Virginia illustrated : containing a visit to the Virginian Canaan, and the adventures of Porte Crayon and his cousins . Mr. C. remon-strated with the toll-gatherer, but to no purpose. About fivemiles and a half from Lynchburg our adventurers were descend-ing a hill. The hill was very steep—so steep that the driver wasobliged to zigzag his horses to check the impetus of the road at that point was of good old conservative corduroy—corded with stout saplings of various diameters, a species of rail-road much used in the Old Dominion. They had descendedmany such hills before, and as th
Virginia illustrated : containing a visit to the Virginian Canaan, and the adventures of Porte Crayon and his cousins . Mr. C. remon-strated with the toll-gatherer, but to no purpose. About fivemiles and a half from Lynchburg our adventurers were descend-ing a hill. The hill was very steep—so steep that the driver wasobliged to zigzag his horses to check the impetus of the road at that point was of good old conservative corduroy—corded with stout saplings of various diameters, a species of rail-road much used in the Old Dominion. They had descendedmany such hills before, and as they neared the bottom. Mice, ac-cording to custom, let his horses out. Down they rattled at fullspeed. The corduroy terminated in a mud-hole—so did the car-riage. With a terrific crash, the fore-axle broke sheer in two, thewheels rolled ofi* to either side, and the dashboard plowed themud. Porte Crayon, in a state of bewilderment, found himselfastride of the roan, without knowing precisely how he got there,while Mices bullet-head struck the unlucky sorrel such a blow onthe rump that he squatted like a RAILROAD ACCIDENT. Crayon, with that admirable presence of mind which character-izes him, immediately dismounted, and lost no time in rescuing EAIL-KOAD ACCIDENT. 225 his rifle from the wreck. Ascertaininsf to his satisfaction that itwas not hurt, he gallantly rushed to the assistance of the found them in the fore part of the carriage, mixed up in asort of olla podrida composed of shawls, baskets, bonnets, coldmeat, geological specimens, apples, a variety of shrubbery more orless dried, biscuits and butter, skins and feathers, trophies of thechase, and other ingredients not remembered. Are you all alive? inquired he, anxiously. Three voices replied in a rather doubtful affirmative. The doorwas with some difficulty forced open, and the living were deliv-ered from their entanglement without further damage—a workthat required no little delicacy and judgment.
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1850, booksubjectvirginiasociallifean
