The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1895-08-18
THE WHIR
OF THE WHEEL

Apropos Of the bicycle ordinance re-
strictlng the rate Of speed or plcycieS on
roadways I'm the city parks Us the ioIo"-
ing from the American Wheclman'
"Riding or driving faster than six miles
an hour Is strictly prohibited, IeadS IN.
sign IN the park. HOW looilsn t.'nt
looks TO us, Why six miles an hour is "a
crawl on a bicycle. You DO not really rear
lie the pace you are travelling so easily
unless your attention is called 70 IT, v"e
dey two Of rs had been sauntering on a
automatically saunterlng alohs al
what | thought perhaps was six miles an
hOur-anI remarked 10 my companion.
I'VE will not have much OF mileage
| this afternoon" With smile. ne rephed'
How much do you think
After a hasty mental calculation, | said
| eighteen miles" He looked az his
watch. and gave it as his opinion that
| it was nearer thirty.
NOW. see here said he with me
| Improvement in the mechanics or the
wheel and tire and the high gear used,
/ the average pace of bicycle travel has
increased wonderfully. and few cOmpft-
| bend IL. You say we have been saun-
tering and so We have. but here Is proof
/ positive. The watch says We have been
/ sauntering just three hours, and the cy-
! clometer registers the distance travelled
at a little over - miles The pace seem
! ed slow 10 YOU, because the high gear or
/ the wheel got over a great deal OF ground
/ without any quick pedallng, and you nave
! forgotten the many coasts taken when
the pace was a mile IN two and three
minutes
TIN MILES an HOUR.
80 the average pace has been over 10
| miles an hour. and with less eXcrtiOn
| than YOU could have made a pace or
| seven niles three years ago. You Will
! observe by this that the bicycle manufac-
| turcrs have upset all the old rules. flhc
| law Of mechanics says. What you gain
! I'm speed you lose in power and the law
| OF railroads is: The greater the speed.
| the more the cost But the manul a'-
| turer now says 10 you, We have reduced
the price Of the bicycle, and Increased
! the pace, while requiring less eXeruon.
! In other words. you have gained I'm speed
I and use less power. and the increased
| epeei is furnished al n much less price.
So / have pondered over this lttle lee
/ ture and have come 10 the conclusion
that the bicycle manufacturers are really
/ of some use 10 the world even Yet. An-
| other thing that occurred 10 me and Do
cycles was the fact that only a few
years ago the hills that were "terrors
and avoided because called insurmOuuia-
bic. We're very numerous tn almost every
section. Now there does not seem % Doe
any left. They have all disappeared.
The feminine mind that once drew a mem
tai typographical map before starting on
a spin. and selected one whore She could
spin from the many that were a "hOrrl1
grind" is no more disturbed by such
DAYTIME Nightmares. II the present con-
dition had been described five or six years
ago, IL would have seemed like a day
dream-a sunny fancy, never 10 be real
lied.
scoRcnER's BrKF.
| Considering the great evolution IN biz
cycles one would think that the wheel
had reached ideal conditions, but the fact
is that there never was so much lugcuul-
~ displayed in bicycle invention as the
present and entirely new principles are
being evolved.
Lewis B. White is the inventor OF a
bicycle which. he claims. Is a great In
prov ement on the present style Of ma
chimes, says the New York CournaL
With 1t the speed cf an ordh.ary wheel
will be doubled, while the amount OF
energy expended remains the same With
another wheel. on the same plan but
built for racing, he thinks a speedy rider
car travel a mile in considerably less
than one minute. The motive power
OF the new bicycle is compressed air
| which the rider congresses as he runs
and a quart OF cold water.
In general appearance the new bicycle
! differs but little from the ordinary road.
ster used by wheelmen at present. There
| is a large case. forming a centre Of the
driving wheel. and small compress
air apartment directly in front OF II
Just behind the steering wheel is whers
the power Is formed BY two pistons
working from the ordinary pedals will
&c entric cranks Instead OF the sprocke
chains used at present.
PIsToNs INSTEAD or RODS.
These plstons by a clever arrangement
OF pipes instead OF the ordinary rods OF
| the present wheel. force water greatly
| compressed. around over the top OF th'
machine, through compressed air apart
ment and against a motor wheel enclosed
in the case In the rear wheel
This water then falls into the bottom
OF the case, and returns 10 the pump.
again, thus being used over and owe
apail, as IL Is in possible for the water 4
escape There is brake on the machine
the same as on those ar present In use.
MADE TO CLIMB HILLS.
Another strong feature OF the new
bicycle. the inventor claims. is the fac
that power In the shape OF compressed al
can be stored to help ascend hills. Mr.
White says that In even Tho otandar'