The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1897-08-11
LESSON IN RIDING.
Not Much Progress Made in the Art
of Cycling.

Not Much Progress Made in the Art
of Cycling.
The lady disentangled herself from
the wheel and looked at it mournfully,
reproachfully, desPairingly. The pa
tient instructor stood meekly by, hold
Ing the machine, awaiting her pleas
| ure.
"What can be the matter?" the lady
| asked.
Its certainly mighty curious" the
instructor replied, shaking his head.
I'm sure l don't ride half so well as
did at the last lesson" proceeded the
lady.
That's So" admitted the candid in
structor.
Nor quarter SO well as at the one
before that
"No, m'm."
"At my second lesson I rode half way
across the room without you holding
the Wheel"
"You surely did"
"And at the fourth lesson almost
made a mount by myself"
81 seen you do it," and the instructor
tapped his fingers on the saddle by way
of emphasis.
"And now" pursued the lady in an
indignant tone, 81 can't ride two feet
without falling off,"
The Instructor lifted the bicycle up
so that it rested on the front wheel and
kicked the pedal around, but said moth
ing.
"What can the reason be?" persisted
the lady.
The instructor felt the tire of the
rear wheel, but remained silent.
do you suppose it could be the fault
of the wheel?" asked the lady.
"Hay?" exclaimed the instructor, his
surprise overcoming his politeness.
II don't mean in that way" the lady
said hastily, with blush. "Of course,
it's really my fault, in way, because
1, and not the wheel, am learning to
ride. But don't you think that the
wheel may be msbehaving and that
that may have something to do with
it?"
do you mean that it's out of order?"
asked the instructor, beginning to poke
around among the joints and sprockets.
NO." said the lady, only just sulk-
ing"
81 never heard of a bicycle sulking,"
replied the instructor, unsympatheti-
cally.
didn't you?" returned the lady with
growing enthusiasm. well, them, per-
haps I've discovered something new
You know that sewing machine gets
sulky sometimes? No? o, of course
not, if you've never used one We'll,
it does. Sometimes it simply won't
work right. Perhaps the weather af-
fects it. Then it will take a jump and
run along beautifully for days and
days. 1t is simply mischief.
"Now, the first day / rode this bicycle
got along beautifully on it. and wasn't
bit afraid, and the second lesson was
the same. Then it began to be sullly,
and 1 began to be afraid of it. and I've
been getting more and more afraid of it
ever since. Now, how do you account
for that, if it really isn't the fault of the
bicycle in getting sulky and frighten-
ing me?"
"You got frightened because you
tumbled off," said the instructor in
matter-of-fact way.
"Yes," said the lady, land why did
tumble off? Because the bicycle was
sull<y and began playing tricks On me.
Otherwise I ought to be making prog
ress instead of falling back, as | am
doing. So, don't you see, that it really
is the bicycles fault and not mine that
am doing so badly?"
well. perhaps SO" said the instructor
resignedly.
1.-THE wheel has had rest said the
lady, perhaps it will be feeling better
now. 1 will try it again. But keep
good hold of it,"
And then she made another attempt
to master the art of riding alone.-N.
y. Sun.