Show a III on in CA ana IJ H tree abaft under wha Z father of hia 4 countr alook 15 amand CM and of continental army 4 PY I 1 under the iha brave old ola tree S our ur fathers gathered in arms and t 1 C they would follow the sign their ban ners nera bore ore and light till the land w was tit free y oliver alvi wendell holmes by JOHN dickinson bIC KINSON SHERMAN washington WAshing fon elp 19 r I 1 I 1 y I 1 ditl na h op a of it alive till spring thus anses tile most al historic trees to in all america the charter f fc r 1 oak ln in bartford the it penn treaty elm in T nw philadelphia the wash inelo n elm in boston only the most expert tree doctoring has fins kept the washington elm alive during durin g tha ilist twenty five years practically every year revealed additional decay in the interior of the massive trunk from time to time it was necessary to lop off dead branches r it a those that hat still put forth gren gra n leaves were kept alive only by being fe propped ed up with iron braces ilow how old oldis Is the washington elm nobody can say cay with exactness until it Is cut down and its nanual rings ring are counted but it Is creditably stated staled I 1 to have been one of the original forest trees standing on boston common when first seen by itie he settlers in tile the massachusetts day bay colony plymouth was settled by the pilgrims in 1020 1620 boston the third settlement of the colony was waff settled by the purl tana tais in 1030 1630 the indians called the place shawmut sweat swe t waters it was called boston after boston in fil lin coln shire england historic boston common which contains 48 acres has ha been dedicated to public purposes pu since 1634 george washington wrote john ad anis in his diary was sitting near the door when adams rose in the congress congre of the twelve united colonies to propose p 0 o the adoption of the conten continental army and fid the appointment of Washing 1 ton as ln in calef washing ton beat a ginsty retreat to the library rooms room a as s soon boon as lie caught the trend of adorns adams address when formal formal action was taken june 15 1775 washington arose in tits his place ond said in n voice that was far from calm sir president though I 1 am truly sensible odthe high honor done me in this appointment yet I 1 feel great distress from a consciousness that my abilities and military pry experience may not be equal to the extensive rind important trust however as ilia he congress desire it I 1 vill ahter upon the momentous duty daty and exert every pow er I 1 possess in their service and for the support of tit th glor cause I 1 beg they avill accept say my most cordial y thanks for this distinguished testimony ot 0 thel their approbation but lest sonie some unlucky event happen barren unfavorable to my reputation albeg I 1 beg it rony may bo be remembered by every gentleman in this room that I 1 this day declare with the utmost sincerity I 1 do not think myself equal to thi thea command iam honored with As to pay sir I 1 beg leave to assure the congress that as no pecuniary consideration could have tempted me to accept the lic arduous employment at the lie expense of my dome domestic tle ease case and hap happiness dine sa I 1 duhot do hot wish to ma make i k agy anny profit from it I 1 will keep an exact account of my expenses those I 1 doubt nota not they will discharge and that Is au all L fl elre 11 washington it irwill will be noted had no illusions ns as to the job lie he was undertaking moreover it was a real and great sacrifice on his part lie ile wrote his wife you may believe me my dear patsy when I 1 assure you in the most solemn manner that 11 so far from seeking ahls appointment I 1 hove boye used every endeavor in my power to avoid it not I 1 only from my unwillingness to part arth you and the family but from a consciousness of its being a trust aioo 00 great for my capacity it was utterly butof out of my power to refuse this appointment without exposing my ca diameter I 1 a facter to such ventures veni ensures ures as would have reflected dishonor upon myself and give apalit to mi my friends washington traveled from philadelphia to hoston boston on horseback with on escort of light horse cavalry ills progress was marked by nn an outpouring of the people who vied in showing shoving their admiration and esteem washington reached new york june 25 1775 and left th tho next nest diry day As As lie he need neared boston tits hla progress reps was n continued Ov ovation Atlon according to contemporaneous accounts lie ile arrived at the headquarters of the army at cambridge july 2 and took up ids his permanent headquarters inthe ln the oracle cragle which Is iq mso known to feime fume as long the lie lome home oatlie of the presidents president i 0 of f harvard college and the home of lien ry longfellow Lossl washington says the commander ln in ahlet rode a large white horse of arabian blood ills dress was a blu coat with buff colored fa fall lings a epaulette evaulette ep aulette on ench each shoulder buff under ress end an small dinall sword a black cockade in tits ills hat tossing also says washington first assumed the duties of his office on the of july about 0 in the mornin morning ga g a clear sultry iti orning tho the troops in cambridge were drawn up in order upon the common near harvard ver versley hersity sity to receive the commander ln in chief accompanied by the lie general officers of the army army who were present lie he walked from tits his quarters to a venerable elm tree which yet flour bishes in the pride of vigor vigorous oui age anil under r its shadow standing between his staff and tho battalions lie he drew Ms fits sword and duade a few appropriate rei remarks and formally took command i of the continental army A steel engraving in lossl work however shows washington Washing top on a white horsa ond and not under the elm most pictures of the event show washington mounted eherd was a n notable celebration ato around nd th the e tree july juli 8 1873 when a tablet wn was s set up and an iron fence erected the wood of them the tree will probably ably bo be distributed to museums and schools A nailon wida campaign among school children la ii proposed for a monument on the site elte nowadays we have it hall inlall of F faroe nine for american trees established establish ei by the be Amer american lenn tree asso association clatton A popular vote would undoubtedly give first honors to ilia washington elm the charter oak and the penn treaty elm the perin penn tree was the oldest of the three in respect to the events which made them famous it was u under n if that a tree a magnificent elm con considerably ide ab ly larger than the washington elm that william penn ienn Is sold eald to have met the indian chiefs in 1082 and ratified that famous treaty of amity and goodwill good will which voltaire said many years inter was the only treaty between those people and the christians that was not ratified by oath and that was never broken benjamin west mado the tree free famous through its his splendid painting in which william penn is depleted depicted beneath its brunches branches in the midst of t the I 1 ie indian braves it stood near the river bank in the kensington section of philadelphia its age was as L estimated at years ears its circumference was ans 24 feet tn 1810 it was fl as blown down by a storm the charter oak in hartford has fins a good cipin on immortality the night of october 31 1087 the connecticut bh charter arter was hidden w the hoi hollow of its decaying trunk thereby balking the efforts of sir ir 11 edmund dmund andros the royal gover now new england sent pent over by james 11 II to obtain possession posies slon of it it ling peen been said that tho charter oak was wn s footo to 1000 years old the f fact a ct th that a t I 1 there bere iere was as a hole in its trunk large enough to conceal the charter in proves that it was an ancient troa tra at that thai time it lived on for 19 years more finally fall ing to the ground in a storm on august 21 |