The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1872-07-16
For the Bloomfield Times.
A Trip Westward, via. the Balti-
more and Ohio Rail Road.

was written by native OF This county con-
tains much that will interest our readers,
and that will be our excuse for publishing
SO lengthy communication:
Mr.. Editor:--If you will allow me the
use of column in the TIMES l will offer
for the benefit of my Perry county friends,
and Others, an account of trip across the
Alleghanies, via. the Baltimore and Ohio
Rail Road. We commence our journey
on pleasant day in June, and in order to
get good start, we leave Carlisle on the
A. M. train, and pass up the Cumberland
Valley; "the most beautiful piece of coun-
try that the sun ever shone upon" Flying
past fields of beautiful waving grain through
pleasant shady groves, and not failing to
notice the comfortable dwellings, and beau
tiful homes of our thrifty Cumberland Val
ley farmers, we say good-bye, for we know
that another such q scene will not meet our
eyes until we return again to our own ma
tive home. Stop at Hagerstown, and next
morning take the 5-25 train for Harpers
Ferry VIA the Washington county Branch.
Here we strike the Baltimore and Ohio
road at the confluence of the Shenandoah
and the Potomac rivers, and where the
streams united, break through the Blue
Ridge. The scenery in the vicinity of
Harpers Ferry is in the highest degree beau
tiful and picturesque. Thomas jefferson
considered the "Passage of the Potomac
through the Blue Ridge one of the most
stupendous scenes in nature, and the view
well worth a trip across the Alantic." The
place was originally called Shendoah Falls,
but derives it's present name from Ferry
long since established there. No doubt
our Perry county friends we'll remember
the indomitable but foolish John Brown of
0ssawattomie, who by his daring exploits
at this place became famous. The old
| building in which he was captured still
stands, being about the only building left
| standing of the old Government Arsenal.
grand, but any part of the town as place
of residence, would be my last choice in
the world. The house tops on one of the
streets are just on level with the cellar
being no room for street between them.
In fact no four-footed animal except a dog
or cat ever gets up there. A great many
of the buildings have been destroyed by
war, fire and water.
But here is the train for Wheeling, we
get aboard, and the boys say, "If you
can't get board get slab." We leave
the Potomac to the right, and after ride
of 10 miles come to the old town of Martins
burg, which certainly looks no better for
the wear it got during the war. 1t has a
population of nearly 5000. They claim
1000; and like Carlisle has an overplus of
American Citizens of African descent, who
as soon as it is dark come out from every
nook and corner, and throng the side walks
almost to the exclusion of "de white
trash" Greeley is trump here and white
hats are plenty. But let us get out of this
town, for the heat of the sun has sent the
mercury up to 100 degrees above Farenheit
in the shade, and we Pennsylvanians are
not accustomed to that very often at home.
We now start out nearly due north, and at
Cherry Run again strike the Potomac, and
change our course westward, and after fol-
lowing the Potomac 65 miles, through a
country of hills and mountains, but pictur-
esque and beautiful, we find ourselves
again running nearly due north and into
the beautiful town of Cumberland; which
has population of about 10000 though
they claim 12, 900. Cumberland is ON the
main line of the B. 81 o. r. r. and at its
junction with the Pittsburg Baltimore and
Washington road. This is also the northern
terminus of the Cumberland g. Pa, ,R. r.,
and is the County seat Of Allegheny county,
and is located on the north bank of the
Chesapeake and Ohio canal, extending to
Georgetown D. G. The manufacturing
business consists in a few foundries, one
large rolling mill which employs 800 to 600
hands, and pays out as high as $50 600
wages, per month. They have two furni-
ture factories one of which is owned by Mr.
Butler, mot "Ben, ~ and is most extensive
Of the kind in the state of Maryland.
Schools and churches are well represented,
and some of the finest residences along the
road are to be found here. The town is
entirely hemmed lin by mountains, and
when "old Sol" begins to pour down his
piercing rays, the weary pedestrian begins
to puff and blow and look for shade. There
are quite number of Pennsylvanians liv-
ing here, but the majority of the population
are foreign Dutch and Irish. We have
now been in Cumberland "a hours; and il
is Saturday evening; and to escape the heat