In President Johnson's speech, the references to Lexington and Concord and the references to the Declaration of Independence ("all men are created equal") can be identified as

chapter i -- paris: september, 1792

a surging, seething, murmuring crowd of beings that are human only in name, for to the eye and ear they seem naught but savage creatures, animated by vile passions and by the lust of vengeance and of hate.

during the greater part of the day the guillotine had been kept busy at its ghastly work: all that france had boasted of in the past centuries, of ancient names, and blue blood, had paid toll to her desire for liberty and for fraternity.

hope this answer you: )!

by explaining that it took the same total time to travel by plane as it did by train

"urban sprawl, the spreading of large developments of housing and shopping areas around a city’s center, has many negative cultural and environmental effects. " (from your link)

so, your answer is: it has a negative effect on the environment, otherwise known as c~hope this mate. 

if you read the story there are characters like the neighbor, son, wife, and him himself.