Omaha daily bee., 1898-02-27
its victims at the Vesey street crossing il
the down. town district
TAILEST MAN OF THE FORCE.


Graham is the tallest man in the metro
! politan police force, standing 6 feet 6R
inches. He is SO years DID, and when he
Joined the force in 1885 he was called the
lightning rod cop" because he was then so
very tall and thin. He is one of the athletes
of the department, and by constant exercise
has kept his waist line down, instead of sue
cumbing to the policeman's usual tendency
to wear larger and larger belts. At present
he weighs 245 pounds, which Is no more
than is proper for man Of so large frame.
His chest measurement is 42h inches, while
his waist measures 37R inches. The inner
seam of his trouser leg is 39R inches long,
and the outside measurement, from hip to
heel, is fifty and half inches. His arm
measures twenty-seven and three-fourths
inches.
Except in the matter OF height Taggart is
in every way larger man than Graham.
He is 33 years old and in every measurement
except height, which is six feet five and one
half inches, has developed considerably since
he became a policeman ten years ago. His
stripped weight has increased from 245 to
27S pounds, and his dimensions show a cor
responding change. 1t takes forty-seven
inches of tape to reach around his chest a
good record even for big man. His waist
measures forty-four inches and his arm
thirty inches. His hip to heel measurement
is only half an inch less than Graham's, but
the inside OF his leg is an inch and half
shorter. He wears 1019 shoe and a 9A
glove, but in comparison with his other di
mensions his hands and feet are not large.
NOT IDEALLY PERFECT.
While both these men are magnificent
specimens Of physical development, neither
of them conforms exactly to the proportions
laid down for the physically perfect man.
Graham Is long-waisted and his arms are
rather short for his height, while his inches
would justify somewhat greater amount
of avoirdupois. Taggart, though more
nearly approximating the figures quoted by
tho experts as ideal, has an inch or two to
usually long arm and hand so that when he
ltands with outstretched arms he spreads
nearly eight feet, several inches more than
the reach allowed to the model man. 1t may
bo said in passing that perfect men, accord
ing to the ideal standard are not numerous.
There is, perhaps, one In 100000. Though
the records OF the New York police depart
ment extend back over good many years and
cover the physical examination OF thousands
of applicants, there is but one man In all
tho list whose measurements correspond in
every point to the proportions laid down by
tho standard authorities as indicating per-
feet physique He presented himself for eX-
animation some months ago and has not yet
got on the force, though it Is likely that he
will be taken on before long
While the two roundsmen who are New
York's chief pride among the members Of
the police force are not absolutely perfect
III tHelT proportions, tnelr maBnlnCent
physiques are such as almost any man would
be glad to own. 1t has been often said that
the police department makes a mistake in
trying to secure giants for its service, and ,
that smaller men would be livelier and more
effective in thief-taking and the general work
that falls to policeman. The records OF
these two men do not bear out this assertion,
however. Graham is one of the ull-around
athletes OF the department. He can sprint
100 yards in eleven seconds and finds no diff
fculty in clearing a four-foOt wall at a hop.
Taggart, being a heavier man, Is not so
lively on his feet but he has an arm and
fist like the business end of pie-drver, and
it Is said that he can put up puglistic argu-
ment which few men would care to face.
During their long terms OF service as patrol
men neither Taggart nor Graham ever had
TO report a serious accident at their cross
in the city. They were promoted, not for
records on the force
A REMARKABLY TALL FAMILY.
Roundsman Taggart comes OF a family
whose members are all remarkable for
their height. 1t is doubtful II there is any
other household In the country that can equal
them in this respect. Taggart was born in
Newburg, n. Y, where his seven brothers
and three sisters still reside. or these
eleven brothers and sisters, the ehortest-
one OF the girls-measures 1ye feet nine
inches, while the tallest, who is also the
youngest, towers six feet eleven and one
half inches Their aggregate hight Is sixty
nine feet; so that standing on one another's
shoulders. they would make very impos-
Ing American liberty pole. The eight boys