Scepticism
The Johnston doctrine of the bright, modest and industrious tradesman, achieving what others would only do decades later, captured the public imagination, especially in Scotland. It was also well accepted among historians, at least British ones, in the early 20th century.
Johnston did not present conclusive proofs, though he wrote that he had them. Sceptics allege that MacMillan design which he presented was a composite of the two McCall velocipedes of 1869. At the behest of Johnston Thomas McCall, aged 64, built a replica to be presented as MacMillan's at the 1896 Stanley show and now at Dumfries Museum - presumably he needed the money (Clayton 1987).
The identification of MacMillan as recipient of an early speeding ticket for his bicycling is doubted by Alastair Dodds on grounds that its application would require an early Victorian newspaper to call a blacksmith a "gentleman". However, that fails to explain what the velocipede of ingenious design was. Misgivings did not deter popular retelling with interesting details from sources unknown.
However, it is said that Gavin Dalzell of Lesmahagow copied his machine in 1846 and passed on the details to so many people that for more than 50 years he was generally regarded as the inventor of the bicycle.
Read more about this topic: Kirkpatrick Macmillan
Famous quotes containing the word scepticism:
“What’s the greatest enemy of Christianity to-day? Frozen meat. In the past only members of the upper classes were thoroughly sceptical, despairing, negative. Why? Among other reasons, because they were the only people who could afford to eat too much meat. Now there’s cheap Canterbury lamb and Argentine chilled beef. Even the poor can afford to poison themselves into complete scepticism and despair.”
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)
“The great subverter of Pyrrhonism or the excessive principles of scepticism is action, and employment, and the occupations of common life.”
—David Hume (1711–1776)
“... scepticism ... can never be thoroughly applied, else life would come to a standstill ...”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)