The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-02-27
sANpow THE sKEPTIc.
He Thinks that Samson Was an Over
rated Man.
From the New York Advertiser.


From the New York Advertiser
The stories of Goliath and David, and
Daniel in the lions den. and Jonah and
the whale, and Samson Staying 1000 Phil
istians with the jawbone Of an ass and
tearing down the roof garden on which
5000 people were standing-these never
interested little Sandow. They have no
part in his thoughts now. Not only that,
Sandow is prepared to prove that the
Delilah story is fanciful and that hair
cannot grow on strong man.
mo he said, 1.-THE feats of Samson
never exercised any influence on me.
When l was years old my father took
me to Rome and to Florence and showed
me the beautiful statues that the great
sculptors had made. l asked him why
the men of his day were not so magnif-
Gently developed and if he was built like
the statues. He told me the men in olden
times were strong because they had to
fight with their strength and not with
their guns, as men fight now. l resolved
to develop my strength and to be like the
men represented in the statues. Such
money as | could obtain l spent for books
and read a great deal of the history of
Rome and Greece, but l gave no thought
to Samson
''Do you believe that Sampson slew a
lion with his naked handsE' Sandow was
asked.
The Bible says it was young lion, >"
answered Sandow. He was about
months old, maybe. / would not be afraid
to contest strength with lion, so far as
mere strength goes. If l was protected
against a lions teeth l could slay him,
and / would not ask for young lion
either. How would l do it, | would take
him by the throat and strange him, or
with two fingers of one hand would put
out his eyes"
What about the story that Samson
slew 1000 men with the iawbone Of an
ASST"
Tut, tut! J" said Sandow. Maybe he
slew fifteen or twenty Why did the other
$50 not run away? Did they lie down and
wait to be killed"
DO you think that if a crowd of Phil
lstines had seen Samson killing men right
and left with the iawbOne of an ass there
wouldn't have been stampede before he
had slain ,0002'
But" it was suggested, 1.-The Bible
says it was a new jawbone"
New or old" said Sandow, at is non
sense to say one man could STAY thou
sand with lawbone of an ass. l have
no doubt Sampson had a great reputation
and CONSERVATION reigned when the Phil
istines saw him coming, but to slay a
thousand with jawbone Of an asst Tut,
tut!"
You remember" it was said to San
dow, that when Sampson, had been cap
tured by the Philistines and his eyes had
been put out, and he had been brought
from prison TO make sport for the multi
tude, he took hold of the two middle pill
lars of the house on which 5000 persons
had been standing and with mighty eff
fort pulled down the house, and over 1000
were killed."
IF he could do that, why did he not
make his way out of the prison2" was
Shadows qucry, and then he said: POS
sibly Samson did it. 1t all seems absurd
to me and l would pronounce it nonsense,
but 1 believe in God, and it may be God
gave Samson supernatural strength He
did not give ne supernatural power, but
gave me good health and 1 developed my
strength. l am as strong as Samson if
you take from him the supernatural that
God gave him.
DO you think Samson's hair had any
thing to do with his strengthF'
Sandow laughed at the idea.
Hair" said he, won't grow on a
strong man. 1t grows only on the tender
est spots" and he pointed to his mus
tache, soft as silk.
There Is no hair on my body, except on
my face and head, and so far from beliey-
ing that hair adds TO my strength l have
my hair cut every week" Sandow
pushed up his sleeve ana showed the
great banks and knots of muscle, as hard
as cannon balls, and over which was no
doubt the thinnest skin in New York,
under which there was absolutely not
particle of fat There" he said, You
see there is no place for the hair to grow.
The skin is too thin and there is nothing
under it but muscle. The story of Deli
lah cutting Samson's hair while he slept
to rob him of his strength is tigurative
She could have stabbed him or poisoned
him.
There is a story told of the great
strength of one of my ancestors" contin-
ued Sandow ''who lived in the sixteenth
century He was a sculptor. 1t is said he
once handled of block or stone weighing
five tons, and that he could hold out at
arms length a weight weighing 400
pounds
What do you believe about thatp
Il believe it's-not so. can hold out
only 105 pounds. The stories of Samson
and the stories Of my grandfather are ex-
agerations. l have no doubt that a
thousand years from now they will print
in the books thar Sandow pulled down
the theater ana killed thousand people
because they wouldn't pay MIN his sal
ary.n