An Autobiography of an Ancient Athlete & Antiquarian

54 AUTOBIOGRAPHY August won the open tricycle race at East Dereham. My aunt, M. A. Tuppen, died 19th August, having only survived my mother a few months. In September, 1882, I went with my wife to Tunbridge Wells. In September as usual, I took my holiday in Norfolk, Winthrop meeting me at Crowland, where we saw the last Cheap Jack Doctor in a gorgeous carriage. Thence we rode over to the ruins of Crowland Abbey, and at the risk of our necks got some yellow wallflower seed, the parents of a stock I kept for many years. We rode from Sutton Bridge fast to Lynn doing 6 miles in 23 minutes. Next day Winthrop ran into a cart horse stallion at Heacbam and smashed his machine, and had to go back for repairs, he not joining me till Norwich, where we hired the '' Warrior'' and went for a cruise with Arthur Grimmer by Oulton, Beccles, Yarmouth to Norwich. Cycling by Pulham on 6th October, I had a curious quasi--mystic accident, the tale of which I may tell hereafter. Of course there cannot have been anything in it but coincidence, but it was a very eerie experience. During this journey, we excavated the alleged underground passage at Baconsthorpe Castle on 10th October, but found it only a drain which emptied itself into the moat. The burying up of old drains is no doubt the cause of the ·silly universal myths as to their passages. Here we bad an experience of having to help to hold down a little waiter suffering from delirium tremens, four big men being just enough to keep him down. On 28th October I ran for the last time in a paper chase, taking the bags with Sydenbam Dixon, but found that in my 40th year I could hardly go a respectable pace. On 31st I celebrated mv birthday by issuing a little tabular sheet of the Pipe Roll in modern form, which I think is a proof that I could once write legibly whatever I do now. The end of the year I bought a" Humber" semi-racer tricycle, and invented the new Spelling Bee game as an. antidote for the card playing which was injuring our Roehampton Athletic Club. It bad a great vogue for a time. Its methods were thus: The first man started a letter, and the next man on his left bad to put another to it which went to make up a word-the shorter the better, for as soon as a man was cornered with such a one as " copy'' he had