| Edward Dando’s Oyster Knife | |
|---|---|
|
Origin |
Edward Dando |
|
Type |
Oyster Knife |
|
Effects |
Intensifies appetite with every meal eaten; reduces nutritional intake to zero |
|
Downsides |
Tendency to make off without payment |
|
Activation |
Eating |
|
Section |
|
|
Date of Collection |
June 25, 1827 |
| [Source] | |
Origin[]
Edward Dando (c. 1803 – 28 August 1832) was a thief who came to public notice in Britain because of his unusual habit of overeating at food stalls and inns, and then revealing that he had no money to pay. Although the fare he consumed was varied, he was particularly fond of oysters, having once eaten 25 dozen of them with a loaf and a half of bread with butter. Oysters were cheap in the 1820s and 1830s and a basic food source for the poor, who bought them from oyster stalls or wheelbarrows
Dando began his thefts in about 1826 and was arrested at least as early as 1828. He would often leave a house of correction and go on an eating spree the same day, being arrested straight away and appearing in court within a few days, only to be put back in prison; his normal defense was that he was hungry. On at least one occasion he was placed in solitary confinement after he stole the rations of his fellow prisoners. Most of his activity was in London, although he also spent time in Kent, much of it in the county's prisons. While in Coldbath Fields Prison in August 1832, Dando caught cholera—part of a long-running pandemic—and died.
His death, like his many exploits, was widely and sympathetically reported both in the London daily press and in local newspapers. His name entered into the public argot as a term for someone who eats excessively and does not pay. He was the subject of numerous poems and ballads. In 1837 William Makepeace Thackeray wrote a short story loosely based on Dando; this was made into a play by Edward Stirling. Charles Dickens wrote about Dando and compared him to Alexander the Great.
Effects[]
Makes consumer’s appetite increase slightly with every meal instead of being satisfied. The nutritional contents are dropped to nearly nothing, leaving them feeling emptier with every bite. They stop when they feel they have eaten enough to hopefully be full later on, usually when after an outrageous amount of food. They never feel the desire to pay afterwards though. If the meal was good enough, they would have been satisfied early on and should therefore only pay for the tidbit that satisfied them.