What does Walden mean when he says,"We do no ride on the railroad; it rides upon us"?

Question

Also, what would be an example of it?

Actually Thoreau wrote this quote, but it was in his book called Walden.

Answer 1

Here is the complete quote from his essay, Walden:

"We do not ride on the railroad, it rides upon us. Did you ever think what those 'sleepers' are that underlie the railroad? Each one is a man, Each one is a man, an Irishman or a Yankee man. They are sound sleepers, I can assure you. And every few years a new lot is laid down and run over; so that if some have the pleasure of riding on a rail others have the misfortune to be ridden upon."

Thoreau is denouncing the greed of the profit-mongering railway industry and its lack of compassion for the blood, sweat, and tears expended by the workers who built it -- some with their lives.