The Dickinson press., 1909-02-20
ROYAL STRONG ARMS
Famous Monarchs That RivaIed
the Mighty Samson.
FEATs OF MUSCLE.

-H4...-
AMAZING FEATS OF MUSCLE.
The Emperor Maximianus Could LIT
Three Men With One Hand Angus.
tus the Strong Of saxony Carried .
Horss and lie Rider on HE Back.
Curiously enough, a large percentage
Of the notably strong men Of history
have been Of royal blood. One Of the
earliest Of these royal athletes was
Maximianus, called "Maximianus Her
cules" because Of his great strength.
He was the son Of a peasant and had
an enormous physique. He became a
common soldier and was finally made
emperor by acclaim Of his fellow SOL
diers during a stormy period Of Ro-
man history.
Maximianus' strength was prodi-
gious. It was said that on foot he
could u down a fox, that he could
lift three men with one hand and that
by gripping the wheel Of a chariot
with one finger he could resist the pull
Of three horses. Like most men Of
great physical strength, Maximianus
was a heavy eater. History records
that his daily allowance was forty
pounds Of meat and eighteen bottles Of
wine.
Augustus the Strong of Saxony was
another Of these royal Samsons. HI
would often seize two of his courtiers,
grasping one with his right hand and
another with his left, holding them up
at arms length and playfully twirling
them about.
On one occasion the horse ridden by
n Of his attendants became balky
and refused to bulge. After some min
utes Of coaxing the king dismounted,
placed his Herculean shoulder under
the horses chest, grasping it by the
fore legs, and calmly walked away
with both horse and rider. This re-
markable performance was witnessed
by a number Of courtiers and attend
ants.
King Richard of England (.'Coeur de
Lion") had tremendous strength. Dur
ing his captivity in Germany he gave
a terrible demonstration Of his physical
powers. The son Of n Of the ward
ems was a youth locally. renowned for
his muscular strength and in his as
surance invited the royal captive to an
exchange Of Bullets. The young man
by a cast Of the dice won the right to
the first stroke and struck the king a
staggering blow on the side Of the
head. 1t was then the kings turn, and
he landed a blow just behind his op-
ponent's a 80 heavy that the man
was instantly killed.
This incident is used in Sir Walter
Scott's famous historical novel "Ivan-
hoe" where King Richard, the "Black
Knight" and the jolly outlaw Friar
Tuck have an exchange Of buffets,
without, however, any fatal result.
Dom Pedro l., emperor Of Brazil, is
also on the list Of royal strong men.
On the occasion of a carnival he ar
ranged matters so that he was stand
ing on the bow of the royal barge be-
tween two of his stateliest courtiers.
Suddenly in the midst Of the festivities
the king reached out, grasped a court
Ter with each hand, and, after holding
them for a few moments squirming in
the air and begging to be released, he
relaxed his grip and allowed them to
drop plump into the water, amid the
frantic applause Of the huge crowd
that had assembled. to view their o
arch. The king Joined heartily in the
general hilarity, but what the drenched
courtiers thought about this exquisite
joke is not recorded.
Peter the Great Of Russia, like Char
lemagne, possessed great physical az
well as mental power. His years Of
work as blacksmith and ship carpen-
ter had so developed a naturally pow
erful physique that he was believed to
be the strongest man in Russia.
The story is told that a certain
blacksmith in q little country town had
boosted that he was the only black
smith in the world who could lift his
own anvil. The emperor, hearing Of
the blacksmith's boast, disguised him
self as a workman and with a single
companion set out for the b~lacksmith's
village. On learning of their errand
the blacksmith without a word laid
aside his tools and, grasping the anvil
with his brawny hands, lifted it with
great effort about a foot from the floor.
Then Peter took hold Of the anvil,
raised it a foot, two feet, three, higher
and higher, till he finally swung It to
his shoulder and calmly walked away
with It.
Charlemagne was said to be the most
powerful man physically Of his time.