The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-11-06
ALL AMONG THE WHEELMEN
Successful Season Among Bicycle-Rid.
ers Is Practically Closed.
President Overman on the Subject Of Tariff
on Wheels-Zig-Zsg 0pening-An-
aual Turkey Run"

These ore the melancholy days, the days
of all the year when the bicyclist feels the
worst, and when he gets MP in the morning
and locks out at the falling rain and the
street knee-deep in mud. and then goes out
TO the wood-shed and gives his wheel a day
of; the days in which he wishes he had
the sl35 he paid for it. early in the season.
TO buy Christmas presents with: the days
in which he Eliminates on the glores of the
past, says harsh things about the present.
and wonders if johnson, 1:56 3l5. and his
elliptical sprocket will be beaten next sum-
mer, and the days in which the home train
er does double duty ct the club house. while
those who are using il shut their eyes and
imagine that they are in Eiysian helds
scrapping with "road-hog" or screening
I'd q cinder-path to the waving OF banners
and cheering of multltudes. The season Is
practically over Dealers retire into the
back Office W here the stove IS and prepare
for next year; the manufactures as aireaiy
at work on next seasons output. ana the
rider waits two weeks for enough sunshine
TO ride fifteen minutes. The season has
been q prosperous one. and the outlook for
the one TO come 10 brilliant. Never was
such an interest taken in cycle racing as
In the summer Just past. and from that
fact alone are evolved enough air castles
for the future TO make the craft generally
happy. What Is so generally. Is true OF In
passed have brought her more prominently
than ever before TO the country at large as
O bicycling center and with the same ener-
getic hands to push forward next year as
did the present, her citizens Will probably
see some of the great 'cy cling 20 ornaments
such as have attracted half Of the country
In the East. -.
Politics in its ever-spreading scope has
seized upon the bicycle and q number of
prominent papers, both daily and those de-
voted to cycling exclusively. have taken
up the subject Of the tariff on bicycles
Thsy have hurled at each other. according
TO their beliefs, all that could be said for
OF against it 1t is claimed by the one side
that the tax. which is As per cent, is exor-
bitant and that 1t causes purchasers In this
country to pay prices away above the value
Of the article they get IL was charged
that the Overman Wheel Company were
selling for 500, in England, machines Tor
which they asked $40 here and various
other assertions of like nature were
made The most effective answer to these
free-trade arguments is in letter from A. II.
Overman, president of the factory men,
toned. In speaking of selling machines
cheaper Ia England. he said tn at 1t was
true in isolated cases. but that it was al
ways done at loss and was for the simple
purpose of having his make of machine
introduced In foreign markets In case
free-trade law would compel him TO seek
u.
his product than English manufacturers
did on theirs of the same grade, and closed
by saying Il would be more than willing
TO accept as the profits of my business the
loo men who work for me, and what
would be paid them in England"
1t was the general opinion OF a large num-
Der of prominent bicycle mon, expressed In
the machines would work disastrously to
the industry in this country. and once
again the free trade attackers have pulled
the hole in after themselves
The formal opening and dedication of the
Zig.zss Clubs new house will be next Sat
urdsv night The evening will be given
over to q smoker and q man who is
fortunate enough TO receive an invitation
will never be sorry that ne attended.
Preparations are being made for the an
nusl turkey run" of the Zig-zag Club. 1t
has been customary for the club ever since
its career began TO hang mp five tur-
keys on Thanksgiving day, and then start
the members out on a five or ten-mile run.
the first man in TO have his choice of the
birds, and the next man next The start
will be made this year from the corner of
Tenth and Meridian streets. and the men
will probably run TO Broad Ripple and back.
The turkeys are already in the process of
fattening. and they take kindly to It.
young fellow from a rural district pur-
chased bicycle at Hay Il Willetts's not
long ago and took it out to his country
seat. He was one of those mortals in whom
the germ of curiosity 10 large and we'll de-
veloped. and after few days of riding on
the 'new-fangled" thing, he determined to
see how 1t was made. He took it all apart.
even to the wheels. and when he struck
the ball bearings he got Disguised. He took
them ont. carefully wrapped them in
piece OF paper and took the next train
for Indianapolis. He stalked into the store
where be had purchased the machine. and,
laying the little steel spheres down on the
glsss-case, he circulated: There. look at
them there things. Found 'em right In the
tew CT three days with 'em in there. tew.
Now. what be you folks going TO do about
1T" When il was explaied q madden man
never trod the foo;-stool than he.
There is still an effort being made to or
gsnize q football. team In the Cycling
Club. which 10 being engineered by Ellis
Hunter. Owing to the lateness of the sea-
son il is feared that the team will not get
into the field. The Zig-zag Club will at
tend the Thanksgiving day game in q body
and d9 it's share OF the yelling.
H.T. Hearsey. the 'cycle-dealer, has been
in Chicago for the past week. looking after
next years business.
If the L. A. W. racing board were to be
asked how it felt just about now, it ought
TO sply that it was suffering from q burn
ing. tinging sensation about the ears Incl
dent 20 being much talked about. Bicy-
cling papers all over the country are devot-
ing themselves TO IL assiGucusly. There are
charges of favoritlsm. sfar-cham Der ses-
sIona and all manner of rank heresy to the
principles OF amateurism, beside some very
spicy csrtooning on the subject. 1t seems
TO be the prevalent opinion that it needs
this trussing-up fully as badly as 1t is being
given. -
There is scheme on foot by parties in
terested in bicycling in Chicago and New
York to build from the one city to the
other pathway OF asphalt for the exclu-
sive use of riders. lt is believed that the
municipalities through which it would
haveto 90. and even Congress- would do
nate literally TO its success, and that it
would be one of the greatest Improvements
of the age. lie is proposed to make IL five
feet In width and have it well tended and
protected