Telegram-herald., 1890-05-25

. - - N-sA-tA-t 49,
giant OF q dwarf. sometimes both' say ;
the Irish Tiues. Frederick the "reat
had his corps of gigantic greh~aleIs >
and IN the Tower Of London may be
seen lance and some enormous afinot
cf sixteenth century work "hion'
doubtless, belonged 10 some giant
knight or trooper Of the Kings b"'t
guard James |. had attached 70 his
person porter named Walter Parsons
commonly called the Stsfordshlre
giant. handsome. brave and strong
young man, who had begun lie as
farrier His height MSS seven feet
seven inches, and his portrait exists
engraved by Glover. Parsons lived on
into the reign OF Charles / and was
succeeded in his Office by another giant
William Evans. who was Two inches
taller than his predecessor
IL is a curious fact that the population
OF France has rarely produced giant;
Great Britain, Germany, Poland ana
Switzerland carry of the palm; ana
this NAV. perhaps be attributed 20 The
prevalence In France of vegetarian
diet. which does not tend 70 develop. to
SO great an extent, the growth OF
muscle as does the stronger diet OF
meat The eighteenth century. 20
Judge by con temporary letters and news
papers, seems 20 have been more than
usually prolific in giants and giantesseA
Horace Walpole mentions giant and
riantess who were on view respectively
at Spring Gardens and Half-moon Court,
I.udgate Hill They were both, 10 seems,
handsome and well-proportioned per
sons, and without the usual awkard un-
gainliness peculiar TO their kind. At this
time, also, appeared a young Italian
giantess seven feet in height, who was
tho admiration"-said the hand-bills-
"of the Emperor of Germany, Of eight
kings OF Europe. and Of the Grand Gar
of Moscow himself" Her appearance
seems TO have been followed. in l742, by
that Of Cajanus, tho famous Swedish
giant, commonly called the Giving Co
lossus." who came over 10 England and
established himself at a house opposite
the Mansion House. He was the son OF
a pastor of little village in Finland,
and stood eight feet four inches in his
socks.
In 1855 London was visited by another
italian giant, named Bernardo Gigli. or
Gill, who measured eight feet in height
and seems to have created an immense
sensation By the colossal proportions of
his limbs But no giant ever created
such Juror as did Charles Byrne, the
Irish giant, who was eight feet eigb I
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 himself led him into
habits OF gluttony and intemperance,
and he died at the early age of two-and-
twenty, leaving instructions that his
BODY was TO be buried at sea; but tho
College OF Surgeons in some way OBJ
tanned his corpse for the sum Of $500,
according to certain reports; and tho
skeleton was ''set up" in their museum
by William Hunter, the famous anato-
mist.
Shortly after Byrne's death another
Irish giant exhibited himself in London,
By name Patrick Cotter, alias O'Brien.
He was so attenuated that, tall as be
was, he appeared even taller. lis
height was eight feet seven inches.
Feeble and debilitated in health, he
could only walk by supporting himself
on tho shoulders OF two tall men walk
ing in front Of him, resting hand on
the shoulder Of each. Many amusing
stories are related or him. one evening
at Masonic dinner he took out OF his
pocket the celebrated dwarf. Count
Borulauski. and set him upon the table,
TO tho astonishment Of all the guests
Some time after. while staying at
Bath. he nearly terrified a aight-watch-
man out Of his wits by taking OF tho
top OF street lamp and lighting his
pipe with the famo He was Of an
aDiable and gentle disposition, but not
remarkable for any intellectual capac-
fly. Since his day 70 the present tins
London has only seen four giants of any
abnormal height or size. namely. James
Tolees, eight feet six inches in height,
in 1919. Scott. Chang and herr NickeE
mcir, tho Bavarian giant
OF 9iantes es. Miss Scott and Pauline
Mario Elizabeth Wodde ar tho Only CO.
l0ssal ladies who bavo ssto1ished me
eyes Of tho sight-seeinR worls The lat
TT. called the Queen 81 the Amazors,
vas bora az Bon-ReDdorf. IN Thurinria,
on the sfst q January. 1870. and intro
ducsd - tho London public at the Al
bambra in . piece entitled "Dabil and
Biiou sho vas Tood-lookipg and % 3
handsome, weli-p-oportioned fgure. sd
measured about csCh. feet four inches
r. height o. her subsequent historI
ard career we have not bcen able -
traco any account sinco her provinci8
tour IN France. aftor shc Rad exh hifoi
hcrsef rt1is r9aut-r. u is . curious
fact f1at giants rarely exceed fhc aCc n
fortT or fo-tF-Gvo. and fov auonEs'
them ever show signs ~ ru~a intel
l7,' 'ual capacity Th-v arr. "a 3 rulo
good tempered I-3olert s01 rIaS o.
ttcl- opposite extremes tho ra-'s he
irr irritable. s-tr-. clever and ill-teT8
perr7
aged 2 1rin -ist.rs
Ta- este-s celebrated their -Tti
trr3ar arr rr~s--r at irer-- Wass