In explanation of this strange
departure from the condition of other men, Waller himself gave a
reason which was deemed equivalent in value to any of the others
offered. It was as follows: His father being a man in humble
circumstances in life, at the time of his birth had no wheat with
which to make flour, although his mother during gestation
"longed" for wheat-bread. The father, being a kind husband and
responsive to the duty imposed by the condition of his wife,
procured from one of his opulent neighbors a bag of wheat and
sent it to the mill to be ground. The mother was given much
uneasiness by an unexpected delay at the mill, and by the time
the flour arrived her strong appetite for wheat-bread had in a
great degree subsided. Notwithstanding this, she caused some
flour to be immediately baked into bread and ate it, but not so
freely as she had expected The bread thus taken caused intense
vomiting and made her violently and painfully ill, after which
for a considerable time she loathed bread. These facts have been
ascribed as the cause of the lamentable infirmity under which the
man labored, as no other peculiarity or impression in her
gestation was noticed. In addition it may be stated that for the
purpose of avoiding the smell of flour Waller was in the habit of
carrying camphor in his pocket and using snuff, for if he did not
smell the flour, however much might be near him, it was as
harmless to him as to other men.
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