The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-06-09
THE BICYCLE BUTTON FAD.
If You Wear One of a New Design You
Take Terrible Risk.

There are half a dozen bicycle but
tons advertising q wheel Pm handling
on the side,' said an enterprising young
man, as he aocosted reporter of the
Rochester Post Express on Main street
the other day. "You get around among
people a good deal, and you will do me a
little favor by giving these to some of
your friends, who will wear them in the
buttonholes of their coats. Here, just
let me put this on. Oh, l see you are q
L. A. W. man. Oh, well, just put that
button in your pocket for few days,
and wear this.'' And so, without any
into position lately occupied by the in
sigma of the League of American Wheel
men, and stood off to survey the effect.
Looks 1rsb-cass,o was the verdict.
YOU'RE awfully accommodating. Well,
SO long, old man, and away ne went up
the street, leaving the reporter TO study
out whether he had been imposed upon
or really honored by the fattering gem
erosity of his friend. Well, I'll wear it
for day or SO, any way, just to please
him." was his decision. That morning
an assignment took him to tine office of
we'll known lawyer, and the two were
about three minutes in came the 14-year
old son of the disciple of Blackstone with
| Hello dad, let me have 10 cents, will
you? There's kid out here who's got a
bike button want to buy" The father
was in an tndulgent mood, and the dime
was forthcoming. AS the lad turned TO
go, he espied the button in the lapel of
the scribe's coat.
| oh, say, mister, that's a new one.
amt it? Got another onep Thanks,
awfully," was the rejoinder as the re-
porter reached in his pocket and produced
one Of thief coveted prizes. "l'I have
some mora before night" and away he
went.
''That boy has bothered the life out of
me for a week past" said the lawyer,
as the door shut with bang. "This BIZ
cycle button craze is the worst ever
saw"
After the conclusion of the interview,
and as the reporter was about to leave,
a bootblack entered Instantly sigh ting
the button, he dotted his hat and said
''Gimme that, will yer2'' OF course the
reporter was accommodating. He pro-
duoed another button and FASTENED out.
AS he left the building, he heard some
one say: ''That fellow over there
gimme dis. Go ask i'm for one.H A
violent tug at his left arm caused the
reporter to look down on mite Of hui
manity, who pleaded for 'the button on
his coat The wish of the little fell
low was gratifed, and.the reporter then
went away in peace That afternoon he
started to wheel up East avenue and
fell in with an acquaintance of the
fair seq VINO is an ardent devotee of bi-
1T was and, upon receiving reply, de-
murely said: "That something new, 1
haven't got one of those"
You, too?" gasped the reporter.
''Here. there's three, distribute them
among your friends.
| AN theseibuttons having been disposed
of, the L. A. W. pin was restored to its
ty, pretty young lady in divine
creation" of dress, noticed the orna-
ment and began: isn't that pretty
-" The reporter took fright at
what might follow, and, to be explicit,
'broke away" Reaching another room,
he tremblingly removing the League en-
blem and carefully placed 1t in his vest
pocket He was allowed to rest in peace
| the remainder Of the evening. The next
day he handed the button over to his
youngest sister. "Just wear that few
days, sis, If you want to; don't dare, "
was the accompanying speech.
That noon at the dinner table his sis
ter looked over to him and said: BY
the way, let one of the boys at school
take that button. He SAID he wanted
| to wear it.
That was too much, and spoiled the
favor of the desert for the unlucky owner
of the button.
1t seems that this spring manufact-
urer of bicycle tires conceived the idea
of having number of thousand buttons
made of tin with the name of his tire
painted on them distributed among the
bicycle dealers all over the country.
Other enterprlsing manufacturers fol-
lowed suit, and then the small boy,
with an eye open to a novelty, caught
up the idea, and began making sys-
tematic collection of them. In fads OF a
short time all the old established
stamp, tin tag and coin collecting were
completely overshadowed, and "bike but
tons" became the rage.
One boy has now a collection of over
225 different kinds of all colors and sizes.
And there are others.