His railroad was an ambiguous maze: sometimes a delightful ride as in Cora's
journey from Tennessee to Indiana, a trip comprised of luxurious seating, linen tables and a shining red engine; sometimes
frightful and leading to a dead end as in the train brought her to North Carolina where there was no connection; and sometimes it was a frightening and crude means of transportation as in her escape from Ridgeway on the pump car that took her away from Indiana into an uncertain future.