«To read the papers and to listen to the news... one would think the country is in terrible trouble. You do not get that impression when you travel the back roads and the small towns do care about their country and wish it well.»

«What good man would prefer a country covered with forests and ranged by a few thousand savages to our extensive Republic, studded with cities, towns, and prosperous farms, embellished with all the improvements which art can devise or industry execute»

«The improved American highway system isolated the American-in-transit. On his speedway he had no contact with the towns which he by-passed. If he stopped for food or gas, he was served no local fare or local fuel, but had one of Howard Johnson's nationally branded ice cream flavors, and so many gallons of Exxon. This vast ocean of superhighways was nearly as free of culture as the sea traversed by the Mayflower Pilgrims.»

«The sumptuous age of stars and images is reduced to a few artificial tornado effects, pathetic fake buildings, and childish tricks which the crowd pretends to be taken in by to avoid feeling too disappointed. Ghost towns, ghost people. The whole place has the same air of obsolescence about it as Sunset or Hollywood Boulevard.»

«Winter lies too long in country towns; hangs on until it is stale and shabby, old and sullen.»

«The sons of Elpaal; Eber, and Misham, and Shamed, who built Ono, and Lod, with the towns thereof: / Beriah also, and Shema, who were heads of the fathers of the inhabitants of Aijalon, who drove away the inhabitants of Gath: / And Ahio, Shashak, and Jeremoth, / And Zebadiah, and Arad, and Ader, / And Michael, and Ispah, and Joha, the sons of Beriah; / And Zebadiah, and Meshullam, and Hezeki, and Heber, / Ishmerai also, and Jezliah, and Jobab, the sons of Elpaal; / And Jakim, and Zichri, and Zabdi, / And Elienai, and Zilthai, and Eliel, / And Adaiah, and Beraiah, and Shimrath, the sons of Shimhi; / And Ishpan, and Heber, and Eliel, / And Abdon, and Zichri, and Hanan, / And Hananiah, and Elam, and Antothijah, / And Iphedeiah, and Penuel, the sons of Shashak; / And Shamsherai, and Shehariah, and Athaliah, / And Jaresiah, and Eliah, and Zichri, the sons of Jeroham.»

«Towns oftener swamp one than carry one out onto the big ocean of life.»

«Towns are excrescences, gray fluxions, where men, hurrying to find one another, have lost themselves.»

«The crowds in the big towns, with their mild, knobby faces, their bad teeth and gentle manners solid breakfasts and gloomy Sundays, smoky towns and winding roads, green fields and red pillar boxes.»