The Wheel: Journal of Bicycling, Vol 7, No 17
Articles in this issue
- The editor revisits the previous issue's discussion of the relative merits of the Crank and Star machines, defending the well-known author of 'What and Why' against correspondent 'Pedibus' and noting that the treatise, published early in 1884 before safety machines were fully developed, never named the Star, with a revised 1885 edition now in preparation.
- Report on the organizational meeting held at the Genesee House, Buffalo, on January 18, 1885, where wheelmen from Chicago, Boston, Buffalo, and New York — including Burley B. Ayers, Fred. G. Bourne, and E. G. Whitney — planned a two-week July tour from Buffalo through upstate New York, Ontario, and the Thousand Islands, with total expenses not exceeding fifty dollars per rider.
- A comic monologue addressed to the recurring columnist 'Tertius,' lamenting how a printer misset the word 'sucker' as 'snoozer' and ruined the climax of a carefully crafted article, closing with an affectionate toast.
- Compiled by W. I. H., this survey traces the history of safety bicycles from Singer & Co.'s 1877 original by L. J. Lawson through obsolete models such as the Merlin, Crocodile, Flying Dutchman, and Pony, before describing current machines including the Atlantic Special.
- Boston correspondent 'Lewee' criticises the League Racing Board for allowing wheelmen who forfeited their amateur status through paid polo games to compete in last summer's races, argues the amateur rule needs clarification, and reports that A. L. Atkins of Pope Manufacturing has been appointed League Consul for Boston.
- Brief notice on the opening of the Olympian Club's new skating rink on Broadway and Fifty-third Street, where Harry Tufts gave a bicycle-riding exhibition alongside fancy skaters Mr. Mayer and Miss Jennie Houghton.
- Review of the February issue of Outing magazine, highlighting J. R. W. Hitchcock's account of Mount Tacoma, Norman Walker on outdoor life in New Orleans, K. C. Atwood's Pelican Canoe Club cruise down the Merrimac, and a bicycle run from Hartford to Boston.
- Short items noting that the Springfield Club and the Ixion Club are considering building their own clubhouses, that the Overman Wheel Co. (makers of the Victor tricycle) is developing a new lever-and-clutch bicycle, and that William M. Woodside has challenged John S. Prince to five races for $500 a side and the American championship title.
- Karl Kron reports that his subscription canvass for 'Ten Thousand Miles on a Bicycle' now stands at 2,340 pledges, with the Henderson, Ky., bicycle club contributing eight new subscribers, and discusses hotel-keepers' indifference to wheelman patronage and the value of listing top-priced hotels in his forthcoming road book.
- Account of the Memphis Cycle Club's six-day, eight-hours-a-day race, where Morgan won with 450 miles 9 laps, followed by Eck (415 miles), Armaindo (343 miles 6 laps), Prince (287 miles 1 lap), and Woodside (285 miles 5 laps), with Arnold's band and electric lighting drawing the city's best society nightly.
- Annual meeting reports from the Ariel Wheel Club of Poughkeepsie (electing J. Reynolds Adriance as president), the Elizabeth Wheelmen of New Jersey (48 members, new cadet-gray uniform, and a planned track), and the Northampton and Hudson bicycle clubs with their newly elected officers.
- Letter from H. B. Donly, Secretary and Treasurer of the Canadian Wheelmen's Association, urging the L.A.W. not to schedule its 1885 meet on July 2–3 because it would conflict with the C.W.A.'s annual meet in Montreal on July 1, making attendance by Canadian wheelmen impossible.
- Short notes including John S. Prince's endorsement of the Duryea saddle (crediting it with his 2:39 mile record), Karl Kron's 1,408-mile season on his 'No. 234, Jr.,' an inventor's hub improvement allowing riders to replace spokes without a machinist, and the Germantown Cycling Club's new house opening at 2314 Fairmount Avenue, Philadelphia.
- Karl Kron introduces Dr. N. P. Tyler of New Haven, who reports a 130-mile straightaway from New Haven to Boston on October 19, 1884 (22.5 hours total, 17.5 riding), and a November 4 run to Tarrytown during which he rode 25.5 miles without dismounting between West Haven and Saugatuck River, verified under oath by J. H. Whiting.
- P. N. Myers surveys cycling conditions across Kentucky, praising the macadam pikes of the bluegrass region from Ashland and Maysville on the Ohio River through Covington, Louisville, and Lexington, and lists over a dozen recommended routes with mileages, including the 66-mile Lexington-to-Maysville road via Blue Lick Springs.
- Report on a Pittsburgh case (T. R. Estep v. Hailman et al., January 5, 1885) in which four cyclists were sued for $20,000 after their bicycles on Shady Lane spooked a horse that threw the plaintiff and broke his leg; Judge Stowe ruled the bicycle a vehicle with full road rights, and the jury found for the defendants after three to four hours' deliberation.