RE: Mark Twain's Railroad Journeys-
     Not quite on the topic of Scott's queries, but  definitely within the
scope of Scott's Twain Geography project and a quandary I'm trying to
resolve:
       Sam took the Northern route to New York City, etc., in 1853. He only
stayed in Chicago for a day, so why did he take that route? It would have
been much more expensive and taken longer than the more direct route
through the Ohio River Valley he took when he returned to Saint Louis, even
if not all of that route were completed when he left.
     (Sam reportedly returned in coach on the return and didn't sleep the
whole way back. This was before George Pullman developed the first Pullman
car, but cruder sleepers were available.)
     Thanks
Peter Clark