West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1885-05-22
THE FASTING GIRL PROBLEM.

Facts Showing That Science Is Wrong
When II Declares That One Must Eat
to Live.
The modern fasting girl is the oppro-
brium of science. The latter insists
that she can not live without eating and
drinking She as stubbornly persists in
living without eating and drinking.
when DIR. Tanner made his experiment
science was staggered, but that little
episode was trifle to the feat of Kate
Smulsey, who is said to have lived thir-
teen months without eating, and most
OF the time without drinking either. In
cases of this kind the usual and much
the easiest method of explanation is by
fiat denial of the alleged facts, and this
is facilitated by making sundry import
ant assumptions, as that such and such
a thing Is opposed to natural laws and
therefore could not b.. Thus it is an
axiom OF medical science that life can
not be sustained beyond a few days
without ailmentation, and certainly if
physiology alone is concerned i'm the
matter the soundness of this view must
be admitted 1t is true that there are a
was sustained without the possibility of
alimentation, the most notable hoino
that of the Indian fakir who wa, wal ed
up in vault at Lahore. and who two
weeks afterward was disinterred and
found alive In that case. however
there was minimum of waste of vitali-
ty, the subject being in trance. Kate
Smulsey was not entrauced, and DURING
q h,r 70 |. L
was IN iucessant motion, according TO
the reports, so that there must nave
been an abnormal expenditure of vital
energy.
The physicians who attended her diff
fered widely as TO the nature of her
complaint, but we believe they agreed
that she really dil not eat or drink
Her parents and friends maintain most
earnestly that deception i'm the case was
impossible This assertion will not pre-
vent contrary statements being made.
but when there is a consensus of belief
in certain facts among a number of in
tclhgent and reputable people. and
when these have taken pains TO sub
slantiate their belief and 10 exclude error.
1t is difficult to regard the usual denial
OF the facts as an adequate explanation.
II the laws of physiology were as fully
and infinitely understood as might be
inferred from the dogmat,sm Of men of
science, there would be no excuse for
the teeming failures Of medicine The
VerihcatlOn of one such case rs that Of
Kate Smulsev, however. would neces-
state the admission of psvchoIoOic
hypothesis in such cases. since IL is evil
dent that physiology does not furnish
the solution of them. CONSIDERING the
extent TO which the study of mental
conditions. and their influence upon
physical processes. is being carried at
present, moreover. the lrOadening Of
the scope Of inquiry here suggested
should not seem either inadmissible or
irrational In practice, every successful
physician acts opOn this vie and there
can be no sound therapeutics without
recognition of the intcraction Of mind
and body.
In the fasting girl case, the old-fasb-
Toned AleXandrian fashion of scverjp0
The 6ordiau knot is falling into disfayor,
because DO is felt 10 be an evasion and
not determination. I'm th. effect the
indications are that some venerable the
ories regarding the conditions Of vital
action may have TO be discarded The
facts appear too stubborn 10 be dealt
with Otherwise thtn scientifically. i'm
shor, and when this f. realized IL ia
quite possible that medical science NAV
IND itself upon the threshold Of new
and important discoveries " r Trib-
unf