterwards acted upon by certain gentlemen of the neighborhood. Apublic meeting was called and a committee of watchers was appointed tobe constantly in attendance in the room with Sarah Jacob, and to observeto the best of their ability, whether or not she took any food duringthe investigation. It was agreed that the watching was to continue for afortnight. 

Prior to the beginning of this watching, no precautions were takenagainst food being conveyed into the room and concealed there. Theparents actually debarred the watchers from touching the child's bed. The very first element of success was therefore denied, and no wonderthat the whole affair was subsequently regarded as an absurdity. Thewatching consisted in two different men taking alternate watches fromeight till eight. The watching to see whether the child partook of food, commenced on March 22d, and ended April 5th, 1869--a period of fourteendays. 

During the above fortnight, one of the watchers, in turn, was alwaysclose to her bed, and in her sight day and night, and at the time thebed was being made, which was generally every other morning, the fourpersons were always present and had every article thoroughly examined. The parents were allowed to go near the bed, as also was the littlesister, six years old, who had been Sarah's constant companion andbed-fellow. 

On Wednesday, April 7th, 1869, a public meeting was held at the EagleInn, Llandyfeil, to hear the statements of the parents and of theseveral persons who had watched the child during the fourteen days. Theparents briefly detailed the condition and symptoms of their daughterfrom the commencement of her illness. At no time during the wholefourteen days did the pulse ever reach above ninety per minute, althoughexceedingly changeable, as it always had been. The following evidencewas received from the watchers, and it is _said_ that their statementswere duly verified on oath before a magistrate:--

Watcher No. 1 said: I, Evan Edward Smith, watched Sarah Jacob for twoconsecutive nights, (_i. E. _, nights 22d and 23d of March) at therequest of Mr. H. H. Davies, surgeon. The parents gave every facility toinvestigate the matter. I watched her with all possible care, and foundnothing to suspect that food or drink was given her by foul means. I amquite sure she had nothing during my watch. I was dismissed on accountof being suspected to doze on the second night. 

Watcher No. 2. This watcher watched Sarah Jacob for a whole fortnight, and found no indications that the child had anything to eat or drink. Hewas a college student, Daniel Harris Davies. 

Watcher No. 3. John Jones, a shopkeeper, gave similar evidence. He was adecided sceptic before he began watching, but after twelve days wasthoroughly convinced of the fact that nothing in the shape ofnourishment was given to the poor child. He watched every movement ofall the inmates, and found nothing that would lead him to suspect thatany nourishment was given to the little girl. 

Watcher No. 4. James Harris Davies, a medical student, spoke in likemanner, and was perfectly positive that nothing had been given to herduring the fortnight he had watched there, with the exception of threedrops of water, once, to moisten her lips with. He was as great asceptic as any one before he began watching, but as he saw nothing toconfirm his suspicions, he could conscientiously say that nothing hadbeen given her during his watch. 

Watcher No. 5. Evan Davies, of Powel Castle, who only watched her forone day, gave similar evidence, but as he was a neighbour he wasdismissed for a stranger. 

Watcher No. 6. Herbert Jones, watched only one day, and spoke in asimilar manner, and was dismissed on account of his credulity. 

Watcher No. 7. Thomas Davies, who had been the greatest sceptic of all, was strongly convinced. He watched Sarah Jacob twelve days, and wasquite positive that nothing could have been given her during his watch. He watched her with all possible care, and was very cautious to be in aprominent place, where Sarah Jacob's mouth was always in sight. 

Evidence, however, was given which went to show that the watching wasvery imperfectly performed; that occasionally the watchers left beforetheir time had expired; that intoxicating liquors were taken by them tothe house, and that one of them was drunk while there. It was also shownthat the father and mother had free access to the bed, while thewatchers were absolutely prohibited from examining it. It is thereforewith entire justification that Dr. Fowler states that the watching "wasthe greatest possible farce and mockery. "

After the report of the watchers the notoriety of Sarah Jacob of coursebecame still greater; crowds came to visit her, and among others theRev. Frederic Rowland Young went to see her, and made an unsuccessfuleffort to cure her by laying on of hands. When Dr. Fowler visited her, August 30th, 1869, on getting out at the nearest railway station, he wasmet by little boys bearing placards with the words "Fasting Girl, " and"This is the shortest way to Llethernoryadd-ucha, " on them. In hisletter to the _Times_, giving an account of his visit, Dr. Fowlersays:--

"The first impression was most unfavorable, and to a medical man theappearances were most suspicious. The child was lying on a bed decoratedas a bride, having around her head a wreath of flowers, from which wassuspended a smart ribbon, the ends of which were joined by a small bunchof flowers, after the present fashion of ladies' bonnet strings. Beforeher, at proper reading distance, was an open Welsh book, supported bytwo other books on her body. The blanket covering was clean, tidy, andperfectly smooth. Across the fire-place, which was nearly opposite thefoot of her bed, was an arrangement of shelves, well stocked withEnglish and Welsh books, the gifts of various visitors to the house. Thechild is thirteen years of age, and is undoubtedly very pretty. Her facewas plump, and her cheeks and lips of a beautiful rosy color. Her eyeswere bright and sparkling, the pupils were very dilated, in a measureexplicable by the fact of the child's head and face being shaded fromthe window-light by the projecting side of the cupboard bedstead. Therewas that restless movement and frequent looking out at the corners ofthe eyes so characteristic of simulative disease. Considering thelengthened inactivity of the girl, her muscular development was verygood, and the amount of fat layer not inconsiderable. My friend statedthat she looked even better than she did about a twelvemonth ago. Therewas a slight perspiration over the surface of the body. The pulse wasperfectly natural, as were also the sounds of the lungs and heart, sofar as I was enabled to make a stethoscopic examination. Having receivedpermission to do this, I proceeded to make the necessary derangement ofdress, when the girl went off into what the mother called a faintingfit. This consisted of nothing but a little and momentary hystericalcrying and sobbing. The color never left the lips or cheeks. The pulseremained of the same power. Consciousness could have been but slightlydiminished, inasmuch as on my then opening the eyelids I perceived adistinct upward and other movement of the eyeballs. Each percussionstroke of my examination, and even the pressure of the stethoscope, produced an expression of pain, which elicited a natural sympathy fromthe mother, and an assertion that a continuance of such examinationwould bring on further fits. On percussing the region of the stomach, Imost distinctly perceived the sound of gurgling, which we know to becaused by the admixture of air and fluid in motion. The most positiveassertion of the parents was subsequently made that saving a fortnightlymoistening of her lips with cold water, the child had neither ate nordrank anything for the last twenty-three months. The whole region of thebelly was tympanitic, and the muscular walls of this cavity were tenseand drum-like--a condition not infrequently concomitant of a well-knownclass of nervous disorders. The child's intellectual faculties andspecial senses were perfectly healthy. Before her illness she was verymuch devoted to religious reading. This devotion has lately considerablyincreased. She is a member of the Church of England, and has beenconfirmed. "

Dr. Fowler then adds some other interesting particulars, all going toshow the impossibility of the girl's being the subject of any exhaustingdisease, or of even having been continuously in bed, as her parentsasserted, for nearly two years; and then says:--

"The whole case is in fact one of simulative hysteria, in a young girlhaving the propensity to deceive very strongly developed. Therewith maybe probably associated the power or habit of prolonged fasting. Bothpatient and mother admitted the occasional occurrence of the chokingsensation called _globus hystericus_. "

This letter excited renewed discussion in the newspapers, and a secondpublic meeting was called to make arrangements for a second watching. Atthis meeting it was decided to bring down from Guy's Hospital, London, several trained nurses, who were to conduct the watching; and thefollowing resolutions were adopted, as expressing the terms under whichthe inquiry was to be conducted:--

1. It would be advisable, before taking any steps in the matter, toobtain a written legal guarantee from the father of Sarah Jacobsanctioning the necessary proceedings. 2. That the duty of the nursesshall be to watch Sarah Jacob with a view to ascertain whether shepartakes of any kind of food, and at the end of a fortnight to reportupon the case before the local committee in Carmarthenshire, and, ifrequired, at Guy's Hospital. 3. That two nurses shall be constantlyawake and on the watch in the girl's room, night and day. 4. It would beadvisable for the nearest medical practitioner to watch the progress ofthe case; and it will be absolutely necessary for him to _be preparedagainst any serious symptoms of exhaustion, supervening on the strictenforcement of the watching, and to act according to his judgment_. 5. That the room in which the girl sleeps shall be bared of all unnecessaryfurniture, and all possible places in the room for the concealment offood shall be closed and kept under the continual scrutiny of thewatchers. 6. That if considered desirable by the local medicalpractitioner, or by the nurses, the bedstead on which the girl now liesshall be replaced by a single iron one. 7. That the bed on which theparents now sleep, in Sarah Jacob's room, shall be given up absolutelyto the nurses. 8. That the parents be not allowed to sleep in the sameroom as the girl; that if they cannot at all times be prevented fromapproaching her, they should be previously searched (their pockets andother recesses of clothing as well as the interior of their mouths); andthat no wetted towels or other such articles be allowed to be used aboutthe girl by the parents, or any other person save the nurses; that thechildren of the family, and in fact every other person whatever (exceptthe nurses), have similar restraints put upon them. 9. That the nurseshave the sole management of preparing the room, bed, and patient, priorto the commencement of the watching. 10. That, as it is asserted theaction of the bowels and bladder is entirely suspended, specialattention must be directed to these organs. 

Four experienced women nurses were accordingly deputed from Guy'sHospital to take the entire charge of Sarah Jacob, and to watch her forfourteen days. They were instructed not to prevent her having food ifshe asked for it, but they were to see that she got none without theirknowledge. On the 9th of December, 1869, at 4 P. M. , the room was clearedof people and the watching began. 

In the first place it was ascertained that the girl had repeatedevacuations of urine, and once, at least, of fæces. 

Gradually evidences of mental and physical disturbance began to appear. The watch was so closely kept that no food or drink reached the child, and she did not ask for any. 

"At 10 P. M. , " to quote the language of the journal kept by the sisternurse, "she was restless and threw her arms about. She was very cold, and the nurses put warm flannels on her. This was the last day on whichshe passed urine. "

Thursday, December 16, 3 A. M. --She was rolling from one side of the bedto the other. At half-past three she wished the bed made, and they madeit. She was looking very pale and anxious. Her eyes were sunk and hernose pinched, and the cheek bones were prominent. Her arms and handswere cold, her feet and legs were the same. Ann Jones, one of thenurses, says in her memoranda, "She was very restless and appeared to meto be sinking. Her lips were very dry, and her mouth seemed parched. "The peculiar smell (the starvation smell) about the bed was so strong asto make the sister nurse quite ill. 

At 11 A. M. , the vicar saw her and told the parents that the child wasgradually failing, and suggested to them the propriety of sending thenurses away and giving her a chance to obtain food, but they refused, saying that there was nothing to do but what the nurses were doing, andthat they had seen her quite as weak before. The parents were urged byothers to give up the fight by sending the nurses away, but they refusedon the ground that want of food had nothing to do with the symptoms, andthat she would not eat whether the nurses were there or not. 

Ann Jones subsequently testified before the coroner: "Before one and twoo'clock on Thursday afternoon (Dec. 16), she kept talking to herself. Icould not understand whether she was speaking Welsh or English. Up tothat time I could understand her. She pointed her fingers at some books;I gave her one, but she took no notice of it; she was not able to readit. _Both parents were then told the girl was dying. _"

Repeatedly they were begged to withdraw the nurses, and again and againthey refused, saying there was no occasion--that she had often been inthat way, that it was not from want of food, etc. The girl became weakerand weaker; low, muttering delirium ensued, and on the 17th of December, 1869, at about half-past three o'clock, P. M. , the "Welsh Fasting Girl"died, actually starved to death, in the middle of the nineteenth centuryand in one of the most Christian and civilized countries of the world!

But this was not the end. Public opinion was much excited both againstthose who had sanctioned and conducted what appeared to have been asenseless and cruel experiment, and against the father and mother whohad wilfully and persistently refused to allow food to be given to thedying child. A coroner's inquest was held, and the coroner appears tohave made a very satisfactory charge to the jury after the rendition ofthe testimony. He said there could be no doubt of the child having diedof starvation, and that the responsibility rested with the father, whohad knowingly and designedly failed to cause his child to take food. Themother was not responsible unless it could be shown that she had beengiven food for the child by the father, and had withheld it from her. Itwas marvellous, he said, how the father could have made out such astory--such a hideous mass of nonsense, as he had under oath attemptedto impose on the jury. 

The jury deliberated for a quarter of an hour, and then returned averdict of "Died from starvation, caused by negligence to induce thechild to take food on the part of the father;" which constitutedmanslaughter. 

Evan Jacob was therefore arrested. But the Secretary of State for theHome Department took the matter up and determined that the proceedingsshould go farther than the local authorities intended. At first it wascontemplated to indict the members of the General Committee forconspiracy, but it was finally concluded to include only the medicalgentlemen who had accepted the responsibility of superintending thewatching, as well as both parents of the deceased child. 

The initial proceeding took place before a full bench of magistrates, and continued eight days. The Crown and the accused had eminent counsel, and many witnesses were examined. At the conclusion of the inquiry thepresiding magistrate announced that it had been determined by the courtthat no case had been made out against the physicians, who had not beenshown to have undertaken any other duty than that of advising thenurses, and that it did not appear that their advice had been asked. Asto the father and mother the court had decided to send them both fortrial for manslaughter, at the next assizes. In due time they werearraigned, they pleaded not guilty, but after being defended by ablecounsel, the jury, after an absence of about half an hour, returned witha verdict of guilty against both the prisoners, but with arecommendation of the mother to the merciful consideration of the court, on the ground that she was under the control of her husband. The manprotested his innocence, and the woman "buried her face in her shawl andwept bitterly. "

His Lordship, in passing sentence, said: "Prisoners at the bar, you havebeen found guilty of a most aggravated offence. I entirely concur withthe verdict which the jury have given, and I shall act upon therecommendation which they have presented in favor of the femaleprisoner, the mother, though, I must say, that I cannot but feel that itis a greater crime in the mother than the father, since it is morecontrary to the common nature of mothers, to neglect their children inthe manner in which you have treated this unfortunate child. It iscontrary to the nature, even, of a father. But I shall act upon therecommendation of the jury, upon the ground they have put forward, thatyou have been subject to the control of your husband more than hasappeared from the evidence of the case. But the offence is, as I havesaid, a serious one, on this ground; that there can be no doubt thatboth of you have persisted in this fraudulent deception, upon yourneighbors, and upon the public, and that in order to carry out thatfraudulent deception and to preserve yourselves from detection you werewilling to risk the life of that child. The life of that child has beenlost in that wicked experiment which you tried. Therefore, the sentencethat I shall inflict on you, Evan Jacob, is, that you be imprisoned andkept at hard labor for twelve calendar months; and that upon you, HannahJacob, will be more lenient in consideration of the recommendation ofthe jury, and it is, that you be imprisoned and kept to hard labor forthe period of six calendar months. "

Thus ended one of the most remarkable and interesting histories of humanfolly, credulity, and criminality which the present day has produced. Comment upon its teaching is scarcely necessary; but the thoughtfulreader will not fail to perceive how important a bearing it has upon thewhole subject of belief without full and free inquiry, and that how allthe facts which science has gathered during ages of painful labor, gofor naught, even with educated persons, when brought face to face withthe false assertions of a hysterical girl, and of two ignorant anddeceitful peasants. If there is any one thing we know, it is that therecan be no force without the metamorphosis of matter of some kind. Herewas a girl maintaining her weight--actually growing--her animal heatkept at its due standard, her mind active, her heart beating, her lungsrespiring, her skin exhaling, her limbs moving whenever she wished themto move, and all, as very many persons supposed, without the ingestionof the material by which alone such things could be. And yet such is thetendency of the average human mind to be deceived, that it would beperfectly possible to re-enact in the city of New York the whole tragedyof Sarah Jacob, should ever a hysterical girl take it into head to doso; and there would not be wanting, even from among those who might readthis history, individuals who would credit any monstrous declarationsshe might make. Even now in a little town in Belgium, an ecstatic girlis going through the same performance with extraordinary additions, andbooks are written by learned physicians and theologians, with the objectof establishing the truth of her pretensions. To this most remarkableinstance, and one other of similar though perhaps even more remarkablecharacteristic, the attention of the reader will presently be invited. But in view of these things one is almost tempted to say with CardinalCarafa, "_Quandoquidem populus decipi vult, decipiatur_. "

FOOTNOTES:

[3] "De puella quæ sine cibo et potu vitam transigit. " Parisiis Ann. MDXLII. 

[4] "Παρατηρήσεων sive observationum medicarum, rararum, novarum, admirabilium, et monstrosarum. Volumen, tomis septem de toto homineinstitutum. " Lugduni 1606, p. 306. 

These cases are cited by Wanley in his "Wonders of the Little World, "but I have taken care in most instances to refer to the originals, several of which are in my library. 

[5] "Wonders of the Little World. " London, 1806, p. 375. 

[6] Opuscula Medica. Parisiis, 1639, pp. 64, 65, 66. 

[7] Observationum et curationum chirurgicarum, centuria secunda. Genevæ, 1611, p. 116. 

[8] Wonderful Characters: By Henry Wilson and James Caulfield. London. 

[9] British Medical Journal, July 16, 1870. 

[10] A complete History of the Welsh Fasting Girl (Sarah Jacob, ) withComments thereon, and Observations on Death from Starvation. London, 1871. 

III. 

ABSTINENCE FROM FOOD WITH STIGMATIZATION. 

One hundred and fifty-three persons have at one time or another, according to Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre, [11] received the stigmata; that is, been marked in a miraculous manner with the wounds received by Christ atthe crucifixion. Of these, eight, are according to the same authoritynow living, and two assert that they do not eat. I propose to considerat some length the main points in the histories of these two, Palmad'Oria and Louise Lateau, and in so doing I shall avail myself of theworks of those, who are firm believers in the miraculous interpositionof God to produce the effects, of which they are said to be thesubjects. These cases are very little known in this country. Instancesof the kind are extremely rare among practical common sense nations, like those inhabiting the British Isles, and their descendants inAmerica. Of the whole one hundred and fifty-three cases recorded by Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre, but one--Jane Gray--was British, and hers is the mostdoubtful case in the list, for the fact rests only on the testimony ofone Thomas Bourchier, an English minor brother, who asserts that she hadthe stigmata in the feet. Of the remainder, the very large majority areof Italy, and as Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre says:

"Quel pays fut jamais si fertile en miracles?"[12]

To the account of a visit made to Oria for the purpose of studying thephenomena exhibited by Palma, made by Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre, I amindebted for the following details:

Palma, at the time of the visit in 1871, was sixty-six years old, hump-backed, thin, small, and with light, expressive eyes. For severalyears she had not left the house, and was, on account of her sufferings, scarcely able to walk. Occasionally, when she felt particularly well, she took a few steps about the room supported by a cane. In her youthshe had been very strong and active. 

At the first interview, after some conversation in the course of whichPalma declared that she had often seen Louise Lateau while in ecstasy, the doctor directed the conversation towards the subject ofhallucination. While thus engaged and seated close to Palma, he felt herstrike him gently on the arm, and at the same time saw the abbé, who hadcome with him, fall on his knees. He turned toward Palma; her eyes wereclosed, her hands clasped, her mouth wide open, and on her tongue he sawthe host--the body of Christ. Immediately, he fell on his knees also, and worshipped it. Palma protruded her tongue still farther, as if shewanted to give him every opportunity of seeing that the host was reallythere; then she ate it, closed her mouth and remained perfectly quiet onthe sofa upon which she was reclining. It was then almost four o'clockin the afternoon, the day was fading, the room was badly lit by a littlewindow, high from the floor. The miraculous host appeared to him to beas white as wax, and somewhat thick. On account of the little light, andthe short time that this extraordinary communion lasted, he was unableto determine whether or not it was marked according to the custom of thechurch. 

In regard to this wonderful event--that is, if it be not a fact viewedunequally--it is further to be said that Palma disclosed to Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre, that two or three times, the holy element, which be itremembered is believed by the great majority of Christians to be thereal body of Christ, was brought to her by the devil, and that then sherefused it. Sometimes he had the figure of an angel, but she knew him bythe sign of reprobation which he wore on his forehead--a little horn. Moreover she saw that the wicked creature hesitated, and was a littleembarrassed. She intoned the _Gloria Patri_, and made the sign of thecross, and he instantly took flight and disappeared. In order toascertain what it all meant, her confessor forbade her to receive themiraculous communion for eight days. Hardly had that period expired whenJesus Christ himself brought her the communion. Before giving it to herhe made her recite the _Gloria Patri_ three times. Then he said to her, "Have I fled as the demon did? No. Therefore reassure yourself. It isreally I. "

These miraculous circumstances had been going on for about two yearswhen Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre made his visit to Palma. Sometimes it wasbrought to her by Christ, as in the instance specified, or by somesaint, as St. Peter, St. Vincent de Paul, St. Francis d'Assisi, in thecompany of her guardian angel, and other saints and angels. At othertimes it was brought by priests and confessors of the olden time, longsince dead. 

An Italian bishop stated, that at the moment of the miraculous sacramenton one occasion, he had seen the host flying through the air beforeentering Palma's mouth, but the doctor questioned her attendant on thispoint, and she declared that she had not seen that, and she assured himthat the host was never seen by any one till it rested on Palma'stongue. The doctor inclines to the belief that the attendant was right, but he states that nevertheless a French apostolic missionary hadasserted that he had seen the same thing. 

Well, if the consecrated bread be really the body of Christ that wasgiven for the salvation of the world, what horrible blasphemy to statesuch things of it, what vileness to believe them, what a barefacedimputation on the reason of man to spread these shocking details beforehim and ask him to accept them as true of the God he worships!

After witnessing the communion, Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre was requested towithdraw into the adjoining room, while Palma got ready for her otherperformances. In a few minutes he was informed that all was in order. One of the women went in first and returning immediately, the otherswere invited to enter. The stigmatization had already begun on theforehead. He saw a stream of blood flowing from the left frontaleminence along the side of the nose. A handkerchief was given to Palma;she held it to her nose for a moment and the hæmorrhage soon stopped. Heexamined the blood and found that it did not differ in appearance, coloror temperature from ordinary blood. He then examined the handkerchief, and besides numerous rotund spots he perceived other figures resemblinghearts, with stains of blood proceeding from them, indicating the flamesof love. All this appeared to him to be very extraordinary, for thoughhe had often seen people bleed from the nose, he had never seen thembleed like that. 

After this incident Palma continued the performances--_actions de grace_he calls them--her hands clasped and her eyes closed. In the lowerlimbs, especially the left, there was a tremor like a nervous tremblingwhich was soon quieted. After a few minutes she rubbed her handstogether, made the sign of the cross and returned naturally to theconversation. He then examined her forehead and endeavored to ascertainwhere the blood had come from. The skin was intact without the leastopening. She showed him above the right frontal eminence a hole in thecranium, from which at a former period, five little pieces of bone hadbeen discharged. The opening was entirely covered over by the scalp, andhe was surprised to find that there was no cicatrix. It was round, theend of his index finger entered it readily, and it was just such anopening as would have been produced by the crown of a trephine. At thetime it was made, the skin opened to allow of the exit of the pieces ofbone; then it closed without leaving the trace of a scar. It was thesame with the stigmata. They closed at once without there being anymarks to indicate the place whence the blood had flowed. This hole inthe skull had been caused by some particular circumstances that no onewas willing to reveal to him, but which he says are reported in thejournal of the directors of this woman, and which will soon bepublished. Most medical men will come to the conclusion that it was dueto caries and necrosis of the bone, of syphilitic origin. 

During another visit Palma told Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre that she had eatennothing for seven years, but that she was obliged to drink frequently onaccount of the great internal heat, which like a fire consumed her. Shethen drank in his presence two carafes of water at one time, and thedoctor states that "this water became so hot in her stomach that it wasvomited boiling. She also had often ejected from her mouth oil, andanother fluid of a balsamic character, in which, on standing for sometime, bodies resembling the consecrated host were formed. "

The doctor then relates the following details, which I give in his ownwords, in further illustration of the character of his mentalorganization and of the pretensions put forth by the woman, whose wordseems to have been sufficient to convince him of anything at all, nomatter how preposterous. Four years previously he had been sounfortunate as to lose by death his eldest child:

"A year after his death, I had met a woman of great renown for piety, and who was even regarded as a receiver of celestial communications. Ihad commended my poor Joseph to her. Some time after she assured me thatmy son was saved, and that he was in paradise. She declared that in avision she had seen him near our Lord; he was happy. Variouscircumstances, which it is useless to mention here, had caused me tobelieve in the truth of this asserted revelation. Being in Oria, Iwished to have as much certainty as possible in regard to the matter, and as I knew that Palma was in spiritual communication with many pioussouls scattered over the earth, I said to her in the course of ourconversation, 'tell me, Palma, do you know M. ---- de X----, ' giving herthe baptismal name of the woman in question. 'No sir, ' she answered. Ithen related to her my history in detail, taking care not to ask heropinion in advance, although I felt sure that she would explain thething to me. She listened with the utmost attention to the superioresswho translated my words, and when Mother Becaud came to say that thewoman had had a vision of my son, and that he was in paradise, Palmastretched out her arm in a solemn manner as a sign of negative, and saidto me, 'He is saved, but he is still in purgatory. '

"'Is it possible? Palma, ' I cried, profoundly moved: 'Since you tell methis, you are in conscience bound to get him out of that place ofexpiation as soon as possible, and I commend him immediately to yourprayers. '

"'Yes, sir, ' she said, 'I will pray for him, and when I am sure of hisdeliverance, I will send you word by Father de Pace. '

"The following morning at my visit I again commended my poor child toPalma, and on the following Friday evening on taking leave of her, Iasked if she had prayed that morning for my son, 'No sir, ' she answered. 'I will only do so on the day of All Saints. ' 'Then, ' said I to Palma, 'will you allow madame the superioress to take the answer?' 'Verywillingly, ' said the seeress. On the 7th of November, I received at Nicethe following letter:

 "'SIR, "'I have fulfilled the promise which I made to you in accordance with your wish to go to Palma on All Saints Day, in order to ascertain whether or not your wishes in regard to your son had been granted. That good soul assured me twice that he had gone to heaven that very morning, God be praised a thousand times!

 "'Thus sir, I have done what I could for your consolation. 

 "'I have the honor to be, etc. 

 "'Sister Marie Becaud. '

"This letter was post marked at Oria, November 2d. "

I should not venture to insult the intelligence of the reader with theseidiotic details but for the reasons stated, and additionally, that theycarry conviction with them to thousands of minds, honest doubtless, butwhich are accustomed to grovel in superstition, and falsehood, whichthey are unable to test by right standards. 

A phase in Palma's spiritual pathology has been alluded to cursorily, but has not yet been considered with the fulness proper in connectionwith stigmatization, and that is the occurrence of hæmorrhagic spots onvarious parts of her body, and which she so managed as to convey theidea that they were symbolical of various holy things. On the back ofher hand she convinced Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre that she bled in the shapeof the cross, and he gives a wood-cut representing a cross on the dorsumof the hand, a little above the space between the first and secondfingers. This is surrounded by other rectilinear figures. On her breastand back, other figures were obtained by placing handkerchiefs on theparts. The doctor thus procured several mementoes of his visit, in theshape of pieces of linen stained with spots of blood somewhat resemblinghearts, with flames coming out of them, suns, roses, crosses, etc. Hegives several plates in his book representing these figures, of thereality of the miraculous formation of which he has not the slightestdoubt. 

Another phenomenon has also been mentioned incidentally, and that is theintense heat which Palma declared she felt, and which the doctor refersto as the "divine fire. " He had brought with him from Paris, athermometer to use in determining the extraordinary temperature of thisfire. He examined her with this instrument while she felt this divinefire, but failed to find any abnormal increase; her pulse at the timewas 72. "I made this experiment, " he says, "to satisfy my scientificconscience, [God save the mark!] but I ought to say that I was ashamedof myself for presuming to measure this divine fire by such aninstrument. " He is right, science is not for him, or those like him. 

On one occasion while Palma was in ecstasy, Antonietta, who was nearher, laid bare her chest a little, and cried with enthusiasm, "she isburning!" Dr. Imbert-Gourbeyre approached and smelt something like theburning of linen. The dress was opened and her chemise was found to beburnt on the left side just over the collar bone, and immediately belowthis, scorched in the shape of "a magnificent emblem representing amonstrance. The fire was invisible, but its traces were very evident. "

In a note he states that it was affirmed that Palma's temperature onsimilar occasions had reached 100° centigrade, (212° Fahrenheit) a factwhich he does not doubt, although his thermometer did not show it. "Thather chemise, " he says, "burnt by invisible fire, which escaped thethermometer, was more extraordinary than if the instrument had indicateda temperature of 100°. "

I shall not stop now to comment further on the circumstances detailed byDr. Imbert-Gourbeyre, and of which I have cited but a small part. I willonly say at present that science and common sense would conclude inregard to Palma d'Oria, 1st. That she had probably at a former period contracted syphilis. 

2d. That she was strongly hysterical. 

3d. That she was the subject of purpura hæmorrhagica. 

4th. That she was a most unmitigated humbug and liar. 

And now we come to the consideration of a case of stigmatization whichhas greatly stirred both the theological and the scientific world ofEurope--that of Louise Lateau--and here again I shall draw largely, though by no means exclusively, from the works of the believers in themiraculous production of the phenomena manifested. [13]

Louise Lateau was born at Bois-d'Haine, a small village in Belgium, onthe 30th of January, 1850. She was reared in the utmost poverty, waschlorotic, and did not menstruate till she was eighteen years old. Sheloved solitude and silence, and when not engaged in work--and she doesnot appear to have labored much--she spent her time in meditation andprayer. She was subject to paroxysms of ecstasy, during which, as manyother ecstasies, she spoke very edifying things, of charity, poverty, and the priesthood. She saw St. Ursula, St. Roch, St. Theresa, and theHoly Virgin. Persons who saw her in these states declared that, whilelying on the bed, her whole body was raised up more than a foot high, the heels alone being in contact with the bed. 

The stigmatization ensued very soon after these seizures. On a Fridayshe bled from the left side of her chest. On the following Friday thisflow was renewed, and in addition, blood escaped from the dorsalsurfaces of both feet; and on the third Friday, not only did she bleedfrom the side and feet, but also from the dorsal and palmar surface ofboth hands. Every succeeding Friday the blood flowed from these places, and finally other points of exit were established on the forehead andbetween the shoulders. 

At first these bleedings only took place at night, but after two orthree months they occurred in the daytime, and were accompanied byparoxysms of ecstasy, during which she was insensible to all externalimpressions, and acted the passion of Jesus and the crucifixion. 

M. Warlomont, being commissioned by the Royal Academy of Medicine ofBelgium to examine Louise Lateau, went to her house, accompanied byseveral friends, and made a careful examination of her person. At thattime, Friday morning at six o'clock, the blood was flowing freely fromall the stigmata. In a few moments the sacrament would be brought toher, and then the second act of the drama would begin. The scene thatfollowed can be best described in M. Warlomont's own words:

"It is a quarter-past six. 'Here comes the communion, ' said M. Niels [apriest], 'kneel down. ' Louise fell on her knees on the floor, closed hereyes and crossed her hands, on which the communion-cloth was extended. Apriest, followed by several acolytes, entered; the penitent put out hertongue, received the holy wafer, and then remained immovable in theattitude of prayer. 

"We observed her with more care than seemed to have been hitherto givento her at similar periods. Some thought that she was simply in a stateof meditation, from which she would emerge in the course of half an houror so. But it was a mistake. Having taken the communion, the penitentwent into a special state. Her immobility was that of a statue, her eyeswere closed; on raising the eyelids the pupils were seen to be largelydilated, immovable, and apparently insensible to light. Strong pressuremade upon the parts in the vicinity of the stigmata caused no sensationof pain, although a few moments before they were exquisitely tender. Pricking the skin gave no evidence of the slightest sensibility. A limb, on being raised, offered no resistance, and sank slowly back to itsformer position. Anæsthesia was complete, unless the cornea remainedstill impressionable. The pulse had fallen from 120 to 100 pulsations. At a given moment I raised one of the eyelids, and M. Verriest quicklytouched the cornea. Louise at once seemed to recover herself from asound sleep, arose and walked to a chair, upon which she seated herself. 'This time, ' I said, 'we have wakened her. ' 'No, ' said M. Niels, lookingat his watch, 'it was time for her to awake. '"

She remained conscious; the blood still continued to flow; theanæsthesia had ceased, her pulse rose to 120, and at the end of half anhour she was herself. "Our first visit ended here. At half-past elevenwe made another. The poor child had resumed her attitude of extremesuffering, against which she contended with all the energy that remainedto her. The wounds in the hands still continued to bleed. M. Verriestauscultated with care the lungs, heart, and great vessels, and found the_bruit de souffle_, which he had detected in the morning at the apex ofthe heart and over the carotids. The handle of a spoon pressed againstthe velum, the base of the tongue, and the pharynx, provoked no effortat vomiting. The glasses of our spectacles, as they came in contact withthe air expired, were covered with vapor. As the patient appeared tosuffer from our presence, we went away. 

"We made our third visit at two o'clock. There were still fifteenminutes before the beginning of the ecstatic crisis, which always tookplace punctually at a quarter past two and ended at about half pastfour. The pupils at this time were slightly contracted, the eyelids werealmost entirely closed; the eyes, looking at nothing, were veiled fromour view. We tried in vain to attract her attention; her mind wasotherwise engaged, and her pains were evidently becoming more intense. At exactly a quarter past two her eyes became fixed in a direction aboveand to the right. The ecstasy had begun. 

"The time had now come to introduce those who were prompted bycuriosity. This could now be done without inconvenience, for theecstatic, for the ensuing two hours, would be lost to the appreciationof what might be passing around her. The room crowded, could hold aboutten persons, but enough were allowed to enter to make the totaltwenty-five. These placed themselves in two ranks, of which the frontone kneeling, allowed the rear ones to see all that was going on. Allthis was done under the direction of M. Le Curé, who took every pains togive us a good view of what was going to happen. 

"Louise was seated on the edge of her chair; her body, inclined forward, seemed to wish to follow the direction of her eyes, which did not look, but were fixed on vacancy. Her eyes were opened to their fullestextent, of a dull, lustreless appearance, turned above and to the right, and of an absolute immobility. A few workings of the lids were nowobserved and became more frequent if the eyelids were touched. Thepupils, largely dilated, showed very little sensibility to light, andall that remained of vision was shown by slight winking when the handwas suddenly brought close to the eyes. The whole face lackedexpression. At certain moments, either spontaneously or as a consequenceof divers provocations, a light smile, to which the muscles of the facegenerally did not contribute, wandered over her lips. Then the faceresumed its primitive expression, and thus she remained for thehalf-hour which constituted the 'first station. '

"The 'second station' was that of genuflection. It had failed at onetime, but had again appeared. The young girl fell on her knees, claspedher hands, and remained for about a quarter of an hour in the attitudeof contemplation. Then she arose and again resumed her sitting posture. 

"The 'third station' began at three o'clock. Louise inclined herself alittle forward, raised her body slowly, and then extended herself atfull length, face downward, on the floor. There was neither rigidity norextreme precipitation; nothing in fact, calculated to produce injuries. The knees first supported her body, then it rested on these and theelbows, and finally her face was brought in actual close contact withthe tiled floor. At first the head rested on the left arm, but very soonthe patient made a quick and sudden movement, and the arms were extendedfrom the body in the form of a cross. At the same time the feet werebrought together so that the dorsum of the right was in contact withthe sole of the left foot. This position did not vary for an hour and ahalf. When the end of the crisis approached, the arms were brought closeto the sides of the body, then suddenly the poor girl rose to her knees, her face turns to the wall, her cheeks become colored, her eyes haveregained their expression, her countenance expands, and the ecstasy isat an end. "

Further particulars are given, and an apparatus was constructed andapplied to Louise's hand and arm so as to prevent any externalexcitation of the hæmorrhage. It was apparently shown that there was nosuch interference, for the blood began to flow at the usual time onFriday. 

In addition to the stigmata and the paroxysms of ecstasy, Louisedeclared that she did not sleep, had eaten or drank nothing for fouryears, had had no fæcal evacuation for three years and a half, and thatthe urine was entirely suppressed. 

M. Warlomont examined the blood and products of respiration chemically, and satisfied himself of their normal character, except that the formercontained an excessive amount of white corpuscles. 

When being closely interrogated, Louise admitted that, though she didnot sleep, she had short periods of forgetfulness at night. On M. Warlomont suddenly opening a cupboard in her room, he found it tocontain fruit and bread, and her chamber communicated directly with ayard at the back of the house. It was therefore perfectly possible forher to have slept, eaten, defecated, and urinated, without any oneknowing that she did so. 

The conclusions arrived at by M. Warlomont were, that thestigmatizations and ecstasies of Louise Lateau were real and to beexplained upon well-known physiological and pathological principles, that she "worked, and dispensed heat, that she lost every Friday acertain quantity of blood by the stigmata, that the air she expiredcontained the vapor of water and carbonic acid, that her weight had notmaterially altered since she had come under observation. She consumescarbon and it is not from her own body that she gets it. Where does sheget it from? Physiology answers, 'She eats. '"

Relative to the assumed abstinence in the cases of Palma d'Oria, LouiseLateau and other subjects of ecstasy and stigmata, it is not necessary, in view of the remarks already made on this subject in a previouschapter, to devote further consideration to it here. The conclusionarrived at by M. Warlomont is the only one which science can tolerate. Should Louise Lateau or Palma d'Oria ever be subjected to as closewatching as was the poor little Welsh Fasting Girl, Sarah Jacob, it willcertainly terminate as badly for them as for her, unless they yield tothe demands of nature and take the food which the organism requires. 

FOOTNOTES:

[11] Les Stigmatisées; Palma d'Oria, etc. 2d Edition, Paris, 1873, p. 263. 

[12] Op. Cit. , t. Ii. 

[13] For the theological view of this remarkable case the reader isreferred to the following works, a part only of those written in supportof her pretensions. "Louise Lateau de Bois-d'Haine, sa vie, ses extases, ses stigmates: étude Médicale, " par le Dr. Lefebvre, Louvain, 1873. "Lesstigmatisées; Louise Lateau, etc. , " par le Docteur A. Imbert-Gourbeyre, Paris, 1873. "Biographie de Louise Lateau, " par H. Van Looy, Tournai, Paris and Leipzig, 1874. "Louise Lateau de Bois-d'Haine etc. , " par leDr. A. Rohling, Paris, 1874. "Louise Lateau, ihr Wunderleben u. S. W. , "Von Paul Majunke, Berlin, 1875. 

Among the treatises in which the miracle is denied, and the phenomenaattributed to either disease or fraud are; "Louise Lateau; RapportMédical sur la stigmatisée de Bois-d'Haine, fait à l'académie royale demédecine de Belgique, " par le Dr. Warlomont, Bruxelles and Paris, 1875. "Science et miracle, Louise Lateau, ou la stigmatisée Belge, " par le Dr. Bourneville, Paris, 1875. "Les Miracles, " par M. Virchow, Revue descours scientifiques, January 23rd 1875. 

IV. 

THE BROOKLYN CASE. 

For several years past there have been rumors more or less definite incharacter that a young lady in Brooklyn was not only living withoutfood, but was possessed of some mysterious faculty by which she couldforetell events, read communications without the aid of the eyes, andaccurately describe occurrences in distant places, through clairvoyanceor whatever other name may be applied to the influence. 

Finally, in the _New York Herald_ of October 20th, 1878, appeared anaccount, headed "Life without Food. An Invalid Lady who for fourteenyears has lived without nourishment. " As this account is apparentlyauthentic, and as the statements made have never been contradicted, I donot hesitate to quote from it. Some of the letters which have appearedin response to a proposition I offered, and to which fuller referencewill presently be made, have accused me of dragging the young ladybefore the public. It will be seen, however, that her friends andphysicians are responsible for all the publicity given to the case. 

Leaving out of consideration for the present the alleged marvellousendowments of this young lady, as regards seeing without her eyes, second sight, etc. , I quote from the _Herald_ the essential pointsrelative to her clinical history and abstinence from food:

"In a modest, secluded house at the corner of Myrtle Avenue and DowningStreet, Brooklyn, lives an invalid lady afflicted with paralysis, with ahistory so remarkable and extraordinary that, notwithstanding it isvouched for by physicians of standing, it is almost incredible. It isclaimed that for a period of nearly fourteen years she has livedabsolutely without food or nourishment of any kind. The case has beenkept by the family of the patient a well guarded secret, it having ledthem to a strict seclusion as the only means of protection against thevisits of the curious and incredulous. 

"The name of the remarkable person is Miss Mollie Fancher. To the halfdozen medical gentlemen who have seen and attended her, her case isinexplicable. To learn the history of the strange case a _Herald_reporter yesterday called on several persons familiar with the facts. The first person seen was Dr. Ormiston, of No. 74 Hanson Place, Brooklyn, who attended her. He said:--'It seems incredible, but fromeverything I can learn Mollie Fancher never eats. The elder MissFancher, her aunt, who takes care of her, is a lady of the highestintelligence. She was at one time quite wealthy, and she has at presenta comfortable income. I have every reason to believe that her statementsare in every detail reliable. During a dozen visits to the sick chamberI have never detected evidence of the patient having eaten a morsel. '"

After interviewing a lady intimate with the family, the reporter soughtout Dr. Speir, the attending physician of the patient, and thus detailshis experience with that gentleman:

"Dr. Speir was found in his comfortable little office, and the errand ofthe writer made known:--

"'Is it true, Doctor, that a patient of yours has lived for fourteenyears without taking food?'

"'If you refer to Miss Fancher, yes. She became my patient in 1864. Hercase is a most remarkable one. '

"'But has she eaten nothing during all these years?'

"'I can safely say she has not. '

"'Are the family also willing to vouch for the truth of thisextraordinary statement?'

"'You will find them very reticent to newspaper men and to strangersgenerally. I do not believe any food--that is, solids--ever passed thewoman's lips since her attack of paralysis, consequent upon her mishap. As for an occasional teaspoonful of water or milk, I sometimes force herto take it by using an instrument to pry open her mouth, but that ispainful to her. As early as 1865 I endeavored to sustain life in thisway, for I feared that, in obedience to the universal law of nature, shewould die of gradual inanition or exhaustion, which I thought wouldsooner or later ensue; but I was mistaken. The case knocks the bottomout of all existing medical theories, and is, in a word, miraculous. '

"'Did you ever, ' asked the reporter, 'make an experiment to satisfy yourprofessional accuracy in regard to her abstinence?'

"'Several times I have given her emetics on purpose to discover thetruth; but the result always confirmed the statement that she had takenno food. It sounds strangely, but it is so. I have taken everyprecaution against deception, sometimes going into the house at elevenor twelve o'clock at night, without being announced, but have alwaysfound her the same, and lying in the same position occupied by her forthe entire period of her invalidity. The springs of her bedstead areactually worn out with the constant pressure. My brethren in the medicalprofession at first were inclined to laugh at me, and call me a fool andspiritualist when I told them of the long abstinence and keen mentalpowers of my interesting patient. But such as have been admitted to seeher are convinced. These are Dr. Ormiston, Dr. Elliott and Dr. Hutchison, some of the best talent in the city, who have seen andbelieved. '"

And then the following account is given of the accident from which theyoung lady suffered, and to which the remarkable phenomena she is saidto exhibit are ascribed:

"The story of Miss Fancher's accident and its melancholy consequences isquite affecting. It is collected from the various statements given byhalf a dozen friends of the family to the _Herald_ reporter. Interwovenwith it is a thread of romance, a tale of early love and courtship, of alife embittered by a cruel accident, of patient waiting, and a finalrelease of the suitor from his engagement to marry another. 

"Mary's parents live in a sumptuous dwelling on Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, and were reported to be wealthy. Their favorite daughterMollie, as she was called, was sent to Prof. West's High School inBrooklyn at an early age, and here developed many brilliant qualities ofmind and heart, which augured well for her future. At seventeen she waspretty, petite and well cultivated. As a member of the Washington AvenueBaptist Sunday School, she met and learned to love a classmate, namedJohn Taylor. An engagement followed the intimacy of the Sunday Schoolclass, and the young people looked forward with buoyant spirits to thebright life so soon to dawn upon them. 

"But fate decreed differently. While getting off a Fulton Street car oneday in 1864, on her return from school, the young lady slipped and fellbackward. Her skirt caught on the step unseen by the conductor, whostarted the car on its way again. The poor girl was dragged some ten orfifteen yards before her cries were heard and the brake applied. Whenpicked up she was insensible and was carried, suffering intense agonyfrom an injured spine, to her home near by. Forty-eight hours afterwardshe was seized with a violent spasm which lasted for over two days. Thencame a trance, when the sufferer grew cold and rigid, with no evidenceof life beyond a warm spot under the left breast, where feeblepulsations of her heart were detected by Dr. Speir. Only this gentlemanbelieved she was alive, and it was due to his constant assertion of thegirl's ultimate recovery that Miss Fancher was not buried. Despite thebest medical help and the application of restoratives, no change wasbrought about in the patient's condition until the tenth week, when thestrange suspension of life ceased and breath was once more inhaled andbreathed forth from her lungs. 

"To their dismay the doctors then found that Mollie had lost her sightand the power of deglutition, the latter affliction rendering itimpossible for her to swallow food or even articulate by the use oftongue or lip. Previous to her trance a moderate quantity of food hadbeen given her each day; but since then she has not taken a mouthful oflife-sustaining food. Spasms and trances alternated with alarmingfrequency since Miss Fancher was first attacked. First her limbs onlybecame rigid and disturbed at the caprice of her strange malady; but astime passed her whole frame writhed as if in great pain, requiring to beheld by main force in order to remain in the bed. She could swallownothing, and lay utterly helpless until moved. "

In the _Sun_, of November 24th, 1878, a fuller account of this younglady was given, mainly however, in regard to her "clairvoyant, " or"second-sight" power. Relative to her abstinence from food, I quote thefollowing conversation between the reporter and Dr. Speir. 

"'Is it true that she has not partaken of food in all these thirteenyears?'

"'No: I cannot say that she has not; I have not been constantly with herfor thirteen years; she may have taken food in my absence. Her friendshave used every device to make her take nourishment. Food has beenforced upon her, and artificial means have been resorted to that itmight be carried to her stomach. Nevertheless, the amount in theaggregate must have been very small in all these years. '

"'You have considered the case of such extraordinary importance as totake many physicians to see it?'

"'I have, and it has excited very much of attention. I have lettersabout it from far and near, and the medical journals have asked forinformation. '"

And this with Dr. Ormiston:

"Dr. Robert Ormiston, who has been one of Miss Fancher's physicians fromthe first, who has seen her constantly in all the different conditionsof her system, said yesterday that he was convinced that there could beno deception. He could find no motive for it, and he did not believethat she had attempted it. As to her not partaking of food, he had withDr. Speir made tests that satisfied him that she ate no more than shepretended to, and in the aggregate it had not, in all these years, amounted to more than the amount eaten at a single meal by a healthyman. Dr. Ormiston narrated many curious incidents of the girl's illness, and verified the facts of her physical condition as narrated elsewhere. "

In order that no injustice may be done to these gentlemen, I quote thefollowing from the _Sun_ of November 26th:

"Dr. R. Fleet Speir, one of Miss Fancher's physicians, smiled lastevening when the _Sun_ reporter asked him what he thought of Dr. Hammond's opinions on the case. 'I probably have just as high an opinionof Dr. Hammond's opinions as Dr. Hammond has of mine, ' he said. 'Myopinion on the case of Miss Fancher I have always refused to give to anyone. When I first took the case, years ago, I told the family that Iwould not give them an opinion on it; that I would do what I could withit, and that I hoped to bring about a cure. I do not believe inclairvoyance or second sight, or anything of the kind. I think I standwith the most rigid school on that subject. '

"'But do you think Miss Fancher deceives or endeavors to?'

"The Doctor smiled again. 'Now I do not want you to interview me onthat. My theory has along been to do nothing to irritate my patient; Ihumored her, and have endeavored in that way to get her confidence, toget complete control of her, if possible. In that way I may get hermind diverted, and by and by get her out of bed. I have hoped to see hercured. I do not see what earthly good a scientific investigation woulddo her. On the contrary, it would harm her. Put a relay of physicians towatch her, and she would undoubtedly do her best to beat them. She wouldhold out against them, and likely as not die. '

"Dr. Robert Ormiston said that he thought that the Brooklyn physiciansknew quite as much about the case as their New York brethren, and thattheir opinions were of as much weight. 'It has become a most interestingcase from a medical standpoint, because during her long illness, she hasgone through all the different phases of hysteria that have heretoforebeen observed in many different cases. I think I am correct in thisstatement. '"

From all that can be ascertained therefore, it appears that the younglady in question received a severe injury to the spinal cord, inconsequence of which she became paralyzed in the lower extremities, inwhich members contractions also took place. It is probable also that thegreat sympathetic nerve and brain were involved in the injury. 

Confined to her bed, her bodily temperature being low, and passing agood of her time in trances or periods of insensibility, therequirements of the system as regarded food would necessarily belimited. But this is the most that can be said. She _did_ breathe, herheart _did_ beat, she required _some_ bodily heat, and the various otherfunctions of her organism could not have been maintained without theexpenditure of matter of some kind. During abstinence from food the bodyitself is consumed for these purposes, and there being no renovation, no supplies from without, it loses weight with every instant of timeuntil death finally ensues. An emaciated person can withstand this drainless effectually than one who is stout and fat. 

Again, it is said that the food taken by Miss Fancher was at oncerejected. That it was _all_ rejected, is in the highest degreeimprobable; a portion remained, and this portion, small as it was, didgood service when very little was required. 

Another point: that Miss Fancher was hysterical admits of no doubt. Hysteria is a disease as much in some cases beyond the control of thepatient as inflammation of the brain or any other disease. A proclivityto simulation and deception is just as much a symptom of hysteria aspain is of pleurisy. To say, therefore, that she simulated abstinenceand deceived us to the quantity of food she took, is no imputation onher honesty, or questioning her possession of as high a degree of honorand trust, as can be claimed by any one. Other women naturally as moralas she, have under the influence of hysteria perpetrated the grossestdeceptions, and they are not unfrequently manifested in the very sameway that hers apparently are. Her case is by no means an isolated one;it is not such as has never been seen before; it does not "knock thebottom out of all existing medical theories, and is in a wordmiraculous, " as one of the physicians is reported to have said. On thecontrary, similar ones are often met with as we have seen, and thefollowing which I quote from Millingen, [14] is so like it in manyrespects, that the two might have been formed after a common model, asin fact they were, just as two or more cases of pneumonia follow a welldefined type. 

"Another wonderful instance of the same kind is that of Janet McLeod, published by Dr. McKenzie. She was at the time thirty-three years ofage, unmarried, and from the age of fifteen had had various attacks ofepilepsy, which had produced so rigid a lock-jaw that her mouth couldrarely be forced open by any contrivance; she had lost very nearly thepower of speech and deglutition, and with this all desire to eat ordrink. Her lower limbs were contracted towards her body; she wasentirely confined to her bed, and had periodical discharges of bloodfrom the lungs, which were chiefly thrown out by the nostrils. During afew intervals of relaxation she was prevailed upon with great difficultyto put a few crumbs of bread comminuted in the hand, into her mouth, together with a little water sucked from her one hand, and, in one ortwo instances, a little gruel, but even in these attempts almost thewhole was rejected. On two occasions also, after a total abstinence ofmany months, she made signs of wishing to drink some water, which wasimmediately procured for her. On the first trial the whole seemed to bereturned from the mouth, but she was greatly refreshed in having itrubbed upon the throat. On the second occasion she drank off a pint atonce, but could not be prevailed upon to drink any more, although herfather had now fixed a wedge between her teeth. With these exceptions, however, she seemed to have passed upwards of four years without eitherliquids or solids of any kind, or even an appearance of swallowing; shelay for the most part like a log of wood, with a pulse scarcelyperceptible for feebleness, but distinct and regular. Her countenancewas clear and pretty fresh; her features neither disfigured nor sunk;her bosom round and prominent, and her limbs not emaciated. Dr. McKenziewatched her, with occasional visits, for eight or nine years, at theclose of which period she seemed to be a little improved. "

This account, like that given of Miss Fancher, tells us nothing definitein regard to the fasting abilities of the young woman. It simply, withthe other, may be accepted as indicating that hysterical women are ableto go for comparatively long periods without food, and that fact wealready knew. It will be observed that it is stated that she "_seemed_"to go four years without food or drink. 

In regard to Miss Fancher, the evidence is a little conflicting. Firstwe have Dr. Speir reported as saying, in answer to a question as to herhaving lived fourteen years without food:

"'Yes, she became my patient in 1864. Her case is a most remarkableone. '

"'But has she eaten nothing during all these years?'

"'I can safely say she has not. '"

This in the _Herald_. 

But about a month afterward we find the following conversation, reportedas taking place between the same physician and another reporter, thistime of the _Sun_:

"'Is it true that she has not partaken of food in all these thirteenyears?'

"'No, I cannot say that she has not; I have not been constantly with herfor thirteen years. She may have taken food in my absence. '"

In which opinion all physiologists will join. 

As I have said, hysterical women certainly do exhibit a marked abilityto go without both food and drink. I have had patients abstain fromsometimes one, sometimes the other, and sometimes both, for periodsvarying from one day to eleven, and this without much, if any, suffering, for as soon as the suffering came they did not hesitate tosignify their desire to break their voluntary fasts. Real suffering is acondition which the hysterical woman avoids with the most assiduouscare. 

FOOTNOTES:

[14] Curiosities of Medical Experience. London, 1837, Vol. I. , page 269, article, _Abstinence_. 

V. 

THE PHYSIOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY OF INANITION. 

The opinion that food and drink are necessary to life is so generallyaccepted by mankind, that few venture to dispute the dictum of Virchowrelative to Louise Lateau, "Fraud or miracle. " But although it isimpossible so far as we know for individuals to continue to exist formonths and years without the ingestion of nutriment into the system, itis undoubtedly true that under certain circumstances life can beprolonged for days and weeks without any food of any kind going into theorganism. 

The body is a machine constructed for the purpose of working. The kindsof work which the body of a man or woman does are many. Every act ofperception or sensation, is an act of work; so is every thought, everyemotion, every volition. The action of the heart or lungs in thecirculation and respiration, the evolution of the animal heat, thevarious functions of secretion and excretion, digestion, motion, speech, etc. , are all so many kinds of work. Now as regards work, it iswell known that for its due performance force is required, and it isequally well known that for the development of force, matter that can bemetamorphosed is necessary. The engine may be perfect, the water may bein the boiler, but unless there be force in the form of heat there willbe no steam; and there will be no heat unless there be fuel in a stateof combustion. 

The human body differs from any other machine in the fact that it usesits fuel in great part indirectly; only in fact after it has beenassimilated and converted into tissues of various kinds. Thus when amuscle contracts, it is the muscle itself which is consumed; when athought is conceived it is the brain which provides the force; when anemotion is experienced, it is again the brain which is decomposed. Thebody, therefore, lives by the death of its own substance. It is true, some kinds of food such as alcohol, tea and coffee, and perhaps someothers do not require to go farther than the blood to be burned, butthese are mainly heat-producing, and not tissue-producing substances. But whether matter be consumed directly or indirectly, all bodily forceresults from its decomposition, and without this destruction of matterthe body would be absolutely incapable of a single functional action ofany kind whatever, and its temperature like that of the so-calledcold-blooded animals would be that of the surrounding medium, theatmosphere. 

The quantity of food required by the system varies like the demands ofother machines in accordance with the amount of work which is to beperformed. A plowman, other things being equal, consumes more than awatchmaker; just as a locomotive burns more fuel than the little enginethat runs a sewing machine; the strong able-bodied active man, one whoworks his brains and muscles up to their full power, eats more than theweak, emaciated and inactive girl, who passes all her time in therecumbent position in bed; and the latter will, other things beingequal, endure for a longer period entire abstinence from food. A littlefood with such a one goes a great way, the demands of the system are attheir minimum, and hence a mouthful of bread, or a little tea and toasttaken at long intervals, suffices for the supply of all, or a greatportion of the waste of the body. With such a person there is not muchintense thought, there is little or no muscular action, the pulsationsof the heart do not require to be of much force, the respiration isfeeble, digestion is at its lowest point, there are no great demands foranimal heat, and in fact if the temperature of the atmosphere of theroom in which such a person lies, be kept high, the function ofcalorification may be almost nothing. Still there must be some foodtaken. The body, can to a certain extent, be used up in supplying theforce required for the several functions without the necessity for animmediate restoration of its tissues, but there is a limit to this, beyond which it is certain death to go. 

Chossat[15] has determined this point very accurately by manyexperiments performed upon doves, pigeons, Guinea pigs, rabbits, etc. Hefound that as a mean result, death ensued when the body lost four-tenthsof its original weight. For instance, a body weighing one hundredpounds, could endure the loss of forty pounds without death necessarilyfollowing. Five-tenths or one-half appeared to be the extreme loss ofweight in inanition which the body could endure without death resulting. 

In addition to the loss of weight the temperature fell rapidly, theaction of the heart was lessened, the number and depth of therespirations was diminished, and the excretions gradually became smallerin amount. 

Experiments such as those of Chossat on the lower animals, cannot ofcourse be instituted on the human subject, nevertheless nature sometimesperforms experiments for us which are not without valuable results; andaccidents of various kinds, have also given us important data. 

On the 19th of March, 1755, twenty-two persons living in the Alpinevillage of Bergemoletto, in Piedmont, were buried in their houses by anavalanche or whirlwind of snow. The space covered was about two hundredand seventy feet in length, sixty in breadth, and the snow was overforty-two feet in depth. Notwithstanding all the efforts made by thesurvivors it was impossible to extricate the buried persons till the18th of April following. All were dead except three women, who, havingfound some hay, fed a goat with it, and thus obtained from this animal apint of milk daily, on which they had managed to sustain life for amonth. [16]

In Belgium in the year 1683, four colliers were confined in a coal pitfor twenty-four days without anything to eat. On the twenty-fifth daythey were taken out. In all that time they had lived on nothing but alittle water, which flowed from the walls of the prison in which theywere immured. [17]

A case is mentioned by Foderé[18] on the authority of M. Chaussier, inwhich some workmen were taken out alive after having been confined forfourteen days in a cold damp vault. When released at the end of the timementioned, their pulses were slow and weak, their animal heat greatlyreduced, and respiration barely perceptible. Foderé ascribes their longexistence without either food or drink, to the fact that the atmosphereof the vault was exceedingly humid, and that the moisture was absorbedinto their bodies, taking the place of water ingested into the stomach. 

In another case reported by Dr. Straus, [19] a man sixty-five years ofage, was extracted alive from a coal mine, in which he had beenimprisoned for twenty-three days. During the first ten days he had alittle dirty water, but for the last thirteen days nothing whatever. When taken out he was in a condition of great weakness and emaciationand died after three days, notwithstanding all efforts made to preservehis life. 

Cases of prolonged abstinence often occur among the insane, who, underthe influence of delusions, or in order to destroy their lives refuseall food. Dr. Willan relates the case of a young man, who, throughdelusions, refused all food but a little orange juice, and who lived forsixty days on this alone. 

Of course such persons, if under the observation of a physician, couldbe fed forcibly, but through the ignorance of friends or relatives itnot unfrequently happens that medical aid is not invoked in time, andserious symptoms, or even death itself, may result. The time at whichthis last termination ensues varies according to the kind of insanitywith which the patient is affected. A general paralytic deprived of allfood dies sooner than a healthy person. An insane person suffering fromacute mania also resists inanition badly, but one the subject ofmelancholia often endures the total deprivation of aliment for a longtime. Esquirol[20] cites the case of a melancholic who did not succumbtill after eighteen days of complete abstinence, and Desbarreaux-Bernardanother in which life was prolonged for sixty-one days, but in this casea little broth was taken once. Desportes[21] refers to the case of awoman subject to melancholia who continued to exist during two months ofabstinence, during which she took nothing into the stomach but a littlewater. 

It would be easy to go on and quote other instances occurring amongprisoners, shipwrecked persons, those suffering from diseases whichprevented food entering the stomach, others lost in deserts, forests, etc. , in which life has been prolonged for considerable periods. Suchcases are, however, quite exceptional. An interesting instance occurringunder one of these heads may, however, be cited as an example. 

M. Lépine[22] reports the case of a young girl nineteen years of age whoswallowed a quantity of sulphuric acid. As a consequence a stricture ofthe œsophagus was produced. Three months after the act, liquids alonepassed into the stomach; emaciation was extreme and the countenancepallid. Four months subsequently, that is, seven months after swallowingthe acid, the obliteration of the œsophagus was complete, and nothingwhatever could be swallowed. The patient lived for sixteen days afterall food or drink was prevented reaching the stomach. During the lastdays of her starvation she complained only of thirst and not of hunger. The prostration was extreme and the temperature greatly lessened. Atendency to sleep was present, and there was a subdued delirium. On thelast day of life there was more excitement; the conjunctivæ were red, the pulse thread-like, and the skin cold. It is not stated whether ornot attempts were made to feed this patient by injections into therectum of nutritious substances, or by the use of baths containing suchmatters in solution. It may, however, safely be taken for granted thatefforts of these kinds were made, and if so, the unusually long periodduring which life was sustained is explained. 

In all the cases in which life was extraordinarily prolonged there waseither not a total deprivation of food and drink, or there was a stateof muscular inaction present particularly favorable to retardation ofthe destructive changes in the body which abstinence produces. It may beasserted that in ordinary cases absolute deprivation of food and drinkcannot be endured by a healthy adult longer than ten days, and deathgenerally ensues before the end of the eighth day. It is said that womensustain abstinence better than men. Young persons and the aged certainlyresist with less power than those of the middle period of life. Dantewas aware of this fact when he made the children of Ugolino die beforetheir father, the youngest first, the oldest last. 

Even though there be a total deprivation of what may strictly be calledfood, some of the cases already cited show that if water be taken lifeis preserved for a much longer period than would otherwise be the case. Thus a negro woman, according to Dr. J. W. Francis, [23] believingherself to be bewitched, abstained from food for three weeks, but duringthis period took two small cups of water, to which a very little winehad been added. 

In a case reported by Dr. McNaughton[24] a longer resistance wasmaintained. 

"The subject of this case was a young man, aged twenty-seven, who forthree years immediately preceding his death almost constantly kept hisroom, apparently engaged in meditation, a Bible his only companion. Atthe latter end of May, 1829, his appetite began to fail; he ate verylittle, and on the 2d of July he declined eating altogether. For thefirst six weeks of his fast he went regularly to the well, washedhimself, and took a bowl full of water with him into the house. Withthis he occasionally washed his mouth and drank a little; the quantitytaken during the twenty-four hours did not exceed a pint. On oneoccasion he went three days without taking water, but on the fourthmorning he was observed to go to the well and drink copiously andgreedily. For the first six weeks he walked out every day, and sometimesspent the greater part of the day in the woods. He retained his strengthuntil a short time before his death. During the first three weeks heemaciated rapidly; afterwards he did not seem to waste so sensibly. Prof. Willoughby visited him a few days before he died. He found theskin very cold, the respiration feeble and slow, but otherwise natural;but the effluvia from the breath, and perhaps the skin, were extremelyoffensive. During the greater part of the latter week of his life theparents say there was a considerable discharge of foul reddish matterfrom the lungs. To this perhaps the offensive smell referred to may bechiefly attributed. The pulse was regular, but slow and feeble, and thearteries extremely contracted. The radial artery, for example, could bedistinctly felt like a small, hard thread, communicating almost a wiryfeel. 

"The alvine evacuations were rare; it is believed that he passed severalweeks without any, but the secretion of urine seemed more regular. Hedied after fasting fifty-three days. On dissection the stomach was foundloose and flabby. The gall bladder was distended with a dark, muddy-looking bile. The mesentery, stomach and intestines wereexcessively thin and transparent. There was no fat in the omentum. "

In cases of complete abstinence, the phenomena--to several of whichattention has already been called--are very striking. The respirationbecomes slow until just before death, when, as Chossat observes, thereis often a quickening of the respiratory movements. The exhaled breathhas a peculiarly sickening and fetid odor. The pulse loses in force andfrequency. 

The blood becomes reduced in quantity to such an extent sometimes that, as observed by Collard and Martigny, [25] incisions may be made invarious parts of the bodies of animals suffering from inanition withoutthere being any hæmorrhage. 

The animal temperature falls, according to Chossat, 8° per day until theday of death, when it reaches 14°; and at the moment life departs, theloss suddenly becomes 30°. 

All the secretions are diminished in quantity. This is especially shownas regards the saliva and urine. Even open sores cease to secrete pus. 

At first there is pain, the seat of which is referred to the stomach, and which pain in the beginning, being simply a feeling of emptiness, rapidly assumes a gnawing or tearing character. But before long thisfades away and it does not appear that in the middle and final stages ofinanition there is any suffering which can be called a pain, or whichcan be fixed in any definite part of the body. 

The mental faculties are profoundly affected. A high state of deliriumsupervenes, and there are often hallucinations. These sometimes relateto food, which appears to the sufferer to be spread out before him inthe most seducing manner. All nobility of character disappears, andselfishness and brutality govern. Finally the delirium becomes low andmuttering, the bodily weakness becomes excessive, walking, or evenstanding, is impossible, the sufferer loses all sensation, and deathensues. 

But probably no part of the subject is of more interest than that whichrelates to the association of inanition with hysteria. As is well knownby physicians, the existence of this latter condition enables many tobear partial, or even complete deprivation of food longer and with lessapparent suffering than would be possible with individuals in goodhealth. 

That Miss Fancher is subject to hysteria is very evident from aconsideration of the clinical history of her case, and hence it is tobe expected that she can endure long fasts without much inconvenience. It is just possible that she might, by remaining quietly in bed in astate of partial or complete trance--a hysterical condition in which thewaste of the tissues is greatly reduced--exist for a month withouteither food or drink, and therefore the proposition which I made to herfriends contains no exacting condition. But when it is gravely said that"for a period of nearly fourteen years she has lived absolutely withoutfood or nourishment of any kind, " we are forced to declare, in theinterest of science, that the statement is necessarily absolutely devoidof truth. Subsequent statements, as we have seen, modify this fourteenyears' claim very materially, and really leave it in doubt whether therewas any abstinence at all. 

But I think it may safely be believed that Miss Fancher has indulged infrequent long fasts. Hysteria is very frequently marked, not only by theability to endure lengthened periods of abstinence, but by the abolitionof all desire for food, to such an extent that the sight or even idea ofaliment of any kind excites loathing and disgust. M. Lasègue, [26] in avery interesting memoir, has discussed this part of the subject withgreat precision, and has shown that though such patients take verylittle food they do take some, and that eventually they experience allthe symptoms of inanition. He has never seen death result from theabstinence, for as soon as the condition becomes decidedly unpleasantthe patient resumes gradually her normal alimentation. 

In a case recently under my care, a young lady twenty-three years ofage became hysterical in consequence of domestic troubles, and losingall desire for food, took nothing daily but a single cup of chocolate. She persevered in this restricted diet for twenty-nine days, althoughduring the last eight or ten she gave decided evidences of starvation. She became emaciated, her temperature fell, especially in theextremities, her breath was offensive, her menstruation ceased, andthere was such a marked sense of discomfort that she began to cravefood, not, as she said, because her appetite had returned, but becauseshe was afraid she would die. Still she resisted till, on the thirtiethday, she begged for a little beef tea, and from that moment her appetitereturned to her, and by the end of another week, she was eating herordinary quantity and variety of food. 

Now, in this case, though the amount of nutriment taken daily was small, it was of such a character as to be well able to sustain life. The halfpint of chocolate contained milk and sugar, besides the highlynutritious chocolate, with its carbonaceous and nitrogenous matters, andyet a month was the extreme limit of endurance. 

That a state of inanition exists in Miss Fancher is not to be doubted. The extreme emaciation, the reduced bodily temperature, the contractedstomach and intestines, the great bodily weakness, all show that she isnot sufficiently nourished. In her case there is apparently not only anabsence of appetite but a positive disgust for food; and another symptomoften present in inanition--vomiting when nutriment is taken into thestomach--appears also to be a prominent feature. It is probable thatthere is likewise a notable diminution in the amount of urine excreted, as this is a common accompaniment of hysterical manifestations such ashers. In some instances the function appears to be almost entirelyarrested, as was the fact in a case described by M. Charcot, [27] and intwo which have come under my own observation. 

There is nothing remarkable in the admitted fact that Miss Fancher eatsvery little. We have seen how existence can be kept up on greatlyreduced quantities of food, and under circumstances such as thosegoverning her case, for periods which would be impossible in healthypersons. No one yet under any conditions, whether of hysteria or tranceor assumed miraculous interference, has, to the satisfaction ofcompetent and disinterested investigators, lived even two months withoutthe ingestion of any food whatever. As to going nearly fourteen years ina state of abstinence--a statement in her behalf which many personsbelieve to be true--I can only say that all the teachings of science andof experience are against the claim. No one who had the most superficialidea of what knowledge is and how facts can be proven, would for amoment accept such a preposterous story, no matter by whom asserted. 

The whole subject is one which is to be examined into and determinedlike any other matter, and yet, when a proposition is made toinvestigate by skilled observers the remarkable claim put forward, it ismet with abuse and misrepresentation, as if these people thought thatall they had to do was to make an assertion of a phenomenon which, according to what we know of nature, is absurd and impossible, to haveit at once accepted by those who know, by painful experience, howdoubtful all things are till they are proven, and how difficult it isto get satisfactory evidence of the most simple event in physiology orpathology. No one doubts the abstract possibility of a human beingliving without food, for, bearing in mind the discoveries that areconstantly being made, nothing can be regarded as absolutely impossibleoutside the domain of mathematics. Two and two cannot make six, neithercan two distinct bodies occupy the same space at the same time, nor thesquare of the hypothenuse be otherwise than equal to the sum of thesquares of the other two sides of a right-angled triangle. 

Our knowledge of natural science is, however, founded on experience. Looking at a bear, for instance, for the first time, and with noknowledge of its habits and capacities we would not be apt to believethat the animal could go into retirement at the beginning of winter andremain till spring in a condition of semi-existence and without food. But experience teaches us that the bear when it begins to hibernate isfat; that during hibernation it is in a perfectly quiescent state; thatwhen it emerges into active life again it is emaciated, and that duringthe whole period of retirement it has taken nothing into its stomach. Wethen know by observing that all bears go through the same process, thatit is a law of their organism to do so, and that their reducedfunctional actions are maintained by the consumption of the fat withwhich in the beginning their bodies were loaded. Even here, then, thereis no exception to the law that there is no force without thedecomposition of matter. Now, it is just possible that by some hithertounknown or unrecognized condition of the system a man or woman mayobtain the force necessary to carry on life for fourteen years withoutgetting it through food taken into the stomach. But a possibility and afact are two very different things, and the admitted possibility has notyet been shown to be a fact. It is easier--to use the argument ofHume--for the mind to accept the view that there is deception or errorsomewhere, than to believe that a woman, contrary to all humanexperience, should live fourteen years without food. Turtles, we know, will live for months while entirely deprived of nutriment. Many othersof the cold-blooded animals will do the same thing. It is their natureto do so, and we have experience of the fact, but it is not the natureof women, so far as we know, and therefore we refuse to accept as truethe stories which are told of their powers in this direction. And ourknowledge is based not only on our daily experience of the wants oftheir systems and the examples of starvation which have come to ourknowledge, but also upon the fact that in the many cases of alleged longabstinence from food that have been investigated, error or deception hasbeen discovered. Therefore, when it is said that Miss Fancher liveswithout food, and has so done for fourteen years, we simply say, "giveus the proofs. " Of course the proofs are not given. 

How far Miss Fancher is responsible for the assertions that have beenmade in regard to her long-continued abstinence I do not know. Atendency to deception is a notable phenomenon of hysteria, and if shehas led those about her to accept the view that she has existed withoutfood for years, the circumstance would be in no way remarkable. Otherhysterical women have deceived in the same or in still more astonishingways. Or it may be that the amount of food taken being very small, carelessness or want of exactness has led to the expression that shelived upon "absolutely nothing, " just as we hear the words used everyday by those who have little or no appetite, but who nevertheless do eatsomething. Again, a love for the marvellous is so deeply rooted in theaverage human mind that it willingly, and to a certain extentunconsciously, adds to any statement of a remarkable circumstance, tillthe latter grows, whilst being repeated, to fabulous dimensions. 

But however this may be, whatever the explanation, it is quite certainthat if Miss Fancher has lived fourteen years without food, or evenfourteen months, or weeks, she is a unique psychological or pathologicalindividual, whose case is worthy of all the consideration which can begiven to it, not by superstitious or credulous or ignorant persons, butby those who, trained in the proper methods of scientific research, would know how to get the whole truth of her case, and nothing but thetruth. It is to be regretted, therefore, that the proposition containedin the annexed letter (Appendix) was not accepted, and that we areforced to place Miss Fancher's case among the others which have provedto be fallacious, till such time as it may suit her and her friends toallow of such an examination. 

FOOTNOTES:

[15] Recherches expérimentales sur l'inanition. Paris, 1843, p. 20. 

[16] Universal Magazine, Vol. XXXVI, p. 250. 

[17] Abridged Philosophical Transaction, Vol. III, p. 111. 

[18] Traité de médecine légale et d'hygiène publique. Paris, 1813. T. II, p. 285. 

[19] Medical Gazette, Vol. XVII, p. 389. 

[20] Des maladies mentales. Paris, 1838, p. 203. 

[21] Du refus de manger chez les aliénés. Thèse de Paris 1864, p. 

[22] Nouveau dictionnaire de médecine et de chirurgie pratiques. Paris, 1874. T. XVIII. , Art. Inanition, p. 503. 

[23] New York Medical and Surgical Journal, Vol. II, p. 31. 

[24] Quoted from Trans. Of the Albany Institute by Dr. Lee in Copland'sDictionary of Medicine. Vol. I, p. 31. 

[25] Recherches expérimentales sur les effets de l'abstinence. _Journalde Physiologie_ de Magendie, t. VIII, p. 150. 

[26] De l'anorexie hystérique. _Archives générales de médecine_, April1875. 

[27] Leçons sur les maladies du système nerveux, t. I. , 2d edition. Paris, 1876, p. 178. 

APPENDIX. 

The following letter embraces the proposition made to Miss Fancher, towhich allusion is made in the text:

 TO THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD:--

 I have read the letter of Professor Henry M. Parkhurst, published in a recent issue of the HERALD, relative to the "mind reading" or clairvoyance of Miss Mollie Fancher, of Brooklyn, and it does not satisfy me that the young lady in question possesses any such power. It would have been very easy for her to have opened the envelope without disturbing the seal and to have read the contents. Now, there has been a great deal of talk about Miss Fancher's case. I have received just fifty-seven letters asking me to investigate it, and the press has reiterated the invitation over and over again. I have stated very explicitly that I regard the whole matter as a humbug of the most decided kind, but I have never asserted the impossibility of the young lady's alleged performances. On the contrary, I hold nothing to be absolutely impossible outside the domain of mathematics. But possibilities and realities are very different things, and I certainly will not accept as true any such phenomena as those asserted to have been associated with Miss Fancher unless they are proven. 

 I have already declared my readiness to investigate Miss Fancher, and, a few days since, in the _Sun_, proposed a test which will be perfectly satisfactory to me and many others who, at present, are in accordance with me in my estimation of this young lady. Permit me now to state it definitely, specifically, and once for all. I will place a certified check for a sum of money exceeding $1, 000 inside of a single paper envelope. I will lay the package on a table in the room in which she is. If she chooses she may take it in her hands and place it in contact with any part of her body. I will allow her half an hour to describe the check. If she reads it--number, date, on whom drawn, amount, signature, etc. --accurately, she may have the check as her own property, or I will give the amount expressed in the check, in her name to any charitable institution she may designate, or otherwise dispose of it in accordance with her wishes. 

 The only conditions I exact are these:--

 _First_--That the experiment be conducted in my presence and in that of two other physicians, members of the New York Neurological Society, whom I will bring with me as witness simply, and who will not interfere in any way with the test. 

 _Second_--That the envelope shall at no time pass out of our sight. 

 If Miss Fancher succeeds in this test I will admit that heretofore in my denunciations of such performances as hers I have been in error, and that there is a force in nature which ought to be investigated. I will pay the money not only without chagrin, but with great satisfaction, and will consider that I have received full value. 

 If she fails, as I am quite sure she will, I shall not hesitate to continue to denounce her as an imposition in this as well as in her assumed abstinence from food. 

 A word further in regard to this last matter. I know something about "fasting girls" and their frauds, not excepting the sad case of poor little Sarah Jacob. But I will make this additional proposition:--If Miss Fancher will allow herself to be watched, day and night, for one month, by relays of members of the New York Neurological Society, I will give her $1, 000 if at the end of that month she has not in the meantime taken food voluntarily or as a forced measure to save her from dying of starvation, the danger of this last contingency to be judged of by her family physician, Dr. Speir. These offers to remain open for acceptance till twelve o'clock M. , December 31st. If not taken up by that time, let us hear no more in support of Miss Fancher's mind reading or clairvoyance, or living for a dozen or more years without food. 

 WILLIAM A. HAMMOND, M. D. 

 _43 West Fifty-Fourth Street, New York, Dec. 12th, 1878. _

Transcriber's Note:

 Hyphenation and punctuation have been standardised. Variant spellings have been retained. Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note, whilst significant amendments have been listed below:

 p. 3, 'Nicholas' amended to _Nicolas_ p. 5, 'Aquaintoin' amended to _Aquitaine_ p. 5, 'predominent' amended to _predominant_ p. 6, 'Geraldus Bucoldianus' amended to _Gerardus Bucoldianus_ p. 7, 'fœces' amended to _fæces_ p. 7, 'developes' amended to _develops_ p. 7, fn. 4, 'Παςατηςήσεων' amended to _Παρατηρήσεων_ p. 7, fn. 4, added _rararum_: 'medicarum, _rararum_, novarum' p. 7, fn. 4, 'monstrasarum' amended to _monstrosarum_ p. 8, '1567' amended to _1597_ p. 9, fn. 7, 'chirurgicæ' amended to _chirurgicarum_ p. 15, 'Anne Jones' amended to _Ann Jones_ p. 16, 'fœcal' amended to _fæcal_ p. 26, 'fœces' amended to _fæces_ p. 31, 'Cardinal Carrafa' amended to _Cardinal Carafa_ p. 40, 'Farenheit' amended to _Fahrenheit_ p. 41, fn. 13, 'Rapport Médicale' amended to _Rapport Médical_ p. 41, fn. 13, added _de_: 'médecine _de_ Belgique' p. 44, 'ecstacy' amended to _ecstasy_ p. 44, added _of_: 'direction _of_ M. Le Curé' p. 46, 'fecal' amended to _fæcal_ p. 47, 'stigmatisations' amended to _stigmatizations_ p. 48, 'fortell' amended to _foretell_ p. 48, 'marvelous' amended to _marvellous_ p. 58, 'is' amended to _it_: 'that _it_ is stated' p. 58, 'Dr. Spier' amended to _Dr. Speir_ p. 60, 'assimulated' amended to _assimilated_ p. 60, 'alchohol' amended to _alcohol_ p. 62, 'Bergemolletta' amended to _Bergemoletto_ p. 62, 'breath' amended to _breadth_ p. 62, 'Belguim' amended to _Belgium_ p. 63, fn. 18, 'médicine' amended to _médecine_ p. 64, 'palid' amended to _pallid_ p. 64, fn. 22, 'Nouvreau' amended to _Nouveau_ p. 64, fn. 22, 'médicine' amended to _médecine_ p. 67, 'messentery' amended to _mesentery_ p. 67, 'their' amended to _there_ p. 67, 'hemorrhage' amended to _hæmorrhage_ p. 68, 'Chosset' amended to _Chossat_ p. 69, fn. 26, 'médicine' amended to _médecine_ p. 71, 'her's' amended to _hers_ p. 71, 'injestion' amended to _ingestion_ p. 76, 'Sarah Jacobs' amended to _Sarah Jacob_ p. 76, 'Dr. Spier' amended to _Dr. Speir_

 The page reference in fn. 21 (p. 64) was omitted in the original text.