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diff --git a/41067.txt b/41067.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 719b585..0000000 --- a/41067.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3695 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Historic Highways of America (Vol. 11), by -Archer Butler Hulbert - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Historic Highways of America (Vol. 11) - Pioneer Roads and Experiences of Travelers (Volume I) - -Author: Archer Butler Hulbert - -Release Date: October 15, 2012 [EBook #41067] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORIC HIGHWAYS OF AMERICA, VOL 11 *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Bergquist and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) - - - - - - - - - -HISTORIC HIGHWAYS OF AMERICA - -VOLUME 11 - - - - - [Illustration: A MILESTONE ON BRADDOCK'S ROAD - [_See page 105, note 19_]] - - - - HISTORIC HIGHWAYS OF AMERICA - VOLUME 11 - - Pioneer Roads and - Experiences of Travelers - (Volume I) - - BY - ARCHER BUTLER HULBERT - - _With Illustrations_ - - [Illustration] - - THE ARTHUR H. CLARK COMPANY - CLEVELAND, OHIO - 1904 - - - - - COPYRIGHT, 1904 - BY - THE ARTHUR H. CLARK COMPANY - - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - PREFACE 11 - I. THE EVOLUTION OF HIGHWAYS: FROM INDIAN TRAIL TO TURNPIKE 15 - II. A PILGRIM ON THE PENNSYLVANIA ROAD 106 - III. ZANE'S TRACE AND THE MAYSVILLE PIKE 151 - IV. PIONEER TRAVEL IN KENTUCKY 175 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - I. A MILESTONE ON BRADDOCK'S ROAD _Frontispiece_ - II. INDIAN TRAVAIL 19 - III. OLD CONESTOGA FREIGHTER 50 - IV. EARLIEST STYLE OF LOG TAVERN 87 - V. WIDOW MCMURRAN'S TAVERN (Scrub Ridge, Pennsylvania Road) 134 - VI. BRIDGE ON WHICH ZANE'S TRACE CROSSED THE MUSKINGUM RIVER - AT ZANESVILLE, OHIO 162 - VII. PIONEER VIEW OF HOUSES AT FORT CUMBERLAND, MARYLAND 191 - - - - -PREFACE - - -The first chapter of this volume presents an introduction to the two -volumes of this series devoted to Pioneer Roads and Experiences of -Travelers. The evolution of American highways from Indian trail to -macadamized road is described; the Lancaster Turnpike, the first -macadamized road in the United States, being taken as typical of roads -of the latter sort. - -An experience of a noted traveler, Francis Baily, the eminent British -astronomer, is presented in chapter two. - -The third chapter is devoted to the story of Zane's Trace from Virginia -to Kentucky across Ohio, and its terminal, the famous Maysville Pike. It -was this highway which precipitated President Jackson's veto of the -Internal Improvement Bill of 1830, one of the epoch-making vetoes in our -economic history. - -The last chapter is the vivid picture of Kentucky travel drawn by Judge -James Hall in his description of "The Emigrants," in _Legends of the -West_. - -The illustrations in this volume have been selected to show styles of -pioneer architecture and means of locomotion, including types of -earliest taverns, bridges, and vehicles. - - A. B. H. - -MARIETTA, OHIO, December 30, 1903. - - - - -Pioneer Roads and Experiences of Travelers - -(Volume I) - - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE EVOLUTION OF HIGHWAYS: FROM INDIAN TRAIL TO TURNPIKE - - -We have considered in this series of monographs the opening of a number -of Historic Roads and the part they played in the development of the -most important phases of early American history. But our attitude has -been that of one asking, Why?--we have not at proper length considered -all that would be contained in the question, How? It will be greatly to -our purpose now to inquire into the methods of road-making, and outline, -briefly, the evolution of the first trodden paths to the great highways -of civilization. - -From one aspect, and an instructive one, the question is one of width; -few, if any, of our roads are longer than those old "threads of -soil"--as Holland called the Indian trails; Braddock's Road was not -longer than the trail he followed; even the Cumberland Road could -probably have been followed its entire length by a parallel Indian path -or a buffalo trace. But Braddock's Road was, in its day, a huge, broad -track, twelve feet wide; and the Cumberland Road exceeded it in breadth -nearly fifty feet. So our study may be pursued from the interesting -standpoint of a widening vista; the belt of blue above our heads grows -broader as we study the widening of the trail of the Indian. - -To one who has not followed the trails of the West or the Northland, the -experience is always delightful. It is much the same delight as that -felt in traversing a winding woodland road, intensified many fold. The -incessant change of scenery, the continued surprises, the objects passed -unseen yet not unguessed, those half-seen through a leafy vista amid the -shimmering green; the pathway just in front very plain, but twenty feet -beyond as absolutely hidden from your eyes as though it were a thousand -miles away--such is the romance of following a trail. One's mind keeps -as active as when looking at Niagara, and it is lulled by the lapsing -of those leaves as if by the roar of that cataract. - -Yet the old trail, unlike our most modern roads, kept to the high -ground; even in low places it seemed to attempt a double-bow knot in -keeping to the points of highest altitude. But when once on the hills, -the vista presented varied only with the altitude, save where hidden by -the foliage. We do not choose the old "ridge roads" today for the view -to be obtained, and we look continually up while the old-time traveler -so often looked down. As we have hinted, elsewhere, many of our pioneer -battles--those old battles of the trails--will be better understood when -the position of the attacking armies is understood to have been on lower -levels, the rifles shooting upward, the enemy often silhouetted against -the very sky-line. - -[Illustration: INDIAN TRAVAIL] - -But the one characteristic to which, ordinarily, there was no exception, -was the narrowness of these ancient routes. The Indian did not travel in -single file because there was advantage in that formation; it was -because his only routes were trails which he never widened or improved; -and these would, ordinarily, admit only of one such person as broke them -open. True, the Indians did have broader trails; but they were very -local in character and led to maple-sugar orchards or salt wells. From -such points to the Indian villages there ran what seemed not unlike our -"ribbon roads"--the two tracks made by the "travail"--the two poles with -crossbar that dragged on the ground behind the Indian ponies, upon which -a little freight could be loaded. In certain instances such roads as -these were to be found running between Indian villages and between -villages and hunting grounds. They were the roads of times of peace. The -war-time trails were always narrow and usually hard--the times of peace -came few and far between. As we have stated, so narrow was the trail, -that the traveler was drenched with water from the bushes on either -hand. And so "blind"--to use a common pioneer word--were trails when -overgrown, that they were difficult to find and more difficult to -follow. Though an individual Indian frequently marked his way through -the forest, for the benefit of others who were to follow him or for -his own guidance in returning, the Indian trails in native state were -never blazed. Thus, very narrow, exceedingly crooked, often overgrown, -worn a foot or more into the ground, lay the routes on which white men -built roads which have become historic. Let us note the first steps -toward road-building, chronologically. - -The first phase of road-making (if it be dignified by such a title) was -the broadening of the Indian path by the mere passing of wider loads -over it. The beginning of the pack-horse era was announced by the need -of greater quantities of merchandise and provisions in the West to which -these paths led. The heavier the freight tied on either side of the -pack-horse, the more were the bushes bruised and worn away, and the more -the bed of the trail was tracked and trampled. The increasing of the -fur-trade with the East at the beginning of the last half of the -eighteenth century necessitated heavier loads for the trading ponies -both "going in" and "coming out"--as the pioneers were wont to say. Up -to this time, so far as the present writer's knowledge goes, the Indian -never lifted a finger to make his paths better in any one respect; it -seems probable that, oftentimes, when a stream was to be crossed, which -could not be forded, the Indian bent his steps to the first fallen tree -whose trunk made a natural bridge across the water. That an Indian never -felled such a tree, it is impossible to say; but no such incident has -come within my reading. It seems that this must have happened and -perhaps was of frequent occurrence. - -Our first picture, then, of a "blind" trail is succeeded by one of a -trail made rougher and a little wider merely by use; a trail over which -perhaps the agents of a Croghan or a Gist pushed westward with more and -more heavily-loaded pack-horses than had been customarily seen on the -trails thither. Of course such trails as began now to have some -appearance of roads were very few. As was true of the local paths in -Massachusetts and Connecticut and Virginia, so of the long trails into -the interior of the continent, very few answered all purposes. Probably -by 1750 three routes, running through southwestern Pennsylvania, -central Pennsylvania, and central New York, were worn deep and broad. By -broad of course we mean that, in many places, pack-horses could meet and -pass without serious danger to their loads. But there were, probably, -only these three which at this time answered this description. And the -wider and the harder they became, the narrower and the softer grew -scores of lesser trails which heretofore had been somewhat traversed. It -is not surprising that we find the daring missionary Zeisberger going to -the Allegheny River like a beast on all fours through overgrown trails, -or that Washington, floundering in the fall of 1784 along the upper -Monongahela and Cheat Rivers, was compelled to give up returning to the -South Branch (of the Potomac) by way of the ancient path from Dunkards -Bottom. "As the path it is said is very blind & exceedingly grown up -with briers," wrote Washington, September 25, 1784, in his Journal, "I -resolved to try the other Rout, along the New Road to Sandy Creek; ..." -This offers a signal instance in which an ancient route had become -obsolete. Yet the one Washington pursued was not an Appian Way: "... we -started at dawning of day, and passing along a small path much enclosed -with weeds and bushes, loaded with Water from the overnights rain & the -showers which were continually falling, we had an uncomfortable -travel...."[1] Such was the "New Road." - -The two great roads opened westward by the armies of Washington, -Braddock, and Forbes, whose history has been dealt with at length in -this series, were opened along the line of trails partially widened by -the pack-horses of the Ohio Company's agents (this course having been -first marked out by Thomas Cresap) and those of the Pennsylvania -traders. Another route led up the Mohawk, along the wide Iroquois Trail, -and down the Onondaga to the present Oswego; this was a waterway route -primarily, the two rivers (with the portage at Rome) offering more or -less facilities for shipping the heavy baggage by batteaus. It was a -portage path from the Hudson to Lake Ontario; the old landward trail to -Niagara not being opened by an army.[2] - -Yet Braddock's Road, cut in 1755, was quite filled up with undergrowth -in 1758 as we have noted. It was "a brush wood, by the sprouts from the -old stumps."[3] In those primeval forests a road narrowed very fast, and -quickly became impassable if not constantly cared for. The storms of a -single fall or spring month and the heavy clouds of snow on the trees in -winter kept the ground beneath well littered with broken limbs and -branches. Here and there great trees were thrown by the winds across the -traveled ways. And so a military road over which thousands may have -passed would become, if left untouched, quite as impassable as the -blindest trail in a short time. - -Other Indian trails which armies never traversed became slightly widened -by agents of land companies, as in the case of Boone blazing his way -through Cumberland Gap for Richard Henderson. For a considerable -distance the path was widened, either by Boone or Martin himself, to -Captain Joseph Martin's "station" in Powell's Valley. Thousands of -traces were widened by early explorers and settlers who branched off -from main traveled ways, or pushed ahead on an old buffalo trail; the -path just mentioned, which Washington followed, was a buffalo trail, but -had received the name of an early pioneer and was known as "McCulloch's -Path." - -But our second picture holds good through many years--that trail, even -though armies had passed over it, was still but a widened trail far down -into the early pioneer days. Though wagons went westward with Braddock -and Forbes, they were not seen again in the Alleghenies for more than -twenty-five years. These were the days of the widened trails, the days -of the long strings of jingling ponies bearing patiently westward salt -and powder, bars of bended iron, and even mill-stones, and bringing back -to the East furs and ginseng. Of this pack-saddle era--this age of the -widened trail--very little has been written, and it cannot be passed -here without a brief description. In Doddridge's _Notes_ we read: "The -acquisition of the indispensable articles of salt, iron, steel and -castings presented great difficulties to the first settlers of the -western country. They had no stores of any kind, no salt, iron, nor iron -works; nor had they money to make purchases where these articles could -be obtained. Peltry and furs were their only resources before they had -time to raise cattle and horses for sale in the Atlantic states. Every -family collected what peltry and fur they could obtain throughout the -year for the purpose of sending them over the mountains for barter. In -the fall of the year, after seeding time, every family formed an -association with some of their neighbors, for starting the little -caravan. A master driver was to be selected from among them, who was to -be assisted by one or more young men and sometimes a boy or two. The -horses were fitted out with pack-saddles, to the latter part of which -was fastened a pair of hobbles made of hickory withes--a bell and collar -ornamented their necks. The bags provided for the conveyance of the -salt were filled with feed for the horses; on the journey a part of this -feed was left at convenient stages on the way down, to support the -return of the caravan. Large wallets well filled with bread, jerk, -boiled ham, and cheese furnished provision for the drivers. At night, -after feeding, the horses, whether put in pasture or turned out into the -woods, were hobbled and the bells were opened [unstuffed].... Each horse -carried [back] two bushels of alum salt, weighing eighty-four pounds to -the bushel." Another writer adds: "The caravan route from the Ohio river -to Frederick [Maryland] crossed the stupendous ranges of the ... -mountains.... The path, _scarcely two feet wide_, and travelled by -horses in single file, roamed over hill and dale, through mountain -defile, over craggy steeps, beneath impending rocks, and around points -of dizzy heights, where one false step might hurl horse and rider into -the abyss below. To prevent such accidents, the bulky baggage was -removed in passing the dangerous defiles, to secure the horse from being -thrown from his scanty foothold.... The horses, with their packs, were -marched along in single file, the foremost led by the leader of the -caravan, while each successive horse was tethered to the pack-saddle of -the horse before him. A driver followed behind, to keep an eye upon the -proper adjustment of the packs." The Pennsylvania historian Rupp informs -us that in the Revolutionary period "five hundred pack-horses had been -at one time in Carlisle [Pennsylvania], going thence to Shippensburg, -Fort Loudon, and further westward, loaded with merchandise, also salt, -iron, &c. The pack-horses used to carry bars of iron on their backs, -crooked over and around their bodies; barrels or kegs were hung on each -side of these. Colonel Snyder, of Chambersburg, in a conversation with -the writer in August, 1845, said that he cleared many a day from $6 to -$8 in crooking or bending iron and shoeing horses for western carriers -at the time he was carrying on a blacksmith shop in the town of -Chambersburg. The pack-horses were generally led in divisions of 12 or -15 horses, carrying about two hundred weight each ...; when the bridle -road passed along declivities or over hills, the path was in some places -washed out so deep that the packs or burdens came in contact with the -ground or other impending obstacles, and were frequently displaced." - -Though we have been specifically noticing the Alleghenies we have at the -same time described typical conditions that apply everywhere. The -widened trail was the same in New England as in Kentucky or -Pennsylvania--in fact the same, at one time, in old England as in New -England. Travelers between Glasgow and London as late as 1739 found no -turnpike till within a hundred miles of the metropolis. Elsewhere they -traversed narrow causeways with an unmade, soft road on each side. -Strings of pack-horses were occasionally passed, thirty or forty in a -train. The foremost horse carried a bell so that travelers in advance -would be warned to step aside and make room. The widened pack-horse -routes were the main traveled ways of Scotland until a comparatively -recent period. "When Lord Herward was sent, in 1760, from Ayrshire to -the college at Edinburgh, the road was in such a state that servants -were frequently sent forward with poles to sound the depths of the -mosses and bogs which lay in their way. The mail was regularly -dispatched between Edinburgh and London, on horseback, and went in the -course of five or six days." In the sixteenth century carts without -springs could not be taken into the country from London; it took Queen -Henrietta four days to traverse Watling Street to Dover. Of one of Queen -Elizabeth's journeys it is said: "It was marvelous for ease and -expedition, for such is the perfect evenness of the new highway that Her -Majesty left the coach only once, while the hinds and the folk of baser -sort lifted it on their poles!" A traveler in an English coach of 1663 -said: "This travel hath soe indisposed mee, yt I am resolved never to -ride up againe in ye coatch." - -Thus the widened trail or bridle-path, as it was commonly known in some -parts, was the universal predecessor of the highway. It needs to be -observed, however, that winter travel in regions where much snow fell -greatly influenced land travel. The buffalo and Indian did not travel -in the winter, but white men in early days found it perhaps easier to -make a journey on sleds in the snow than at any other time. In such -seasons the bridle-paths were, of course, largely followed, especially -in the forests; yet in the open, with the snow a foot and more in depth, -many short cuts were made along the zig-zag paths and in numerous -instances these short cuts became the regular routes thereafter for all -time. An interesting instance is found in the "Narrative of Andrew J. -Vieau, Sr.:" "This path between Green Bay [Wisconsin] and Milwaukee was -originally an Indian trail, and very crooked; but the whites would -straighten it by cutting across lots each winter with their jumpers -[rude boxes on runners], wearing bare streaks through the thin covering -[of snow], to be followed in the summer by foot and horseback travel -along the shortened path."[4] - -This form of traveling was, of course, unknown save only where snow fell -and remained upon the ground for a considerable time. Throughout New -York State travel on snow was common and in the central portion of the -state, where there was much wet ground in the olden time, it was easier -to move heavy freight in the winter than in summer when the soft ground -was treacherous. Even as late as the building of the Erie Canal in the -second and third decades of the nineteenth century--long after the -building of the Genesee Road--freight was hauled in the winter in -preference to summer. In the annual report of the comissioners of the -Erie Canal, dated January 25, 1819, we read that the roads were so -wretched between Utica and Syracuse in the summer season that -contractors who needed to lay up a supply of tools, provisions, etc., -for their men, at interior points, purchased them in the winter before -and sent the loads onward to their destinations in sleighs.[5] One of -the reasons given by the Erie Canal commissioners for delays and -increased expenses in the work on the canal in 1819, in their report -delivered to the legislature February 18, 1820, was that the absence of -snow in central New York in the winter of 1818-19 prevented the handling -of heavy freight on solid roads; "no hard snow path could be found."[6] -The soft roads of the summer time were useless so far as heavy loads of -lumber, stone, lime, and tools were concerned. No winter picture of -early America is so vivid as that presented by the eccentric Evans of -New Hampshire, who, dressed in his Esquimau suit, made a midwinter -pilgrimage throughout the country lying south of the Great Lakes from -Albany to Detroit in 1818.[7] His experiences in moving across the -Middle West with the blinding storms, the mountainous drifts of snow, -the great icy cascades, the hurrying rivers, buried out of sight in -their banks of ice and snow, and the far scattered little settlements -lost to the world, helps one realize what traveling in winter meant in -the days of the pioneer. - -The real work of opening roads in America began, of course, on the -bridle-paths in the Atlantic slope. In 1639 a measure was passed in the -Massachusetts Bay Colony reading: "Whereas the highways in this -jurisdiction have not been laid out with such conveniency for travellers -as were fit, nor as was intended by this court, but that in some places -they are felt too straight, and in other places travelers are forced to -go far about, it is therefore, ordered, that all highways shall be laid -out before the next general court, so as may be with most ease and -safety for travelers; and for this end every town shall choose two or -three men, who shall join with two or three of the next town, and these -shall have power to lay out the highways in each town where they may be -most convenient; and those which are so deputed shall have power to lay -out the highways where they may be most convenient, notwithstanding any -man's propriety, or any corne ground, so as it occasion not the pulling -down of any man's house, or laying open any garden or orchard; and in -common [public] grounds, or where the soil is wet or miry, they shall -lay out the ways the wider, as six, or eight, or ten rods, or more in -common grounds." With the establishment of the government in the -province of New York in 1664 the following regulation for road-making -was established, which also obtained in Pennsylvania until William -Penn's reign began: "In all public works for the safety and defence of -the government, or the necessary conveniencies of bridges, highways, and -common passengers, the governor or deputy governor and council shall -send warrents to any justice, and the justices to the constable of the -next town, or any other town within that jurisdiction, to send so many -laborers and artificers as the warrent shall direct, which the constable -and two others or more of the overseers shall forthwith execute, and the -constable and overseers shall have power to give such wages as they -shall judge the work to deserve, provided that no ordinary laborer shall -be compelled to work from home above one week together. No man shall be -compelled to do any public work or service unless the press -[impressment] be grounded upon some known law of this government, or an -act of the governor and council signifying the necessity thereof, in -both which cases a reasonable allowance shall be made." A later -amendment indicates the rudeness of these early roads: "The highways to -be cleared as followeth, viz., the way to be made clear of standing and -lying trees, at least ten feet broad; all stumps and shrubs to be cut -close by the ground. The trees marked yearly on both sides--sufficient -bridges to be made and kept over all marshy, swampy, and difficult dirty -places, and whatever else shall be thought more necessary about the -highways aforesaid." - -In Pennsylvania, under Penn, the grand jury laid out the roads, and the -courts appointed overseers and fence-viewers, but in 1692 the townships -were given the control of the roads. Eight years later the county roads -were put in the hands of the county justices, and king's highways in the -hands of the governor and his council. Each county was ordered to erect -railed bridges at its expense over rivers, and to appoint its own -overseers and fence-viewers. - -Even the slightest mention of these laws and regulations misrepresents -the exact situation. Up to the time of the Revolutionary War it can -almost be said that nothing had been done toward what we today know as -road-building. Many routes were cleared of "standing and lying trees" -and "stumps and shrubs" were cut "close by the ground"--but this only -widened the path of the Indian and was only a faint beginning in -road-building. The skiff, batteau, and horse attached to a sleigh or -sled in winter, were the only, common means of conveying freight or -passengers in the colonies at this period. We have spoken of the path -across the Alleghenies in 1750 as being but a winding trace; save for -the roughness of the territory traversed it was a fair road for its day, -seek where the traveler might. In this case, as in so many others, the -history of the postal service in the United States affords us most -accurate and reliable information concerning our economic development. -In the year mentioned, 1750, the mail between New York and Philadelphia -was carried only once a week in summer and twice a month in winter. -Forty years later there were only eighteen hundred odd miles of post -roads in the whole United States. At that time (1790) only five mails a -week passed between New York and Philadelphia. - -It may be said, loosely, that the widened trail became a road when -wheeled vehicles began to pass over it. Carts and wagons were common in -the Atlantic seaboard states as early and earlier than the Revolution. -It was at the close of that war that wagons began to cross the -Alleghenies into the Mississippi Basin. This first road was a road in -"the state of nature." Nothing had been done to it but clearing it of -trees and stumps. - -Yet what a tremendous piece of work was this. It is more or less -difficult for us to realize just how densely wooded a country this was -from the crest of the Alleghenies to the seaboard on the east, and from -the mountains to central Indiana and Kentucky on the west. The pioneers -fought their way westward through wood, like a bullet crushing through a -board. Every step was retarded by a live, a dying, or a dead branch. The -very trees, as if dreading the savage attack of the white man on the -splendid forests of the interior, held out their bony arms and fingers, -catching here a jacket and there a foot, in the attempt to stay the -invasion of their silent haunts. These forests were very heavy -overhead. The boughs were closely matted, in a life-and-death struggle -for light and air. The forest vines bound them yet more inextricably -together, until it was almost impossible to fell a tree with out first -severing the huge arms which were bound fast to its neighbors. This -dense overgrowth had an important influence over the pioneer traveler. -It made the space beneath dark; the gloom of a real forest is never -forgotten by the "tenderfoot" lumberman. The dense covering overhead -made the forests extremely hot in the dog days of summer; no one can -appreciate what "hot weather" means in a forest where the wind cannot -descend through the trees save those who know our oldest forests. What -made the forests hot in summer, on the other hand, tended to protect -them from winter winds in cold weather. Yet, as a rule, there was little -pioneer traveling in the Allegheny forests in winter. From May until -November came the months of heaviest traffic on the first widened trails -through these gloomy, heated forest aisles. - -It can be believed there was little tree-cutting on these first pioneer -roads. Save in the laurel regions of the Allegheny and Cumberland -Mountains, where the forest trees were supplanted by these smaller -growths, there was little undergrowth; the absence of sunlight -occasioned this, and rendered the old forest more easily traversed than -one would suppose after reading many accounts of pioneer life. The -principal interruption of travelers on the old trails was in the form of -fallen trees and dead wood which had been brought to the ground by the -storms. With the exception of the live trees which were blown over, -these forms of impediment to travel were not especially menacing; the -dead branches crumbled before an ax. The trees which were broken down or -uprooted by the winds, however, were obstructions difficult to remove, -and tended to make pioneer roads crooked, as often perhaps as standing -trees. We can form some practical notion of the dangerous nature of -falling trees by studying certain of the great improvements which were -early projected in these woods. The Allegheny Portage Railway over the -mountains of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, and the Erie Canal in -central New York, both offer illustrations to the point. The portage -track was sent through an unbroken, uninhabited forest wilderness from -Hollidaysburg to Johnstown in the twenties. In order to render the -inclines safe from falling trees and breaking branches, a swath through -the woods was cut one hundred and twenty feet wide.[8] The narrow -trellis of the inclines scaled the mountain in the center of this -avenue; wide as it was, a tree fifty feet long could have swept it away -like paper. The Erie Canal was to be forty feet in width; a clean sixty -foot aisle was opened through the forests before the digging could -begin. - -Of course nothing like this could be done for pioneer highways; when the -states began to appropriate money for state roads, then the pioneer -routes were straightened by cutting some trees. It was all the scattered -communities could do before this period to keep the falling trees and -branches from blocking the old roads. Travelers wound in and out on one -of the many tracks, stumbling, slipping, grinding on the roots, going -around great trees that had not been removed, and keeping to the high -ground when possible, for there the forest growth was less dense. - -The question immediately arises, What sort of vehicle could weather such -roads? First in the van came the great clumsy cart, having immensely -high and solid wooden wheels. These were obtained either by taking a -thin slice from the butt of the greatest log that could be found in good -condition, or by being built piecemeal by rude carpenters. These great -wheels would go safely wherever oxen could draw them, many of their hubs -being three feet from the ground. Thus the body of the cart would clear -any ordinary brook and river at any ford which horses or oxen could -cross. No rocks could severely injure such a massy vehicle, at the rate -it usually moved, and no mere rut could disturb its stolid dignity. Like -the oxen attached to it, the pioneer cart went on its lumbering way -despising everything but bogs, great tree boles and precipices. These -creaking carts could proceed, therefore, nearly on the ancient -bridle-path of the pack-horse age. On the greater routes westward the -introduction of wheeled vehicles necessitated some changes; now and then -the deep-worn passage-way was impassable, and detours were made which, -at a later day, became the main course. Here, where the widened trail -climbed a steeper "hog-back" than usual, the cart-drivers made a -roundabout road which was used in dry weather. There, where the old -trail wound about a marshy piece of ground in all weathers, the -cart-drivers would push on in a straight line during dry seasons. - -Thus the typical pioneer road even before the day of wagons was a -many-track road and should most frequently be called a route--a word we -have so frequently used in this series of monographs. Each of the few -great historic roads was a route which could have been turned into a -three, four, and five track course in very much the same way as railways -become double-tracked by uniting a vast number of side-tracks. The most -important reason for variation of routes was the wet and dry seasons; in -the wet season advantage had to be taken of every practicable altitude. -The Indian or foot traveler could easily gain the highest eminence at -hand; the pack-horse could reach many but not all; the "travail" and -cart could reach many, while the later wagon could climb only a few. In -dry weather the low ground offered the easiest and quickest route. As a -consequence every great route had what might almost be called its "wet" -and "dry" roadways. In one of the early laws quoted we have seen that in -wet or miry ground the roads should be laid out "six, eight, or ten rods -[wide]," though elsewhere ten or twelve feet was considered a fair width -for an early road. As a consequence, even before the day of wagons, the -old routes of travel were often very wide, especially in wet places; in -wet weather they were broader here than ever. But until the day of -wagons the track-beds were not so frequently ruined. Of this it is now -time to speak. - -By 1785 we may believe the great freight traffic by means of wagons had -fully begun across the Alleghenies at many points. It is doubtful if -anywhere else in the United States did "wagoning" and "wagoners" become -so common or do such a thriving trade as on three or four -trans-Allegheny routes between 1785 and 1850. The Atlantic Ocean and the -rivers had been the arteries of trade between the colonies from the -earliest times. The freight traffic by land in the seaboard states had -amounted to little save in local cases, compared with the great industry -of "freighting" which, about 1785, arose in Baltimore and Philadelphia -and concerned the then Central West. This study, like that of our postal -history, throws great light on the subject in hand. Road-building, in -the abstract, began at the centers of population and spread slowly with -the growth of population. For instance, in Revolutionary days -Philadelphia was, as it were, a hub and from it a number of important -roads, like spokes, struck out in all directions. Comparatively, these -were few in number and exceedingly poor, yet they were enough and -sufficiently easy to traverse to give Washington a deal of trouble in -trying to prevent the avaricious country people from treacherously -feeding the British invaders. - -These roads out from Philadelphia, for instance, were used by wagons -longer distances each year. Beginning back at the middle of the -eighteenth century it may be said that the wagon roads grew longer and -the pack-horse routes or bridle-paths grew shorter each year. The -freight was brought from the seaboard cities in wagons to the end of the -wagon roads and there transferred to the pack-saddles. Referring to this -era we have already quoted a passage in which it is said that five -hundred pack-horses have been seen at one time at Carlisle, -Pennsylvania. For a longer period than was perhaps true elsewhere, -Carlisle was the end of the wagon road westward. A dozen bridle-paths -converged here. Here all freight was transferred to the strings of -patient ponies. Loudon, Pennsylvania, was another peculiar borderland -depot later on. It will be remembered that when Richard Henderson and -party advanced to Kentucky in 1775 they were able to use wagons as far -as Captain Joseph Martin's "station" in Powell's Valley. At that point -all freight had to be transferred to the backs of ponies for the climb -over the Cumberlands. In the days of Marcus Whitman, who opened the -first road across the Rocky Mountains, Fort Laramie, Wyoming, was the -terminus of wagon travel in the far West. Thus pioneer roads unfolded, -as it were, joint by joint, the rapidity depending on the volume of -traffic, increase of population, and topography. - -[Illustration: OLD CONESTOGA FREIGHTER] - -The first improvement on these greater routes, after the necessary -widening, was to enable wagons to avoid high ground. Here and there -wagons pushed on beyond the established limit, and, finding the way not -more desperate than much of the preceding "road," had gone on and on, -until at last wagons came down the western slopes of the Alleghenies, -and wagon traffic began to be considered possible--much to the chagrin -of the cursing pack-horse men. No sooner was this fact accomplished than -some attention was paid to the road. The wagons could not go everywhere -the ponies or even the heavy carts had gone. They could not climb the -steep knolls and remain on the rocky ridges. The lower grounds were, -therefore, pursued and the wet grounds were made passable by -"corduroying"--laying logs closely together to form a solid roadbed. So -far as I can learn this work was done by everybody in particular and -nobody in general. Those who were in charge of wagons were, of course, -the most interested in keeping them from sinking out of sight in the -mud-holes. When possible, such places were skirted; when high or -impassable ground prevented this, the way was "corduroyed." - -We have spoken of the width of old-time bridle-paths; with the advent of -the heavy freighter these wide routes were doubled and trebled in width. -And, so long as the roadbeds remained in a "state of nature," the -heavier the wagon traffic, the wider the roads became. We have described -certain great tracks, like that of Braddock's Road, which can be -followed today even in the open by the lasting marks those plunging -freighters made in the soft ground. They suggest in their deep outline -what the old wagon roads must have been; yet it must be remembered that -only what we may call the main road is visible today--the innumerable -side-tracks being obliterated because not so deeply worn. In a number -of instances on Braddock's Road plain evidence remains of these -side-tracks. Judging then from this evidence, and from accounts which -have come down to us, the introduction of the freighter with its heavier -loads and narrower wheels turned the wide, deeply worn bridle-paths and -cart tracks into far wider and far deeper courses. The corduroy road had -a tendency to contract the route, but even here, where the ground was -softest, it became desperate traveling. Where one wagon had gone, -leaving great black ruts behind it, another wagon would pass with -greater difficulty leaving behind it yet deeper and yet more treacherous -tracks. Heavy rains would fill each cavity with water, making the road -nothing less than what in Illinois was known as a "sloo." The next -wagoner would, therefore, push his unwilling horses into a veritable -slough, perhaps having explored it with a pole to see if there was a -bottom to be found there. In some instances the bottoms "fell out," and -many a reckless driver has lost his load in pushing heedlessly into a -bottomless pit. In case a bottom could be found the driver pushes on; -if not, he finds a way about; if this is not possible he throws logs -into the hole and makes an artificial bottom over which he proceeds. - -We can hardly imagine what it meant to get stalled on one of the old -"hog wallow" roads on the frontier. True, many of our country roads -today offer bogs quite as wide and deep as any ever known in western -Virginia or Pennsylvania; and it is equally true that roads were but -little better in the pioneer era on the outskirts of Philadelphia and -Baltimore than far away in the mountains. It remains yet for the present -writer to find a sufficiently barbarous incident to parallel one which -occurred on the Old York (New York) Road just out of Philadelphia, in -which half a horse's head was pulled off in attempting to haul a wagon -from a hole in the road. "Jonathan Tyson, a farmer of 68 years of age -[in 1844], of Abington, saw, at 16 years of age, much difficulty in -going to the city [Philadelphia on York Road]: a dreadful mire of -blackish mud rested near the present Rising Sun village.... He saw there -the team of Mr. Nickum, of Chestnut hill, stalled; and in endeavoring -to draw out the forehorse with an iron chain to his head, it slipped and -tore off the lower jaw, and the horse died on the spot. There was a very -bad piece of road nearer to the city, along the front of the Norris -estate. It was frequent to see there horses struggling in mire to their -knees. Mr. Tyson has seen thirteen lime wagons at a time stopped on the -York road, near Logan's hill, to give one another assistance to draw -through the mire; and the drivers could be seen with their trowsers -rolled up, and joining team to team to draw out; at other times they set -up a stake in the middle of the road to warn off wagons from the -quicksand pits. Sometimes they tore down fences, and made new roads -through the fields."[9] - -If such was the case almost within the city limits of Philadelphia, it -is not difficult to realize what must have been the conditions which -obtained far out on the continental routes. It became a serious problem -to get stalled in the mountains late in the day; assistance was not -always at hand--indeed the settlements were many miles apart in the -early days. Many a driver, however, has been compelled to wade in, -unhitch his horses, and spend the night by the bog into which his -freight was settling lower and lower each hour. Fortunate he was if -early day brought assistance. Sometimes it was necessary to unload -wholly or in part, before a heavy wagon, once fairly "set," could be -hauled out. Around such treacherous places ran a vast number of routes -some of which were as dangerous--because used once too often--as the -central track. In some places detours of miles in length could be made. -A pilot was needed by every inexperienced person, and many blundering -wiseacres lost their entire stock of worldly possessions in the old bogs -and "sloos" and swamps of the "West." - -A town in Indiana was "very appropriately" named Mudholes, a name that -would have been the most common in the country a century ago if only -descriptive names had been allowed.[10] The condition of pioneer roads -did, undoubtedly, influence the beginnings of towns and cities. On the -longer routes it will be found that the steep hills almost invariably -became the sites of villages because of physical conditions. -"Long-a-coming," a New Jersey village, bore a very appropriate name.[11] - -The girls of Sussex, England, were said to be exceedingly long-limbed, -and a facetious wag affirmed the reason to be that the Sussex mud was so -deep and sticky that in drawing out the foot "by the strength of the -ancle" the muscles, and then the bones, of the leg were lengthened! In -1708 when Prince George of Denmark went to meet Charles the Seventh of -Spain traveling by coach, he traveled at the rate of nine miles in six -hours--a tribute to the strength of Sussex mud. Charles Augustus Murray, -in his _Travels in North America_, leaves us a humorous account of the -mud-holes in the road from the Potomac to Fredericksburg, Maryland, and -his experience upon it: - -"On the 27th of March I quitted Washington, to make a short tour in the -districts of Virginia adjacent to the James River; comprising Richmond, -the present capital, Williamsburgh, the former seat of colonial -government, Norfolk, and other towns. - -"The first part of the journey is by steam-boat, descending the Potomac -about sixty miles. The banks of this river, after passing Mount Vernon, -are uninteresting, and I did not regret the speed of the Champion, which -performed that distance in somewhat less than five hours; but this rate -of travelling was amply neutralized by the movement of the stage which -conveyed me from the landing-place to Fredericsburgh. I was informed -that the distance was only twelve miles, and I was weak enough (in spite -of my previous experience) to imagine that two hours would bring me -thither, especially as the stage was drawn by six good nags, and driven -by a lively cheerful fellow; but the road bade defiance to all these -advantages--it was, indeed, such as to compel me to laugh out-right, -notwithstanding the constant and severe bumping to which it subjected -both the intellectual and sedentary parts of my person. - -"I had before tasted the sweets of mud-holes, huge stones, and remnants -of pine-trees standing and cut down; but here was something new, namely, -a bed of reddish-coloured clay, from one to two feet deep, so adhesive -that the wheels were at times literally not visible in any one spot from -the box to the tire, and the poor horses' feet sounded, when they drew -them out (as a fellow-traveller observed), like the report of a pistol. -I am sorry that I was not sufficiently acquainted with chemistry or -mineralogy to analyze that wonderful clay and state its constituent -parts; but if I were now called upon to give a receipt for a mess most -nearly resembling it, I would write, 'Recipe--(nay, I must write the -ingredients in English, for fear of taxing my Latin learning too -severely)-- - - Ordinary clay 1 lb. - Do. Pitch 1 lb. - Bird-lime 6 oz. - Putty 6 oz. - Glue 1 lb. - Red lead, or _colouring_ matter 6 oz. - - Fiat haustus--aegrot. terq. quaterq. quatiend.' - -"Whether the foregoing, with a proper admixture of hills, holes, stumps, -and rocks, made a satisfactory _draught_ or not, I will refer to the -unfortunate team--I, alas! can answer for the effectual application of -the second part of the prescription, according to the Joe Miller version -of 'When taken, to be well shaken!' - -"I arrived, however, without accident or serious bodily injury, at -Fredericsburgh, having been _only_ three hours and a half in getting -over the said twelve miles; and, in justice to the driver, I must say -that I very much doubt whether any crack London whip could have driven -those horses over that ground in the same time: there is not a sound -that can emanate from human lungs, nor an argument of persuasion that -can touch the feelings of a horse, that he did not employ, with a -perseverance and success which commanded my admiration." - -Fancy these wild, rough routes which, combined, often covered half an -acre, and sometimes spread out to a mile in total width, in freezing -weather when every hub and tuft was as solid as ice. How many an anxious -wagoner has pushed his horses to the bitter edge of exhaustion to gain -his destination ere a freeze would stall him as completely as if his -wagon-bed lay on the surface of a "quicksand pit." A heavy load could -not be sent over a frozen pioneer road without wrecking the vehicle. Yet -in some parts the freight traffic had to go on in the winter, as the -hauling of cotton to market in the southern states. Such was the -frightful condition of the old roads that four and five yoke of oxen -conveyed only a ton of cotton so slowly that motion was almost -imperceptible; and in the winter and spring, it has been said, with -perhaps some tinge of truthfulness, that one could walk on dead oxen -from Jackson to Vicksburg. The Bull-skin Road of pioneer days leading -from the Pickaway Plains in Ohio to Detroit was so named from the large -number of cattle which died on the long, rough route, their hides, to -exaggerate again, lining the way. - -In our study of the Ohio River as a highway it was possible to emphasize -the fact that the evolution of river craft indicated with great -significance the evolution of social conditions in the region under -review; the keel-boat meant more than canoe or pirogue, the barge or -flat-boat more than the keel-boat, the brig and schooner more than the -barge, and the steamboat far more than all preceding species. We -affirmed that the change of craft on our rivers was more rapid than on -land, because of the earlier adaptation of steam to vessels than to -vehicles. But it is in point here to observe that, slow as were the -changes on land, they were equally significant. The day of the freighter -and the corduroy road was a brighter day for the expanding nation than -that of the pack-horse and the bridle-path. The cost of shipping freight -by pack-horses was tremendous. In 1794, during the Whiskey Insurrection -in western Pennsylvania, the cost of shipping goods to Pittsburg by -wagon ranged from five to ten dollars per hundred pounds; salt sold for -five dollars a bushel, and iron and steel from fifteen to twenty cents -per pound in Pittsburg. What must have been the price when one horse -carried only from one hundred and fifty to two hundred and fifty pounds? -The freighter represented a growing population and the growing needs of -the new empire in the West. - -The advent of the stagecoach marked a new era as much in advance of the -old as was the day of the steamboat in advance of that of the barge and -brig of early days. - -The social disturbance caused by the introduction of coaches on the -pioneer roads of America gives us a glimpse of road conditions at this -distant day to be gained no other way. A score of local histories give -incidents showing the anger of those who had established the more -important pack-horse lines across the continent at the coming of the -stage. Coaches were overturned and passengers were maltreated; horses -were injured, drivers were chastised and personal property ruined. Even -while the Cumberland Road was being built the early coaches were in -danger of assault by the workmen building the road, incited, no doubt, -by the angry pack-horse men whose profession had been eclipsed. It is -interesting in this connection to look again back to the mother-country -and note the unrest which was occasioned by the introduction of -stagecoaches on the bridle-paths of England. Early coaching there was -described as destructive to trade, prejudicial to landed interests, -destructive to the breed of horses,[11*] and as an interference with -public resources. It was urged that travelers in coaches got listless, -"not being able to endure frost, snow or rain, or to lodge in the -fields!" Riding in coaches injured trade since "most gentlemen, before -they travelled in coaches, used to ride with swords, belts, pistols, -holsters, portmanteaus, and hat-cases, which, in these coaches, they -have little or no occasion for: for, when they rode on horseback, they -rode in one suit and carried another to wear when they came to their -journey's end, or lay by the way; but in coaches a silk suit and an -Indian gown, with a sash, silk stockings, and beaver hats, men ride in -and carry no other with them, because they escape the wet and dirt, -which on horseback they cannot avoid; whereas in two or three journeys -on horseback, these clothes and hats were wont to be spoiled; which -done, they were forced to have new very often, and that increased the -consumption of the manufacturers; which travelling in coaches doth in no -way do." If the pack-horse man's side of the question was not advocated -with equally marvelous arguments in America we can be sure there was no -lack of debate on the question whether the stagecoach was a sign of -advancement or of deterioration. For instance, the mails could not be -carried so rapidly by coach as by a horseman; and when messages were of -importance in later days they were always sent by an express rider. The -advent of the wagon and coach promised to throw hundreds of men out of -employment. Business was vastly facilitated when the freighter and coach -entered the field, but fewer "hands" were necessary. Again, the horses -which formerly carried the freight of America on their backs were not of -proper build and strength to draw heavy loads on either coach or wagon. -They were ponies; they could carry a few score pounds with great skill -over blind and ragged paths, but they could not draw the heavy wagons. -Accordingly hundreds of owners of pack-horses were doomed to see an -alarming deterioration in the value of their property when great, fine -coach horses were shipped from distant parts to carry the freight and -passenger loads of the stagecoach day. - -The change in form of American vehicles was small but their numbers -increased within a few years prodigiously. Nominally this era must be -termed that of the macadamized road, or roads made of layers of broken -stone like the Cumberland Road. These roads were wider than any single -track of any of the routes they followed, though thirty feet was the -average maximum breadth. To a greater degree than would be surmised, the -courses of the old roads were followed. It has been said that the -Cumberland Road, though paralleling Braddock's Road from Cumberland to -Laurel Hill, was not built on its bed more than a mile in the aggregate. -After studying the ground I believe this is more or less incorrect; for -what we should call Braddock's route was composed of many roads and -tracks. One of these was a central road; the Cumberland Road may have -been built on the bed of this central track only a short distance, but -on one of the almost innumerable side-tracks, detours, and cut-offs, for -many miles. At Great Meadows, for instance, it would seem that the -Cumberland Road was separated from Braddock's by the width of the -valley; yet as you move westward you cross the central track of -Braddock's Road just before reaching Braddock's Grave. May not an old -route have led from Great Meadows thither on the same hillside where we -find the Cumberland Road today? The crookedness of these first stable -roads, like many of the older streets in our cities,[12] indicates that -the old corduroy road served in part as a guide for the later -road-makers. It is a common thing in the mountains, either on the -Cumberland or Pennsylvania state roads, to hear people say that had the -older routes been even more strictly adhered to better grades would -have been the result. A remarkable and truthful instance of this (for -there cannot, in truth, be many) is the splendid way Braddock's old road -sweeps to the top of Laurel Hill by gaining that strategic ridge which -divides the heads of certain branches of the Youghiogheny on the one -hand and Cheat River on the other near Washington's Rock. The Cumberland -Road in the valley gains the same height (Laurel Hill) by a longer and -far more difficult route. - -The stagecoach heralded the new age of road-building, but these new -macadamized roads were few and far between; many roadways were widened -and graded by states or counties, but they remained dirt roads; a few -plank roads were built. The vast number of roads of better grade were -built by one of the host of road and turnpike companies which sprang up -in the first half of the nineteenth century. Specific mention of certain -of these will be made later. - -Confining our view here to general conditions, we now see the Indian -trail at its broadest. While the roads, in number, kept up with the -vast increase of population, in quality they remained, as a rule, -unchanged. Traveling by stage, except on the half dozen good roads then -in existence, was, in 1825, far more uncomfortable than on the -bridle-path on horseback half a century previous. It would be the same -today if we could find a vehicle as inconvenient as an old-time -stagecoach. In our "Experiences of Travelers" we shall give pictures of -actual life on these pioneer roads of early days. A glimpse or two at -these roads will not be out of place here. - -The route from Philadelphia to Baltimore is thus described by the -_American Annual Register_ for 1796: "The roads from Philadelphia to -Baltimore exhibit, for the greater part of the way, an aspect of savage -desolation. Chasms to the depth of six, eight, or ten feet occur at -numerous intervals. A stagecoach which left Philadelphia on the 5th of -February, 1796, took five days to go to Baltimore. [Twenty miles a day]. -The weather for the first four days was good. The roads are in a fearful -condition. Coaches are overturned, passengers killed, and horses -destroyed by the overwork put upon them. In winter sometimes no stage -sets out for two weeks." Little wonder that in 1800, when President and -Mrs. Adams tried to get to Washington from Baltimore, they got lost in -the Maryland woods! Harriet Martineau, with her usual cleverness, thus -touches upon our early roads: "... corduroy roads appear to have made a -deep impression on the imaginations of the English, who seem to suppose -that American roads are all corduroy. I can assure them that there is a -large variety in American roads. There are the excellent limestone -roads ... from Nashville, Tennessee, and some like them in Kentucky.... -There is quite another sort of limestone road in Virginia, in traversing -which the stage is dragged up from shelf [catch-water] to shelf, some of -the shelves sloping so as to throw the passengers on one another, on -either side alternately. Then there are the rich mud roads of Ohio, -through whose deep red sloughs the stage goes slowly sousing after rain, -and gently upsetting when the rut on one or the other side proves to be -of a greater depth than was anticipated. Then there are the sandy roads -of the pine barrens ... the ridge road, running parallel with a part of -Lake Ontario.... Lastly there is the corduroy road, happily of rare -occurrence, where, if the driver is merciful to his passengers, he -drives them so as to give them the association of being on the way to a -funeral, their involuntary sobs on each jolt helping the resemblance; -or, if he be in a hurry, he shakes them like pills in a pill-box. I was -never upset in a stage but once ...; and the worse the roads were, the -more I was amused at the variety of devices by which we got on, through -difficulties which appeared insurmountable, and the more I was edified -at the gentleness with which our drivers treated female fears and -fretfulness."[13] - -Perhaps it was of the Virginian roads here mentioned that Thomas Moore -wrote: - - "Dear George! though every bone is aching, - After the shaking - I've had this week, over ruts and ridges, - And bridges, - Made of a few uneasy planks, - In open ranks - Over rivers of mud, whose names alone - Would make the knees of stoutest man knock."[14] - -David Stevenson, an English civil engineer, leaves this record of a -corduroy road from Lake Erie to Pittsburg: "On the road leading from -Pittsburg on the Ohio to the town of Erie on the lake of that name, I -saw all the varieties of forest road-making in great perfection. -Sometimes our way lay for miles through extensive marshes, which we -crossed by corduroy roads, ...; at others the coach stuck fast in the -mud, from which it could be extricated only by the combined efforts of -the coachman and passengers; and at one place we travelled for upwards -of a quarter of a mile through a forest flooded with water, which stood -to the height of several feet on many of the trees, and occasionally -covered the naves of the coach-wheels. The distance of the route from -Pittsburg to Erie is 128 miles, which was accomplished in forty-six -hours ... although the conveyance ... carried the mail, and stopped only -for breakfast, dinner, and tea, but there was considerable delay caused -by the coach being once upset and several times mired."[15] - -"The horrible corduroy roads again made their appearance," records -Captain Basil Hall, "in a more formidable shape, by the addition of -deep, inky holes, which almost swallowed up the fore wheels of the -wagon and bathed its hinder axle-tree. The jogging and plunging to -which we were now exposed, and occasionally the bang when the vehicle -reached the bottom of one of these abysses, were so new and remarkable -that we tried to make a good joke of them.... I shall not compare this -evening's drive to trotting up or down a pair of stairs, for, in that -case, there would be some kind of regularity in the development of the -bumps, but with us there was no wavering, no pause, and when we least -expected a jolt, down we went, smack! dash! crash! forging, like a ship -in a head-sea, right into a hole half a yard deep. At other times, when -an ominous break in the road seemed to indicate the coming mischief, and -we clung, grinning like grim death, to the railing at the sides of the -wagon, expecting a concussion which in the next instant was to dislocate -half the joints in our bodies, down we sank into a bed of mud, as softly -as if the bottom and sides had been padded for our express -accommodation." - - -The first and most interesting macadamized road in the United States -was the old Lancaster Turnpike, running from Philadelphia to Lancaster, -Pennsylvania. Its position among American roads is such that it deserves -more than a mere mention. It has had several historians, as it well -deserves, to whose accounts we are largely indebted for much of our -information.[16] - -The charter name of this road was "The Philadelphia and Lancaster -Turnpike Road Company;" it was granted April 9, 1792, and the work of -building immediately began. The road was completed in 1794 at a cost of -four hundred and sixty-five thousand dollars. When the subscription -books were opened there was a tremendous rush to take the stock. The -money raised for constructing and equipping this ancient highway with -toll houses and bridges, as well as grading and macadamizing it, was by -this sale of stock. In the Lancaster _Journal_ of Friday, February 5, -1796, the following notice appeared: - -"That agreeable to a by-law of stockholders, subscriptions will be -opened at the Company's office in Philadelphia on Wednesday, the tenth -of February next, for one hundred additional shares of capital stock in -said company. The sum to be demanded for each share will be $300, with -interest at six per cent. on the different instalments from the time -they are severally called for, to be paid by original stockholders; one -hundred dollars thereof to be paid at time of subscribing, and the -remainder in three equal payments, at 30, 60 and 90 days, no person to -be admitted to subscribe more than one share on the same day. - - By order of the Board. - WILLIAM GOVETT, - Secretary." - -"When location was fully determined upon," writes Mr. Witmer, "as you -will observe, today, a more direct line could scarcely have been -selected. Many of the curves which are found at the present time did not -exist at that day, for it has been crowded and twisted by various -improvements along its borders so that the original constructors are -not responsible. So straight, indeed, was it from initial to terminal -point that it was remarked by one of the engineers of the state -railroad, constructed in 1834 (and now known as the Pennsylvania -Railroad), that it was with the greatest difficulty that they kept their -line off of the turnpike, and the subsequent experiences of the -engineers of the same company verify the fact, as you will see. Today -there is a tendency, wherever the line is straightened, to draw nearer -to this old highway, paralleling it in many places for quite a distance, -and as it approaches the city of Philadelphia, in one or two instances -they have occupied the old road bed entirely, quietly crowding its old -rival to a side, and crossing and recrossing it in many places. - -"You will often wonder as you pass over this highway, remembering the -often-stated fact by some ancient wagoner or stage-driver (who today is -scarcely to be found, most of them having thrown down the reins and put -up for the night), that at that time there were almost continuous lines -of Conestoga wagons, with their feed troughs suspended at the rear and -the tar can swinging underneath, toiling up the long hills (for you will -observe there was very little grading done when that roadway was -constructed), and you wonder how it was possible to accommodate so much -traffic as there was, in addition to stagecoaches and private -conveyances, winding in and out among these long lines of wagons. But -you must bear in mind that the roadway was very different then from what -it is at the present time. - -"The narrow, macadamized surface, with its long grassy slope (the -delight of the tramp and itinerant merchant, especially when a -neighboring tree casts a cooling shadow over its surface), which same -slope becomes a menace to belated and unfamiliar travelers on a dark -night, threatening them with an overturn into what of more recent times -is known as the Summer road, did not exist at that time, but the road -had a regular slope from side ditch to center, as all good roads should -have, and conveyances could pass anywhere from side to side. The macadam -was carefully broken and no stone was allowed to be placed on the road -that would not pass through a two-inch ring. A test was made which can -be seen today about six miles east of Lancaster, where the roadway was -regularly paved for a distance of one hundred feet from side to side, -with a view of constructing the entire line in that way. But it proved -too expensive, and was abandoned. Day, in his history, published in -1843,[17] makes mention of the whole roadway having been so constructed, -but I think that must have been an error, as this is the only point -where there is any appearance of this having been attempted, and can be -seen at the present time when the upper surface has been worn off by the -passing and repassing over it." - -The placing of tollgates on the Lancaster Pike is thus announced in the -Lancaster _Journal_, previously mentioned, where the following notice -appears: - -"The public are hereby informed that the President and Managers of the -Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike Road having perfected the very -arduous and important work entrusted by the stockholders to their -direction, have established toll gates at the following places on said -road, and have appointed a toll gatherer at each gate, and that the -rates of toll to be collected at the several gates are by resolution of -the Board and agreeable to Act of Assembly fixed and established as -below. The total distance from Lancaster to Philadelphia is 62 miles. - - Gate No. 1--2 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 3 miles - Gate No. 2--5 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 5 miles - Gate No. 3--10 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 7 miles - Gate No. 4--20 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 10 miles - Gate No. 5--29-1/2 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 10 miles - Gate No. 6--40 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 10 miles - Gate No. 7--49-1/2 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 10 miles - Gate No. 8--58-1/8 miles W from Schuylkill, collect 5 miles - Gate No. 9--Witmer's Bridge, collect 61 miles." - -There is also in the same journal, bearing date January 22, 1796, the -following notice: - -"Sec. 13. And be it further enacted, by authority of aforesaid, that no -wagon or other carriage with wheels the breadth of whose wheels shall -not be four inches, shall be driven along said road between the first -day of December and the first day of May following in any year or years, -with a greater weight thereon than two and a half tons, or with more -than three tons during the rest of the year; that no such carriage, the -breadth of whose wheels shall not be seven inches, or being six inches -or more shall roll at least ten inches, shall be drawn along said road -between the said day of December and May with more than five tons, or -with more than five and a half tons during the rest of the year; that no -carriage or cart with two wheels, the breadth of whose wheels shall not -be four inches, shall be drawn along said road with a greater weight -thereon than one and a quarter tons between the said first days of -December and May, or with more than one and a half tons during the rest -of the year; no such carriage, whose wheels shall be of the breadth of -seven inches shall be driven along the said road with more than two and -one half tons between the first days of December and May, or more than -three tons during the rest of the year; that no such carriage whose -wheels shall not be ten inches in width shall be drawn along the said -road between the first days of December and May with more than three -and a half tons, or with more than four tons the rest of the year; that -no cart, wagon or carriage of burden whatever, whose wheels shall not be -the breadth of nine inches at least, shall be drawn or pass in or over -the said road or any part thereof with more than six horses, nor shall -more than eight horses be attached to any carriage whatsoever used on -said road, and if any wagon or other carriage shall be drawn along said -road by a greater number of horses or with a greater weight than is -hereby permitted, one of the horses attached thereto shall be forfeited -to the use of said company, to be seized and taken by any of their -officers or servants, who shall have the privilege to choose which of -the said horses they may think proper, excepting the shaft or wheel -horse or horses, provided always that it shall and may be lawful for -said company by their by-laws to alter any and all of the regulations -here contained respecting burdens or carriages to be drawn over the said -road and substituting other regulations, if on experience such -alterations should be found conducive of public good." - -There were regular warehouses or freight stations in the various towns -through which the Lancaster Pike passed, Mr. Witmer leaves record, where -experienced loaders or packers were to be found who attended to filling -these great curving wagons, which were elevated at each end and -depressed in the centre; and it was quite an art to be able to so pack -them with the various kinds of merchandise that they would carry safely, -and at the same time to economize all the room necessary; and when fully -loaded and ready for the journey it was no unusual case for the driver -to be appealed to by some one who wished to follow Horace Greeley's -advice and "go west," for permission to accompany him and earn a seat on -the load, as well as share his mattress on the barroom floor at night by -tending the lock or brake. Mr. Witmer was told by one of the largest and -wealthiest iron masters of Pittsburg that his first advent to the Smoky -City was on a load of salt in that capacity. - -"In regard to the freight or transportation companies," continues the -annalist, "the Line Wagon Company was the most prominent. Stationed -along this highway at designated points were drivers and horses, and it -was their duty to be ready as soon as a wagon was delivered at the -beginning of their section to use all despatch in forwarding it to the -next one, thereby losing no time required to rest horses and driver, -which would be required when the same driver and horses took charge of -it all the way through. But, like many similar schemes, what appeared -practical in theory did not work well in practice. Soon the wagons were -neglected, each section caring only to deliver it to the one succeeding, -caring little as to its condition, and soon the roadside was encumbered -with wrecks and breakdowns and the driver and horses passed to and fro -without any wagon or freight from terminal points of their sections, -leaving the wagons and freight to be cared for by others more anxious -for its removal than those directly in charge. So it was deemed best to -return to the old system of making each driver responsible for his own -wagon and outfit. - -"A wagoner, next to a stagecoach-driver, was a man of immense -importance, and they were inclined to be clannish. They would not -hesitate to unite against landlord, stage-driver or coachman who might -cross their path, as in a case when a wedding party was on its way to -Philadelphia, which consisted of several gigs. These were two-wheeled -conveyances, very similar to our road-carts of the present day, except -that they were much higher and had large loop springs in the rear just -back of the seat; they were the fashionable conveyance of that day. When -one of the gentlemen drivers, the foremost one (possibly the groom), was -paying more attention to his fair companion than his horses, he drove -against the leaders of one of the numerous wagons that were passing on -in the same direction. It was an unpardonable offense and nothing short -of an encounter in the stable yard or in front of the hotel could atone -for such a breach of highway ethics. At a point where the party stopped -to rest before continuing their journey the wagoners overtook them and -they immediately called on the gentleman for redress. But seeing a -friend in the party they claimed they would excuse the culprit on his -friend's account; the offending party would not have it so, and said no -friend of his should excuse him from getting a beating if he deserved -it, and I have no doubt he prided himself on his muscular abilities -also. However it was peaceably arranged and each pursued his way without -any blood being shed or bones broken. That was one of the many similar -occurrences which happened daily, many not ending so harmlessly. - -"The stage lines were not only the means of conveying the mails and -passengers, but of also disseminating the news of great events along the -line as they passed. The writer remembers hearing it stated that the -stage came through from Philadelphia with a wide band of white muslin -bound around the top, and in large letters was the announcement that -peace had been declared, which was the closing of the second war with -Great Britain, known as the War of 1812. What rejoicing it caused along -the way as it passed!" - -[Illustration: EARLIEST STYLE OF LOG TAVERN] - -The taverns of this old turnpike were typical. Of them Mr. Moore writes: - -"Independent of the heavy freighting, numerous stage lines were -organized for carrying passengers. As a result of this immense traffic, -hotels sprung up all along the road, where relays of horses were kept, -and where passengers were supplied with meals. Here, too, the teamsters -found lodging and their animals were housed and cared for over night. -The names of these hotels were characteristic of the times. Many were -called after men who had borne conspicuous parts in the Revolutionary -War that had just closed--such as Washington, Warren, Lafayette, and -Wayne, while others represented the White and Black Horse, the Lion, -Swan, Cross Keys, Ship, etc. They became favorite resorts for citizens -of their respective neighborhoods, who wished at times to escape from -the drudge and ennui of their rural homes and gaze upon the world as -represented by the dashing stages and long lines of Conestoga wagons. -Here neighbor met neighbor--it was the little sphere in which they all -moved, lived and had their being. They sipped their whisky toddies -together, which were dispensed at the rate of three cents a single -glass, or for a finer quality, five for a Spanish quarter, with the -landlord in, was asked; smoked cigars that were retailed four for a -cent--discussed their home affairs, including politics, religion and -other questions of the day, and came just as near settling them, as the -present generation of men, that are filling their places, required large -supplies and made convenient home markets for the sale of butter, eggs, -and whatever else the farmers had to dispose of." - -In our history of the Cumberland Road the difference between a -wagonhouse and a tavern was emphasized. Mr. Witmer gives an incident on -the Lancaster Turnpike which presents vividly the social position of -these two houses of entertainment: "It was considered a lasting disgrace -for one of the stage taverns to entertain a wagoner and it was sure to -lose the patronage of the better class of travel, should this become -known. The following instance will show how carefully the line was -drawn. In the writer's native village, about ten miles east of this city -[Lancaster], when the traffic was unusually heavy and all the wagon -taverns were full, a wagoner applied to the proprietor of the stage -hotel for shelter and refreshment, and after a great deal of -consideration on his part and persuasion on the part of the wagoner he -consented, provided the guest would take his departure early in the -morning, before there was any likelihood of any aristocratic arrivals, -or the time for the stage to arrive at this point. As soon as he had -taken his departure the hostlers and stable boys were put to work to -clean up every vestige of straw or litter in front of the hotel that -would be an indication of having entertained a wagoner over night!" - -The later history of the turnpike has been sketched by Mr. Moore as -follows: - -"The turnpike company had enjoyed an uninterrupted era of prosperity for -more than twenty-five years. During this time the dividends paid had -been liberal--sometimes, it is said, exceeding fifteen per cent of the -capital invested. But at the end of that time the parasite that destroys -was gradually being developed. Another, and altogether new system of -transportation had been invented--a railroad--and which had already -achieved partial success in some places in Europe. It was about the -year 1820 that this new method of transportation began to claim the -serious attention of the progressive business men throughout the state. -The feeling that some better system than the one in use must be found -was fed and intensified by the fact that New York State was then -constructing a canal from Albany to the lakes; that when completed it -would give the business men of New York City an unbroken water route to -the west.... - -"With the completion of the entire Pennsylvania canal system to -Pittsburg, in 1834, the occupation of the famous old Conestoga teams was -gone.[18] The same may also be said of the numerous lines of the stages -that daily wended their way over the turnpike. The changes wrought were -almost magical. Everyone who rode patronized the cars; and the freight -was also forwarded by rail. The farmers, however, were not ruined as -they had maintained they would be. Their horses, as well as drivers, -were at once taken into the railway service and employed in drawing cars -from one place to another. It was simply a change of vocation, and there -still remained a market for grain, hay, straw and other produce of the -farm. - -"The loss sustained by the holders of turnpike stock, however, was -immeasurable. In a comparative sense, travel over the turnpike road was -suspended. Receipts from tolls became very light and the dividends, when -paid, were not only quite diminutive, but very far between. - -"The officers of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company have always been -noted for their foresight, as well as shrewdness in protecting the -business interests of their organization--and none have given more -substantial evidence of these traits than its present chief officer, Mr. -Alexander Cassatt. In the year 1876 the horse cars had been extended as -far west as the Centennial buildings and it became apparent in a year or -two thereafter that they might be still further extended over the -turnpike in the direction of Paoli and thus become an annoying -competitor for the local travel, which had been carefully nurtured and -built up by the efforts of the railroad company. Under the leadership of -Mr. Cassatt a company was organized to purchase the road. When all the -preliminaries had been arranged a meeting of the subscribers to the -purchasing fund was held on the twentieth day of April, 1880. The -turnpike was purchased from Fifty-second Street to Paoli, about -seventeen miles, for the sum of twenty thousand dollars. In the -following June a charter was secured for the 'Lancaster Avenue -Improvement Company,' and Mr. Cassatt was chosen president. The horse -railroad was thus shut off from a further extension over the old -turnpike. The new purchasers rebuilt the entire seventeen miles and -there is today probably no better macadam road in the United States, nor -one more scrupulously maintained than by 'The Lancaster Avenue -Improvement Company.' Some parts of the turnpike road finally became so -much out of repair that the traveling public refused to longer pay the -tolls demanded. This was the case on that portion of the road lying -between Paoli and Exton, a distance of some eight and a half miles. It -traversed parts of the townships of Willistown and East and West -Whiteland, in Chester County and upon notice of abandonment being served -in 1880 upon the supervisors of these townships, those officials assumed -the future care of the road. The turnpike was also abandoned from the -borough of Coatesville to the Lancaster County line, a distance of about -eight and one-half miles. This left only that portion of the turnpike -lying between Exton station and the borough of Coatesville, a distance -of some ten miles, under control of the old company, and upon which -tollgates were maintained. The road was in a wretched repair and many -persons driving over it refused to pay when tolls were demanded. The -company, however, continued to employ collectors and gather shekels from -those who were willing to pay and suffering those to pass who refused. - -"Thus the old company worried along and maintained its organization -until 1899, when the 'Philadelphia and West Chester Traction Company,' -made its appearance. This company thought it saw an opportunity to -extend the railroad west over the turnpike at least as far as -Downingtown, and possibly as far as the borough of Coatesville. Terms -were finally agreed upon with the president of the Turnpike Company, and -all the rights, titles and interests in the road then held by the -original Turnpike Company, and which embraced that portion lying between -Exton and the borough of Coatesville, were transferred to Mr. A. M. -Taylor, as trustee, for ten dollars per share. The original issue was -twelve hundred shares. It was estimated that at least two hundred shares -would not materialize, being either lost or kept as souvenirs. The -length of the road secured was about ten miles. The disposition of the -old road may be enumerated as follows: - -SOLD - - To Hestonville Railroad 3 $10,000 - To Lancaster and Williamstown Turnpike Company 15 10,000 - To Lancaster Avenue Improvement Company 17 20,000 - To A. M. Taylor, trustee (estimated) 10 10,000 - -- ------ - Total miles sold 45 - Total purchase money received $50,000 - -ABANDONED - - Paoli to Exton 8-1/2 - Coatesville to Lancaster Company line 8-1/2 - ------ - Total miles abandoned 17 - -"The distance from Coatesville to Philadelphia, via Whitford, a station -on the Pennsylvania Railroad ten miles east of Coatesville, thence to -West Chester and over the electric road, is somewhat less than by the -Pennsylvania Railroad. Immediately after the purchase, Mr. Taylor -announced that it was the intention of his company to extend their road -to Downingtown, and, possibly, to Coatesville. But a charter for a -trolley road does not carry with it the right of eminent domain. Upon -investigation, Mr. Taylor discovered that the Pennsylvania Railroad -Company owned property on both sides of the purchased turnpike, and that -without the consent of that organization a trolley road could not be -laid over the turnpike. He further discovered that at a point west of -Downingtown the railroad company, in connection with one of its -employees, owned a strip of land extending from the Valley Hill on the -north to the Valley Hill on the south. The proposed extension of the -trolley road, therefore, had to be abandoned. - -"As the turnpike road could not be used by the new purchasers for the -purposes intended, it was a useless and annoying piece of property in -their hands. A petition has already [1901] been filed in the Court of -Quarter Sessions of Chester County looking toward having the road -condemned. Judge Hemphill has appointed jurors to view the said turnpike -road and fix the damages that may be due the present owners. Whatever -damages may finally be agreed upon the county of Chester must pay, and -the supervisors of the different townships through which the road passes -will thereafter assume its care. This will probably be the last official -act in which the title of the old organization will participate. 'Men -may come and men may go,' and changes be made both in ownership and -purposes of use, but whatever the future may have in store for this -grand old public highway, the basic principle will always be: 'The Old -Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike;' and as such forever remain a -lasting monument to the courageous, progressive, and patriotic men whose -capital entered into and made its construction possible." - -The principal rivals of the macadamized roads were the plank roads. The -first plank road in America was built at Toronto, Canada, in 1835-36, -during Sir Francis Bond Head's governorship. It was an experiment and -one Darcy Boulton is said to have been the originator of the plan.[18*] - -In 1837 this method of road-building was introduced into the United -States, Syracuse, New York, possessing the first plank road this side -the Canadian border. In fifteen years there were two thousand one -hundred and six miles of these roads in New York State alone, and the -system had spread widely through the more prosperous and energetic -states. Usually these roads were single-track, the track being built on -the left hand side of the roadway; the latter became known as the -"turn-out." The planks, measuring eight inches by three, were laid on -stringers, these, in turn, resting on a more or less elaborately made -bed. The average cost of plank roads in New York was a trifle less than -two thousand dollars per mile. It will be remembered that the Cumberland -Road cost on the average over ten thousand dollars per mile in Maryland -and Pennsylvania, and three thousand four hundred dollars per mile west -of the Ohio River. Its estimated cost per mile, without bridging, was -six thousand dollars. It was natural, therefore, that plank roads should -become popular--for the country was still a "wooden country," as the -pioneers said. It was argued that the cost was "infinitely less--that it -[plank road] is easier for the horse to draw upon--and that such a road -costs less for repairs and is more durable than a Macadam road.... On -the Salina and Central road, a few weeks back, for a wager, a team [two -horses] brought in, without any extraordinary strain, six tons of iron -from Brewerton, a distance of twelve miles, to Syracuse [New York].... -Indeed, the farmer does not seem to make any calculations of the weight -taken. He loads his wagon as best he can, and the only care is not to -exceed the quantity which it will carry; whether the team can draw the -load, is not a consideration...." Such arguments prevailed in the day -when timber was considered almost a nuisance, and plank roads spread far -and wide. - -Few who were acquainted with primitive conditions have left us anything -vivid in the way of descriptions of roads and road-making. "The pioneers -of our State," wrote Calvin Fletcher, in an exceedingly interesting -paper read before the Indiana Centennial Association, July 4, 1900, -"found Indian trails, which, with widening, proved easy lines of travel. -Many of these afterward became fixtures through use, improvement, and -legislation.... Next to the hearty handshake and ready lift at the -handspike, where neighbors swapped work at log-rollings, was the -greeting when, at fixed periods, all able-bodied men met to open up or -work upon the roads. My child-feet pattered along many of the -well-constructed thoroughfares of today when they were only indistinct -tracings--long lines of deadened trees, deep-worn horse paths, and -serpentine tracks of wabbling wagon wheels. The ever-recurring -road-working days and their cheerful observance, with time's work in -rotting and fire's work in removing dead tree and stump, at last let in -long lines of sunshine to dry up the mud, to burn up the miasma, and to -bless the wayfarer to other parts, as well as to disclose what these -pioneer road-makers had done for themselves by opening up fields in the -forests.... To perfect easily and naturally these industries requires -three generations. The forests must be felled, logs rolled and burned, -families reared, and in most cases the land to be paid for. When this is -accomplished a faithful picture would reveal not only the changes that -had been wrought, but a host of prematurely broken down men and women, -besides an undue proportion resting peacefully in country graveyards. A -second generation straightens out the fields at odd corners, pulls the -stumps, drains the wet spots, and casting aside the sickle of their -father, swings the cradle over broader fields; and even trenches upon -the plans of the third generation by pushing the claim of the reaper, -the mower and the thresher.... The labor of the three generations in -road-making I class as follows: To the first generation belonged -locating the roads and the clearing the timber from them. The wet places -would become miry and were repaired by the use of logs.... The roots and -stumps caused many holes, called chuck holes, which were repaired by -using brush and dirt--with the uniform result that at each end of the -corduroy or brush repairs, a new mud or chuck hole would be formed in -time; and thus until timber and brush became exhausted did the pioneer -pave the way for the public and himself to market, to court, and to -elections. The second generation discovered a value in the inexhaustible -beds of gravel in the rivers and creeks, as well as beneath the soil. -Roadbeds were thrown up, and the side ditches thus formed contributed to -sound wheeling. Legislation tempted capital to invest and tollgates -sprang up until the third generation removed them and assumed the burden -of large expenditures from public funds for public benefit. - -"And thus have passed away the nightmare of the farmer, the traveller, -the mover and the mail-carrier--a nightmare that prevailed nine months -of the year.... An experience of a trip from Indianapolis to Chicago in -March, 1848, by mail stage is pertinent. It took the first twenty-four -hours to reach Kirklin, in Boone County; the next twenty-four to -Logansport, the next thirty-six to reach South Bend. A rest then of -twenty-four hours on account of high water ahead; then thirty-six hours -to Chicago--five days of hard travel in mud or on corduroy, or sand.... -In the summer passenger coaches went through, but when wet weather came -the mud wagon was used to carry passengers and mail, and when the mud -became too deep the mail was piled into crates, canvas-covered, and -hauled through. This was done also on the National [Cumberland], the -Madison, the Cincinnati, the Lafayette and the Bloomington Roads." - -The _corvee_, or required work on the roads of France, has been given as -one of the minor causes of the social unrest which reached its climax in -the French Revolution. American peasants had no such hardship according -to an anonymous rhymester: - - Oh, our life was tough and tearful, and its toil was often fearful, - And often we grew faint beneath the load. - But there came a glad vacation and a sweet alleviation, - When we used to work our tax out on the road. - - When we used to work our tax out, then we felt the joys of leisure, - And we felt no more the prick of labor's goad; - Then we shared the golden treasure of sweet rest in fullest measure, - When we used to work our tax out on the road. - -The macadam and plank roads saw the Indian trail at its widest and best. -The railway has had a tendency to undo even such advances over pioneer -roads as came in the heyday of macadam and plank roads. We have been -going backward since 1840 rather than forward. The writer has had long -acquaintance with what was, in 1830, the first turnpike in Ohio--the -Warren and Ashtabula Road; it was probably a far better route in 1830 -than in 1900. By worrying the horse you can not make more than four -miles an hour over many parts of it. One ought to go into training -preparatory to a carriage drive over either the Cumberland or the -Pennsylvania road across the Alleghenies. As the trail was widened it -grew better, but once at its maximum width it was eclipsed as an avenue -by the railway and, exceptions aside, has since 1850 deteriorated. Every -foot added in width, however, has contained a lesson in American -history; every road, as we have said, indicates a need; and the wider -the road, it may be added, the greater the need. An expanding nation, in -a moment's time, burst westward through these narrow trails, and left -them standing as open roadways. Few material objects today suggest to -our eyes this marvelous movement. These old routes with their many -winding tracks, the ponderous bridges and sagging mile-posts,[19] are -relics of those momentous days. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -A PILGRIM ON THE PENNSYLVANIA ROAD - - -The following chapter is from Francis Baily's volume, _A Journal of a -Tour in Unsettled Parts of North America_. It is an account of a journey -in 1796 from Philadelphia to Pittsburg over the Pennsylvania road -treated of in Volume V of this series. Francis Baily was an English -scientist of very great reputation. It is to be doubted whether there is -another account of a journey as far west as Mr. Baily's record takes us -(Cincinnati, Ohio) written at so early a date by an equally famous -foreign scholar and scientist. - -The route pursued was the old state road begun in 1785 running through -Pennsylvania from Chambersburg, Bedford, and Greensburg to Pittsburg. -Mr. Baily's itinerary is by ancient taverns, most of which have passed -from recollection. - -From Pittsburg he went with a company of pioneers down the Ohio River -to their new settlement near Cincinnati. In his experiences with these -friends he gives us a vivid picture of pioneer travel north of the Ohio -River. - - -"There being no turnpikes in America, the roads are, of course, very bad -in winter, though excellent in summer. I waited at Baltimore near a week -before I could proceed on my journey, the roads being rendered -impassable. There is, at present, but one turnpike-road on the -continent, which is between Lancaster and Philadelphia,[20] a distance -of sixty-six miles, and is a masterpiece of its kind; it is paved with -stone the whole way, and overlaid with gravel, so that it is never -obstructed during the most severe season. This practice is going to be -adopted in other parts of that public-spirited state [Pennsylvania], -though none of the other states have yet come into the measure. - -"From Baltimore to Philadelphia are ninety-eight miles; between which -places there is no want of conveyance, as there are three or four -stages run daily. In one of these I placed myself on the morning of -_March 3rd, 1796_. A description of them perhaps would be amusing. The -body of the carriage is closed in, about breast high; from the sides of -which are raised six or eight small perpendicular posts, which support a -covering--so that it is in fact a kind of open coach. From the top are -suspended leather curtains, which may be either drawn up in fine -weather, or let down in rainy or cold weather; and which button at the -bottom. The inside is fitted up with four seats, placed one before the -other; so that the whole of the passengers face the horses; each seat -will contain three passengers; and the driver sits on the foremost, -under the same cover with the rest of the company. The whole is -suspended on springs; and the way to get into it is _in front_, as if -you were getting into a covered cart. This mode of travelling, and which -is the only one used in America, is very pleasant as you enjoy the -country much more agreeably than when imprisoned in a close coach, -inhaling and exhaling the same air a thousand times over, like a cow -chewing the cud; but then it is not quite so desirable in disagreeable -weather.[21] - -"We had not proceeded far on our journey before we began to encounter -some of those inconveniences to which every person who travels in this -country _in winter time_ is exposed. The roads, which in general were -very bad, would in some places be impassable, so that we were obliged to -get out and walk a considerable distance, and sometimes to 'put our -shoulders to the wheel;' and this in the most unpleasant weather, as -well as in the midst of mire and dirt. However, we did manage to get -twelve miles to breakfast; and after that, to a little place called -Bush, about thirteen miles farther, to dinner; and about nine o'clock at -night we came to _Havre de Grace_, about twelve miles further, to -supper; having walked nearly half the way up to our ancles in mud, in a -most inclement season. Havre de Grace is a pretty little place, most -delightfully situated on the banks of the Susquehannah river, which at -this place is about a quarter of a mile broad; it is about a couple of -miles above the mouth of the river, where it empties into the Chesapeak -Bay; a fine view of which you have from the town. An excellent tavern is -kept here by Mr. Barney ... and which is frequented by parties in the -shooting season, for the sake of the wild fowl with which the -Susquehannah so plentifully abounds; the canvass-back, a most delicious -bird, frequents this river.... Next morning we got ferried across the -river, and, breakfasting at the tavern on the other side, proceeded on -our journey, encountering the same difficulties we had done the -preceding day. About three miles from Barney's is a little place, called -Principio, situated in a highly romantic country, where there is a large -foundry for cannon and works for boring them, situated in a valley -surrounded by a heap of rocks; the wheels of the works are turned by a -stream of water running over some of these precipices. About three miles -from this is another delightful place, called Charleston; I mean with -respect to its _situation_; as to the town itself, it does not seem to -improve at all, at which I very much wonder, as it is most -advantageously situated at the head of the Chesapeak, of which and the -country adjoining it commands a full and most charming view. We got -about nine miles farther, to a town called Elkton, to dinner. This place -has nothing in it to attract the attention of travellers. I shall -therefore pass it by, to inform you that we intended getting to Newport, -about eighteen miles, to sleep. It was four o'clock before we started; -and we had not proceeded far on these miserable roads, ere night -overtook us; and, as the fates would have it, our unlucky coachman drove -us into a miry bog; and, in spite of all our endeavours, we could not -get the coach out again; we were therefore obliged to _leave it there, -with the whole of the baggage, all night_; and were driven to the -necessity of seeking our way in the dark to the nearest house, which -was about a mile and a half off; there, getting ourselves cleaned and a -good supper, we went to bed. Next morning we found everything just as we -left it; and, getting another coach, we proceeded on our journey, and, -dining at Chester, got to Philadelphia about nine o'clock in the -evening, completely tired of our ride, having been three days and three -nights on the road. - -"I would not have been thus particular, but I wished to give you a -specimen of the American mode of travelling, though you will understand -that these difficulties are to be met with only at that season of the -year when the frost breaks up, and the roads get sadly out of order; for -in summer time nothing can be more agreeable, expeditious, and pleasant. -The fare from Baltimore to Philadelphia is 6 dollars, or 27s., and the -customary charges on the road are 1/2 dollar for breakfast, 1 dollar for -dinner, wine not included, 1/2 dollar for supper, and 1/4 dollar for -beds. These are their general prices, and they charge the same whatever -they provide for you. By this, you will observe that travelling in -these settled parts of the country is about as expensive as in England. - -"The country between Baltimore and Philadelphia is of a _clayey_ nature, -mixed with a kind of gravel; yet still, in the hands of a skilful -farmer, capable of yielding good produce. The land on each side of the -road, and back into the country, was pretty well cultivated, and (though -winter) bore marks of industry and economy. Hedges are not frequent; but -instead of them they place split logs angular-wise on each other, making -what they call a "worm fence," and which is raised about five feet high. -This looks very slovenly, and, together with the stumps of trees -remaining in all the new-cleared plantations, is a great _desight_ to -the scenery of the country.... From Newark to New York is about nine -miles, and the greatest part of the road is over a large swamp, which -lies between and on each side of the Pasaik and Hackinsac rivers. Over -this swamp they have made a causeway, which trembles the whole way as -you go over it,[22] and shows how far the genius and industry of man -will triumph over natural impediments. - -"To New York, which is ninety-six miles from Philadelphia, we were a day -and a half in coming. The roads were not so bad as when we came from -Baltimore. Our fare was 6 dollars, and the charges on the road the same -as between Baltimore and Philadelphia:--viz., 1/2 dollar breakfast, 1 -dollar dinner, 1/2 dollar supper, and 1/4 dollar lodging.... The -inhabitants of New York are very fond of music, dancing, and plays; an -attainment to excellence in the former has been considerably promoted by -the frequent musical societies and concerts which are held in the city, -many of the inhabitants being very good performers. As to dancing, there -are two assembly-rooms in the city, which are pretty well frequented -during the winter season; private balls are likewise not uncommon. They -have two theatres, one of which is lately erected, and is capable of -containing a great number of persons; there is an excellent company of -comedians, who perform here in the winter. But the amusement of which -they seem most passionately fond is that of sleighing, which is riding -on the snow in what _you_ call _a sledge_, drawn by two horses. It is -astonishing to see how anxiously persons of all ages and both sexes look -out for a good fall of snow, that they may enjoy their favourite -amusement; and when the happy time comes, to see how eager they are to -engage every sleigh that is to be hired. Parties of twenty or thirty -will sometimes go out of town in these vehicles towards evening, about -six or eight miles, when, having sent for a fiddler, and danced till -they are tired, they will return home again by moonlight, or, perhaps -more often, by _day_ light. Whilst the snow is on the ground no other -carriages are made use of, either for pleasure or service. The -productions of the earth are brought to market in sleighs; merchandise -is draughted about in sleighs; coaches are laid by, and the ladies and -gentlemen mount the _silent_ car, and nothing is heard in the streets -but the tinkling[23] of bells.... I set off on the _1st_ of _September, -1796_, to make a tour of the western country,--that land of Paradise, -according to the flattering accounts given by Imlay and others. Wishing -to go to the new city of Washington, _we_[24] took our route through -Philadelphia and Baltimore, which I have already described. I shall not -trouble you with any further remarks, excepting that as the season was -just the reverse of what it was when I passed through this country last, -it presented quite a different appearance from what I described to you -in my former letters. Besides, there was none of that inconvenience from -bad roads, so terrible to a traveller in the winter. On the contrary, we -went on with a rapidity and safety equal to any mode of travelling in -England. - -"From Baltimore to the new city of Washington is forty-five miles, where -we arrived on the _5th_ of _October_ following. The road is well -furnished with taverns, which in general are good, at least as good as -can be expected in this part of the world. Close to Washington is a -handsome town called Georgetown; in fact, it will form part of the new -city; for, being so near the site intended for it, and being laid out -nearly on the same plan, its streets will be only a prolongation of the -streets laid out for the city of Washington: so it will in course of -time lose its name of Georgetown, and adopt the general one of -Washington. Much in the same manner the small places formerly separated -from the metropolis of England have lost their name, and fallen under -the general denomination of London. - -"Georgetown is situated on a hill close to the river Potomak; it -presents a beautiful view from the surrounding country, of which also it -commands a fine prospect. It is a seaport town, and some of their -vessels are employed in the London trade. There are stages run daily -between this place and Baltimore, for which you pay four dollars. There -are also stages to and from Alexandria, a handsome and flourishing town -situated on the Potomak, lower down the stream, and about eight miles -off; for which you pay a fare of three quarters of a dollar. We put up -at the Federal Arms whilst we were there. It is a good inn, but their -charges are most extravagantly high.... At about half-past one, _October -7th_, we started on our journey over the Allegany mountains to -Pittsburgh.[25] About fourteen miles on the road is a pretty little town -called Montgomery Court House;[26] it contains some good houses, but -the streets are narrow. About seven miles further is a little -settlement, formed a few years back by Captain Lingham, called -Middlebrook. Captain Lingham has a house on the road, near a mill, which -he has erected; and here (following the example of many of his brother -officers) he has retired from the toils and bustle of war, to spend his -days in the enjoyments of a country life. We arrived here about six -o'clock; the sun was just setting, yet there was time to go another -stage; but, as we got into a part of the country where _taverns_[27] -were not very frequent, we proposed stopping here this night. -Accordingly, putting our horses up at a little tavern, (which, together -with four or five more houses, composed the whole of the settlement,) we -had a comfortable supper and went to bed. About half-past six the next -morning we started from this place, and stopped, about seven miles on -the road, at an old woman's of the name of Roberts.[28] This old woman -(whose house, I believe, was the only one we saw on the road) acts at -times in the capacity of a tavern-keeper: that is, a person travelling -that way, and straitened for provisions, would most probably find -something there for himself and his horse. The old lady was but just up -when we called; her house had more the appearance of a hut than the -habitation of an hostess, and when we entered there was scarcely room to -turn round. We were loath to stop here; but there not being any other -house near, we were obliged to do it, both for the sake of ourselves and -our horses. We soon made her acquainted with our wants, and she, -gathering together a few sticks, (for her fire was not yet lighted,) and -getting a little meal and some water, mixed us up some cakes, which were -soon dressed at the fire, and then all sitting down at the table, and -having mixed some tea in a little pot, we enjoyed a very comfortable -breakfast. The poor old woman, who was a widow, seemed to live in a deal -of distress: the whole of her living was acquired by furnishing -accommodation to travellers. When we were sitting over the fire, and -partaking of our meal-cakes with this old woman, it brought to mind the -story of Elijah and the widow, (I Kings, chap, xvii.,) particularly -where she answers him with, 'As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a -cake, but one handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: -and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it -for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.' The appositeness of our -situations rendered this passage very striking, and made me look upon my -hostess in a more favourable point of view than when I first saw her. I -gave her something to render her situation more comfortable and happy. - -"Leaving this lonely habitation, we continued on our journey, and -crossing the Sinecocy [Monocacy?] river, about eleven miles on the road, -we reached Fredericktown, about four miles farther, at twelve o'clock. -This is a large flourishing place, contains a number of good houses, and -is a place of great trade, owing to its being the thoroughfare to the -western country of Pennsylvania and the Ohio. There is a large -manufactory of rifle-guns carried on here; but so great is the demand -for them, that we could not meet with one in the whole place: they sell -in general from 15 to 25 dollars each, according to their style of being -mounted. The tavern where we stopped was kept by Mrs. Kemble: it is a -tolerably good house. After dinner we left this place, and after going -about three or four miles, we arrived at the foot of the Appalachian -Mountains. And here let me stop a little to make a few observations on -the face of the country we have just passed over. From Georgetown to -this place, it almost wholly consists of a sandy, gravelly soil, with -difficulty repaying the husbandman for the trouble of tilling it. The -face of the country is very uneven, being a constant succession of hill -and dale. Little towns or villages are scattered over the country at the -distance of seven or eight miles, which communicate with each other by -roads which are almost inaccessible during the winter and spring months. -Our charges on this part of the road were half a dollar each for -breakfast and dinner and supper, without any distinction of fare. If -our table were spread with all the profusion of American luxury, such as -ham, cold beef, fried chicken, &c. &c., (which are not uncommon for -breakfast in this part of the world), or whether we sat down to a dish -of tea and hoe-cake, our charge was all the same. The accommodations we -met with on the road were pretty well, considering the short time this -country has been settled, and the character and disposition of its -inhabitants, which are not those of the most polished nations, but a -character and disposition arising from a consciousness of independence, -accompanied by a spirit and manner highly characteristic of this -consciousness. It is not education alone that forms this character of -the Americans: it stands upon a firmer basis than this. The means of -subsistence being so easy in the country, and their dependence on each -other consequently so trifling, that spirit of servility to those above -them so prevalent in European manners, is wholly unknown to them; and -they pass their lives without any regard to the smiles or the frowns of -men in power. - -"Nearly the whole of the way from Georgetown to Fredericktown we -preserved a distant view of the Allegany Mountains, at whose feet we -were now arrived. They presented to us one general bluff appearance, -extending as far as our eye could see from the north-east to the -south-west. Our approach to them was in a line perpendicular to that of -their extension, so that they seemed to bid defiance to our progress. -The _Allegany Mountains_ is a name given to a range of several ridges of -mountains stretching from Vermont to Carolina, of which one ridge alone -is properly called the Allegany Mountain. These ridges are nearly 170 -miles in width; and the middle one, or the Allegany, forms the backbone -of the rest. The ridge which first presented itself to our view, is -called in Howell's Map the South Mountain. The road (which here began to -be very rocky and stony) is carried over the least elevated part of the -mountain, and from its summit we beheld that beautiful limestone valley -so recommended by Brissot. On our descent from this mountain, we entered -on one of the finest tracts of land in all America. The celebrated -valley, which lies between this and the next ridge of mountains, extends -from the Susquehanna on the north to Winchester on the south, is richly -watered by several navigable streams, and is capable of producing every -article which is raised in the neighbouring countries in the greatest -abundance. It is inhabited chiefly by Germans and Dutch, who are an -industrious race of men and excellent farmers. Their exertions have made -this valley (bounded on each side by barren and inhospitable mountains) -assume the appearance of a highly cultivated country, abounding in all -the conveniences and some of the luxuries of life. Besides a general -appearance of comfortable farms scattered over the face of the country, -it can boast of several large and populous towns, which keep up a -connexion with the cities on the Atlantic, and supply the interior of -this mountainous country with the produce of distant nations. It was -dark before we descended from this mountain; but we had not proceeded -far in the valley when we came to a little place called Boone's-town, -where we were glad to rest ourselves and horses after the fatigues of -so rough a road. Boone's-town is eight miles from Fredericktown: it has -not been settled above three or four years. We met with a very good -tavern and excellent accommodations. - -"From Boone's-town, the next morning (_Sunday, October 9th, 1796_) we -passed through Funk's-town, which is another new-settled place; and -immediately on leaving this, Hagar's-town presented itself to our view, -about two miles off: here we arrived to breakfast. Hagar's-town[29] is a -large flourishing place, and contains some good houses. The streets are -narrow, and, agreeably to a barbarous custom which they have in laying -out new towns in America, the court-house is built in the _middle_ of -the principal street, which is a great obstruction to the passage, as -well as being of an uncouth appearance. This place is situated on a fine -plain, and, like Frederick's-town, is a place of great trade, and also a -manufactory for rifle-guns, of which we bought two at twenty dollars -each. Here is a paper published weekly; and assemblies are held here -during the winter. There is also a great deal of horse-racing in the -neighbourhood at stated seasons. We put up at the Indian Queen, kept by -Ragan: it is a good house and much frequented. - -"From Hagar's-town we proceeded on to Greencastle, which is a poor -little place, but lately settled, and consisting of a few log-houses -built along the road. We stopped at one of these houses, which they -called the tavern, kept by one Lawrence; it was a poor miserable place. -We were obliged to unsaddle our horses, put them into the stable, and -feed them ourselves; and then, having got something to eat and refreshed -ourselves, we got out of this place as soon as we could. Greencastle is -eleven miles from Hagar's-town; and we had to go eleven miles farther -that evening to Mr. Lindsay's, whom we had engaged at Baltimore to carry -some goods to Pittsburgh in his waggons. His house lay at some distance -from the road we were going, so that we struck across the woods to -approach it; and, after having missed our way once or twice, we struck -on a road which took us down to his house. Here we were hospitably -entertained for two days by Mr. Lindsay and his father-in-law, Mr. -Andrews, who have a very excellent farm, and live very comfortably in -the truly American style. The place at which he resides is called the -_Falling Springs_; for what reason they are called _falling_ springs I -cannot conceive; they _rise_ from under an old tree, and the stream does -not proceed three hundred yards before it turns a cyder-mill; and a -little farther on turns a grist-mill. These mills belong to Mr. Andrews, -as also does a large quantity of the land around; for in this country -_all_ the farmers are landholders; Mr. and Mrs. Andrews are Irish; and -they and their family are all settled in the neighbourhood. Their -children are all brought up in industry, and have their time fully -employed in performing the different necessary duties of the house and -farm. Nevertheless, they appear to live very happy and comfortable. - -"_Tuesday, October 11th, 1796._--About eleven o'clock this morning we -set off from Mr. Andrews's, in company with a party of several of the -neighbouring farmers who were going to Chambersburgh to vote at an -election. Chambersburgh is about three miles from Mr. Andrews's, and is -a large and flourishing place, not inferior to Frederick's-town or -Hagar's-town; being, like them, on the high road to the western country, -it enjoys all the advantages which arise from such a continual body of -people as are perpetually emigrating thither. I have seen ten and twenty -waggons at a time in one of these towns, on their way to Pittsburgh and -other parts of the Ohio, from thence to descend down that river to -Kentucky. These waggons are loaded with the clothes and necessaries of a -number of poor emigrants, who follow on foot with their wives and -families, who are sometimes indulged with a ride when they are tired, or -in bad weather. In this manner they will travel and take up their abode -in the woods on the side of the road, like the gypsies in our country, -taking their provisions with them, which they dress on the road's side, -as occasion requires. - -"About thirteen miles from Chambersburgh, which we left in the -afternoon, is a place called the _Mill_,[30] which is kept by some -Dutchmen. We understood it was a tavern, but were disappointed; however, -as it was now dark, and no tavern on the road for some distance, we were -under the necessity of begging a lodging here, which was granted us at -last with the greatest reluctance. Here we had rather an unfavourable -specimen of Dutch manners. We were _kindly_ directed to take our horses -to the stables, and take care of them ourselves, which we accordingly -did; and, returning to the house, I was witness to a kind of meal I had -never before experienced. First of all, some sour milk was warmed up and -placed on the table. This at any other time would probably have made us -sick; but having fasted nearly the whole day, and seeing no appearance -of anything else likely to succeed it, we devoured it very soon; -particularly as the whole family (of which there were seven or eight) -partook of it likewise; all of us sitting round _one_ large bowl, and -dipping our spoons in one after another. When this was finished a dish -of stewed pork was served up, accompanied with some hot pickled cabbage, -called in this part of the country "warm slaw." This was devoured in -the same hoggish manner, every one trying to help himself first, and two -or three eating off the same plate, and all in the midst of filth and -dirt. After this was removed a large bowl of cold milk and bread was put -on the table, which we partook of in the same manner as the first dish, -and in the same disorder. The spoons were immediately taken out of the -greasy pork dish, and (having been just cleaned by passing through the -_mouth_) were put into the milk; and that, with all the _sang froid_ -necessarily attending such habitual nastiness. Our _table_, which was -none of the cleanest (for as to _cloth_, they had none in the house), -was placed in the middle of the room, which appeared to me to be the -receptacle of all the filth and rubbish in the house; and a fine large -fire, which blazed at one end, served us instead of a candle. - -"Wishing to go to bed as soon as possible (though, by the by, we did not -expect that our accommodations would be any of the most agreeable), we -requested to be shown to our room, when, lo! we were ushered up a -ladder, into a dirty place, where a little hole in the wall served for -a window, and where there were four or five beds as dirty as need be. -These beds did not consist (as most beds do) of blankets, sheets, &c., -but were truly in the Dutch style, being literally nothing more than one -feather bed placed on another, between which we were to creep and lie -down. The man, after showing us this our place of destination, took the -candle away, and left us to get in how we could, which we found some -difficulty in doing at first; however, after having accomplished it, we -slept very soundly till morning, when we found we had passed the night -amongst the whole family, men, women, and children, who had occupied the -other beds, and who had come up after we had been asleep. We got up -early in the morning from this inhospitable and filthy place, and, -saddling our horses, pursued our journey. - -[Illustration: WIDOW MCMURRAN'S TAVERN, SCRUB RIDGE, PENNSYLVANIA ROAD] - -"_October 12th, 1796._--At ten o'clock we arrived at McConnell's-town, -in Cove Valley (thirteen miles), having first passed over a high ridge -called, in Howell's Map, the North Mountain; and here we left that -beautiful valley, which is enriched by so many streams, and abounds -with such a profusion of the conveniences of life; a country than which, -if we except Kentucky, is not to be found a more fertile one in the -whole of the United States. - -"On our descent from the North Mountain we caught, through every opening -of the woods, the distant view of McConnell's, whose white houses, -contrasted with the _sea_ of woods by which it was surrounded, appeared -like an island in the ocean. Our near approach to it, however, rendered -it not quite so pleasing an object; for it consisted but of a few -log-houses, built after the American manner, without any other ornament -than that of being whitened on the _outside_. There was a pretty good -tavern kept here by a Dutchwoman, where we stopped to breakfast; and, -leaving this place, we crossed a hill called Scrubheath, at the end of -which was Whyle's tavern (ten miles): we did not stop, but went to the -top of Sideling Hill (two miles), where there is a tavern kept by -Skinner, where we dined. Sideling Hill is so called from the road being -carried over this ridge, _on the side of the hill_, the whole way; it is -very steep in ascent, and towards the top appears very tremendous on -looking down. - -"From this tavern to the Junietta, a branch of the Susquehannah river, -is eight miles. The hill terminates at the river, and the road down to -it is a narrow winding path, apparently cleft out of the mountain. It so -happened that when we came to this defile, a travelling man with a -number of packhorses had just entered it before us; and as it was -impossible for us to pass them, we were obliged to follow them down this -long winding passage to the river, at their own pace, which, poor -animals, was none of the speediest. The sun, though not set, had been -long hid from us by the neighbouring mountains, and would not lend us -one ray to light us on our melancholy path. We fell into conversation -with our fellow-traveller, and found that he had been to Philadelphia, -where he had purchased a number of articles necessary to those who live -in this part of the country, and which he was going to dispose of in the -best manner possible. The gloominess of our path, and the temper of mind -I happened to be then in, threw me into reflections on a comparison of -this man's state with my own. At length a distant light broke me from my -reverie, and indicated to us a near prospect of our enlargement from -this obscure path; and the first thing that presented itself to our view -was the Junietta river, which, flowing with a gentle stream between two -very steep hills, covered with trees to the very top, the sun just -shining, and enlightening the opposite side, though hid to us, presented -one of the most enchanting and romantic scenes I ever experienced. From -this place to Hartley's Tavern is eight miles, and this we had to go -before night. It was sunset before we had reached the summit of the -opposite hill of the river. From this hill we beheld ourselves in the -midst of a mountainous and woody country; the Junietta winding and -flowing on each side of us at the foot of the hill; the distant -mountains appearing in all the _wildness of majesty_, and extending -below the horizon. The moon had just begun to spread her silver light; -and by her assistance we were enabled to reach our destined _port_. The -road, which was carried along the side of a tremendously high hill, -seemed to threaten us with instant death, if our horses should make a -false step. Embosomed in woods, on a lonely path, we travelled by the -kind light of the moon till near eight o'clock, when we reached our -place of destination. It was a very comfortable house, kept by one -Hartley, an Englishman, and situated in a gap of the mountains, called -in this part of the country Warrior's Gap, and which affords an outlet -or passage for the Junietta river, which here is a fine gentle stream. -The country just about here was very mountainous; yet our landlord had -got a very pleasant spot cleared and cultivated, and which furnished him -with the principal necessaries of life. Finding this an agreeable place, -we stopped here three days, and went up into the mountains to shoot; -but, being very young hands at this diversion, we were always -unsuccessful. - -"On _Saturday, October 15th_, we set off from Hartley's about eleven -o'clock, and proceeded to Redford (six miles), which is a pleasant -place, and agreeably situated, and contains a great many houses. The -town is supplied with water from the neighbouring hills; conveyed in -pipes to each house, and to a public place in the middle of the town. We -left this place about half-past twelve, and proceeded to Ryan's tavern, -at the foot of the Allegany mountain (eleven miles). Here we dined; and -after dinner, we proceeded up the mountain, the top of which we reached -about five o'clock; and here I was surprised to find a number of little -streams of water flowing through some as fine land as is to be met with -in the United States, and abounding with fish. This appearance upon the -top of so high a mountain is not a little remarkable; but I have since -found it to be the case in other ridges of mountains which I have passed -over. We intended to have gone on to Webster's this evening, but the -weather proving so bad, we called at a little house on the road, in -order to stop during the night. But we were informed that they could not -accommodate us; however, they directed us to a person about a mile off, -where they thought we could get accommodated; accordingly, striking -across the woods, we proceeded to this house, and, after some little -trouble, and in a very tempestuous night, we found it out, and here -took up our abode for the night. Our landlord's name was Statler, and -his residence is about eight miles from Ryan's. Here we found a very -comfortable habitation, and very good accommodation; and though situated -at the top of the highest ridge of mountains, we experienced not only -the comforts, but also some of the luxuries of life. From the stone -which forms the base of this mountain they make mill-stones, which are -sent to all parts of the country, and sell from fifteen to twenty and -thirty dollars a pair. Land sells on these mountains for two dollars an -acre. We found this so comfortable a place, that we stopped here to -breakfast the next morning (_October 16th_), and then we proceeded to -Webster's, at a place called Stoystown (nine miles), where there is a -good tavern, and where we stopped to bait our horses. About a mile -before we came to Webster's we passed over Stoney Creek, which has a -great many different branches, and rather large, but most of them were -dry, owing partly to the season, and partly to their lying so very -high. About nine miles further we stopped at Murphy's, where we baited -our horses; but the habitation was so uncomfortable, and their -accommodations so miserable, that we could get nothing for ourselves; we -were therefore obliged to defer till the evening taking any refreshment. -On leaving this place we crossed Laurel Hill, which is near nine miles -long, and which is the highest ridge of the Apalachian mountains: it is -rather a ridge upon a ridge, than a mountain by itself, as it rises upon -the Allegany ridge. The perpendicular height of this ridge is 4,200 -feet; and in crossing it we were not a little incommoded by the cold -winds and rain which generally infest the summit. This, together with -the badness of the roads (being nothing but large loose stones), made it -one of the most unpleasant rides I ever experienced. It was near dark -before we descended this mountain; and we had then to go three miles to -a poor miserable hut, where we were obliged to spend the night amidst -the whole family and some other travellers, all scattered about in the -same room. - -"About half-past six the next morning (_October 17th, 1796_) we set out -from King's, and crossing Chestnut ridge, we arrived at Letty Bean's to -breakfast (seven and a half miles). After crossing Chestnut ridge we -took our leave of the Apalachian mountains, having passed 170 miles over -them, from the Blue ridge to Chestnut ridge. These mountains are for the -most part very stony and rocky, yet have a great quantity of fine land -on them, even on their very summits. The roads which are carried over -them are much better than I expected; and if from the tops of them you -can (through an opening of the trees) gain a view of the surrounding -country, it appears like a sea of woods; and all those hills which -appeared very high in our passing over them, are lost in one wide plane, -extending as far as the eye can reach, at least fifty or sixty miles, -presenting a view not only novel, but also highly majestic. At other -times, when you get between the declivities of the mountains, they -appear in all the wildness of nature, forming the most romantic scenery -the imagination can picture. It is not to be supposed, that immediately -on leaving the Apalachian mountains the country subsides into a smooth -level; on the contrary, for several miles, both on the eastern and -western side, the country is very hilly, not to say sometimes -mountainous; and it is said that the western side of the mountains is -300 feet above the level of the eastern side. - -"From the foot of the mountains to Pittsburgh is about forty miles, and -here we arrived to dinner on the _18th October_, having gone, during our -route, about 297 miles from Philadelphia. The accommodations we met with -were, upon the whole, tolerably good; at least, such as a person -(considering the country he was travelling in) might bear with: charges -rather high. It cost us, together with our horses, two dollars a day -each. The common charges on the eastern side of the mountains were:--For -breakfast, dinner, and supper, 1/2 dollar each; oats, 12 cents. per -gallon. On the western side, dinner and supper were charged sometimes -2s., sometimes 2s. 6d., and breakfasts, 18d., (Pennsylvania currency). -For breakfast we generally used to have coffee, and buck-wheat cakes, -and some fried venison or broiled chicken, meat being inseparable from -an American breakfast; and whatever travellers happened to stop at the -same place, sat down at the same table, and partook of the same dishes, -whether they were poor, or whether they were rich; no distinction of -persons being made in this part of the country.... - -"The waggons which come over the Allegany mountains from the Atlantic -states, (bringing dry goods and foreign manufactures for the use of the -back-country men,) return from this place generally empty; though -sometimes they are laden with deer and bear skins and beaver furs, which -are brought in by the hunters, and sometimes by the Indians, and -exchanged at the stores for such articles as they may stand in need of." - - -Passing down the Ohio River Mr. Baily proceeded with a pioneer party the -leader of which, Mr. Heighway, was about to found a town on the banks of -the Little Miami River in Ohio. Leaving the river at the newly located -village of Columbia, Ohio, the party pushed on northward. Mr. Baily -accompanied them out of curiosity, and his record is of utmost interest. - - -"_Saturday, March 4th, 1797_,--the two waggons started, accompanied with -a guide to conduct them through the wilderness, and three or four -pioneers to clear the road of trees where there might be occasion; and -on - -"_Monday, March 6th_,--Dr. Bean and myself started about noon, -accompanied by several others in the neighbourhood; some of whom were -tempted by curiosity, and others with a prospect of settling there. We -were mounted on horses, and had each a gun; and across our saddles we -had slung a large bag, containing some corn for our horses, and -provision for ourselves, as also our blankets: the former was necessary, -as the grass had not yet made its appearance in the woods. We kept the -road as long as we could; and when that would not assist us any farther, -we struck out into the woods; and towards sundown found ourselves about -twenty miles from Columbia. Here, having spied a little brook running at -the bottom of a hill, we made a halt, and kindling a fire, we fixed up -our blankets into the form of a tent, and having fed both ourselves and -our horses, we laid ourselves down to rest; one of us, by turns, keeping -watch, lest the Indians should come and steal our horses. The next -morning,-- - -"_Tuesday, March 7th_,--as soon as it was light, we continued our -journey, and towards the middle of the day overtook our friend H.,[31] -almost worn out with fatigue. The ground was so moist and swampy, and he -had been obliged to come through such almost impassable ways, that it -was with difficulty the horses could proceed; they were almost knocked -up; his waggons had been over-turned twice or thrice;--in fact, he -related to us such a dismal story of the trials both of patience and of -mind which he had undergone, and I verily believe if the distance had -been much greater, he would either have sunk under it, or have formed -his settlement on the spot. We encouraged him with the prospect of a -speedy termination, and the hopes of better ground to pass over; and -with this his spirits seemed to be somewhat raised. We all encamped -together this night, and made ourselves as happy and as comfortable as -possible. My friend H. seemed also to put on the new man; and from this, -and from his being naturally of a lively turn, we found that it was a -great deal the want of society which had rendered him so desponding, and -so out of spirits; for after we had cooked what little refreshment we -had brought with us, and finished our repast, he sang us two or three -good songs, (which he was capable of doing in a masterly style,) and -seemed to take a pleasure in delaying as long as he could that time -which we ought to have devoted to rest. As to my own part, I regarded -the whole enterprise in a more philosophic point of view; and I may say -with the Spectator, I considered myself as a silent observer of all that -passed before me; and could not but fancy that I saw in this little -society before me the counterpart of the primitive ages, when men used -to wander about in the woods with all their substance, in the manner -that the present race of Tartars do at this day. I could not but think -that I saw in miniature the peregrinations of Abraham, or AEneas, &c., -&c. - -"The next morning, _Wednesday, March 8th_, by day-light, our cavalcade -was in motion; and some of the party rode on first to discover the spot, -for we were travelling without any other guide than what little -knowledge of the country the men had acquired by hunting over it. I -could not but with pleasure behold with what expedition the pioneers in -front cleared the way for the waggon; there were but three or four of -them, and they got the road clear as fast as the waggon could proceed. -Whilst we were continuing on at this rate, we observed at some distance -before us, a human being dart into the woods, and endeavour to flee from -us. Ignorant what this might mean, we delayed the waggons, and some of -us went into the woods and tracked the footsteps of a man for some -little distance, when suddenly a negro made his appearance from behind -some bushes, and hastily inquired whether there were any Indians in our -party, or whether we had met with any. The hideousness of the man's -countenance, (which was painted with large red spots upon a black -ground,) and his sudden appearance, startled us at first; but soon -guessing his situation, we put him beyond all apprehension, and informed -him he was perfectly safe. He then began to inform us that he had been a -prisoner among the Indians ever since the close of the last American -war; and that he had meditated his escape ever since he had been in -their hands, but that never, till now, had he been able to accomplish -it.... - -"We could not but look upon the man with an eye of pity and compassion, -and after giving him something to pursue his journey with, and desiring -him to follow our track to Columbia, we separated. At about three or -four o'clock the same afternoon, we had the satisfaction of seeing the -Little Miami river. Here we halted, (for it was on the banks of this -river that the town was laid out,) and we were soon joined by our other -companions, who had proceeded on first, and who informed us that they -had recognized the spot about half a mile higher up the river. We -accordingly went on, and got the goods all out of the waggons that -night, so that they might return again as soon as they thought proper. -And here we could not but congratulate our friend H. upon his arrival at -the seat of his new colony." - - - - -CHAPTER III - -ZANE'S TRACE AND THE MAYSVILLE PIKE - - -In the study of the Ohio River as a highway of immigration and commerce -it was emphasized that in earliest pioneer days the ascent of the river -was a serious and difficult problem. This was true, indeed, not on the -Ohio alone, but on almost every river of importance in the United -States. Of course brawny arms could force a canoe through flood-tides -and rapids; but, as a general proposition, the floods of winter, with -ice floating fast amid-stream and clinging in ragged blocks and floes -along the shore, and the droughts of summer which left, even in the -Ohio, great bars exposed so far to the light that the river could be -forded here and there by children, made even canoe navigation well-nigh -impossible. For other craft than light canoes navigation was utterly out -of the question in the dry seasons and exceedingly dangerous on the icy -winter floods at night--when the shore could not be approached. - -Such conditions as these gave origin to many of our land highways. Where -pioneer homes were built beside a navigable river it was highly -important to have a land thoroughfare leading back to the "old -settlements" which could be traversed at all seasons. Many of our "river -roads" came into existence, not because the valleys offered the easiest -courses for land travel, but because pioneer settlements were made on -river banks, and, as the rivers were often worthy of the common French -name "Embarras," land courses were necessary. In the greater rivers this -"homeward track," so to speak, frequently abandoned the winding valley -and struck straight across the interior on the shortest available route. - -The founding of Kentucky in the lower Ohio Valley offers a specific -instance to illustrate these generalizations, and brings us to the -subject of a thoroughfare which was of commanding importance in the old -West. We have elsewhere dealt at length with the first settlement of -Kentucky, making clear the fact that the great road blazed by Boone -through Cumberland Gap was the most important route in Kentucky's early -history. The growth of the importance of the Ohio River as a -thoroughfare and its final tremendous importance to Kentucky and the -entire West has also been reviewed. But, despite this importance, the -droughts of summer and the ice-torrents of winter made a landward route -from Kentucky to Pennsylvania and the East an absolute necessity. Even -when the river was navigable, the larger part of the craft which sailed -it before 1820 were not capable of going up-stream. Heavy freight could -be "poled" and "cordelled" up in the keel-boat and barge, but for all -other return traffic, both freight and passenger, the land routes from -Kentucky north and east were preferable. For many years the most -available messenger and mail route from Cincinnati, Vincennes, and -Louisville was over Boone's Wilderness Road through Cumberland Gap. But, -as the eighteenth century neared its close, the large population of -western Pennsylvania and northwestern Virginia made necessary better -routes from the upper Ohio Valley across the Alleghenies; in turn, the -new conditions demanded a route up the Ohio Valley from Kentucky to -Pennsylvania. - - -In our survey of Indian Thoroughfares, a slight path known as the Mingo -Trail is mentioned as leading across eastern Ohio from Mingo Bottom near -the present Steubenville, on the Ohio River, to the neighborhood of -Zanesville on the Muskingum River.[32] Mingo Bottom was a well-known -Indian camping-place; the name is preserved in the railway junction -thereabouts, Mingo Junction. A distinct watershed offers thoroughfare -southwesterly across to the Muskingum, and on this lay the old trail. -The termini of this earliest known route were near two early settlements -of whites; Mingo Bottom lies eight or nine miles north of Wheeling, one -of the important stations in the days of border warfare. The Mingo -Trail, swinging southward a little, became the route of white hunters -and travelers who wished to cross what is now eastern Ohio. The -Muskingum River terminus of the trail was Wills Town, as far down the -Muskingum from Zanesville as Mingo Bottom was above Wheeling on the -Ohio. It is altogether probable that a slight trace left the Wills Town -trail and crossed the Muskingum at the mouth of Licking River--the -present site of Zanesville. If a trail led thence westwardly toward the -famed Pickaway Plains, it is recorded on none of our maps. We know, -therefore, of only the Mingo Trail, running, let us say loosely, from -Wheeling, West Virginia, to Zanesville, Ohio, which could have played -any part in forming what soon became known as the first post road in all -the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio. - -With the close of the Indian War and the signing of the Treaty of -Greenville in 1795, the American possession of the Northwest was placed -beyond question. A flood of emigrants at once left the eastern states -for the Central West, and the return traffic, especially in the form of -travelers and private mail packets, from Kentucky and Cincinnati, began -at once to assume significant proportions, and Congress was compelled -to facilitate travel by opening a post route two hundred and twenty-six -miles in length from the upper to the lower Ohio. Accordingly, the -following act: "_An Act to authorize Ebenezer Zane[33] to locate certain -lands in the territory of the United States northwest of the river -Ohio_" was passed by Congress and approved May 17, 1796: - -"_Be it enacted, &c._, That, upon the conditions hereinafter mentioned, -there shall be granted to Ebenezer Zane three tracts of land, not -exceeding one mile square each, one on the Muskingum river, one on -Hockhocking river, and one other on the north bank of Scioto river, and -in such situations as shall best promote the utility of a road to be -opened by him on the most eligible route between Wheeling and -Limestone,[34] to be approved by the President of the United States, or -such person as he shall appoint for that purpose; _Provided_, Such -tracts shall not interfere with any existing claim, location, or survey; -nor include any salt spring, nor the lands on either side of the river -Hockhocking at the falls thereof. - -"SEC. 2. _And be it further enacted_, That upon the said Zane's -procuring, at his own expense, the said tracts to be surveyed, in such a -way and manner as the President of the United States shall approve, and -returning into the treasury of the United States plats thereof, together -with warrents granted by the United States for military land bounties, -to the amount of the number of acres contained in the said three tracts; -and also, producing satisfactory proof, by the first day of January -next, that the aforesaid road is opened, and ferries established upon -the rivers aforesaid, for the accommodation of travellers, and giving -security that such ferries shall be maintained during the pleasure of -Congress; the President of the United States shall be, and he hereby is, -authorized and empowered to issue letters patent, in the name and under -the seal of the United States, thereby granting and conveying to the -said Zane, and his heirs, the said tracts of land located and surveyed -as aforesaid; which patents shall be countersigned by the secretary of -state, and recorded in his office: _Provided always_, That the rates of -ferriage, at such ferries, shall, from time to time, be ascertained -[inspected] by any two of the judges of the territory northwest of the -river Ohio, or such other authority as shall be appointed for that -purpose. - - "APPROVED May 17, 1796."[35] - - -Zane evidently went at once to work opening the road to Kentucky, his -brother Jonathan, and son-in-law John McIntire, assisting largely in the -work. The path was only made fit for horsemen, particularly -mail-carriers. It is probable that the task was not more difficult than -to cut away small trees on an Indian trace. It is sure that for a -greater part of the distance from the Ohio to the Muskingum the Mingo -Trail was followed, passing near the center of Belmont, Guernsey and -Muskingum Counties. The route to the southwest from that point through -Perry, Fairfield, Pickaway, Ross, Richland, Adams, and Brown Counties -may or may not have followed the path of an Indian trace. No proof to -the contrary being in existence, it is most reasonable to suppose that -this, like most other pioneer routes, did follow a more or less plainly -outlined Indian path. The new road crossed the Muskingum at the present -site of the town well named Zanesville, the Hocking at Lancaster, the -Scioto at Chillicothe, and the Ohio at Aberdeen, Ohio, opposite the -old-time Limestone, Kentucky. - -[Illustration: BRIDGE ON WHICH ZANE'S TRACE CROSSED THE MUSKINGUM RIVER -AT ZANESVILLE, OHIO] - -One George Sample was an early traveler on this National Road; paying a -visit from the East to the Ohio country in 1797, he returned homeward by -way of Zane's Trace or the Maysville Road, as the route was variously -known. After purchasing a farm on Brush Creek, Adams County, Ohio, and -locating a homeless emigrant on it, Mr. Sample "started back to -Pennsylvania on horseback" according to his recorded recollections -written in 1842;[36] "as there was no getting up the river at that -day.[37] In our homeward trip we had very rough fare when we had any at -all; but having calculated on hardships, we were not disappointed. There -was one house (Treiber's) on Lick branch, five miles from where West -Union[38] now is." Trebar--according to modern spelling--opened a tavern -on his clearing in 1798 or 1799, but at the time of Sample's trip his -house was not more public than the usual pioneer's home where the -latch-string was always out.[39] "The next house," continues Mr. Sample, -"was where Sinking spring or Middle-town is now.[40] The next was at -Chillicothe, which was just then commenced. We encamped one night at -Massie's run, say two or three miles from the falls of Paint creek, -where the trace then crossed that stream. From Chillicothe to Lancaster -the trace then went through the Pickaway plains. There was a cabin some -three or four miles below the plains, and another at their eastern edge, -and one or two more between that and Lancaster. Here we staid the third -night. From Lancaster we went next day to Zanesville, passing several -small beginnings. I recollect no improvement between Zanesville and -Wheeling, except a small one at the mouth of Indian Wheeling creek, -opposite to Wheeling. In this space we camped another night. From -Wheeling we went home pretty well." - -The matter of ferriage was a most important item on pioneer roads as -indicated by the Act of Congress quoted. The Court of General Quarter -Sessions met at Adamsville, Adams County, December 12, 1797, and made -the following the legal rates of ferriage across the Scioto and Ohio -Rivers, both of which Zane's Trace crossed: - -_Scioto River:_ - - Man and horse 12-1/2 cents. - Single 6-1/4 " - Wagon and team 75 " - Horned cattle (each) 6-1/4 " - -_Ohio River:_ - - Man and horse 18-1/2 " - Single 9-1/4 " - Wagon and team $1.15 - Horned cattle 9-1/4 " [41] - -No sooner was Zane's Trace opened than the Government established a mail -route between Wheeling and Maysville and Lexington. For the real -terminus of the trace was not by any means at little Maysville; an -ancient buffalo route and well-worn white man's road led into the -interior of Kentucky from Maysville, known in history as the Maysville -Road and Maysville Pike. On the Ohio side this mail route from Wheeling -and Lexington was known by many titles in many years; it was the -Limestone Road, the Maysville Pike, the Limestone and Chillicothe Road, -and the Zanesville Pike; the Maysville and Zanesville Turnpike was -constructed between Zanesville and the Ohio River. At Zanesville the -road today is familiarly known as the Maysville Pike while in Kentucky -it is commonly called the Zanesville Pike. - -"When the Indian trail gets widened, graded and bridged to a good road," -wrote Emerson, "there is a benefactor, there is a missionary, a -pacificator, a wealth-bringer, a maker of markets, a vent for -industry."[42] The little road here under consideration is unique among -American highways in its origin and in its history. It was demanded, not -by war, but by civilization, not for exploration and settlement but by -settlements that were already made and in need of communion and -commerce. It was created by an act of Congress as truly as the -Cumberland Road, which soon should, in part, supersede it. And finally -it was on the subject of the Maysville Turnpike that the question of -internal improvement by the national government was at last decided -when, in 1830, President Jackson signed that veto which made the name -of Maysville a household word throughout the United States. - -In 1825, after a delay which created great suspense in the West, the -Cumberland Road at last leaped the Ohio River at Wheeling. Zane's Trace, -now a wide, much-traveled avenue, offered a route westward to Zanesville -which could be but little improved upon. The blazed tree gave way to the -mile-stone and the pannier and saddle-bag to the rumbling stagecoach and -the chaise. It is all a pretty, quiet picture and its story is totally -unlike that of Boone's rough path over the Cumberlands. For settlements -sprang up rapidly in this land of plenty; we have seen that there were -beginnings at Chillicothe and Zanesville when Sample passed this way in -1797. By 1800, Zane's lots at the crossing of the Hockhocking (first -known as New Lancaster, and later as Lancaster--from the town of that -name in Pennsylvania) were selling; his terms and inducements to -settlers, especially mechanics, are particularly interesting.[43] - -As intimated, the Kentucky division of the Maysville Pike--leading from -the Ohio River through Washington, Paris, and Lexington--became famous -in that it was made a test case to determine whether or not the -Government had the right to assist in the building of purely state -(local) roads by taking shares in local turnpike companies. - -This much-mooted question was settled once for all by President Andrew -Jackson's veto of "A Bill Authorizing a subscription of stock in the -Maysville, Washington, Paris, and Lexington Turnpike Road Company," -which was passed by the House February 24, 1830. It read:[44] "_Be it -enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States -of America in Congress assembled_, That the Secretary of the Treasury -be, and he is hereby, authorized and directed to subscribe, in the name -and for the use of the United States, for fifteen hundred shares of the -capital stock of the Maysville, Washington, Paris, and Lexington -Turnpike Road Company, and to pay for the same at such times, and in -such proportions, as shall be required of, and paid by, the stockholders -generally, by the rules and regulations of the aforesaid company, to be -paid out of any money in the Treasury, not otherwise appropriated: -_Provided_, That not more than one-third part of the sum, so subscribed -for the use of the United States, shall be demanded in the present year, -nor shall any greater sum be paid on the shares so subscribed for, than -shall be proportioned to assessments made on individual or corporate -stockholders. - -"SEC. 2. _And be it further enacted_, That the said Secretary of the -Treasury shall vote for the President and Directors of the aforesaid -company, according to such number of shares as the United States may, at -any time, hold in the stock thereof, and shall receive upon the said -stock the proportion of the tolls which shall, from time to time, be due -to the United States for the shares aforesaid, and shall have and enjoy, -in behalf of the United States, every other right of stockholder in said -Company." - -In his first annual message to Congress, dated December 8, 1829, -President Jackson stated plainly his attitude to the great question of -internal improvements. "As ... the period approaches when the -application of the revenue to the payment of [national] debt will cease, -the disposition of the surplus will present a subject for the serious -deliberation of Congress.... Considered in connection with the -difficulties which have heretofore attended appropriations for purposes -of internal improvement, and with those which this experience tells us -will certainly arise whenever power over such subjects may be exercised -by the General Government, it is hoped that it may lead to the adoption -of some plan which will reconcile the diversified interests of the -States and strengthen the bonds which unite them.... To avoid these -evils it appears to me that the most safe, just, and federal disposition -which could be made of the surplus revenue would be its apportionment -among the several States according to their ratio of representation, and -should this measure not be found warranted by the Constitution that it -would be expedient to propose to the States an amendment authorizing -it."[45] - -In his veto of the Maysville Road bill President Jackson quoted the -above paragraphs from his annual message, and, after citing both -Madison's and Monroe's positions as to internal improvements of pure -local character, continues: - -"The bill before me does not call for a more definate opinion upon the -particular circumstances which will warrent appropriations of money by -Congress to aid works of internal improvement, for although the -extention of the power to apply money beyond that of carrying into -effect the object for which it is appropriated has, as we have seen, -been long claimed and exercised by the Federal Government, yet such -grants have always been professedly under the control of the general -principle that the works which might be thus aided should be 'of a -general, not local, national, not State,' character. A disregard of this -distinction would of necessity lead to the subversion of the federal -system. That even this is an unsafe one, arbitrary in its nature, and -liable, consequently, to great abuses, is too obvious to require the -confirmation of experience. It is, however, sufficiently definate and -imperative to my mind to forbid my approbation of any bill having -the character of the one under consideration. I have given to its -provisions ... reflection ... but I am not able to view it in any other -light than as a measure of purely local character; or, if it can be -considered national, that no further distinction between the appropriate -duties of the General and State Governments need be attempted, for there -can be no local interest that may not with equal propriety be -denominated national. It has no connection with any established system -of improvements; is exclusively within the limits of a State, starting -at a point on the Ohio River and running out 60 miles to an interior -town, and even as far as the State is interested conferring partial -instead of general advantages. - -"Considering the magnitude and importance of the power, and the -embarrassments to which, from the very nature of the thing, its -exercise must necessarily be subjected, the real friends of internal -improvement ought not to be willing to confide it to accident and -chance. What is properly _national_ in its character or otherwise is an -inquiry which is often extremely difficult of solution.... - -"If it be the wish of the people that the construction of roads and -canals should be conducted by the Federal Government, it is not only -highly expedient, but indispensably necessary, that a previous amendment -of the Constitution, delegating the necessary power and defining and -restricting its exercise with reference to the sovereignty of the -States, should be made. The right to exercise as much jurisdiction as is -necessary to preserve the works and to raise funds by the collection of -tolls to keep them in repair can not be dispensed with. The Cumberland -Road should be an instructive admonition of the consequences of acting -without this right. Year after year contests are witnessed, growing out -of efforts to obtain the necessary appropriations for completing and -repairing this useful work. Whilst one Congress may claim and exercise -the power, a succeeding one may deny it; and this fluctuation of opinion -must be unavoidably fatal to any scheme which from its extent would -promote the interests and elevate the character of the country.... - -"That a constitutional adjustment of this power upon equitable -principles is in the highest degree desirable can scarcely be doubted, -nor can it fail to be promoted by every sincere friend to the success of -our political institutions."[46] - -The effect of Jackson's veto was far-reaching. It not only put an end to -all thought of national aid to such local improvements as the Maysville -Turnpike, but deprived such genuinely national promotions as the -Baltimore and Ohio Railway of all hope of national aid. "President -Jackson had strongly expressed his opposition to aiding state -enterprises and schemes of internal improvement by appropriations from -the central government," records a historian of that great enterprise; -"from whatever source the opposition may have come, the [Baltimore and -Ohio Railway] company recognized that it must not hope for aid from the -national government."[47] The significance of Jackson's veto could not -be more strongly presented. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -PIONEER TRAVEL IN KENTUCKY - - -The following interesting and vivid picture of early travel in Kentucky -is taken from Judge James Hall's _Legends of the West_ (Philadelphia, -1832); though largely a work of fiction, such descriptions as these are -as lifelike as the original picture. - - -The place at which the party landed was a small village on the bank of -the [Ohio] river, distant about fifty miles from a settlement in the -interior to which they were destined. - -"Here we are on dry land once more," said the Englishman as he jumped -ashore; "come, Mr. Logan, let us go to the stage-house and take our -seats." Logan smiled, and followed his companion. - -"My good friend," said Edgarton, to a tall, sallow man in a -hunting-shirt, who sat on a log by the river with a rifle in his lap, -"can you direct us to the stage-house?" - -"Well, I can't say that I can." - -"Perhaps you do not understand what we want," said Edgarton; "we wish to -take seats in a mail-coach for ----." - -"Well, stranger, it's my sentimental belief that there isn't a coach, -male or female, in the county." - -"This fellow is ignorant of our meaning," said Edgarton to Logan. - -"What's that you say, stranger? I _spose maybe_ you think I never _seed_ -a coach? Well, it's a free country, and every man has a right to think -what he pleases; but I reckon I've saw as many of _them are fixens_ as -any other man. I was raised in Tennessee. I saw General Jackson once -riding in the elegantest carriage that ever mortal man _sot_ his eyes -on--with glass winders to it like a house, and _sort o'_ silk -_curtings_. The harness was mounted with silver; it was _drawd_ by four -blooded nags, and _druv_ by a mighty likely _nigger_ boy." - -The travellers passed on, and soon learned that there was indeed no -stage in the country. Teams and carriages of any kind were difficult to -be procured; and it was with some difficulty that two stout wagons were -at last hired to carry Mr. Edgarton's movables, and a _dearborn_ -obtained to convey his family, it being agreed that one of the gentlemen -should drive the latter vehicle while the other walked, alternately. -Arrangements were accordingly made to set out the next morning. - -The settlement in which Mr. Edgarton had judiciously determined to pitch -his tent, and enjoy the healthful innocence and rural felicity of the -farmer's life, was new; and the country to be traversed to reach it -entirely unsettled. There were two or three houses scattered through the -wilderness on the road, one of which the party might have reached by -setting out early in the morning, and they had determined to do so. But -there was so much fixing and preparing to be done, so much stowing of -baggage and packing of trunks, such momentous preparations to guard -against cold and heat, hunger and thirst, fatigue, accident, robbery, -disease, and death, that it was near noon before the cavalcade was -prepared to move. Even then they were delayed some minutes longer to -give Mr. Edgarton time to oil the screws and renew the charges of his -double-barrel gun and pocket-pistols. In vain he was told there were no -highwaymen in America. His way lay chiefly through uninhabited forests; -and he considered it a fact in natural history, as indisputable as any -other elementary principle, that every such forest has its robbers. -After all, he entirely neglected to put flints in his bran new locks -instead of the wooden substitutes which the maker had placed there to -protect his work from injury; and thus "doubly armed," he announced his -readiness to start with an air of truly comic heroism. - -When they began their journey, new terrors arose. The road was -sufficiently plain and firm for all rational purposes; that is to say, -it _would do_ very well for those who only wanted to get along, and were -content to make the best of it. It was a mere path beaten by a -succession of travellers. No avenue had been cut for it through the -woods; but the first pioneers had wound their way among the trees, -avoiding obstacles by going round them, as the snake winds through the -grass, and those who followed had trodden in their footsteps, until they -had beaten a smooth road sufficiently wide to admit the passage of a -single wagon. On either side was the thick forest, sometimes grown up -with underbrush to the margin of the _trace_, and sometimes so open as -to allow the eye to roam off to a considerable distance. Above was a -dense canopy of interwoven branches. The wild and lonesome appearance, -the deep shade, the interminable gloom of the woods, were frightful to -our travellers. The difference between a wild forest in the simple -majesty of nature, and the woodlands of cultivated countries, is very -great. In the latter the underbrush has been removed by art or destroyed -by domestic animals; the trees as they arrive at their growth are felled -for use, and the remainder, less crowded, assume the spreading and -rounded form of cultivated trees. The sunbeams reach the soil through -the scattered foliage, the ground is trodden by grazing animals, and a -hard sod is formed. However secluded such a spot may be, it bears the -marks of civilization; the lowing of cattle is heard, and many species -of songsters that hover round the habitations of men, and are never seen -in the wilderness, here warble their notes. In the western forests of -America all is grand and savage. The truth flashes instantly upon the -mind of the observer, with the force of conviction, that Nature has been -carrying on her operations here for ages undisturbed. The leaf has -fallen from year to year; succeeding generations of trees have -mouldered, spreading over the surface layer upon layer of decayed fibre, -until the soil has acquired an astonishing depth and an unrivalled -fertility. From this rich bed the trees are seen rearing their shafts to -an astonishing height. The tendency of plants towards the light is well -understood; of course, when trees are crowded closely together, instead -of spreading, they shoot upwards, each endeavouring, as it were, to -overtop his neighbours, and expending the whole force of the vegetative -powers in rearing a great trunk to the greatest possible height, and -then throwing out a top like an umbrella to the rays of the sun. The -functions of vitality are carried on with vigor at the extremities, -while the long stem is bare of leaves or branches; and when the -undergrowth is removed nothing can exceed the gloomy grandeur of the -elevated arches of foliage, supported by pillars of majestic size and -venerable appearance. The great thickness and age of many of the trees -is another striking peculiarity. They grow from age to age, attaining a -gigantic size, and then fall, with a tremendous force, breaking down all -that stands in their downward way, and heaping a great pile of timber on -the ground, where it remains untouched until it is converted into soil. -Mingled with all our timber are seen aspiring vines, which seem to have -commenced their growth with that of the young trees, and risen with -them, their tops still flourishing together far above the earth, while -their stems are alike bare. The undergrowth consists of dense thickets, -made up of the offspring of the larger trees, mixed with thorns, briers, -dwarfish vines, and a great variety of shrubs. The ground is never -covered with a firm sward, and seldom bears the grasses, or smaller -plants, being covered from year to year with a dense mass of dried and -decaying leaves, and shrouded in eternal shade. - -Such was the scene that met the eyes of our travellers, and had they -been treated to a short excursion to the moon they would scarcely have -witnessed any thing more novel. The wide-spread and trackless ocean had -scarcely conveyed to their imaginations so vivid an impression of the -vast and solitary grandeur of Nature, in her pathless wildernesses. They -could hardly realize the expectation of travelling safely through such -savage shades. The path, which could be seen only a few yards in -advance, seemed continually to have terminated, leaving them no choice -but to retrace their steps. Sometimes they came to a place where a tree -had fallen across the road, and Edgarton would stop under the -supposition that any further attempt to proceed was hopeless--until he -saw the American drivers forsaking the track, guiding their teams among -the trees, crushing down the young saplings that stood in their way, and -thus winding round the obstacle, and back to the road, often through -thickets so dense, that to the stranger's eye it seemed as if neither -man nor beast could penetrate them. Sometimes on reaching the brink of a -ravine or small stream, the bridge of logs, which previous travellers -had erected, was found to be broken down, or the ford rendered -impassable; and the wagoners with the same imperturbable good nature, -and as if such accidents were matters of course, again left the road, -and seeking out a new crossing-place, passed over with scarcely the -appearance of difficulty. - -Once they came to a sheet of water, extending as far as the eye could -reach, the tall trees standing in it as thickly as upon the dry ground, -with tufts of grass and weeds instead of the usual undergrowth. - -"Is there a ferry here?" inquired Edgarton. - -"Oh no, sir, it's nothing but _a slash_." - -"What's that?" - -"Why, sir, jist a sort o' swamp." - -"What in the world shall we do?" - -"We'll jist put right ahead, sir; there's no dif-_fick_-ulty; it's nice -good driving all about here. It's sort o' muddy, but there's good bottom -to it all the way." - -On they went. To Edgarton it was like going to sea; for no road could be -seen; nothing but the trackless surface of the water; but instead of -looking down, where his eye could have penetrated to the bottom, he was -glancing forward in the vain hope of seeing dry land. Generally the -water was but a few inches deep, but sometimes they soused into a hole; -then Edgarton groaned and the ladies screamed; and sometimes it got -gradually deeper until the hubs of the wheels were immersed, and the -Englishman then called to the wagoners to stop. - -"Don't be afeard, sir," one of them replied, "it is not bad; why this -ain't nothing; it's right good going; it ain't a-going to swim your -horse, no how." - -"Anything seems a good road to you where the horse will not have to -swim," replied the Englishman surlily. - -"Why, bless you," said the backwoodsman, "this ain't no part of a -priming to places that I've seed afore, no how. I've seed race paths in -a worse fix than this. Don't you reckon, stranger, that if my team can -drag this here heavy wagon, loaded down with plunder, you can sartainly -get along with that _ar_ little carry-all, and nothing on the face of -the _yeath_ to tote, but jist the women and children?" - -They had but one such swamp to pass. It was only about half a mile wide, -and after travelling that far through the water, the firm soil of the -woods, which before seemed gloomy, became cheerful by contrast; and -Edgarton found at last, that however unpleasant such travelling may be -to those who are not accustomed to it, it has really no dangers but such -as are imaginary. - -As the cavalcade proceeded slowly, the ladies found it most pleasant to -walk wherever the ground was sufficiently dry. Mrs. Edgarton and the -children might be seen sauntering along, and keeping close to the -carriage, for fear of being lost or captured by some nondescript monster -of the wild, yet often halting to gather nosegays of wild flowers, or to -examine some of the many natural curiosities which surrounded them.... - -The sun was about to set when the wagoners halted at an open spot, -covered with a thick carpet of short grass, on the margin of a small -stream of clear water. On inquiring the reason, Mr. Edgarton was assured -that this was the best _campground_ on the route, and as there was no -house within many miles, it was advisable to make arrangements for -passing the night there. - -"Impossible!" exclaimed the European gentleman; "what! lie on the ground -like beasts! we shall all catch our death of cold!" - -"I should never live through the night," groaned his fair partner.... - -"Don't let us stay here in the dark, papa," cried the children. - -Logan expressed the opinion that an encampment might be made quite -comfortable, and the sentimental Julia declared that it would be -"delightful!" Edgarton imprecated maledictions on the beggarly country -which could not afford inns for travellers, and wondered if they -expected a gentleman to nestle among the leaves like Robin Hood's -foresters.... - -This storm, like other sudden gusts, soon blew over, and the party began -in earnest to make the best of a bad business by rendering their -situation as comfortable as possible. The wagoners, though highly amused -at the fears of their companions, showed great alacrity and kindness in -their endeavours to dissipate the apprehensions and provide for the -comfort of foreigners; and, assisted by Mr. Logan, soon prepared a -shelter. This was made by planting some large stakes in the ground, in -the form of a square, filling up the sides and covering the tops with -smaller poles, and suspending blankets over and around it, so as to form -a complete enclosure. Mrs. Edgarton had a carpet taken from the wagons -and spread on the ground; on this the beds were unpacked and laid, -trunks were arranged for seats, and the emigrants surprised at finding -themselves in a comfortable apartment, became as merry as they had been -before despondent. A fire was kindled and the teakettle boiled, and -there being a large store of bread and provisions already prepared, an -excellent repast was soon placed before them, and eaten with the relish -produced by severe exercise. - -The night had now closed in, but the blaze of a large fire and the -light of several candles threw a brilliant gleam over the spot and -heightened the cheerfulness of the evening meal. The arrangements for -sleeping were very simple. The tent, which had been divided into two -apartments by a curtain suspended in the middle, accommodated all of Mr. -Edgarton's household: Logan drew on his greatcoat, and spreading a -single blanket on the ground, threw himself down with his feet to the -fire; the teamsters crept into their wagons, and the several parties -soon enjoyed that luxury which, if Shakspeare may be believed, is often -denied to the "head that wears a crown." - -The light of the morning brought with it cheerfulness and merriment. -Refreshed from the fatigues of the preceding day, inspired with new -confidence, and amused by the novelties that surrounded them, the -emigrants were in high spirits. Breakfast was hastily prepared, and the -happy party, seated in a circle on the grass, enjoyed their meal with a -keen relish. The horses were then harnessed and the cavalcade renewed -its march. - -The day was far advanced when they began to rise to more elevated ground -than that over which they had travelled. The appearance of the woods was -sensibly changed. They were now travelling over a high upland tract with -a gently-waving surface, and instead of the rank vegetation, the dense -foliage and gloomy shades by which they had been surrounded, beheld -woodlands composed of smaller trees thinly scattered and intermingled -with rich thickets of young timber. The growth though thick was low, so -that the rays of the sun penetrated through many openings, and the -beaten path which they pursued was entirely exposed to the genial beams. -Groves of the wild apple, the plum, and the cherry, now in full bloom, -added a rich beauty to the scene and a delightful fragrance to the air. - -But the greatest natural curiosity and the most attractive scenic -exhibitions of our Western hemisphere was still in reserve; and a -spontaneous expression of wonder and delight burst from the whole party, -as they emerged from the woods and stood on the edge of _a prairie_. -They entered a long vista, carpeted with grass, interspersed with -numberless flowers, among which the blue violet predominated; while the -edges of the forest on either hand were elegantly fringed with low -thickets loaded with blossoms--those of the plum and cherry of snowy -whiteness, and those of the crab-apple of a delicate pink. Above and -beyond these were seen the rich green, the irregular outline, and the -variegated light and shade of the forest. As if to produce the most -beautiful perspective, and to afford every variety of aspect, the vista -increased in width until it opened like the estuary of a great river -into the broad prairie, and as our travellers advanced the woodlands -receded on either hand, and sometimes indented by smaller avenues -opening into the woods, and sometimes throwing out points of timber, so -that the boundary of the plain resembled the irregular outline of a -shore as traced on a map. - -[Illustration: PIONEER VIEW OF HOUSES AT FORT CUMBERLAND, MARYLAND] - -Delighted with the lovely aspect of Nature in these the most tasteful of -her retreats, the party lingered along until they reached the margin of -the broad prairie, where a noble expanse of scenery of the same -character was spread out on a larger scale. They stood on a rising -ground, and beheld before them a vast plain, undulating in its surface -so as to present to the eye a series of swells and depressions, never -broken nor abrupt, but always regular, and marked by curved lines. Here -and there was seen a deep ravine or drain, by which the superfluous -water was carried off, the sides of which were thickly set with willows. -Clumps of elm and oak were scattered about far apart like little -islands; a few solitary trees were seen, relieving the eye as it -wandered over the ocean-like surface of this native meadow. - -It so happened that a variety of accidents and delays impeded the -progress of our emigrants, so that the shadows of evening began to fall -upon them, while they were yet far from the termination of their -journey, and it became necessary again to seek a place of repose for the -night. The prospect of encamping again had lost much of its terrors, but -they were relieved from the contemplation of this last resource of the -houseless, by the agreeable information that they were drawing near the -house of a farmer who was in the habit of "accommodating travellers." -It was further explained that Mr. Goodman did not keep a public-house, -but that he was "well off," "had houseroom enough, and plenty to eat," -and that "_of course_," according to the hospitable customs of the -country, he entertained any strangers who sought shelter under his roof. -Thither they bent their steps, anticipating from the description of it a -homestead much larger and more comfortable than the cheerless-looking -log-cabins which had thus far greeted their eyes, and which seemed to -compose the only dwellings of the population. - -On arriving at the place, they were a little disappointed to find that -the abundance of _houseroom_ which had been promised them was a mere -figure of speech, an idiomatic expression by a native, having a -comparative signification. The dwelling was a log house, differing from -others only in being of a larger size and better construction. The logs -were hewed and squared instead of being put up in their original state, -with the bark on; the apertures were carefully closed, and the openings -representing windows, instead of being stopped when urgent occasion -required the exclusion of the atmosphere, by hats, old baskets, or -cast-off garments, were filled with glass, in imitation of the dwellings -of more highly civilized lands. The wealth of this farmer, consisting -chiefly of the _plenty to eat_ which had been boasted, was amply -illustrated by the noisy and numerous crowd of chickens, ducks, turkeys, -pigs, and cattle, that cackled, gobbled, and grunted about the house, -filling the air with social though discordant sounds, and so obstructing -the way as scarcely to leave room for the newly-arrived party to -approach the door. - -As the cavalcade halted, the foremost driver made the fact known by a -vociferous salutation. - -"Hal-low! Who keeps house?" - -A portly dame made her appearance at the door, and was saluted with,-- - -"How de do, ma'am--all well, ma'am?" - -"All right well, thank you, sir." - -"Here's some strangers that wants lodging; can we get to stay all night -with you?" - -"Well, I don't know; _he's_ not at home, and I harly know what to say." - -"I'll answer for _him_," replied the driver, who understood distinctly -that the pronoun used so emphatically by the good lady alluded to her -inferior moiety; "he wouldn't turn away strangers at this time of day -when the chickens is jist goin to roost. We've ben a travellin all day, -and our critters is mighty tired and hungry, as well as the rest of us." - -"Well," said the woman, very cheerfully, "I reckon you can stay; if you -can put up with such fare as we have, you are very welcome. My man will -be back soon; he's only jist gone up to town." - -The whole party were now received into the dwelling of the backwoodsman -by the smiling and voluble hostess, whose assiduous cordiality placed -them at once at their ease in spite of the plain and primitive, and to -them uncomfortable aspect of the log house. Indeed, nothing could be -more uninviting in appearance to those who were accustomed only to the -more convenient dwellings of a state of society farther advanced in the -arts of social life. It was composed of two large apartments or -separate cabins, connected by an area or space which was floored and -roofed, but open at the sides, and which served as a convenient -receptacle to hang saddles, bridles, and harness, or to stow travellers' -baggage, while in fine weather it served as a place in which to eat or -sit. - -In the room into which our party was shown there was neither plastering -nor paper, nor any device of modern ingenuity to conceal the bare logs -that formed the sides of the house, neither was there a carpet on the -floor, nor any furniture for mere ornament. The absence of all -superfluities and of many of the conveniences usually deemed essential -in household economy was quite striking. A table, a few chairs, a small -looking-glass, some cooking utensils, and a multitudinous array of -women's apparel, hung round on wooden pins, as if for show, made up the -meagre list, whether for parade or use, with the addition of several -bedsteads closely ranged on one side of the room, supporting beds of the -most plethoric and dropsical dimensions, covered with clean cotton -bedding, and ostentatiously tricked out with gaudy, parti-colored -quilts. - -The "man" soon made his appearance, a stout, weatherbeaten person, of -rough exterior, but not less hospitably disposed than his better half, -and the whole household were now actively astir to furnish forth the -evening's repast, nor was their diligent kindness, nor the inquisitive -though respectful cross-examination which accompanied it, at all -diminished when they discovered that their guests were English people. -Soon the ample fire-place, extending almost across one end of the house, -was piled full of blazing logs; the cries of affrighted fowls and other -significant notes of preparation announced that active operations were -commenced in the culinary department. An array of pots and kettles, -skillets, ovens, and frying-pans, covered the hearth, and the astonished -travellers discovered that the room they occupied was not only used as a -bedchamber, but "served them for parlour, and kitchen, and hall." - -We shall not attempt to describe the processes of making bread, cooking -meat and vegetables, and preparing the delightful beverage of the -evening meal, a portion of which took place in the presence of the -surprised and amused guests, while other parts were conducted under a -shed out of doors. A large table was soon spread with clean linen, and -covered with a profusion of viands such as probably could not be found -on the board of the mere peasant or labouring farmer in any other part -of the world.[48] Coffee was there, with sweet milk and buttermilk in -abundance; fried chickens, venison, and ham: cheese, sweetmeats, -pickles, dried fruit, and honey; bread of wheat and corn, hot biscuits -and cakes, with fresh butter; all well prepared and neat, and all -pressed upon the hungry travellers with officious hospitality. Had the -entertainment been furnished in regal style at some enchanted castle by -invisible hands, the guests could scarcely have been more surprised by -the profusion and variety of the backwoods repast, so far did the result -produced exceed the apparent means afforded by the desolate-looking and -scantily-furnished cabin. - -If our worthy travellers were surprised by the novelties of backwoods -_inn_-hospitality which thus far had pressed upon them, how much was -their wonder increased when the hour for retiring arrived, and the -landlady apologized for being obliged to separate guests from their -hosts. - -"Our family is so large," said the woman, "that we have to have two -rooms. I shall have to put all of you strangers into a room by -yourselves." - -The party were accordingly conducted into the other apartment, which was -literally filled with arrangements for sleeping, there being several -bedsteads, each of which was closely curtained with sheets, blankets, -and coverlids hung around it for the occasion, while the whole floor was -strewed with pallets. Here Mr. Edgarton and his whole party, including -Logan and the teamsters, were expected to sleep. A popular poet, in -allusion to this patriarchal custom, impertinently remarks, - - Some cavillers - Object to sleep with fellow-travellers. - -And on this occasion the objection was uttered vehemently, the ladies -declaring that martyrdom in any shape would be preferable to lodging -thus like a drove of cattle. Unreasonable as such scruples might have -seemed, they were so pertinaciously adhered to on the one side, and so -obstinately resisted by the exceedingly difficult nature of the case on -the other, that there is no knowing to what extremities matters might -have gone, had not a compromise been effected by which Logan and the -wagon-drivers were transferred into the room occupied by the farmer's -family, while the Edgartons, the sister, the maid, the greyhound, the -pug-dog, and the parrot, remained sole occupants of the apartment -prepared for them. - - - - -FOOTNOTES: - - -[1] _Diary of George Washington, Sept. 2 to Oct. 4, 1784._ - -[2] Cf. "Journal of Lieut. Robert Parker," _The Pennsylvania Magazine_, -vol. xxvii, No. 108, pp. 404-420. - -[3] _Historic Highways of America_, vol. v, p. 93. - -[4] _Wisconsin Historical Collections_, vol. xi, p. 230. - -[5] _Public Documents Relating to the New York Canals_ (New York, 1821), -p. 312. - -[6] _Id._, pp. 352-353. - -[7] _A Pedestrious Tour_, by Estwick Evans. - -[8] _Historic Highways of America_, vol. xiii, ch. 4. - -[9] Watson's _Annals of Philadelphia_, vol. i, p. 257. - -[10] See "Hulme's Journal" in W. Cobbett's _A Year's Residence in the -United States_ (1819), p. 490. - -[11] D. Hewett's _American Traveller_ (1825), p. 222. - -[11*] It is curious to note that while the introduction of coaches is -said here to be injurious to the breed of horses, Macaulay, a century or -so later, decried the passing of the coach and the old coaching days -because this, too, meant the destruction of the breed of horses!--See -_Historic Highways of America_, vol. x, p. 122. - -[12] Florida Avenue is said to have been the first street laid out on -the present site of Washington, D. C. As it is the most crooked of all -the streets and avenues this is easy to believe. - -[13] _Retrospect of Western Travel_, vol. i, pp. 88-89. - -[14] Moore's notes are as follows: - -On "ridges" (line 3): "What Mr. Weld [an English traveler in America] -says of the national necessity of balancing or trimming the stage, in -passing over some of the wretched roads in America, is by no means -exaggerated. 'The driver frequently had to call to the passengers in the -stage to lean out of the carriage, first on one side, then on the other, -to prevent it from oversetting in the deep ruts, with which the road -abounds. "Now, gentlemen, to the right!" upon which the passengers all -stretched their bodies half out of the carriage to balance on that side. -"Now, gentlemen, to the left!" and so on.'--_Weld's Travels._" - -On "bridges" (line 4): "Before the stage can pass one of these bridges -the driver is obliged to stop and arrange the loose planks, of which it -is composed, in the manner that best suits his ideas of safety, and as -the planks are again disturbed by the passing of the coach, the next -travelers who arrive have, of course, a new arrangement to make. -Mahomet, as Sale tells us, was at some pains to imagine a precarious -kind of bridge for the entrance of paradise, in order to enhance the -pleasures of arrival. A Virginia bridge, I think, would have answered -his purpose completely." - -[15] _Sketch of the Civil Engineering of North America_, pp. 132-133. - -[16] "The Oldest Turnpike in Pennsylvania," by Edward B. Moore, in -Philadelphia _Press_ or Delaware County _American_, June 22, 1901; and -"The Old Turnpike," by A. E. Witmer in _Lancaster County Historical -Society Papers_, vol. ii (November, 1897), pp. 67-86. - -[17] Sherman Day, _Historical Collections of the State of Pennsylvania_ -(Philadelphia, 1843). - -[18] The rise of the Pennsylvania canal and railway system will be -treated in chapter four of _Historic Highways of America_, vol. xiii. - -[18*] For these and other facts concerning plank roads we are indebted -to W. Kingsford's _History, Structure and Statistics of Plank Roads_ -(1852). - -[19] The frontispiece to this volume represents a mile-stone which was -erected beside Braddock's old road, near Frostburg, Maryland, during the -Revolutionary War. On the reverse side it bears the legend, "Our -Countrys Rights We Will Defend." On the front these words can be traced: -"[12 ?] Miles to Fort Cumberland 29 Miles to Capt Smith's Inn & Bridge -by Crossings. [Smithfield, Pennsylvania] the Best Road to Redstone Old -Fort 64 M." The stone was once taken away for building purposes and -broken; the town authorities of Frostburg ordered it to be cemented, -returned and set up on its old-time site. - -[20] The Lancaster Turnpike. - -[21] "In these stages," as Brissot [Jean Pierre Brissot de Warville, -_New Travels in the United States_ (London, 1794)] observes, "you meet -with men of all professions. The member of congress is placed by the -side of the shoemaker who elected him; they fraternise together, and -converse with familiarity. You see no person here take upon him those -important airs which you too often meet with in England."--BAILY. - -[22] It consists of several layers of large logs laid longitudinally, -and parallel to each other, and covered at the top with earth.--BAILY. - -[23] The sleighs not making any noise when in motion over the snow, the -horses are obliged by law to have little bells fastened around their -necks, to warn foot-passengers of their approach.--BAILY. - -[24] I was in company with a gentleman of the name of Heighway, who was -going down to the northwestern settlement to form a plantation.--BAILY. -See p. 144. - -[25] By D. Hewett's _American Traveller_, the principal points on the -Washington-Pittsburg route are given as follows: - - Distance. - Montgomery c. h. 14. - Clarksburg 13. - Monocasy River 8. - Fredericktown 7. - Hagerstown 27. - Pennsylvania State line 8. - M'Connell'stown 20. - Junietta River 17. - Bedford 14. - Stoyestown 27. - Summit of Laurel Hill 13. - Greensburg 26. - Pittsburg 32. - - Total 226. - -[26] Mr. Hewett gives this note of Montgomery C. H.: "This village is -also called Rockville. There is an extremely bad turnpike from -Washington to this place, so much so, that the man who keeps the toll -house, _after_ having taken toll, recommends travellers to go the _ola -road_."--p. 51. - -[27] All the inns and public-houses on the road are called -taverns.--BAILY. - -[28] Clarksburg. - -[29] Hagar's-town is ten miles from Boone's-town.--BAILY. - -[30] McDowell's Mill. - -[31] Mr. Heighway, an Englishman who settled now at Waynesville, Warren -County, Ohio.--_History of Warren County, Ohio_ (Chicago, 1882), p. 412. - -[32] _Historic Highways of America_, vol. ii, p. 109. - -[33] The patriot-pioneer of Wheeling, the first settlement on the Ohio -River below Pittsburg, which he founded in 1769, and where he lived -until 1811. He was born in Virginia in 1747. - -[34] The importance of the historic _entrepot_ Limestone Mason County, -Kentucky (later named Maysville from one of its first inhabitants) has -been suggested in Volume IX of this series (pp. 70, 89, 128). It was the -most important entrance point into Kentucky on its northeastern river -shore-line. What it was in earliest days, because of the buffalo trail -into the interior, it remained down through the earlier and later -pioneer era to the time of the building of the trunk railway lines. - -[35] _United States Statutes at Large, Private Laws 1789-1845, -inclusive_, p. 27. - -[36] _American Pioneer_, vol. i, p. 158. - -[37] An exaggerated statement, yet much in accord with the truth, as we -have previously observed. - -[38] County seat of Adams County, Ohio. - -[39] Evans and Stivers, _History of Adams County, Ohio_, p. 125. - -[40] Wilcoxon's clearing, Sinking Spring, Highland County, Ohio.--_Id._, -p. 125. - -[41] _Id._, p. 88. - -[42] _Society and Solitude_, essay on "Civilization," pp. 25-26. - -[43] See Graham's _History of Fairfield and Perry Counties, Ohio_, pp. -133-134. - -[44] _Bills & Resolutions, House Reps., 1st Sess., 21st Cong., Part 2, -1829 & '30_, H. R., p. 285. - -[45] Richardson's _Messages and Papers of the Presidents_, vol. ii, pp. -451, 452. - -[46] _Id._, pp. 483-493. - -[47] Reizenstein's "The Economic History of the Baltimore and Ohio -Railroad," _Johns Hopkins Studies in Historical and Political Science_, -fifteenth series, vii-viii, p. 23. - -[48] I cannot resist the opportunity of nailing to the counter a -wretched fabrication of some traveller, who represents himself as -dismounting at a Western house of entertainment, and inquiring the price -of a dinner. The answer is, "Well, stranger--with wheat bread and -chicken fixens, it would be fifty cents, but with corn bread and common -doins, twenty-five cents." The slang here used is of the writer's own -invention. No one ever heard in the West of "chicken fixens," or "common -doins." On such occasions, the table is spread with everything that the -house affords, or with whatever may be convenient, according to the -means and temper of the entertainers. A meal is a meal, and the cost is -the same, whether it be plentiful or otherwise.--HALL. - - - * * * * * - - -Transcriber's Notes: - -1. Passages in italics are surrounded by _underscores_. - -2. Obvious errors in spelling and punctuation have been corrected. - -3. Footnotes have been moved to the end of the main text body. - -4. 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