The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1877-12-14
ECCENTRIC TRAIN.
His Very Long Fast--Abstaining from Eat
Ing or Drinking for Six Days.


[From the New York SUM-
George Francis Train was found III
bed mt $50 o'clock last evening, in Il
small $3-room of the Phoenix House,
Broadway and Twelfth street, close up
under the roof, where the air is pure.
| He paws 81 week only, because he
took the room last May, when the house
was being refitted, and submitted to a
good many consequent Inconvenience.
The waiter that conducted the visitor TO
the room looked bright. He carried in
his hand pitcher of water. 1t was the
first drinking water that Mr.. Train had
ordered for six days. BY the side OF
the single bed were an apple and bis
cult. During two hours of converse
ton, Mr.. Train used the apple once to
illustrate the position OF the world as he
stood above it on mountain; but he
did not touch the biscuit nor take
sip of the water. Yesterday
morning at s o'clock, he said, had
completed period of six days since he
had taken food or drink. DIR. White
had called on him and urged him to eat.
The doctor was of the opinion that he
was troubled with gastric fever. His
tongue was verv much coated. Judge
Il. l.. Fancher, who had delivered Mr..
Train out of the clutches of Judge Da-
Wis, had met him and said
Mr.. Train, after / delivered my de-
cision in your case, you advised me to
take a Russian bath. Now, advise you
to go and take Russian BATH.
Mr.. Trains family then went to HIM
and urged him to eat something. This
was too much. He could not resist their
appeal, or rather when it was made he
felt no inclination to resist it. Psychol-
ogy would explain that, too. So yester-
day morning his family had some oat-
meal and water prepared for him, and he
eat about as much as he could have held
in one hand. On his way to the house
he had stopped at a pump, and was able
to drink little water. At noon he had
eaten half biscuit. That was all he
had eaten in six and half days. The
biscuit on the table was for
his supper, but he did not care
to eat it. He had felt slight desire
for water, and 80 had ordered some. 1t
was his usual bedtime. He usually re-
manned in bed fourteen hours. During
the six days of fasting he had lost about
Ten POUNDS III WelSnt. lib eyes, ne
said, had lost their peculiar luster, and
his knee-joints had become weak but,
after eating the handful of oatmeal,
eyes and knees alike had been restored
to their normal state. 1t was not the
nutriment contained in the oatmeal that
had caused this, but the mechanical &C
ton of the stomach, which had ceased
for want of food, was again set going,
and so disease was averted.
"The time will come" said Mr.. Train,
"when shall be able to fast for thirty
days. In the meantime have proved
three things. The first is, that all the
stories of terrible agony in starvation are
humbug. They are inventions of
people who want to glorify themselves
because they have an opportunity"
Mr.. Trains usual fare for months
past, he says, has been For breakfast,
five penny rolls, 5 cents, and cup of
coffee, cents; for dinner, 10 cents
worth of potatoes and bread, and
cents worth of baked beans for sup
per, cup of coffee, 8 cents. The total
cost per day was 30 cents.