The Springfield Wheelmen's Gazette, Vol 2, No 9
Articles in this issue
- Dr. Frank W. Reilly of Chicago responds to Dr. S. A. K. Strahan's Lancet paper on the alleged physical dangers of bicycle riding, arguing Strahan's claims are theoretical and unsupported, and that the London Lancet itself found such injuries 'exceedingly rare.'
- The Gazette answers questions posed by Eugene M. Aaron, editor of the L. A. W. official gazette, about Springfield Club membership and League activity, and responds to Aaron's counter-questions regarding L. A. W. finances and work accomplished.
- The editors rebut the Bicycling World's claim that pool-selling and betting were the primary drivers of the Springfield tournament's financial success, defending the event's integrity and arguing betting degrades any sport it touches.
- A Boston correspondent in the Wheel sets the record straight on the Springfield Bicycle Club's relationship with the L. A. W., confirming the club remains an active League member despite recent controversies.
- A column of editorial bulletins covering matters including the Springfield track, the Gazette's circulation lead, the Springfield tournament profit, George M. Hendee's records, and D. J. Canary's trick riding skills.
- Reviews the Christmas issues of the London Cyclist and London Wheeling annuals, commenting on their content, quality, and references to the Springfield tournament and American cyclists including Hendee and Sellers.
- The editors acknowledge inaccuracies in the record tables published in the December issue and promise a revised corrected version, responding to criticism from the Wheel and the official L. A. W. gazette.
- Profile of D. J. Canary, champion professional trick and fancy bicycle rider from Meriden, Ct., tracing his career from first learning to ride in 1880 through winning the professional championship at the Springfield Bicycle Club's 1884 exhibition against Harry W. Tufts.
- A humorous account by a member of the Macon Bicycle Club of a late-night ride by Captain Polhill and five companions, featuring a toll-gate escapade with dogs and an Irish gatekeeper, and a farmer's shotgun encounter in a cane patch.
- Profile of Fred Russ Cook, champion bicyclist of the Pacific Coast and captain of the Bay City Wheelmen, who first raced in May 1884 and went on to hold the mile and half-mile records for the coast with times of 3.04¾ and 1.29¼.
- A comic sketch by 'Willhelm' depicting Mr. Eurydice's calamitous first attempt to mount a new bicycle in his back yard, culminating in a bleeding nose, bruised shins, and the machine being offered to the first passing tramp.
- The Gazette apologizes for a malicious statement about the New York Bicycle Club published by correspondent 'Award,' and prints letters from members correcting the record about the club's three-story headquarters on Broadway at 57th Street.
- A correspondent identified as 'Timer' defends the accuracy of George M. Hendee's October 1884 record rides at Springfield against English skepticism, citing the presence of English witnesses Thomas Warwick and Reuben Chambers as judge and referee.
- H. D. Corey and R. Howell (champion bicyclist of the world) publish letters detailing their attempts to arrange a match race with John S. Prince after Springfield, with Howell offering starts of up to 250 yards and stakes of $2,500 a side for any distance from one to ten miles.
- A Hartford correspondent surveys local cycling news — the Connecticut Bicycle Club's new rooms, Goodman's Rudge riding school, and Pope's factory output — then argues at length that petty press criticism of the L. A. W. is the greatest obstacle to the League's growth.
- Brief notes on club activities including the Indianapolis Bicycle Club's trip to the New Orleans World's Fair and the founding of the Golden City Bicycle Club, the only professional bicycle club in the United States, in San Francisco, with Prince, Howell, and Woodside as honorary members.
- Lists of newly elected officers for seven clubs: the Æolus Wheelmen of Worcester, Charlestown Bicycle Club, Chemeketa Bicycle Club of Salem Oregon, Junior Wheelmen of Baltimore, Oregon Wheel Club of Portland, Rockland County Wheelmen, and St. Louis Star Bicycle Club.
- A touring narrative signed 'Stamson' describing the Facile Club's Thanksgiving Day ride through the countryside around Mianus and Bayport, Connecticut, past the ruins of the Sackett house on the Mianus river.
- Short cycling news items covering Bermuda tourists, the Western Union Telegraph office's successful use of bicycles for message delivery in Washington, club activities from Oregon to Kansas City, and notes on new Columbia and Pope models for 1885.
- Pacific Coast cycling news: F. R. Cook's coast records, the Bay City Wheelmen's upcoming January meet with a grasshopper race, and results from the Olympic Club's November 27 races where Cook won the mile scratch in 3.04¾.
- A correspondent ('Spokes') reports on the forthcoming six-day professional bicycle contest at the Memphis Exposition building, with confirmed starters including J. S. Prince, W. M. Woodside, Mlle. Armaindo, T. W. Eck, and W. J. Morgan.
- Karl Kron describes his five-day bicycle tour of Bermuda in March 1884, covering 142 miles over the islands' exceptional coral-cut roads between Hamilton and St. George's, with extended quotations from Mark Twain and other writers on Bermuda's landscape and infrastructure.
- Charles Wright, superintendent of repairs for H. B. Hart of Philadelphia, presents repair records showing 99 Columbia machines required less than half the repair cost of 80 English-made machines, endorsing Columbia's superior durability.
- A poem by Ruth Hall, reprinted from Outing for January, in which a woman watches her cycling companion ride away into the countryside and reflects wistfully on the pleasures of the road she cannot share.
- Short notes including the Racing Board's acceptance of Hendee's Springfield times, Edward P. Burnham's 3,000-mile road record for the year, Colonel Newton's fatal tricycle accident in London, and planned Bermuda and 'big four' Canadian touring parties for 1885.
- Full mile-by-mile time table for William M. Woodside's record fifty-mile ride at the Chicago Exposition building on December 8, on a 1,564½-foot lap track, breaking all American records from eleven to fifty miles.
- Report on a joint evening of the Nashville Bicycle Club and the Lotus Circle on December 15, with a programme of music, readings, and songs presided over by Miss Anna Hall Frizzell, with violin solos by club president Alfred E. Howell.
- A humorous dialect letter from 'Ottumwa' (Iowa) describing a country visitor's bemused account of attending a bicycle exhibition at a skating rink, written in exaggerated rustic phonetic spelling.
- Complimentary and critical notices about the Gazette and cycling matters reprinted from other publications, including the Pittsburgh Sportsman, Southern Cycler, Boston Globe, and Cycling Times.
- An editorial from the Amateur Athlete contrasting professional athletes who may throw races for financial gain against amateurs motivated by the pure desire to win before admiring friends.
- The Memphis Bicycle Club announces plans for a spring tournament on a half-mile track in the suburbs of Memphis, inviting wheelmen to write secretary W. L. Surprise and offering prizes amounting to several hundred dollars.