The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1878-10-02
Z vELocIPEDR IN z
ND.

The v~elocipede, or bicycle, as they call i
abroad, was introduced into this oountr,
soon after its invention, and much wa ex
peoted of it. It had. however. o ahor
though brilliant run. For q time it was al
the rage- PRIZES were offered for the bes
riders at all the fairs and expeditions. Sew
eral schools were started for teaching tn,
art Of managing the machines, and had ex
tensive patronage. Boys saved their money
not to buy farms, but to purchase veloci
pedes, which were thought to be preferably,
to ponies. Riding a velocipede was regard
ed as rare sport, while it afforded exercise
and tended to develop muscle. 1t was pre-
dicted that the velocipede would come in
to general use for business purposes as well
as for pleasure. II was thought that Il
would be employed by persons distributing
letters and papers and delivering parcels
But just as the bicycle got well agoing, II
suddenly stopped. The machines were gen.
orally sold for old iron. ffrsl
Not SO, however, in England. The bicy.
Gle was a long time in getting q foothold
there, but it has held its ground. 10 Their
are reported to be over sixty thousand &C
complished bicyclists in that country, and
the number is rapidly increasing. There b
q club Of bicyclists in every college, semin
airy, city, and village, and q national bicycl,
union. A London paper states that several
million pounds are invested in the manufac
ture of bicycles. 1t is regarded as q create,
accomplishment to manage o bicycle with
dexterity than to ride a horse at q steeple
chase. Every day there is a bicycle race
and the champion is n hero. A few year
ago a company road from Lands End t.
John OiGroat's house. Men, young and
old, taking a vacation, leave cities for thu
country on bicycles. Money Is saved ane
pleasure gained by the practice. The bicy
Gle moves faster than q horse, and It cost
nothing for its keep. 1t raises no dust ane
produces scarcely any sound. The ride:
has sufficient exercise, but is not fatigued.
Bicycles are used for business as we'll ai
for pleasure. Many country people us,
them in going to town SO do letter-carrien
and persons who deliver packages. Nearly
every rural person and doctor rides a bicy
Gle In making calls. The general employ
ment of bicycles and the accidents that hav,l
resulted from their use have, as q matter Of
course, given rise to lawsuits and called fol
local legislation Some Of the courts have
decided that o bicycle is o carriage, anc
Others that it Is not. 1t is thought thai
parliament at its next session will pass q law
regulating the use Of velocipedes. There IL
a considerable class who are opposed to al
lowing them on public roads, holding tina
they scare horses, brighten children, and
run against foot passengers. The Londor
Dday Necs also presents these objections
to them
There are certain to be many who. per
haps out of mere high spirits, win behav,
roughly and noisly. They win go down steer
bills with the reins on the neck Of the bicy
Gle, so to speak-that Is, with their feet nj
in an easy position-which prevents then
from controlling the speed and direction o
the machine: This is just as dangerous {,
practice, and deserves Just the same sort o
punishment, as reckless riding or driving
Again, the inconsiderate bicyclist, when ex
cited by the pleasure of moving swift,
through the air, will shout and yell in a dis
cordant way-conduct vexatious rather thar
criminal. He will race along beside coache
and drags, and ~irritate the spirited proprie
tors of these more lordly vehicles. He will
shave corners, and try how near he car
pass pedestrians without an encounter, an,
be will yell at nervous people, and in man
,ther ways make life hideous. These sins
v the rowdy bicyclist are only those Of all
but they are certainly aggravated
~ the fact that the mischievous one is on
wheels, and passes nway like q blast from
hose who would admonish or correct him.
The rowdy bicyclist must be punished with
IL the more severity because he throws dis
'redit on what really seems to be a cheap,
iseful, healthy, and manly pastime." 40
The chairman of the National Bicycle
inion, who Is q fellow in Cambridge Univer-
dty, while taking the ground that the peo-
ile will never consent to- see the velocipede
the public roads, admits that its
should be regulated by parlia-
nentary law. he thinks the speed on car
iage roads should be limited to ninemiles
yer hour that every machine should be
Srovided with a break to restrain the veloc- /
~ while going down hill that every rider
Aould be made to carry a bell or whistle to
tse in warning persons to get out of the way, /
md that persons who ride at night should
display q signal light. With these precau-
ions, he believes, fewer accidents will oc-
Iur from the use of bicycles than from any
Ither method of conveyance. He states
hat with an incalculable number Of bicy-
lies running by day and night, managed by
beginners as well as experts, but three ac-
,idents resulting from their use have been
exported IN as many months. n