ON RUSSELL THE PEDESTRIAN,
Reading edition
Who walked 101 miles in 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 30 seconds, on the 25th & 26th of July, 1822, on the Newcastle Race course.
Men's talents vary—for wise ends design'd, This man has strength of body, that, of mind; Each his peculiar art assiduous plies, And every maxim of improvement tries, Till he attain perfection by degrees, And learns to execute his task with ease. Wilson,[19] desist! and Simpson,[20] take your rest! Ease and retirement now will suit ye best; Your brief excursions will excite no more That admiration which they did before; Though doubtless ye have both endeavour'd hard, Perhaps without an adequate reward; But such laborious journies lay aside, And if ye can, instead of walking, ride. "Hide your diminish'd heads!" nor vainly talk, Among your friends, how rapidly you walk: First in the annals of Pedestrian fame, Historians now will enter Russell's name; Where he will most conspicuously shine, And long be hail'd—The Hero of the Tyne. Upon this art he has so much refin'd, That he leaves all competitors behind. With buoyant step we've seen him tread the plain, And hope, ere long, to see him walk again.