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| Worksheet # 58 |
| THE ERA OF GOOD FEELINGS, TURNPIKES AND CANALS And with word of the rout, Jackson's fame was assured As such feelings of triumph strike a very deep chord. Yes, Harrison and he were heroic grand figures Who gave to this land the proud swagger of victors. Oh, but for those who recall the first cause of war, The impressment and seizure that started it all, Well, that villainy and crime which had roiled the seas Occured as all Europe matched militaries. But with Napoleon's defeat, at the site Waterloo, British raids petered out -- what, with no fighting to do. And so life in the U.S. began a new phase As hopes for the future began gilding her days. Since peace and not war did mark the land's dealings, A fine season had come: an Era of Good Feelings. Yes, fair trade and commerce continued once more, Indeed, with a vigor it had not seen before! As people flocked in their wagons to lands in the west, -- New states were added, and folks thought it was best To build better links between the heartland and towns So that movement and trade could increase by bounds. Indeed, the transport of freight, of livestock and folks Is a key to success and thus strong reason to coax The new laying of roads, built of stone and of gravel, To last through the seasons and facilitate travel. So turnpikes turned up, along the former horse trails, And new waterways too, though we call them canals, Which joined rivers and lakes, and made for fast trips, With goods hauled all about on flat-boats and ships. Including new types, with engines powered by steam, Like Robert Fulton's Clermont -- the most new fangled thing! Through a country criss-crossed by a web of new routes, Not unlike a great game of ladders and chutes! |
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