Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1879-05-31


The existence of race of giants Tar exceed
Ing those exhibited in modern times was fully
believed In up to the commencement of the
eighteenth century; This belief was founded
the discovery Of hugh bones SUPPOSED to he
those OF human beings, and partly upon the ac-
counts handed downby medieval writer's. The
90 o. testament d says there were giants in those
men, as the Anakim, Rephaim, Emim, the Zon-
yenlm ana others. There are several instances
Ia t ne ola testament Of Individual giants, such
as Og (Wno slept on bedstead Of irony and
Goliath. The height of Og Is not mentioned. hut
Goliath, at most, did not exceed 81 feet in stat
fape, s Uer historians sometimes called pro-
!anel also mentlon giants, but some OF their &C.
counts are not worthy Of belief Plutarch
STATES that when the graves OF Antseus was
~ sxtv oS Seroonias the body was found TO
at an earthquake in Crete the bones OF a giant
10lly-sM cubits In length were disclosed. Giants
h PaEI p Part In the mythology Of almost all
lepiesented them as being Of monstrous
SIZE, with hideous countenances, and haV-
log Ine tails OF dragons, placed their abode
Tabled to have been banished after three unsuc-
cesSul attempts upon heaven, when the gods,
Win Wltn the assistance Of Hercules, imprisoned
Dody OF Orestes, according to Greek history
was li1 1eet high. The giant Galbara, brought
Was Il, a fseq 70 f6me under Claudius Cesar
funo keepers OF the gardens OF Sanust, were
Dut SIX inches shorter. We read that the
g ga iEerragns, slain by Orlando. nephew Of
tne celebrated Charlemagne, was Is feet high.
Funnum. Scotchman, who lived at the time
OF Eugene H., King of Scotland measured liz
1eet, and La Mare, in his voyage to the Straits
OF Magellan, reports that on December is he
found at Port Desire several graves covered
with stones, and.haying the curiosity to remove
Them lie found human skeletons 10 and II feet
long. Coming to more reliable evidence 1t seem
certain that height of even more than fee
mas been attained. In the museum of Trinity
College, Dublin, there is a skeleton feet 6
inches In height. In the museum of the Royal
College OF surgeons Of England Is another feet
Inches In height and another In the museum at
Bonn feet. The giant who was shown In ROuen
In 1888 measured feet ~ inches. The Emperor
Platerus, physicians of the last century saw sew
eral OF that stature, and GorOp1ns saw a girl
nineteen years OF age who was 10 feet high. In
on the Rhone. 1t was stated that the skeleton
had been in a tomb 80 feet long, bearing the in
Scrtption "TeuetObOchus Rex" The ParisianS
chus; but it was Afterwards found that the
remains were not those Of man, but OF a mas
tCdon. Dr.. Mather, In 1712, announced the dis
coyery Of the bones and teeth Of giant In the
province OF New York. The statement was
published in the I" Philosophical TRANSACTIONS
but 1T was subsequently ascertained that the
bones In this case also were those of mastO-
don. 1t appears that attempts have been made
TO manufacture giants. According to Godfrey
Saint Hilaire, Bishop Berkeley attempted to
manufacture one. He reared an orphan boy
named nan Magaatn on certain hygienc principles,
teen years he was seven feet In height. He
died, with all the symptoms OF old age, when
he had completed his twentieth year, at which
time he was seven feet eight inches high. Great
diversity as to height prevails among the hui
man race. Men rarely exceed six feet. In
northern ATTITUDES men are below the ordinary
standard. In temperate climates the height
varies from four and q half to six feet Thomas
y. Boscditch in Troy Times.