The San Francisco call., 1897-11-06
CYCLING
OFFICIALS
ANXIOUS
The League Of American
Wheelmen Again Seeks
Control.
RACING MEN ARE MISLED.
Induced by False Promises to
Desert the California
Association.
AFTER ZIEGLER AND COULTER.
Many Prominent Professional Riders
Invited to Apply for Rein
statement.

That the League Of American Wheel
men is not going to reIinquish what little
hold IL has left upon the cycling interests
of the Pacific Coast without final strug-
gle has become quite evident ~ithln the
past few DAYS, and the local wheelmen are
all agog over the latest move OF ''the
enemy"
Just now, when the officials OF the Cali
fornia Associated Cycling Clubs, tired
with tae struggles of the past season, dur
ing which they have built up the coast Is
sociation to magnificent proportions by
their indefatigable efforts, were ready to
settle down and pass the winter in peace
full retrospection of the good work done,
they are aroused by a new step to undel-
mine their strength, which, unless met by
q firm STAND, threatens to undo much OF
the good work already performed for the
benefit of the racing men.
1t was only last March when the cycling
clubs OF the coast backed by hosts Of the
Un attached, decided that seli-government
was for them far better than the malad-
minisIration OF affairs then going on In
the East. When the delegates returned
from the national assembly OF the League
OF American Wheelmen and reported that
L
the Eastern delegates, and that they had
met with stern rebuff, they felt that the
pride OF the State, from a wheelman's
point of view, was a. stake, and deter
mined to forsake the rotten political ma
chine which had domineered over them
under the guise of cycle legislative body
and thereafter govern their own affairs.
With them 10 think was to act, and the
matter was soon brought before the Cali
fornia Associated Cycling Clubs, an or
ganizatlon OF nve years standing and
mum bering a membership of over 1900
active riders, with the result that It's dele
gates decided to enlarge It's scope of use
fulness and assume all the work and
duties heretofore attem pied and indiffer-
emily performed by the League OF Amerl-
can Wheelmen. All the prominent Off
cials connected with the L. a. w. here
were or soon became c. A. c. c. men, and
since that time the me bership OF the
league has dropped from 100 to less than
500 mem bers IN this State, while the as
socIaLiOu has grown steadily until it now
numbers twenty three big clubs, contain
ing over 5000 riders, and over 100 unat-
tached wheeImen. Besides II has branChed
out and formed connections and alliances
in Greg " hiugton, British Column
bia, Nevada, Arizona and the Hawaiian
Islands and the Southern Cyclists Union
OF Louisiana. and has applied for mem
Union, the largest governing body in the
world covering the sport. 1t also has the
promise OF an attiliation with the Cana
dian WheeImen's Association, numbering
some Is, 000 cyclists.
Recently the L. A. W. has been at work
trying to get back into it's ranks all the
professional racing men who deserted it
when the c. a. c. e. assumed control.
Prominent among them are Coulter, ZIeg-
Ter, ElfoTd, Jones, Snarick, Whitman, and
in fact any OF the men whose names have
been prominent on the racing path her.
They had all been suspended 'for life" by
the L. a. w. racing board for joining "the
rebels" as the California independents
were termed.
This endeaVor to get these n.en back
was of itself confession of weakness, for
who ever heard before of that arrogant,
imperial body, the L. A. w. racing board
asking a man whom it had expelled to
come back into the fold? Ones memory
does not have TO run back to recall that
suspended or expelled man. TO secure re-
instatemeut, had to get innumerable sig
natures to a respectful petition, and then
get down on his marrow-bones before the
nal assembly and crave forgiveness
for his shortcomings. Not so with the
California dlgressors. Would they please
apply for reinstatement If not, they
would be reins ated anyway, whether they
would or no.
Doubtless the august racing tribunal
figured that the California professional
racing men, ike their less independent
brethren in the East, were like sheep,
and would follow leader. So the effort
was direc ed against the most prominent.
None Will gainsay that Otto Zlegler Jr. of
San Jose and Clinton r. Coulter, a Cali
fornian by adoption, are perhaps two of
the best known figures on the local paths.
1t was to them the cake was sent, sweet,
toothsome morsel. Ii they would please
apply for einstatement in the /. A. W.,
ana desert TIE C. A. C. c., perhaps some
Eastern manufacturer, cognizant of their
wondrous prowess on the path would Of
fer them a lucrative position on the ma
tlonal rcuit OF 1898. Il did not say so,
but the thought was implied, that per-