The Bicycling World, Vol 6, No 21
Articles in this issue
- Lead editorial urging wheelmen to seek election to public office and take a more active interest in politics to secure better roads, citing the Cheltenham, England election slogan 'Vote for Kite, the Tricyclist, and No More Lumpy Roads'; it also criticizes the New York Supreme Court's ruling upholding the Central Park Commissioners' discretionary power to exclude bicycles from the park.
- New York Letter: the Citizens' Club committee—Brown, Beckwith, Bourne, and Schuyler—secures use of Riverside Drive for the League Meet parade on 28 May; the Ixions hold three club runs since January, including a moonlit overnight run to Kiverdale twelve miles out; and Jenkins of the Wheels is acquiring an American Star bicycle.
- Julius Wilcox rebuts an unnamed critic's attack on the Coventry tricycle, defending its double-steering geometry on up- and down-grades and arguing that the single driving wheel does not slip even under the heaviest load.
- A. L. Fennessy of Springfield laments the L.A.W.'s falling Massachusetts membership (from a thousand to four hundred within a year) and urges members to vote for H. E. Ducker as chief consul; a second, unsigned correspondent from Worcester instead favors E. K. Hill, citing his service organizing the League since the Newport Meet.
- J. I. Veeder of Eddyville, Iowa asks readers for a durable lubricant for bicycle head-centres and for advice on a suitable two-track tricycle for the level Western prairies; the editor recommends raw-hide washers to reduce wear.
- H. N. Keyes, captain of the Ovid Bicycle Club of Ovid, Michigan, answers a Detroit critic's doubts about the club's new twenty-four-cent-a-year journal, the Western 'Cyclist, insisting it is a non-profit venture meant to help rather than compete with the Bicycling World, Wheelman, and Wheel.
- F. P. Kendall states that his name was used as a candidate for League representative without his knowledge or consent and asks that it be withdrawn.
- Writing as 'Ixion,' a correspondent argues that convertible single/sociable tricycles compromise both forms, citing hinge-jointed frames and mis-placed steering wheels as flaws in the leading combination patterns.
- 'Eye Witness' defends the judges' scoring in the Murray-Slee fancy riding contest, explaining the points system that led to Mr. Murray being declared champion fancy rider of Maryland over Mr. Slee.
- A correspondent defends American Star bicycle riders at the recent Philadelphia races, clarifying that Green (not Crawford) fell twice and would likely have won but for a second fall, and disputes the Wheel's report that the judges favored Hansell over Pressey in the fancy-riding contest.
- Massachusetts L.A.W. nominations listed: the Boston and Massachusetts clubs name E. K. Hill for chief consul with Clark, Webber, Parsons, and Ducker as representatives; the Springfield and Newton clubs nominate H. E. Ducker for chief consul with Clark, Webber, Oilman, and Kendall; and Brockton nominates W. M. Pratt as representative; polls close 10 April.
- Club news roundup: the Westboro' Bicycle Club reorganizes under President H. J. Newton; Ixions Edwin Mohrig and G. R. Butler ride 100 miles from San Francisco to San Jose and back in a day; the Connecticut Bicycle Club nominates S. A. Marsden for chief consul and Dr. T. S. Rust for representative; and the Kings County Wheelmen elect Robert T. Hibson president, postponing their annual dinner after the death of member Herbert Rogers.
- The L.A.W. spring officers' meeting at Lincoln House, Worcester on 27 March: 14 members attend; the treasury holds $1,094.05; the League Meet is unanimously voted to be held in New York City on 28 May with Beckwith as chief marshal; and several amendments to League rules are adopted.
- Essay 'Riding with a Purpose' by 'Faed' urges tricyclists to use their machines purposefully—for errands, nature study, botany, and photography—rather than simply accumulating miles; the author argues photography is especially suited to tricycle touring, with amateurs needing only to expose the plates while professionals develop them.
- The League Meet is settled for New York on 28 May; the Crystal Palace will host bicycle and tricycle championships on 14 July; the Overman rotary tricycle is previewed and praised; the Chicago Club offers a medal for the member riding the most miles in 1883; and the Facile bicycle road race is announced for London to York on 22 June.
- Race news: the Conkling vs. Schimpeler 50-mile championship of Illinois is fixed for 2 April in Chicago; the Cincinnati tournament on 23 March sees Townley win the two-mile in 7:22 and Cady win the mile in 4:02; and Woodside plans to visit England in June, racing alongside John Prince.
- The League's standing notice lists its Board of Officers (President W. H. Miller, Vice-President A. S. Parsons, Treasurer William V. Gilman) and Standing Committees, followed by new membership applications from the Binghamton, Denver, and Portland clubs. Albert S. Parsons resigns from the rights-and-privileges vote-counting committee since he is himself a candidate, B. B. Ayres lists railroads that carry bicycles free of charge, and Geo. E. Blackham of Dunkirk, N.Y. declines an unsought appointment as League consul.
- The Cyclists' Touring Club (recently renamed by its council from the Bicycle Touring Club) lists new membership applications, renewals, and consul appointments, including S. H. Shriver as consul for Baltimore. New badges are being issued, and an American-made all-wool uniform cloth is being arranged with the Lamoille Mills of Fairfax, Vermont, to avoid the 35 percent U.S. import duty on English wool.
- Books and Pages: a review of The Wheelman for April, noting its new cover design by L. S. Ipsen as a great improvement, arriving too late for last week's notice but affording more leisure for examination.
- Notes, Queries & Etc.: editorial replies to correspondents including 'Birdseye' of Toledo, Ohio (referred to the special number) and F. E. Yates of Chicago (reply promised for next week), plus brief corrections and acknowledgments.
- Fixtures listing upcoming events for the spring and summer season, including the Milwaukee Club's fourth annual tour through Waukesha County (30 June), the Harvard Bicycle Club race meeting at Beacon Park (10 May), and the Annual L.A.W. Meet in New York on 28 May.