ton cloths, iron, salt, paper, leather, beer, and glass. There are also great numbers of mechanics' shops, in which the numerous trades necessary for the supply of agricultural and mechanical implements, machinery, furniture, clothing, &c., not only for the State, but for the west, are carried on. The whole annual value of the products of this branch of industry may be estimated at about 80,000,000 dollars. Above 25,000,000 yards of cottons, and 7,000,000 of woolens are made in the factories, beside which about 9,000,000 of cottons, linens, and woolens are made in families. Salt springs abound in the western part of the State, and great quantities of salt are manufactured in different places. The most noted of the salt works are those of Salina, Syracuse, and Geddes, in the township of Salina, near Onondaga Lake; here the salt water is obtained by sinking wells and boring; it is raised by large metallic pumps, moved by the surplus water of the Erie Canal, or by steam, conveyed into reservoirs, and passed through pipes to the manufactories. The works principally used in the manufactory of the salt, are denominated Blocks, Solar works, and Steam works. The Blocks are constructed with boilers containing from 80 to 120 gallons each, and placed in masonry in two parallel lines, having from 8 to 20 in each line. In the boiling, a portion of the impurities, sulphate and carbonate of lime stained with iron, is deposited in ladles, and taken out, and the evaporation of the brine is continued till but a small quantity remains, when the salt is taken out into baskets and drained. The inner surface of the boilers soon becomes incrusted with a hard compound of the earthy substances and salt, which require frequent removal to prevent overheating and cracking the metal. Next in importance are the works adjoining the Erie Canal for evaporation by solar heat; these consist of wooden vats, resting upon small posts driven into the ground; the width of the vats is 18 feet; their depth from 6 to 15 inches, and they are from 80 to 640 feet long; they have roofs in divisions of 16 feet each, sustained by rollers which travel on level supporters, and are moved on and off by the strength of one man. The water from the reservoirs is received first into the deepest vats, in which is deposited much of the iron or coloring matter, which appears in the form of a pellicle, as soon as the temperature, which, at the wells is 50°, is increased. From these it is passed through pipes into shallower vats, where it remains till, by the evaporation and concentration of the brine, and the precipitation of sulphate and carbonate of lime, it is sufficiently depurated for the crystalization of the salt, which then begins to appear on the surface. The brine, leaving behind the substances that have been separated, is again drawn off into vats on a level still lower, which are kept clean, and in which the salt is made with greater or less rapidity according to the altitude of the sun, the clearness of the atmosphere, and the strength of the wind. The salt is shoveled into tubs, drained for a few minutes, and, without further drying, is conveyed in carts to the storehouses. The measured bushel will weigh from 74 to 85 pounds, the product of the slowest evaporation being the heaviest. Wher the weather has been clear and calm, and the salt water free from agitation, the surface has often been heated to 122°, while that at the bottom of the vat was 106°, and by the hydrometer was ascertained to be specifically lighter than the upper portions. The mother water, remaining after the extraction of the salt, is a solution of the muriates of lime and magnesia, possessing a pungent taste unlike the bitter in that from the sea, and containing very little magnesia. The solar establishments at Syracuse occupy 120 acres; the aggregate surface of the vats is 1,500,000 square feet. The steam works are similar in their construction to the Blocks; the boilers are covered, to save the steam produced in boiling the water to saturation; by condensation, in its passage through metalic pipes immersed in the brine in deep wooden vats, the heat is applied a second time to the crystalizing of the salt. The Salina salt is beautifully white, and fine grained; the whole quantity made yearly exceeds 2,000,000 bushels. It is commonly packed for sale in barrels of five bushels, and is inspected and brand- 8. Indians. In this State are the remains of the celebrated confederacy of the Six Na- 9. Antiquities. In the western parts of New York are numerous remains of ancient Indian fortifications and towns. Some of these inclose a space of 500 acres. and angular walls of earth, sometimes skirted by ditches, and from the appearance of the trees They consist of circular which have overgrown them are evidently of great antiquity. Some are supposed to be above 1000 years old. The fortifications are often accompanied with funeral piles, in which the bones are still discernible. Many are seated on spots which appear to have been the beds of rivers, before the great lakes shifted their borders. 10. Religion. The Presbyterians and Congregationalists number 564 ministers, and 86,000 communicants; the Baptists, 483 ministers, and 67,183 communicants; the Methodists, 591 ministers, and 30,700 communicants; the Dutch Reformed, 142 ministers, and 15,800 communicants, and the Protestant Episcopal Church, 207 ministers, and about 10,000 communicants. The Associated Reformed Church has 30 ministers; the Lutherans 27; the Roman Catholic Church 32; the Universalists 25; the Unitarians 8; and the New Jerusalem Church The Christians have also several ministers, the Friends and Moravians a number of societies; the Shakers 3 communities, and the Jews 3 synagogues. 5. 11. Government. The present constitution was adopted in 1821. The legislature consists of an Assembly and a Senate. members of the Assembly are elected annually, and one fourth of the Senate is renewed each The Assembly has 128 members, and the Senate 32. The year. The Executive consists of a Governor and Lieutenant-Governor, chosen every two years. These officers are elected by the highest number of votes given, although the number may be less than a majority. Universal suffrage is allowed. The legislature meets annually in January. New York sends 40 members to Congress. The annual expenses of the State are about 300,000 dollars. 12. Education. Very ample provision is made for popular education in this State. The State has a common-school fund of 2,000,000 dollars, the proceeds of which are distributed among the towns, each town being required to raise by tax a sum equal to that which it receives from the fund; the whole of these two sums is expended solely for the payment of teachers' wages, in addition to which the school-districts erect and support the school-houses, and are chargeable with other incidental expenses. The number of school-districts in the State is 10,200, comprising 530,000 pupils; the sum of 313,377 dollars was distributed among these districts in 1835, under the name of public money, and 425,643 dollars was raised by the school-districts, making a total of 739,020 dollars paid for teachers' wages. been made for the education of teachers, by the establishment of a department for that purpose, Provision has also with suitable books and apparatus, in one of the academies of each of the eight senatorial districts. There are upwards of 200 academies, gymnasiums, or high-schools in the State, of which 60 are for girls; 63 of these institutions are subject to the visitations of the Regents of the University, and were attended by 6,056 pupils in 1835; there is a literature fund belonging to the State, from the proceeds of which 12,000 dollars were distributed among them in that year. There are five colleges, and one university in the State, namely, the University of the City of New York, established at New York in 1832; Columbia College, at New-York, founded in 32 250 Columbia College. 1757, and, till the Revolution, called King's College. It has a President and 8 professors. The library contains 10,000 volumes. This institution is well endowed. The college building is of stone, stuccoed, and contains lodgings for the professors, with a chapel, lecture rooms, &c. Union College, at Schenectady, was incorporated in 1794. It has a President and 10 professors. The library has 6,000 volumes. Hamilton College, at Clinton, was incorporated in 1812; it has a President and 6 professors. The library contains 6,000 volumes. Geneva College was founded in 1825. It has a President and 12 teachers. The library contains 1,500 volumes. There are also Medical Colleges at New York and Fairfield. The Presbyterians have a Theological Seminary at Auburn, the Baptists at Hamilton, the Episcopalians and Presbyterians at New York, the Lutherans at Hartwich, and the Reformed at Newburgh. A cor poration, under the name of the Regents of the University, have the general care of literature in the State, and are instructed to visit colleges, academies, and schools, and superintend the system of education. The United States Military Academy is at West Point, on the Hudson. It was established by Congress in 1802, for the instruction of young men destined for the army. The number of cadets is limited to 250, and in choosing among the applicants, the sons of revolutionary officers are allowed the first claim, and the children of the deceased officers of the last war, the second. The age of the pupils on admission must be between 14 and 22. The professors and instructers are 30 in number; each of the cadets cost the government 336 dollars annually. They are required to encamp 6 or 8 weeks during the year. The course of study, is completed in 4 years, and includes French, drawing, natural and experimental philosophy, chemistry, mineralogy, geography, history, ethics, national law, mathematics, and the whole science of strategy, tactics, artillery, and engineering. The annual expense of the institution is 115,000 dollars. There are 5 large stone buildings, and 6 of brick. The site they occupy is very beautiful and commanding, being a level 188 feet above the river. Close to the shore stands a white marble monument, bearing the name of Kosciusko. In another part is an obelisk to the memory of Colonel Wood, one of the pupils who fell at Fort Erie. On the bank of the river is a spot called Kosciusko's Garden, where the Polish hero was accustomed to pass his time in cultivating the ground. United States Military Academy, West Point. 13. History. New York was first explored by Henry Hudson, an Englishman in the service of the Dutch East India Company, who in 1609 sailed up the harbor of New York and the river to which his name was given. Settlements were made by the Dutch at Albany, first named Fort Orange, and Manhattan Island in 1612. The English claimed a prior right to the country, and gave the Dutch settlers some trouble; but the claims of the latter were afterwards acquiesced in, and the colony, under the title of the New Netherlands, soon began to flourish. The territory, as originally claimed by the Dutch, extended from Fort Goed Hoop on the Connecticut to Fort Nassau on the Delaware. The border feuds and contests with the Swedes on the one extremity, and the New Englanders on the other, have been made more familiar to us by the pen of the humorist than by the labors of the historian. In 1650, Long Island was divided between the Dutch and English, but the former still retained half of the present State of Connecticut. Soon after, however, Charles the Second set up anew the claim of the English to the whole country, and made a grant of it to his brother the Duke of York and Albany. England and Holland were then at peace, but a fleet was immediately despatched to take possession. The Dutch were unable to offer resistance, and the whole province peaceably surrendered in 1664. Colonel Nichols, the commander of the expedition, assumed the government; the name of the colony was changed to New York, the capital having been originally called New Amsterdam. On the breaking out of war between the Dutch and English in 1673, New York fell into the hands of the original settlers, but was restored to the English the year afterwards, at the conclusion of peace. The Duke of York obtained a new patent, and appointed Andros governor of the colony. No representative power was enjoyed by the people till 1683, when the first Assembly met, and, by a declaration of the governor, were invested with the sole power of enacting laws and levying taxes. When the Duke of York became King, under the title of James the Second, his Catholic bigotry and arbitrary spirit were no less objects of hatred and apprehension among the colonists than in England. When the news of the revolutionary measures against him arrived in the colony, the people rose upon the officers, seized the fort at New York, and declared for the Prince of Orange. The chief director of this movement was Jacob Leisler, who, having overthrown James's authority, took upon himself the office of governor. The people of Albany, although they acknowledged the Prince of Orange, refused to submit to Leisler, and much discord followed, but Leisler finally succeeded in establishing his authority, and confiscated the estates of his opponents. This injustice brought a bloody vengeance upon his head in the sequel. King William, being established upon the throne, appointed Colonel Slaughter governor of New York; but Leisler, intoxicated with power and success, refused, when the new Governor arrived, to surrender the government into his hands. Slaughter caused him to be apprehended, and put him, with many of his adherents, upon trial, for resisting the royal authority; Leisler, and another named Millborne, who had been active in subduing the malecontents of Albany, were condemned to death. It appears that the Governor designed to pardon them after conviction, on account of the services which they had rendered the country, but the enemies of the unfortunate criminals used every exertion to induce the Governor to sign their death-warrant; this he constantly refused. Not meeting with success by open persuasion, they resorted to a detestable stratagem; the Governor was invited to a feast, and, when intoxicated, the warrant was produced and he signed it; when he recovered his reason, the prisoners were already executed. The political history of New York, subsequently to the period of the revolution in England in 1688, is not remarkable; many struggles were elicited between the representative body and the governors by their conflicting pretensions respecting the finances; but these led to no important results. In the year 1741, New York was thrown into great alarm by a supposed plot of the negroes to burn the city; large numbers of them were tried and executed or banished, on very little evidence, so great was the panic that fell upon the inhabitants. When their fears had subsided, it was found, that the " negro plot" was hardly more established by proof than the celebrated popish plot in England. During the wars with the French, the northern parts of the State were the scenes of many bloody contests with the French of Canada and the savages. The conquest of Canada, by the English, in 1759, secured the tranquillity of the interior till the breaking out of the revolutionary war. In the latter struggle, New York was the theatre of some of the most important and memorable campaigns. CHAPTER XIII. NEW JERSEY. PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. 1. Boundaries and Extent. New Jersey is bounded N. by New York; E. by New York and the ocean; S. by Delaware Bay, and W. by the river Delaware, separating it from Pennsylvania. It lies between 39° and 41° 24' N. latitude; and 74° and 75° 29' W. longitude. Its extreme length from north to south is 163 miles, and its average breadth about 50. It contains 7,300 square miles. nences. 2. Mountains. No part of this State is mountainous except the north, where two of the southern branches of the Appalachian chain cross the State. These are called the Kittatinny Ridge and South Mountain. One of these eminences, toward the western part of the State, called Schooley's Mountain, is much frequented by travelers in summer. It affords agreeable scenery, and has a hotel near its summit. There are some mineral springs in the neighborhood. Towards the middle part of the State the surface is broken, but there are no very high emiA hilly ridge rises gradually from Bergen Point on the Hudson, and runs north, with little interruption, to the Highlands in New York. It has a width generally of 2 miles, with a summit of table-land. From its western brow there is a gradual descent to the alluvial valley of the Hackinsack and Passaic. On the eastern side it is uniformly either steep or precipitous. At Weehawken, 4 miles north of the city of Jersey, the mountain presents a perpendicular wall of about 200 feet elevation above the Hudson, and exhibits a fine prospect of the harbor of New York and the surrounding country. This mural precipice extends 20 miles along the shore of the river, and bears the name of the Palisadoes. Its summit has a surface of slightly undulating table-land, gradually rising toward the north, and mostly occupied by forests. The western side Palisado Range. is of gradual descent, and covered with farms. Among the forests wild animals, such as the raccoon, fox, wildcat, opossum, rabbit, and squirrel, roam almost undisturbed, and rattlesnakes are sometimes seen. The highest point of the Palisado range does not exceed 550 feet elevation. 3. Rivers. The Hudson and Delaware wash the eastern and western limits of the State, but these will be found described elsewhere. The Raritan rises in the western part of New Jersey, and flows easterly into the sea below Staten Island. New Brunswick stands upon this river, and Amboy is near its mouth. Vessels of S0 tons ascend to the former place, 17 miles, and the river is navigated by the steamboats which form part of the line of communication between New York and Philadelphia. The Passaic rises in the north and flows south into Newark Bay, which opens into New York harbor. It is navigable 10 miles for small vessels. The Hackinsack falls also into Newark Bay, and has a navigation of 15 miles. Great Egg Harbor River in the south, runs into the ocean, and is navigable by small craft 20 miles. 4. Bays and Harbors. Although this State has a long line of seacoast, yet it is quite deficient in good harbors. Newark Bay is rather a small lake communicating by long outlets with the sea. The Raritan Bay, between Staten Island and Sandy Hook, affords good shelter for vessels. The seacoast and the borders of Delaware Bay present many inlets and coves, but none frequented by large shipping. The bay or estuary of the Delaware lies between this State and Delaware; it is 65 miles long and 30 broad in the widest part. Where it joins the sea it is contracted, and from Cape May to Cape Henlopen the distance is 18 miles. This bay has some shoal places, but the channels are deep and favorable to navigation. 5. Climate. The greater part of New Jersey lying near the sea, and being low and level, must enjoy a comparatively mild climate. The cold is less felt here than in any part of New York or Pennsylvania. Nearly the whole State lies open to the influence of the sea air. |