We left Springfield by train at twelve o'clock, and reached
Pittsfield, a distance of fifty miles, at half-past two. This part of
the road presented a succession of beautiful views. Your sisters will
remember that part of the road near Chaudes Fontaines, where it runs
through the valley, and crosses the Vesdre every five minutes. If they
can imagine this part of it extended for fifty miles, and on a much
larger scale, they may form some notion of what we saw. The railway
crossed the river at least thirty times, so we had it on the right hand
and left hand alternately, as on that little bit in Belgium. The river,
called the Westfield, was very rapid in places, and the water, when
deep, almost of a rich coffee colour. At Pittsfield we got on to the
plateau which separates the Connecticut River and the Hudson. The plain
is elevated more than 1000 feet above the sea. We then began rapidly to
descend. The country was still as pretty as before, but more open, with
hills in the back-ground, for till we reached Pittsfield these were
close to us, and beautifully wooded to the top. At Pittsfield, in the
centre of the town, there is a very large elm tree, the elm being the
great tree of the country, but this surpassed all its neighbours, its
height being 120 feet, and the stem 90 feet before any branches sprang
from it.
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