22 TRAVELS IN THE CONFEDERATION 



journeys or unwonted exercise, and easily go gouty 

 and blind. They are especially subject to foundering, or 

 rather, it may be that all American horses are more so 

 than the European ; but the fault certainly lies more in 

 the extremely careless and unfeeling management of 

 those who attend them than in the weaker constitution, 

 as it is claimed, of the animals themselves. The freight- 

 wagons of the Pensylvania farmers are strongly built ; 

 the front and hind-wheels stand close together ; the 

 body of the wagon slopes very much forward, so that 

 with the help of the very high front-wheels, the laden 

 wagon more easily gets over unevennesses in the road 

 and other obstacles. Generally all these wagons are 

 covered with a coarse cloth, stretched over hoops, and 

 on the journey serve their drivers for lodging. + 



Leaving York, the Pidgeon-hills are seen to the 

 right, which appear pretty high and belong to the 

 South Mountain ; in their forests bears and wolves are 

 still found, and they often pay unpleasant visits to the 

 farms in the valley, through which the road continues 

 over limestone beds. 



M'Callisterstown, 18 miles from York, a market- 

 town of about 200 houses, and perhaps 30 years old ; 

 and 6 miles beyond, a large village, Peterlittle'stown, 

 are the last places in Pensylvania. The need of such 

 borough-towns, where shop-keepers and craftsmen 

 come together and supply the other scattered and 

 sporadick settlers with conveniences, clothing, utensils, 

 and articles of luxury, (giving these in exchange for 

 the products of their land and flocks) is felt most 

 where there are none ; and the solitary farmer, too re- 

 mote from towns and markets, has a superfluity of 

 provisions but suffers for lack of many other neces- 



