Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-04-11
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FOREIGN CYCLE GOSSIP,
Interesting wheeling Notes From
England.

Interesting wheeling Notes From
England.
England has been termed the home of the
bicycle. and while this may have been true
cnce upon q time, when the country held
a practical monopoly on the manufacture
Of bicycles, the title is hardly applicable
any longer. Shorn of most of its prestige
| in this respect the inventors of the coun-
try are making a number of improvements
IN bicycle construction, a good many Of
which will most likely be adopted in this
country.
One invention is that of an affair to de-
termine the reach Of the rider, so as to
| mount him on bicycle frame, the height
Of which will be exactly right. The affair
In question resembles the frame of a wheel,
but the tubing is arranged that the
frame can be made smaller or larger, as
the case may be. A marked gauge shows
the height Of the frame which ought to be
Used when the rider strikes the adjustment
best suited to him.
Another English frame invention has a
curved top bar. instead Of a straight one
as on American wheels. Another and
smaller bar runs from the head of the
wheel to the saddle post, being fastened to
the curved bar at the deepest portion of the
curve, the saddle post being so arranged
that the weight of the rider is thrown
upon the center of the curved tube. 1t is
claimed that this invention, while equally
distributing the weight of the rider, also
lessons vibrations to the frame to a con-
SIDERABLE extent.
A new tire that has made its appearance
Is novelty. The rim of the wheel Is
grooved, and at intervals cross-pieces are
! fastened. angular in shape. with the an
giles turning outward. Hollow elastic balls
are placed in the space between the rim
and the Ss-pieces.
An improvement upon the clincher tire Is
| a pneumatic which has tube. from the
edge of which at equal intervals projec-
lions occur. These projections fit in the
grooves made in the rim, and when the tire
| Is pumped up tightly the projections fill up,
and are wedged into the grooves, holding
as tightly as clincher tire
A new saddle that is being marketed and
nnding some popularity is fastened to the
supporting frame at the horn by means of
parallel stretcher links. while in the rear
the links end upon a projection at the rear
OF the saddle Between this frame and the
saddle number of springs are located,
designed to give ease and comfort ON rough
roads.
The invention of resident of the country
known as a bicycle knife is a clever affair.
The knife has several good blades and. In
addition, special blade designed to aid
IN detaching tire from the rim. By an
arrangement of the handle a pair of small
pliers can also be formed
Bicycle Cabinets.
Though the demand in this country Is
just as great, there are few bicycle cabinets
to be seen. In England this has grown to
De quite fad, and the latest invention is
regarded as unique. In appearance it is a
bookcase, filled with the works of good au-
thors, standing about four feet high form
ing an ornamental adjunct to the household
furniture. In the side there is a small door
by means of which bicycle can be showed
md h0 h
does not look at all cumbersome
according to the statement of we'll
known English manufacturer, THE weight
OF the bicycle has nothing to do with its
speed. as compared with the ease of pro-
pClsion. He says that it is a significant
TACT that upon wheels weighing twenty
rye pounds the leading cracks of the coun-
try nave performed their most wonderful
Work, making much better showing than
when twenty-pound machines were ridden.
The auction craze has at last struck
Great Britain. and the British cycle papers
are complaining of the car loads of Amer
lean cheap wheels that are being auctioned
off at ridiculously low figures
The world championship meet, which was
held last year at Glasgow, Scotland, clear
&c something like 5000 from the event,
according to the report of the committee in
Charge whose labors have Just closed d.
Nineteen of the most prominent residents
OF England proclaim bicycling to be their
Iavor1te recreation, according to poll
".
Seventeen named horseback; riding came
next with golf and fishing standing tied
for fourth place with eleven EACH Row
ing was represented by seven; walking ard
ahead of aquatics Foot ball, bowling,
boxing, skating. beagling croquet and
curling were represented by one each; rae
quets by two; hunting and shooting, three
mis-. five each, and shooting and mountain
eering, six each.
II the advice of an English authority can
be taken. the right gear for a tandem is
by the riders separately.
A cyclist Of Coventry. England. was IA
tally injured by riding too close to the
wheels Of moving vehicle The end of
the handle bar caught IN the spokes Of tn.
wheel. and the rider was thrown forcibly
to the ground.
A cycle paper publishes the fact that an
english rider has wheel geared to 1874.
other machine to 305. While this may be
true. It IL not at all likely that either ma
chine will be Of any practical use.
German Cycling Notes.
Consul ]. C. Monaghan, at Chemnitz, Ger
many. says that German wood guards cost
1.45 marks each, and are absolutely no
good. The leading bicycle Manufacturers
Of the country recognize the superiority of
the American products.
A tire of German invention has two strips
Of leather firmly cemented together, in the
center of which thin strip of steel has
been fastened. Steel wires at the edges
provide for the fastening to the rim.
1t costs about s.. 70 to deliver a bicycle
at Munich from New York city, which in
cludes freight and customs duties. A high
grade wheel is sold in the city from $40 to
$75 to the rider.
A method for testing the balls used in the
bearings Of a bicycle. devised by a resident
OF the empire, Is as follows: The balls are
rolled singly down an inclined plane and
drop on a steel block. The balls which
bound over an adjustable gauge into a box
prepared for their reception are regarded
to be OF the right quality.
During 1897 there were 29,679 finished
wheels imported In Germany and 3911 kilo-
grams Of parts. representing a total value
OF 6,548O00 marks. OF this sum 1858 600
marks went to the United States, repre-
senting over one-third of the total sum
England secured 100000 marks and
France a43 600 During the same period the
value Of the bicycle exports of Germany