Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1897-08-06
Evolution Of the Bike.

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| Drais, more than SO years ago The
contrIvancc consisted of two wheels,
in Il fork, the same as now. The
wheels were connected by bar on
which the rider sat, and propelled the
machine by kicking the ground, some
what after the way in which the grass
hopper projects himself forward. This
wheel was called the Draisine. 1t was
introduced in the New World in 1878
and found immediate favor in our
larger Eastern cities.
The first riding machine ON which
pedals were placed was the velocipede,
but it was not until 1863 that they
were applied to the Draisine, and this
Improvement was also made by n
Frenchman, Pierre Lallement, who,
three years afterwards, came to this
country and took out a patent for his
improvement. 1t took couple of
years to convince the people that it
was practical, when it suddenly be-
came the rage. All classes and both
sexes rode it. In 1869, the furore sud-
denly died out and the bone-shaker,"
as it was called after the rubber tire
had made its appearance, was as sud-
denly relocated to obscurity. The
wheels were made of wood with iron
tires, the saddle being placed about
midway between the wheels. An
Englishman conceived the idea of the
high wheel, which supplanted the
bone shaker" and an American sug-
gested the rubber tire, from which its
airy offspring, the pneumatic, was a
natural growth. 1t is probably owing
to the soft tire that the wheel again
found favor, and the ease and rapidity
with which the tall wheels could be
propelled, to say nothing of the COM
fort from literally "riding on air."
created another craze on wheels,
which lasted till the COS, and it did
not abate them, but suddenly changed
to the safety" form of bicycle, Sc
turn to wheels of equal size, which
from the nicely of construction of the
ball bearings that had been developed
for the large wheels, compensated in q
great degree for the friction of the
gearing necessary for speed on the
safety.
The immunity from danger on this
form of wheel, made it at once favor.
lite and universal in its adoption.
Men, women, children, the superan-
nuated. and even invalids, could ride
the new wheel, after little practice,
without fear of disastrous results from
a " header" The turore, developed in
1895, continued all through 1896, and
is about at its elimination and decline
at the present time, for several rea-
sons.
The first of these is, an anticipated
improvement which, it is claimed, will
dispense with gear. The experience
of riders, in possessing costly but an.
tiquated wheel, from the rapid adj
vance of improvements, has led to a
caution and disposition to dismount
before the present wheel joins its high
ancestor and the "bone.shaker" in
permanent obscurity. Then the gold
craze has had perceptible effect upon
the demand for wheels, and already
announcement is made of a prodig-
ious slump in the price of all grades
of bicycles. 1t is said that the highest
grade of wheel may now be bought at
retail in the east for less than $25-
about $22.50-and that inferior grades
may be purchased for half that price.
There is no other reason than the OK
traordinary demand that has ever held
the prices up to such extortionate
rates. The actual cost of the highest
grade of wheel, experts affirm, does
not justify more than one-third the
price charged, and still leaves fair
margin for profit.
What the improved wheel of 1898
may be it is, of course, impossible to
now determine, for the confident an
ticipations of perfecting o machine
that shall dispense with the sprocket
wheel and chain while maintaining a
minimum of friction, may not be real
lied; and if it is, experience teaches
that just behind it will come some
other new feature that will attract
the popular fancy. This will probably
be in the form Of some light motor
which may supplement, or entirely
supplant, exertion of riders.
Whatever may be the fad on wheels,
observation has shown and experience
proven that twill be popular, and en-
able the manufacturer to place fancy
price on the product, that at once ad.
mits it to that charmed circle of ex-
clusiveness, which makes it a prime
favorite with those possessing long
purses Or of people who purchase on
the instalment plan while they stint
themselves and their families in food
and clothing.