Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1879-05-07
A Wonderful Runner,

The featS of our pele,t trians, though
surprising enough. are C ,st int" the shade
by the recorded exploits Of Ernst Mensen,
II Norwegian sailor in the English navy
early in the present century. Although
for Il long time known'to his shipmates rs
An extraordinary runRer, he first attracted
public attention by running from London
to Portsmouth, distance of seyenly-thrpe
miles in nine hours. on u wager that he
could not accomplish the feat in ten hours.
and soon after he ran from London to Liv-
erpool. one hundred and fifty miles. in
lhr,y-two hours. Mensen did not quit
she sea until he had distinguished himself
in the battle of Navarino in 1927, but
shortly after that date he became Il pro-
fessional runner. After winning mum
ber of lesser matches he was induced to
undertake the great feat of running from
Paris to Moscow. He started from the
Place Eendome ut clock in the after.
noon Of June II, 1881, and entered the
Kremlin at 10 o'clock on the morning OF
June 25th, having accomplished tho dis
tance of one thousand seven hundred and
sixty miles in thirteen days and eighteen
hours.
This feat, rs might be supposed. created
II decided sensation Throughout Europe. and
the employment of Mensen rs courier
extraordinary by kings and princes became
Il popular amusement in European courts.
He ran from country to country, and from
court to court, hearing messages OF con
graduation, coincidence, or dispatches OF
greater importance. and whenever match
ed against The regularly mounted couriers,
easily succeeded in beating them. He
always carried with him II map, a compass,
and as many biscuits and ounces of rasp
berry syrup rs there WAS to he days occu'
pied on the Journey. In the winter he
took with him u p .ir of long, slender Nor
wegian snoN shoes, and in travelling he
always chose the most direct line. turning
out neither for mountains nor rivers. bu
climbing the one and swimming the other
lie never walked but invariably ran, keep
ing up II long, swinging lope for hours a
u time without rest. His only rrfreshnen
was one biscuit and m oui ce Of raspberry
syrup per day. and two short res's of ter
or fifteen minutes each in twenty four
hours. These rests he took while standing
and leaning against II Tree or other object
for support. At such times he covered his
face with handkerchief and slept. and
after such a nap he would pursue his VIZ
apparently as refreshed rs though he bad
slept for hours.
In 1888 he started from Munich at l
o'clock in the aftern Jon of June 9TH. with
dispatches from this king Of Bavaria 10 his
son Otto, king of Greece. There dis.
patches we're delivered at Naupia at 8
o'clock on the morning Of July lst, or
seven days sooner than If they had been
sent by the regular post. In 1886. while
in the employ Of the British East India
Company. Mensen was charged with the
conveying of dispatches from Calcutta 10
Constanlinople through Central Asia.
The distance Is FIVE Thousand six hundred
and fifteen miles. which the messenger
accomplished in fifty-nine days, or in one
third of the time made by the swiftest
caravan. On this wonderful journey he
made his way across terrible deserts. aw-
full salt swamps. where for hundreds oi
miles he saw no living being, ami through
countries whose inhabitants were savage
robbers. and who lived in a state of con-
tinual warfare.
At last the project was broached to Men.
sen to explore the Nile and attempt to
solve the most interesting geographical
problem of the age, the discovery Of the
sources of that great river. He set out