Mr. Morris's wife was Miss Sarah Kane, daughter of Colonel John Kane,
and she was beautiful even in her declining years. She also possessed
the wit so characteristic of the Kanes, who, by the way, were of Celtic
origin, being descended from John Kane who came from Ireland in 1752.
She was the aunt of the first De Lancey Kane, who married the pretty
Louisa Langdon, the granddaughter of John Jacob Astor. Their daughter,
Emily Morris, made frequent visits to our house. She was renowned for
both beauty and wit. I remember seeing several verses addressed to her,
the only lines of which I recall are as follows:

That calm collected look,
As though her pulses beat by book.

Another intimate friend of my father was Frederick de Peyster, who at a
later day became President of the New York Historical Society. He
habitually took Sunday tea with us, and always received a warm welcome
from the juvenile members of the family with whom he was a great
favorite. He was devoted to children, and delighted our young hearts by
occasional presents of game-chickens which at once became family pets.

In 1823 and 1824 my father's sympathies were deeply enlisted in behalf
of the Greeks in their struggles for independence from the Turkish rule.
It will be remembered that this was the cause to which Byron devoted his
last energies. The public sentiment of the whole country was aroused to
a high pitch of excitement, and meetings were held not only for the
purpose of lending moral support and encouragement to the Greeks, but
also for raising funds for their assistance. Among those to whom my
father appealed was his friend, Rudolph Bunner, a highly prominent
citizen of Oswego, N.Y. Although a lawyer he did not practice his
profession, but devoted himself chiefly to his extensive landed estates
in Oswego county. He was wealthy and generous, a good liver and an
eloquent political speaker. He served one term in Congress where, as
elsewhere, he was regarded as a man of decided ability. He died about
1833 at the age of nearly seventy. The distinguished New York lawyer,
John Duer, married his daughter Anne, by whom he had thirteen children,
one of whom, Anna Henrietta, married the late Pierre Paris Irving, a
nephew of Washington Irving and at one time rector of the Episcopal
church at New Brighton, Staten Island. Mr. Bunner's letter in response
to my father's appeal is not devoid of interest, and is as follows:

OSWEGO, 12 Jan'y 1824.