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COPYRIGHT BY
THE COMMERCIAL ADVERTISER ASS’N.
A. D. 1898.
THE MODERN BICYCLE
AND ITS
ACCESSORIES
A COMPLETE REFERENCE BOOK
FOR
RIDER, DEALER AND MAKER
Republished from the Series of Articles Written for The Commercial
Advertiser by Alex. Schwalbach and Julius Wilcox Under the
Caption of “Bicycles for 1898,” Setting Forth the Improvements
and Changes in Manufacture Since 1816.
THE COMMERCIAL ADVERTISER ASSOCIATION,
29 Park Row, New York,
Publishers.
1898.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
EVOLUTION OF THE BICYCLE, 1816 TO 1899
The Year 1898 a Memorable One in Its History; Improvement in
Quality, Reduction in Price, the Reincarnation of the
Chainless, and the Abolition of the National Cycle
Show—Tendencies Toward Fixity, and Reversion to Type—The
Earliest Creations in Bicycle Construction and the Steady
March Toward Improvement—A Brief Sketch of Development—Marked
Characteristics and Changes Adopted with the Season of 1898.
Pages 1-9
CHAPTER II.
THE CHAINLESS WHEEL.
Its Advent Upon the American Market, After Long and Costly
Experiments—The Various Methods Employed to Transmit Power—A
Single Successful Foreign Wheel of This Type—The Bevel Gear,
Spur Gear and Pin-Roller Gear—A Study of the Chainless Type,
with Illustrations and Descriptions of Popular Models.
Pages 10-27
CHAPTER III.
CHAINLESS VS. CHAIN.
The Advantages Claimed for Each Compared—Summary of Early Attempts
in “Safety” Types—Modes of Power Transmission—Demands Upon
Chainless Construction—The Problems of End-Thrust and
Side-Thrust—The Question of Strain Upon Bearings and Gear
Teeth—Charges Brought Against the Chain Wheel—Effect of the
Chainless Upon the Trade.
Pages 28-36
CHAPTER IV.
FRAME AND FORK CONSTRUCTION.
The Frame, Essentially a “Bridge Upon Wheels”—Evolution of Shape
in Frames—Drop Forgings and Stampings—Flush Joints—Drop
Frames—Juveniles—Styles of Forks and Crowns—How Tubing Is
Made—The Adoption of Sheet-Steel Parts.
Pages 37-52
[Illustration]
CHAPTER V.
CHAIN PROTECTION.
The Gear Case an English Device—Its Improved Construction in
America—Its Practical Advantages—Various Styles Described.
Pages 53-57
CHAPTER VI.
THE CHAIN AND ITS FUNCTIONS.
A Greater Knowledge and Care of Chains Desirable—Evolution and
Operation—Attempts to Reduce Chain Friction—Roller Sprockets
and Roller Chains—Various Points and Kinds of Friction—The
Several Types of Chain Now in Use—Improved Sprockets—Results
of Actual Tests—Chain Adjusters—Chain Bolts and Repairs.
Pages 58-66
CHAPTER VII.
HUBS, SPOKES AND RIMS.
Improvements in Construction—The Suspension Wheel
Described—Construction of Hubs and Spokes—The Strains to
Which They Are Subjected—The Different Styles in Use—The
Wood Wheel—Steel Rims and Wood Rims, with Some Popular
Examples.
Pages 67-73
CHAPTER VIII.
EVOLUTION OF THE TIRE.
The Tire from 1888 to 1898—Solid, Cushion, Inner-Tube and
“Hose-Pipe”—The Various Makes of Tire and Rim—Early Methods
of Repair—Modern Repair Methods and Kits—Plugs, Patching,
Strips and Vulcanizing—Some Valuable Hints to Riders.
Pages 74-81
CHAPTER IX.
THE BEARINGS.
The Great Improvement in Bicycle Bearings—Points of
Contact—The Evil Results of Careless Construction and
Assembling—Ballmaking—The Cup Adjustment and Its
Advantages—Lubrication and Dust Exclusion—Methods in
Bearings as Made in 1898.
Pages 82-87
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
CHAPTER X.
CRANKS, PEDALS AND AXLES.
The Early and Modern Hub—The Divided-Axle Mania—“One-Piece”
Construction—Crank Throw and Variable Gear—Gear
Ratio—Crank Drop—Shapes of Crank and Sprocket—Evolution
of the Pedal and Axle—Ankle Motion and Its Advantages—The
Ramsey Swinging Pedal.
Pages 88-94
CHAPTER XI.
THE SADDLE.
Until Late Years a Knotty Problem for Makers and Riders—Some
Recent Improvements—Saddles and “Seats”—Use and Misuse of
Springs—A Strictly Universal Saddle Impossible—Various
Types and Makes—Wide Range of Choice—The Seat Post.
Pages 95-102
CHAPTER XII.
HANDLEBARS, GRIPS AND BRAKES.
Successive Modifications—Long vs. Short Bars—Wood Bars—Grips
of Various Sorts—The Question of Brakes—Rear and Front
Brakes—Back-Pedalling and Rear Brakes—The Spencer Brake.
Pages 103-108
CHAPTER XIII.
LAMPS AND LAMP BRACKETS.
Evolution of the Lamp—Excellence of the American Kerosene
Lamp—Description of Various Makes—Electric Lamps—The New
Carbide Illuminant—Descriptions of Carbide Lamps—Lamp
Brackets.
Pages 109-117
CHAPTER XIV.
CYCLOMETERS AND OTHER SUNDRIES.
Early Cyclometers—Dial and Barrel Types—Various Styles
of the Latter—Bells, Ringing by Tire Contact and
Otherwise—Bell-Brakes—Toe-Clips—Luggage-Carriers—Children’s
Seats—Pumps—Accessories and Novelties.
Pages 118-125
CHAPTER XV.
FREAKS AND USELESS DEVICES.
Constantly Recurring Fallacies—Weight for Obtaining Perpetual
Motion—Some Examples of Vain Contriving—Examples of Patents
Applied For—Building “To Order”—Cutting Down Frames—The
“Drop” Craze.
Pages 126-131
CHAPTER XVI.
TANDEMS AND MULTICYCLES.
Increased Use of the Tandem—Tandem Evolution—Various Makes
Described—Tricycles, Multicycles and Juvenile Tandems.
Pages 132-138
CHAPTER XVII.
MOTOR VEHICLES.
Bicycles and Tricycles—Evolution of the Motor Carriage—Air as
Motive Power—Electricity in Actual Use—Various Electrical
Vehicles Described—Gas Motors.
Pages 139-143
[Illustration]
ILLUSTRATIONS.
THE BICYCLE—EARLY AND MODERN TYPES.
Page.
Draisine in action—1818 2
“Boneshaker”—1868 3
The “Ordinary”—1878 3
Rear Driver—1893 5
The “Rover”—1878 6
Chainless type, 1898 (bevel-gear) 7
Extreme type of 1898 Chain model,
combining all late features 9
CHAINLESS TYPES AND DRIVING GEAR.
Columbia Chainless 10
Columbia Chainless—Mechanism and Frame 11
Spalding Chainless 12
Spalding Chainless—Driving Gear 13
Stearns Chainless 13
Monarch Chainless 14
Humber Chainless 15
Sterling Chainless—Crank Bracket 16
Sterling Chainless—Connecting Shaft 16
Bayvelgere Jointed Shaft 17
Hildick Chainless Driving Gear 18
Crescent Chainless—Driving Gear 19
Featherstone “Change Gear” Chainless 20
Featherstone Chainless Crank Hanger 21
Dayton Chainless—Driving Gear 22
Pine “Square-Tooth” Chainless 23
“English” Chainless 24
“English” Chainless—Driving Gear 25
Bantam Chainless—1898 25
Bantam Chainless—Driving Gear 26
Acatene Chainless—Driving Gear 26
Lloyd’s Cross Roller Driving Gear 27
Geared Ordinary 27
TYPES OF THE CHAIN WHEEL—MECHANISM AND OPERATION.
First Humber model 29
Golden Era—Model 29
Victor—First American Safety—1887 30
Diagram—One-sided Chain Pull 31
First Columbia Rear Driver—1888 32
Defender Midget—1898 34
Keating—Model 37
Union—Model 37
Victor—Model 38
Liberty—Model 38
Cygnet—Model 38
Victor—Single Loop—Model 39
Victor—Racquet Frame—1892 46
Stearns—Model 46
Cleveland—Model 47
Kangaroo—Model 51
FRAMES, FORK CROWNS AND JOINTS.
Three-Crown Frame 39
Chilion Wood Frame 39
Crescent Flush Joint 40
Wolff-American Flush Joint 40
Columbia Fork Crown 40
Crescent Fork Crown 41
Lyndhurst Fork Crown 41
Arch Fork Crown 41
Crawford Fork Crown 42
Humber Fork Crown 42
Monarch Fork Crown 43
Orient Fork Crown 43
Union Fork Crown 43
Liberty Fork Crown 44
World and Adlake Fork Crown 44
Cleveland Fork Crown 45
Eagle Drop-Forged Flush Joint 51
Wolff-American Lapped Joint 47
Remington Flush Joint 47
Working Drawing—Diamond Frame model 49
Working Drawing—Drop Frame model 50
GEAR CASES.
Frost Gear Case 54
Racycle Gear Case 54
Safety Gear Case 55
Rambler Gear Case 55
Cleveland Gear Case 56
SPROCKETS, CHAINS AND CHAIN ADJUSTERS.
Brown Roller Sprocket 58
Chantrell Chain 58
Keating Twin Roller Chain 59
Types of English Chains 59
Diamond “B” Chain 60
Thames Twin Roller Chain 60
Morse Roller Joint Chain 60
Baldwin Detachable Chain 61
Ewart Chain—1888 61
Bridgeport Detachable Chain 61
Liberty Sprocket 62
Crescent Chain Adjuster 62
Victor Chain Test—Diagram 63
Wolff-American Chain Adjuster 64
Crescent Chain and Bolt 64
Lefevre Chain 64
Circular Chain 65
Remington Chain 65
Missing Link 65
Victor Straight-Line Sprocket 66
Humber Chain Adjuster 66
HUBS.
Crescent Hub 68
Columbia Hub 68
Keating Hub 69
Sterling Hub 69
Wolff-American Hub 69
Cleveland Hub 70
Liberty Hub 70
RIMS, TIRES AND REPAIR TOOLS.
Plymouth Rim Joint 70
Plymouth Rim 72
Kundtz Rim 72
Buckeye Rim 75
“M. & W.” Tire 75
Indian Arrow-Head Tire 76
Dreadnaught Tire 77
Straus Protected Tire 77
Kangaroo Tire 78
Goodrich “Jiffy” Repair Tool 79
“Sure Thing” Repair Tool 80
BEARINGS.
Old Double-Row Ball Bearing 83
Lower Half of Double-Row Ball Bearing 83
Four-Point Bearing 84
Four-Point Bearing—“E. & D.” pattern 84
Common Three-Point Bearing 86
Three-Point Bearing—Improved 86
Two-Point Bearing 87
PEDALS.
Extension Pedals—American-Waltham 89
Rat-Trap Pedal—American-Waltham 89
Straus Removable Pedal Rubbers 89
Ramsey Pedal 90
Ordinary Pedal—“Clock” diagram 90
Ramsey Pedal—“Clock” diagram 91
CRANK AXLES AND CRANK HANGERS.
Crescent Crank Hanger, Stages 1 to 5 48
Stearns Crank Hanger Mechanism 71
Wolff-American Crank Axle 92
Gard Crank and Divided Axle 93
SADDLES.
Christy—Men’s model 96
Christy—Women’s model 96
Christy—Racing model 97
Christy—View of under side 97
Safety Poise 97
“Rubber-Neck” 98
Bernasco 98
Garford—Model “128” 98
Tillinghast—and Frame 99
Dr. Richmond “Universal” 100
Brown 100
Gilliam—and Frame 101
La Tulip 102
HANDLEBARS AND BRAKES.
Kelly Adjustable Bar 103
Plymouth Wood Bar 103
Lyndhurst Adjustable Bar 104
Barret’s Detachable Brake 104
Detachable Rear Brake 105
Stewart Roller Brake 105
Back-Pedalling Brake (Hay & Willits) 106
Back-Pedalling Brake (“New Departure”) 107
Duck’s Roller Brake 107
LAMPS AND LAMP BRACKETS.
Bridgeport Searchlight (oil) 110
Twentieth Century (oil) 110
“M. & W.” (Mathews & Willard) (oil) 110
Bragger (oil) 111
Columbia (oil) 111
“X Rays” (oil) 111
Manhattan Brass Co. product (oil) 112
Acme (electric) 114
Klondike (oil) 114
Solar (carbide)—Interior view 115
Electro (carbide) 115
Electro—Interior view 116
Helios (carbide) 116
Calcium King (carbide) 117
Combination Bracket 113
U. S. Detachable Bracket 113
CYCLOMETERS.
Twentieth Century Cyclometer 118
Veeder Cyclometer 118
Shepherd Cyclometer 119
Standard Cyclometer 119
New Departure Cyclometer 119
Trump Cyclometer 120
BELLS.
Lord Bell 120
Bevin Bell 120
L. A. W. Bell 121
Combination Bell and Brake 121
TOE CLIPS. CARRIERS AND SUNDRIES.
Howard Toe Clip 122
Combination Toe Clip 122
Kalamazoo Carrier 123
Lamson Carrier 123
Fairy Child’s Seat 123
“Ideal” Foot Pump 124
Lubricants—“Pacemaker” and
“Three in One” 124
FREAKS AND ODD INVENTIONS.
Weight Driven Model 126
The “Sweeper” Idea 127
A Notion of 1881 128
Mahoney’s Model, 1893 129
A “Dream” Motor 130
Wind Driven Model 130
MULTICYCLES.
Stearns Septuplet 132
Stearns Convertible Tandem 133
Tinkham Tricycle 133
Wolff-American Triplet 134
Cleveland Tandem 135
Wolff-American Tandem 135
Tinkham Cab 136
Andrae Tandem 136
“Oriten” 136
Wolff-American Duplex 137
Tinkham Carrier 138
MOTOR VEHICLES.
Motor Tricycle 140
Pope Electric Phaeton 141
Pope Electric Phaeton, under test 143
Bicycle with Motor Attachment 142
PREFACE.
To the Cyclist who appreciates the advantage of understanding his
wheel, its mechanism and its construction, for the same reason and
because of the same interest felt by a horseman in his roadster, an
engineer in his locomotive, or a yachtsman in his boat, the following
pages can scarcely fail to be of interest and value.
Bicycles without number have been consigned to the scrap heap or
discarded for new mounts, as the result of abuse and the lack of
proper care, due solely to the ignorance of riders as to a wheel’s
construction and requirements, while disappointments have resulted, in
many instances, because the same lack of knowledge has prevented the
wise selection of a well constructed and properly adjusted mount at the
outset.
A bicycle can no more be expected to run smoothly without a proper
adjustment of its parts and their maintenance in perfect running
condition than can any other piece of machinery, and while the chain
and chainless productions of 1898 are admirable for their simple
mechanism, such points as the bearings and running gear require
periodical inspection and attention to insure satisfactory service.
This cannot be adequately given by a rider who has no conception as
to the details of construction of his machine, and so it frequently
happens that a bicycle sinks into an early grave because its rider
persists in calling upon it for continued service, while utterly
indifferent to its construction and requirements.
“Know thy wheel” is an excellent maxim for every rider to follow; for
those who heed it the matter of emergency repair will be a simple
thing, a smooth running wheel will be assured, the chance of accident
reduced to the minimum, and the life of the machine extended throughout
its fullest period. It is partly with a view to bringing about a better
acquaintance between the average rider and his wheel that the following
pages are presented.
To the bicycle manufacturer and to the repair man and dealer—who are
frequently called upon for advice and service concerning any and all
makes of wheels—to the student of cycle construction, and to the
mechanical expert, the volume will scarcely fail to be regarded as a
valuable reference book for many years to come.
The idea of presenting to riders—through the columns of “The Commercial
Advertiser”—an illustrated description of the lines, parts and
improvements of the bicycle for 1898 was conceived chiefly because of
the absence during the winter of 1897-98 of a National Cycle Show.
Just prior to the opening of preceding seasons tens of thousands of
riders throughout the country were able to see at the annual shows,
and at those held under the auspices of the various local cycle
trade organizations, all that the maker had to offer in changes and
improvements for the new year. This opportunity was also furthered
by the columns of descriptive matter published by the daily press
and cycle trade journals in their reports of these shows and their
exhibits. Riders were to have none of these advantages for the season
of 1898, however, and “The Commercial Advertiser” accordingly began the
work of collecting and presenting the information which appeared in its
columns in serial form during February, March and April of 1898, and
which is now presented in this volume.
It is not claimed that all of the new features and changes evolved by
the master mechanics of the cycle building industry have been embodied.
It is believed, however, that none having an important bearing upon,
or any way likely to cause material changes in, the methods of bicycle
construction have been overlooked. Further than this, the gradual
processes through which these changes and improvements have been
evolved are shown throughout the periods of distinct advancement, also
those of reversion, as they have followed, one upon the other, until
the present state of the industry is reached, and its product set forth
as the most advanced, from every standpoint, in the history of bicycle
building.
Likewise the progress and improvement made in the manufacture of tires,
saddles, lamps, bells, brakes, and the many other articles common to
the well-equipped modern bicycle, have received careful attention, with
the result that the work of presenting this amount of information to
the readers of “The Commercial Advertiser” has, we believe, been as
complete and thorough as it has been practicable to make it.
THE PUBLISHERS.
[Illustration: NAMES OF THE PARTS OF A BICYCLE.
1. Handles or grips.
2. Handle bar.
3. Handle bar stem.
4. Fork crown.
5. Fork side.
6. Lamp bracket.
7. Handle bar clamp, binder, or “pinch bind.”
8. Brake lever.
9. Brake joint and screw.
10. Brake rod or plunger.
11. Brake collars and screws.
12. Brake tube.
13. Brake spoon.
14. Head.
15. Upper, horizontal or top tube.
16. Lower, head to bracket, tube.
17. Seat mast, diagonal, or saddle-post tube.
18. Rear or back stays.
19. Rear or back forks.
20. Head lugs or connections.
21. Saddle post frame—connection or cluster.
22. Saddle post clamp or binder, bolt and nut.
23. Rear or back fork-end.
24. Crank hanger or bottom bracket.
25. Chain—Humber or block pattern.
26. Rear or small sprocket or chain wheel.
27. Front, or large sprocket or chain wheel.
28. Crank axle, shaft or spindle.
29. Cranks.
30. Crank key, or cotter pin.
31. Front, or steering, wheel.
32. Rear, or driving, wheel.
33. Tires.
34. Rims.
35. Spokes.
36. Spoke nipples.
37. Front mud guard.
38. Rear mud guard.
39. Mud guard stays, arms or braces.
40. Front hub.
41. Rear, or back hub.
42. Top head cup.
43. Bottom head cup.
44. Step.
45. Head lock-nut.
46. Chain adjuster.
47. Pedals.
48. Pedal end plate.
49. Pedal side plate.
50. Pedal axle, or spindle, and centre tube.
51. Head adjusting cone.
52. Outside, or small, pedal nut.
53. Inside, or large, pedal nut.
54. Saddle, seat or L post or pillar.
55. Arm or top piece of pillar.
56. Saddle.
57. Saddle adjusting screw.
58. Saddle spring.
59. Saddle clamp or clip.
60. Brake spring.
61. Rear axle nut.
62. Valves.
63. Hub oil cup.
64. Crank hanger, or bottom bracket, oil cup.
65. Sprocket wheel tooth.
66. Braces, stays or bridges of rear frame.
67. Brake guide.
68. Mud guard clip.
69. Coaster or foot rest.
70. Fork stem or neck tube.
71. Centre block of chain.
72. Side plate.
73. Chain rivet.
74. Front fork.]
CHAPTER I.
EVOLUTION OF THE BICYCLE—1816 TO 1899.
“The nothing of the day is a machine called the
Velocipede. It is a wheel carriage to ride cock-horse
upon, sitting astride and pushing it along with the toes,
a rudder wheel in the hand. They will go seven miles in
an hour. A handsome ‘gelding’ will come to 8 guineas;
however, they will soon be cheaper unless the army takes
to them.”—Letter of John Keats to a friend, about 1818.
The future historian of cycledom will clearly note that 1898 was
memorable for the reincarnation of the chainless; that the chain models
were improved in quality and reduced in price, and that the trade did
not hold a show, this being the first lapse since those events began
in this country in 1890. Conservative old England, where shows were
first held and the bicycle really began to succeed, has just closed her
twenty-first or “coming-of-age” show in London, and the other large
cities of the kingdom are, in their turn, pushing the show around the
circuit as usual. America—progressive and enthusiastic—after less than
one decade of it, exhausted itself for the time, and the National Board
of Trade of Cycle Manufacturers decided to pass 1898, refusing to give
sanction to either national or local exhibitions.
From the stand of the riding public much might be said on the
affirmative side of the show question. The show brings under one roof
all the new models and accessories for the coming year, affording ready
means of comparisons, instructive, even if sometimes odious; maker and
rider come together, and the latter especially, has opportunity to
renew old friendships; the copious reports and illustrations in the
daily and trade press arouse expectation in the cycling public, and
undoubtedly make many new converts; the gap between riding seasons is
bridged across “the winter of our discontent,” and things are kept on
the move. Not denying aught of this, the makers reply that they are not
in the amusement business; that this is a costly form of advertising
directly, also delaying trade both by inducing buyers to wait to see
it all and by tying up their representatives when they ought to be on
the road visiting agents; that no other business has or needs such
gatherings; and that shows were originally intended to bring together
maker and dealer, not maker and rider.
Intelligent and impartial observers who have studied the question from
both sides, say that all the trouble has come from the American habit
of overdoing, and that the makers are to blame for deviation from the
original idea, and for going into gorgeous competitions in electric
lighting, costly furnishings and decorations and a prodigal waste of
printed matter; that when aisles are packed and the week is a society
event, the greatest thing in a show, the one chiefly cared for, and
really about the only one that can be seen, is the show itself, the
crowd itself being what the crowd attends; that the thing becomes a
grab for “souvenirs” and a spectacular waste, instead of an exhibit of
cycles and accessories to those who really want to see them.
TRANSFORMATION OF “THE SHOW.”
There has been a divergence from the original idea, certainly, even in
England. The Stanley Show was at first the happy thought of some member
of the Stanley Club, one of the oldest if not quite the oldest of cycle
clubs, in a time of cycle feebleness, when the young sport needed all
the aid it could command. To help things along through the winter, and
doubtless largely on the strictly social side, it was proposed to get
together in one place as many patterns of cycle and as many kindred
articles as could be got. From that feeble start the thing has grown,
as cycling grew. In a like feeble way, though with a model to follow,
cycle showing began in this country, at Philadelphia. During the years
that have followed it has brought the public into line, until in New
York there is now only one building large enough to hold it—and that
none too large for such an event. In Chicago there was one vast enough,
but so vast that it had to be placed so far away from business and
residence that it was as if a show were to be held out at Jamaica, on
Long Island. Reaching the spot was certainly none too easy, and the
cold was apt to be very bitter. Here in New York, it is urged, had the
makers, through the National Board, chosen and decided to revert to the
plan of a simple trade exhibition, and had the date been in November
or December, instead of January or February, the cost would have been
small, and all interests really concerned would have been benefited,
even while allowing, although not pressing, the public to attend.
A CYCLE OPENING DAY.
It is to be expected that shows will come again, with some lessons
learned and surer warrant of having the net balances more on the right
side all around. Meanwhile, and as an immediately timely matter,
observe that cyclists have from the first gradually taken as theirs
all seasonable outdoor holidays, and a sensible custom has grown up in
Boston and other New England towns of making Washington’s Birthday,
Feb. 22, an “opening day” among the retail cycle dealers, who hold
open house, utilize flowers, decorations and other pleasant things;
array their new models for view and invite the public to call. Needless
to say, the invitation on this cycle “New Year calls” day is largely
accepted and cyclists, real and expectant, with their sisters and their
cousins and their aunts, go the rounds at pleasure, comparing models,
anticipating the full riding season and enjoying good cheer.
[Illustration: THE DRAISINE “IN ACTION”—1818.]
The retail cycle dealers in New York, lesser and greater, propose to
adopt this good Yankee custom hereafter and will keep latchstrings out
on Feb. 22, so that instead of one great central show there will be
a thousand miniature ones scattered throughout the metropolis; it is
estimated—of course there can never be an accurate census—that there
are 250,000 cyclists in New York City alone. The 17th of March, St.
Patrick’s Day, has generally been considered the opening of the riding
season, the round of day and night being then equally divided: the
“opening day” adopted for Feb. 22 will naturally and easily fall in
with this customary notion as to March 17.
THE SWIFT MARCH OF IMPROVEMENT.
[Illustration: “BONESHAKER”—1868.
(The Rider is John Mayall, who made the first road record,
by riding (as shown in cut) from London to Brighton, 53
miles, in one day, February, 1869.)]
So rapid has been the march of improvement in cycle-making during
the last seven years that the approach to fixity and uniformity of
pattern—all bicycles now looking alike to the casual glance—has almost
lost to us one of our most charming senses, the sense of delighted
surprise. The most ingenious efforts of our master mechanics,
accomplishing what would have been impossible only a short time ago,
are now received as matters of course. The crude conditions and
mechanical product of no more than ten years ago are rarely recalled;
the vast majority of riders do not even know about them. The strength,
lightness and beauty of the later bicycle have come out of long and
toilsome and costly evolution, in which many have fallen by the way,
and reward has not always been according to real merit. The careful
student of the principles of cycle construction—the making of “a poem
of steel”—cannot appreciatively examine the details in the advance
shown in this year’s models without being glad that he is permitted to
see such achievements. It is one thing to push and misuse the bicycle,
another to ride it with intelligent care, another to understand it,
another to love it and to honor the long cumulative skill which has
made it possible and practical. The rabid seeker for extreme and
radical novelties in type, form and modes of propulsion may care little
for the niceties of mechanical accomplishment and may declare that
the standstill has been reached. But this pessimistic and blasé view
is unwarranted, for undoubtedly many of the most perfected and nearest
perfect details now in vogue will be used on the cycle of the future,
regardless of its general type.
THE TENDENCY TO FIXITY.
As in a number of past years, the art of cycle-making in 1898 exhibits
distinct signs of two irresistible tendencies. One is toward fixity of
type; the other is toward reversion to type. Fixity of type means the
condition when—although there may be several widely different patterns
of bicycle in use, as there always are of other wheeled vehicles—all of
one pattern are substantially alike, varying only in trivial details,
the product of all makers bearing the same appearance to the casual
eye, however varying in real quality. When that time comes bicycles
will resemble cut nails in being staple, standard, uniform and all
alike. Such a time has not yet arrived, and it is not necessary to try
to name the date in the new century when it will arrive; nevertheless
the signs of its approach are unmistakable.
THE TENDENCY TO REVERSION.
Reversion to type—a well-known phrase of the scientific
evolutionist—means here a return to earlier and once-discarded forms
of construction. Very few notice the process, yet it constantly goes
on. The inquirer for novelties often has the old presented to him and
is satisfied, supposing he is looking on a new up-to-date production;
it is a common experience to find alleged new devices brought out and
rapturously received by the quidnuncs which the veteran instantly
recognizes as among the things he saw tossed, years ago, into the
refuse of the scrapheap.
That unhappy and irrepressible person, the “born inventor”—one of whom,
like the “sucker,” is born every minute—is perpetually doing this in
cycle matters, because the cycle is so much in the public eye that it
draws him as the lamp flame draws the moth; he cannot keep away from
it. Twenty years ago, at the very beginning of the bicycle in this
country, he was eagerly on hand with his multiple-speed, mile-a-minute
contraption; he has been doing the same ever since, and is just as
industriously as ever reinventing the old folly; the Patent Office
is flooded with his lumber. This, however, is repetition rather than
reversion.
Reversion to old forms comes about for several reasons. We must always
remember that the bicycle, like the piano, the violin and some other
things which could be cited, belongs to nobody. Nobody invented it; it
is the product of many minds, and has been wrought out by a long and
gradual evolution, in which every step, freaky ones excepted, has been
suggested and tested by practical use. Hence a device may be abandoned
in the hope of escaping the inevitable drawback which besets all
earthly things; or a device may be dropped because it cannot be made
well enough or easily enough in the existing state of the art; or the
conditions of public demand, or the state of the roads, or the caprice
of fashion may change. Changes also come about to gratify the craving
for novelty, and when the list of possibles comes to its end the maker
goes back to or toward the beginning again, like the preacher who tips
over his barrel of sermons and starts in afresh on the other end.
[Illustration: THE “ORDINARY”—1878.]
For illustration, suppose the following: The chain has some drawbacks,
and therefore it is gradually displaced by the bevel-gear and entirely
goes out. That gear develops drawbacks in turn, provoking fresh
complaint, and after some years of suffering under it, some maker
brings out a chain wheel, which is hailed with delight, and widely
written up as the novelty of the year. One by one makers follow suit,
until the gear is again quite displaced; improvement has then gone
around and has come back upon its own path, the disadvantages of the
old form having been found by trial to be less than those of the newer.
This supposed case, which is partly real, would illustrate progress by
reversion.
A BRIEF SKETCH OF DEVELOPMENT.
The early history of bicycle development has been told even to
weariness, perhaps because not always well told. We shall not go over
the course again, and yet it may not be amiss to show briefly and
connectedly how the wheel of today grew out of the three preceding
ones, especially since this strikingly illustrates the reversion
process just explained.
The earliest vehicle for making oneself horse as well as rider was
a three-wheeler, and was known at least, as early as 1779; the
two-wheeler began in 1816, as far as records show, with the Draisine,
a front-steerer, which was all ready to develop into either a
front-driver or a rear-driver, according to the method of attaching the
cranks, which so long remained the missing link. Of course it quickly
went out, and after nearly a half century of oblivion it was dragged
down from the garret and the cranks were added—to the front wheel, as
that was then the easier way. The revival is generally credited to
France and to Pierre Lallement, although Michaux, for whom he had been
working in Paris, is probably more entitled to the credit than he; the
name of the man really the first to take the new step, however, is
hopelessly lost in obscurity. Lallement did ride the thing in Paris,
and did afterward make one in Connecticut. The patent on “oppositely
projecting cranks” issued to him in 1866 became the most valuable one
on which suits were afterward fought and royalties were collected, yet
Lallement invented nothing, and it is worth putting on record here that
Mr. Wilcox saw the velocipede of that day publicly ridden in Brooklyn
nearly two years before the issue of that patent, and more than a year
before Lallement came to this country.
A few years of decline as a curiosity and the “boneshaker” had gone
into forgetfulness after the Draisine. Aside from its intolerable
weight and its crude and clumsy construction, what killed it was its
lack of speed, for it was “geared level,” that is, not geared at all.
England, however, did not give up the subject, but kept pegging away
at it. To get a longer run for each foot-stroke, a larger wheel was
necessary; so the rider was gradually brought “over his work,” and
the front wheel became as large as he could reach, on a “close built”
construction; necessarily the back wheel shrunk to a smaller size,
ranging from 16 to 18 inches, or else the thing could have been neither
mounted nor managed. Wood had given place to metal; the tubular steel
frame, the suspension wheel with wire spokes, the steel rim and the
solid rubber tire came in nearly together, and so, as the third great
step, was evolved the high wheel, or the “good old ordinary,” still
held more or less affectionately in the memory of all who ever rode it.
A specimen or two appeared in the Centennial Exhibition at Philadelphia
in 1876. In the following year the new type commenced to go in this
country, beginning thus the bicycle era, and it made its pioneer way
without any rival until 1881. In 1880, however, McKee & Harrington of
this city, one of the pioneer makers, received a diploma and a bronze
medal for “a steel bicycle” exhibited at the fair of the American
Institute. But the faults of the new construction were as positive as
its virtues. It was heavy, averaging twice the weight of the bicycle
of today; the size which fitted depended on the rider’s length of leg,
not at all on his strength or his preference; worst of all, it was an
acrobatic and unsafe thing, and was not a practical vehicle, although
those who then sold and used it tried to make it out so.
Under the demand for safety, invention went back to the “boneshaker,”
and put on the cranks and sprockets which could have been put on
earlier, producing in a clumsy form the now universal geared rear
driver. An earlier specimen under the name of “Bicyclette” appeared
as far back as 1879, but the “Rover” (nearly identical with that)
succeeded in giving its name to the type. Yet this name failed to
survive, because the type drove out every other, and no specific name
was required to distinguish it. To the great majority of present
riders, this is “the bicycle,” the only one they ever knew; before it
had driven out all others it was spoken of as “the safety,” and yet
there were many other forms of safety bicycles, of which one antedated
the rear driver in this country by some six years, and two originated
here.
All this was reversion to type. The Draisine went out of existence,
then received cranks on its front wheel and revived as the “boneshaker,”
or velocipede. That went out as quickly in its turn, and gradually
grew into the ordinary. Then reappeared the Draisine, with cranks in
the other places, and drove out the high wheel after a hard contest.
Will any such complete reversion occur again? It does not seem likely;
yet when we remember the long and persistent battle of the types, and
the number of forms which have been tried, it would be unwarranted to
pronounce this impossible; the front driver still survives, although
little is heard of it, and if it should possess the field once more
that would be no more remarkable than the changes which have already
occurred.
TENDENCIES IN GENERAL.
The mechanical tendencies of the American cycle makers and their
product for 1898 are sharp and clearly defined. Indeed, the past
year marks the close of a decade of construction of the rear-driving
bicycle. Before proceeding to analyze in detail the constructional
features for 1898, a bird’s eye view of the tendencies over the whole
field will not be amiss.
[Illustration: REAR-DRIVER—1893.]
The most striking characteristic tendency is the effort to introduce
chainless rear driving, not altogether, however, by the bevel-gear. A
careful census of the makers shows that some thirty prominent makers
had perfected plans to place a chainless cycle of some sort on the
market in 1898. Thus the season offers debatable ground between the
advocates of the chainless and the chain-driven cycle. During 1898 is
being fought the battle for supremacy between them, the chain-driven
cycle being ably reinforced by its great and coming ally the gear-case,
and the bevel-gear and other forms of chainless construction coming
away from the realm of theory and the special pleas of the makers’
catalogues, and in the hands of the riding public will be put through
that great crucible of public test, use on the road, under load, and
under all sorts of conditions. The introduction of the chainless method
of propulsion has, however, not radically changed the prevailing
popular type of frame construction, and therefore the general tendency
of construction, except the methods of propulsion, may be here surveyed
as a whole.
DROP OF THE CRANK BRACKET.
One of the most prominent tendencies of the season is the dropping of
the crank-hanger bracket to a point from 2 inches to 4 inches below a
line drawn through the centre of the wheel axles, the average drop on
road wheels being 2½ inches, on light road wheels 2¾ inches, and on
road-racing and track wheels, from these to the extreme limit. This
lowering of the crank-hanger bracket has also necessarily brought with
it a shortening of the steering head, in order to maintain the top tube
horizontal or parallel with the ground. Lengths of head run from 4 to 8
inches, a fair average in length being about 6 inches, a change indeed
from the long-head fad of a few years ago, under which heads have
reached a length of over 13½ inches. Just what effect the shortening of
the head will have on the steering remains to be found out by actual
use, the makers who have used long heads having always claimed ease of
steering for them.
Another point to be borne in mind in noting this tendency toward
short heads, is that their use will necessitate the use of longer
and therefore weaker handlebar stems, for those who use a medium or
upturned bar, as well as long seat posts, more withdrawn from the
frame. Of course, the scorcher with his drop bar will like the short
head, and therefore its popularity may be wholly confined to this class
of riders.
The most peculiar feature in connection with this drop of the frame is
the very marked tendency toward the use of longer cranks and higher
gears. In former years the average length of crank was 6½ inches for
a man’s roadster, and 5½ to 6 inches for a lady’s wheel. A notable
departure in this crank length this season is that three or four of
the largest makers are equipping their ladies’ wheels with 6½ inch
cranks, and men’s wheels with 7 and 7½ inch cranks. While this may be
commendable in a cycle for men’s use, having a high gear, such crank
length is positively objectionable on a ladies’ cycle, for several
reasons, one of the chief ones being the increased knee action.
HEIGHT AND SHAPE OF FRAME.
The length of wheel base—that is, the extreme measurement between
the points where the two wheels rest on the ground—is not noticeably
changed, the average being still about 43½ inches; this measurement
has a close but not a quite fixed relation to the shape and angles of
the frame. The rake or backward inclination of the diagonal stay is
in most cases somewhat lessened, not now being in complete harmony
with the rake of the front forks and head. This may be considered
a change in the preferred direction, the forward position of the
rider, nearly over the crank axle, being an extremely popular one;
to indulge this preference on position, in cases where this diagonal
tube, which also carries the saddle, was well raked backward, the use
of a long saddle-post in the form of an inverted L was necessary. This
changed construction also shortens the upper horizontal tube, and
thus, it is claimed, tends to stiffen the frame. The craze for riding
exceedingly high frames has shifted to the other extreme, the average
scorcher now calling for a very low frame with a short head, and a
crank-hanger dropped well down below a line drawn between the wheel
axles, obtaining leg-reach by raising the saddle above the frame. A
peculiar and typical combination consists of the use of an extremely
low crank-hanger together with long cranks; this obviously brings the
pedal very near the ground at the bottom of its travel, especially when
toe-clips are put on, and there must be danger of coming to sudden
and sharp grief when going on stony or rutty roads or in swinging
rapidly around sharp corners, which requires leaning to one side to
preserve balance. If not carried to extremes, however, the drop of the
crank-hanger may be considered a good point mechanically. It brings the
centre of gravity lower, and makes mounting and dismounting easier,
this last consideration being of especial consequence for ladies. Here
it may be remarked that, a year ago, ladies who desired to use the
double-loop frame, either with or without the low drop, were obliged
to purchase the highest-priced makes in order to obtain it; this year,
all the great makers of medium-priced grades, as well as makers of the
highest-priced, furnish the double-looped drop-frame, thus showing not
only the popularity of the double-loop but a keener desire and a better
understanding to cater to public wants.
[Illustration: THE ROVER—1878.]
SIZES AND SECTIONS OF TUBING.
The use of large tubing seems to have reached its limit during 1897, a
majority of the makers now using 1⅛ inch tubing in the front part of
the frame. Other makers vary this, of course, by using 1¼ inch tubing
in the lower main frame, and in the diagonal stay which runs from the
crank-hanger bracket to the seat-pillar cluster; D-shaped tubing,
however, is much more largely used than before for rear forks and back
stays. Front forks are also largely made of D-shaped tubing, many of
the makers using a front fork made of an internally tapered continuous
piece of D-shaped tubing. Rear forks are also made in this same manner,
and are connected to the crank-hanger by a single large round stem,
which avoids the necessity of offsetting the fork on the chain side.
Back stays are also connected to the main part of the frame in this
same manner. This idea, when used in connection with the arch-front
fork crown, which is the most popular one of the day, and which seems
destined to supersede entirely in popular favor the old two-piece
crown, makes a very taking looking construction. There is, however, a
question as to whether this method of joining the continuous rear forks
to a single stem is as rigid as would be two separate forks, run either
straight or with an offset to the crank-hanger.
Internally tapered tubing is very largely used in frame construction
generally, thus avoiding all need of employing internal reinforcements
or liners, as formerly, which are liable to cause the tube to give way
under strain at the exact place where they come to an end. This is
considered a step in the right direction.
REINFORCEMENTS AND JOINTS.
The use of external reinforcements is not growing, and as the use
of large tubing necessitates the employment of flush or invisible
joints, in order to make a neat finish, such joints appear to be more
largely in vogue than ever. Even the popular priced models use them
largely. Some fear was expressed as to their durability and strength,
at the opening of last season, but the makers have now had last year’s
experience to guide them, and may be assumed to know how to make them
strong, so that no trouble need be apprehended on that score.
External joints are, however, largely used still, as are also
lap-brazed joints. These variations may, however, be considered as mere
“talking-points,” and as evidences of finish and detail rather than as
the distinctive features of the frame. For instance, a maker who used
flush joints last year on his chain wheels now produces his chainless
wheel with outside joints. Another maker who used lap joints on all his
models last year, now makes his latest model with flush joints, and so
the variation goes on. These changes back and forth, may be in some
measure reckoned among those made for the sake of change.
Sheet metal stampings are used for connections more largely than ever;
many of the detailed parts of these are wonderful evidences of the
excellence of the art and show the advanced stages of what might be
more properly termed drawing, forming, and stamping processes.
[Illustration: CHAINLESS TYPE, 1898 (BEVEL GEAR).]
HUBS AND SPOKES.
In the construction of the wheel hubs, the use of the “barrel” pattern,
which has been for several years making its way, is more notable
than ever, the old pattern with definite flanges thereon for the
spokes, having nearly disappeared. This is in good part because the
cup-adjustment bearing, which requires the barrel hub to go with it,
has greatly gained ground, a large number of the leading makers having
now adopted it for all, or nearly all bearings. Self-oiling devices
and hollow axles containing oil and wick are also popular, the old
projecting “lubricator” or cup for receiving oil, being wholly extinct.
It is safe to say that this is an old device which reversion will never
bring back.
The use of hubs having flanges, of a peculiar shape, made and drilled
to receive the usual tangent spoke made straight from end to end
without a hooked end to attach to the hub, is very largely on the
increase, more than twenty of the leading makers now following that
method. Spokes are still enlarged at both ends by the process of
swaging or drawing down, instead of upsetting. Not a few makers are
increasing their number, of course using a thinner wire.
CRANKS AND CRANK AXLES.
There is a distinct reversion toward square-section cranks. In
crank-axles, the one-piece type has evidently come to stay, and it is
followed closely in popularity by the two-piece crank and axle. Very
few of the makers use the three-piece construction, and even in these
there are peculiar and odd forms of fastening the crank to the axle,
the use of the good old cotter pin being nearly abandoned. This may be
accounted for mostly because the makers desired “something different,”
and also on the ground of neatness. The main objection, however, to
the use of these various types of crank fastenings is their entire
lack of interchangeability, so that the rider who has one of them and
breaks or loses a part of his crank fastening, cannot obtain this part
or any repair thereto, except through the maker or dealer who handles
this particular pattern of wheel. Under the old system of using the
cotter pin the cranks and cotter pins were readily interchangeable, and
therefore this tendency to variations in these parts is to be regretted.
SEAT-POSTS AND HANDLEBAR FASTENINGS.
Internal or semi-concealed seat-post and handlebar fastenings of all
descriptions are very much in vogue, the reason for their popularity
being their great neatness, as compared with the old method of
clamping, and their lack of projecting parts; still there is not
uniformity in this particular, many of the great makers adhering yet to
the familiar method of fastening by “pinch-bind” bolts.
Handlebars show a decided tendency to go back to the length between
grips which prevailed when the bar was straight. The steel bar, of
tubing, still reigns supreme, some times covered with rubber or
celluloid coatings, or imitations thereof, for the sake of protection
from rust and for showy appearance, as well as to be more agreeable
to the touch. The wood bar is by no means extinct, but does not make
progress, not having caught the public fancy, as its friends expected
it would.
GEARCASES, PEDALS AND BRAKES.
Nearly all the makers are providing sufficient clearance at the crank
axle and rear fork-end, so that a gear-case can be used. Many of the
makers have gearcases of their own production, and there are two or
three detachable ones on the market which are composed of hard and
soft rubber, metal and leather combined. More gearcases will probably
be sold this year than ever before in the history of the trade, public
attention having been largely called to them by the neatness and
desirability of the case as used on the bevel-gear cycles.
The average width of tread on this year’s cycles is about 4½ inches.
Pedals are made stronger and larger, and are screwed directly into the
end of the crank, the use of the lock-nut on the end of the pedal shaft
being almost entirely abandoned.
Brakes of some kind will be more largely used than ever before.
External brakes with levers on the handlebars are not as popular as in
former years, many of the makers extending the brake stem down through
the steering head, thus making a neater and more stylish appearing
brake. Brake spoons are mostly fitted with a rubber shoe; and there
is a decided tendency toward back-pedaling brakes, many of which are
supplied by the cycle makers without extra charge.
Weights run from 23 to 26 pounds, the average weight of roadsters being
24 pounds, and ladies’ wheels averaging in weight about 25 pounds.
CHAINS AND CHAIN ADJUSTERS.
Large sprockets have evidently come to stay, front sprockets having
from 18 to 32 teeth and rear sprockets having from 7 to 12; a
combination made up of these will produce almost any gear ratio desired.
Chains seem to have settled down to a standard width of 3/16 of an
inch, and there are many varieties, all having, however, one inch
pitch and solid blocks; there are also roller chains, having longer or
shorter pitch, but rollers instead of blocks do not yet seem to have
taken hold here, as in England.
Chain adjustments—_i.e._, means for moving the back wheel slightly
to or from the crank axle—have been much simplified and improved. A
number of variations of the well-known eccentric adjustment are on the
market; a few makers are even using the eccentric adjustment at the
crank bracket, on singles as well as on tandems. Here is an instance
of reversion, the early “safeties” with chain-driving having been
constructed in exactly this manner.
WOOD GUARDS AND RIMS.
The use of wood or bamboo in frames seems to have almost dropped out of
sight, only two or three makers producing bicycles thus made.
The dress-guards on the back wheel on ladies’ bicycles are made of
wood and are so furnished by all the makers, the metal styles having
gone out of use altogether. The same cannot be said, however, of chain
guards. Wooden chain guards are not so largely used as last year,
the tendency being to use aluminum guards, either plain, nickeled or
enameled, to match the frame in color; guards of stamped metal are
also used. This return to metal may be ascribed in part to the notion
that wood is heavy because it looks so, and to the temptation aluminum
presents because of its extraordinary lightness. This, however, looks
like a step backward. Aluminum, considered as material, has very poor
claims, and it will be very difficult, by any practical lining and
buffing, to break the persistent habit of metal chain guards to rattle
when going over rough places; wood guards, on the contrary, if properly
made, are strong, noiseless, and not heavy.
The wood rim is the only one used, and is now made thicker through its
section and broader across its face, and while it is true that these
rims do not now possess the life and resiliency they had when they
were made of the thinner section, and narrower, they are now stiffer,
truer, and not so liable as formerly to warp and twist or to break in
a collision. Originally, wood rims were largely used, in good part,
on account of their extreme lightness. Making them heavier now and
painting them in dark colors might suggest a tendency to return to the
use of steel rims, it being impossible now, owing to the large use
of colored rims, to tell by their appearance of what material they
are made. Rims of three-piece or laminated construction are fitted to
nearly all of the high-grade wheels, but great improvements have also
been made in the one-piece variety.
As in coach and carriage building, black still seems to be the standard
color, but where colors are used many of the makers are enamelling
rims to match. Striping seems to have fallen into disfavor, but scroll
transfers, with illuminated corners with flowers and colors, appear to
have gained a strong foothold.
TIRES.
The field is still contested between the double or inner-tube and the
single-tube or hosepipe tire, and at times, leading makers of each have
claimed that their class were used on two-thirds, or thereabouts, of
all the cycles made in America. The regulation size for full roadsters
is 1⅝ inch, in either class; the most popular at present are tires
having a serrated or corrugated tread. There are, of course, a great
many variations in surface in tires with rough treads, and also of
smooth-tread tires. Very few marked novelties in tires are now seen
in the market; this is quite in contrast with one and two years ago.
Average weights are about 4 lbs. to the pair.
SADDLES.
Saddles may be divided pretty accurately into three classes. First are
those having a fixed and unyielding metal base and a short pommel,
which is not intended to be touched by the rider’s body, the seat
portion being fitted with raised pads; second, saddles with a fixed
base of either wood or metal, the edges being inflexible but the ease
of use depending upon a more exact shaping of the whole, this form of
saddle being sometimes varied by being slightly padded near the cantle
or back edge, or either padded or inflated at the pommel; third, the
saddles which are made by lacing firmly from cantle to pommel, the
lacing being then provided with a flexible leather cover. The last
named, which is a popular type, is also varied by having pads built on
it, and the varieties of saddle under these three types are so great
and so different that almost every peculiarity and whim of the rider
ought to be met and satisfied this year.
TRICYCLES AND MULTICYCLES.
Tricycles are largely made by only one maker, and there is no apparent
reason why they should not be more largely used by those who will not
or can not venture to use the two-wheeler.
All the makers are producing tandems, and the peculiarities noted in
constructing single models are carried into these also. Variations in
tandems, however, consist of a diamond frame in front and a loop frame
in the rear, or loop frame in front and diamond frame in the rear, but
some have two loop frames so that two ladies can ride them.
Multicycles, such as triplets, quads quintuplets and sextuplets, cannot
strictly be said to be for popular use, the makers only building a few
of these yearly for advertising and racing purposes.
PRICES AND VALUES.
In concluding this review of the mechanical tendencies of the trade
for 1898 the irresistible conviction is forced upon the mind of the
critical observer that _noblesse oblige_ evidently seems to have been
the motto of every cycle maker for 1898, for never before have cycles
been produced so good in design, style, finish, workmanship, material,
stanchness and running qualities. Even the lowest-priced models quoted
are superior in these respects to those offered in some previous years,
and listing from $100 to $125 and $150, and the riding public is to be
congratulated on this fact, because it places the bicycle, the vehicle
of modern democracy and personal rapid transit, in the hands of the
masses, at a popular price, and thus relegates the gaspipe cycle and
its maker to well-deserved oblivion.
Undoubtedly the great reduction in price and the great increase in
quality, a seeming paradox indeed, are due to what is known as fixity
of pattern. Close observers of the trend of the trade and sport say, in
addition, that the present conditions and popular prices are caused by
the bicycle being no longer a fad of the classes, but a necessity of
the masses; that their demand for a well-made and well-known product
to meet their wants and purses, has caused this reduction to popular
price, and that the needs of the makers in order to meet this want
have been fulfilled by improved processes of manufacture, increased
efficiency of the labor employed, lessened cost of component parts, and
other economies of making and marketing, as well as by the increased
quantity of the output. This is true of not only the cycle-making
industry, but is also the history of every great American product of
manufacture for which there is a great popular demand that leads to
competition for popular favor.
On the other hand, the makers have also well provided for that class
of the riding public who will be satisfied with nothing less than
what might be termed a _model de luxe_, and who are willing to pay an
increased price for this extra finish in construction and detail, so
that the mechanical tendencies of the trade may well be summed up by
quoting that epigram of Macaulay’s—“in every experimental science there
is a tendency toward perfection.”
[Illustration: EXTREME TYPE OF 1898 MODEL COMBINING ALL LATE FEATURES.]