Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-08-10
FROM LIVERPOOL TO LONDON.
Four Washington Bohemians Browsing
at Large.
WHEELING ON ENGLISH ReADs-covENrRY AND IT'S
MANY 'PEEPrSo ToMs"-A RUN TO WARWICK
BICYCLE RIDE IN THE RAIN-rHRoUaH LON
DON suBURDs-cosr OF TOURING NKSoLANp.

DON suBURBs-cosr OF TOURING rYKSoLANp.
Special Correspondence of THE EVENING STAR.
| LONDON, Sunday, July z.
| Upon our arrival at Liverpool, early in the
afternoon Of the 18th Of June, we put up at
comfortable little hotel in Queen square, where
we registered and our reckoning" was kept on
slate with match. During our strolls about
town we received much attention from the
street gamin-more than we desired. We OBJ
served among other things that the English
nation has progressed as far as the s'pig" puz-
zle The sight of this familiar toy made every
thing seem quite homelike and a feeling of ma
tional prize to swell within us.
Leaving Liverpool behind on the afternoon
| OF the day following our arrival we were soon
In coventry, 121 miles to the southeast. Cow
enty, town of about $4,000 population, was,
| until few years ago. quite extensively engaged
IN the manufacture Of watches and sewing ma
chlhes. winch has now given place almost en-
| tlrelv TO the manufacture of cycles, both hi
and tri, and there are now a dozen or more
| factories In operation. employing altogether
| hundreds of workmen, skilled and unskilled
The inception of the new industry grew out of
guinness In the watch and sewing machine
| trade. Historically Coventry has little to boast
OF save its old legend of Lady Godiva and Peep
| ing Tom, but Coventry makes that go a great
way. Almost the first thing that especially at
tracted our attention upon leaving the railway
| station was a hideous wooden image. represent
| alive OF Peeping Tom, in a third-story window
! opposite the hotel we had selected, but before
we could carry out our determination to write
home at once ard relate the circumstance of
our location near so interesting spot we
learned. to our dismay, that this Tom was
fraud; that the genuine Tom was farther
| down the street. So here we regretted the
| halo OF venerdtlon and settling back in the be-
lief that we had found the real spot at last
were undisturbed by the discovery OF any new
| Toms" until nearly week had passed when
third Tom" was pointed out as the only
genuine name-and-signature-b blown in the bot
| tie Tom! This experience has poisoned our
pure young minds against all Historical"
spots, causing us to view with suspicion all
places pointed out to us as such.
Tourists have not been sufficiently numerous
! In Coventry to accustom the natives to the
sdght OF Americans, for Americans evidently
ibutnumber all other tourists in England, so that
we afforded them quite treat during our stay
! The dear girls seemed especially interested in
! us and we should not have been true-spirited
| Yankees (all Americans are Yankees" over
here) had we not returned the interest ten
| fold. Won R has absorbed so much ale for
the sake OF the pretty barmaids that the rest
OF us expect to be called upon to chip in to
help pay the duty on him as malt LIQUOR
| when he goes into France.
In our search for a contrivance for properly
supporting our long cycling hose. as part Of
| our outfit, we wandered into shop where the
| young saleslady produced some articles clearly
not intended for our sex, whereupon we broke
| into a broad smile and the proprietor bore
down upon us from the rear proclaiming that
we could not buy there for making fun Of his
| clerk.
| ON THE ROAD
| The day Of our departure at length arriving,
we turned our backs on Coventry and tour BY
wheel had begun. With our brand-new bikes
and uniforms we four "Bohemians" were in
| deed an imposing spectacle-in fact pair of
| spectacles. The warm rays of the MONDAY
sun speedily induced us to shed our coats and
a rather stiff hill about a mile out, at which we
went with rush, convinced us that after long
| period OF comparative inactivity we must take
| more easy pace for the present The road
was undulating, but with a smooth surface
The hedges, meadows and fields Of sprouting
grain bore fresh, rich tints of green and the
odor Of new-mown hay filed our nostrils when
road dust didn't. The four miles to Kenilworth
were soon spun Of, and after lunch of large,
delicious Strawberries, such as we had never
eaten before, with bread and butter, cheese
and plenty Of milk, served at q diminutive inn
by two Of the pink-cheeked pleasant looking
| young English women who seem 30 plentiful,
| we went on up to the castle.
| The old ruins Of the castle are very interest
ing and were especially so to as, as it was our
| first real castle. We spent an hour or more
clambering up and down the stone stairs of the
| towers, worn with the tread of mailed feet and
the more modern footwear of tourists-chiefly
| the latter, no doubt. We saw what rema aims Of
the room which Scott locates as that in which
| Amy Robsart was kept in confinement. Three
pence e cents) admission to the castle is
charged strangers, and there is q small army
Of old women who swoop down, whether you
are entering or leaving, with guide books,
liquids of doubtful appearance and taste, for
| sale.
THE RUN TO WARWICK,
miles distant, was mostly down grade, over q
road bordered with huge oaks and elms, past
several fine estates, with their high walls and
hedges to keep out the common herd. About a
| mile out Of Kenilworth we came upon q little
shallow brook running across the road, through
which Won R dashed with a whoop and a
yell, thinking it to be the river Avon-but it
wasn't. 4 mile beyond we found the real
Avon, and turned of up q lane to an old mill
opposite to Guys Cliff" where it is said Guy,
one of the earls of Warwick and q sort Of
legendary person, lived hermit, unknown to
his wife, after his return from the Crusades
| NO DRUGGIST Or APorHEcARY.
| Warwick we reached too late to get into the
castle that day, and we determined to push on
to Stratford-on-Avon, 8 miles distant that even
| ing; which we did after an outside view of the
| castle and a run about bennington, an adjoin-
| ing town Of more beauty and consequence as
an inland summer resort. At Stratford H
| distinguished himself by trying to be English"
| and inquiring of our landlady for an "apothe-
| cary shop" That parsonage looked blank until
| we explained that a chemist was what we were
| in search of. A chemist (the English for our
"druggist'') does not seem to be the late hours
| and-open-all- Sunday individual that he 10 in
America; for wefound no shop of the kind open.
| After scrutinizing with considerable interest
house which we supposed to be Shaks-
peares birthplace, we returned to the hotel
congratulatng ourselves on the rapid progress
we we're making in sight seeing. Next morning
/ JEs discovered that We had been looking at the
wrong house, but, however, We did the genuine
birthplace, the church, and the memorial
| theater in the true orthodox tourist style, and
at noon we're on the road again. Just before
| leaving we met the Hon. Mr.. A. A. Adee, sec
ond assistant secretary Of state, who was there
touring it leisurely on tricycle.. We have en-
shrined Stratford-on-Avon as the only place on
the run to London where we we're allowed the
| luxury OF gas in our rooms. At all other
places, even at Liverpool and Coventry, the
primitive candle was supplied u.s. although gas
was used in the halls and other principal por-
tons Of the house. Upon due consideration
we have unanimously voted that the reason
| they don't furnish US with gas in our rooms is
| that they may charge US for candles.
AT LONG COMPTON.
| Our second days ride was not especially in
teresting, but the heat and dust we stu re-
member. Long Compton, O. little village more
| largely composed OF shatch- rooted cottages
| than anv VIC have vet mat with has orfa hlie6ad