THE TIM BUNKER PAPERS. 53 



idea but what the whole world turns round on our axis. 

 In fact they believe that the north pole runs straight 

 through our meeting-house steeple, and what can t be 

 learned in our parish is not worth knowing. Ned Bottom, 

 a man of seventy, was never ten miles from home, and 

 never saw a steamboat nor a locomotive. It was only 

 last night that he was bragging about it, as if it was 

 someting to be proud of. &quot; He had never been caught in 

 one of those man-traps. Not he ! &quot; 



I suppose it is a fact, that a good many people get hurt 

 on the railroads, but I guess not so many in proportion to 

 the travel as are injured in the old-fashioned way of horse 

 and carriage journeying. I cannot see what Providence 

 has suffered such things to be invented for, unless He 

 designs folks should use them to find out what the rest 

 of the world is made of, and what other people are doing. 

 Our minister preached a sermon a while ago about &quot; Many 

 shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased,&quot; 

 and he thought the day of the fulfillment of this prophecy 

 had come. Now I suppose I don t hear any too much of 

 sermons, and practice altogether too little. But I heard 

 the whole of this, and thought I would fulfill my part of 

 the prophecy, and started off in the cars, with my wife, 

 the same week. 



We first went up to Uncle Philip Scranton s, a brother 

 of Sally s, who lives in Farmdale, over east of Hookertown. 

 Connecticut, you know, is all cut up into railroads, and 

 has more track to the square mile than any other State 

 in the Union. It is wonderful to see the influence these 

 railroads have had upon the farms, wherever I have trav 

 eled. Almost every farmer lives within sound of the 

 whistle, and has a ready market for all he can raise, at the 

 depot or nearest village. Instead of going off to Provi 

 dence or Boston, a week s journey, to sell his cheese, but 

 ter, and poultry, an hour s ride in the morning brings him 

 to a market. He loses little time and gets a higher price. 



