14000 MILES 



were in Jerusalem, for every hotel in the place was full 

 of Jews. The afternoon drive along the valley was very 

 restful, after the morning's rough climb. 



We were now in a country entirely new to us, and we 

 little dreamed that the Schoharie Kill or Creek driving 

 would eclipse the Hudson. We had at last found a river 

 road which followed the river. The shore scenery was 

 simply exquisite. Miles of hills — mountains we should 

 call them — with cultivated grain fields even to the 

 summit. Surely we had never seen anything more 

 lovely. The roads were not like the post road on the 

 Hudson ; indeed, they were the worst roads we ever 

 encountered. Annual overflows undo the repairs which 

 are rarely made, and in many places the highway is 

 simply the bed which the creek has deserted. At home 

 we improve roads by clearing the stones from them, but 

 there they improve them by dumping a cartload of 

 stones into them. We learned this fact by hearing an 

 enterprising citizen declare he would do it himself, if the 

 town authorities did not attend to their duty, and we can 

 testify to the truth of it, having been over the roads. 



Our hotel experiences were new, too. We spent one 

 night at Lexington, and when Charlie was brought to the 

 door and all was ready for our departure we noticed 

 something wrong about the harness. Investigation 

 proved that things were decidedly mixed at the stable, 

 and probably a part of Charlie's new harness had gone to 

 Hunter, ten miles back, after the skating rink frolic of 

 the night before. We had suspected our choice of hotels 

 for that night was not a happy one, but the landlord did 

 his best. He despatched a man to Hunter, and took our 



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