United States or Algeria ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
For they were neither of them adepts; besides which, the tricycle being intended for a pair of full-grown men, they had some difficulty in keeping their saddles and working their treadles at one and the same time. They had to part company with the latter when they went down, and catch them flying as they came up; and the result was not always elegant or swift.
Hoopdriver with his hands tightening on the handles. He resumed the treadles, staring away before him, jolted over a stone, wabbled, recovered, and began riding faster at once, with his eyes ahead. "It can't be," said Hoopdriver. He rode his straightest, and kept his pedals spinning, albeit a limp numbness had resumed possession of his legs.
Though the rider can by these devices assume nearly that position with respect to the treadles which is most advantageous, he cannot obtain that curious fore and aft oscillation made use of by the Ottoist in climbing hills, which, as the model on the table shows, enables him to get past the dead points without even moving, and which, therefore, makes the Otto by far the best hill-climbing machine there is, if account is taken of the high speeding with which all Ottoists ride.
Arrived at the bottom of the hill the hilarious youth put his feet to the treadles, and drove the machine vigorously up the opposite slope. It was steep, but he was powerful. He breathed hard, no doubt, but he never flagged until he gained the next summit.
The brake came to grief the moment they started, and they had nothing for it but to hold on and let her fly. As to attempting to control the speed with their feet, they were thankful enough to get those members up on the rest out of reach of the treadles, which plunged up and down like the pistons of a steam-engine.
"It stumbles, and gives you the most awful tosses, and it goes lame by its treadles and thingamejigs coming off, and it wears out, and is twice as much trouble to keep clean and scrape the mud off as a horse, and all sorts of things.
Nevertheless, mounting the last slope was such hard labour that Mugford had to turn to and "work his passage," by every now and again taking a spell at the treadles. "Look here!" said Diggory at length: "don't you think we've gone far enough? we shan't be back in time for tea." "Oh, I forgot," answered the captain. "We'll see. Stand by your anchor! Let go-o-o!"
The propeller is 12 feet in diameter, and is revolved so rapidly by the motor that the engine frequently gets red hot. The only accommodation for the traveller is a little bicycle seat, from which the aeronaut will direct his motor and steering gear by means of treadles.
If Welland's feet had been on the treadles he must have turned a complete somersault. As it was he alighted on his feet, but came to the ground with such force that he failed to save himself. One frantic effort he made and then went down headlong and rolled over on his back in a state of insensibility.
In Burma, there being no elaborately cut and trimmed garments, the amount of sewing done is small, but that is usually done by men. Women often own and use small hand-machines, but the treadles are always used by men only. As I am writing, my Burmese orderly is sitting in the garden sewing his jacket. He is usually sewing when not sent on messages. He seems to sew very well.
Word Of The Day