The Bicycling World, Vol 12, No 7
Articles in this issue
- The leader argues that the London clubs' elaborate Vigilance Committee plan against pro-amateurism will never be enforced, and that the real reform is to dignify professionalism with club and League membership; following paragraphs note the Coventry papers' grudging acceptance of the Springfield records and challenge Hillier, Sturmey and the Cyclist over Mr. Ducker's charges.
- N. P. Tyler, M. D., the Official Handicapper, replies to 'Duffer' in the Correspondence columns, defending Mr. Kluge's entry in the 2.10 race at Springfield and arguing that class races need proper definition and rules to encourage slow men and bring out new riders.
- Samuel A. Miles of Chicago asks the editor to settle that the timers at the late Chicago races expressed no opinion on the close finish between Knapp and Weber, rebutting the claim that the judges and timers disagreed.
- A correspondent signing '43' asks why nothing more is heard of the little Facile or the Pony Star on the road, and urges safety riders to write up their winter-evening experience so middle-aged men can find an easy, practical mount.
- 'Cyclos' joins the replies to the 'Gaul' article, recounting a wheel disabled by a stable boy and praising Mr. Conkling's combination lock for hitching up one's bicycle at every dismount.
- Fred Wood, Professional Champion, writing from Leicester, denies as a pure fabrication the statement Henry E. Ducker attributed to him in the League Bulletin that the Cyclist would not accept his one-mile record for trade reasons.
- 'Fairplay' picks apart W. H. Huntley's verified 24-hour road record statement, noting his short circuits around the Newtons never took him six miles from the Faneuil House, and demands a detailed accounting like Munger gave.
- 'A Lady Rider' describes the lever-steering ladies' Humber tricycle — a fine hill-climber and spurter with an open front that is easy to mount — after riding 1,600 miles this year on several machines.
- Let Tergo Smith responds humorously to J. Parke Street's proposal for moonlit bicycle rides on Jamaica Pond ice, while other correspondents add further comments on ice cycling, the Joseph Butcher cyclometer correction, and Cleveland cycling notes.
- 'Tuff' proposes a record for the greatest number of riding days in a year, having ridden over two hundred days; the editor replies that W. D. Wilmot already holds it with 365 days and suggests trying for 366 in leap year.
- 'Capt.', an experienced handicapper, warns that classifying racers blindly by records alone will repeat the evils seen in handicapping, and urges that riders be classified by their abilities as well as their records.
- J. Parke Street answers the ice-party critics with a plan: the consul nearest Jamaica Plain arranges cycles from a livery stable and a postal card announces the moonlight hour via the seven-o'clock Providence Railroad train; Joseph Butcher follows with a correction to his cyclometer-measurement letter.
- The Cleveland Bicycle Club passes resolutions of regret on the death of H. O. Beckwith, Mr. Pugh represents the club at the Ohio division L.A.W. meeting at Massilon, and cowboy wheelman Victor C. Place will team with C. H. Potter on a tandem next season.
- The first instalment of an illustrated series reproducing curious velocipede patents from the U.S. Patent Office, featuring cuts of a goose-propelled riding device from 1874, a flier machine from 1864, and a dog-powered lady's machine from 1870.
- Daisie reflects on the dancing men of society compared to serious wheelmen, drawing an extended analogy between the temporary attractions of fashionable life and the durable satisfactions of cycling, with her characteristic blend of wit and advocacy.
- A satirical prospectus for a fictional future race meeting at Blankville, N.W. on non-existent dates, lampooning the makers' amateur system, imported English racing men, questionable timekeeping, and the absurdities of the current amateur classification rules.
- The editor's miscellany opens with Chas. S. Wady's poem 'Lines With a Moral' and runs through news briefs: the Massachusetts division accepts Boston for the 1886 League Meet, the Rhode Island L.A.W. division organizes at Pawtucket under Dr. J. A. Chase, Richard Howell marries Clara Heeley at Leicester, and negotiations for Poultney Bigelow to buy Outing are pending.
- Club news: the Cleveland Bicycle Club sets its annual tournament for 19-21 August 1886, the Florence (Mass.) Club turns to indoor entertainments, the Ilderan Bicycle Club of Brooklyn elects Howard Greenman president, the Bellerophon Wheelmen organize at Westfield, N.J., and the Pennsylvania Bicycle Club elects Isaac Elwell president.
- The C.T.C. department under Acting Chief Consul C. H. Potter of Cleveland lists dues, the State consuls from Connecticut to Wyoming Territory, provisionally elected applicants including Mrs. M. A. Stall of Brighton, and the appointment of a Des Moines consul.
- Brief editorial replies to readers, including advice to an Albany rider on matching worn bearing balls and word that the New Hampshire division, first formed, will have the right of line in the League parade.