This post saddens me a bit.
If I had a bunch of candidates, and pretty much everything else was equal (and height wasn't a benefit to the job like it would be in a sales position), I'd hire the short guy. Because chances are, they probably are used to taking so much sh*t for their height, that they work harder to prove themselves. And plus, I'd want to pay it forward and help the little guy out.
My only concern with hiring a VERY short guy would be how others in the office may treat him and if he could handle that. But I would (hopefully) know how the other guys on the team are, and provided they are generally cool, I wouldn't have any issues with hiring the very short guy.
I'd probably end up hiring the guy 5'5-5'8 (since I've been both heights), as I'd feel a camaraderie with him, I suppose.