INDIANA HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 549 



knee deep, half way up to the axles on the coach. Four horses stood 

 readj' to be hitched on. An expostulation: "Driver, are you going on 

 this night?" Passengers nearly frozen; dark as midnight; not well for 

 walking; the first time the words "you uns" reached the ear. 



"Well, if 'you uns' will say that it is unsafe to go on, will stop till 

 morning." "Hand out your waybill." 



For the first time my handwriting was placed on a "public document." 

 Husband and wife and your speaker "certified that we were passengers 

 in the coach named in the waybill, that it was unsafe to go on this night." 



Went into the comfortable stage stand, half frozen; warm fire, two 

 story featherbed, blankets, coverlets, etc. Breakfast at 5 o'clock next 

 morning. On the coach before 6 o'clock a. m. Reach Putnamville. 16 

 miles, at 12 m. Took dinner. Knew the di-iver that went through Green- 

 castle to Crawfordsville. 



Said ".Timmie. how soon will you start?" 



"Five minutes." 



"Leave my carpet bag at Mrs. Elders." 



"All right." 



Took Walker's line, and beat Uncle Sam's line one hour. Five miles 

 to Greencastle; from Indianapolis, traveling time 19^^ hours; miles forty- 

 five. One part of the night sleeping on two-story featherbed about seven 

 hours. And all because of Indiana's ways of transportation. The year 

 before, on horseback, a similar experience. 



No one of the present age has any idea of the ways of getting around 

 over Indiana. 



At that time railroads on paper were legislated into being, canals on 

 paper were enacted. The Whitewater, the Central, traversing the valley 

 of White River from Muncie and was operated from Broad Ripple to 

 \Vaverly, at the Bluffs in Morgan County, and the Wabash and Erie 

 Canal, connecting Lake Erie at Toledo with the Ohio River at Evansville, 

 stand as monumental evidences of Hoosier partial financial failures. 



The Whitewater Canal ran from Cambridge City down the Whitewater 

 Valley, through Connersville, Laurel, Brookville to Lawrenceburg, fur- 

 nishing mill sites, and ready communication for the produce of merchan- 

 dise, machinery and everything needed to embellish the "Hoosier Nests" 

 that found lodgment on the most beautiful scenic river of Indiana. 



Now a branch of the "Big Four" System traverses the firm- banks of 

 what was one of the noted canals of Indiana. 



This canal opened up to the world the most lovely, fertile, enjoyable 

 section of our loved State. 



We have here in Marion County, the relic of "The Central Canal" con- 

 necting the ancient town of Broad Ripple with the capital of Indiana. 

 To us it speaks of "the dam" (no profanity), "bass fishing," "big cut," 

 "skating," "ice," and the possible hope of supplying water to the city In 



