Connecticut western news., 1882-08-09
A REMARKABLE FASTER.
Living for Over Two Months or Less Than Half a Cracker a Day.

Less Than Half a Cracker a Day.
 From the Cincinnati Gazette
 The wonderful fast of the young lady near Wabash, Ind, which has attracted the attention of the people throughout the West, still continues, and there are no indications as yet that it will be broken. The name of the faster is Miss Elizabeth Oswalt. She is the daughter of Michael Oswalt, farmer, in good circumstances, who lives four miles northwest of Wabash. MT. Oswalt owns large tract of land and lives in very neat residence. Miss Oswalt is one of large family of children who have all married and gone away or have died. Four years ago, before the death of her mother, she worked as g sewing girl, but soon after Mrs. Oswalt's death she went home and began keeping house for her father. Subsequently she was taken ill and for eight or ten weeks she lived on almost nothing. She was kept alive by injections of nourishment, and had it not been for the faithful attendance of nurses she would then have died.
 Finally. however, her appetite re. turned and health was restored. AL though never strong, she was able to do the housework until about two months since, when one day, after returning from a visit to this city, she was sud- denly taken ill and went to bed. This was on the 7th of May, and since then she has not turned herself or sat up in bed without aid. From the start her appetite failed her, and the most stren- uous efforts of her friends were insutfi- cient to induce her to partake of the daintiest viands money could procure. The relatives. alarmed at the rapid loss of vitality, sent for physician, who, finding his endeavors to revive her de- sire for food without avail, began to give nourishment by injection. Even this, Miss Oswalt said, caused her great pain, and she recently has declined to permit the administration of nourish- ment in this way.
 | The quantity of food she has con- sumed since she became i'll, on May 7, has not averaged half 8 cracker per day. For week at stretch she has gone without eating morsel. She also re. fused to drink liquids of any kind, and hardly enough water can be forced down her to keep the tissues of her body ir solution. Lately an attempt was made to get her to take milk, @ small quantity each day being prescribed for her. She managed, when almost compelled, te drink an ounce of the fluid, but since then she has utterly refused to touch it and when the members of the family visit her room for the purpose of per suading her to drink she begged ant cried until they gave her up in despair She asserts that the slightest particle o food in her stomach causes her the mos intense pain, and on Wednesday, wher she swallowed the milk, she was driver almost wild with agony.
 Her mind is clear, and her reasoning faculties entirely unimpaired, but she ii much cast down and little inclined te hysteria. Her strength is gradually failing, and the physician, who is abou discouraged, says that she is almos past recovery, though he is eff the opin ion that were regular injections of fooi administered he could keep her aliv' until her appetite returns. Miss Oswal is apparently thirty-two years of age and when in good health was rathe large. No explanation of the cause o her lasts has yet been vouchsafed. He relatives are all strong and healthy, ant none of them are afflicted with an. chronic disease. The case is watched with intense interest and forms the sol' topic of conversation on the streets The people of the vicinity seem to thinl that she '1ays over" Dr. Tanner by 1 large majority, as, although she hal partaken of more nourishment than di' Tanner, she has drank but little water while Tanner drank water in large quan titles.