Robert Bulkeley • 5 september 1857

• Robert Bulkeley (1839-?) was een Amerikaanse kantoorklerk die in 1857 bij wijze van vakantie een tiendaagse treinreis maakte, waar hij een dagboek van bijhield.

Sat. 5 Sept.
Feeling relieved, I walked to the rear platform, and their [sic] gave way to bursts of delight, at the beauty of Seneca lake, and the country around it, for it took me by surprise, as I had forgotten the Road ran by that way, as it did for thirty miles or more. The rain came down quite fast, and cooled the atmosphere considerable, passed through Penn Yann, Canandaigua, etc., at half past six or seven an accident happened.
We ran off the track.
Our Car did, the baggage one, forward truck, one wheel, and this wheel was to detain us two hours. Fred and I lit our cigars, and walked around, to see how they managed to entice the vagrant wheel back to its track, at last by dint of two locomotives, puffing, pulling & higging [?], piles of wood, and great deal of halloing, we were allowed to proceed on our journey. Went along nicely until we heard the whistle to break up, and stopped by a corn field, something wrong, — ran into a hand car, with the probability of an Irish man, (ah only an Irishman), made into mincemeat, and lying round in fragments for a half a mile back, Men go back to see, nothing found, probability of no hurt, except the handcar, a perfect wreck. So we proceed, stopped about half past ten, at Honeoye Falls, for supper. Landlords Daughter very pretty, refined looking, can’t keep my eyes off her, and eat but little, on account of she being dear & the victuals too. Conductor of the train, no appetite, hand car took his away. F.W. eat [sic] ravenously, he being starved for a whole month. x x x x Off again, passing through numerous large towns, getting cold, walk out and hang off the rear car. At Batavia the moon broke forth in splendid majesty, and the air very cold. Every one asleep but me, I taking comfort.
As we passed the Niagara River, it was like silver sheen, and at ½ before 3 o. clock A.M. we rode into the Depot at Niagara Village, 3 ½ hours behind time, and most frozen. Selected the Clarendon House, and by 3 o clock were sound asleep in bed.