NOTES BY DEMON,

Otago Witness, Issue 2170, 26 September 1895, Page 35

NOTES BY DEMON,

Cyclifcts are in luck's way as roghrds .' weather, and it was to rue astonishing the num- ( ber of rider< ou!; on ths south road l*st Satur- : day afttrnoeff. I was early out-, and had an excellent oppoitunity of watching from an unwilliug npell, necessitated by a burst tyre, the pßßser3-by. First a party of scorchers would come up with •• Hullo ! puncture ? " aud seeing ■11 on a way to mending, pass by ; tbea two of three cut for a leisurely spin would ride paf.t with inquiries ; to be fallowed by an informal run of a number of mecnber« of the O C.C. The riders seemed to swarm like butlei flits on a fine summer's day, and utau hour's survey —oh, that obstinate tyre .—made me think of the oontrasfc between the days of the good old ordinary and few ridm and the present swiftmoving age. Country hotelkeepers ought to reap & good harvest from ojcliVs this seaaen if numbers c&n be taken as a criterion. A committee meeting of tha Oiago Cycling Club was held ou the 17th init., Mr A. Thomson (president) Leing in the cLa'r. Tha Becretary was inttructed to write defaulting members that unless their subicriptions for the past season are paid within a fortnight their tanceß will be posted by the Olago Amateur Athletic Protection Society. The resignation of Mr R. M'Keuzie was received with extreme regret. A letter was received from the secretary Mimiro Cycling Club asking the assistance of the club in putting down the unfair treatment their members are subjected to when out tiding. It was decided to reply regretting that M.C.C. had. been subject to suck eumoyAace,

and that the club would do all in its power to put down such blackguardism. The secretary was instructed to writs tho D.C.C. accepting the challenge for the team race, but could not consent to dale as it would choh with a prior fixture wilh the luverc&rgill CO. The secretary Labour Day Commit tee having intimated that the Ore-mile evert fur the Labour D»y sports was an open event, it was decided to suggest to the committee that the threo-roile remain as at present seeing that the N.Z C.A. has reduced the weight of roadster machines to 28'b. The secretary was instructed to act with the «ecietary D CO. rearrangicg a uniform tariff for cyclists afc couutry hotels. A pressntaMon was made to Mr E. N. Lawgon, one of Mr S. R Stedman'a employees, on the 18. h iv the Royal Albert Hotel. Mr A. Dey occupied the chair, a goodly company of wheelmen being present. The presentation, which took the Bhttpi of a handsome clock, inscribed aa fol'c-TS :—" Presented to E. N. LaWifon, E g , from bis fellow emplojecs, on the occasion of his marriage," wa? made by Mr A.. Dey, who referred to the good-fellowship existing among the employees and dwelt oh tha ostoem in which Mr Lawson was held. Mr L&wson responded in suitable terms, and his he* lth and that of bis future biide wai then drunk wilh gnat heartiness. Advantage was taken of tho opportunity to present to Mr S. R. SteJtnan a handso uely-framod group of photographs of tho employees, for himself and Mrs Sfcidmin, bearing tho inscription : "To Mr aud Mrs Stedmau, from the employees, ss a token of esteem." Mr B. M. Duthie made the presentation oa bahalf of the employers, and Mr S'.edman feelingly acknowledged the gift. Aftar tho presentations a little harmooy was indulged in— songs being given by Messrs A. Dey, R. Jay, E. Lavwon, W. B^pg J C. M'Kaue, and others,— and a very pl^a-^t evening was spent. The details of the foruml opciai.ig of the 1&95-93 oyuliog ssasou hare beou arranged hy

Messrs Matthews and Jay, the captains of the Dune din and Otugo Cycling Clubs. Bach club will assemble at its club room and join forces at the Triangle, where the ladies of the Mimiro Cycling Club will grace the pa'ade. A ride will be m*de along Priuces and Gaorge stree's to Albany fctceeb, the Oval being reached via King street, Frederick street, George and Princos streets. A photo of the oyclists will be b\k<m at the Oval, and, the ladies branching off, the members of the Ocago and Dunedlu Clubs will ride ontto Thhuna Park to see th« Quish of the Dunedin Amateur Cycling Club's cross-couotry run. All buii g well, and the weather suitable, R. M'Keiaie will have a trial at the lowering of the Dauedin to luvercargill rccor ?. M'Ko'izie is as yet uncertain about the Vial, bat if i possible he will make an attempt, and if he starts I am sure that the record will coirw down a gor)d lump. He will rule from Duuediu to Baleluhs.on a racer, chunking his mount for, a light roadster from Btlctutha to Go.c, and finishing to luvercarßill on a racer. Given g>od health and favou-able weather, on top ot the excellent machine arrangement), one must look for a lowering of records, and I wish M'K<:uzia on his leaving us all success on his record attempt). Mr C. W. Milner, the Otago Cycling Club'a delegate on tha N.Z.C.A., bas bsrn on a visit to Dunedin, and on Sat.unUy aftcrnoou the members of the club took him mt s>s fsr as Mosgiel for * spiv. A meeting of the Tapanui Cycling Club was held in the Central Hall on MoiuUy night, 16th met., Dr Trotter in the chair. The minutes of the previous meeting were read aud confirmed as amended. After a lot of minor business was got through, the question of a track was discussed. Mr Dawsom laid an offer of a paddock before the meeting, iv the event of the cricket ground not being procurable.—Proposed by Mr D. Murray, tecourled by Mr I. Liiud, een. — " That tho »eoret»ry write to tho Becretary of the cricket club asking for permitsiou to form a track on tha cricket ground en the foimc-r tdrms, and iv the ereut of not getting a definite answer within one week to accept Mr Dawsou's offer." — It was resolved to hold a road i*»c3 to C^nnkston and b--ck on Wednesday, 25th inst. Messra A. Smith, F. Lhchner, and W. M'Alister were appointed handioappers. — A lengthy ditoussion ODSued on the privileges of an honorary number. It was decided that an honorary member have the privilege to discuss any subject iv the meeting, but not to votfl. — The meeting ttrminated with a vote of thank* to th^ chair. The hum of 100,000 marks was included in the German Army lilstimatej this year for the s apply of bioyclea to tho army. Two machines are afs'g>.ed to each battalioa. The cycles are to relieve the oavalry of a gioat part of its intelligence duty, aud to take the place of mounted orderlie3. The office-bearers of the Christchuroh Cycling Olub for tho ensuing season are :— President, Mr tt. C. Bishop ; vice- presidents — Messrs A. Arenas, G. Kiog, T. Boyd, A. Wildey, J. 8. Kemp, and F. N. Adams ; CAptain, A. C. Duff; depnty-captaing, Mtssrß Q. H. Lethaby aud J. Boyd ; hon. t ecrotarjr, Mr J. H. Tompkius; hon. treasurer, Mr W. Hopkins; committee— Mtssrß F. Chainoy, D. Ryan, W. Mabley, J. H. Hendersjn, and W. W*de; delegates to the New Zealand (Jjclists' Union— Messra A. O. Duff, G. H. Lethaby, and J. H. Tompkins; auditors, Messrs F. N. A'laros and F. T. Pannel!. The club has a credit balance of £2 4s 3d, and the balance of assets over H&bilitfes amounts for £12 153 10 j. The nnnual race meotirg is fixed tor Anniversary Day. Advice has been received in Melbourne that Zimmerman sailed for Australia on September 4 in the Orient liner Oruba, and that he will arrivo in abDub the middle of October. He will get a big reception, and some of the Australian champions are taking extra pains to get into fit condition, to worthily represent their laud in the struggle against the world's chaitipion. It has b'.en decided to form a cash cycling tlub at Auckland. -:—: — I understand that Mr W. Melville, George fctreet, h»3 presented a pair of first-class • rnt-<rap pedals, to be oompated for in the Novice Race at the Labour Day sports. A. J. Watson, the English mile and five-milo champion, is only 22 yf ars of age, 6ta?ids 5t 4iin, and weighs 9^t 81b. Ho won the Five-mile Championship iv 1893, and was second in 1894. His beat time for the mile was accomplished at Ghent— namely, 2min 14§«ec ; and with Pjatfc-Betts ho holds the nvle tandem jrecord— 2miu 2 sec. Con Huret's great ride of 515 miles 761 yds in 21 hours for the Gold Cup, which cauoed such a ttir a few weeks ago, has been eclipsed by another Frenchman, the veteran Ri\ie.-re. It was done on a recent Sunday at Bordeaux. There were five competitors, including Rivierre, C. Lucaa, Williams, and Lowed. The two Englishmen gave up after a fey? hours, and Williams cracked up on acouut of his excessive spted at the beginning. Rivierre had set himself a time table, and, tak"ng no account of his rival?, who at one time had an eaormms ndvnuce upon him, he steadily worked Irs way up, and at the fourteenth hour began to b?at tie world's rccordu, and equalled Huret's distance at 23br 35'nin 14*fc. Iv the full time he co?<>rftrl 842 kilotns 613tn, or 523 miles 1040 yds. Williams was a bid second. A Chicago pap r has t'ae following with reference to a c>clii>g academy, &v , it is proposed to establish :— S.-.vcn'ite'i lots, fronting upon Central Park in New York city, have been purchased at a cost of 321,500d01. On their site will bo erec^d the most extensive and best equipped equ°shian and bicycle acadf-m7 in the world. It is expected that the establishment will be in operation by tha first of nexb year. The building will be five Bto r eyß high. Its construction will co*t abouo 400,000d01. On the ground floor will be a taubark ring for horseback ridiug, 200f C long by 80ft wide. In the bas; ment will be a swimming tank, 34ft by 22ft. On tho second (Lor will ba a restaurant. On the third floor will be bachelor apartments. On the fourth (Lor will be the biiyole course, 234 ft long bj 90it wide. Oa this fkor will ba Btorjkgeroo^n for 1000 machines, a well-equipped repair bl:oj>, tnvl hundreds of lookers. Music will bo furuiehed every night aud three afternoons each week. On the fifth floor a large ! j l'ojui will ba 6et aside exclusively tor tho use of , 1 beginners on. the biuyclo. On the top of the structure, will be a roof sudeo.

I — — The taxation of cycles in France gives a ready m;aos of discovering the number of cyclists in the' Republic. Accord iug to the | Qaulois, tho tax produces an annual revenue of £80, COO, while the number of maohines in use id just under 200,000. Of these, 38,000 are located iv the department of the Seiue, which iuoladaa Pdrii, the smallest return being from CuiMica, where there arc but 41 licensed riders. The Loste brothers, the taiuous Frenoi tanderoiatc, have once more demonstrated the faot that the single machine cannot live with ian ably-manned double. Lssb year they pub I down Zimmerman, the champion of the world ; then Protin, the mile champion of Europe, Bucoumbod to them ; and during July George Bmkor, the famous American professional, w«bt down before the all-oonquering baudom champions, who beat him homo by half a length. Two million francs i.i the appropriation for uporti at the Paris Espositicn of 1900 They will be held at Viucenues, and will iuclude athletics, fencing, Khooting, horaa and bicyole racing, and ballooning. A coupler, by which two bicycles can be attached side by side, is a recant foreign invention. Mrs Edward Keanard, writiug in the Englishwoman on the subject of " Woman A-^heol," says : — "After the nervousness aud fatigue of learning have been overcome, the purouit proves one of pure delight. Many women are bad walkers. To them the wheel is simply an invaluable method of getting about. If they do not) possess a earr'agu, their horizon has probably been bounded by a limited area of two or three miles. Now, all of a sudden, thoy find themselves doing jouruoys of 15 or 20 (biles with comparative ease. Of course the hills are tiring. Cycling requires energy, will, perseverance ; bat then, what thiugx in life do not P Ladies, if they are wise, will not attempt to emulate the feats of men. They should re* member the aa»jority are so constituted, physically, that th-y are their inferiors in muscular power."