The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-10-10
NICHOLS TAR.L.Na PROPENSITY

Fran the Cincianati Enquirer.
New ToR6, Oct 5.-Commg down
Fifth avenue this morHing / met Lorenz
Reich, and the genill little Hungarian
wine dealer, who has made such success
out of his Cambridge apartment house on
Thirty fourth street, and remembering
that Thomas II. Nichol was for some time
his guest, inquired ii that erratic genius
had overcome his startling propensity for
going naked day and night. Mr.. Reich in
formed me that Mr.. Nlchol had left the
Cambridge hotel some three months ago,
and that he was now a patient in private
hospital on ThirLy-fourth street, without
having recovered at all from his maiady.
Nichols case is one of the most remarkable
in history. 1t is now over year since he
was seized with nervous ailment while
guest at the Fifth Avenue hotel. He COM
planned while there that the touch of cloth
ing on his limbs gave him great distress,
and he gradually kept himself confined to
his room, lying all day on the bed with only
a sheet over him for covering, and often
nothing at all. When he donned his cloth
ing and came down stairs, on rare occasions,
he was weak, emaciated and tottering, and
REQUIRED help to move across the floor, be-
sides, IN other ways giving evidence of his
dire distress.
Nichols means of living had been precari-
Gus for long time Henry Clews, the
banker, Senator John Sherman and War
ner Miller made advances to him for long
time, but gradually his bill ran up at the
Fifth Avenue hotel until ne was asked to
find other quarters. Then he went to the
Cambridge, and it was here that the most
striking feats of his malady developed. For
seven months he never left his room, and
during chat period never had more clothing
on him than skimp undershirt. For days
and DAYS he was absolutely stark naked.
The room was kept heated to high degree,
and when he lay on his bed he was without
covering of any kind. He had big rock
ing char, around which circular table on
wheels was erected, where he used to sit for
hours every day engaged in writing, throw
ing eff sheet after sheet of manuscript on
the floor, until the room looked like a great
scrap basket. His mind seemed acutely
active, and his efforts were entirely in the
line of politics. He was especially DESTROYS
of bringing about the nomination of John
Sherman for President, and sent hundreds
of contributions advocating Sherman's can
didacy to various newspapers over the
country.
He had a colored servant remain with
him day and night, who spent a large por-
ton of his time in giving him massage treat
ment, but it was of little value. His eating
was enormous. The head waiter at the
Cambridge hotel showed me his order for
the meals of a single day, and when l ques-
toned its acurateness, swore to me by high
heaven that it was only a sample of
Nichols eating for the entire period of his
stay at the Cambridge. For breakfast he
had fruit, two portions of huge English
mutton chops, four boiled eggs, two por-
tions of buckwheat cakes, rolls and coffee.
His midday meal consisted of two portions
of roast beef, with potatoes. chicken salad
4 L. n A..
challenged most attention. He actually
ordered and ate three surloin beefsteaks,
any one of which was enough for a meal
for two ordinary full-grown persons. With
this beefsteak, he had, of course, celery, po-
tatoes and other vegetables. The head
waiter told me that the dishes came down
from Mr.. Nichols room so bare that an
italian chiffonier would have turned up his
nose at the remains.
When l asked about the liquid refresh
ments which Nichol took with his meals,
the head waiter turned to another part of
his book and said: "Oh, yes; forgot that.
Here is the record for a day, consisting of a
quart bottle of claret for breakfast, bot
tie of claret for lunch and three bottles of
Tokay for dinner. Tokay is the rarest
wine in this market, and the Hungarian
Tokay imported by Mr.. Reich, which
Eichol was drinking, cost So so per bottle
at retail. His dinner bill Of fare cost him
every day from SIS to S1S, not to mention
the other meals. While Nlchol was at the
Cambridge hotel he was busily engaged in
endeavoring to promte and put on the mar
ket great nickel mine which he claimed to
control in California. By putting up stock
of this company as collateral security, he
borrowed considerable money from ex-Sen-
ator Warner Miller and Senator Sawyer, of
Wisconsin, and some other gentlemen whom
he had known in public life. He finally ran
heavily in debt to Mr.. Reich, and induced
him to take some of the stock for collateral
security, which is still held by the good
natured hotel keeper. At one time Nichol
engaged himself in writing notices for the
Bethesda springs, Of Wisconsin, and during
that period his room was full of bottles of
Bethesda water, of which he drank quart
after quart every day, with some kind of a
notion that it was going to relieve him of
his trouble
His intimate friends believe that malady
is largely mental. A gentleman who called
on him three months ago at the Cambridge
told me that he walked in and found Nichol
lying on the bed in his usual nude state.
Walking up to the bed the gentleman slap
ped his hand down on the frame in a hard
manner, reached over and shook Nichols
hand heartily and otherwise roughly ex-
pressed his presence. Nichol seemed
to enjoy it and took no offense nor
offered any objection, but ten min
ntes later, while trying to describe his NAL
ady, he told the gentleman'that he could not
bear to have any one touch him or touch
the bed. and that the least touch of any
kind sent thrilling pain through his body.
Some five or six years ago Nichol was
associated with ex-Gov. Charles Foster,
ex-Speaker Keifer, Congressman McKin-
ley. ex-Congressman Amos Townsend and
some others in a coal, iron, railroad and
land enterprises, in which they are still en-
gagged in Missouri. Nichol was the flnan-
cial manager of the concern. Things went
along swimmingly for a time, but suddenly
came to a standstill, and an investigation
showed that Nichol had put these gentle
man in a hole to the tune of $4,000. His
plans and methods were all right, and the
promise of success to the enterprise was all
that could be desired, but nevertheless they
were 500, 900 short. Nichols only explana-
ton was that his mind had broken down,
and they evidently thought so, too, for they
gave him money enough to go to Europe, in
the hope that a sea voyage would restore
his health. This episode is mentioned now
as coroborative sof the theory that Mr.:
Nichols mind as well as his body is affected,
and that some of his eccentricities are due
to species of insanity. When he left the
Cambridge two months ago he went to a
private boarding house on Twenty-third
street. He had been slightly convalescent
and managed to get his clothes on to ride
out. At the boarding house he grew worse
again and the landlady insisted that