Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 7 December 1944 — Page 28

pn a

mR mm,

. rear wheel.

exactly 100 per: cent. a ——— —

(Continued from Page )

side of Pears’ soap he would like to have from Lotidon. “An English bike” said Mr, Hearsey. In tbe course of that same summer the custom authorities over at the Federal building, then at Pennsylvania and Market sts, commanded Mr. Hearsey to appear and settle for a crate from England. ~ ~ When unpacked, the crate disclosed an up-to-date English wheel . equipped with Dunlop tires. » ” ” INVESTIGATION revealed that the tires were the result of an experiment on the part of a Dr. Dunlop, an Irish veterinarian and’

& dreamer. In 1889, he had a lulu of a dream, He fitted a section of garden hose to his little boy's bicycle. The kid pronounced it O. K. an opinion not generally shared around here. One group of critics was cynfeally articulate and denounced the blown-up tire as ugly and uncouth. The corollary of this was, of course, that a thing so lacking in beauty could never be a permanent condribution to man-

. kind.

The battle of functionalism versus traditionalism over which people spill so many bitter words today is nothing new. It started way back in the nineties, on the day Harry Hearsey unpacked Mr. Johnson's gift. " ” - ”- ta. wu UNLESS my memory fails me, the “Columbia” was the first

. American bicycle to be equipped

with pneumatic tires. Tt was the most expensive, too ($150). Fred Ayres was the first to own one around here. Frank G. Darlington followed suit. A family tradition handed down has it that, once upon a time in the fall of 1895, Ayres and Darlington were riding their Columbias along Fall Creek, Mr. Ayres was ‘out in front when all of a sudden, he saw a little black kitten approaching- from the left. What happened next was Mr. Darlington’s privilege to report, He said that the kitten jumped with the apparent intention -of clearing the space between the two bicycles. Instead it got picked up by the spokes of Mr. Ayres’ It was the fastest merry-go-round he had ever seen, said Mr. Darlington. __After a dozen. revolutions or 80, the centrifugal force of Mr. Ayres’ wheel tossed the cat to the side of the road, a of 20 feet or more. The kitten was none the worse for its experience. The episode not only enhanced the reputation of the Columbia, but endowed the high-priced wheel with a magic power not unlike that of a Charm, . » » ~

. "ALL OF which gives me a chance to tell how the Columbia,

~ a Boston bicycle, happened to be sold in Indianapolis, a story will

G. Irwin told Lee Burns two years Ago or so. Mr. Irwin, a prize example of a boy brought up in the nineties, also had his heart set on owning a Columbia, The only thing that stood In the way was the embarrassing fact that he had only $75 with which to buy a $150 bicycle. He

"had lost all hope of ever own-

ing one when, in a roundahout

way, he learned that a bicycle -

dealer's gross profit amounted to

will G.

Bicycle Days’

Roc) "Civilization Here

Irwin was not a banker's son A for nothing. no”. 8 QUICK as a flash, he realized that he could have a Columbia for $75 if he could sell it to hima self. Accordingly, he addressed a letter - written - on his father’s bank stationery to Col. Albert A.

In the course of the letter, Will enumerated his qualifications for handling a bicycle agency in Columbus, Ind. In no time at all he had a reply. Col. Pope offered him. not only the Columhia agency for

of Indiana. Will, a mere kid at the time, accepted the offer and enclosed $75 with his answer, his first sale —to himself. on ” ”

THE DENOUEMENT is even ,more exciting. While waiting for the bicycle to arrive, Will told his father about the whole trans action. He expected to be applauded for his shrewdness, Instead he got a lecture in the course of which his father with considerakle vehemence, denounced the whole transaction as reprehensible, unethical and downright immoral.

his father: He had to give up the agency and he had to earn $75,

had already paid, represented the legitimate retail price of a Co~ lumbia. When it came time to dispose

gested that it be given to Charlie Smith, a handy man who ran a little repair shop down the street. And so it turned out that Charlie 8mith and not Will Irwin sold the first Columbia bicycle in the state 6f Indiana. Sure, Will was Charlie's first customer. n » .

more Columbia in Bartholomew county and then looked for greener pastures. He landed in Indianapolis and hitched up with Harry Hearsey.

/ The two operated the first bi-

cycle store and riding academy anywhere around here. It was right in the heart of town opposite the statehouse where the. Cones overall people now do business, Sh Unlike Will Irwin, Charlie Smith stayed with the bicycle business—long enough, indeed, to make - millions of dollars manufacturing the “Waverley,” an In-dianapolis-made wheel which was so good that it enjoyed an international reputation: Will Irwin madé his millions, too, but not by way of bicycles, There's a divinity — and sometimes nothing more than an irate parent—that shapes our ends.

(To be continued)

OF CHRISTMAS TREES

\ Want a Christmas tree this year? 1f you do, buy early. That's the advice of retailers who

The facts are these:

than last year, ern the cost.

throw it on the market. frightened into not buying a tree.

sight.

is a small supply of glags and p tic decorations available."

Pope, the manufacturer of the “| Columbia bicycle.

CHARLIE SMITH sold one |

Indianapolis’ Christmas tree supply is 20 to 25 per cent smaller

One last warning: Do your shop-

Columbus, but for the whole-state

To atone for his crime, Will had | .to do two things right away, said |

which, when added to what he

of the agency, Will's father sug- |

ADVISE EARLY BUYING;

emphasize that prices are not “sky high” as rumor had them last year.

Prices are the same for edmparable trees. There are trees for sale at 50 cents and others at $5. The height, fullness and general appearance, as in the past; will gov-

Repetition of conditions which overstocked the market last year are not expected. Reports of a tree famine in 1943 caused persons own ing any type of suitable tree to!

As a result of this over-supply and the report that prices were to be “exorbitant” many persons were

: 3

When Christmas arrived, retailers discovered they had hundreds of trees on-hand and Ho buyers in|,

But there's always a shag. If you need new ornaments this year |} you may have trouble finding them. ¥ Such things as Christmas tree lights | \ are just about extinct, but there

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