Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1881-04-15
THE SUICIDE OF MISS HATTIE
DUELL.
A Woman Who has not Tasted Food loi
Nearly Seven Weeks.


We have already reported the death at Iowa
C;tv Iowa. of Miss Hattie Duell, after fast
of IL .days. Miss Duell was spinster, %
wears of age. Her sister married DIR. b. ii.
Aylworth. and in their family Miss DUEL has
live d MANY wears. During nearly the whole
of this long period she has been an Invalid
and confined to her bed. Her complaint was
nervous disease, accompanied by intense
neuralric pains. Although she has always
been regarded as eccentric, no suspicion was
ever entertained of her sanity. One OF her
oddities was a sudden determination to talk
no more to anybody, and after calling for a
slate and pencil, continued thereafter to make
these her sole medium of communication
with her friends. She persisted in her strange
within from that time-NoveMber, lSf9-up
TO the hour OF her death, notwlth-
standing the urgent entreaties OF her
friends. Once or twice within the last two
wears she atstamed from all food and drink
for several days together in the belief that her
sufferings would be thus alleviated. These
have been intense during the past winter.and
she has frequently spent hours at time by
hot stove wrapped in quilts. On these oc-
casions she complained of severe cold in
her head On the morning of Feb. %, her
sister observed that she had left untasted the
breakfast which had been placed at her bed
side. When an explanation was asked. Miss
Duell wrote on her slate 81 have no hope
of recovery or relief, and l am determined
to die
Five days after beginning her fast Miss
Duell wrote with her pencil. "Do you think
itwould prolong my life to drink water?" The
question was addressed to DR.. Aylworth, and
he replied that fever and delirium would
probably set in unless she drank little
water daily. After that, she called for water,
and sucked a small quantity through glass
tube several times every twenty-four hours.
Up to the thirty fourth day food had been
sight only aroused her anger, the practice
was on this day discontinued. She was at
that time wasted to skeleton, her nose was
thin and pinched, her cheeks were hollow,
and her skin was an unusual dark color, 1t
was predicted that she could not survive more
than a few hours longer. She, however,
seemed to think the end was further away,
for on recovering from deaIhly faint, she
wrote the question, do you think l am
going to live always?" In reply to the ques-
tions of her friends she said that she suffered
no pain whatever.
On the fortieth day she was living in a
cometose state much of the time, though ap-
parently sleeping very little. Her mental
faculties were uHli1palTeu, however, lOr Wnen
aroused she became fully conscious of what
was occurring around her. Her physical
condition was much deterioated, and she was
now weak and utterly helpless. Her pulse
beat between 90 and 100, there were no signs
of fever, and apparently no signs of pain.
One of the singular observations of this
fortieth day was the fact that the breathing,
which all along had been nominal, suddenly
changed to between ~ and 10 respirations per
minute. She was thought to be dying, but re-
covered sufficiently to indicate that she had
lost none of her determination. for when the
subject of food was introduced by one of her
attendants, she shook her head, much to the
surprise of the physicians. On the forty.
fourth day she rallied little. and appeared
somewhat stronger. Her pulse on this day
was more variable than at any other time
during the fast, rising to 100 and then slowly
ebbing again to very low point.
On the following day, DR.. +. W. Peck, OF
Davenport, made a thorough examination OF
her condition, and reported that he found her
very much reduced, but not more so than in
the case of patient with a long fever The
idea of compelling her to swallow food, was
again broached, but the doctor gave it as his
opinion that the only result of such an at.
tempt would be to make her a raving maniac
Several times on Sunday she managed to
make her friends understand that her head
was so hot that it appeared to be on fire. A;
midnight it was observed that she was sink.
ing fast, and at IL. As o'clock she breathed her
last.