Morning journal and courier., 1883-10-23
NEW HAvEN,s FILMS AND GREEN.
Descriptions, Historical Items and An ecdotes of Persons and Things Con-
 nected Herewith.
BY HENRY HOWE. roopyrighted 1888 by Henry Hewe.l

BY HENRY HOWE.
 roopyrighted 1888 by Henry Howe.l TN TWENTY-FIVE oHAPTERs-oHAPTER VIII l The PLerpOnt E1ms, Planted In I6S6-
 The Wadsworth Map-Hansion of Rev.
 James PierpOnG and Sketch of Him
 Jonathan Edwards and Sarah Pier
 Pont-HIs Eloquent Description of That
 Matdeu-PreaehtnE of Whitsfield UR-
 der inc Pierpont Elms-James Pier
 pOnt, the "GeAtlemano and ssNew
 Light"
 The earliest elms we know of in the histU- ry of our city were the two shown on the map of General Wadsworth as ''Trees plant ed in 16s6,' thateis forty-eight years after it's fret settlement. Wsdsworth's map, which has just been republished by Jacob Mail house, shows every house in New Haven at the date of its issue, which was 1748, with f6a name and oecupatioa of each resident. These two elms were the only trees engraved on the map and were placed on Elm street in front of the residence of "James Pier pont, Gentleman" According to the map there were but two other gentlemen" then residents of our town, viz John Front and J'n. Waiting This was perhaps as much ornamentatisn of that kind as our city could then afford.
 Pierpont's house was on the east corner of Elm and Temple streets, but rather nearer Elm street than the Bristol mansion now there. It was built for his father, Rev. James Pierpont, and the spot is memorable enc In our city history. The latter was a Christian gentleman and pastor of the New Haven church, was one of tho principal founders and one of the trustees of Yale col lege For some time he acted as professor of Moral Philosophy. The celebrated plat form of the Connecticut churches established at Say brook in 17O8 is ascribed to his pen. MT. Pierpont, then @ recent graduate of Cambridge and aged about twenty-five years, was called to New Haven and settled over the church here in July, 1885, one of the conditions being that 8 home lot and house and other lands should be provided for him The history of the matter and some roman tic items about those elm trees are thus given by Dr. Bacon in his ''Historical Discourses," published In 1889: ''The means of building the house were to be obtained by voluntary contributions. The magistrates and towns men were made 8 committee to obtain the necessary funds to plan the house according to the funds raised and to oversee the build ing. When 1t was finished it stood for more than @ century 8 monument of the public spirit of the generation by whose voluntary contributions it was erected
 'As the people were bringing in their free will offerings of one kind and another, to comple and furnish the building, one man desiring to do something for the object, and having nothing else to offer, brought on his shoulder from the farms two little elm sap hngs and planted them before the door of the minister's house. Under their shade, some forty years afterwards (1726), Jonathan soon to take rank in the in tellectual world with Locke and Leibnitz- spoke words of mingled love and piety in the ear of Sarah Pierpont. Under their shade, when some sixty summers G746) had passed over them, Whitefield stood on a platform and lifted up that voice, the tones of which fingered so long in thousands of hearts. One of them is still standing, the tallsst and most venerable of all the trees in this city of elms, and ever the first to be tinged with green at the return of spring"
 Dr. Bacon in 8 note says: q am obiiged to add that investigations made since this discourse was written have thrown some doubt upon the time when the tree was plant ed, though still 1t is undoubtedly the oldest in the city" This lsst tree was removed within short time after the publication of Dr. Baeon's work, though neither the year nor the cause of it's removal have we been able to ascertain.
 few years before Jonathan Edwards mar rfed Sarah Pierpont after his successful court ship under the elms he wrote this description of her, which we copy from his life by Serono Dwight, D. D.:
 ''They say there is a young lady in New Haven who is beloved of that Great Being who made and rules the world, and that ihere are certain seasons in which this great Being, in some way or other invisible, comes to her and fills her mind with exceeding sweet delight, and that she hardly cares for anything except to mediate on him-that she expects after awhile to be received up where he is, to be raised up out of the world and caught up into heaven; being assured that he loves her too well to let her remain at distance from him always. There she is to dwell with him, and to be revished with ais love and delight forever. Therefore if you present all the world before her, with the richest of it's treasures she disregards it and cares not for it, and is unmindful of any pain or afiiction. She has strange sweet ness in her mind and singular purity in her affections is most just and conscientious in her conduct :; and you could not persuade her to do anything wrong or sinful if you would give her all the world, lest she should offend this great being. She is of a wonder pul sweetness, calmness and universal benev- olence of mind, especially after this great Sod has manifested himself to her mind She will sometimes go about from place to place, singing sWeetly; and seems always to oe full of joy and pleasure and no one knows for what. Sh. loves to be alone, walking in he fields and groves, and seems to have tome one invisible always convsrsing with 1er "
 Five years later and at the age of eighteen ,he was married to Mir Edwards. Authori- ies of the time speak of her as lady of 'are beauty and great virtue Dr. Hopkins, Tho first saw her when the mother of seven says she was more than ordinarily and her portrait taken by Smy- pert, "while 1t presents form and features lot often rivalled, presents also that peculiar oveliness of expression which is the com oined result of intelligence, cheerfulness and '' This portrait, with one of aer husband, are in the Art Gallery of Yale college.
 In the Daily Herald (now CoUR1ER) of Fri lay, September IA, 1888, will be found the 'olIewing:
 "A gentleman of Chapel street has politely furnished us with the dimensions of four of he largest eln2s near our public Green They re as follows: Circumference measure nents taken at distances of about one foot md six feet above the surface of the ground Trees in front of Divinity college lthe Herrick | Trees in front of Judge Mills house, 13y< to l5H.
 Trees in front of Mrs Fosters house, IS feet a7e-
 
 Trees ia front of Mir. BristoPs hous., l459 to Is set.
 This last was one of 8 pair set in 1886 be- | ore the house of the Rev. James Pierpont. l Tradition, informs us that the house was | 'uilt for their pastor by the voluntary con- of the people, and that one poor | nan named William Cooper, who lived with D the borders of HRmden, which then be- | onged to New Havsnl having nothing else to | ,ffer procured two young elns and planted | hem as shade trees before the premises. | )ne of them was removed several years since | n consequence of dilapidation. The other | 8 still in full verdure."
 As mentioned by Dr. Bacon, it was under 1 hess elms that Whitefield preached from l platform to the people. He occupied it for | i've successive days, creating immense ex- itement, drawing, it Is said, almost the en- ire population from the country around. It ses there that he had that famous supposed with Father Abraham Stand ng upon that platform he looked up between he branches of the trees to the blue skies md called out:
 Father Abraham, have you in heaven any 2rssbyterians, OongregationHlists, Indepen- Ients or Seceders?"
 ssNo."
 "Any Epiacopalians 2''
 ssNo. n
 Have yeu any Methodists there ?"
 ssNo ''
 Got any Baptists P
 s.No ''
 .tWhat, then. Father Abraham, have you ?"
 Al. A II. tkyWY.