USA > New Jersey > Historical collections of the state of New Jersey : containing a general collection of the most interesting facts, traditions, biographical sketches, anecdotes, etc. relating to its history and antiquities, with geographical desciptions of every township in the state. > Part 5
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Immediately upon the transfer of the right of government to the crown, Queen Anne reunited East and West Jersey into one prov- ince, and intrusted its government, as well as that of New York, to her kinsman, Edward Hyde, Lord Cornbury, grandson of the chancellor, Earl of Clarendon. The commission and instructions which Cornbury received formed the constitution and government of the province, until its declaration of independence. The new government was composed of the governor and twelve councillors, nominated by the crown, and an assembly, of twenty-four mem- bers, to be elected by the people, for an indefinite term, whose ses- sions were to be holden, alternately, at Perth Amboy and Burling- ton. Among the numerous instructions given to the governor was ^ one directing him " to permit liberty of conscience to all persons, (except Papists,) so they may be contented with a quiet and peace- able enjoyment of the same, not giving offence or scandal to the government ;" also one stating that, “Forasmuch as great incon- veniences may arise by the liberty of printing in our said province, you are to provide, by all necessary orders, that no person keep any press for printing, nor that any book, pamphlet, or other matters whatsoever, be printed without your especial leave and license first obtained."
At this period the province was supposed to contain 20,000 in- habitants, of whom 12,000 belonged to East, and 8,000 to West Jersey. The militia amounted to 1,400 men. The trade of the province was considerable. Its exports consisted of agricultural produce, which supplied the West Indies; furs, skins, and a little tobacco, for the English market ; and oil, fish, and other provisions, which were sent to Spain, Portugal, and the Canary islands.
Lord Cornbury arrived in New Jersey in August, 1703. He con- tinued in the office of governor of New Jersey and New York till 1708; when the complaints of the people were such that the queen was compelled to revoke his commission. When deprived of his office, his creditors put him in prison in the province he had governed, where he remained till the death of his father elevated
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him to the peerage, which entitled him to liberation. "We never had a governor," (says a writer who knew him well,) "so univer- sally detested, nor any who so richly deserved the public abhor- rence : in spite of his noble descent, his behavior was trifling, mean, and extravagant. It was not uncommon for him to dress himself in a woman's habit, and then to patrol the fort in which he resided. Such freaks of low humor exposed him to the universal contempt of the people ; but their indignation was kindled by his despotic rule, savage bigotry, insatiable avarice, and injustice, not only to the public, but even his private creditors."
John, Lord Lovelace, Baron of Hurley, being appointed to suc- ceed Cornbury, he summoned the council to meet him at Bergen, December 20th, 1708. The hopes entertained, from his exalted character, of a happy administration, were frustrated by his death, on the succeeding 5th of May. The administration now devolved on Lieutenant-governor Ingoldsby, who laid before the assembly the design of the crown respecting an expedition against Canada. " The assembly prepared three bills, one for raising £3,000,* an- other for enforcing its currency, and a third for the encouragement of volunteers going on the Canada expedition. These bills having received the governor's assent, the house was adjourned to the first of November, to meet at Burlington. In November they met ac- cordingly, but deferred business till December ; when they sat ten weeks, passed eighteen bills, were then adjourned, and after- ward prorogued, from time to time, till dissolved by Governor Hunter, in 1710."
Governor Hunter commenced his administration in 1710, and in 1720 resigned in favor of William Burnet, (son of the celebrated bishop,) and returned to England. "He had a ready art at pro- curing money : few loved it more. This foible, it is said, drew him into schemes, gaming, and considerable losses. Though not in all respects accomplished, his address here was engaging and suc- cessful : he assented to most of the laws the people wanted, and filled the offices with men of character.
* Here began the paper currency in New Jersey. The care of the legislature respect- ing it, in this and all the succeeding emissions, being to render the funds for sinking, according to the acts that created it, secure, and to prevent the currency failing in value ; by changing the bills as they became ragged and torn, and allowing no re-emissions on any other account whatsoever. It has thence, from the beginning, preserved its credit, and proved of great service to the proprietors in the sale of their lands, and to the set- tlers in enabling them to purchase and contract, and pay English debts, and go on with their improvements. The securities, when issued on loan, were double the value in lands, or treble in houses, and five per cent. interest ; but now (1765) there is none current on this footing. The funds for sinking, by tax, the money created for the expedition, and - other purposes, are mortgages (secured in the acts that make the respective emissions) on the estates, real and personal, in the province; hence they are secured as firmly as the province itself. They are a legal tender to all the inhabitants in the province, and elsewhere, but not to others, except while in the province. The remittances of this province to England, being chiefly from New York and Philadelphia, and the bills no le- gal tender there, they can never operate to the prejudice of English debts, let exchange be as it may ; because none there are obliged to take them. This is a particularity only belonging to the state of trade of New Jersey, and renders a paper currency there free from the objections usually made against it in England .- Smith's Hist. N. J. .
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Some of the most remarkable acts of the assembly, during Gov. Burnet's administration, were, that for the support of government, in which the salary of the governor was fixed for five years, at £500 per annum, and that authorizing the issue of £40,000 in bills of credit, with the view, principally, of increasing the circu- lating medium of the colony. The country, as the preamble to the act sets forth, had been wholly drained of a metallic currency ; and, as the paper currency of the neighboring colonies was not a legal tender in the payment of debts, much embarrassment was produced. The payment of taxes was occasionally made in broken plate, ear-rings, and other jewels: and the law authorized their payment in wheat. Forty thousand pounds, in bills in value from one shilling to three pounds, were issued by the government to borrowers, on the pledge of plate, or real estate, at five per cent. per annum. The whole sum was apportioned to the counties in which loan-offices were established : the bills were made current for twelve years. and were made a legal tender for debts. In 1730 another act added £20,000 to this medium, and were made current for sixteen years. All these issues (although at one period they were at a discount of sixteen per cent.) were fully and duly re- deemed .*
"Gov. Burnet, after this, continued to preside over New York and New Jersey, till 1727; when he was removed to Boston, and succeeded by John Montgomerie, Esq. He continued till his death, which happened in the summer of 1731. To him succeeded Wil- liam Cosby, Esq. He continued till his death, in 1736. . The gov- ernment here then devolved on the president of the council, John Anderson, Esq. He died about two weeks afterward, and was succeeded by John Hamilton, Esq., (son of Andrew Hamilton, governor in the proprietors' time.) He governed nearly two years. In the summer of 1738, a commission arrived to Lewis Morris, Esq., as governor of New Jersey, separate from New York. He con- tinued till his death, in the spring of 1746. He was succeeded by President Hamilton. He dying, it devolved upon John Reading, Esq., as the next eldest councillor. He exercised the office till the summer of 1747, when Jonathan Belcher, Esq., arrived. He died in the summer of 1757, and was succeeded by John Reading, Esq., president. Francis Bernard, Esq., arrived governor, in 1758 ; was . removed to Boston, and succeeded here by Thomas Boone, Esq., in 1760. He was removed to South Carolina, and succeeded here by Josiah Hardy, Esq., in 1761. He was removed, and afterward ap- pointed consul at Cadiz."
Gov. Hardy was succeeded in his office, in the spring of 1763, by William Franklin, Esq., the last of the royal governors, and the son of Dr. Benjamin Franklin. The year 1763 was distinguished by a treaty of peace between Great Britain and France, by which Canada was ceded to the British king, and the colonies secured
* See Gordon's History of New Jersey, pp. 94-96.
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from the ravages of French and Indian wars, which had continuec for more than half a century. When Mr. Pitt, the celebrated British minister, called upon the colonial government to make an effort to destroy the French power in America, "the assembly of New Jersey, instead of raising reluctantly five hundred men, doub- led that number, and, to fill the ranks in season, offered a bounty of twelve pounds per man, increased the pay of the officers, and voted a sum of £50,000 for their maintenance. They at the same session directed barracks to be built at Burlington, Trenton, New Brunswick, Amboy, and Elizabethtown, competent each for the ac- commodation of three hundred men. . . . . This complement of one thousand men New Jersey kept up during the years 1758, 1759, and 1760; and in the years 1761 and 1762 furnished six hun- dred men, besides in the latter year a company of sixty-four men and officers, especially for garrison duty ; for which she incurred an average expense of £40,000 per annum."
At the commencement of the revolutionary period, New Jersey was among the foremost of her sister colonies in resisting the aggres- sions of British tyranny. Early in July, 1774, the inhabitants of the several counties of New Jersey assembled in their county towns, and passed resolutions strongly disapproving the acts of parliament-closing the port of Boston, &c. They nominated depu- ties to meet in convention for the purpose of electing delegates to the general congress about to meet in Philadelphia. The New Jersey delegates reported the proceedings of congress to the assembly, January 11th, 1775, by whom they were unanimously approved: "such members as were Quakers excepting only to such parts as seemed to wear an appearance, or might have a ten- dency to force, as inconsistent with their religious principles."
The joint action of the colonies was opposed by their royal gov- - ernors, who threw every obstacle in their power to prevent its ac- complishment. Gov. Franklin refused to summon the assembly, notwithstanding the petitions of the people; therefore the first del- egates to congress were elected by a convention. The second pro- vincial convention met at Trenton, May 23d, 1775, and directed that one or more companies of eighty should be formed in each township, or corporation ; and, in order to raise necessary funds, imposed a tax of £10,000. The provincial congress of New Jer- sey reassembled August 5th, 1775, and directed that fifty-four com- panies, each of sixty-four minute-men, be organized. These troops were formed into ten battalions: in Bergen, Essex, Middlesex. Monmouth, Somerset, Morris, Sussex, Hunterdon, and Burlington, one each ; in Gloucester and Salem, one ; while in the counties of Cumberland and Cape May were independent light infantry and rangers. But the chief measure of this congress was the perpetu- ation of the authority which they had assumed ; they therefore re- solved and directed that, during the continuance of the controversy between Great Britain and America, the inhabitants qualified to vote should yearly choose deputies to the provincial congress, who
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now took upon themselves the management of the affairs of the colo- ny, relating to their rights and liberties.
Gov. Franklin convened the legislature November 16th, 1775. He made an address, the prominent objects of which seem to have been to obtain from the assembly an assurance of personal safety. and a disavowal of all intention to proclaim independence. On the 6th of December he prorogued the house till January 3d. 1776, but it never reassembled ; and thus terminated the provincial legis- lature of New Jersey.
TH
Mange
SEAL
THE GREAT .
STATE . OF . NEW JERSEY
MDCCLXXVI
[The above is copied from an impression of the original "Great Seal of the State of New Jersey," in the secretary of state's office, at Trenton. It is the one used at the present time, though much worn.]*
The provincial congress of New Jersey convened at Burlington, June 10th, 1776. At this period the general congress of the United. Colonies was in session in Philadelphia, and, on the memorable fourth of July, declared themselves independent of Great Britain. On the 18th of the same month the provincial congress assumed the title of the " State Convention of New Jersey." During the pro- gress of these events, Gov. Franklin was compelled to stand by an almost idle spectator, as the torrent of public opinion was too
* The following is the report of the committee appointed to prepare this seal : "The joint committee appointed by both houses, to prepare a great seal, beg leave to report- That they have considered the subject, and taken the sentiments of several intelligent gentlemen thereon, and are of the opinion that Francis Hopkinson, Esq., should be immediately engaged to employ proper persons, at Philadelphia, to prepare a silver seal, which is to be round, of two and a half inches diameter, and three-eighths of an inch thick ; and that the arms shall be three ploughs in an escutcheon, the supporters Liberty and Ceres, and the crest a horse's head. These words to be engraved, in large letters, round the arms, viz : ' The Great Seal of the State of New Jersey.'
"Princeton, 3d Oct. 1776. By order of the committee : RICHARD SMITH, chairman." 5
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strong for him to attempt to turn its course. He however, by pro- clamation of the 30th of May, summoned the house, in the name of the king, to meet on the 20th of June. The provincial congress, seeing the mischief of the measure, resolved, by a vote of thirty- five to eleven, that the proclamation of William Franklin, late governor, ought not to be obeyed ; and, as he had shown himself to be an enemy to the liberties of his country, his person should be secured. This was accordingly done; and, by an order of the continental congress, on the 25th of June, the deposed governor was sent, under guaru, to Gov. Trumbull of Connecticut, who was desired to take his parole, and in case he refused to take it, to treat him agreeably to the resolutions of congress respecting pris- oners. This request was immediately complied with. On his re- lease, he sailed to England, where he received a pension for his losses.
The first legislature of independent New Jersey convened at Princeton, August 27th, 1776, and on the 31st of the same month William Livingston, Esq., was, in joint ballot, chosen governor of the state ; and, being annually re-elected, was continued in office for fourteen years. During his administration, the state was the theater of war for several years. In the revolutionary struggle, her losses, both of men and property, in proportion to the popula- tion and wealth of the state, was greater than any other of the thirteen states. When Gen. Washington was retreating through the Jerseys, almost forsaken, her militia were at all times obedient to his orders; and for a considerable time composed the strength of his army. There is hardly a town in the state, that lay in the progress of the British army, that was not signalized by some en- terprise or exploit. At Trenton the enemy received a check, which may be said, with justice, to have turned the tide of war.
In the summer of 1778, Sir Henry Clinton retreated, with the British army, from Philadelphia, through New Jersey to New York. The battle of Monmouth signalizes this retreat. The military ser- vices performed by the soldiers of New Jersey, and the sufferings of her people, during the revolutionary war, entitle her to the gratitude of her sister states. By her sacrifices of blood and trea- sure, in resisting oppression, she is entitled to stand in the foremost rank among those who struggled for American freedom.
Gov. Livingston died in 1790, and in October of that year was succeeded in office by William Paterson. He was re-elected in the autumn of 1791. In the spring of 1792, he was appointed a judge of the supreme court of the United States, and on the 23d of May, in that year, he resigned the office of governor. Richard How- ell was elected June 3d, 1792, and continued in office till October, 1801 ; when he was succeeded by Joseph Bloomfield. In 1802, there being no choice of governor, John Lambert, vice-president of the council, performed the duties of governor for that year. In October, 1803, Gov. Bloomfield was elected, and continued in office till 1812; when he was succeeded by Aaron Ogden ; who, in 1813, was in turn succeeded by William S. Pennington. In 1815, Gov.
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Pennington was succeeded by Mahlon Dickerson; who, in turn, was succeeded by Isaac W. Williamson, in 1817. Gov. Williamson continued in office till 1829, and Garret D. Wall was chosen to succeed him. This gentleman, on the 2d of November, declined the appointment, by letter ; and on the 6th of the same month Pe- ter D. Vroom was elected. He continued in office till 1832, when he was succeeded by Samuel L. Southard. On the 23d of Februa- ry, Gov. Southard was elected to the senate of the United States; and on the 27th of that month Elias P. Seeley was chosen in his - place. In 1834, Gov. Vroom was elected governor, and in 1836 was succeeded in office by Philemon Dickerson ; who in turn was succeeded by William Pennington, in 1837. In 1843, Gov. Pen- nington was succeeded by Daniel Haines.
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THE following miscellaneous items of history, &c., will serve to throw light on the history of the times to which they refer. They are, for the most part, extracted from a series of articles recently published in the Newark Daily Advertiser.
EARLY MORAL LAWS.
"'Concerning the beastly vice, drunkenness,' the first laws inflicted fines of one shilling, two shillings, and two shillings and sixpence, for the first three offences, with corporal punishment, should the offender be unable to pay; and if unruly, he was to be put in the stocks until sober. In 1692 it was treated more rigorously : each offence incurred a fine of five shillings, and if not paid, the stocks received a tenant for six hours; and constables, not doing their duty under the law, were fined ten shillings for each neglect. This increase of punishment indicates a growth in the vice, which may have been attributable in part to the moval of restrictions on the sale of liquors in small quantities, which had previously been imposed.
" In 1668 each town was obliged to keep an 'ordinary' for the relief and entertainment of strangers, under a penalty of forty shillings for each month's neglect ; and ordinary-keepers alone were permitted to retail liquors in less quantities than two gallons. In 1677 the quantity was reduced to one gallon. In 1683 ordinary-keepers were debarred the privilege of recovering debts for liquor sold, amounting to five shillings ; but whatever good this might have done was destroyed by the assembly authorizing others than keepers of ordinaries to retail strong liquors by the quart. In 1692, ' forasmuch as there were great exorbitances and drunkenness observable in several towns, occasioned by tolerating many persons in selling drink in private houses,' an attempt was made to establish an excise ; but the following year it was repealed, and the licensing of retailers confided to the governor.
" The observance of the Lord's day was required, by abstaining from all servile work, unlawful recreations, and unnecessary travelling ; and any d.s- orderly conduct could be punished by confinement in the stocks, fines, im- prisonment, or whipping. In 1704, under the administration of Lord Coro. bury, many of the early prohibitions were re-enacted ; but by that time, it
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would seem, the use of ardent spirits began to be considered necessary keepers of public houses were not to allow 'tippling on the Lord's day, ex. cept for necessary refreshment.'
"Swearing, or 'taking God's name in vain,' was made punishable by a shilling fine for each offence, as early as 1668, and such continued to be the law until 1682, when a special act provided that the fine should be two shillings and sixpence ; and if not paid, the offender was to be placed in the stocks, or whipped, according to his age, whether under or over twelve.
""' All prizes, stage-plays, games, masques, revels, bull-baitings, and cock- fightings, which excite the people to rudeness, cruelty, looseness, and irre- . ligion,' were to be discouraged and punished by courts of justice, according to the nature of the offence. Night-walkers or revellers, after nine o'clock, were to be secured by the constable till morning; and, unless excused on examination, to be bound over to appear at court.
" The resistance of lawful authority, by word or action, or the expression of disrespectful language referring to those in office, was made punishable either by fine, corporal punishment, or (as from 1675 to 1682) by banish-
ment. * * * * In 1676 all liars were included-for the second offence incurring a fine of twenty shillings ; and if the fines were not paid, the culprits received cor- poral punishment, or were put in the stocks."
" The name of Mr. Basse is first met in connection with the affairs of New Jersey in July, 1697, when he was commissioned by ten proprietors as govern- or of the eastern province. He arrived the following spring-presented his commission to the council on the 7th April, and on the following day had it publicly proclaimed. His authority was immediately acknowledged, the fact not being then generally known that his commission had not received the signatures of sixteen proprietors, the number required to render it valid- which subsequently, with other reasons for opposition, rendered his continu- ance in office impracticable. The common seal of the twenty-four had for one of its mottoes, " Righteousness exalteth a Nation ;" and, judging from a proclamation issued at the time his commission was published, Governor Basse appears to have entered upon the discharge of his duties with proper views of the truth of the sentiment, and the necessity for vigilance on the part of the executive in upholding the measures best calculated to insure the growth of morality and religion among the people. This proclamation, which the writer believes has never appeared in print, was as follows :
"BY THE GOVERNOR -- A PROCLAMATION.
" It being very necessary, for the good and propriety of this province, that our princi- pal care be, in obedience to the laws of God and the wholesome laws of this prov- ince, to endeavor as much as in us lyeth the extirpation of all sorts of looseness and prophanity, and to unite and join in the fear and love of God and of one another, that by the religious and virtuous carriage and behavior of every one in his respective station and calling, all heats and animosities and dissensions may vanish, and the blessing of Almighty God accompany our honest and lawful endeavors, and that we may join our affections in the true support of his majesty's government over us, who has so often and so generously exposed his royal person to imminent danger to redeem us from the growing "power of popery and arbitrary government, and hath, by a singular blessing attending his endeavors, procured our deliverance and a happy and honorable peace, and is a great example and encourager of religion and virtuous living,-I have therefore thought fit, by and with the advice of the Council of this province of East Jersey, strictly to prohibit all inhabitants and sojourners within this province from cursing, swearing, inimoderate drinking, sabbath breaking, and all sorts of lewdness and prophane behavior in word or action ; and for the true and effectual performance hereof, I do, by and with the advice
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aforesaid, strictly charge and command all Justices of the Peace, Sheriffs, Constables, and all other officers within the province, that they take due care that all the laws made and provided for the suppressing of vice and encouraging of religion and virtue, particu- larly the observation of the Lord's day, be duly put in execution, as they will answer the contrary at their peril. Given under the seal of said province this eighth day of April, Anno Dom. 1698, in the tenth vear of the reign of our Sovereign Lord William the third over England, &c. King J. BASSE.
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