ASTONISHING PEOPLE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 3, Issue 260, 20 January 1941, Page 6

ASTONISHING PEOPLE

he walked through life

Walking was his great achievement. Referred to in his day as the Astonishing Pedestrian,, he was roster PoAvell, a Yorkshireman, born 'at Horsforth near Leeds in 17; U. He spent th.e greater part of his life in London where he was in the legal profession, but he died eomjiaiatrvcly poor, for In- had no love of money, though ample opportunities of making plenty of it. Exceedingly tall and thin, he was dark in complexion, rather melancholy to look at, and unusually long in the arms. This is what lie did: In .177:1 he walked from London to York and back, a distance of 400 miles in five days and 18 hours. In 178G lie undertook to walk 100 miles on the Bath Road in 25 hours —50 miles out and 50 miles in. He completed the journey with 45 minutes to spare. j In 1787 he declared he would walk from Canterbury to London Bridge and back in 24 hours 12 miles more than his iormer journey, and he accomplished it, much to the astonishment of everyone. He walked to York and back to London in 178S and 1790, both times in less than six days, though he was turned 50. and in 1792, being then 56, he made his record walk to York, off from Shorcditch Church in London to York Minster, and then returning by the same road, doing it in five davs and 15 hours.

11l the same year he won a bet of 30 guineas by walking six miles in ,"> minutes, and soon afterwards lie Avalked a mile in nine minutes and 20 seconds.

He died in 1793, and a great com panv of people walked to his funeral. He was buried in London.