Only Live Oak Trees Over Century Old
Are Eligible for This Unique Society;
Its 'President' Is Elected 'By Girth'!
By ELMO SCOTT WATSON
(Released by Western Newspaper Union.)
HE recent celebration of
the fifth anniversary of
the founding of the Live
Oak Society of Louisiana,
unique organization fathered
by the late Dr. Edwin L.
Stephens, has called attention
again to some of the famous
trees that serve as living mon
uments to important events
in the history of the United
States.
Dr. Stephens, who was for
many years president of
Southwestern Louisiana insti
tute, originated the Live Oak
society while gathering data
on the historical trees of his
state during 1935. It shortly
became famous throughout
the world.
Only live oaks with an estab
lished age of at least a century
are admitted to the society. The
president is elected “by girth.”
The Locke Breaux oak on the
Mississippi river in St. Charles
parish, Louisiana, has held the of
fice by reason of its size ever
since the society was first organ
ized. This oak is said to be the
largest in America, having a girth
of 35 feet at a height of four feet
above the ground and standing 75
feet high with a spread of 166
feet.
It was beneath this moss
draped giant that LaSalle and his
band of French explorers are said
to have knelt to offer thanks for
their safe arrival on their voyage
down the Mississippi river in a
land “where the fruit trees bear
in winter.”
High on the list of charter
members of the society is the
Evangeline oak in old St. Mar
tinville, where descendants of the
original Acadian exiles from
Nova Scotia still carry on the tra
ditions and customs of their
French forefathers. Under this
oak the heroine of Longfellow’s
“Evangeline” met again the lover
she had sought through weary
months and perilous journeying
only to find that he had another
sweetheart!
k Famous, too, are the duelling
oaks in New Orleans. In another
era these trees looked down on
many gallants who sought to
avenge real or fancied insults
with blades that flashed in the
rays of the early sun. Often the
spreading branches of these oaks
sheltered a duellist who lay on
the field of honor as his opponent
strode off victorious.
Pay ‘Dues’ With Acorns.
Dues of member trees are
acorns payable in November of
every year. The acorns are plant
ed in the society’s own nursery
and the young trees, treasured
by garden and horticultural soci
eties because of their distin
guished parentage, are used for
planting highways, college cam
puses and parks.
Other offspring of these aristo
crats of the live oak family have
traveled to many far-away lands.
Some of them now stand on es
tates in South America. Others
have crossed the Pacific to take
root in the soil of Australia. Still
others cast shadows over the
bright tropical bloom in Hawaiian
gardens and so provide a link be
tween tree lovers of this Pacific
island and the United States.
Live oaks are admitted to the
society upon presentation of their
“family tree” by someone who
serves as an “attorney.” Each
new member is inducted with fit
ting ceremonies arranged by the
garden clubs of Louisiana and in
which state officials take part.
However, these Louisiana live
oaks are not the only arboreal
aristocrats of this country having
a genealogy rooted in centuries
when America was an uncharted
wilderness and beneath whose
branches have been enacted hu
man dramas that changed the
course of the nation s history.
Probably most famous of all
historic American trees is the
Washington elm in Cambridge,
Mass. It was beneath this tree
that Washington took command
of the Continental army on July
3, 1775. The tree is thought to be
a survivor of the primeval forest
that once covered the region and
in its youth was almost 100 feet
in height, with a branch spread
of 90 feet. When in 1872 one of
the largest of the tree’s branches
fell as a result of a storm the
wood was used for a pulpit in a
nearby chapel.
Maryland’s Liberty Tree.
Even more ancient is the his
tory of the Liberty tree at Annap
olis, Md. This tree, an immense
poplar, stands on the campus of
St. John’s college and is entitled
to fame both on account of its
great age and size and because
of the historic events that took
place beneath it. Tradition re
cords that in 1652 a treaty was
made under the Liberty tree be
tween white settlers and the Sus
Or. Edwin L. Stephens standing beside the Locke Breaux oak in
St. Charles parish, La., “president” of the Live Oak Society of
Louisiana.
quehannock Indians, thereby as
suring the settlers of safety which
left them free to develop the land
and build homes and communi
ties. When the colonists were dis
cussing problems which led to
revolt against England, patriotic
meetings were held in the shade
of the Liberty tree, out of which
arose its name. Later still, Gen
eral Lafayette was entertained
beneath its shade when he visited
Annapolis in 1824.
The Royal Oak or Tree of the
Lighted Lanterns, near Easton,
Md., also stands as a living
memorial to this country’s fight
for independence and the right to
her own trade. During the War
of 1812, a British ship came to
anchor at night opposite the town
of St. Michaels in Talbot county
and began to shell the town. The
townspeople, who were unprotect
ed, hung lighted lanterns in the
tops of the high tree and so de
ceived the enemy into mistaking
Historic “Evangeline Oak” in
St. Martinville, La.
them for lights of the town, with
the result their shots passed
harmlessly overhead.
A stalwart oak at Chesterfield,
S. C., which was already a lordly
tree in 1852, played a role in
the Civil war. The first flag bear
ing the words “Immediate Sep
arate State Action” was fastened
to its branches and fluttered there
until General Sherman took the
town and ordered the flag down.
Even before gaining fame in the
Civil war the tree had been
marked as one of Chesterfield’s
historic points of interest as it had
served as a place for Indian par
leys and their pipes of peace, to
gether with stores of arrowheads,
were found buried beneath it.
New York cherishes as its old
est tree, the Inwood tulip tree,
on the northern end of Manhattan
island. Said to be more than 225
years old, the tree was in its
youth when Henry Hudson made
his memorable voyage of discov
ery on the river that bears his
name.
Corydon, Ind., claims one of the
country’s famous trees, the Con
stitutional elm, beneath which, on
June 10, 1816, members of the
Constitutional convention met to
deliberate on the articles of law
to be adopted for the government
of the new state of Indiana. This
tree is protected by law against
depredations.
Roosevelt Oaks.
Even in our own modern era
trees have their place in current
history. When the final plans
were drawn for the library of
President Franklin D. Roosevelt
at Hyde Park, in which his pa
pers will be kept for posterity,
the President decided to preserve
the landscaping of the grounds so
that future generations might see
the place just as it exists today.
Thus, the landscaping plans ne
cessitated preserving, in appear
ance at least, the six great oaks
which surround the front of the
library. These trees have stood
for several hundred years and it
was because of their beauty the
library was erected on the pres
ent site. Accordingly, President
Roosevelt decided to have young
oaks planted next to each of the
old oaks, so that when the old
ones finally died and were re
moved, the young ones would
grow in their corresponding
places. The oaks chosen were a
group of 19-year-old trees that
had been planted by the Presi
dent’s daughter, Anna Roosevelt
Boettiger.
Of even more historic interest
is the use of the trees which grew
about the groups of Lincoln’s
childhood home to flank the white
marble walls of the memorial to
the Great Emancipator’s mem
ory. It was under these same
trees that the boy Lincoln spent
his childhood summers learning
to read and write. Two of the
huge shade trees which have been
included in the landscaping were
those under which two of the his
toric Lincoln-Douglas debates
were held.
A tree which needed neither
age nor historical background to
bring it fame is the unique “Ap
ple Annie tree” which marks the
grave of Mary McGrath, for
years a familiar and colorful fig
ure in the theatrical district of
Broadway. Mary McGrath
walked New York’s “Great White
Way” for years, selling apples to
passersby who inchided many of
the great theatrical names of her
era as well as the less great. She
inspired a story and subsequent
photoplay and when she died a
few years ago the Broadway
theatrical world mourned her
passing. A group who had known
“Apple Annie” through the years
planned a unique memorial—a
tree composed of the seven vari
eties of apples which had consti
tuted her wares. The tree, which
bears Astrachan, Gravenstein,
Fall Pippjn, Baldwin, Greening,
Russett and King apples, now is
planted on her grave.
In addition to serving as monu
ments, historical trees have them
selves inspired monuments. A
bronze monument marks the site
of the old Liberty elm in Boston.
The tree was planted by a school
master long before the Revolu
tion and, dedicated by him to the
independence of the colonies, was
a favorite meeting place for pa
triots. When at last it fell the
bells of all Boston churches were
tolled. A monument was erected
to the memory of a tree which in
its turn had served as a living
memorial to the fight our fore
fathers waged to make this a free
and independent nation.
Modern methods of tree sur
gery have helped to preserve
many historic trees which, with
out man’s help, would have died
of the ravages of time, storms
and insects. The new tree sur
gery with rubber, originated by
the noted horticulturist, George
Van Yahres, and subsequently de- j
veloped by engineers of the B. F.
Goodrich company, was used to
preserve the life of the old Wash
ington walnut tree in New Jersey.
Tradition has it that the first
President frequently hitched his
horse to an iron ring embedded
in the tree when he commanded
the American Revolutionary
forces. For more than 150 years ;
the tree withstood onslaughts of
weather. A few years ago decay
set in and it seemed that the tree
would go the way of other his
torically famous trees which have
disappeared from the earth.
The Van Yahres method of tree
surgery was employed, a new
type of interlocking rubber blocks
being used to fill up cavities in
the tree caused by decay.
Whereas concrete fillings former
ly used in tree surgery give the
tree a rigidity which makes it
impossible for the tree to bend
with the wind in a severe storm,
these rubber blocks have such
pliability the danger of the tree
cracking when buffeted by a wind
was eliminated. In addition, bark
grows more easily over rubber as
the tree scar heals. After the
insertion of the filling, antisep
tic wax was injected by steam
pressure to kill any lurking decay
germs. Today, the Washington
walnut tree gives promise of re
maining as an historic landmark
for another century or so.
WHO’S
NEWS
THIS
WEEK
By LEMUEL F. PARTON
(Consolidated Features—WNU Service.)
□EW YORK —Joseph C. Grew,
ambassador to Japan, got his
start by crawling into a cave and
getting a half-nelson on a tiger. No
wonder he
■
. Foreign Min
Diplomat Grew ister M#tsu.
oka and to tell him that “The Amer
ican people are firmly determined in
certain matters.”
About that tiger. Just out of Har
vard, the young Bostonian headed
for Singapore, to piece out his sheep
skin with a tiger skin. He hunted
big game for two years in southern
Asia, engaging in a great deal of
jungle milling before he found the
open door in China—the entrance to
the tiger’s cave which was his gate
way to a distinguished diplomatic
career.
When the tiger story was pub
lished, It caught the eye of Pres
ident Theodore Roosevelt, but it
was a later bear story which
really stirred his Interest. Young
Mr. Grew took three straight
falls from an angry bear. Nat
urally, T. R. saw in that the
makings of a diplomat. Cables
the next day routed the bear
wrangler and tiger-tilter into a
lifetime career in diplomacy,
starting a post with the Egyp
tian consulate-general at Cairo.
He was paced steadily on up
through posts at Mexico City, Petro
grad, Berlin, Vienna, Copenhagen
and Berne. He is rounding 60, 36
years in the diplomatic service, tall,
erect, weathered, graying. His
durable career typewriter has come
along with him down the years, and
on it he raps out his terse reports to
the state department Bear-wran
gling, diplomacy and this and that
has left him with only one good ear,
but it serves to register a bigger ear
ful than most diplomats get with
two.
Mrs. Grew is a granddaughter of
Commodore Perry, who opened
Japan to the western world—or vice
versa. Living with them at the em
bassy is their daughter, Mrs. Cecil
Lyon, with her two children.
VERNE MARSHALL was born
and grew up in Cedar Rapids,
Iowa, and for 26 years has been
editor of the Cedar Rapids Gazette.
C “f c* D * He likes t0
Scribe Stays Put, gtay put and
Believes the U. S. thinks the U.
Should Do Same Ath°Uf„me°
do the same.
In New York, he becomes the or
ganizer and director of the No For
eign War Committee, which puts
him in the opposite corner to Wil
liam Allen White, the other sage of
mid-western newspapering, who
heads the Committee to Defend
America. Not that Mr. White wants
war, but their ideas are so opposed
that they already are pumping
large-caliber editorials at each other.
Mr. Marshall lost one war.
For his courageous anti-graft
campaign in Cedar Rapids, he
was awarded the Pulitzer prize,
on May 4, 1038. But while the
cheers were still echoing, the
Iowa Supreme court, the next
day, knocked out his graft
charges against 31 persons. He
kept on slugging, however, and
is highly esteemed in those parts
as a self-starting, hard-hitting
editor.
He was in London in 1911, writing
for the London Chronicle, returned
home and later left his newspaper
desk for a stretch of machine-gun
ning ;n the big war. He didn’t like
it and now says enough is enough.
He is the father of six children.
CUSTOMER who ever dropped
in at Jacques De Sieyes’ Fifth
avenue perfume shop for a spot of
‘‘fleur d'amour’’ would ever have
thought of the elegant M. De Sieyes
as a fighting man. But that’s the
way it is with the French—elegant,
but tough, on occasion. M. De
Sieyes was a flying ace in the World
war, lost a leg, was wounded five
times and is now looking for a re
turn engagement as he serves as the
personal representative of Gen.
Charles De Gaulle, to rally the "free
French" in this country. Just now,
with three other members of Gen
eral De Gaulle’s American commit
tee, he gives vehement assurance
that the present political machina
tions of the Nazis will consolidate
France and steel it for final resist
ance.
M. De Sieyes was a classmate
and intimate friend of General
De Gaulle at the St. Cyr military
academy. They lost touch with
each other during the World war
and M. De Sieyes has not seen
his old friend since he left Paris
in 1920. But he cabled the gen
eral when the latter made a
new base in London and issued
his stirring appeal for the sup
port of free Frenchmen through
out the world, pledging un
changed loyalty. The result was
his personal representation of
the general here.
Operate for
Gall Bladder
Inflammation
By DR. JAMES W. BARTON
WHEN a patient has an
attack of acute gall
bladcker trouble with severe
pain in upper right abdomen
going over into ■
the shoulder it TODAY’S
has been the ||CA|T||
custom to wait n Ell LI n
until all symp- COLUMN
toms have dis- L_——_
appeared before operating.
This would appear to be wise
when we think of how “low”
these patients are in spirits
aside from the exhausting re
sults of the attack.
It comes than as a surprise when
we learn that physicians and sur
geons today are advising early oper
ation in acute inflammation of the
gall bladder as they believe that less
damage to the patient’s general
health results from operation than
allowing a severe or repeated attack
to affect the general health.
Dr. F. Glenn, New York, in Sur
gery. Gynecology and Obstetrics,
Dr. Barton
Chicago, records the
histories of the 219
patients with acute
cholecystitis (in
flammation of the
gall bladder) who
have been treated at
the New York hos
pital in the last six
years. Early opera
tion is not difficult,
there was not a
greater number of
complications, nor
was the death rate
higher than for ordinary or chronic
gall bladder diseases.
Dangers of Delay.
Dr. Glenn states that as the out
come of an acute inflammation of
the gall bladder cannot be predict
ed (even as in acute appendicitis),
delay in operating may lead to dan
gerous complications which greatly
increase the difficulty of operation
and increase the death rate also.
The younger the patient undergoing
operation, the better the chance of
an uneventful recovery and good re
sult from operation.
From his observation of these 219
cases, Dr. Glenn recommends that
patients with disease of the gall
bladder and bile tubes or ducts un
dergo operation as soon as it is
known that this disease is present
unless the general condition of the
patient is such that further medical
treatment should first be given.
Farts Regarding
I 1 Blood Pressure
_
THERE was a time when the first
thought when a patient had a
temperature was to give a drug—
acetanilid, phenacetine, quinine, or
other—to reduce the temperature.
Today, the physician takes the tem
perature and pulse as usual but
searches around to find the cause of
the temperature. If the tempera
ture gets very high, he may give
some drug to reduce it slightly but
he knows that the rise in tempera
ture shows that nature is putting up
a fight against some invader.
It would seem that the time has
come for patients and physicians to
take the same stand about blood
pressure. A patient learns that his
blood pressure is a little above nor
mal and wants to take medicine or
follow a diet to bring it down.
Dr. Edward Weiss of Philadelphia
in “Practical Talks on Kidney Dis
ease,” says:
“Let us take the example of a
middle-aged man who has been
turned down by a life insurance
company because of high blood pres
sure. He goes to his physician and
demands to know the blood pressure
figures; on each visit to the physi
cian he waits with anxious concern
to hear the latest reading and fre
quently has ideas of ‘stroke,’ ‘heart
failure,’ or Bright’s disease in the
back of his mind.”
Why Nature liaises Blood Pressure.
Now, what about high blood pres
sure? As a matter of fact, nature
has raised the blood pressure be
cause it was necessary to raise or
increase it due to some condition
present in the body. This condition
may be a real or organic condition
such as hardening of the arteries,
or it may be some condition such
as eating too much or worrying too
much. It is possible that some in
fection is present which is giving the
body processes more work to do
and the blood pressure increases
accordingly.
All that is necessary in many
cases is smaller meals, more rest
and relaxation, and not bothering to
have the blood pressure taken mor^
than two or three times a year.
question box
Q.—Could you suggest any sort of
ear plugs to keep noises from pre
venting me from sleeping? I am
having a great deal of trouble.
A.—Rubber ear stoppers used by
swimmers to keep water out of the
ears can be purchased in most drug
stores. Absorbent cotton helps to
some extent. A special wax which
you can mold yourself to fit in ear
canal likewise can be purchased in
some stores.
■OP? SEW
Ruth Wyeth Spears
C'
a
j^o ! A-STITCH FACING-B-CUT
; OPENING AND TURN
\ INSIDE !: FACING-C-STITCH-D-FOLD
E-MARK CURVE-FSTITCH
H-I8M-H G-TRIM-H-OYERCAST
3A-YARD CHINT2-I TURN RIGHT SIDE
FACING 5"XI5M OUT AND ADD HANGER
A RE you planning things that
** will sell well at a Fair or
Bazaar? Or is this the season that
you catch up on odds and ends of
sewing for the house? In either
case you will like to stitch up a
bag like this one. Everyone seems
to have a special use for one of
these bags on a hanger. I have
one that I use for laundry when
I go traveling. Men and boys like
them for closet laundry bags too,
as they are plenty big enough
for shirts. A little girl I know has
a small version of one of these in
which she keeps doll clothes
scraps. I have also seen them
used for everything from dress
patterns to dust rags.
This green and white ivy pat
terned chintz with green facing
makes a good looking bag. Pic
torial chintz will amuse a young
ster—something with animals or
toys or a landscape in the design.
I saw a material the other day
with a pattern showing all kinds
of rope knots. A boy would like
that. Each step in making the
bag is shown in the sketch.
• • *
In SEWING Book 3 there are direction*
for still another type of bag on a hanger:
also a pocket for the pantry door. This
book contains directions for the spool
shelves: stocking cat; "The rug that grew
up with the family.” and many other of
your favorites among articles that have
appeared in the paper. Send order to:
MBS. RUTH WYETH SPEARS
Drawer 10
Bedford Hills New York
Enclose 10 cents for Book No. 3.
Name ...
Address .'..
AROUND
the HOUSE
Items of Interest
to the Housewife
When a splinter has gone very
deep into the flesh, try extraction
by steam. Heat a wide-mouthed
bottle and fill it two-thirds full of
very hot water and place under
the injured spot. The suction in a
few minutes removes both splinter
and inflammation. This method is
particularly good when the splin
ter has been in for some time.
• * •
Save the peels of oranges and
tangerines, dry them in the oven
and store in glass jars. They give
puddings and custards a delicious
flavor.
• • *
When making peppermints drop
them onto a piece of waxed paper
instead of onto a pan. They are
more easily removed from waxed
paper.
* • •
When a sweater is washed the
buttonholes will not stretch if they
are sewed together before the
sweater is put into the water.
• • *
Filling the icebox with scraps of
left-over food is a waste of room
and usually of food. Never allow
them to accumulate.
Jlsk Me Another
0 A General Quiz
The Questions
1. Do any birds hold their food in
their claws while eating?
2. Article I of the Constitution
is concerned with what?
3. At what hour is reveille sound
ed in the U. S. army?
4. What is the longest verse in
the Bible?
5. What is the width of the strip
of land composing the Panama
Canal Zone?
6. Who coined the phrase: "I
am on the side of the angels”?
The Answers
1. Only the parrot does.
2. The congress.
3. At 6:30 a. m.
4. Esther 8:9 is said to be the
longest verse in the Bible, and the
Gospel of John 11:35 is said to be
the shortest.
5. Ten miles wide (5 miles on
each side of the canal route).
6. Benjamin Disraeli.
Hard sauce, highly flavored with
cinnamon, grated orange and lem
on peels and a little fruit juice,
gives just the proper flnish to hot
fruit puddings.
• • •
Brass knockers and doorknobs
that are exposed to the weather
will stay clean and bright longer
if rubbed with paraffin after they
are cleaned and polished with a
soft, dry cloth.
* • *
Windows may be kept clean and
clear during the winter if rubbed
over with glycerine occasionally,
then polished with a dry cloth.
• * *
Plant bulbs close to the window
panes and away from the heat of
the room instead of starting them
in a dark room. You will get
better results.
Pull the Trigger on
Lazy Bowels, and
Comfort Stomach, too
When constipation brings on acid in
digestion, stomach upset, bloating, dizzy
spells, gas. coated tongue, sour taste and
bad breath, your stomach is probably
"crying the blues” because your bowels
don't move. It calls for Laxative-Senna
to pull the trigger on those lazy bowels,
combined with Syrup Pepsin to save
your touchy stomach from further dis
tress. For years, many Doctors have used
pepsin compounds as vehicles, or car
riers to make other medicines agreeable
to your stomach. So be sure your laxa
tive contains Syrup Pepsin. Insist on
Dr. Caldwell’s Laxative Senna combined
with Syrup Pepsin. See how wonderfully
the Laxative Senna wakes up lazy nerves
and muscles in your intestines to bring
welcome relief from constipation. And
the good old Syrup Pepsin makes this
laxative so. comfortable and easy on
your stomach. Even finicky children
love the taste of this pleasant family
laxative. Buy Dr. Caldwell’s Laxative
Senna at your druggist today. Try one
laxative that comforts your stomach, too.
Spark of Conscience ,
Labor to keep alive in your
breast that little spark of celestial
fire called conscience.—Washing
ton.
m
I
I
ARE AN
INFLUENTIAL
PERSON i
The merchant who advertises must treat
you better than the merchant who does
not. He must treat you as though you
were the most influential person in town.
As a matter of cold fact you are. You
hold the destiny of his business in your
hands. He knows it. He shows it. And you
benefit by good service, by courteous treat
ment, by good value—and by lower prices.
<_