The record-union., 1898-05-06
OF INTEREST TO CYCLERS.
HELP ASKED FOR THE WHEEL
WAY-NEW DEVICES.
War and the Bicyc1e-Uses OF the
Wheel in Campaigns-A Wo-
mans Opinion.

mans Opinion.
The c. C. w. goes to church to-mor-
row evening. 1t will assemble at the
cIub rooms at 6:45 and wheel to OAK
Park Chapel at 7, by special lnvltatloh
of the official board of that cnurcn.
Rev. Mr.. Herrick will deliver an au-
dress on Spain and Her Wars, and the
Lessons to be Drawn TherefroIn- 1leIe
ought to be a large turn out OF WheeI-
men and wheel women on that occasion
The Wheelway Committee OF the T.
c. w complain, with justice, that SO
many riders unattached to the CLUB use
the Folsom path, but contribute nothlhg
TO it's support. Observation SHOWS thaI
over 500 riders in the last ten days nave
used the path for outing who DO not
have a wheelway badge on their WheelS.
The committee says that the path cost
81, 900 and ever. 1t requires constant
care, though that may not be apparent,
yet work upon it is needed all the time
This calls for money. The club IS giving
all it can to that end. 1t has spent
fully $500 on the path and gives now
weekly all its initiation fees to the
maintenance of the WheelWay. Ihe
committee wishes very much to greatly
improve the path, make extensive re
pairs, smooth every foot OF It, reoulId
bridges, straighten curves, fill holes ana
have it swept free of debris. presently
the weeds on the wayside must be cut
away and the path sprinkled. 10 DO
this money is required. If the un-
attached cyclists will each buy 81
badge all the work will be done and
twenty miles more Of just as good
wheelway built. These badges are pro-
durable at any cyclery or Of members
of the club. Really. common pride and
self esteem ought to prompt cyclists to
become partners in that which con-
tributes so much to their pleasure. The
path ought to be much improved and
made soeedier. but without money aid
6t cannot be done.
Jervis Weekly: One of the unpleas-
ant prospects Of the retail dealer this
season is the competition against his
ordinary chain wheels that the cheap
chainless cycles will make. A manufac-
turer who is making a S75 chainless
says that he has orders for thousands
and is running his factory day and
night in the endeavor to catch up. Sales
have been slow enough this spring with
the poor retailer, but when he is called
upon to fight chainless cycles offering at
the same price as chain wheels, he will
have to put on a new thinking cap.
The introduction of lock for the bolt
of a chain by an Indianapolis chain
company the first of the year, has set
many makers at work experimenting
in the same direction and there seems
ITO be a general tendency toward getting
rid of the chain bolt nut absolutely.
The advantages Of a bolt that cannot
work loose and has no nut to catch on
to things is obvious. Where a gear case
is used such a form of chain is Of par
ticular value and from present indica-
tions it seems safe to predict that the
chain of the future will have no nut.
Wheelmen as a class will probably be
as materially effected by hostilities as
any other class, owing to their avail
ability for certain lines of military
service, and the liability Of their prop
erty to taxation. Cycling as a sport
will be particularly affected. and it
may be virtually blanketed in the event
of active land campaigns.
New York Times: Experiments in
foreign countries and in the United
States have demonstrated the great
value of the bicycle as an auxiliary in
military service. 1t has been shown
that it is invaluable in scouting expe-
ditions and for the rapid movement Of
small bodies of men in emergencies. For
courier service the swiftest horse has
been outridden by the pedaling mes
senger in a long-distance ride.
It has also been determined that the
character of the country does not nee
essarily affect the employment of the
wheel in the service. It's practicability
over rough country, even in a long
course, has been demonstrated in this
country by the squad Of men under
command of Lieutenant Moss Of the
United States army in riding from Fort
AIissoula, Mont, to st. Louis.
The possibility of mounting light ord
nance upon tricycles and propelling
these engines by man power has opened
another phase for extensive develop
ment in military operations. Ordnance
Of the Maxim and Gatling type is ex-
ceedingly destructive, and usually of
such light weight that certain modeIs
may be easily adapted to cycle corps.
One of the machine guns invented by
Hiram S. Maxim is an instance of the
possibilities in this direction. 1t weighs
but forty pounds-a light load for tri-
cycle, and can be easily pedaled long
distances by two attendants. This gun
can fire l 900 shots in a minute and a
half, and 1900 shots in but little more
than double that time.
Cycle racing will not only suffer on a
par with other sports in war time, but
its special characteristics render it liza
BILE to be affected more than any other
sport of its extent. The professional
cycle racers have said they would like
nothing better than service as scouts
and couriers, and it is probable that
much of the best talent will forsake the
track if their services can be advan-
tageously used. The temper of the
people in the event of a summer Of live
" action would undoubtedly keep away
a part of the patronage at the race
meets.
Articles of agreement have been
signed for a five-mile unpaced match
race between Clinton R. Coulter, the
holder of the one-mile unpaced world