第97章

At some distance from the railroad, Mr. Smooth-it-away pointed to alarge, antique edifice, which, he observed, was a tavern of longstanding, and had formerly been a noted stopping-place for pilgrims.

In Bunyan's road-book it is mentioned as the Interpreter's House.

"I have long had a curiosity to visit that old mansion," remarkedI.

"It is not one of our stations, as you perceive," said mycompanion. "The keeper was violently opposed to the railroad; and wellhe might be, as the track left his house of entertainment on one side,and thus was pretty certain to deprive him of all his reputablecustomers. But the foot-path still passes his door; and the oldgentleman now and then receives a call from some simple traveller, andentertains him with fare as old-fashioned as himself."Before our talk on this subject came to a conclusion, we wererushing by the place where Christian's burthen fell from hisshoulders, at the sight of the Cross. This served as a theme for Mr.

Smooth-it-away, Mr. Live-for-the-world, Mr. Hide-sin-in-the-heart, Mr.

Scaly-conscience, and a knot of gentlemen from the town ofShun-repentance, to descant upon the inestimable advantagesresulting from the safety of our baggage. Myself, and all thepassengers indeed, joined with great unanimity in this view of thematter; for our burthens were rich in many things esteemed preciousthroughout the world; and especially, we each of us possessed agreat variety of favorite Habits, which we trusted would not be out offashion, even in the polite circles of the Celestial City. It wouldhave been a sad spectacle to see such an assortment of valuablearticles tumbling into the sepulchre. Thus pleasantly conversing onthe favorable circumstances of our position, as compared with those ofpast pilgrims, and of narrow-minded ones at the present day, we soonfound ourselves at the foot of the Hill Difficulty. Through the veryheart of this rocky mountain a tunnel has been constructed, of mostadmirable architecture, with a lofty arch and a spacious double-track;so that, unless the earth and rocks should chance to crumble down,it will remain an eternal monument of the builder's skill andenterprise. It is a great though incidental advantage, that thematerials from the heart of the Hill Difficulty have been employedin filling up the Valley of Humiliation; thus obviating thenecessity of descending into that disagreeable and unwholesome hollow.

"This is a wonderful improvement, indeed," said I. "Yet I shouldhave been glad of an opportunity to visit the Palace Beautiful, and beintroduced to the charming young ladies- Miss Prudence, Miss Piety,Miss Charity, and the rest- who have the kindness to entertainpilgrims there.""Young ladies!" cried Mr. Smooth-it-away, as soon as he could speakfor laughing. "And charming young ladies! Why, my dear fellow, theyare old maids, every soul of them- prim, starched, dry, and angular-and not one of them, I will venture to say, has altered so much as thefashion of her gown, since the days of Christian's pilgrimage.""Ah, well, said I, much comforted, "then I can very readilydispense with their acquaintance."The respectable Apollyon was now putting on the steam at aprodigious rate; anxious, perhaps, to get rid of the unpleasantreminiscences connected with the spot where he had so disastrouslyencountered Christian. Consulting Mr. Bunyan's road-book, Iperceived that we must now be within a few miles of the Valley ofthe Shadow of Death; into which doleful region, at our presentspeed, we should plunge much sooner than seemed at all desirable. Intruth, I expected nothing better than to find myself in the ditch onone side, or the quag on the other. But on communicating myapprehensions to Mr. Smooth-it-away, he assured me that thedifficulties of this passage, even in its worst condition, had beenvastly exaggerated, and that, in its present state of improvement, Imight consider myself as safe as on any railroad in Christendom.