Morning journal and courier., 1883-10-09

l and was accustomed to go among our citizens ! and reoite them. A verse is here given from ! poem composed by him on the occasion oi ! tue great fire on Long wharf, October 2S, ! 1920:
 The cry through town was ''Fire Fire t' The bells did ring, the flames flew higher. went the almanac to
 found twas but half flood
 And 'twould do but little good.
 One time he came into the taiIor's shop ot Chatterton $ Babcock, where MT. Peckbam then was, and told them he would recite his poem on the great fire on Long wharf but that on coming to the word fire" he should simply clap his hands, and they would know what it meant, for if he shouted Fire I'' as the poem required, he was fearful it would give the alarm !" He then stood upright and recited accordingly, strutting back and stretching cut bis arms just as he approached the exciting cry and then bringing the palms together with ringing slap This notable citizen, psdagogue and poet died October 3, 1880, aged sixty seven years, 8 date 8e re- csived from Henry Austin, our oldest archi tect, who whom boy attended his school on Hamden Plains, about quarter of mile north of the meeting house We have, how ever, yet to learn that he fmparted to his pu. pil any of his divine afiatus. Poets are born, not made, and Jerry was born the Milton of Hannden Plains
 Mir. Austin says that Jerry was ons of the whipping kind of sehoolmasters that he had seasons of inspiration in this sort of thing ss he had in writing poetry. "It was then" said he, dreadful when these fury fits came over him I suffered with others, al- though tho best boy in school think sy- eraged at least one logging a day" As he told us this he smiled.
 Nothing seems to initiate against the con- tinuoua thrift of the big elm: If it had stood alone on that moist spot it would have made an immense area of shadow. It Is now increasing rapidly on it's sun-obtaining sides. Three years since standing On the esplauade at ths postoffcs one could discover the time by the clock on the city tower. Now the en- tire tower is hidden by the ambitious branch es of this over-reaching giant in green. While this big elm is thus growing every year, hundreds of thousands of little elms are sprouting in our gardens, thick in some places as radishes so~n broadcast in loamy beds. These attain in a single season some inches in stature and are Nas pleasant to look upon es young rose sprouts. If deserted by it's population in twenty years our entire city would be an elm and maple forest. Who knows but that in the mutations of time this may come to pass AS good places as this have gone to seed.
 The big elm, although probably no older than many others in the city, owes it's thrifty condition to it's being on 8 well watered, moist spot, which is continually enriched by
 
 was laid out In 1638 creek OF rivulet started on the Green near by and crossing to the Cutler corner passed through the square d. agonally to State street and emptied into East creek few rods north of the site of the Fair street bridge. We have been told that the roots of this tree have at times choked the town pump and had to be cleared away.
 None of our notable elms thus far have been sufficiently honored to be named. No hle elmS elsewhere have not thus been slight ed. At this late day we must try and make amends, and as We describe in course our most noble trees, we shall suggest names for each by which they shall hereafter be known, and in naming give the reRsoRs therefor. AS the tree whose history we are giving was planted on the day of the death of Benjamin Franklin, VIC name 1t the Benj jamin Franklin elm. A placard, ss is done elsewhere, might be placed on it's bole with this nauo and date of planting.
 The big elm is hollow within Mr. Peck ham says that in his youth this cavity was large as fireplace" PIanks were put within over which the bark has grown Henry B. Harrison, Esq, informs us that in his young days his father put board there. On looking on the south side of the tree near the ground. the open place of decay is still seen, firmly enclosing board. We think it is the same he put there, inasmuch as it is in a state of decay, which we think 8 second board would not have been in this lapse of time The fact that this tree is hollow will not prevent it's continuous growth. It is all of forty years since the board was put in by Mr. Harrison, since which it's growth has been simply prodigious. The cavity of the Charter oak at the time of the secretion of the charter in December, 1eS6, was sufficiently large to hold child Years before it's destruction boys made bon fire within it, yet it continued to thrive. There is to-day an oak, which we have seen, zAn- hor o1, fnI1r huT dred feet southerly from the Girard Halleek mansion which is almost entirely burnt out by many continuous fires, the veriest she'll It is yet bearing branches of luxuriant leaves
 In September, 1854, on the occasion of 8 firemen's parade in Hartford, when they were doing the honors to 8 company visiting them from our city, the cavity of the Charter oak once got within it. In 1856 it was blown down in gale It WAS estimated that the Charter oak was from seven hundred to eight hundred years of age. In Great Britain are oaks which are be- lieved to have been old trees in the time of William the Conqneror. Oaks have been known to live over l 1000 years The Rirth of the Charter oak was at the smallest place twsnty-hve feet At the time of the visiting firemen it measured outside at the ground thirty-six feet
 The ink was scarcely dry on the preceding paragraph, when going for walk we met on the college campus an elderly gentleman with cane on top of which was 8 silver mount ing, which he then showed us bearing the annexed inscription. This gentleman was the Rev. s. 0. Brace, native of NewinRton parish, Wethars6eld, who, when a student of Yale climbed the Charter oak and cut that cane, which he has carried ever since, B pc riod of fifty-three years. Mr. Brace HOW re- sides in Philadelphia.