Morning journal and courier., 1890-05-19
BIG MEN AND WOMEN.
Some of the Giants and Glantesses C Whom History Tells.
 IErn,a fha Irish Times l

[Fre,a the Irish Times.l
 At all tip'~~ md in all countries, kings and nobles had fancy for including among their retainers either giant or dwarf, sometimes both. Frederick the Great and his corps of gigantic grenadiers; and in the tower of Lon don may be seen lance and some enormous armor ofsixteenth century work, which doubt CT of the Kings bodygaurd. James l had at- tsched to his person porter named Walter Parsons, commonly called the Stsffordshire giant, a handsome, brave and strong young man, who had begun life as farrier. His height was seven feet seven inches, and his portrait exists, engraved by Glover. Parsons lived on into tbe reign of Charles I, and was succeeded by another giant, William Evans, two inches taller than his predecessor.
 It is curious fact that the population of France has rarely produced a giant; Great Britain, Germany, Poland and Switzerland carry off the palm; and this may perhaps be attributed to the prevalence in France of @ vegetarian diet, which does not tend to deve- lop to so great an extent tha growth of mus cle as does the stronger diet of meat. The eighteenth csntury,to judge by contemporary letters and newspapers, seems to have been more than usually prolific in giants and giant esses.
 Horace Wslpole mentions giant and giant- ess who were on view respectively at Spring Gardens and Half-moon court, Ludgate Hill. They were both, 1t seems, handsome and we'll proportioned persons, and without the ,unus- ual awkward ungainliness peculiar to their kind. At this time also appeared young Italian Riantess seven feet in height, "who was the admiration" ," said the handbills, .of the Emperor of Germany, of eight kings of Europe, and of the grand czar of Moscow himself" Her appearance seems to have been followed In 1742 by that of Caianus, the fam ous Swedish giant, commonly called "the liv- ing Colossus, "who came over to England and established himself at house opposite the Mansion House. He was the son of pastor of little village in Finland, and stood eight feet four inches in his socks.
 In 1775 England was visited by another Italian giant, named Bernardo Gigli,o or Gilli, who measured eight feet in height and seems to have created an immense sensation by the colossal proportions of his limbs. But no giant created such furore as did Charles Byrne, the Irish giant who was eight feet eight inches in height, and possessed of enor- nous strength. He was clever and shrewd, and full of the natural wit of his mother country; but unfortunately the large fortune he rapidly gained by the exhibition of him- self led him into habits of gluttony and in- temperance, and he died at the early age ot two.and-twenty, leaving instructions that his body was to be buried at sea; but the College of Surgeons in some way obtained his corpse for the sum of $500, according to certain re- ports, and the skeleton was "set up" in their museum by William Hunter, the famous aaa tomist.
 Shortly after Byrne's death another Irish giant exhibited himself in London, by name of Patrick Cotter, alias. He was sc attenuated that tall as he was, he appeared even taller. His height was eight feet sever inches. Feeble and facilitated in health, h, could only walk by supporting himself on the shoulders of two tall men walking in front o him, resting hand on the shoulder of each Many amusing stories are related of him. On, evening, at a masonic dinner, he took out of his pocket the celebrated dwarf, Count Bor ulauski, ,and set him upon the table to the as | tonishment of all.
 Some time after, while staying at Bath, hs nearly terrified night watchman out of hi wits by taking off the top of street laml and lighting his pipe with the flame. H was of an amiable and gentle disposition, bu not remarkable for any intellectual capacity Since his day to the present time London ha l only seen four giants of any abnormal neigh .or size, namely, James Toless, eight feet ri, inches in height, in 1873; Scott. Chang ant | Herr Winkelmeir, the Bavarian giant.