Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-05-31
TO BE LIKE CASSIUS.
How the Famous Fat Merchant of
London Got Rid of Adipose.
DIET THE IMPORTANT FEATURE
Of His System, but an Acidulated Purgative
Seemed Essential.
HIS METHODS DID NOT KILL HIM

WRITTEN FOR THE D1sPATCH.1
In 1862 and 1868 was in London, Eng
land. Having caught severe summer cold
it caused slight deafness, which alarmed
me so. much that I sought the advice of a
celebrated aurist, Mr.. William Harvey, of
Soho square. My visiting days were SINH
lar to those of an elderly gentleman, with
whom fell into conversation, and being
afterward introduced by Mr.. Harvey, we
became well acquainted. The !affable old
gentleman who helped to beguile the
tedious hours of waiting in medical mans
anteroom, was, afterward learned, nearly
&c years Of age.
He was very slightly deaf, not tall, and
appeared to me to be of enormous bulk. In
reality he was feet inches in stature and
weighed 2O2 pounds, a large portion of
which he carried from the chest downward,
like an immense balloon of flesh. am
thus particular in describing him because I
never met any one who was personally ac-
quainted with him, and because he was at
that very time engaged in writing a
pamphlet which was destined to render him
famous. He was a London merchant, by
name William Banting, author of the re-
nowned "Letter on Corpulence.
An Old System in New Dress.
This little work appeared in England in
1868, and Immediately attained such popu-
larity that it was translated into almost all
living languages, and gained for its writer
the distinction of having his name bestowed
upon his and any treatment for the reduc-
tion of adipose tissue. Not that Banting
was the discoverer of the dietetic system for
the release from one of the oldest plaques of
the human race. The physicians of an
tiquity gave almost similar instructions as
Banting did for the putting off of super
huous fat. Hippocrates, ''the father of medi-
cine" (born 400 B. c. }, recommended exer-
else in the open air while fasting, and no
hot baths.
Down to modern times no reduction treat
ment had been of any special value. 1t re-
mained for Banting to give some new-old
information in such condensed, straight
forward form as to place the ''cure" for
obesity within the reach of every one af-
ficted with the malady, for that is what it
becomes if left unchecked. Among those
old enough to remember the "Banting SEN
sation," it is generally believed that the
author died shortly after, and in conse-
quence of his own treatment. Such is not
the case. He was already an old man when
he began it, born in 1897, and died in 1871,
having lived to the age of Is, and for nine
years after he began his celebrated treat
ment.
Now Almost Out of Print.
His 'Ietter on Corpulence" is still con-
sidered an authority upon this subject, but
it is difficult to obtain, being almost out of
print in this country. Therefore I quote
the most interesting and salient portions of
it. By way of beginning, he says:
'I am confident no man laboring under
obesity can be quite insensible to the sneers
and remarks of the cruel and injudicious in
public assemblies, public vehicles or the or
dinary street traffic; nor to the annoyance of
finding no adequate space in public assem-
bly, if he should seek amusement or need re-
freshment, and therefore he naturally keeps
away as much as possible from places where
he is likely to be made the object of the
taunts and remarks of others. / am as re-
gardless of public remark as most men, but
I have felt these difficulties, and, therefore,
avoided such circumscribed accommodation
and notice, and by that means have been
deprived of many advantages to health and
comfort.
"Although no very great size or weight,
still could not stoop to tie my shoe, so to
speak, nor attend to the little offices hu-
manity requires, without considerable pain
and difficulty, which only the corpulent
can understand; have been compelled to
go down stairs slowly backward, to save the
jar of increased weight upon the ankle and
knee joint, and been obliged to puff and
blow with every slight exertion, particu-
larly that of going up stairs"
Turkish Baths Will Not Do 1t.
About Turkish baths, now much resorted
to by the corpulent, he says: SAT this
juncture (about three years back) Turkish
baths became the fashion, and 1 was advised
to adopt them as remedy. With the first
few found immense benefit in power and
elasticity for walking exercise; so, believ-
ing I had found the philosophers stone,
pursued them three times week till had
taken so, then less frequently Gas began
to fancy, with some reason, that so many
weakened my constitution), till had taken
90. but never succeeded in losing more than
six pounds weight during the whole course,
andsI gave up the plan as worthless, though
1 have full belief in their cleansing proper
ties, and their value in colds, rheumatism
and many other ailments.
When 1 first took course of Turkish
baths in the delusive hope that they would
stay back my rapidly accumulating flesh, I
asked LDe Ddtu dllcuuduI IL JuSy COIluuCeQ
more to the increase or to the reduction of
fat. -
eyes, num-" she replied. "But which,"
I persisted. "Do they make you thin or
fat?"
''They does mum, both. They makes fat
folks thin and thin folks fat"
After many experiments by which Banting
added to, rather than lessened his bulk, he
found relief in dietary system furnished by
Mr.. Harvey. Strange that an aurist should
effect cure where SO many physicians had
failed. After describing several of his fail
ures, Banting says:
An Acidulated Purgative Dra1ght.
DAT last found the right man, who un-
hesitatinely said he believed my ailments
were caused principally by corpulence, and
prescribed certain diet-no medicine be-
yond morning cordial as a corrective
with immense effect and advantage both to
my hearing and the decrease of my cor
pulency.''
NV own personal experiments in the re-
duction of my weight extend over a period
of u years. Accompanying every so called
obesity cure there was some corrective, a
mysterious draught, cordial, medicine, pill,
powder of tea, the competent parts of which
are kept secret from the patient.
The corrective" which Harvey gave
Banting was an acidulated purgative
draughf, and that is the aim of them all,
though the person supposes the medicine to
be a part of the reduction process. Banting
goes on to say: