VELOCIPEDES.

Tuapeka Times, Volume II, Issue 77, 31 July 1869, Page 6

VELOCIPEDES.

To break one's neck or to get drowned j are the pleasant alternatives offered' by those who, doubting the real utility of land and aquatic velocipedes, or the permanency of their use, choose to carp at them. The arguments employed are, the disuse into which the rude machines of former times have fallen, the want of adaptability of land velocipedes to ' our rough city roads, and the crowds of vehicles in our streets. But we have shown that modern construction has entix*ely changed the character of the vphiele, which is as much superior to the hobby ' horse as this was to the three-wheeler used by French postmen in 1830. Eoads, too, have vastly improved. As to alleged want of street space, English municipalities may with advantage adopt the transatlantic suggestion of bridging over the gutters with iron plate, and thus provide a comparatively unimpeded course for the bicycles. The velocipede, as embodying the combination of physical and mechaniI cal power for the purpose of locoinoI tion, has had its claims to adoption fully vindicated ; whilst as an amuseI ment, it is in many respects superior to borse-riding, cricket, skating, or even rowing. A properly-designed velocipede, allowing, as it does, of the full development of the chest and I lungs, constitutes one of the best aids | to the much-desired improvement of i the human body. Amongst other i hygienic advantages, respiration is fa- | cilitated, and the muscles of the back and shoulders are relieved from the injurious strain often imposed by habits of stooping. Lastly, velocipathy — ! tbanks to our alma ittater for tike term -r-is the most excellent tonic and appetiser of the modern Pharmacopoeia. Then as to the danger of running over people, the velocipede is more under the control of its rider than any horsedriven vehicle. But it is the country, not the Gity or town, that is destined to be the scene of its greatest exploits. Very few have had the opportunity of giving them a trial on our country roads, though there is no longer any doubt of their utility in rure. In France, velocipedes are not only the amusements of the Paris gaudins of the Boulevards, but are found to constitute a convenient means of seeing a country without walking. Four velocipedes drove up the other day to the Hotel de France, at Mans, their drivers having started together on a tour from Tr-ouville, whence they velocipeded up to Paris. From the capital they started ior Bordeaux, Fete, Bernard, and Mans, accomplishing, on an average, thirty miles per day. This fact testifies to the safety as well as the speed with which velocipedes may be ! driven, for it is only reasonable to suppose that somewhat rough ground ! must have been encountered on the jtour. As a trespasser on social notions, the velocipede, it must be confessed, is a fair butt for the shafts of wit. In Parisian caricatures we see phalanxes of ladies donned in bicycle garments, far more .intent on winning admiration by the grace with which they drive and steer than by the speed they attain. These sylph-like forms are only lounging on their steeds ; and evidently, but for the gallantry of gen d'armes, would be told to " move on." Not so the New York belles. Responding to the cheers of their admirers — some with a swift passing glance, others with the wave of their hands — they are pictured flying onward on the wings of the wind. It is the one-wheeler, however, which excites the greatest merriment among the wits ; but, judging of reported improvements, it may one day enter into ; successful competition with the bicycle. j There are, of course, suggestions as to | one-wheelers in embryo or actual verities, which merit, all the ridicule they obtain. A one-wheeler, to be worked in a standing position by stilts and cranks, is a curiosity of mechanical misconception. The unhappy inventor, misled by the analogy of the balancing poles, puts heavy bosses at the end of the axle — weights which, if they could be afforded at all, would be better disposed on the periphery of the wheel — and a 321 b. shot is recklessly added. As soon as he puts pressure on the treadles, the machine "would move back. To advance, the centre of gravity of the whole suspended weight must be maintained in &■ position more or less in front of the vertical line through the axle, which would require the treadles to be lifted by the toes ! An American one-wheeler, for which great merit is claimed, is composed of a double rim, one working within the other. The driver and his centre of gravity being somewhat in advance of the vertical line drawn through the centre, his weight is made to contribute t-Q the propelling power. There is certainly no dearth of velocipede incidents and " improvements " of a more genuine character. A vehicle has been produced in the United States, to be worked either, by hand or foot, and which, it is asserted, will render a five-foot driving-wheel practicable ; the wheels are furnished with rubber tires, facilitating driving on ice and snow, and protecting from a jarring motion on rough roads. The most re r markable machine announced is one driven on " independent " axles, meeting in the centre of the machine, there connected l>y a beautiful and novel system of gearing, so thai} either wheel r can stand as piyoijal point,- and the other be driven round it by the operatic fa§t eBQUgh & inak.e gne's head

swim. Another velocipede has four wheels for propulsion, the fifth wheel being a guide-wheel; it is proyided with cross seats, and the four riders are expected to unite in working their passage. Some former inventions are, no doubt, capable", in the light of improved science, of being rejuvenated. Thus we hear of the patent of the " Canterbury Propeller " — a hobbyhorse on wheels — of 1862, re-issued to widen the claims, so as to <?oyer the patent bicycle of Lallement. Why the form of a horse should be adhered to we cannot tell, unless it is intended to inflate it with gas, or to secure, by the association of a good saddle and bridle, a more kindly adoption of the velocipede by the pubac. How horses themselves will look upon it we are not infqrmed. Manifestly, the world in the " good time comipg " intends to go lightly and airily on its way ; and if elevated roads are not constructed specially for velocipedes, the roads that exist must be made to suit them. The iron-arched gutters will at least be ornamental. As to railways, if a velocipede with rimmed wheels can beat aa expresa-tram, we shall expect to see individuals asserting the right never surrendered by the public of using the railroads of the country. The velocipedes suitable for ladies have three wheels, a steering-wheel in front, and two supporting-wheels in the rear, between which is placed a seat, the whole machine being so constructed as to distribute fairly the weight and strain. The seat rests on a spring of flexible steel, and the stirrups — connecting rods from which turn the cranks — are so shaped as not only to permit the use of the foi*e part of the foot, but to bring the ankle-joint into play. The steermg-baTs sure in the form of levers, one on each side, this arrangement affording great ease in the position, as well as a good command of the vehicle. Some of the later improvements include extension or adjustable cranks, to suit the driver's peculiarities. There are other velocipedes, furnished with side saddles, and the evolutions on these rival in grace and rapidity those of the best skaters. Those velocipedes will, in general, be preferred by ladies which can be operated on by foot or hand, or by both together. With a proper teacher of their own sex, and ■with suitable dresses for the preliminary practice, ladies can attain such a command of the velocipede in. one week as to lide on a side saddle with the utmost ease. Benedicts who have been permitted to glance unperceived at the evolutions of the fair sex in the New York riding-schools declare that they make a very graceful appearance. Every mail from Prance and the United States brings additional records qf races. A couple of amateurs making a tour through a part of Prance challenged each other as to which could perform the greatest distance' within twenty-four hours. One went 87 miles, and then gave out, and the other 125 miles. Another party traversed 85 miles, at a rate of speed averaging between ten and eleven miles an hour. Practice with velocipedes lias been carried so far, that offers of competitive trials of speed between them and horses on race-courses have been made. In determining adoption or rejection of velocipedes!, the million will think and judge for themselves. The hypercritical individuals, now so forward in thinking and judging for others, appear unwilling to admit that there is any waste of human energy iv walking. Now, what is the principle involved in a velocipede? Assuming a perfect wheel on a perfect plane, it is evident that the least excess of weight or pressure on one side, represented on the velocipede by the mere extension of a foot by the rider straddling the saddlebar, will put it in motion, a result effected by the contrivance of the crank. In moving the wheel, the weight is taken off the top of one radius and handed over to the top of the next, and as there are as many radii as there are mathematical points round the circumference, the shifting is easily accomplished. We get, indeed, as closely to the conception of perpetual motion as its mechanical searchers ever got. — " Ironmonger."