SI(ETCHES,

OF TlIll1

�WO �ALLEST iEOPLEIN THE WORLD:

I

1 Miss ANNA H.' S"WAN,,

,

ITHE FAMOUS NOVA SCOTIA GIANTESS,

AND

II Oaptain M. V. B. BATES, III

� .� _ _ _ _ _ ::�t�JTHE GB.EA'l' KENTUCKY GIANT.

'1'H£ JOlHIN C��·Ll���..:O CRl!CAGO.

MISS ANNA SWAM

SI{ETCHES

OF THE

,TWO TALLEST PEOPLE

IN THE WORLD:

Miss A'NNA H. SWAN,

THE FAl\IOUS �OVA SCOTIA GIANTESS,

AND

Oaptain }\tI. V. B. BATES,

THE GREAT KENTUCKY GIANT.

THE NOVA SCOTIA GIANTESS,

A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF HER BIRTH AND HISTORY.

A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

OJ'

1\1:I88 ANNA H. 8'\V'AN

THE NOVA SCOTIA GIANTESS.

MISS ANNA H. SWAN, now known as the Nova. Bcotie

Giantess, was born at New Annan, in Colchester, ft, central

county of Nova. Scotia, bordered by the bays of Mines and

Colquid.Miss Swan's origin is Scotch, her father having been born

in Dumfriesshire; she may, therefore-to use an Irishism­

be claimed as an Englishwoman. Mr. Swan sailed from

Liverpool, for the port of Quebec, in Lower Canada, in the

year 1843, and, having arrived safely, re-shipped in a local

vessel for the land of the blue noses, and settled himself

down at New Annan, where he purchased a farm, and beganto cultivate the virgin land of which he had possessed himself.

Mr. Swan was a man of quite ordinary stature, though of fine

physique. He was but five feet six inches in height, and

weighed but a hundred and forty pounds; still he was of

more than ordinary physical power; unyielding, determined,and muscular, he WM just the man for ft, new country. Like

s

all his countrymen, he was plodding and industrious, and the

land at New Annan soon became fruitful and productive,though for centuries it had grown nothing but pine trees. It

was quite natural that, having a farm in a new land, away

from all former associations and friends, Mr. Swan should

seek for new companionships, and he soon became acquaintedwith another Scotchman, who had some years before settled

in Nova Scotia, and who was a native of Dumbarton. Mr.

Graham had not only been successful as a farmer, but had

succeeded in raising a large and interesting family in his new

home, and, being thrown much amongst. them, it was not

unnatural that Mr. Swan should fix his affections upon one of

the daughters; after the usual amount of coquetry, which

is the birthright of American women, and the ordinaryroutine of coyness and teasing, Ann Graham consented to

become a Swan, and glid.ed gracefully into her new home at

New Annan.

The result of this marriage was an increase in the popu­

lation of Nova Scotia. Two male Swans came in rapidsuccession - the subject of this sketch was the third child

born-and afterwards three daughters completed the round

half-dozen which Mr. and Mrs. Swan gave to their country.Mrs. Swan was somewhat below the average height of women

in the North American provinces; she was but five feet high,but she was wonderfully well developed, and, as she weigheda hundred and fourteen pounds, it may he taken for grantedthat she was what the blue noses called" chunky," but what

in England would be termed plump. 'When Mrs. Swan

9

presented her husband with Anna, on the sixth day of

August, 1848, it was evident to the family that she had done

her duty nobly. She had given birth to no puling; puerilefaintling, who would have to make a struggle to get itself

thoroughly into life, but she had brought forth a great strongfinely developed girl, who began to make a noise in the world

at once. She weighed eighteen pounds to begin with, and

day after day shewed such remarkable premonitions of pro­

digious growth, that the saoans of physiological science in

Nova Scotia, and that still larger class who, knowing nothingabout physiology, are always ready to run after a wonder,soon beg�n to flock to New Annan to see the wonderful pro­

duction of Mr. and Mrs. Swan. Unfortunately, in the year

1850, baby shows had not come into fashion, for had one been

held in this North American province about that time, Anna

H. Swan would have carried off the prize without a contest or

a doubt being made as to her claim. However, the parentsneeded no prize, they thought they had prize enough in this

fine bouncing girl, and it was not unnatural that they should

feel a little pride in the knowledge that they were her parents.She Was not only the wonder of the country side, but she

soon became known as the most marvellous child in Nova.

Scotia, though of course, at this time, the parents little

dreamed that their daughter Anna would grow up into the

tallest and finest woman that the world had ever produced.Time wore on, and Anna got to be seven years old, and

then she was taller and heavier than her mother. She did

not shoot up as some young girls are apt to do, and outgrowA

,their strength, but in all her growth she was remarkable for

her symmetry and equal development. Neither did she

during her childhood look like a premature woman; there

was ever the pleasing juvenility which was becoming to her

age rather than to her size. She exhibited thus early, however,

signs of unusual intelligence, and, being always blessed with

robust health, she was, at eleven years old, a very interestingchild-large we admit, for at this time she was quite six feet

in height, and weighed about two hundred pounds. Anna,of course, was the wonder of her schoolfellows, for, althoughshe was the pet of the family, her parents-good parents as

they were - sent her from home, that her mind might be

cultivated, and made, if possible, to keep pace with the extra­

ordinary growth of her body. From the time she was six

years of age, up to her fifteenth year, she was at boardingschool, either in Pictou or Truro, and, as we have said, was

ever the wonder of her playmates. Though of course made a

marvel of by all around her, it is greatly to the credit of

Anna, that she was most assiduous in the prosecution of her

studies, and in many branches of education soon left many of

her smaller associates far behind. It should also be recorded,as greatly to her credit, that during her school days she was

never presumptuous or precocious, and was ever ready to

abide by the monitions of her governesses. There were

plenty of young sparks about Pictou, tall, strapping, young

Nova Scotians, who, seeing a handsome girl like Anna, of the

same height as themselves, took it for granted she was more

than eleven years of age, and found means, as young men

11

will even in our days, to convey love notes tQ her, and urge

her to indulge in flirtations. Without stopping to enquirewhether Anna's heart did, or did not, beat quicker on these

occasions, her governesses testify that she invariably broughtthese billets doux unopened, and placed them in their hands;and when she returned to her loving parents, at the age of

fifteen years, Anna was heart-whole, and was a loving,obedient, and very accomplished daughter.

She was scarcely a child, however. In ordinary families,

girls get to be women in America much earlier than in Eng­land, and at the age of fifteen, Miss Anna H. Swan was the

tallest and finest specimen of womankind of whom ancient

or modern history has any record. We have all heard and

read of giants, from the time of Goliath down to the present,but giantesses have been far less common; and it is no mere

figure of speech, but the simple unvarnished truth, to say

that Miss Anna H. Swan is, by very long odds, the most

magnificent female example of the human race who has ever

lived on the terrestrial globe, from the time that our unfor-:

tunate mother Eve was driven out of that beautiful garden,down to the present year of our Lord o��lI_o���,!!Ui@�_hundred and seventy-o!!_e.

This fact being beyond question, it is not unnatural that,when Miss Swan came to be fifteen years of age, she and her

parents were pestered by offers from all sides, from profes­sional men and speculators. For a long time they turned a

deaf ear to all entreaties, but at last yielded to the pressingsolicitations of Mr. Barnum, who promised to watch over the

12

young lady as if she were his own daughter; and so, before

she was sixteen, she became the rage and the wonder of the

great city of New York. She was the admiration of all the

visitors to Mr. Barnum's celebrated museum; millions of

people, from all portions of the United States, visited her

there, and all went away charmed with her urbane and

pleasing manners, and her interesting and intellectual con­

versation. Unfortunately for Mr. Barnum, this pleasantstate of affairs was not to last, for, in the July of 1865, a

terrible conflagration utterly destroyed the museum, and

deprived New Yorkers of their most favourite resort. In this

fire Miss Swan lost the whole of her valuable wardrobe, and

almost a fortune in jewels, the value of which was greatlyenhanced in her own view from the fact that they were

presents from all the most eminent men on the American

Continent. Thoughtless for the moment of her own property,Miss Swan, during the conflagration, worked, not like twentywomen, but more like twenty men, to assist in saving human

life; and it is a fact, well known in New York, that she was

the last person to leave the building. The staircase was in

flames, and she descended through the smoke literally by the

aid of the balusters alone; and she has now the consolation

of knowing that she was instrumental in saving from the

devouring element a number of human lives. Thrown out of

this engagement, other very tempting ones soon offered, and,in a few weeks devoted to study, Miss Swan had preparedherself for the stage, and made a most successful debut as

Lady Macbeth, at the Winter Garden Theatre, in New York.

13

The young lady, however, did not evince a partiality for the

"life of an actress ;" her place was in society, and, on the

completion of Mr. Barnum's new museum, she again gave

receptions there, and speedily became the presiding genius of

the place. Here she remained until the February of 1868,when again the museum was destroyed, with all its invaluable

and unique contents. At this time, Miss Swan was residingon the fourth story of the building, and the fire was so short,

sharp, and decisive, on that cold bright frosty night, that her

escape with life was little short of a special interposition of

Providence. She of course again lost a valuable wardrobe

and collection of jewels, but regret for these was swallowed

up in thankfulness for her personal safety.The remainder of the year 1868 Miss Swan occupied in

making a tour of the principal cities of the United States and

the British North American provinces, and everywhere she

found troops of friends and admirers, whom she won by her

amiability and intelligent conversation.

In 1869, Miss Swan determined to gratify the darlingwish of her heart, and come to England, the home of her

father, and the birthplace of her mother's father. Arrivingin London, she held receptions for several consecutive

months at the Egyptian Hall, in Piccadilly; and in one day,at the Crystal Palace, Sydenham, received no less than

twenty thousand visitors.

Towards the close of her London season, Miss Swan

would have received the express commands of Her MajestyQueen Victoria to appeal' before her at Windsor Castle, Her

14

Majesty being naturally desirous to see the tallest and largestof all her su?jects. Unfortunately, at this time, Miss Swan

was seized with severe illness, and would have been unable to

obey Her Majesty's commands. Laid prostrate upon a bed

of sickness, she, the greatest subject of the world's greatestmonarch, was deprived of the honour of appearing before her

sovereign. She hopes, however, during her present visit to

be honoured by Her Majesty's commands. During her stayin London, Miss Swan received visits from one hundred

and fifty thousand of Her Majesty's subjects, and had

not illness cut short her receptions, doubtless the great

majority of London's immense population would have

availed themselves of the opportunity to visit this greatest

specimen of the great human family. After her temporaryrecovery, Miss Swan made visits to a number of the largetowns in the United Kingdom, but was soon compelled by the

state of her health to return to her transatlantic home. In

the interim, she has visited the Southern States of the Great

Republic, and has, by the salubrious climate of those states,become restored to perfect health.

On the 25th March, 1870, Miss Swan started for the

great Pacific state of California, journeying the whole distance

by railway, on the New Pacific Railroad, across the RockyMountains. After remaining there for four weeks, she took

steamer for Oregon, to reach which she had to pass up the

beautiful Columbia River, and some of the finest scenery in

the world. In returning from Oregon to California, she made

a tour through the mining districts, and passed the Scott and

15

'Trinity Mountains, travelling the whole distance, some 1,300miles, by stage coach. On the 'railway journey back to the

East, the giantess paid a visit to Salt Lake City, and gave a

private reception to the numerous wives and children of the

Mormon prophet. At a subsequent interview, BrighamYoung used his utmost endeavours to induce Miss Swan to

become a resident OI Utah, but she preferred returning to a,

Christian land.

On the 2nd of May, of this year of grace, one thousand

eighteen hundred and seventy-one, Miss Swan arrived at

Liverpool, in the steamship City of Brussells, on her second

visit to England; and, after a few days of privacy and rest at

the Washington Hotel in the commercial metropolis of the

north, came on to London.

To those who had the pleasure of forming Miss Swan's

acquaintance on her former visit to England, it will be unne­

cessary to say a single word about her qualities of body or

mind. Physically speaking, Miss Swan of course distances

all competitors. She is not only the tallest woman in the

world, but she is quite as tall as the tallest male giant in the

world. She out Chang's Chang, and when standing by the

side of the handsome Kentucky Giant, Capt. Bates, who is

known to be the finest specimen of the male branch of

humanity, no difference can be discovered.

Large as she is, there is riot only an absence of all that is

indelicate and repulsive about Miss Swan, but there is a very

positive attractiveness which charms all who approach her.

She is amiable and affable, and, while possessed of all com-

16

mendable female reserve, she possesses the unusual power of

making all who visit her feel at home in her presence at once.

She is simple and unpretending, utterly devoid of ostentation

and presumption, and is a most pleasing and fascinatingcompanion. Her conversational powers are of a very highorder ; she has not only been a great traveller, but a very

observant one. She has studied men and manners, customs

and observances, with unusual intelligence, and she embel­

lishes her knowledge in conversation with vivacious wit.

She relates her eventful experiences with a modesty which

but ill accords with her size and power. Little women are

apt to be presumptuous, and big men are apt to be overbear­

ing, - Miss Swan is neither; her qualities of head and heart

have won for her the respect and esteem of all who have

come under her influence; and her visitors, from the highestto the lowest, have ever been profuse in their recognition of

her claims, not only as the greatest of all living wonders, but

of her superior qualities as a cultivated and amiable woman.

It may be here stated, that, in this year 1871, Miss Anna

H. Swan stands nearly eight feet in height, and weighs about

four hundred pounds.

From the LONDON DAILY TELEGRAPH, 1st March, 1869.

THE NOVA SCOTIA GIANTESS.

A very remarkable young lady-perhaps the most remarkable

this age has seen-gave on Friday afternoon her first "receptionfor the season" at St. George's Hall, Mortimer Street, RegentStreet. It is Miss Anna Swan's peculiar and singular charac-

17

teristic to be a giantess. She does not pretend to anything else, or

more. The gigantic race are, indeed, as a rule, equally unosten­

tat.ous in their pretensions. They simply say, "Look at me. I

am so many cubits high. My spear is like a weaver's beam; and

when I stamp my foot the earth cracks." Such a modest conscious ..

ness of merit impelled, perhaps, the late Captain Goliath of Gath to

come out of the Philistine host and "chaff" the Israelites merci­

lessly. It is true that he found a little man with a sling in the

opposite camp possessed of terrible powers of repartee. Such a

persuasion of innate solidarity-modified, however, by the softeninginfluences of the feminine organisation-impelled Miss Anna Swan

yesterday to comport herself in a very easy, graceful, yet dignifiedmanner in the presence of a select but inquisitive assemblage,comprising some of the most eminent physicians and surgeons in

London.

Miss Anna Swan has attained the abnormal stature of eightfeet and one inch. Cynical spectators have endeavoured to ascer­

tain whether an additional inch or so may not have been given to

her height by means of cork soles to her shoes; but the fair Nova

Scotian-she is very fair-seems as ready as the late President

Lincoln to "put her foot down "on the measure she adopts; and

her display of a by no means unsymmetrical foot, unsupplemented

by cork, was quite of a nature to reassuro the most incredulous

critic. When we have said that Miss Swan is eight feet one in

height, our task is all but accomplished. For the benefit of the

topographer, we may state that she was born in or near Halifax,Kava Scotia, of parents who hailed from Scotland itself. Those

interested in the compilation of almanacks will know where to placethe birthday of Miss Swan; seeing that she is now alleged to be

18

twenty years of age. To seek further information on this pointfrom Miss Swan herself would be impertinent, as she would pro­

bably return an evasive answer to the enquiry.Ethnologically, this female colossus is worth studying; and the

contemplation of her prodigious dimensions is far from unpleasant.Sh� is, indeed, remarkably well proportioned, and in features so

comely as to be well-nigh handsome. Her hands are remarkablysmall and delicate. Hypercritios may object that her neck is

somewhat too long; but a being whose structural motto is " Ex­

celsior "IDay well crane her neck, in order to make sure that there

ia no human being taller than herself.

The Nova Scotia giantess merely sits on an easy chair, or on

the steps of a dais, smiling as occasion may require. She converses

modestly and unaffectedly; plays nicely on the piano; wears her

hair, which is pure blonde, after the last fashion; dresses in sky­blue, with a long train; and, altogether, looks like a " girl of

the period" viewed through a "double million magnifier," and

reduced to a state of quietude by a long course of articles in the

Saturday Review.

Joseph II. said that " Royalty was his trade," and consequentlycontinued to be an Emperor. It is seemingly Miss Anna Swan's

business to be a giantess; and she behaves herself as such. In her

aspect there is nothing suggestive of an aberration or depravationof nature. A dwarf always reminds us of Hudibras' story of the

" bear and the fiddle; " "begun and broke off in the middle; " for

the dwarf has usually the torso of a Titan terminated by the

extremities of a pigmy. Miss Swan, on the contrary, is a damsel

of harmonious and homogeneous, though tremendous inches. There

was never a perfect Lilliputian: but she seems a very realisable

19

Brobdingnagian; and the highest compliment we can pay to her

symmetrical excellence is that, on entering the apartment where she

held her reception, Miss Swan did not look beyond the ordinarysize; whereas the company looked decidedly small,

THE KENTUCKY GIANT,

�a�t. Badin fan �urtn �attS,

A BRIEF SKETCH OF HIS HISTORY.

MARTIN VAN BUREN BATES,THE KENTUCKY GIANT.

-_

MARTIN VAN BUREN BATES, the subject of the presentsketch, was born in Letcher County, in the State of Ken­

tucky, in the year 1847.

Old Kentuck, familiarly known as the Corncracker State,from the fact that it is a large corn-growing and corn-grind­ing State, is situate on the south bank of the Ohio river,which river was a portion of the celebrated "Mason and

Dixon's line." It was, therefore, what was called one of the

border states in the time of slavery, and the farmers were

known by the name of planters, and owned their own labour.

The climate and the productions of Kentucky ar� doubtless

favourable to growth and longevity. Men and women get to

be very big there, and they live longer than in many parts of

the Union. Kentucky, and the western portion of the neigh­bouring State of Tennessee, produce, beyond doubt, the

largest men and women in the world; and if all the tall

Kentuckians who served in the two armies during the war

had been formed into one regiment, there would have been a

phalanx twelve hundred strong, each man measuring from six

feet five to six feet ten inches in height..Martin Van Buren Bates came from a family of giants

who have inhabited Kentucky since its first 'settlement. Theyhad emigrated from Old V�l'ginia, which joins Kentucky on

24

the east, but were originally of pure old English stock, and

were descended from John Bates, a bmw Yorkshireman, him­

self over six feet high, who went out to Virginia during the

reign of Elizabeth, on account of some religious trouble.

Mr. Bates, the father of the present sketch, is six feet

seven inches in height, and Mrs. Bates, his mother, looks

almost as tall, although she is barely six feet. A largefamily they undoubtedly have had, though numbering onlyfour, the shortest of the foul' brothers being the same heightas the father, namely, six feet seven inches; while the tallest,

Martin, the Kentucky Giant, is nearly eight feet high. Upto the age of seven years, Martin grew up pretty much as his

brothers had done at that age, but he then commenced to

shoot up rapidly, and when he kept his eleventh birthday, he

was six feet high, and weighed two hundred and thirty pounds.Like other big powerful boys, he presumed a great deal

upon his size, and many a poor lad who did not deserve it gota thrashing from young Martin Bates. He was a terror to

the negroes on his father's plantation, and not one ever refused

to obey his will. From this time to the age of fourteen,Martin was pursuing his studies, and if he. did not stand at

the head of his class in school, he was undoubtedly master of

the playground, and used literally to twist the other boysround his fingers. Arrived at fourteen years, Martin returned

to his home, and by this time the tocsin of war had sounded,and called upon all Americans to take sides in the greatestcivil war which has ever cursed the earth.

Martin's brothers had already started for the war, ana

25-

although Martin was the last or' her four sons at home, and

was of tender age, yet his mother, with that heroism which

characterised all the women of America during the great

struggle, put into his hands his double-barrelled shot gun,

and started him off to fight for what she believed to be the

rights of her section of the country; l'ight or wrong, she

undoubtedly was heroic, in giving five such stalwart cham­

pions as her husband and foul' sons to fight for their State.

On. the fifth of September, 1861, young Martin joined the

ranks of the 5th Kentucky Infantry, enlisting as a private.The regiment was commanded by Colonel J. S. Williams,and was attached to the brigade of a rather celebrated Ken­

tuckian, named Gen. Humphrey Marshall. It may be noted

as a point of interest, that this brigade comprised the tallest

and the stoutest men in America; young Martin being the

tallest, and the General in command so stout, that it was

always a matter of wonder to his friends how he maintained

his seat npon a horse.

The first engagement in which young Martin took partcould scarcely be called a fight. A portion of his regiment,three hundred and thirty-six strong, held a naturally strong

position, on a cliff; close to Sandy River, in Floyd County, in

the State of Kentucky. It- is true that the Confederate

soldiers were badly armed, having only two muskets amongstthem; the rest being provided either with double-barrelled

shot guns or squirrel rifles. It is also true that the Federal

army, who desired to force the pass, were five thousand

strong, and under command of General Nelson, an accom-

plished soldier. Still, the fact tha.t the three hundred and

thirty-six gained a victory, can scarcely be recorded as a proofof heroism, when we know that they were as if in ambush.

They occupied a position behind a stone cliff, which entirelyprotected them, while the Federals were compelled to remain

in the pass below, exposed to the constant fire of experiencedmarksmen, and receiving upon their devoted heads portionsof the rock which were loosened and hurled upon them. The

result was, that when night came, seven hundred and eightydead lay in the valley, and, on the next day, five hundred

more were taken from the neighbouring river.

Little beyond skirmishing seems to have taken place in

this part of the country between November, 1861, and

January, 1862, but on the 10th of that month, the giantseems to have been in a hotly contested fight at Middle

Creek, Kentucky. The Federals, under General Garfield,numbered about five thousand men, and Humphrey Marshall

had about the same number of Confederates. Hard fightingproceeded all through the day, from dawn to dark. YoungMartin is said by his confreres to have been always in the

thick of the fight, and was made a. special target of by tho

enemy. He was wounded in the left breast, and made to

taste individually, for the first time, the horrors of war; but

his friends were successful, the Federals retreated at night,and the Confederates victoriously held the position for which

they had all day been fighting. Marlin was carried within

the Confederate lines, more dead than alive, to recover from

his dangerous wound.

27

Martin's nurses reported that they found it difficult to

keep him quiet, he was ever anxious to join his command,and on the 14th of June, 1862, he left the hospital, in the

dead of night, while the nurses were asleep, and suffering as

he was from an only partially healed wound. He would seem

to have known by instinct that some work was to be done,and that he was needed to assist in it. He rode hard for

three days, and arrived in Humphrey Marshall's camp on the

17th of June. Jaded and worn out, he looked more like an

enormous ghost than a handsome giant; but although his

comrades warmly welcomed him, they had no time to remark

his personal appearance. The enemy had been seen lurkingabout during the night, and Humphrey Marshall and his brave

Kentuckians were sallying forth to give him battle. On

seeing the advance of Gen. Marshall, the Federals, who were

under command of Gen. Cox, retired upon Princeton, Vir­

ginia, and there took up a strong position. This position the

Confederates determined to storm, and, after two days' hard

fighting, the Federals were driven from the position. The

giant kept up so long as work was to be done, but on the

night of the 18th, after the close of the battle, weak and ill

from the loss of blood, he had to succumb to circumstances.

A faithful negro connected with his regiment was appointedto look after him, and, carrying him to a log hut on the top of

the mountains, he carefully tended the hero for three months,

and nursed him back to life.

In September, Martin rejoined his regiment, which was

now attached to the command of General Bragg, at Lexing..

28

ton, Kentucky. He had scarcely returned, ere his regimentwas ordered on skirmish duty, and for five days they had

some hot work with the Federal forces at Cumberland Gap,whichwere commanded by Gen. George Morgan.

On the 7th November, 1862, the Kentucky State troopsunder General Marshall were disbanded; but young Bates,anxious for glory, and for an opportunity to serve his country,

immediately enlisted in the State Line Service of Virginiaunder Gen. John B. Floyd. This time he chose the cavalryservice, and as by this time his prowess had become known

all through that part of Virginia, he was immediately elected

a First Lieutenant of the 27th Regiment of Virginia Cavalry,commanded by Colonel Clarkson.

On the 20th of November, the giant was selected by Gen.

Floyd for special service. The scouts had brought in word

that three Federal Kentucky regiments were coming up

the river on boats, the boats being all laden with Federal

clothing and ammunition. It turned out that only a small

portion of the men were armed. Martin was sent in com­

mand of a squad to attack these boats, while passing througha lock on the river. The few companies who were armed

offered desperate resistance, but the giant was successful in

destroying the boats and their contents, disarming the

soldiers, and carrying the whole three regiments prisonersinto Virginia. From this time up to the middle of Apl'il,1863, Martin's regiment was occupied in skirmishing on the

State line.

On the 14th of April, Gen. White's brigade, to which his

29

regiment was now attached, encountered four Federal regi­ments. The battle on the 14th was a drawn one, but, beingrenewed on the 15th, the Confederates became destitute of

ammunition, and were compelled to surrender. Men who

were near him say, that a score of men were hewn down 1;yMartin's sword before he would submit to be taken prisoner.The giant, however, is a modest man, and desires to say that

this is an exaggeration. Martin, as well as his companions,was sent to Camp Chase, in the State of Ohio, and was keptthere until the 13th of May. He was, of course, an object of

great interest to the" buckeyes," on account of his enormous

size, but they seem to have treated him with great kindness.

On the 13th of May, Martin Bates and his friends were

exchanged for prisoners which had been captured by the greatStonewall Jackson at Chancellorsville. Al'riving in Virginia,they found the State Line troops merged into the regulararmy of the Confederacy. The giant joined the 7th Confede ..

rate Cavalry, under Col. Prentice. In the August of 1863,he was in an engagement at Blountsville, Tennessee, and he

is said to have performed such feats of valour as astounded

the whole regiment, The Federals were defeated, and the

General promoted this boy of sixteen to be a Captain. On

the 3rd October, of the same year, Capt. Bates was in a

pretty sharp engagement at Salyersville, Kentucky, where he

again got badly wounded, this time in the shoulder, and for

many months he was confined to hospital. In June, 1864,the giant was again in the field, and at this time his regi­ment was attached to the forces of Gen. John H. Morgan,

30

the celebrated Kentucky Cavalry officer. On the 14th of'

June, they were engaged with the Federals and repulsedthem. O� the 15th, Gen. Morgan retook Salyersville;marching rapidly to Mount Stirling, he engaged the forces

of Gen. Burbridge, capturing a portion of the garrison and

four heavy guns. On the following day, the 16th, General

Burbridge returned with reinforcements, .and attacked Gen.

Morgan; the Confederates were again successful, Gen. Mor­

gan capturing 1,300 prisoners, whom he paroled on the spot.On the very next day, the 17th, Morgan attacked the forces

of Gen. Hobson, at Cynthiana, and, after driving them for

eleven miles, captured the entire command, some 1,100 men,

who were immediately paroled. On the 18th, havingreturned to Cynthiana, they found that the very men theyhad captured and paroled were in arms again, and had formed

a junction. The Federal forces occupied a very strongposition, and commanded a bridge. Gen. Morgan ordered

his forces, 3,800 strong, to charge this bridge. They obeyed,and carried it; but only 786 of the centre command escapedeither death or capture.

In September, 1864, Capt. Bates was attached to General

Giltner's command, and in the early part of the month theyencountered a large number of the enemy, both black and

white, at SaltsvilIe. The Federals, under Gen. Burbridge,were defeated; but in a few days afterwards they had their

revenge, for on the 22nd, the same forces were engaged with

Gen. John H. Morgan, one of the ablest Confederate cavalryofficers, and Morgan was killed,

31

At the end of September, the Confederate forces in

Western Virginia and Tennessee were combined, and placedunder the command of Gen. John C. Breckenridge. Capt.Bates was attached to these forces, and with them marched to

East Tennessee, to intercept General Stoneman's greatcavalry raid. There they were in several engagements, at

Shamby, Mossy Creek, and Bull's Gap, but without impor­tant results on either side. On the 31st of October, the

regiment of Capt. Bates was sent to reconnoitre the countryin the direction of Cumbe�land Gap, the Federal forces

being encamped at Taswell, Tennessee. On the 2nd of

November, the regiment made an attack on the enemy, and

captured five guns, but were afterwards compelled to retreat.

In this engagement, Capt. Bates was again severelywounded in the left leg, but bravely rode back to camp upon

his horse; but he was then laid up in hospital for three

months. During this long period his life was frequentlydespaired of, and it was only by his indomitable will and

extraordinary constitution that he ever left the hospital again.In the March of 1865, he left hospital, and immediately

joined Gen. Eccles at Taylorsville, Tennessee. Within a dayor two orders came for them to proceed to Richmond and

reinforce General Lee. They immediately commenced their

march, but, arriving at Christiansburg, the news came that

General Lee had been compelled to surrender, and that the

fortune of war had decided against the Confederacy.So ended the military career of Martin Van Buren Bates,

the Kentucky giant. He remained for some time with

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relatives in Western Virginia; but the fortune of his familyhad been so wasted during the. war, that he has felt it hisduty, as one of the wonders of the world, to exhibit himself

to the public. Having made a tour of his own country, he

arrived in Liverpool by the steamship City of Brusselle on the

2nd of May. Some literary, gentlemen "interviewed" the

giant at the Washington Hotel. Capt. Bates is nearly eightfeet in height, and weighs about 400 pounds.

THE LIVERPOOL DAILY COURIER says:-

Capt. Bates, a young Kentucky gentleman, twenty-three years

of age, appears to be about eight feet in height. Capt. Bates is

perhaps the finest specimen of a giant that our degenerate modern

days have witnessed. He is a handsome, well-proportioned young

fellow, neither weak-kneed nor round-shouldered, but as well set up

as any of Her Majesty's Foot Guards. Some idea of his, build may

be formed from the statement that he measures, under his clothes,

sixty-two inches round the chest; and he is as active, as light in

his movements, and as capable of bearing fatigue, as a healthy well­

built man of ordinary stature.

F1'Om, the LIVERPOOL DAILY POST.

Captain Bates is a stranger, but he will c,ertainly be very

popular in England before long. He is about eight feet high, but

there is nothing of the awkwardness of the show giant about him.

He is as manly and straight and as well set up as be is lofty in

stature, and his face is exceedingly handsome. Captain Bates is

twenty-three years of age, and his conversation is that of a self­

possessed and highly intelligent American gentleman.