The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-07-05
WORLDS FASTEST TIME
DESCRIPTION OF MURPHY,s WON
DERFUL MILE AWHEEL IN 80. As.
Thrilling Race Paced by a Locomo.
tive with Rider I'm Constant
Peril of His Life.

onus, raster tnan any otner human Delng mas
| comprised the distance anything pro-
| PEELED by his own muscle. Fffty-seven and
| four-fifths seconds is forty seconds less
| than the time of the fastest race horse
| that ever rod track. 1t is easily double
/ the usual speed of the trains of the rail-
road company. one of whose locomotives
| paced Murphy yesterday. He came through
| the ordeal with white, drawn face, half
| insane and utterly exhausted.
1.-THE boards are flying up and hitting
| me-" he cried, as the railroad men reached
| over the rail of the pacing car and jerked
him aboard the flying train.
Yet. within three minutes Murphy's color
was back, his breathing natural, his pulse
| almost normal and he was laughing and
| enjoying the congratulations of a car full
| of excited men. The route the wheelman
| travelled was the same as that of his first
| trial a week ago, when he accomplished
the distance in five seconds over the
| minute. That experiment hid shown
some needed changes. For instance, the
| plankway between the railroad track had
| to be extended in order that the loco
motive might gain full Roadway for the
| trial mile and to afford the bicyclist
| chance to slow up when the mile was done,
| so there was a stretch of planed boards
| on the ties for two and an eighth miles be-
| tween haywood and Babylon on the Long
Island Railroad.
When he made the trial last week Muir
| ply found his time of greatest danger when
| the locomotive sprang away at the finish
! to leave him where he could not dash his
| brains out against the rear platform. The
| bicyclist found the suction of the flying
| train pulled him along in spite Of himself,
| and his endeavors to stop almost threw
| him. They obviated this difficulty yester-
| day by jerking him bodily from his wheel
| aboard the car while the train was still
| speeding sixty miles an hour.
| Probably three thousand people saw the
| SCATTERING of the mile record They were
strung out along the track, being 1ni thick
| For the Long Island Railroad Company me
| event was only an artistic success Inc
| long special trains, drawn up IN reauiness
| to receive the thousands OF people VINO
| might be expected to care TO attend an
| event of this sort, remained untitled. Most
Of the spectators either came oh On taIiyl
| wheels or in coaches, carryalls ana taliy-
| hos, or else walked over from the nearby
1 Long island towns. .A,a
| To those who rode on the car pemho
| which the bicyclist pedaled the event was
| one fraught with excitement intense to the
| point of ghastliness. One man who watcne9
| the rider from the car platform 1ain.e9
| when ii was over, and a dozen declared
| nothing would induce them to assist IN sucn
! an affair again. And yet the only grewsome
| thing about 1t all was the pale, drawn lace
| six feet from the end of the car. looming
| through the mist OF dust, every olstortsu
feature telling of the effort II took 10 max IKE
a new mark for men to ride at. But the
! story must be told from the beginning anu
| not in retrospect to convey an idea OF what
happened en- that stretch of railway yester-
TRIALS WITH LOCOMOTIVE.
Locomotive No. "a, of the Long Island en-
| gines, with Engineer Booth, thick sturdy
lump of a man, at the throttle, made four
| trips over the planked portion OF the ROAD
] for practice during the day. the practice
required being to bring the train to stand
| still in comparatively short distance and
| yet without suddenness of jolting-
1t was nearly O'Clock when Murphy and
| his two blue wheels came aboard the car.
| 1t was decided to go over the track once
| more in order that the timekeepers might
be accustomed to the flags ana ape t 10 snap
| their stop watches at the proper instant.
| Murphy, clear-eyed, moved around In tne
| car with the lazy grace peculiar TO men ID
| perfect physical trim. He is brown-halreu,
| brown-mustached young man, whose ap-
/ pearance gives no hint of the tremendous
| reservoir of pluck and endurance tnat Il
| him down while the car was slowly rolling
back to the starting point When II got
| there Murphy was up again, arrayed IN .
| riding suit OF blue jersey ciOl1l anu Icduy
to begin. But there were preparations ano
| preliminaries to bee gone through yet
He rode, as before, inside hopper-shapeo
| hood extending from the back of the car
| From the bottom of two inclined walls huns
| fianges that passed inside the rails and on
| the edges of these were fringes or rubber
| SO that the box on both sides should be as
| nearly alright as possible. From the rear
| platform of the observatory car, which was
also inclosed In this hood. extended bump
er gagged so that the post of the bicycle
| would strike ii, if there was a COLLISION
| while the wheel passed underneath.
Before the start they tested ana ntteo u sne
| Murphy was risking death in some horrible
| form, though the newness of the expert
how the accident might occur; SO they took
| every needful precaution and a hundreo
that were needless. At last the locomotive
ground on the rails and the train was in
motion. Murphy, riding slowly and daint-
| lily, crept behind, well in the shelter or the
| hood The pace was increased so gradually
| that to those on board the train it seemed
| almost incredible that they were going a
mile. minute when the red hags tina,
| marked the beginning of the race course
! flashed by. Murphy was riding Well up
| His head was bent over to the handlebars
his feet were whirling rhythmically and his
| face was raised to those on the platform
Immediately before and above him.
I'm ali right" they heard him say, as the
| news that the race was really on was blarec
| at him through a megaphone held within
| two feet of his face.
He came closer to the car as the nrs'
| quarter was being run. The people hang.
| ing over the rail of that car platform could
only see the back and neck and brown hail
of a rider lying perfectly horizontal as nc
| whirled along. There were curious work
ings on the side of the neck, pulsings. Where
| no pulse should have shown; but when he
| raised his face he showed no great sign OF
| distress.
HE BEAT THE LOCOMOTIVE.
AS they watched him the post of his whee
clicked against the bumper bar. He wa:
actually beating the locomotive and haC
| overtaken it. He dropped back almost witt
| jerk four or five feet, and the men hang
ing toward him began to bawl cheers and
| encouraging words at him, regardless OF
the fact that in the vortex in which he rode
there was no room in his ears for ordinary
sounds.
Inside the car, where the crouching figure
of the man who had pitted his life against
| a record was hidden from them, the -four
| timekeepers sat with their stop watches or
| the window stills before them, staring GU
| of the window with eyes only for the fiut
| tering flags set amid the greenery TO mari
the fourths of the mile.
| .sFffteen," cried the timekeepers tn
first white flag was passed The first quar-
| ter was done at the mile minute rate
Murphy was capable of greater things. A
the half his post again touched the guard
| He fell back, this time clear outside tn
| hood so that any cross wind that nigh
| have blown would have caught him. Blu
the maelstrom in the air created by tina
projectile the Long island people call seven