The record-union., 1899-10-11

val announces that the cause of tire de-
! fation is that the oxygen of the con-
| tanned air passes by the phenomena of
dialysis through the rubber casing
leaving almost pure nitrogen behind.
| 1--WE find that this mysterious defa-
| tion is not continuous; it becomes
slower as the air is pumped in again
and the pressure maintained constant.
If the gas in the tire is analyzed at
this moment, it will be found that it is
| almost entirely deprived of it's oxygen.
1t is almost pure nitrogen. Thus we
are manufacturing nitrogen merely by
pumping up our bicycle tires The oxy-
gen is absorbed in part by the rubber
and partly escapes through it. As air
is mixture of 21 parts of oxygen and
10 parts of nitrogen, it follows that the
tire loses about a fifth part of it's in
| flation more or less quickly, according
to the composition Of the rubber used
| in it.
| With air, we must expect a slow de-
| f1ation, whose duration will depend on
the nature of the rubber. All cyclists
know that there are some tires that
| hold the air and others do not. On
the contrary, it would be good plan to
initiate with nitrogen, for which the
rubber is only slightly permeable.
| Where shall we get the nitrogen? It
can be very easily manufactured under
pressure. Nitrogenized waters that is,
waters charged with nitrogen gas, as
seltzer is charged with carbonic acid,
are already sold. Before we know it,
we shall be initiating our tires with the
simple turn of a stopcock.
! "It would evidently be an ideal plan
to be able to initiate directly with COM
pressed gas, without the use of a pump.
It may be remarked that the
nitrogen is manufactured automatically
in the interior of inflated tires, as has
been explained above. Consequently,
by replacing the loss of oxygen a suf-
! ficient number of times by the addi-
ton of air, we shall end by having only
nitrogen in our tires. And the inf1a-
| ton will then be more and more per-
manent, provided the valve is tight.
! I'm short, never, if possible, let your
tire be entirely Debated, and it will be
slowly filled with nitrogen in pure and
purer state. Who would have thought
that bicycle tire is nitrogen manu-
/ factory?"
Modesto News: Two young men re-
| Gently riding a tandem over a road
! with which they were entirely unfa-
miliar in Hudson County, n. j., met
with an accident which caused the
| instant death of one of them and the
| serious injury of the other. The dis
aster could have been avoided just as
we'll as not. They were travelling at
rapid pace with their heads down,
| as is the fashion OF too many BIZ
cyclists. There was sharp turn in the
road the young men failed to observe.
| and, keeping on in straight course,
they struck an electric light pole,
| with the shocking results above stated.
| The incident is only one of many which
might be cited to prove that wheelmen
| should hold their heads up when they
ride, especially while traversing high
ways with which they are not ac-
quainted. Not only do those who fail
to ride erect court danger for them
selves, but they invite collisions which
may result in the serious injury of
other people
The French electric wagon Jeantaud
| recently made a trip of eighty five
| miles in seven and one-quarter hours,
without recharging the battery.
service of motor vehicles has been
started between Rosas and Figueras,
, in Spain, a distance of twelve miles.