The American Goliah

by Anonymous

Mr. Newell has stumbled upon an "elephant" in this Giant. His neighbors say it is a fortune to him. It is averred that he was offered $5,000, $10,000 and even $20,000 for it; that a clergyman offered his farm in exchange for the monster—but these offers were all declined. We talked freely with Mr. N. He was quiet and modest, and we doubt if he has received any such proposals, except perhaps jokingly. He indicated no such thing. Yet he seemed anxious to have the "thing" brought out all right if possible, be it what it may, and therefore guards it by day and by night.

During Saturday night the surface water had settled in the pit so as to cover the image. The wise men of Cardiff were consulted. One said, bail out the water—exposure to the air will do no harm. The other said, leave it thus until some scientific man comes to decide as to the prospects of destructability. And the latter's advice was adopted. Yet, when the water was undisturbed and clear, the whole could be seen perfectly plain. Later in the day Dr. J.F. Boynton, the geologist, drove out with Mr. John Geenway, the water was bailed out, and Dr. B. made a thorough inspection of his Giantship, put his arms under the neck, and fairly hugged the monster. The general impression is, that it is a petrifaction of one of those large human beings of which all of us have heard so much in our youthful days, and have read accounts of in maturer years—not here, but somewhere else. A book lies before us, having account of several, varying from eight to eleven feet; but we stop not to extract therefrom. Prof. Boynton, from a hasty examination, is of opinion that it is a work of art—a sculpture from stone. If this theory be correct, it would be scarcely less interesting than if a petrifaction. In the one case arises the speculation as to a gigantic race of beings that may have inhabited portions of this "new world" hundreds of years before Columbus discovered it; the other as to how long ago the artist did the work, and where came he, or his ancestors, from? Men nigh on to a hundred years, and who have resided in the county seventy of them, have never heard allusion to such a thing; the Indian traditions speak not of it. The record of the first white man in this region—Catholic Jesuits—is of something over two hundred years. That record preserves matters of less interest than this would be, but not this. Then again we say it would have scarcely less interest as a work of the chisel, than a petrifaction.

Our city is talking about the Giant. The story has passed from one to another till very many, probably ten thousand, of our citizens have already heard it. The interest is great in it, insomuch that it has been almost impossible for us to thus disjointedly write about the great wonder, because of the constant interruption by visitors who are anxious to hear from one who has actually seen.

From the Syracuse Courier, Oct 18th, 1869.

On Saturday morning last the quiet little village of Cardiff, which lies in the valley about twelve miles south of Syracuse, was thrown into an excitement without precedent, by the report that a human body had been exhumed in a petrified state, the colossal dimensions of which had never been the fortune of the inhabitants of the little village to behold, and the magnitude of which was positively beyond the comprehension or the understanding of the wise men of the valley. We are told that there were giants on the earth once; and, if the reports of those who have investigated this discovery are true, and that they are we have no doubt, this stony man—who for hundreds of years may have slept untouched and undisturbed, had it not been for the rude hand of a Cardiff farmer—must have been one of them. The excitement in and around Cardiff extended until it reached the City of Salt, and all day yesterday the discovery was the chief topic of conversation at the hotels and public places in the city. Of course, the most extravagant stories were told, and greedily devoured up by gaping listeners. Some would have it that the body exhumed was twenty-five feet high, and proportionately large. All day yesterday crowds visited the scene of the discovery, and returned to tell the tale of the wonderful discovery to their eager friends.

From the Standard, October 23d.

LETTER FROM REV. MR. CALTHROP. DEAR SIR—As everyone is deeply interested in the Onondaga Giant, perhaps it may be as well for each of us to add his mite towards guessing at the solution of the problem he has silently set us all.

It is no wonder that so many are of opinion that he is a gigantic petrifaction. His proportions are so perfect, and his appearance is so life like. I will add, that every one wants to think so. If he proved to be a petrifaction, what a realm of awe and mysterious conjecture would he open to us. But I, for one, feel convinced that he will prove to be statue, and for these reasons:—

First, I think there are evident marks of stratification in the stone. The left eyebrow and the top of the nose are the parts most elevated. These correspond exactly, both being composed of a white layer. On the chest is a squarish layer of a dark tinge; around, and slightly below this, is another layer corresponding exactly with the ins and outs of the first. Beyond, and below this, another and another all alike, seeming to be simply lines of stratification. The level seems exactly kept. Follow with your eye any two adjacent lines, and you will see that where they are close to each other the surface has an abrupt change of level; where they are further apart the surface is nearly horizontal. Where the surface approaches the perpendicular, as on the sides, the dark line showing the separation of the strata is thin, because it has been cut through nearly at right angles. Where the surface is more horizontal the dark line is broader, because it has been cut through obliquely, the breadth varying steadily with the angle of inclination. The same can be plainly seen along the right leg.

Another strong reason for its being a statue lies in the fact that not a single limb is detached. The right arm is not merely glued to the body throughout, as well as the hand, but it has the appearance of only being cut into the stone to a depth sufficient to give due relief. This is equally true of the left arm, and of the two legs, which are joined to each other throughout. The sculptor has not wasted a stroke of the chisel. I would add here, that between the third and fourth fingers of the right hand, the slit is carried too far toward the wrist, seemingly by a slip of the chisel.