The Morning herald., 1876-05-13
r.,.vars Censsnarisss.
ondence of the N. Y. Herald.l
1correspOndence o1 tI'o ,or.
l'" SMYRNA, Del, May =, 1873.

We i.t i.h Tho American Revolution. Inc
lion WIN .iS 10 .nch a small State and 30
fact is, .a,r slr nvershadowed ~ ordinarily BY her
romP,e,s' ass hat sho is not often heard from
nelgnoo,S, aro in the Senate OF the United
at all, and there her voice Is and always
sta'sf, y" "D at least as potent as the greatest
has oe1m c'dsratiou. Her soil is prolific OF
n 'ho an v .nd her revolutionary history
grew. Ii,r n,", r,cb and interesting. What Dan
ss3Ia" s,3Wah:trr politically said OF the Massa-
lei Ne,'ll, a,ts troops who participated In that
struggle may be trut1luliy saiu H. " h,oa"h ~
s"s smsr.. "Thc bones OF her sons lie oieac..
a"@ an on every battlefield from Name y"
Ius Gss,ryia. Her three signers OF the Decla-
u,il .",ion of Independence were Caesar hou-
rau ra'' George Read and Thomas Mexican,
H., m{ Rodney was par excellence the man who'
ou' !. Injunction with his colleagues, fired the
~ NV, so of Delaware and ripcned the people |
s's s'a, n,rtcipation in that great event. Win
~. w. risw of obtaining some interesting
tue e'e.s ahout the revolutionary history OF
n,,sw,re. 1aoI' the writer to-day called
p'a~" p"an Mrs, Ann Denny, at the
,hs up, residence of her son-in-law, Mr..
ra,rye IH ". Cummings, about two miles
Gsm s.Dn The beautiful little town of Smyrna.
r NJ Cummings lives in the heart OF the
great , peach growing region OF the state.
e.. n,,uta,ioD is extensive and under the
i;'rhast cultivation, and his house and
n.oun,s are exactly what would be expected
IS Gentleman of taste and refinement,
,rhiI. he himself is the best of hosts, and
hs. evidently never suffered the tortures Of
,%s ,"s s,rreotyped mother-in-law, though he
VIZ A. dom n q Inn nf nm
for many long year. Having been pre-
yousIy informed that Mrs. Denny was 81
wears old, the writer was totally unprepared
for the elegant and sprightly dame who
gracefully entered the drawing room and
Iospi,abjy offered him her hand. She said
her rrcoectons of the early history of our
rountry had made the coming Centennial
celebration matter of peculiar interest to
her. She thought it well that now har-
mouy was restored we should all join in
doing honor to the hundredth anniversary
of the birth of the government and the
memory of the great men who founded it.
She was too young during the Revolution
TO have any distinct recollection of events
a. they transpired. She lived at that time
near Wilmington, and had often seen the
passing troops and gazed on them with
childish wonder. Many of the men who
figured at that time she remembered distinct
". She lived next door to Caesar Rodney,
one of the signers of the Declaration, and
when she came to live in the neighborhood
of smyrna, he gave her an elm tree, which
she put in her trunk, and brought it in that
manner to this place (Mr. CummingsD.
The old lady at this point insisted upon
showing the writer the tree, which she had
planted at the side of the house. She
tripped out into the grounds with almost
grlish grace and eagerncss, and pointed 10
the most towering elm probablyiD the State.
Without eXaggeration it must have been
100 feet high, and measured as much a
the girth AS the largest oak. 1t was cov-
cred with foliage, and was a noble monu-
msnt to the grand old hero that gave ii
to Mrs, Denny. Continuing Mrs. Denny
said: She met General Washington in Will
mington during the Revolution. A recsp-
ton was given him by some OF the citizens
sIe was little girl, and he took her up IN
hi. arms and kissed her. She was too
young to remember much about his manner
Or bearing, but, like every one else who had
ever cone in contact with that great man.
ohp oilNu AllCI dIu ICCAlIVu Aipuhooo ~
herself. She had seen Thomas Jefferson
and remembered his appearance, but was
tooyoung at the time to have any intercourse
with him. She knew Major Bennett well
lie was an officer In Halls regiment. H.
wasa tall, stately man, and dressed in the
style then prevalent, with knee breeche.
and buckles. He was very fond of knitting
stockings. used to show him how to knit
that 10 taught him how to widen an
harrow, if you know what that 10. (Tht
reporter was compelled to confess his ignor
ance but after = very lucid explanation
such as would enable an apt person to Knit
pair Of stockings himself, the writer
began to have dim idea of what she meant.
Mrs. Denny said that on enc occasion Major
Bennett knit pair of stockings for Thos
Jefferson when he was President, but suf-
icred the modification of having them re-
lurned to him, Jetierson adhering to hi
innexble rule of not receiving presents
while President of the United States.
"How things have chsnged!" said the
old lady. ~ understand now they gro"
rather indignant il you don't make then
presents"
Mr.. Cummings here took part in the con
versation by making the laconic statement
That they didn't receive bull pups wheI
there was $40 expressage on them"
Major Bennett was subsequently elected
Governor Of the State of Delaware, but die
not live to serve out his term. Mrs. Denny
said she knew Major Peter Jacquett, who
also belonged to the celebrated regiment
He was small man, of rather a SOU
temper. There was an anecdote current
when she was young, and she had no doub
of the truth of it, that on one occasion
Major Jacquett was sued for calling one o
his neighbors thief-Tatlow was his name
Tatlow recovered damages from him, ant
the Judge told Jacquett that there wer
some words he could have called him, upol
which he could not have recovered, unles
lie proved special damage 10 his character
Jacquett persuaded the Judge to writ
them down, and ever afterward, when h
met Tatlow he would pull out his paper
and commencing at the beginning woul'
bawl out the whole category, until he ha'
l