Lesseps

The entry on Kirkpatrick MacMillan appears to be of particular patriotic touchiness. Could it be managed that only registered users may edit?

When shall I be eligible to move pages?

Any logged in user should be able to do page moves, as long as they don't overwrite an already existing page, have a look at: Help:Moving a page. If they do overwrite something, you will have to enlist the assistance of an administrator. -Dawson 17:11, 24 April 2006 (UTC)

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Hello Lesseps! Welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions. Please sign your name on talk pages using four tildes (~~~~); this will automatically produce your name and the date. If you need help, check out Wikipedia:Where to ask a question, ask me on my talk page, or place {{helpme}} on your talk page and someone will show up shortly to answer your questions. Below are some recommended guidelines to facilitate your involvement. Happy Editing! Kukini 15:36, 24 April 2006 (UTC) Getting Started Wikipedia Tutorial How to edit a page The five pillars of Wikipedia Manual of Style Be bold in editing How to write a great article WikiProjects Getting your info out there Cite your sources Neutral Point of View Point of View Verifiability Uploading images Image use policy Getting more Wikipedia rules Policy Library Getting Help New contributors' help page Where to ask a question Help Desk Frequently Asked Questions Getting along Wikiquette Civility Sign your posts Wikipedians Conflict resolution Getting technical Pages needing attention Peer review Utilities Village pump

Cyclohistory

Hi, I know little of this bit of history, but the Kirkpatrick McMillan article is particularly confusing. There is for example the sentence "Johnston meant to outpace the French front-wheel pedalled velocipede of circa 1865, said Michaux's" which, at least in my ignorance, is highly unclear. Are you quoting what some fellow named Michaux said about the speed of Johnston's machines? If so, then the person quoted should be more completely identified, and the quote at least dated even if a link cannot be provided to a full context. Jim.henderson 15:17, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Apologies, unfortunately expressed. I meant:

"attributed either to Michaux or to Lallement"

--Lesseps 23:35, 21 June 2007

That's slightly better but the words still strike me as vague, as regards context, relevance, intent, attribution and date. If you don't mind I shall delete the sentence tomorrow and hope a more definite citation can be found someday. Any further questions, I'll address in the talk page of the article in question. Thank you for your attention. Jim.henderson 02:46, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

I regret that the mention of the International Cycling-History Conference (ICHC) - the ulimate arbiter - has been edited out. It is not just a mattter of "some historians" - everybody else apparently shrinks the trouble of looking into the sources including e.g. BBC. Johnston, a corn trader, was no historian looking for truth, but had the firm aim "to prove that to my native country of Dumfries belongs the honour of being the birthplace of the invention of the bicycle" (The Gallovidian, #4, 1899). Johnston never presented the proofs, he pretended to have, but merely wrote that he has them at his disposal. National priorities ware fabricated by the dozen in those years around 1900 and the ICHC has started to debunk them all. If you've got a better idea for expressing this by one brief sentence, please do. I'll give it a try.

--Lesseps 10:14, 22 June 2007

I just realized that I am no longer allowed to edit the MacMillan page. Herer is my proposal now:

According to the research of his relative James Johnston in the 1890s, Macmillan was the first to invent the pedal-driven bicycle [1][2][3]. Johnston, a corn trader and tricyclist, had the firm aim to outpace the French front-wheel pedalled velocipede of circa 1865, atrributed to either Lallement or Michaux, or in his own words "to prove that to my native country of Dumfries belongs the honour of being the birthplace of the invention of the bicycle" (The Gallovidian #4, 1899). Yet Johnston never presented conclusive proofs, merely wrote that he has them.

Macmillan allegedly completed construction of a pedal driven bicycle of wood in 1839 that included iron-rimmed wooden wheels, a steerable 30 inch (760 mm) wheel in the front and a 40 inch (1016 mm) wheel in the rear which was connected to pedals via connecting rods. The entire machine weighed 57 lb (26 kg).

--Lesseps 10:35, 22 June 2007

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