Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1886-01-07

made in many of the STAKES, but the
militiamen grumble a good deal about
it. Reckon it up, and you viii find
that at this rate man walking stead
ily will cover $50 feet in a minute
and a mile in little less than eight
teen minutes When a short-legeed
man. with e musket on his shoulder
and q blanket on his back, tries to
keep this up, he is very likely to swear
good deal at the war department
Few American women step more
then twenty four inches on the
average. Tight skirts and lack of
practice makes the steps of most Of
them range from eighteen TO twenty
three inches. II they would learn to
take longer steps and would wear
loose gowns, they could walk much
farther with less fatigue.
The mathematician have found
that the work done by the man wigh-
ing 140 pounds in making a horizontal
step of three feet is equal to that done
in rising vertically 10 hight one
twelfth Of that dlstar &c: and the
effort required is equal TO that of lift
ing 81 pounds. In general divide
the weight OF the man by twelve and
you have the number of pounds that
he would lift To do an amount of work
equal 10 that in one three foot step.
A man that walks in races takes steps
OF three feet and over, but supposIng
he takes only three feet, you will find
by calculation that in walking a mile
he u 70. faF.
tons. That same man would probably
OBJECT 20 Carrying hodful of coal up
three flights o. stairs. You can see
from this the immense power of the
legs compared with that Of the arms.
It is because so much work is done
in walking that it is such valuable
exercise. No other form Of what we
may cali natural exercise breaks down
the waste tissues with so little exhaus-
ton and so much benefit. But, as in
all sorts Of exercise, much of its ben
eft and most of Its pleasure depends
on the condition OF the mind John
Burroughs, who is as good an author
ltv on walking -for-the -fun-of-it as we
have in tins country, has spoken well
on this point. "The human body"
says he, SIS a steed that goes longest
and freest under light rider, and the
lightest of all riders is a cheerful heart.
Your sad, or morose, or embittered, or
preoccupieo heart settles heavily into
the saddle, and the poor beast, the
body, breaks down the first mile.
That is all very true save the reference
to the preoccupied heart "a point on
which many men will take issue with
Mr.. Burroughs. They assert that they
can walk the best wheH they have
something to occupy the mind and
heart. They do their best thinking
when on their long walks. Yet |
doubt If with most men the exercise
of the eye on external objects leaves
much room for the exercise of the
brain oB internal ideas. Occasionally,
however, yeu will find man who
can walk through crowded city streets
and notice neither person nor thing,
picking his way along unconsciously,
and so occupied with what he is think
ing about that when his destination is
reached he can not tell you thing
about his walk. These are the men
who get unpopular because they
never bow to fellow, you know"
while really they nevar see anybody
when their mind is wrestling with
itself.
Petrarch counted the carriage, on
walk, Of his immortal mistress, Laura,
as one of the four principal charms
that rendered him so enamored. Leigh
Hunt, who scenes to have been a
connoisseur ia the matter of female
beauty, once said that graceful move
ment, an unefected elegancy of
demeanor is to the figure what sense
and sweetness are to the eyes 1t is
the soul looking out. 1t is what one
poet has called the "the thought of
the body" Recall how Venus let
herself be known to Hneas. As Dry
den translates it
And by her graceful walk the queen of love is
known