1897 Clarke

The 1897 Clarke was a conventional tricycle equipped with a gasoline engine that drives the rear wheels, the frame consists of standard bicycle parts and some special parts designed and made by Clarke.
The one cylinder engine has a mechanically operated exhaust valve and an automatic intake valve on its crankshaft extension is a gear that meshes directly with the ring gear of the differential. No gear changes are provided and no throttle, but the engine speed can be varied by means of a spark-advance lever, and there is a fuel-flow regulator on the exhaust-heated, gasoline vaporizer.
The main exhaust pipe leads into a small muffler. The gasoline tank is in the frame beneath the saddle, and the batteries and high-tension coil are in a box farther forward in the frame. Bicycle pedals, with the usual sprockets and chain, enable the rider to start the engine and, in event of a breakdown, to propel the vehicle.
An overrunning clutch is built into this gearing so that the pedals are not driven by the engine while the tricycle is in motion. The front wheel is supported in a steering fork equipped with handlebars.
The wire-spoke, bicycle-type wheels carry 26-by-2 1/2-inch single-tube pneumatic tires.