Morning journal and courier., 1883-11-23

Famous Trees of our Neighbors-Th Norwich Giants-The Wethersfie elt GIant-Double Beach and its Clan Oak-AnnawOn and King Philip, Neal Whitney Avenue-The Ten Sisters OF Prospect HIIl-Our Umbrella EIm-Th' Muse of Jerry Auing.
 While these numbers are printing we ob tain some interesting descriptions of famous trees elsewhere, which courtesy to our neigh bors requires we should notice.
 That goodly city, Norwich, is alike with us proud of her elms, of which she has many beautiful specimens. Hearing of the Nor wich giants, the two most famous of her trees, we wrote to General J. B. Colt for in formation He kindly complied with o1r re- quest by applying to Gardiner Greene, jr., now living on the premises, who took new measure of the trees and then wrote to him as follows:
 NORWICH, Conn.,, Oct. IT, 1885, General James B. Colt:
 tvo elm 2 tnees before the house of the late D. W Colt have gathered the following information. The C. T. Kingsley: Girth of upper tree i've feet from bse, Il feet inches; grth Of lower tree five feet bass, 15 feet inch at base, 20 feet inches.
 Second, those made November 23, 1844, by Daniel C. Gilman Girth of upper tree at base, 15 feet 10 inches grth of lower tree at base 20 feet inches
 Third, those made August 23 1858, 6irth of upper five feet from ground 12 feet inches; at base r feet inches; spread of upper tree branch es 99 feet grth of lower tree five feet from ground 16 feet at ground 22 fset spread Of branches, III feet.
 Fourth, those made October 16 1883. by G. Greene, Jr are: Girth of upper five feet from ground, 13 feet inches girth of lower tree five feet from ground IT feet inches, and spread of branches 40
 We estimate the neigh of these trees as 90 feet Az to thetr history give copy of letter from the son of the man who set them out:
 NORWICH, Aug. 8. 1889. William O. Gilman, Esq:
 SIR: few days ago you inquired of me what of ths two elm trees the house of the late Daniel L. Colt, Esq, deceased. In answer to which when young was isformsd that my father Jabsz Per kins brought the trees from the woods and set them out for shade to his shop. This think was at the year 175l, computing from my age
 Understand that Jabez Perkins was biackamith and had & shop in front of where the Colt house
 GARDINER GREENE, Jr.
 The foregoing is interesting as showing the growth of those trees between the differ ent periods of their measurements. The largest of them exceeds anything our city has in eirth and spread of branches But even this pales before the one now to be de- scribed.
 The giant of the giant elms of New Eng land, we believe, is the elm in Broad street, Wethsrsfeld. It is truly monster, shading 8 space of ground of 429 feet in circuit. It would take more steps to go around it than to walk from the south end of our Green to the liberty pole, for that distance is trife less than 429 feet. Even it's branches are large as our largest trees, and one of them larger in girth-16 feet inches-than the Ben Franklin, the big elm by the town pump. The statistics are given below in a letter to us:
 wErHERsFIELD, Oct 10, 1883.
 DEAR SIR: The elm tree in front of my house on Broad street three feet and three inches from the ground is 12 feet inches circumference. Follow ing the depression in the trunk at the same height 1t is 26 feet inches.
 The circumference at the ground measures 55 feet The girth of the four branches as follows: East The diameter of the spread of the branches from south Is 150 feet from east to west 152 feet The circumference of the spread of the branches is 42s feet.
 It Is about 135 years old. It was set out by John Smith. Of wsthexsaeld. measured it and found it ss feet in height limb had been broken out in the
 Yours truly, JAMES T. SMITH.
 Now that VIC are upon the subject of large trees it seems wrong not to pay our respects to the old oak at Double Beach Although Double Beach is but seven miles from us, not one-quarter of our citizens were ever there, know not the beauty of the spot, nor why it is called Double Beach. The harbor of Branford may be some three miles long and opens southerly into Long Island Sound, with an expanding mouth. Near the south ern termination of it's western shore is the large white-painted wood-bu1lt hotel of Mrs. N E. Lndsley. It stands on grassy lawn about ten rods back from the water's edge, and about ten feet above it, the shore being there rocky. Twenty rods beyond this shore is an islet parallel with the shore and per- haps twenty rods long, and say eight rods wide. about forty feet high, rocky and wood ed. When the tide is out bar of sand say forty feet wide connects this islet with the main land over which visitors walk. And as they walk the water leaves beach to their right and beach to their left, and so they give to the whole place the name Double Beach. Half way between the hotel and shore stands the biz oak, and in front of it, extending to the shore, is large elevated wooded platform, over which hang it's branches. Here are seats with fine out look to the east upon the waters of Long Is- land Sound, whereon appear. only few miles distant, the thick clustering, rocky is- let's, known as the Thimble Islands. To the north, some three miles away over the mead ows, and above the tree tops, rise the spires of Branford, or. as the Indians called it, Totoket. Mrs. Ldndsley has kindly had the tree measured for us and sends us these sta- tistics Diameter of spread of branches, 964 feet eirth of tree at the ground, 21} feet t; girth five feet from the ground, 15 feet' A most pleasurable summer days drive is down the shell road on the east side of our hsrbor to the Cove, thence easterly over the fas lands of wood and meadow, through Short Beach and Middle Beach to Double Beach, where one may dine and then return via Branford and East Haven, reach ing Tomlinson bridge and our bay at the sun set hour. But few cities on the globe are blessed with such variety of picturesque scenery around them as New Haven-have such an interminaling of woods, meadows, hills, mountains, with lakes, rivers and sea views. Not the least of it's charms are the rustic, old time country homesteads that of- ten burst as with surprise upon the wan derer in out of-the-way secluded hooks and