The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1895-09-27

She Does Not straddic and Leaves the
Personal Devil Behind.

Personal DeNii B'hinu.
To the Editor OF The Times:
sir,-In Dr. Hawthorne's sermon on the
bicycle is the following:
1T is personal devil which tempts
woman to put on a boomer COSTUME
straddle bicycle, and ride through elo
thOrOughfarcs OF a great city 10 Outrage
the sensibiltics Of people who nave ilsnt
conceptions OF feminine modesty. ndsc
never seen DR.. Hawthorne, ana yet ! ~ ~
him. 1 am only lay member oi ~
Baptist church, and can only write >; =
Skinner Saved and not l.. -. OF LIZ
D. after my name.
/ do not see and cannot understand nov
any Christian can keep from loNls tno
Doctor, who is the champion Of prOmDi-
ton I'm these United States Why, what
he did FOR the one single city OF Atianld
was and IS enough 20 make every Nhil'-
tian on the earth love him.
j heartily endorse the Doctors condeih-
nation OF Sin wherever found OF not
found. l heartily endorse the Doctor
condemnation OF folly in every FORM
chewing tobacco, smoking cigars ana tHe
foolish fashions that cnagnc SO OIttn'
causing bth men and wome1, particularly
women, ard Christian women, 10 spthu 30
much mOoy that misnt be put 10 Oe''ef
purpose
against all these and against the ioollsh
display Of jcweiry, either eoid' plncn-
beck or brass. Or Hawthorne is perfect
lv right in cQndcmnins the immodest 5lil
dressed in any improper costume. nlOomef
or otherwise, and straddling a bicycle or
q horse I'm public. ! DO heartily agree
with the Doctor in all this.
But let me. If you please, Introduce 10
the Doctor and to the public another
bicycle girl. Don't be afraid of this girl.
Doctor she Is not going 10 ride over
You. and she does not straddle.
She does not straddle when she Walks
She does not straddlc when she takes her
NHt.ns ia
There is not as much stradile In IL as
a lady makes i'm riding side sadulc
with one foot on one side Of the pomMel
and the other foot ON the other SIDE.
This girl does not wear blO0mer, put
ia decently and mOicsly attred. Sne d
"A poor girl, II is true, so Tar as MoIluiy
goods are concerned. Sne can Only az
ford TO own a bicycle instead OF Inc
carriage and horses.
She is about as modest chaste. and
viItuOus as the average of Ewes dauEh-
tiers. There is no more evidence tnat the
personal devil Is i'm this girl than there
Is that he is IN the rich girl seated ihslde
Of her fine carriage with her dude OF
beau, and not as much probability. lhls
girl is a Christian girl. and wnen she
mounts her ladies bicycle, she does as
usual. puts that personal devil behind her
Not on the bicycle-thcre is no where
for him to stra4dle it-but right on the
ground. for she docs not intend him TO
get ahead Of nor, and rides out ~ the
rate OF ten miles an hour, thanhlnS nor
God for the invention OF the bicycle.
whaste, virtuous. decent. no straduic,
nOhing 20 shock the sensibilities Of any
human being. except those whose m1ltai
bicycle is carecned badly 10 the left OF az
least the opposite of right.
This girl on this ladies' bicycle Us a PIC
ture that angels can smile on; even jesus
Christ, the Pure. the Holy the lnialhDle
God ] say il with reverence 10 his name,
would not say that thS girl was strau-
ding.
lie would not say that a personal or any
other devil made this girl ride the bicycle,
but would bless her and BID ner uoH-
speed.
Now look for a moment and sec where
this personal devil goes when nc can
get ahead of the bicycle girl.
Very likely be viii jump rignt INTO mat
carriage with that rich girl and hcr dulc
OF a beau. This carriage rs travelling
slowly and the devil loves TO ride ln
81 carriage with two i viii not say
any more about this trio in the carriage.
because maybe this rich girl and her
beau may get that personal devil out OF
that carriage after an.
Or. Hawthorne and myself DO not dls-
agree. lie is describing a mans bicycle.
for a ladies' bicycle cannot De stradIitd.
There's nothing 20 straddle. He Is descrip-
ing the bl0omer girland the personal devil
that got IN her while J am describing
the Christian girl ON the ladies' nicy cie.
! am describing the other personal devil
that got in the carriage and IS in more
conecnial company.
The bicycle has come. ANA has come 10
stay. II is the poor mans and poor Wo-
mans friend. \ lady can travel ten miles
on a bicycle with less fatigue and cXer-
ton than she can walk one.
II Is the most useful. convenient. ne-
cent. and handy Of AN the ways of loco
motion yet invented. But just as all new
inventions and improvements have been
condemned and abused since tho memory
of man. so haa the bicycle been by go per
cent. of the people.
II is more than likely that within the
next nifty years or less vehicles viii no in-
vented that viii float in the air three or
four feet from the ground. just high
enough 10 keep ont Of the mud. ana just
large enough for one person and pro-
pcllci by the feet working a pedal at
tached 10 air paddles ana when they
come they viii be used by both sexes.
i do not suppose Dr. Hawthorne viii
reply by condemnirE the Girl / describe.
If he docs. however. I will rci0in.
This article is written for the 10 per
cent Of readers who think for themselves.
AMI not for the aO per cent. shat allow
others 10 think for them. - those VINO
can sec for themselves wien they look
at a lady on a bicycle that her rect
are not as Tar apart as they are when
she is seated I'm side saddle and that
If she straodles on one. she straddios on
the other. -. THDS. PERDTE
Elbow, Powhatar county Va, septem-
Der 2lth.