The man with the ostrich tail feathers is Captain John William Nott Bower, one side of the historic decided case Ellis v Nott Bower (1895) which established that a cycle is a vehicle and was the cornerstone of much campaigning in the earlier part of the twentieth century to protect the right of cyclists to use the carriageway and was arguably even more significant than recent events in Telford.
Although the hat and the cause may be impressive, the actual legal case is a bit of an anti-climax. In early attempts at traffic reduction, many cities had bye-laws prohibiting the use of vehicles for purely advertising purposes. Mr Ellis cycled around the city of Liverpool using his bike as a mobile billboard. A diligent member of Liverpool City Police, of which Captain N B was chief, took his name and address. The case went to appeal, and even though J Franklin was only a glint in his great grandfather’s eye, it was held that a cycle was a vehicle.
I see from this weeks email newsletter that a similar case is pending in Doncaster and that the CTC, with an amazing display of ignorance of history, is awarding the local authority a wooden spoon for mean-mindedness.
In spite of my flippant tone, every word is true. The pic is of the old boy himself; he eventually retired as Commissioner of the City of London Police at the age of 75 in 1925.
