Chapter Nineteen

Summary

Mr. Tridden, the conductor of the trolley, picks up the children of the town for one last ride before the trolley is replaced by buses. Douglas is stunned at the news, as a trolley has pleasures that a bus does not provide. The children believe they've reached the end of the line at the edge of town, but there was a line of tracks leading to Chessman's Park which hadn't been used since 1910. Tridden surprises his last passengers by taking that track to the park, then bringing out large picnic hampers with food. During this surprise picnic, Mr. Tridden describes the picnics from almost twenty years ago, then finally returns the children to town. Charlie bemoans that school buses won't allow them to be late for school, while Douglas thinks of how the tracks will be buried the next day but a memory of the trolley will persist in him.

Notes

Again, we see how an older form of technology is supplanted by a newer one. In this case, the mortality of a kind of technology also adds a new restriction on Douglas' life, as he must now abide by the schedule of school buses.

Chapter Twenty

Summary

Douglas practically worships his friend John Huff, and is upset when John tells him he's moving to Milwaukee that very night with his family. Douglas can't understand, since they were friends, but John assures him they'll always be friends. John has suddenly become nostalgic in this old days, realizing how much of the town he hasn't seen and fearful of not remembering things that were important to him. Douglas claims that won't happen to him, but John tests him by having Douglas close his eyes and remembers what color eyes John has.

The two boys continue to play with their friends that day and Douglas tries to change the time on his watch to fool John into staying longer, but to no avail. At the railroad tracks, Charlie Woodman talks about growing up to be a railroad fireman in Cincinnati, while Jim will be a printer in New York like his uncle. After supper, the boys get together for one last game, deciding on hide-and-seek and Statues. When he sees his chance, Doug orders John to freeze and remain frozen for three hours, until the train that will take him to Milwaukee is gone. John protests, and then it's his turn to freeze Douglas - and when he does so, says goodbye to Douglas and runs home to catch the train. Soon the other boys go home as well; left alone, Douglas loudly declares John his enemy and tries to convince himself that he is angry.

Notes

The loss of a friend is another kind of mortality for Douglas. However, this separation has always been a part of childhood: the childish wishes of what each boy wants to be when he grows up is, after all, a foreshadowing of departures, emphasized by the fact that other boys name specific places where they will pursue their future lives. The games the boys play are a metaphor for stopping time and racing against it.

Chapter Twenty-One

Summary

Douglas asks Tom to always stick around, even when they become real old, like forty or forty-five. Tom assures Douglas he can count on him, but Douglas is more concerned about the way God runs the world. Tom concedes that God at least tries.

Notes

This interlude emphasizes the bond of brothers and provides an interesting religious subtext in its child-like questioning of God.