New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-07-28

,o,,ed together by a wooden bar. which the
riders seat was fixed The mode OF PROPULSION WAS
to push the feet against the grouni. Ihis "eaN
idea soon died natural death. and according 10
,h,s authorjty little ar real progress Was maze
for the next fifty years. as levers ana o'ner a'-
,empted appliances were found too intricate io' III.
times In 1869 VI. M!chaux OF Paris u cre'''ea
with making the front or drlNihe ""ee. NV"
larger than the hind wheel and soon al'e' VI.
Nocee another Partisan, sim further improved
,i.~clos nv maxim. them entirely OF steel ana Hoh'
Tho nrnc,ple OF crank action attached 70 reVo''"s
oxles having also been developed the pasume Oh
bicycling became more popular
Mr.. DAvIs'S ACCOUNT.
w Davis takes exception to some OF these state
nsn,s IN 1885," continued MI Davis we were
in business at 40. IA Greene-st. TINS cry. "nne,
,no name NJ Pickering & Davis. and r. H. PASCAL
~ ,- s,,,ertn,endent Mr. PASCAL is at present
oo,rec,ed with the Pickering Governor Company al
portland. Conn. and he will bear me on, In VIVA.
say My old partner. Thomas II. Iohe''"s' u'''
about three months ago. Like many o'het H'e"
tors we were simply few years aheau % ''
times. Had we patented our machine ana not al
lowed the patent TO run out We s"ou'' "0
n great deal OF money
"Nr Pickering went to Europe In the sixties. ana
no saw those cumbersome machines ny WHICH 10
use paradox. the riders walked. "hen ne came
home we talked the matter over. ana uec"c" ~
.naLe tho machine We printed little paper at
AT
hav, given you is the one used IN that paper j"
ha f.u NJ 1867 or the spring OF 1868. do not re-
member which Just now
"a, nrst the spokcs. hubs and rims were ""'o o
mood the rest OF steel and iron. !; was heaVy' OF
80 and somewhat cumbersome. and we soon
Aon,cd that idea and made our wheels almost
wholly O, steel our pedals were kind OF three
n.re Arrangement which moved with the foot
s ,he Medals do to-day. Tho frames were Wauc OF
s,ocI hollow tubings. In the fall OF 1861 we sent
| hr a dozen OF the wheels TO England ana am
"on,,rcea that It was from our wheel that the
Engshmen got thcr h's' 'D''' "''"'
| modern bicycl"
THE PRESENT WHEEL FOREsiADOWED.
..rhe circumference OF our wheel ran from - 10
| - -. ,or the front. and from ~ TO Is inches for
| .ho roar wheel AS you see b. the Illustration.
! our swivel connecting the handle-bars with inc
| front or ftccring wheel was on the same principe
&c tha, now In use 1t cost about soo 10 make 'he
| FIRST wheels put on the market pu' 'aV' we
no,Id make them for from s35 TO $40. Our huo was
| ~ oa Nth a steel axle inside. and 1t was self
oulng II was a hollow tube. hlled with OIL ana II
| would run for month or two WITHOUT requiring
| any attention to this oil well
| W. made our last whces In the spring OF 1868.
| I'D ,b,nk they were made almost entirely OF
| go, ard iron Then we found that there was no
| s.u.rd for them and having $500 OF material
| On hand we decided TO stop. remember we mace
one fine wheel which cost us $500 Inc pest we
| could do was 10 sell IL 10 man IN brookiyh-i
have forgotten his narne-for 80
| "The last wheel we made had brake. whch
| was regulated by the handlebar. we did not nave
| ,onvsb,. seot an they have now. but we did
| have movable treadle bars. so that the machine
| could be made to At either long or shor, esbeo
| riders as the Illustration VIII snow we "er'
going to put on rubber tires. but the niue interest,"
| evinced In the wheel 1ustifed us, we '"o"s"'' ~
| throwing I'D the whole business You see our ma
| chine was made with steel tires. and as long al
| Won rode 1t In a hall over level road IL wal
all right but when you tried to ride 1t on inc rousi
cobb,e-stones We had In those days. you couiu no
do 1t. We could not do much with IL on ~ w u.r
simply ten years ahead Of the times ana we iiia n
great mistake IN no, taking out p s,eh's came bacl
here in about ten years as an English invention
EARLY BICYCLE RIDERS.
Il remember that sold one Of those wheel
| to John Thompson. the old banknote reporter a
Wall and Broad SITS. Then Mr.. Morse. the tee
graph man. bought one. and Charles A. Dana
bought one for his son. believe. or maybe h
used 1t himself f. S. Jafray was another pur
chaser. as was one OF the Hsrper Brothers, an'
Mr. DAVIS wrote TO his old superintendent, r.. II
PASCAL and received the following reply; II sha!
we have Of the veocpede made by in Greenest.
ns s' Is Gf he last
engaged In tnelr manufacture The frame wa
sae 25 beags and steering were suI
metal: crank axle. cranks and rear wheel axle o
best refined Swedish iron; pedals OF gun metal
The support for the saddle was a flexible stee
spring firmly secured to the steering head on IN
forward end the free end resting on hellcal stee
spring which rested on the frame The handle,oa
was OF a peculiar form and was wei. adapted U
overcome the jar due to riding on the cobbleston
or Russ pavement then used on the streets
| New-York -,
THE first wheels generally OF wood. VIII
the exception Of few special ones constructteu |.
show TO the public. OF the form now In use. OF stee
J rims with wire spokes The present popular ma ma,
chimes have followed In general design. a!tnouel
not in detail, the machine as Manufactured by u
in 1857 and 1853 II,
, III trust that this meagre description VIII be Q
use to you, II has given me much pleasure =
revert to the old times and to the many pleasan