The record-union., 1896-05-03

NV
In spring and fall she rides her wheel,
Her hobby, then-she rides it hard.
Each week a century she'll reel,
Just scooting up the boulevard.
And when the summer, piping hot,
Comes on and bakes the torrid land,
She gets aboard her fathers yacht
And takes another wheel in hand.
So, land or sea, it's wheel and wheel
Till I, who've followed where she's led,
With all these turns am dazed, and feel
AS if had wheels in my head.
Jibson was the beau ideal of a gentle
man of the old school Not that Jibson
was old But he went in for all that was
conservative and proper, stood upon his
dignity, dressed quietly and correctly.
and always wore a black cravat.
He made up his mind never to marry,
and had surrounded himself with a
small circle of select friends as quiet
and proper as himself
The years went by and the rattle of
the bicycle chain was heard in the land.
The rolling skating craze was as naught.
Jibson and his friends smiled supercil-
iously. The young, the old, the grave,
the gay, took to the pneumatic tire. But
Jibson and his friends held aloof
1T will pass" they said, like the pigs
in clover puzzle and the riddle of the
white horse and the maid with auburn
hair" When they saw stoopshouldered
men gather in groups in places they re-
serted to, and heard them talk of cen
turtles and ''sprockets,'' of high gear
and ball bearings" they stepped aside
in the calm dignity of their indifference.
But a break came. Naylor, his nearest
friend, fine, old, gray-haired gentleman
who had looked askance at the coming
in of the Remsen Cooler in the place of
the tried and true Tom Collins, was
tempted and fell.
Words reached the ears of Jibson that
NayIor had been seen scooting up the
boulevard in knee pants and sweater
with his eye fastened on the cyclometer
on the front axle of his high grade road
ster. Jibson shuddered, and from that
on Mayor was to him as one dead. Top
per was the next to go. Topper lived out
of town and there were such fine roads,
and he had chance to get a beaut of a
wheel at a bargain, etc. etc.
But his apologies were unheeded by
Jibson. Jibson regarded him as one
who had done him a wrong that could
not perhaps be forgiven; but to forget
ah! that was another thing.
Bilson was next TO fall-Bilson, who
weighed 400 pounds and whom any man
would have deeemed beyond temptation.
But Bilson took the fever hard and had
massive, special bicycle made for him
self at vast expense, by the Eagle Iron
Works Of Paterson, and in a week was
making runs out to Patchogue.
This was the last straw and, sobbing
like a child, Jibson was led away to
where they teach you to ride in three
lessons and sell high grade wheels on
easy terms. Jibson Is of the stuff that
martyrs are made, but to be the only
man on earth in 1896 who did not ride
wheel was too much even for his
cast-iron fortdtude.
.
Jacob Rothschild of the Terminal
City Wheelmen has a great scheme for
q meet of all the wheelmen in Califor-
MIA here on the 9th of August, when the
watermelon season will be at its hight
1t was at first suggested that a water
melon run be made from here to Lodi,
where feast of melons would be pre-
pared. Now 1t is being arranged with
the management of Goodwater Grove
to have a feast of watermelons there on
that day, to which the wheelmen of the
State will be invited free. There will be
some 5000 melons in the inclosure az
the track, and after the riders have had
all they want there will be a water
melon battle in which all the wheelmen
will participate. There will also be i'm
promptu races there, and a general
good time. The affair is now being
worked up, and will undoubtedly be a
success.
The Terminal City Wheelmen are
training hard for their road race with
the team from the Capital City Wheel
men, and there will be good time made
in the contest.
Interest in cycling is now at higher
pitch here than ever before, and a
number of new riders are developing
Among the best in town are Siebold anS
Crum, and the latter is said to have
made a paced mile on the new track al
the grove last week in 2:1S. the fastest
time made here since the time the IA
nous Rambler team or 1874 was III
this city.-Stockton Mail.
There has suddenly sprung up a de-
mand for decorated bicycles. Berb-
boned handle bars and plated
lamps, which recently proved sufficient
adornment for the most fastidious
women riders, have now been super
seded by all sorts of ornamental furbe-
lows and jeweled decorations, which
strange to say, have been fashioned al
the request Of men riders.
1t was never supposed even by the
most enthusiastic bicycle crank thai
the fad which started off so meekly
would assume such large proportions
that sl,oO0 worth of decorations woult
De laVished on a bike" A young Eng
Hsh nobleman dropped into Tiffany
the other day, however, and ordered the
best IN the shop, and when they wer,
through covering his machine over will
silver mountings and studding the han
Ile bars with precious stones, he haC
an lo-carat affair which cost him al
sven thousand
To look we'll on bicycle the rider
whether a man or a woman, mus
know how to ride. And TO ride well yoI
must have wheel properly adjusted