Why Women Should Ride the Wheel. [Volume: 2, Issue: 9, June, 1896, pp. 455-456]

WHY WOMEN SHOULD RIDE THE WHEEL.
BY DR. CARLETON SIMON.
HE bicycle has come to stay, to be a potent factor in our
country's development. It has come to stay also as
a means —a long-desired one-for locomotion, and,
last, but not least, for its benign and healthy effect
on our physical and mental welfare.
Always being an ardent wheelman myself, I have often wondered at the tardiness with which parents allowed their children
to ride. Essentially is this the case with their daughters; for in the
many instances that 1 have advised the use of the wheel, as a
healthy and excellent means of exercise, various parents have
thrown their hands up (metaphorically speaking) and astoundingly asked me, "Why, Doctor! I have always heard that the use
of the bicycle is injurious to a woman or girl." I have attempted
also to trace these reports to their foundation, and have invariably found the cause of objection to be due to prejudice-the result
of ignorance.
It is my intention in this article to sum up the general use and
effect of riding for women, and to testify as to the benefit accruing
to the use of the wheel. I wish to say, however, that any woman
who is ill should apply to the proper person, her physician,
whether she can ride a wheel or not. For a healthy woman,
however, the use of the bicycle, when used rationally, is a boon to
her-a health-giving device, that cannot but be of the greatest
possible blessing when used in moderation, with restrictions.
I will pass rapidly over the period of tuition, and will assume
that the young lady has already acquired proficiency in the use
of the wheel, relative to balance and riding. She must first see
that the saddle is placed horizontally on the wheel.
The next observation must be extended to the handle-bars,
which should be slightly higher than the saddle, thereby insuring
an erect posture and a better purchasing power over the same.
When these requirements have been satisfied, she will find
herself sitting in an easy position, comfortable and able to control,
guide and propel her wheel.
I do not wish to forget to mention the subject of dress-which
must be light yet warm, especial care being taken that all underwear be of woolen material, this guaranteeing protection against
cold. It is a matter of personal opinion as regards the style and
manufacture of the external costume. Corsets, if worn, should
permit of freedom and afford plenty of room for proper breathing