Middletown transcript., 1901-02-02
Ny First Experience Witha Bicycle
II ESLLE EAIRWEA THEIR

| Uiie'o NIl0y NOulu never De IOOllSl or un-
womanly. I suppose you will have to
have one, although you will surely break
your neck, and your poor father will be
brought to his grave by remorse for aid
ing and abeting the affair"
So the first and most important step in
my undertaking had been successfully
made
L have a cousin George. Up to this
time l had regarded George as something
OF bore, because he is cycle enthusi
asst and is always talking of "bikes'' and
runs" and ''tires." But now / began
to see George in different light, parti-
cularly as he agreed very willingly to 90
along and give me points when 1
went to buy my wheel You may be
sure did not wait long before doing
this; and no sooner had we started, one
bright morning, than George began to
pour out his bicycle lore.
your weight, should guess, is about
one hundred and twenty pounds" he
said, looking me over critically, $50 your
wheel ought to weigh between twenty
two and twenty-five pounds. Even if it
were trife heavier it would do no harm,
because it is easier to learn on a wheel of
medium weight than upon a very light
one. OF course he went on, 'T don't
know what you expect to pay, but it is
not necessary to buy a high-priced
wheel"
1t seemed a perfect horde of wheels
that confronted us when we entered the
bicycle establishment. It was quite be-
Ewlldering; am sure should have been
completely at sea without George. With
the air of a connoisseur, as, indeed, he was.
George surveyed the array and passed
Judgment on the wheels as they were
brought out for his inspection.
''No sir; we don't want it,-would
hardly take it as a gift. This young
lady is not 'scorcher,'" said George,
decivsely, as the dealer began to expand
on the merits of the first wheel he
showed us.
[ was very sure Twas nota 'scorcher,"
but had not the remotest idea of what
George meant by the word.
ga 'scorcher,'" he explained, is one of
those riders who leans away over the
handle-bar with back bent nearly double,
to make the wheel go at breakneck
pace. Now this machine has the handle
bars curved downward so that it is neces-
sary to stoop, and for this reason YOU
don't want it. Ladies, who of course de.
sire to look pretty and graceful on their
wheels, as everywhere else, should select
wheel with upturned handle-bar, SO
they can sit perfectly erect. It is impos-
sible to LOOK well unless you do, you
know; and then an erect position is much |
more healthful, because the lungs have
plenty of room for expansion. The ma
terial in the handles" George went on,
is minor point compared to the shape |
Of the bar; but it is better that they be |
OF cork i
1 never really knew before what care
ful and critical young man George is.
The bars connecting the front and back
part of the machine next engaged his at
tention.
Too high!'was his verdict on those in
the wheels we were loofing at. ''This
bar" he continued, Should be as low,
as possible, so that it won't interfere
with woman's skirt when she is mount
ing and dismounting If the bar is too
high, the skirt is sure to catch on it
when you are showing off your pretty
mount, and the wheel may roll over you
instead of over the ground. I remem-
ber-"
Come, George, no stories," I hastily
broke in when saw that an anecdote
was impending. "Let's stick to busi-
ness; how about this saddle?"
"Well," he answered, "they are all 1
made about the same shape and style {
now, so there isn't much choice; but 1 t
suppose you want a nice springy one, !
Cont you?' i
''Of course" I answered
"Well, of course you don't!-that is, q
not too nice and springy, because a sad 6
lie that is constantly bobbing up and v
lown will tire you much soonerthan one G
Which has only little give"
"All right, Sir Oracle; but the tires? 8
re they not Important" L
"You needn't bother about them
row." replied George, although they o
re apt to be enough of bother when II
on begin to ride. Tie tires are the "
lost critical parts of the whole machine; CT
ut We can't do much more than a:
ee that they are of medium size and v
eight. Some can be mended easily if Oh
but they are punctured so fo
luclI more easily than the others that q
here is not much choice between them. IN
is matter of opinion, anyway" III
| am sure that the patient dealer was in
! despair before we found wheel that m
iited Us, but at last we did. 1t was a
larming thing, with its shining metal WI
nd look of lightness and airiness. l W,
as quite in love with it, and was temp
d to roll it home myself rather than al bu
" it out of my sight. That night /
'eamed that went wheeling along de- in
,htful country roads, and that my BIZ no
Gle rose in the air and rolled over w
range mountains and enchanting val sh
VS. in tie clouds
was once called "a lazy, luxurious SUI
ul," by very dear friend. While wi
at was base SANDER, such as only the
ar friend would have the impu- ral
ice to utter, you would hardly believe, flo,
you knew well, that arose the next del
'rning at least an hour earlier than
1al to look at my treasure. 1 even rid
* it out into the yard, and made one /
two covert attempt to mount; but the pus
ng was not SO docile as it appeared. ing
i I concluded would better not learn viii
III and fbare hl1t wait for Georoa 1.bo g