Through the very
heart of this rocky mountain a tunnel has been constructed, of most
admirable 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 and
enterprise. It is a great though incidental advantage, that the
materials from the heart of the Hill Difficulty have been employed
in filling up the Valley of Humiliation; thus obviating the
necessity of descending into that disagreeable and unwholesome hollow.
"This is a wonderful improvement, indeed," said I. "Yet I should
have been glad of an opportunity to visit the Palace Beautiful, and be
introduced to the charming young ladies- Miss Prudence, Miss Piety,
Miss Charity, and the rest- who have the kindness to entertain
pilgrims there."
"Young ladies!" cried Mr. Smooth-it-away, as soon as he could speak
for laughing. "And charming young ladies! Why, my dear fellow, they
are 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 the
fashion of her gown, since the days of Christian's pilgrimage."
"Ah, well, said I, much comforted, "then I can very readily
dispense with their acquaintance."
The respectable Apollyon was now putting on the steam at a
prodigious rate; anxious, perhaps, to get rid of the unpleasant
reminiscences connected with the spot where he had so disastrously
encountered Christian.
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