182 



THE MUSEUM. 



we pass rapidly through.small settle- 

 ments, and we are led to wonder how 

 the people ever eke out a living, as 

 the soil, what little there is, is too 

 stony and hilly to be cultivated. On 

 inquiry we find that we are now in the 

 midst of the great manufacturing belt 

 of Massachusetts and that the people 

 mostly work in factories, many having 

 worked in them their entire lives 



Leaving Springfield our train stops 

 a few moments at the thriving city of 

 Worcester, a place where almost every- 

 thing under the sun is manufactured. 

 It would be hard for a party to men- 

 tion a single article of commerce, at 

 least some part of which is not manu- 

 factured in this city. The immense 

 number of tall chimneys testifies to its 

 thriving business. 



Arriving at South Framingham on 

 Sunday morning^e find as we expected 

 when we left home, that we cannot make 

 connections until the next morning, so 

 we take a car, and head towards Bos- 

 ton. As we have plenty of time, and 

 prefer to view the pleasant scenery of 

 the next 25 miles at leisure, we enjoy 

 the electric cars in preference to the 

 rRilroad. 



We are over two hours covering the 

 • ii.siance, but it only seems like a few 

 iiiiiuites for we are passing through 

 the most beautiful parts of old Masse- 

 chusetts. We pass through Natick, 

 Wellesley and almost a score of small 

 villages, all of which show vast wealth 

 especially as we roll along through 

 Newton. West Newton and near-by 

 suburbs. At last we are in sight of 

 historic old Boston, all clothed in its 

 Sunday attire. We come into the 

 city in one of its most beautiful parts 

 but as we near the more business 

 .poiiion, the streets narrow down until 

 we reach the now noted sub-way, 

 where the cars go under ground for 

 several blocks. We get out at the 

 park station. But time will not per- 

 mit a description of our wanderings all 

 that day. Visits were made to some 

 of our Boston friends and new ac- 

 quaintances made as well as old ones 



renewed. 



The next morning we are up bright 

 and early and headed for the South 

 Coast, New Bedford. We arrive 

 there between 8 and 9 and find the 

 large and commodious steamer at the 

 pier. Soon we are heading out into 

 the mammoth harbor of New Bedford. 

 We do not wonder now that the sail- 

 ors of olden times found this a grand 

 place to keep their boats and that it 

 was one of the greatest whaling ports 

 in the world in fts time. The harbor 

 is very large and furnishes accommo- 

 dations for hundreds of boats of all 

 sizes, where they will be perfectly safe 

 from the awful tempests of the ocean 

 In a short time we are out in the 

 broad waters of Buzzard's Bay. We 

 pass entirely through the bay, and as 

 we approach the harbor of Wood's 

 Holl, we skirt through a narrow chan- 

 nel close to the beach. This channel 

 is a narrow strip of water between a 

 long row of outer islands and the main 

 coast of the Cape. The tide runs 

 very swift here, and sail boats fre- 

 quently have a hard job passing 

 through it. At Wood's Holl we stop 

 off for a day and examine the Fish 

 Commission collections. Many of the 

 specimens we were informed by our 

 friend, Mr. Edwards, who has been 

 with the Commission some 28 jears, 

 were then at the Omaha Exposition. 

 Still there were plenty remaining to oc- 

 cupy such time as we had to spare. 

 Outside the buildings, on the ocean side, 

 is a mammoth pen built in the dock, 

 so that sea water can run through it- 

 Whenever an unusually large catch of 

 fish is made, more than can be used 

 in the Biological Laboratory, they are 

 put in this pen and kept alive. Only 

 a short time before our arrival in one 

 night they caught .ten sharks, and a 

 large number of dog fish, sting ray, 

 and other large specimens. Many of 

 these were in the tank. While looking 

 them over four students came out to 

 "lasso" a shark, which they needed 

 for use. Needless to say they were 

 not quick enough to throw a noose 



