Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1879-06-28
EDWARD PAYSON WESTON.
Sketch Of the Winner Of the Astley
Relt.

distance pedestrian, was born in Providence,
FL. March 10, 1889. According to quaint
Turf, Field and Farm, he weighed at his birth
only four pounds. six ounces, and was for years
weak, sickly child. He showed no powers of
10 he was considered youth OF feeble frame
he first came before the public in the spring of
1861. He then walked from Boston to Washing
Lincoln. The feat was performed in payment
Of wager that Mr.. Lincoln would not be
elected. ca. ne started from the steps Of the
reached washington on March 8. The whole
distance travelled was 45S miles, and the actual
time occupied was 2Os hours Weston after
wa TO 5n ~ city, where he In
became known among his associates as a man
capable OF enduring great fatigue:
deteopeaR Ss wa Wsk nf IN 1857
resulted In his undertaking in the fall Of 1851
his Is,g great walk from Portland, Me to Chicago
come into notice, and the announcement that q
man was to undertake to walk 1926 miles on
ordinary roads In thirty consecutive days Gre
that he was walking for purse of $4,000 in
case he accomplished the undertaking. and
g. GOO II he succeeded in making 100 miles 10 "a
hours. On the 18th OF October, 1867, at noon,
he set out from Portland He made four at
tempts to cover the 100 miles in "a hours. In
the f1rst attempt he made 63 miles; 10 the
the third, 81 miles, with over three hours to
do the nine miles 1n but gave up, he says,b Y
the advice OF his trainers and friends who
were with him. This failure hurt Weston, VINO
was openly charged with being bought off. He
always stoutly denied the charge. His last at
tempt to walk 100 miles In "a hours was made
on the 25th OF November. He only made Sc
miles, He reached Chicago on Thanksgiving
day, November IS and was received with great
demonstrations. This walk made WeStOns
name household word for months. His effort
destrians, and gave the start to the pedestrian
mania which has become so general. His name
was upon all lips; his photograph In nearly all
households: There were Weston shoes, Weston
Weston marches, and young ladies danced to
Weston waltzes. The pedestrian was deter
mined not to give up the idea OF walking 100
miles In "a hours and, after lecturing tour
eastward, he made the attempt on october g.
1868, at White Plains. He accomplished the
task In % hours, 10 minutes, 10 seconds, and the
sporting papers OF the time characterized the
In the same month Col. Dan Rice, the veteran
circus man, offered TO give him purse OF s2O, 900
II he would walk 5000 miles in 100 consecutive
days, not to walk on Sundays. The correspond
ence between Rice and Weston developed the
fact that the pedestrian was religiously Inclined
and his letters were filled with plOuS sentiments
result was that many excellent people who ho
Would naturally have nothing to do with profess
s1onal pedestrians gave Weston their hearty
Sy npdtuJ uOCaUly Ut. InoOuOfe CuyleT, whose
correspondence with Weston was published at
the time. However, the 5000 mile walk failed
from q lack OF funds to carry 1t out.
Returning to New York, after featuring
way hall, at which Horace Greeley presided,
and which many prominent persons attended.
Weston walked little for several years except
porter on the Sun. and it fell to his lot to visit
the police stations on the east side of the city at
late hour at night: His speed In coming to
bal. He used to say that he never rode In street
cars unless he was In NO hurry, and he often
beat them in making a trip.
His most successful walk In this city was In
the spring of 1874. On May II he started on
six days walk In the American Institute Rink,
with the intention OF making 500 miles. In the
first "a hours he made 115 miles, but he failed
to cover more than 4so In the six days. This
was considered good walking then. In Sep
TENDER Of the same year he twice attempted
the same feat in the Hippodrome, and each
claimed to have walked in the six days, less 23X
minutes, 500 miles. He covered lis miles In Is
]. r. judd In six days walk In the Hippo
yember OF that year he walked against o'Leary
m IN GhsagS m aa syn Weun @ RI 5
walk Weston went to England, and on the 3Oth
OF september, 1876, walked 5OOH miles IS yards
In six days, in Liverpool. In December OF the
Ill,
covered 400 miles. In that contest he walked
115A miles without rest, and lis miles In "a
hours, with only IS minutes 10 seconds rest. In
April, 1877, O'Leary beat him in Agricultural
Hall, London, making nearly $40 miles to Wes-
toms SO. Weston, after this, gave exhibition
walks, and on one occasion beat A. Clark, in
London. in 4s-hours' walk, In which he scored
$50 miles.
1t Is said that Weston found firm friend in
Sir John Ashley. He did not compete for the
Ashley belt. when OLeary won It in March,
entries. On the 18th OF January last, he at
tempted to walk 1000 miles In 600 consecutive
hours, over English roads, and deliver fifty lee
~ and He chose
undertaking, and he failed, but only by few
hours. In April last he entered the lists with
Hszael, Brown and Corkey. He walked only $50
miles, while Brown made the then best record,
542 miles.
Weston's face is q familiar one to the Ameri-
can public. The photographs and pictures OF
excellent nkenesses. His Is typical New Eng
land face-clean cut and shrewd. He Is small
and slender, but wonderfully compact, and his
be, an enthusiast upon the subject OF walking;
but he Is too apt to promise to do more than he
can perform This time: however, he has done
that he would accomplish. Next to walking,
Weston enjoys quiet game OF draw poker
among friends, where the stakes are not nigh.
date OF June 3, to friend In this city, giving
some particulars about the walk and the prob.
abilities OF his winning It, and also telling OF his
experience In London. His letter was In refer
ence to one that had been received by him
which, he says contained the first words of en-.
cOuragement that had come to him, except
from his immediate relatives in the three years
OF residence In England. He regrets that the
newspapers here have not found occasion to
speak kindly OF his efforts He says that the
New York sporting journals have all spoken
ungenerOusly OF him, With single exception,
while the London Journals discovering that he
was not the fraud that hi0 enemies had repre-.
sented him to be, saw that he got fair treat
ment.
Weston says that he was the first to suggest
to Sir John Ashley that Rowell was the man for
him to send to New York to compete for the
champions belt. ROwell afterward insulted
him, he says, by ignoring his challenge and &C
cept1ng one from Ennis. ROwell claimed that
the date fixed by him was too early, but Wes-
ton says that he had the right to alter It, Sir
John Ashley gave Weston his word that the
English champion would have to contend with
him first, and Rowell himself told reporters ia
this city on the 10th Of March that he would
meet him, as had been proposed. When Rowen
returned to London and met Weston, he gave as
an excuse for not walking with him, first, that
he had received prior challenge from Ennis,
mentioning date, before he had won the belt
or had walked $50 miles, aud before 1t had been
decided whether Hartman or Ennis would come
In second In the walk at GilmoreS. Weston also
says that Ennis was opposed to his walking In
the match OF asst week, and did his best to keep
him out However, doubtless, before you have
received this" says the Yankee walker, .'you
hnvy hon, HNHf =