Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1876-08-17
A Strange Case Of Starvation.

A New YORK leCCor writer says: X.
G. Newell, who, under the nom de
plume of "Orpheus G. Kerr" has fur.
nished the country with some of its
richest and most pungent humorous
literature during the last fifteen years
You remember his famous letters from
''The Mackerel Brigade during the
war, and how his comically sagacious
criticisms convulsed the army and
NEEDED public opinion? Colfax and
Frank Carpenter, and the Rev. DR..
Neill, the enterprising parson, like to
tell how 'sOld Abe'' went around with
Newell's book in his pocket repeating
it's shrewd allegories and reading its
fun to commanding Generals and
Cabinet officers, and especially how
he once gave Grant lesson from it.
Well, Newell is now in a bad way, and
unless there is Il radical change he can
not live 4 month. Since closing his
delicious and popular 'Social Studies
in the World, three years ago, he has
been on the working editorial force of
the Graphic, editing the weekly and
contributing sketches and humorous
poems to the daily. He has not been
absent from his desk a day in a year,
but for the past twenty.seven days he
has eaten nothing whatever. I mean
just this. 1t will be four weeks to-
morrow since a mouthful or a crumb
of food passed his lips! During this
time he has lost thirty pounds of flesh,
and now, though feet and 10 inches
in height, he weighs only l02 pounds.
He has drank one cup of coffee every
morning, and has taken a small glass
of milk punch every other day, and
this has been his entire nourishment,
unless his two daily cigars may be
supposed to have nutritious qualities.
His condition is getting to be prob.
lem for the doctors, especially when it
is added that he walks mile and a
half every day, on his way to the Of
fee and back, and drives out two or
three times week with his fine horse.
He is very weak, but has no feeling of
faintness or hunger, and is cheerful rs
the sun
Newell is man of 40, and he has in.
dependent means. His habits have al
ways been rigidly temperate. His
family are profoundly alarmed ut his
condition, but he declares that he can
not eat. There is obviously no physic~
al impediment, as in the case of hydro.
phobia, for he can swallow as easily as
ever, and he has no repugnance to food.
He promises his friends that he will
try to eat, and accordingly sits down
to every meal, and even puts morsels
to his lips. but then, without any na,,-
sea, there comes what he calls "a
nervous revolt" and the food is reject
ed. The dinner looks as good as ever,
he declares, and he likes to see others
eat, but he is totally Indifferent to it
himself, and when he tries to partake
of it his organs and functions refuse
to cooperate in the act of swallowing
it. I talked with him to-day, and tried
to get at the symptoms of his physical
arrangement. He comprehends his
extremity, wonders if he will live
through the curious rebellion of appe-
tite, sympathizes with the alarm of
his aged mother and the solicitude of
his friends, laughs at the dozens of
doctors who are sent to advise him,
and says they talk like fools, for he
can no more eat than he can fly or
walk on the water. He does not ap.
pear to have mania or Authorization.
Nor can there be the least doubt as to
the truth of his complete abstinence.
He is Il gentleman of the highest integ-
rity. an almost morbid conscience, the
delicacy and senSitiveness of a woman
combined with strong will and TO-
bust manliness. He will be shocked
at my Cabling about him in Chicago
newspaper; but if he doesn't wish to
be talked about let him behave HIM
self, and take his regular rations. l
only hope he will be alive when my
next letter goes to the MALL