"Do you not think," I finally asked, "that Peters somewhat overestimates
the distance of his marvelous leap? I am aware that Peters was, both in
strength and in agility, almost preterhuman; but fifty feet or
thereabouts! That seems scarcely possible. Our best athletes, I believe,
have never, on level ground, made a running leap of much more than half
that distance. Now forty feet, under all the circumstances, would not
strike me as impossible, though thirty-five would better chime with my
ideas of the probable, and thirty would remove all possibility of any
draft on my credulity."

"It is not a question of ideas or of credulity," answered Bainbridge,
"but one of fact. However, we will look at the incident from the
stand-point of reason and experience. Now let us assume that a running
leap of twenty-five feet on level ground would not be beyond the ability
of a trained athlete. I think you will allow to Peters a natural
advantage of seven feet over an ordinary athlete, when you consider the
superiority of his form, so well adapted to leaping--a form that gives
to him the advantage of an orang-outang, without the disadvantage of
hand-like feet, so poorly suited to flat surfaces. From the fullest
information I could obtain from Peters, I believe that in leaping he
obtains more impetus from his arms than from his legs; but even with his
preternatural strength he does not get quite as much impulse-force from
his legs as would an ordinary athlete. I myself think that the use of
his arms in making this leap gave him an advantage of one-third over
another man of equal strength. However, I ask you to allow him from all
advantage of form, in the leap alone, seven feet, or twenty-eight per
cent."

To this proposition I assented.