The record-union., 1896-06-28

The San Francisco 'Builetln tells the
story of complaint Of a bookseller who
mourns that his trade has much fallen
off in the last four years, and he lays the
blame to bicycles. This thing is becom-
ing absurd. Let us see; If complainings
are to be taken as accurate, the bicycle
has ruined the horse business. has
knocked out the theaters, spoiled the
trade of tailors, decreased the tobacco
business, dealt the saloon industry
the first serious blow it has had, has cut
down the dividends of the street rail-
ways, has limited travel by rail, seri-
ously impaired the piano trade, spoiled
the business of nesS-makerS and
wheelrights, cut the trade in buggies to
a dangerous degree, knocked out the
billiard tables, injured the readymade
clothing trade, thinned out church con-
gregations, and so on through a long
chapter, and now the falling off in the
book trade is charged in addition to the
debit of the bicycle. OF course this is
more than half fiction. The bicycle is
a large target just now, and the DISPOSE
tion to hit the nearest and largest head
is not confined to fun at Irish fairs 1t
is impossible to trace results so directly
as the compliments do in these cases.
But suppose that there is admission of
a very large part of the charges as true,
are there no compensations? Let us see.
There are $40 bicycle factories in the
world now, where four years ago there
We're not twenty. There are employed
now tens of thousands of skilled work.
men in them, where before but a few
hundred were engaged. The manufac-
ture has called for very largely increased
production in several lines of mining,
and has made the rubber trade double
what it was. 1t has taken z,OOO,OOO OF
people In the United States into the
open air for exercise, who before were
mainly indoor and sedentary in habit.
1t has made weak women strong and
soft-muscled men hardy. 1t has drawn
away from the saloon and the drinking
resort to the immense benefit Of youth,
and the betterment of habit and health.
1t has opened the door of promise to new
vigor in the race, and has sensibly les
sened the length of doctors bills It
has given an impetus to the building Of
rural sections and invites from the town
and the city to country living, with its
pure air and personal freedom from the
restraints of the town. 1t has quickened
large number of services, has lessened
time and shortened distance heretofore
necessary for the transaction of busi-
ness. These are but few of the
compensations, and they are of char
acter that cannot but prove beneficial to
all people in some degree. But If all
other considerations of a compensatory
order are ignored, the health betterment
and physical gain Is all sufficient. AS
a matter of fact, however, as there are
but about 100000 bicycles In use of
all classes, and as we have nearly TO-
Ouo,OOO ptOplS, anu dS VI lAC -,oOO,VOV
bicyclists not half Of them owned horses
and carriages, and a larger proportion
were not patrons of saloons, and very
considerable number were not travellers,
and very many were not church goers,
while full half had no use for the piano
or tobacco, it Is obvious that the bicycle
has vastly more placed to its debit than
Is just