The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-10-10

His Strange Life aud Eccentricities.
rQocto,,

His strange Life aud Eccentricities.
[Boston Tnveller.l
Uriah A. Boyden, who for many years
has been known about Boston as an in
ventor and philosopher, is lying danger
ously ill with gastric fever and infam-
nation of the bowels, at room No. so,
Young's Hotel, which he has occupied
for the past twenty years. The story of
Mr.. Boyden's life, could it be known,
would undoubtedly prove history OF
more than ordinary interest. Ever since
he has been known here his manners have
been SO strange and eccentric, and his
life SO solitary and isolated, that conject.
ures naturally arise as to the eXtraordi-
nary influences and circumstances which
must have been thrown about his earlier
life to lave produced so unique and ex-
eeptionable character.
He was born in Foxborough seventy
gve years ago, and has never been mar
ried. He has two brothers now living in
Foxborough and one in st. Louis and n
nephew at Roslindale. He has always
lived retired and quiet life and has
never had any companions or associates,
except such as business relations de-
manded. He has invented and patented
many improvements on the turbine
water-wheel and many others in philo-
sophical and electric apparatus, which
netted him handsome income. For
many years he has occupied rooms for
office purposes in joys building, nine of
them being completely filed with books
and philosophic apparatus.
Mr.. Boyden was accustomed to rise
early, rain or shine, and walk around the
Public Garden and Common before
breakfast, which he took at Young's. He
was very eccentric in all his tastes
During the entire year he ate no meat
except on Thanksgiving Day, when he
dined off roast turkey and cranberry
sauce-an exception to his dietary regime
which he made, as he said, more out of
Difference to the custom than from his
own choice
Ordinarily he breakfasted on oatmeal,
to which he sometimes added some stale
and BUTTERFLIES bread He had queer
custom of mixing his food-mashing
mince pie and baked potatoes together,
and eating the amalgamated nondescript
preparation thus formed with great rel
ish.
A soft-boied egg on English plum
pudding was another of his favorite
dishes. He never drank tea or coffee, and
did not know the taste Of liquor until
within the last few weeks. At the be-
ginning of his illness his doctor prescribed
lemonade, and by mistake rum punch
was given, and he has since been nour-
ished with it.
His face and peculiar appearance will
be long remembered by those who have
seen him, and it has been a matter of con-
lecture with many as to who he was. In
summer he wore invariably a suit of
brown linen with a swallow-tail coat,
with tall hat, cut in Quaker style, on
the back of his head, and he was always
smoothly shaven. AS cold weather APP
preached he put on a suit OF Shaker gray,
and still preserved the swallow-tail. He
never wore any underclothing.
He was so retiring in his disposition
that he avoided contact with his fellow
men as much as possible. If he ap-
preached his doorway and found some
one standing there. he would keep at a
respectful distance, warily watching his
chance until the person had taken him
self off, when he would dart into the
building as if he were pursued. He never
recognized anybody on the street unless
fairly forced to do 50 by determined
interlocutor. He was lonely rcclu-e,
and avoided all society, never visiting
the theater in his life, nor attending a
concert. And yet, Notwithstanding all
this, Mr.. Boyden was man of good
heart and sympathetic instincts.