Stature
Dollfuss was a very short man and his diminutive stature (155 cm = 5'2" or 150 cm = 4'11" according to the New York Times) was the object of satire; among his nicknames were 'Millimetternich' (making a portmanteau out of millimeter and Metternich), and the "Jockey". The New York Times also reported a series of jokes, including how in the coffee houses of Vienna, one could order a "Dollfuss" cup of coffee instead of a "Short Black" cup of coffee (black being the color of the Christian Democratic political faction).
In contrast to his own diminutive stature, his personal assistant and secretary Eduard Hedvicek, who later played a significant role in the unsuccessful attempt to save his life was a very large and tall man (200 cm = 6'7").
Read more about this topic: Engelbert Dollfuss
Famous quotes containing the word stature:
“With hym ther was his sone, a yong squier,
A lovyere and a lusty bacheler,
With lokkes crulle as they were leyd in presse.
Of twenty yeer of age he was, I gesse.
Of his stature he was of evene lengthe,
And wonderly delyvere, and of greet strengthe.”
—Geoffrey Chaucer (1340?–1400)
“Why are we never quite at ease in the presence of a schoolmaster? Because we are conscious that he is not quite at his ease in ours. He is awkward, and out of place in the society of his equals. He comes like Gulliver from among his little people, and he cannot fit the stature of his understanding to yours.”
—Charles Lamb (1775–1834)
“Your stature is modelled
with straight tool-edge:
you are chiselled like rocks
that are eaten into by the sea.”
—Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961)