COMING OF WHEELS.

Southland Times, Issue 20675, 22 December 1928, Page 17 (Supplement)

COMING OF WHEELS.

h THE FIRST BICYCLES. d A • ~ r An interesting article on the history of if the bicycle is published in the Empire Ree view, in which it is stated that the earliest e definite mention of any such machine in c England occurs in the “Universal Magazine” of 1761, in which a Mr Ovenden is described as having invented a machine to travel without horses. The passenger, sitc ting on front, steered while a footman propelled the machine from behind. In the 1 year 1873 the first bicycle with “suspension” or “spider” wheels was produced, fitted with ® solid or cushion rubber tyres. This machine e had wheels of unequal size, and was quickly followed by the machine known as the e “ordinary” or high bicycle, afterwards to e be followed by the “safety” bicycle. Var- ? ious efforts were made to make the bicycle 1 safer. The “Kangaroo,” the “ExtraordinJ" . an, the “.Facile,” and others achieved J a certain popularity, and in 1878, Mr H. J. ‘ Lawson patented a “safety” bicycle which r was really the forerunner of the bicycle of j to-day. It was, however, never put on 1 the market in practical form, and it was not till 1885, when Mr J. K. Starley produced a similar machine, that the new vogue really begun. The “safety” type had - a struggle for existence. At first it was r barred from cycle races, owing to the sup--3 posed danger to other riders, but gradually . it ousted the “ordinary” and by about 1891 3 had come into general use. The invention which, however, gave a new stimulus to > the industry and was responsible for its great boom, was the introduction, in 1888, ' of the pneumatic tyre with which the name of Dunlop will ever be associated. Many j will still remember the jeers which greeted . the plucky riders of these tyres, which ’ were nearly twice the size of the presentday tyres, and gave the machine quite a j steam roller-like appearance. It was soon discovered, however, that there was no comparison in speed and comfort between the old cushion tyres and the new pneumatic, i which rapidly improved, made smaller, and easily detachable. So this new and great invention came to stay, and made possible the great automobile industry of to-day.