Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1896-11-27
CHEAP BICYCLES.
a FreacA Ingention Which Sofia
for a Quarter.
u Is Hardly Cr 60 Our American Ma
chine, However n Is Thought II
sIsy Affect the Price Of Bicycles
the Morld Over.


the World over.
\ business las just been started in
Paris which may affect the price of bi.
cycles all over the world. Ii undoubt-
eddy will. il the claims made by the
champions of the new undertaking
prove true. Cheap bicycles, SO cheap
taat the mention OF the sum takes ones
breath away, are to be the product of
/ :hi3 new business or factory.
! Wooden bicycles were offered for sale
| in Paris some time ago ut the unheard-
! of price Of 20 sous each. Henri dc Par
I vile. scientific editor Of the journal drS
DebatS, was musing over this strange
/ fact. whcE one day he received a letter
/ Informing him that n very useful BIZ
/ cycle could be made for two sous. which
are equivalent to Al couple of cents OF
American money. a bicycle for couple
of cents! Just think of il! a few
days later Paul Clerc. the writer Of the
letter. showed NJ. de Parville his two
cent bicycle. II was simply composed
of couple Of pieces OF wood taken from
an old box and two cents worth of iron.
Ii was. in other words, Il rough speci-
men of the primitive velocipede, as in
vented by Baron de Drais in 1918. The
component parts of this machine were
q rough wooden framework and two
wooden wheels of equal size
Nj. Chores idea is 10 place on the mar
ket machines fashioned after this old
model. but with all feasible and mex
pensive improvements. The machines
will have neither pedals nor intricate
mechanism of any kind. They will bc
composed simply Of wooden frame
work. two wooden wheels and saddle.
They will he known. not us bicycles,
but as celercts.
IL is not expected that the celercts
will Supersede the regular bicycles, but
it is considered certain that thousands
who cannot afford to buy bicycles will
buy celerets. \ first-class bicycle costs
500 or moro; n first-claSs releret can be
bought for one dollar or two dollars
and one of an inferior grade can be pur-
chssePas low as 25 cents Nav, there is
no reason why q handy man or boy
should not make n celerct for himself,
I'm which case the only outlay neces.
sary would be couple of cents for iron.
And in regard TO the utility of the
celcret Baron de Drais said many wears
ago: On good road my machine can
travel at the rate Of two leagues. and
even four leagues, an hour, and whca
going down hill its speed is greater than
that of gallpping horse" PcrhaDs
the baron Dragged. The cclert may no;
60 quite as fast us he claims. Still. il
can be made 10 60 fast. and with little
effort. The rider is really WALKING
while in sitting posture, and is far less
hlriy 10 become fatigued than II he
v re running In the ordinary manner.
Progress is made by touching the
ground alternately with the right and
left foot. The machine, once set in IN
ton In this manner. goes along steadily,
and the speed ut times is so great that
the. rider has no need to propel himself
with his feet
Put pneumatic tires and other mod
ern improvements ON celeret," saws
NJ. Clerc, land there Is no reason why
II should not go almost as fast as n hi
cycle"
He also says confidently that man
can travel long distance on IA celeret
and feel hardly the least fatigue at the
end of his journey. He accounts for
this fact on the ground that none OF tn,
energy spent on propelling the machine
is wasted, and that the amount of on
ergy required to travel long Journey
is much less than might be expected.
NJ. Clerc sees clearly that it will be no
easy task to make the celerets popular.
Nhcn their prototypes, the draisennes.
were invented. ut the beginning of the
century, the few persons who ventured
TO use them in France were unmerciful
ly caricatured. In England the ma
chines became more popular. hut there.
too, their riders were ridiculed We oil
know how long il has taken the modern
bicycle to win its present high position.
NJ Clerc' however, is confident of sue
cess.
According TO him." says the Journal
des Debats, thousands can derive benz
lit from machine like this. which costs
almost nothing, which travels rs fast MS
trotting horse, and which can be rid
den by anyone without the slightest
danger of falling off. How many Young
people would use it for amusement and
heaIth. and also for the purpose of learn
ing now TO ride the regular bicvclep
Norkingmen could ride to their bust
ness on celerets. children could go TO
school on them, peasants could ride 10
market on them, and even business men
could use them to save time. So light
could they be made that riders could
easily carry them under their arms. IL
necessary"
Analysed thoroughly, then, NJ. Clerc's
idea Is philanthropic. He wants to fur
n'sh workingmen and the poor general
~, who cannot afford to buy bicycles.
with machines that for all practical
purposes will prove quite as serviceabls
To them as any bicycle.-N. Y. Herald.
She Had a Reason, Too.
lie thought to test her affection as he
took her little hand ia his and looked