A HUMAN OSTRICH.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1127, 8 March 1872, Page 3

A HUMAN OSTRICH.

Some singular facto of a diseased appetite were'revealed at an inquest held by the district coroner, at the Yarra Bend, on the body of James Noon, an inmate, aged 28 yean, who was admitted on the 13th March, 1871. At the time of admission he was suffering from acute mania, and had to be placed in a camisole to prevent him injuring himself and others. On the 28th he complained of great pain in ihe stomach, and was found to be suffering from entantis, caused by swallowing foreign substances. The purgative injections administered brought away stones, pieces of glass, and nails, and after this he became better^ but continued to have a voracious appetite, that caused him to rob the other patients, and to Bwallow anything ho could get hold of. He died 'on the 7th instant. The post mortem examination was made by Dr. Ford, who found the intestines to contain stones, pieces of glass, a whole cutty pipe 4in long, of the kind supplied to the patients, which was impacted in the entrance of the largo intestines. A sharp brad was also found sticking in the membrane of the intestines, causing, in the opinion of Dr. Ford, more serious mischief than all the other foreign substances. Some of the stones and nails had evidently been long in the stomach, somo as long as two years probably. These articles weighed from Boz to lOoz. Death was caused by acute inflammation of the intestines, caused in the manner described. The attendants were not to blame in the matter. The jury returned a verdict according to the medical testimony.