"When Benjamin Douglass was the State Entomologist in 

 1910," says E. M. Herschell, "he sent men from his offiee to Corydon, 

 and the cavities in the historic tree were cleaned and then filled with 

 concrete, much as a dentist fills a decayed tooth. The result of this 

 treatment has been that the constitutional elm has taken on new vigor 

 and probably will live through generations to tell its story of the 

 pioneer upbuilding of a great state. Corydon's other historic treas- 

 ure, Indiana's first capitol, still is in a good state of preservation. 



An effort has been made to give the Statehouse Grounds in Indi- 

 anapolis historic setting with trees, but the plan has not proved 

 successful because of the apparent refusal of trees to grow in the 

 Statehouse Yard. Shortly after the present state capitol was occupied 

 it became a custom of the Governors to plant a tree representative of 

 their administration. These trees, mostly maples, have been scattered 

 over the grounds, but it is a sad fact that only a few have survived." 



The Morse Elm 



One of the first trees to be given a place in the Hall of Fame for 

 Trees of the American Forestry Association, was the famous Morse 

 Elm of Washington, D. C. Standing at the corner of Pennsylvania 

 Avenue and Fourteenth Street, it has looked down upon every inaug- 

 ural parade held in the national capital, and was one of the city's 

 oldest landmarks, though owing to decay, it has been removed. 



The tree was named for Samuel F. B. Morse, who often sat 

 beneath it, talking to interested listeners of his wonderful invention, 

 the telegraph. Groups of politicians were also to be seen discussing 

 affairs of State in its shade. 



When the Morse Elm was felled, its trunk was presented to the 

 American Forestry Association. 



The Tappan Elm 



At Tappan, N. Y., near the quaint little house that served as 

 Washington's headquarters, stands an elm that is associated with 

 Revolutionary days. When, in 1783, arrangements were made for 

 the evacuation of New York by the British, and the exchange of 

 prisoners, a small tar barrel was hoisted up on a limb of the tree and 

 set on fire, as a signal that the much desired end had been accomp- 

 lished. It is said that the flames were visible on Manhattan Island, 

 about twenty miles away. The De Wint house, a residence close by 

 the elm, is believed to have been the meeting-place, where the papers 

 necessary to the transaction were drawn up. 



Only a few blocks north of the old tree stands the " '76 House," 

 where Major Andre was imprisoned just before his execution, and 

 the old Dutch Reformed Church where his trial took place. The 

 monument erected to his memory is in the town of Tappan. 



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