"Allen, Grant - Miss Cayley's Adventures 03 - The Adenture of the Inquisitive American" - читать интересную книгу автора (Allen Grant)

well in its oil-bath at its half-way gearing. I rode for
dear life. At sixteen miles, Lorsbach; at eighteen,
Eppstein, the road still rising. 'How far ahead the last
man?' 'Just round the corner, Fraulein!'

I put on a little steam. Sure enough, round the corner I
caught sight of his back. With a spurt, I passed him--a
dust-covered soul, very hot and uncomfortable. He had not
kept his wind; I flew past him like a whirlwind. But, oh
how sultry hot in that sweltering, close valley! A pretty
little town, Eppstein, with its mediaeval castle perched
high on a craggy rock. I owed it some gratitude, I felt, as
I left it behind, for 'twas here that I came up with the
tail-end of my opponents.

That one victory cheered me. So far, our route had lain
along the well-made but dusty high road in the steaming
valley; at Nieder-Josbach, two miles on, we quitted the road
abruptly, by the course marked out for us, and turned up a
mountain path, only wide enough for two cycles abreast--a
path that clambered towards the higher slopes of the Taunus
That was arranged on purpose--for this was no fair-weather
show, but a practical trial for military bicycles, under the
conditions they might meet with in actual warfare. It was
rugged riding: black walls of pine rose steep on either
hand; the ground was uncertain. Our path mounted sharply
from the first; the steeper the better. By the time I had
reached Ober-Josbach, nestling high among larch-woods, I had
distanced all but two of my opponents. It was cooler now,
too. As I passed the hamlet my cry altered.

'How far ahead the first man?'

'Two minutes, Fraulein.'

'A civilian?'

'No, no; a Prussian officer.'

The Herr Lieutenant led, then. For Old England's sake, I
felt I must beat him.

The steepest slope of all lay in the next two miles. If I
were going to win I must pass these two there, for my
advantage lay all in the climb; if it came to coasting, the
weight scored a point in their favour. Bump, crash, jolt!
I pedalled away like a machine; the Manitou sobbed; my
ankles flew round so that I scarcely felt them.

But the road was rough and scarred with waterways--ruts