FASTING Woman. Of the many instances of extraordinary fasting mentioned by different authors, this seems to be one of the best authenticated. A full account of this very uncommon case is given in the Phil. Trans. Vol. LXVII. Part I. the substance of which follows. The woman, whose name was Janet McLeod, an inhabitant in the parish of Kincardine in Ross-shire, continued healthy till she was 15 years of age, when she had a pretty severe epileptic fit; after this she had an interval of health for four years, and then another epileptic fit which continued a whole day and a night. A few days afterwards she was seized with a fever, which continued with violence several weeks, and from which she did not perfectly recover for some months. At this time she lost the use of her eyelids; so that she was under a necessity of keeping them open with the fingers of one hand, whenever she wanted to look about her. In other respects she continued in pretty good health; only she never had any appearance of menses, but periodically spit up blood in pretty large quantities, and at the same time it flowed from the nose. This discharge continued several years; but at last it ceased; and soon after she had a third epileptic fit, and after that a fever from which she recovered very slowly. Six weeks after the crisis, she stole out of the house unknown to her parents, who were busied in their harvest-work, and bound the sheaves of a ridge before she was observed. In the evening she took to her bed, complaining much of her heart, (most probably her stomach, according to the phraseology of that country) and her head. From that time she never rose for five years, but was occasionally lifted out of bed. She seldom spoke a word, and took so little food that it seemed scarce sufficient to support a sucking infant.
VOL. IV.
Even this small quantity was taken by compulsion; and at last, about Whit-sunday 1763, she totally refused every kind of food or drink. Her jaw now became so fast locked, that it was with the greatest difficulty her father was able to open her teeth a little, in order to admit a small quantity of gruel or whey; but of this so much generally run out at the corners of her mouth, that they could not be sensible any had been swallowed. About this time they got some water from a noted medicinal spring in Brae-Mar, some of which they attempted to make her swallow, but without effect. They continued their trials, however, for three mornings; rubbing her throat with the water, which run out at the corners of her mouth. On the third morning during the operation, she cried out "Give me more water;" and swallowed with ease all that remained in the bottle. She spoke no more intelligibly for a year; though she continued to mutter some words which her parents only understood, for 14 days. She continued to reject all kinds of food and drink till July 1765. At this time her sister thought, by some signs she made, that she wanted her jaws opened; and this being done, not without violence, she called intelligibly for a drink, and drank with ease about an English pint of water. Her father then asked her why she would not make some signs when she wanted a drink; to which she answered, why should she, when she had no desire. It was now supposed that she had regained the faculty of speech; and her jaws were kept open for about three weeks, by means of a wedge. But in four or five days she became totally silent, and the wedge was removed because it made her lips sore. She still, however, continued sensible; and when her eyelids were opened, knew every body, as could be guessed from the signs she made.
By continuing their attempts to force open her jaws, two of the under foreteeth were driven out; and of this opening her parents endeavoured to avail themselves by putting some thin nourishing drink into her mouth; but without effect, as it always returned by the corners. Sometimes they thought of thrusting a little dough of oatmeal through this gap of the teeth, which she would retain a few seconds, and then return with something like a straining to vomit, without one particle going down. Nor were the family sensible of any thing like swallowing for four years, excepting the small draught of Brae-Mar water, and the English pint of common water. For the last three years she had not any evacuation by stool or urine, except that once or twice a-week she passed a few drops of urine, about as much, to use the expression of her parents, as would wet the surface of a halfpenny. In this situation she was visited by Dr Mackenzie, who communicated the account of her case to the royal society. He found her not at all emaciated; her knees were bent, and the hamstrings tight, so that her heels almost touched her buttocks. She slept much, and was very quiet; but when awake, kept a constant whimpering like a newborn weakly infant. She never could remain a moment on her back, but always fell to one side or another; and her chin was clapped close to her breast, nor could it by any force be moved backwards.
The doctor paid his first visit in the month of October; and five years afterwards, viz. in October 1772, was induced to pay her a second visit, by hearing that
she was recovering, and had begun to eat and drink. The account given him was most extraordinary. Her parents one day returning from their country-labours (having left their daughter fixed to her bed as usual), were greatly surprised to find her sitting upon her ham, on the side of the house opposite to her bed-place, spinning with her mother's distaff. All the food she took at that time was only to crumble a little oat or barley cake in the palm of her hand, as if to feed a chicken. She put little crumbs of this into the gap of her teeth; rolled them about for some time in her mouth; and then sucked out of the palm of her hand a little water, whey, or milk; and this only once or twice a-day, and even that by compulsion. She never attempted to speak; her jaws were fast locked, and her eyes shut. On opening her eye-lids, the balls were found to be turned up under the edge of the os frontis; her countenance was ghastly, her complexion pale, and her whole person emaciated. She seemed sensible and tractable in every thing except in taking food. This she did with the utmost reluctance, and even cried before she yielded; and at last only took a few crumbs as if to feed a bird, and sucked half a spoonful of milk from the palm of her hand. The great change of her looks, Doctor Mackenzie attributed to her spinning flax on the distaff, which exhausted too much of the saliva; and therefore he recommended to her parents to confine her totally to the spinning of wool.—In 1775 she was visited again, and found to be greatly improved in her looks, as well as strength; her food was also considerably increased in quantity, though even then she did not take more than would be sufficient to sustain an infant of two years of age.