The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-06-28
THEIR SIRE WAS AT MONMOUTH
TWO LIVING DAUGHTERS or ONE
FWiSI!INGTON'S SOLDIERS.

Mrs. l;ainfOrd, No" OS, and Her Sister. ~
Their Fathers Powder Horn Pre-
served at Valley Forgc-IIc Saw Wash.
ingtOn Swear at Lea Little Romance
MATAMoRAs, Pa, June 27.-In connection
with the celebration of the l25th ami
versary Of the Battle Of Monmouth it may
be interesting to know that there are living
in this village two daughters Of a member
of Washington's army who participated
in the fight. These women who link
Revolutionary times with the present are
Mrs. Phebe Gainford, who will be 9s on
June 30, and Mrs. Lucinda j. Valentine
Who was 81 on June 10. Both are in the
full possession of their faculties, and show
the infirmities of age only slightly, al
though Mrs. Valentine has been an invalid
and great physical sufferer for fifty years.
These two women are the daughters of
Jabez Rockwell. who, at the age Of 10. en-
Regiment of the Continental Army, and
served successfully under Generals Arnold
Putnam, Washington, Lafayette and
Wayne. He was with Arnold at Saratoga
and was wounded there. He was at Ger
mantown; was a survivor of the terrible
winter at Valley Forge; was at Monmouth,
and was one Of the l12 men picked by Gen.
Wayne for the storming Of Stony Point.
There is now among the Revolutionary
relics in the custody Of the Valley Forge
Daughters Of the Revolution at the old
stone house which was Washingtons head =
quarters. a powder horn with this inscrip-
ton carved in it: -Jabez Rockwell of
Ridgebury, Conn. His l.orn. Made in
Camp at Valley Forge. First used at Mon
mouth June 20, l77s."
How Jabez Rockwell came to have that
horn to use at the Battle Of Monmouth,
is one Of the favorite "reminiscences of their
fathers that these true Daughters of tho
Revolution delight in. The vcssitudes
of the campaign preceding the winter at
Valley Forge. as the old soldier was wont
to relate had resulted in the loss by many
Of the soldiers of their powder horns. From
the heads of cattle procured by foraging
about Valley Forge the camp butchers had
saved the horns, and there was much strife
among the soldiers who had lost thei r
powder horns to obtain possession of these.
There were SO many applicants that a
satisfactory division OF the horns was i'm
possible. One day Gen, Washington was
riding through the camp and Jabez Rock
we'll and others of the soldiers were bold
enough TO solicit decision from him by
which the coveted horns might be dis
tributed without favor or dissatisfaction.
There were then ten horns in camp un-
disposed Of. Washington listened to the
appeal Of the eager soldiers, and taking
a bit of paper he wrote upon it a number.
He told the soldiers that the number was
between 500 and 1000. and said that
the ten soldiers guessing numbers nearest
it should each have a right to horn
Jabez Rockwell was one OF the ten lucky
soldiers. The number Washington marked
on the paper was 1870 Rockwell's guess
was 1850. From the horn he received he
made the powder horn which was -first
used at Monmouth" 1t was last used
at Stony Point,
His daughters remember how, wears
after the war was over, he would frequently
take down tho horn from where il hung,
and fondle and caress il. The horn ives
in the possession Of the Rockwell family
for many years. and was at last presented