82 THE BRIGHTON ROAD 



enthusiasm of the countryside that the whole length 

 of the road to Brighton was so crowded with spectators 

 that it resembled a thronged City thoroughfare. 



It said still more for the pluck and endurance of 

 those who undertook the walk that of the ninety-nine 

 starters no fewer than seventy-eight finished within 

 the thirteen hours' limit qualifying them for the 

 commemorative medal. G. D. Nicholas, the favourite, 

 heavily backed by sportsmen, led from the beginning, 

 making the pace at the rate of six miles an hour. He 

 reached Streatham, six miles, in 59 mins. 



And then a craze for walking to Brighton set in. 

 On June 6th the butchers of Smithfield Market walked, 

 and doubtless, among the many other class-races, the 

 bakers, and the candlestick-makers as well, and the 

 proprietors of baked-potato cans and the roadmen, 

 and indeed the Lord alone knows who not. Of the 

 sixty butchers, who had a much more favourable day 

 than the stockbrokers, the winner, H. F. Otway, 

 covered the distance in 9 hrs. 21 mins. 1| sees., thus 

 beating Broad by some 9 minutes. 



Whether the dairymen of London ever executed 

 their proposed daring feat of walking to Brighton, 

 each trundling an empty churn, does not appear ; 

 but it seems likely that many a fantastic person walked 

 down carrying an empty head. A German, one 

 Anton Hauslian, even set out on the journey pushing 

 a perambulator containing his wife and six-year-old 

 daughter ; and on June 16th an American, a Miss 

 Florence, an eighteen-year-old music-hall equilibrist, 

 started to " walk " the distance on a globe. She used 

 for the purpose two globes, each made of wood covered 

 with sheepskin, and having a diameter of 26 in. ; one 

 weighing 20 lb., for uphill work ; the other weighing 

 75 lb., for levels and descents. Starting at an early 

 hour on June 16th, and " walking " ten hours a day, 

 she reached the Aquarium at the unearthly hour of 

 2.40 on the morning of the 21st. 



Those who could not rehearse the epic flights of 

 these fiftv-two miles walked shorter distances ; and, 



