ot
together and made up their minds that something had to be done.
They were afraid that Rathbun would die. They appointed a
committee to wait on him in his office and beg him to eat
something. The committee took dainties to Mr. Rathbun, told him
their fears, and offered the good things to tempt him, but all
to no purpose.

"It was the night of April 23 that Mr. Rathbun took his last bit
of nourishment. He made no attempt to eat a large meal in
preparation for his fast. He ate his regular supply just as if
he had meant to continue eating on the following day. Then for
twenty-eight days he absolutely abjured all food. He drank
water, but that was all. Before going to bed he would take a
pint of Apollinaris.

"Had he remained at his home in bed or taken perfect rest, his
achievement would have been less remarkable. That is the course
which always has been adopted by the professional fasters. Dr.
Tanner, and the Italian, Succi, in their fasts were surrounded
by attendants who allowed them scarcely to lift a hand, so that
every ounce of energy might be conserved.

"Rathbun pursued a course diametrically opposite to this. He
worked, and worked hard. He came down earlier to his office and
went away later than usual. He made no effort to save himself.
On the contrary, he seemed determined to make his task as hard
as possible. On four of his fast days he spent the afternoons in
a dentist's chair, at which times his nerves were tried as only
dentists know how to do it.

"It was his idea to continue the fast until he began to feel
hunger. After the first twenty-four hours his hunger
disappeared, and he had no desire for food until the end of the
fourth week, when the craving set in, and he immediately set
about satisfying it in a moderate and careful manner. He
consulted two physicians while the fast was going on, to see that
he was suffering no injury that he could not appreciate himself.
One was Dr. F. B. Carpenter, of Madison Avenue and thirty-eight
Street, and the other, Dr. George J. Helmer, of Madison Avenue
and Thirty-first Street. He saw Dr. Carpenter on the eighteenth
and the twenty-first days, and Dr. Helmer on the twenty-fifth
day. Both expressed surprise at his long fast and astonishment at
his excellent condition.

"Mr. Rathbun is fifty-four years old,