"Life is a gift from divine Love," says the new teaching, and "why divide it up into little bits, and think that little by little we are using it up, and that soon we shall come to an end." "Ignore birthdays, which only carry suggestions of age and ugliness, and remember that life and goodness are immortal." Such doctrine as this could it have been spoken in Dolly's day, would doubtless have voiced her feelings, and been of greatest comfort. For birthdays she greatly preferred to forget, and was apt indeed, to do so. Why should the dear old lady have been reminded so often, of the many milestones past, and the very few ahead?

FROM THE COLLECTION OF SIMON GRATZ, PHILADELPHIA.

I often desire to see you when I cannot, but now there is a new reason for the liveliness of my wishes—it is to rectify the mistake of a moment, not "of a night." You enquired last evening if I was not one year older than your mother. I answered yes, when I ought to have said several—In truth I could then only remember my first acquaintance with that beloved relation, when all the world seemed young to us.—

She was about seventeen, and I turned of twenty—this was my calculation before I slept last night—and, being anxious to disavow the affection of curtailing some precious years, I will give you a copy of the notice of me in our family Bible, ... and having been all my life in the world, it gives me the advantage sometimes of the nominal advance to eighty. I know you will excuse this little sally on your time because with all your other great qualities you have the most reasonable and indulgent temper.

Your friend and cos.,
Jany 29th 1839 D. P. Madison.

To The Honble W. C. Preston.

Darwin has said that a man's worth is best measured by the duration of his friendships. Dolly's friendships were life-long. She never allowed the friends of more recent date, no matter who they might be, to crowd into the background the friends of her youth. In the days of her prosperity, rich and poor were alike welcomed at her lavish board.

The little daughter of that early correspondent, Elizabeth Brooke (Ellicott), was treated to strawberries and cake, during informal visits at the White House. And she gave "Jimmie" no rest until he ordered the release of "Debby" Pleasants' (Stabler) son, when he was imprisoned because of conscientious scruples against bearing arms in the war of 1812.

In 1830 she wrote Elizabeth Brooke Ellicott, "it would give me great satisfaction to meet you both again, and sometimes the hope of doing so comes over my mind." But this hope was probably never realized, as the years were leaving their impress on them all.

Philip E. Thomas, the first president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, another cousin, often called and talked about "old times;" and his daughter, Mary Thomas Wethered, in turn became a favorite visitor.

It was on the 24th day of May, 1844, that Prof. Morse was ready to make the final test of his electric magnetic recording telegraph, and the wires between Washington and Baltimore were finally completed. The Baltimore end was set up at the Mt. Clare shops of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and the Washington end in the Supreme Court room of the Capitol, where the many friends of the inventor had assembled to see the first message sent. He had promised his young friend, Miss Annie Ellsworth, that she should indite the first message over the wires. Her choice was the words of Scripture (Numbers 23: 23): "What hath God wrought."[66]

In Baltimore a little company were likewise assembled to receive the message. It was received there and repeated back to Washington with entire success. Prof. Morse then turned to Dolly Madison, and asked if she wished to send a message, and a few moments later the first real message was flashed over the wires. Its wording was: "Message from Mrs. Madison. She sends her love to Mrs. Wethered." John Wethered was at this time representative in Congress, from Baltimore city.

St. John's Church, Washington, D. C.