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made to support hundreds of tons weight, with no such thing as an Arch about it; merely this straight "truss work", perhaps near 200 feet span, and the largest timber in it seems inches thick! It speaks considerable for the inventive genius of puny Man. Rail Road Bridges all over the country, I do not know but all over the world are made on the same pattern. You have probably seen accounts, if I did not write it, of the falling of a Rail Road Bridge in this Road, in Royalston, a month since. first time it was crossed by a heavy loaded train. Six lives lost &c. It frightened people all over the world. In fact props were in the first excitement put under the span by the bridges in many places. If one of these bridges call fall, why not another, or all? But there can be no doubt of the Bridge principle. It has been tested and tried enough, if any thing can be enough. To return it now would be almost to overthrow every rail road in the world. Well Joseph, your letter was duly received, and one from Sister Anne enclosed, last Monday. Dec. 6th. duly rec did I say? it had been for some reason or other more than a week on the way here. Enclosed in the letter were two blank half sheets of paper! (by mistake, or with some hidden meaning). At any rate they made the postage double. and moreover your Bangor P.M., either knowing better or worse the situation of Northfield, than other P.M. in Maine, considers it over 300 miles. and so the stage was .20 About the same time I got one from Milo - 5 cts. And I mail letter to any part of Maine from here for that. However, I was glad enough to get the letter at that I had been expecting it for some time. You thought my pay would be greater! Why you would consider