Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1840-11-05
PROGRESS or MODERN TRAVEL
ling.

\ Oar fathers we've -und ih1t within ~.
memory of man--cnitentcd Ia convey IA 'lr
I goods from iuwn tn town on pack borses.
l Narrow ronds, which barely adnni a sirn. OF
these beasts burdcndrd with lbc nred' oi
many towns, run uvrr l,lil and 'la!c. ANA ollen
were found worn deep between sleep banks
ihy IA. prrseverina iruhic ot ages, aud over
\ h,mr w trecs winch had spontaneously
! sprunn aud grown over them. n n'i0iing tlu IN
Il cod and ucnsout Bat the ailiifs of o,r
worthy uncc, tore became srn.lsy UD the
Incfeasc. The slrlnx VI pack horses slowly
urnsrc.sinq over The wsrld and thruv9h for
esl. were found MT equal io The demtuds o'
commsrclol cYchaDge aud speed ani they
.,f iLrlr wit- To work, and lo, Pckiord's aud
\ PtItl.or'. wagons, atd Others, their cuntcGl-
puraiIes, nlpcarsd, pied mp in ponderous
.iatvlI,rss, and drawn by horses III bulk next
to elephants. For their convenience, the
old roads were deserted as too narrow, ar
iillcG up as too s'unlberausly profound. New
roads al bn airy width were laid Down, and
Nj. cAdom showed himself, with his nee
romantic banner md pebble.guage in lis
hand. and COACHES came gdlloping after hlm
al ten miles speed per hour, loaded with eo-
ger nnd silll impatient negotlanis; roads at
granite, ar Of limestone, however smooth, or
however wld., or however covered wiih WA
CONS, coGcbes uAils, no semen. aud the IL
Unite varleiy OF csrllsgrs Of pleasure, iru,el,
vnl parade, which now nIIcared on them.
were iouuJ too few, ard caua!s were cut i
loo ks--v ondorlvl lhlnas IN tLose days"
invehtri aud heavy beats and light barXes
hastcned 10 convey their heights of iiriDg
lhinXs, and things for the living-uarksi
goods and market people, 20 The places
-. AZ.
wanted TO be. Well done Englishmcn - |
Things were come ,oa pretty good pass i;
was th,ughi. People said, wondering 10 ots
enolb'r-" If our sranjia'hers could bnl rise
Fl om llIeI graves and see all this, how they
would stare !"
Bot it was soon found that the population
and the needs Of the country had outgrown
even these Recommendations. Thsro was Il
cry for more conveyance and more speed.
Some talked Of balloons, some of e.ocip. des. l
and some Of perpetual motion. The old aud
orthodox said, Let vol be 4: things move
fast enough. There is no rest, 40 r0pose, NC Il
.tead,ness in the generation; pl is hurry,
hurry, hurry. Il il perfectly dsiractirg"l
They even looked back 10 the old hollow
rouds and stdng Of pack-hor,es with uii'ec-
tomato warnings. Nevertheless q set Of 4
b,g- headed fellows were busy with their
brains and began 10 utter stranee speeches
about the power Of steam. II was ii thin.
which was to work our mnes and mills. n,.
pei our ships, and convey us, with the veloc- !
~ Of comet, from on" place 10 another
O d men and wise men too, laughed at sDch
Qulxotc ,apo'ings: sc, spite OF their laugh !
Ter, there were heard great hammerngs, and
filings, and h2ZngS, ~ hc workshops o.
Wa,t and Bolton mud presently that mighty !
monster, the steam engine, was seen pulling |
up buckets of WAFER aud heap. o. ore ont o!
the earth and turning thousand spndlcs in
our factories. II has become Il conceive. has
mounted the roads and the ships prepared for
it, and is now flying from town Ia 10 N and
country 10 country, with us and our concerns 1
in n manner so wonderful, that we shall soon
fnd ourselves paSt wondering at any thing Il
ID we not ride al the rate %! thirty miles n II
hour and erun,ble at such snail's pacc-go /
over to America in ten days, and think II
about five TOO long-and hear news from the
East Indies in little more h,n month:
We'll done, EnglIshncn. az our iaibcrs said,
50 say wc-tllni is pretty wei or another fit.
VIi;dm Ro:cW.