Lineaments of Leanness. 77 



the real living skeleton, never did me the honour of a visit, I 

 have seen full as great curiosities as the said Monsieur, within 

 the circle of my own acquaintance ; and, in the persons of two 

 of my most intimate friends, witnessed the most extraordinary 

 instances of emaciation that the human frame could possibly 

 exhibit. One of these was a gentleman about forty years of 

 age ; the other was one of the most lovely and beautiful of her 

 sex, who, when she died, at the early age of thirty, presented 

 the resemblance of an ivory skeleton, covered with thin parch- 

 ment. 



These cases were similar in appearance and progress ; and 

 each of them the effect of great organic disease, in the mesen- 

 teric glands and abdominal viscera. The first of these cases, 



was Major P , who, after much military service, and much 



harder duty as regarded his health, in the service of convi- 

 viality and good living, became a barrack-master in Sussex. I 

 had not seen him for a year or two, when one morning, he 

 called me up, having suddenly left his quarters, " to seek my 

 friendly advice, on matters of the utmost importance !" For 

 some moments I could not recognize my friend, — I knew him 

 not ; how should I ? an insane skeleton addressed me ! It 

 spoke of circumstances I knew, but in a voice I did not know. 

 Never, in my professional hfe, was I more distressingly affected, 

 I met the momentary difficulty of contending feelings as well 

 as I could, and, as soon as circumstances permitted, deposited 

 a living skeleton in the charge of his family. He lived a few 

 weeks after, eating voraciously ; and swallowed, or rather bolted, 

 some large lumps of meat within a few hours of his death. 



There are, however, cases of the absorption of fat, the causes 

 of which it is impossible to ascertain. 



A curious case is related by Halle in the ' Memoires de I'ln- 

 stitut National,' of a young woman who gradually became 

 emaciated, without any diminution of appetite, and without any 

 specific complaint. At the age of twenty-one, the emaciation 

 commenced ; and from that time went on progressively : she 

 had no fever, no cough, no sweatings, no oedematous swellings 

 whatever ; and the excretions were quite natural. She died 

 at the age of twenty-five, having been confined to her bed only 

 fifteen hours, and in these were included the usual hours of 



