The gold leaf., 1893-07-06
THE STRONGEST MAN.
SandOw. the German, Credited With
Being the Strongest Man i'll the
WOrld---HiS Remarkable Strength
Recently Exhibited i'll New York.
New York Herald.

New York Herald
Perhaps the strongest man whom
the world has seen since Sampson de
stroyed himself along with three thOus-
and Phlistincs, is in New York just
now. He is moi Staying thousands
with the jawbonc Of an ass, carrying
of ponderous gates like those of GAIA
on his shoulders, nor pulling down
stone houses on himself and others,
but he is doing feats in lifting dumb
bells, men and horses that make cold
chills chase one another up and down
the spine of the beholdcr.
Ernest Sandow, this modern marvel
of physical power, beside whom the
average man is puny, made his Amer
ican debut in the Casino before a pri-
vate gathering of about two hundred
persons, many of whom were medical
men, las: Sunday. 1t was hard for
the spectators when a calcium light
was turned on the figure standing on
a pedestal in the back of the darkened
stage to believe that it was indeed
flesh and blood that they beheld.
Such knots and punches and layers OF
muscle they had never before seen of
the statue of Achilles, a Discaboius or
a fighting gladiator.
sANDow'S BOyIsH FACE.
The face was that of little more
than boy-snooth, with rosy cheeks
and a little blonde mustache. The
chin, however, was square and heavy
The neck was massive, and the shoul-
ders seemed yard apart. The arm
looked as though hickory nuts and
walnuts had somehow been forced
under the skin, causing it to bulge out
in abrupt Jumps. Layers OF mnsclt
three inches thick covered the chest
and on the abdomen was a succession
of rolls of muscle that one Cuui.l tel
even from a distance of several yard:
were hard as iron.
Below the waist the development
was no less remarkable. The thigh:
were d" big around as beer kegs some
one said, and the calves were in pro
portion. The ankle and foot, how
ever, were comparatively small.
"See how his ribs show" | hearC
physician who sat near me, exclaim
as Sandow suddenly changed his posi-
ton and fixed the muscles of the uppe
part of the body. thought they wer'
ribs, too, until | felt of them in San
dow's dressing room after his perform
ance last Tuesday night. The ridge
that stood out SO plainly were O
muscle and not of bone. "They ar
rudimentary in most men and the
don't know how to develop them,
Sandow said. "That is the reason
they are SO infrequently seem
OPINION OF AN EXPERT.
The physician who made the remarl
about Sandow's cribs was DR.. Ra
mon Guiteras. The Doctor was for
merly much interested in athletics. II
is member of the New York Athleti
Club, and enjoys with Charley
Mitchell and s' Jim" Corbett the prou
distinction of having knocked dow,
Mr.. John Sullivan. That was befor
Sullivan became a professional.
| asked the Doctor what he though
about Sandow.
Sandow," said he, 81 is about tn
most perfectly developed specimen c
man have ever seen. | have see
athletes with bigger muscles than he
but never one with the all round dc
velopment Sandow possesses.
"There is nothing abnormal in h
development. The nearest approac
to a deformity, if natural muscula
development may be termed deforn,
ity, is in the abdominal muscles. Th
like of these l have never before see
on any human being"
The feats which he performs are, S
far as one could judge, genuine TT
three horses he supports, to be sur'
are not OF large size, but togethe
nevertheless, they make up a weigl
that would crush the life out of a
ordinary athlete.
GETTING STRONGER EVERY YEAR.
Sandow says he is getting strongt
every year and expects to keep il
creasing in strength for years to CONF
Before he gives up profession;
work, he says, he intends to write
book explaining his system. He wi
also give personal instruction to tho:
who want to become strong.
The feats which Sandow perform
on the stage seem nothing less tha
marvellous. He handles fifty-sx poun
dumb bells as schoolboy would hal
die weights of two pounds each. H
is not in the least muscle bound an
turns somersaults and handsprings WI,
the ease of professional acrobat. Or
OF his tricks is to turn 4 backwar
somersault with his feet tied togethe
his eyes blindfolded and a fifty-s
pound dumb bell in each hand.
In MS nightly performance at II
Casino four men carry on the stage q
immense dumb bell, the bar of whic
is brass about four feet long and II
bells, which are hollow, three feet j
diameter. With great effort Sando
raises the bell over his head with on