CHAP. XXIV.
A short
geographical description of the province and additional view of its
present state.
To be very
particular on this head, comes not within our design; nor will
it perhaps be a
matter of much expectation, as the present state of trade
carried on
chiefly through the provinces New-York and Pennsylvania, seems
but little
calculated to draw attention from abroad; but the situation of
the province, as
lying directly in the concourse between the places
aforesaid,
renders it almost as well known to strangers resorting there.
New-Jersey lying
about 75 degrees west longitude from London, is bounded
on the west and
south-west by Delaware river and bay, on the south-east
and east by the
Atlantick ocean; the sound, which separates Staten Island
1 from the
continent, and Hudson's river on the north, by a line as yet
unsettled, to be
run from the river last mentioned, in the latitude of 40
degrees to the
northerly branch of Delaware, in latitude of 41 degrees 40
minutes, which
line is to be the boundary with New York on that side. The
greatest length
of New-Jersey from north to south, that is from Cape-May,
in the latitude
of 39 degrees to the north Station Point, in the latitude
41 degrees 40
minutes at 69 miles to a degree, is 184 miles. Its greatest
breadth is about
60 miles; but supposing it on an average 150 in length
and 50 broad, the
whole province must then contain 4,800,000 acres; of
which at least
one-fourth, (probably more) is poor barren land, in respect
to tillage; but in
part abounding with pines 2 and cedars, and some few
tracts of swamp,
that will make meadow. It is supposed, that West-Jersey
contains the
greatest quantity of acres, and in return took the most
barren land.
East-Jersey, now 1765, is supposed to have located nearly 468,
000 acres good
land, and 96,000 acres of pine land.3 The proprietors of
West-Jersey, soon
after their arrival, divided among them, 500,000 acres,
which they call
the first dividend; since which, at different times, they
have issued
directions for each proprietor's taking his part of four other
dividends of the
like quantity, amounting in the whole, with allowance of
five per cent.
for roads, to 2,625,000 acres, conjectured by many to be
full as much land
as the division contains; of this the far greater part
is already
surveyed; what yet remains are chiefly the rights of minors and
people abroad.
Delaware river,
from the head of Cushietunk, tho' not obstructed with
falls, has not
been improved to any inland navigation, by reason of the
thinness of the
settlements that way: From Cushietunk to Trenton falls,
are fourteen
considerable rifts, yet all passable in the long flat boats 4
used in the
navigation of these parts, some carrying 500 or 600 bushels of
wheat. The
greatest number of the rifts are from Easton downward; and
those fourteen
miles above Easton, another just below Wells's ferry, and
that at Trenton,
are the worst. The boats seldom come down but with
freshes,
especially from the Minisinks: The freight thence to
Philadelphia, is
eight pence a bushel for wheat, and three shillings a
barrel for flour:
From the forks, and other places below, twenty shillings
a tun for pig
iron, seven pence a bushel for wheat, two shillings and six
pence a barrel
for flour. This river above Trenton, has no branches worth
mentioning, for
conveniency of navigation.5
Though the
province boundary on the ocean, is extensive, the harbours for
large shipping
are but few, and, except Sandy-Hook, mostly inconvenient,
occasioned by a great
extent of salt meadows, swamps and marshes, and being
exposed to the
N.E. winds; this disadvantage is however amply supplied by
the Delaware and
Hudson's river.
Almost the whole
extent of the province adjoining on the Atlantick, is
barrens, or nearly
approaching it; yet there are scattering settlements
all along the
coast, the people subsisting in great part by raising cattle
in the bog,
undrained meadows and marshes, and selling them to graziers,
and cutting down
the cedars; these were originally plenty of both the
white and red
sorts: The towring retreat of the former have afforded many
an asylum for
David's men of necessity:6 They are now much work'd out:
Another means of
subsistence along the coast, is the plenty of fish and
oysters, these
are carried to New-York and Philadelphia markets. It is
thought, no
inconsiderable whale-fishery might be form'd there; on the
banks the
New-England men frequently fish with success. The barrens or
poor land,
generally continues from the sea up into the province, thirty
miles or more,
and this nearly the whole extent from east to west; so that
there are many
thousand acres, that will never serve much of the purposes
of agriculture;
consequently when the pines and cedars are generally gone
(they are so
already in many places) this will not be of much value. This
excepted, and
what of the same sort may be here and there intermixed in
other parts of
the province, the lands in general (perhaps something
better than two
thirds of the whole) are good, and bear wheat, barley, or
any thing else
suitable to the climate, to perfection. As the province has
very little
foreign trade on bottoms of its own, the produce of all kinds
for sale, go
chiefly to New-York and Philadelphia; much of it is there
purchased for
markets abroad; but some consumed among themselves. The
inhabitants as to
dress and manners, form themselves much after the
neighbouring
provinces; the western, about as far as the tide flows up
Delaware, those
of Pennsylvania; the remainder, those of New-York. The
political state
of the province may be described in a few words; harmony
reigns in a
considerable degree, in all branches of the legislature; the
publick business
is consequently dispatched with ease, and at a small
expence. Thus
much in the general: Next for the counties; of these there
are thirteen:
Their respective wealth on a comparison with each other, may
be collected from
the proportions fixed by act of Assembly, on a £.25,000
tax, 1764.
MIDDLESEX,
£.2,265: 17: 09 3/4
MONMOUTH, 3,285:
16: 10 1/2
ESSEX, 1,946: 8:
04
SOMERSET, 2,791:
7: 01
BERGEN, 1,647: 9:
08 1/4
BURLINGTON,
3,125: 9: 05 3/4
GLOUCESTER,
1,954: 10: 02 1/2
SALEM, 1,746: 7:
03 1/2
CAPE-MAY, 417:
14: 08 1/2
HUNTERDON, 3,544:
7: 11
MORRIS AND
SUSSEX,* 1,389: 1: 08 1/4
CUMBERLAND, 885:
9: 03 1/4
*Sussex being the
frontier county, and but lately settled, pays but a small
proportion.
The number of
inhabitants in 1738, were said to be: 47,369. In 1745: 61,403
The increase in
seven years: 14,034
Supposing the increase
to be nearly the same since, the number now, 1765,
must be about
100,000.
The increase of
some of the counties in West-Jersey, between 1699 and 1745,
was found to be
more than six for one; the proportion of strangers
arriving since,
is not the same; but the natural increase must be far
greater.
The counties are
several of them mark'd by productions, differing in some
respects from
each othe; and when distinguished, may perhaps bear the
following general
description.
Eastern Division.
MIDDLESEX
First ascertain'd
a county by act of general assembly, in the proprietor's
time 1682, had
its boundaries particularly fixd by subsequent acts, in
1709 and 1713.
See laws of the province, vol. 1., p. 13, 40, 41.
In this county
lies the city of Perth-Amboy, on a point of land, which
divides the river
Rariton, and Arthur Kull sound. It takes its name Perth
from James
Drummond, one of the proprietors, and earl of Perth, and Amboy
from Ambo, in
Indian a point. The situation for a sea trade, as lying open
to Sandy-Hook,7
whence vessels may arrive almost any weather in one tide
from the sea, and
find a safe commodious harbour, capacious enough to
contain many
large ships, is allow'd to be as good a port as most on the
continent; yet by
a fatality attending almost every attempt for trade in
the province, the
endeavours at this have been hitherto with no great
success; tho'
they have a sea trade, and export to foreign markets, yet
not as might be
expected from the advantages of situation: The land lies
high and dry, in
a good air: The Scots proprietors were indefatigable to
improve it; but
found up-hill work; yet effected a considerable
settlement: The
best part of the country 'round has water carriage to New-
York. The
legislature, by early stipulation of the proprietors and
inhabitants, meet
here and at Burlington, alternately, to accommodate each
division,
particularly those in each towards the extremities of this long-
extended
province: In the same manner the supreme courts of judicature for
the province were
fixed: Here the courts for the county of Middlesex are
held; here also
the general proprietors for East-Jersey always meet, and
have lately
erected a large and elegant house. [See Chap. IX, above] In
this county also
up the Rariton, lies the city of New-Brunswick,8 well
built, but the
situation low, tho' high ground adjoining; the county
besides contains
several villages, as Woodbridge, including Raway,
Piscataway,
Cranbury and Princeton; in the last is situate the New-Jersey
college, a
handsome capacious building:9 The college was first founded by
charter from
president Hamilton, and enlarged by governor Belcher, in
1747; at his
death he left it a considerable donation of books. The land
in this county is
in part very rich, and affords beef, sheep, some pork,
most sorts of
grain, and smaller articles; besides staves, firewood, and
other lumber, for
exportation and New-York market. A general idea may be
form'd of the
religion of the inhabitants, by the houses for worship; of
these, the
episcopalians in this county have five, presbyterians seven,
quakers four,
baptists two, seventh-day baptists one, low Dutch calvinists
one.
MONMOUTH
Boundaries by act
of assembly, passed in 1709, begins at the mouth of a
creek that parted
lands originally belonging to Andrew Bowne and George
Willocks; thence
following Middlesex, to the line dividing the eastern and
western division
of the province; thence southerly along this line to the
sea; thence along
the sea to the point of Sandy-Hook, and thence up the
bay to the creek
aforesaid: It contains the villages of Shrewsbury,
Middletown,
Freehold, and Allen-Town: The courts for the county business,
are held at
Freehold. The lands in Shrewsbury, Middletown, and part of
Freehold, are
mostly remarkably good; they raise grain, beef, sheep,
butter, cheese,
and other produce for New-York market. At the high lands
of Navesink, the
New-York merchants have lately erected a commodious light
house, for the
security of navigation. The houses for worship in this
county, are,
presbyterians six, episcopalians four, quakers three,
baptists four.
ESSEX
Had its
boundaries fixed by act of assembly, in 1709, but altered in 1741.
Laws of the
province, vol. 1., p. 12, 274. It contains the well-settled
towns of Elizabeth
and Newark;10 in the latter the courts for the county
are held; in the
former those for the ancient borough: This being an old
settled county,
and good land, is consequently full of inhabitants: their
plantatious are
too high in value, to be generally large; their
improvements
greater than in many other parts; they raise wheat, beef,
sheep, and
generally what is common from good land; part is carried
to New-York
market, and part exported in bottoms of their own: Of places
for worship, the
presbyterians have seven, episcopalians three, baptists
one, Dutch
calvinists two.
SOMERSET
Was divided from
Middlesex by a proprietary law, in 1688, and then named;
its boundaries
were again limited in the act of 1709, but altered by other
acts in 1713 and 1741.
Vol. 1 of laws p. 12, 40, 274. It adjoins to
Middlesex on the
north, the rest on Essex, Morris and Hunterdon: In it is
the village of
Bound-Brook: The land is rich, and being early settled by
the industrious
low Dutch, and a few others, much improved. Wheat is the
staple of the
county, of which they raise large quantities; they send
their flour down
Rariton river, to New-York; and near Brunswick, running
under the river
Rariton, is a copper mine, but not yet very profitable. In
this county lies
the Rocky-Hill mines: Here also at Baskin-ridge, is the
seat of William
Alexander, earl of Stirling; his improvements for taste
and expence,
promise more than any thing of the kind hitherto effected in
the province. Of
houses for worship, the English presbyterians have three,
low Dutch
reformed ditto, five, Dutch lutheran one, baptists one.
The Dutch of the
calvinistical plan of Holland, in the eastern parts of
this province,
were very insignificant, and only supplied by their
ministers from
New York and Long-Island, twice or thrice a year, (except
Hackinsack, who
had one Burtolf settled among them) until about the year
1719, when those
of Somerset, Middlesex, and part of Hunterdon, jointly
applied to
Holland for a minister, from whence came Theodorus Jacobus
Freelinghausen,
who officiated among them, and was the chief means of
establishing
several congregations in those parts: Since which the number
of their
ministers is increased to fourteen or fifteen in the eastern
division; and
each of them do for the most part supply two or three
different
congregations.
BERGEN.
By the act of
1709, is bounded from Constable-Hook, along the bay and
Hudson's river,
to the partition point between New-Jersey and New-York;
thence along the partition
line between the said provinces, and the
division line of
East and West-Jersey, to Pequaneck river; thence down
that and Passaick
river to the sound; and thence to the place first named:
Its situation on
Hudson's river, opposite and adjacent to New-York, opens
an advantageous
intercourse with that market; their lands are generally
good for grass,
wheat, or any other grain. The Schuylers have here two
large parks for
deer. The inhabitants of the county, being the descendants
of the low Dutch
or Hollanders, that originally settled there 11 under the
Dutch title,
preserve the religion of their ancestors, and worship after
the manner of the
reformed churches in the united provinces; in principle
presbyterians,
yet in subordination to the classis of Amsterdam: Their
language in
general, bears the Dutch accent; nor have they forgot the
customs of
Holland: They have of houses for worship, Dutch calvinists
seven, Dutch
lutherans two. In this county are the Schuylers mines.
Sixteen miles
above Newark in Essex, on the opposite side of Second-River,
in Bergen, is the
remarkable Passaick falls, the precipice from the
highest part of
the rock, is supposed to be about seventy feet
perpendicular. In
this county was born the late famous Col. Peter
Schuyler, who
died in 1762, aged about fifty-two years: He was a younger
son of Aarent
Schuyler, the discoverer and first owner of the mines above-
mentioned. He had
the command of the province troops, against the French
of Canada, in
divers campaigns, in the two last wars; and by the best
judges of
military merit, was allowed to rank high in that character: He
had qualities
besides, that greatly recommended him to his acquaintance,
being of a frank,
open behaviour, of an extensive generosity and humanity,
and unwearied in his
endeavours to accomplish whatever appeared of service
to his country:
He was taken at Oswego, when that post was given up to the
French, and long
detained a prisoner in Canada; where having letters of
credit, he kept
open house for the relief of his fellow sufferers, and
advanced large
sums to the Indians, in the French interest, for the
redemption of
captives; many of whom he afterwards, at his own expence,
maintained whilst
there, and provided for their return; trusting to their
abilities and
honour for repayment, and lost considerable that way; but
seemed to think
it money well bestowed: As to person he was of a tall
hardy make,
rather rough at a first view, yet a little acquaintance
discovered a
bottom of sincerity, and that he was ready to every kind
office in his
power: In conversation he was above artifice or the common
traffick of
forms, yet seemed to enjoy friendship with its true relish;
and in all
relations what he seemed to be, he was. Matth. vii. 20.
Western Division
BURLINGTON
For the first
boundaries and settlement of this county, see Chap. VI.,
above. It was
limited by the act of 1709, and afterwards curtailed by
another act, Vol.
I of Laws, p. 41.
The city of
Burlington 12 was laid out in 1677 and early incorporated; but
the charter now
in being; was granted by governor Cosby: The Delaware
before it about a
mile broad, forms a convenient bason for shipping; its
situation for
trade is good; but eclipsed by the growing advantages of its
opulent neighbour,
the city Philadelphia.13 The land and air is good:
Where the houses
chiefly stand, is an island, with two entrances on
causeways, and a
quantity of drain'd meadows adjoining; but long
experience has
proved them not unhealthy: The courts for the county are
held here; the
legislature of the province meet alternately at Amboy
and here; the
supreme courts are held in the same manner: The council
chosen by the
general proprietors of West-Jersey to transact their
business, always
meet here. [See Chap. XI., above] In this place is also a
promising
library, the contributors are incorporated by charter: Besides
the town
aforesaid, there are two others; ten mile further up Delaware, is
Borden Town,
founded by Joseph Borden; on a branch of Northampton or
Rankokas river,
is Bridge Town, or Mount Holly:14 In this county also are
the villages of
Kingsbury, Crosswicks, New-Hanover and Chester, or Moores-
Town: The arable
land is generally but indifferent; yet interspersed with
quantities of
good meadow, renders them profitable: Pork is the staple; of
which a large
quantity is raised for the West-India market, and has
deservedly gained
reputation through all the islands: Beef, mutton,
cheese, butter,
&c. are carried to Philadelphia markets: Very little hemp
or flax is raised
in this county, or indeed through the province, the
inhabitants
contented with a little (very little in some places) for their
own use, have
generally reserved their gains on other productions, for
purchasing their
chief supply of these and woollen articles of European
manufacture;
labour is thought too high to increase it much, and the
climate not so
favourable as in some other places. In this county are the
Indian
settlements of Brotherton and Weekpink: [See Chap. XXIII., above.]
Of places for worship,
the people called quakers have fifteen,
episcopalians
two, baptists one, presbyterians one.
GLOUCESTER
First laid out in
1677, had its boundaries ascertained by the act of 1709,
beginning at the mouth
of Pensawkin creek; thence up the same to the fork
thereof; thence
along the line of Burlington county to the sea; thence
along the
sea-coast to great Egg-Harbour river; thence up that river to
the fork; thence
up the southermost and greatest branch of the same to its
head; thence upon
a direct line to the head of Oldman's creek; thence down
the same to
Delaware river; thence up that river to the place of
beginning. Its
situation opposite and contiguous to Philadelphia, gives
great
opportunities to make the most of the productions of the county at
that market; tho'
their uplands as to the general are poor, the meadows
are good and
improve fast: they raise beef, pork, mutton, butter, cheese,
&c. They have
three villages, Gloucester, Haddonfield 15 and Woodbury; at
the first the
courts for the county are held. Of houses for worship, the
people called
quakers have seven, the presbyterians five, episcopalians
one, Sweeds
lutheran one, baptists one, moravians one.
SALEM
Named by John
Fenwick, and distinguished by his tenth, in 1675: The name
and jurisdiction
settled by a proprietary law, 1694: The boundaries were
fixed in 1709,
but altered by act of assembly, in 1747. Vol. I of laws, p.
14, 361. Their
lands and meadows are rich, and productions of any kind,
natural to the
climate, plenty: The chief they raise are beef, sheep,
pork, butter,
cheese, and grain, for exportation. It being an old
settlement, the
improvements are considerable as to plantations: The
county business
is transacted at the town of Salem, which formerly sent
two members to
the general assembly; but in 1727, these were given to
Hunterdon, and
their right of choice suspended 'till two additional
members were
added to the eastern division. Places for worship are, quakers
four, episcopalians
two, Dutch lutheran one, presbyterians three, baptists
two.
CUMBERLAND
So named by
governor Belcher, in respect to the duke of Cumberland; it was
divided from
Salem by act of assembly in 1747, and the boundaries fixed,
(see Vol. I., of
laws, p. 361.) the land is mostly poor; but they have
good meadows and
marshes; being a new settled county, these are not yet
greatly improved;
they raise cattle and sheep for graziers; the courts are
held at Cohansick
creek 16 or Hopewell. In this county besides is the
village of
Greenwich: They join with Salem in the choice of two
representatives:
Places for worship are, episcopalians one, presbyterians
four, baptists
two, seventh day baptists one, quakers one.
CAPE-MAY
Was first made a
county by a proprietary law im 1692; by another in 1694,
had its
boundaries better ascertained; and by the act of 1709, they were
fixed to remain,
beginning at the mouth of a small creek, on the west side
of Stipson's
island, called Jecah's creek, up the said creek as high as
the tide floweth;
thence along the bounds of Salem, now Cumberland county,
to the
southernmost main branch, of great Egg-Harbour river; thence down
the said river to
the sea; thence along the sea-coast to Delaware bay;
thence up the bay
to the place of beginning; the land is generally poor,
but the adjoining
salt marshes serve to breed cattle and horses; these
with the red
cedar beaches, and fish and oysters, with which the coast
abounds, afford
the inhabitants an easy maintenance; the county is divided
into three
precincts; the presbyterians have a place for worship in the
first; the
baptists in the second; the quakers in the third, being that
next to the sea.
HUNTERDON
Was divided from
Burlington by act of assembly, in 1713, and named by
governor Hunter;
the boundaries were then fixed, but altered in 1738. (See
Vol. I., of laws,
p. 41, 250.) It is situate along the Delaware, above the
tide, and tho'
one of the later settlements, is the most populous and
opulent county in
the province. The land is generally good for tillage;
wheat, the
staple; their flour is carried to New-York and Philadelphia
markets: The
courts are held at Trenton, a place of concourse and lively
trade: It stands
at the head of the tide, and in a high pleasant
situation; the
inhabitants have a public library. In this county resides
John Reading,
Esq; late president of the council, and twice commander in
chief on the
deaths of the governors Morris and Belcher: The counties of
Morris and Sussex
join Hunterdon in the choice of two representatives. Of
places for
worship, the presbyterians have nine, the low Dutch ditto one,
German ditto one,
episcopalians three, quakers two, baptists two.
MORRIS
Was made a county
in 1738; and the boundaries then established by law; but
altered by the
separation of Sussex, in 1753. (Laws, Vol. I., p. 253.;
Vol. II., p. 20.)
It was named by governor Morris, after his family: This,
for a late
settled county, is populous: The courts are held at Morris-
Town: They raise
grain and cattle chiefly for New-York market, and cut
large quantities
of timber of various sorts for exportation: In this
county resides
Peter Kemble, Esq; president of the council. The places for
worship in this
county, are, presbyterians nine, lutherans one,
anabaptists one, quakers
one, separatists one, rogereens one.
SUSSEX
Was named by
governor Belcher, after the duke of New-Castle's seat in
Sussex: It was
divided from Morris by act of assembly, in 1753, and
bounded by the
mouth of Muskonetkong, where it empties itself into the
Delaware, and
running up that river to the head of the great pond; thence
north-east, to
the line that divides New-York and New-Jersey; thence along
the said line to
Delaware; thence down the same to the place of beginning.
It being the
newest county, and a frontier,17 it is not much improved, and
has but few
inhabitants: It lies towards the head of Delaware; about
fifteen miles was
exposed to the Indians in the late wars, and fortified
by a frontier
guard, and several block-houses, at provincial expence. The
courts for the
county are held at Hairlocker's plantation, where a new
court-house is
lately built: Near the river lies the noted Paoqualin hill,
being part of the
continental chain or ridge, called the blue mountains,
supposed to
contain valuable ore: Between that and the river, is low
intervale
excellent land, containing a few plantations. This county raises
some wheat, pork
and cattle, for New-York and Philadelphia markets, and
cuts lumber: It
contains of low Dutch presbyterian meeting houses five,
baptists two,
German lutherans one, quakers one.
Of COURTS.
These are: First,
chancery; Second, the governor and council; Third, the
prerogative
court, relating to the probate of wills, and granting letters
of administration
on intestates effects; Fourth, courts of vice admiralty;
Fifth, supream
courts held four times a year, alternately at Burlington
and Amboy, and
circularly through the counties generally once a year, or
oftener if
occasion; Sixth, the sessions, and court of common pleas, for
business in the
respective counties; Seventh, the justices court, for
trial of causes
of six pounds and under, in a summary way, these causes
are not allowed
to be legally decided by a single justice at a tavern, the
act expressly
barring against it; for debts above forty shillings, a jury
of six is
allowed, if desired. The governor is chancellor. The present
justices of the
supream court are: Frederick Smyth, Esq; chief justice,
salary one
hundred and fifty pounds per annum; Charles Read, Esq; second
justice, salary
fifty pounds per annum; John Berrien, Esq, third justice,
salary fifty
pounds per annum. Ten pounds is allowed for each of the
circuit courts,
to the judge holding the same. All the courts are
established in
virtue of the royal commission; none (except the six pound
court) by act of
assembly: The common law is in use as in England: The
customs and rules
of legislation, and practices of the courts, are as near
as may be, in the
English model; the latter is thought to be as much so,
by good judges,
as that of any other colony: Appeals for sums above two
hundred pounds
sterling, lie home, after having gone through the courts
here. Vid. 86th
instruction, above.
Method of
appealing from the plantations, to the king in council, by Sir
Dudley Ryder,
attorney general, afterwards L. C. J. of England:
"You are to
bring your cause to trial, in the chief court or jurisdiction
for trial
thereof; and if judgment shall be there given against you, then
by your attorney,
you are to appeal in open court, within fourteen days,
to his majesty in
council from the said judgment; and you are to obtain an
entry thereof in
the register of the court, at the same time offering
security to
prosecute such your appeal before his majesty in council,
within twelve
months, and to abide by his majesty's determination in
council therein:
You are also to obtain authentick copies, under the
publick seal of
the province, of all papers and evidences produc'd in your
trial, and of all
entries, records thereupon; which being done, you are
within twelve
months, to have the same transmitted here, and to petition
his majesty in
council, setting forth the whole matter, and pray to be
heard thereupon:
But in case you shall be refused in the province to be
admitted to
appeal; you are then likewise to petition his majesty in
council, setting
forth the whole matter, and to pray, that your appeal may
be admitted
there; where, upon his majesty's admitting your appeal, you
are to give
security as before, and order will be then given for admitting
the said appeal,
and for the transmitting hither authentick copies of the
papers and
records, under the publick seal of the province, in order to
the hearing all
parties thereupon."
Of BEASTS.
The wild beasts,
birds and fish, are those common to the rest of the
continent; some
of the colonies have much greater variety: Of the first,
the panther,
deer, bear, woolf, wild-cat, fox red and grey, raccoon, otter
and a few beaver,
are the chief: Old settled places have but few of those
most voracious;
the small tribe of squirrels, rabbits, minks, ground-hogs,
&c. are
numerous: The deer in every county are plentier than one would
expect; they
breed but once a year, with two at a time; great numbers are
destroyed by
traps 18 and hunting, and by panthers, wild-cats, and
sometimes wolves;
the way the two first take to effect it, may be known by
an instance near
Crosswicks, 1748: An Indian hunting, discovered a large
buck feeding,
creeping to shoot, he heard something among the bushes,
presently saw a
panther with his eyes so intent on the buck, that he did
not perceive him:
the Indian watching his motions, observed, that while
the buck had his
head down to feed, the panther crept, but when he held it
up, lay snug; he
at last got unperceiv'd, within about twenty feet, and
then making a
desperate leap, fixed his talons in the buck's neck; after
he had nearly
kill'd him, he would cease for a minute, give a watchful
look 'round, and
then fall to shaking again; having done his work, and
about to draw the
carcass to a heap of leaves for future service, the
Indian shot, and
got both: They sometimes take their prey by suddenly
jumping out of
trees; so the wild-cats also commonly effect it; these fix
on young cattle
so eagerly, as to be sometimes brought home on their backs:
Some instances of
the wolves killing deer, have been known; tho' but
seldom, and
chiefly by accident: The bucks also kill one another in
fighting, by
entangling in the horns, and so die and rot; they have been
taken alive so fasten'd,
and the horns of others found: The deer are
sometimes white,
and sometimes spotted nearly like the common colour of
fauns; but these
are rare; brown is the usual colour. The rattle-snake, as
the country
settles thick, are but little known; many old inhabitants have
never seen them
alive: The mischief they have yet done, is inconsiderable,
their power and
opportunities considered: This is remarkable; they have an
astonishing
charm,19 in their eyes; the venom of their bite is perhaps
without comparison;
yet their power is happily circumscribed in a way the
most effectual,
that is, by not having a will to mischief equal to the
means, otherwise
there would, in some places, scarcely have been any
living among
them; at least before antidotes were discovered by the
Indians: Formerly
they were thick and plenty in particular places; and yet
in the new
settled parts, are common, especially in the spring, when from
their winter's
retreat, they prepare for a summer's separation: A
surveyor, with his
eye on a distant object unawares among a parcel of
these, one would
think in a poor situation; yet an instance of this but
lately happened:
He had taken a long view in the spring on the south of a
hill, and keeping
his eye to the object, without attending so much to his
feet, was first
alarmd with a smell rank and disagreeable, and then an
unusual noise, on
which, looking about, he saw the leaves in motion, and
woods alive with
rattle-snakesl;20 he got off by care in his steps,
without harm.
They choose for winter, the sunny side of hills, among
rocks, where
these can be had, or holes under trees, and in springy warm
places: There
have been dug up in their torpid state, different sort of
snakes interwoven
among one another, in great regularity, with their heads
uniformly
sticking out at the top: They obtain much of their food by
striking a terror
with their rattle at first, and then catching the eye of
the frighted
object. "It is commonly said, that this (the rattle) is a
kind contrivance
of divine providence, to give warning to passengers, by
the noise which
this part makes, when the creature moves, to keep out of
the way of its
mischief; now this is a mistake. It is beyond all dispute,
that wisdom and
goodness shine forth in all the works of the creation; but
the contrivance
here is of another kind than is imagined.
"All the
parts of animals are made either for the preservation of the
individual, or
for the propagation of its species; this before us is for
the service of
the individual: This snake lives chiefly upon squirrels 21
and birds, which
a reptile can never catch without the advantage of some
management to
bring them within its reach; the way is this; the snake
creeps to the
foot of a tree, and by shaking his rattle, awakens the little
creatures which
are lodged in it; they are so frightened at the sight of
their enemy, who
fixes his lively piercing eyes upon one or other of
them, that they
have no power to get away, but leap about from bough to
bough, 'till they
are quite tired, and at last falling to the ground, they
are snapped into
his mouth. This is by the people of the country called
charming the
squirrels and birds. It must likewise be observed, that this
snake does not
make any noise with its rattle, in the common motions of
its body.
"There is
something like this in the lion's hunting for his food; the
hungry tyrant, by
his terrible roaring in the woods, rouses the lesser
beasts out of
their holes; they running about in fright and surprise, are
easily seized,
and become a prey to his devouring jaws.
"And I have
myself seen, upon a hawks settling upon a tree in a garden,
the little birds
all about it, so struck with fear, that though they
could fly
backwards and forwards, for some little distance, yet they have
not been able to
get away from the ravenous destroyer."21
Though the use of
the rattle seems principally designed for procuring
food, it has
certainly been the means of preservation in respect to
mankind; as that
alarm is frequently known to warn the unsuspecting
traveller of
imminent danger; that the fascinations of their eye is
necessary to
their existence, seems beyond a doubt; inactive and sluggish
by nature, they
have but little other probable means, and have been seen
and kill'd in the
act even with foxes detained in this manner.23 No
instance occurs
of their hunting men, unless first disturbed; then indeed
they seldom fail.
Very lately near Burlington, a mower without stockings,
drawing a foot,
so as to touch one, as he lay coiled; among the grass, he
bit him behind
the ancle; the first notice the man had, was feeling
something prick
in that spot; on which turning his head, he saw the snake;
another in
company immediately killed him, and fetching salt, that
applied, prevented
the venom spreading much higher than the knee; he
afterwards used
sweet oil, and the Seneca rattle-snake root; the last he
thought the most
effectual: He got well in a few days; a small scar
remained.
Thomas Budd, a
proprietor and settler in West-Jersey, in a pamphlet,
published about
1686, says, "The rattle snakes are easily discovered; they
commonly lie in
the paths, for benefit of the sun; if any person draws
nigh them, they
shake their tail, on which the rattles grow; this makes a
noise like a
child's rattle: I never heard of but one person bitten in
Pennsylvania or
New-Jersey; he was helped by live chickens slit asunder
and applied to
the place, which drew out the poison: As to other snakes,
the most
plentiful are the black snake; its bite 'tis said, does no more
harm than the
prick of a pin.
The wampum snake
is very large, of a black and white colour; but harmless.
The horn or
horned snake is scarce, and but few have seen them, whence
many, especially
abroad, have doubted there being any such: A person of
credit in
Gloucester county, being in the woods not long since, and
approaching a
place where his dog was uncommonly barking, discovered a
very large snake,
and trying to kill it, an intollerable stench prevented
his getting near
enough; at length he threw a club at a venture, and going
next day to see
the effect, found the snake killed: It was uncommonly long
and thick, and
had a horn at the end of his tail, resembling a cock's
spur. It is said
they strike this horn even into trees, and kill them. A
person of credit
now living in Burlington county, also relates, that he
has seen four,
kill'd three of these snakes,24 one of them were six or
seven feet long:
As to colour, they are chequered with a yellowish brown
and white, and
when disturbed, hiss like a goose. These particular
instances were
here preferred to a more general account, as more likely to
contribute
towards putting their existence out of dispute. The viper and
many other snakes
abound also; but none remarkable enough to require a
particular
description here.
Of FISH.
These in great
variety, are plenty along the coast, in the Delaware and the
north river; the
most noted are, sturgeon, rock, cod, sheeps-head, horse-
mackrel,
black-fish, sea-bass, flounders, shad, herrings, munches, trout,
pike, perch, red
perch, sun-fish, many inferior sorts; besides, oysters,
clams, and other
shell fish: Most of these supply in great part the New-
York and
Philadelphia markets: The sturgeon are plenty up the rivers, and
when more
generally manufactured will probably answer well in remittances.
It is said they
will grow fat in ponds, and live through the winter.
BIRDS
Of these there
are great plenty as the wild turkey, wild geese, wild ducks
of many kinds,
wild pigeons, brant, pheasants, heath-hen, partridges,
larks,
wood-cocks, plovers, snipes, kildees, and great variety of other
small birds, a
few storkes and cranes, many herons, hawks, turkey-
buzzards, crows,
and all other birds of prey common to the continent: The
wild geese, in
autumn, flock to the marshes on the sea shore, and are
often kill'd by
gunners; in the spring they return to breed at the
northern lakes.
The wild pigeons, at three or four seasons in the year,
commonly pay a
visit (except in seed time) generally acceptable: They have
not been observed
of late years so plenty as formerly; they then,
sometimes, to
avoid the north-east storms, flew night and day, and thick
enough to darken
the air, and break trees where they settled, and were
more tame and more
wanted; all which made them an article of consequence
to the early
inhabitants: The Indians, before the European settlements,
used every year
regularly to burn the woods, the better to kill deer; the
manner was to
surround a swamp or cripple with fire, then drive the deer
out, who not
daring over the bounds, were easily kill'd with bows and
arrows; this
practice kept the woods clean, so that the pigeons readily got
acorns, which
then not being devour'd by hogs, were plenty almost every
where, and induced
a return more frequently than now: They breed chiefly
to the northward.
1 Or if we
include that island still on the Atlantick; but New-York hath
it in possession,
tho' from situation it seems apparently intended a part
of New-Jersey.
2 Chiefly the pitch
pine.
3 Good rights in
East-Jersey, now 1765, sell at 20s. proc. per acre, Pine
ditto, 10s. proc.
per acre; Rights in West-Jersey, at the same time, sell
from 10l. to 12l.
per hundred acres.
4 These boats are
made like troughs, square above the heads and sterns,
sloping a little
fore and aft, generally 40 or 50 feet long, 6 or 7 feet
wide, and 2 feet
9 inches, or 3 feet deep, and draw 20 or 22 inches of
water when laden.
5 Analysis of the
map of the middle colonies, by L. Evans.
6 I Samuel xxii,
2.
7 This took its
name from its shape; not far from the land at Middletown,
it winds like a
hook, the shore and bottom sandy.
8 Here is a
publick library.
9 For a view, see
New American Mag., 1759, p. 104.
10 At each of
those towns is a publick library.
11 See above.
12 Four miles
from hence, a recluse person who came a stranger has existed
alone, near
twelve years, in a thick wood; through all the extremities of
the seasons,
under cover of a few leaves, supported by the side of an old
log, and put
together in the form of a small oven, not high or long enough
to stand upright
or lie extended; he talks Dutch, but unintelligibly,
either through
design, or from defect in his intellects, 'tis hard to tell
which; whence he
came or what he is, no body about him can find out; he has
no contrivance to
keep fire, nor uses any; in very cold weather he lies
naked, stops the
hole he creeps in and out at with leaves; he mostly keeps
in his hut, but
sometimes walks before it, lies on the ground, and cannot
he persuaded to
work much, nor obliged without violence to forsake this
habit, which he
appears to delight in, and to enjoy full health; when the
woods and
orchards afford him no nuts, apples, or other relief as to food,
he applies now
and then for bread to the neighbourhood, and with that is
quite satisfied;
he refuses money, but has been frequently cloathed by
charity; he seems
to be upwards of forty years of age; as to person rather
under the middle
size; calls himself Francis.
13 Seventeen miles
distant by land, twenty by water.
14 Here is a
publick library.
15 Here is a
publick library.
16 This creek was
called by John Fenwick, Caesarea river, part of the
province name, as
being the most considerable creek that puts out of
Delaware into West-Jersey.
17 Pennsylvania
and New-York, meet against it; but have few settlements.
18 The enormous
iron traps used for deer, with their wide jaws of
destruction, are
abhorrent to the common principles of humanity: There is
no safety for man
or beast where they are; laws to appearance well
calculated, seem
hitherto ineffectual in restraining them, tho' so
extreamly and
commonly dangerous; 'till active men in neighbourhoods, will
unite to exert
themselves, and make it a common concern to discourage
them, 'tis feared
the danger will remain: Still worse is the practice of
setting sharp
stakes and loaded guns; these are scarcer, but ought to be
justly detected,
as below the rights of humanity, even with respect to
brutes, and as
common nusances to mankind, where ever they are.
19 A person
having one taken alive, and brought in a small basket cover'd,
the man that
brought it, sat with the basket between his knees; he
wantonly took off
the cover; the snake caught his attention; he was
immediately
surprisingly affected, and express'd afterwards every thing
attractive, as to
the penetrating force of the snake's eye, the snake all
the while kept
rattling with fury; the man's own action was lost in
amazement and terror;
and had not another present, put the cover on the
basket, he had
probably been bit.
20 Half a dozen
or less, with their tails in motion, might answer this
purpose; but he
was too much frighted to count; there might however be
many more, as
there frequently are numbers together, when they first leave
their holes in
the spring. One Robins, in Amwell, Hunterdon county, at a
spot on his own
plantation, had upwards of 90 kill'd in each of three
springs
successively: The parties performing it, bark'd young chestnut
trees of the size
of their own legs, and tied them on; thus accoutred, they
effected their
business without much danger; but the snakes frequently bit
the bark.
Instances need not be multiplied in a case well known; or others
where the snakes
were much more numerous, might be given. At one of the
quarries, where
stone was got for Prince Town college, the work-men came
to an aperture in
the rock, about eighteen inches wide, ten feet long, and
six deep, in
which they found near twenty bushels of snakes bones; they
were supposed to
have got in through winding crevices of the rock in the
fall, and in
their weak state in the spring, not able to get out again.
21 It is
reported, with circumstances of great credibility, that the
Indians here had
a method of taking these animals, by the meer charm of
fixing their
eyes, whence they have by degrees leaped down into possession.
22 Dr. Mead, vid.
his medical works, quarto, edit. 1762, p. 59, 60. Here
may be seen an
accurate description of the head and teeth. For an exact
view and
description of the snake, see Catesby's Nat. Hist. and supplement
to the Gent. Mag.
for 1753.
23 A person of
undoubted credit relates of his own knowledge, two
instances of this
attended with such circumstances, as leaves very little
room for doubt.
"In the end of May, 1715, stopping at an orchard by the
road side to get
some cherries, being three of us in company, we were
entertained with
the whole process of a charm between a rattle-snake and a
hare, the hare
being better than half grown. It happened thus; one of the
company in his
search for the best cherries espied the hare sitting, and
although he went
close by her she did not move, 'till he (not suspecting
the occasion of
her gentleness) gave her a lash with his whip; this made
her run about ten
foot, and there sit down again. The gentleman not
finding the
cherries ripe, immediately returned the same way, and near the
place where he
struck the hare, he spied a rattle-snake; still not
suspecting the
charm, he goes back about twenty yards to a hedge to get a
stick to kill the
snake, and at his return found the snake removed, and
coiled in the
same place from whence he had moved the hare. This put him
into immediate
thoughts of looking for the hare again, and he soon spied
her about ten
foot off the snake, in the same place to which she had
started when he
whipt her. She was now lying down, but would sometimes
raise herself on
her fore-feet struggling as it were for life or to get
away, but could
never raise her hinder parts from the ground, and then
would fall flat
on her side again, panting vehemently. In this condition
the hare and
snake were when he called me, and though we all three came up
within fifteen
foot of the snake to have a full view of the whole, he took
no notice at all
of us, nor so much as gave a glance towards us. There we
stood at least
half an hour, the snake not altering a jot, but the hare
often struggling
and falling on its side again, 'till at last the hare lay
still as dead for
some time. Then the snake moved out of his coil, and
slid gently and
smoothly on towards the hare, his colours at that instant
being ten times
more glorious and shining than at other times. As the
snake mov'd along,
the hare happened to fetch another struggle, upon which
the snake made a
stop lying at his length, 'till the hare had lain quiet
again for a short
space; and then he advanced again 'till he came up to
the hinder parts
of the hare, which in all this operation had been towards
the snake; there
he made a survey all over the hare, raising part of his
body above it,
then turnd off and went to the head and nose of the hare,
after that to the
ears, took the ears in his mouth one after the other,
working each
apart in his mouth as a man does a wafer to moisten it, then
returned to the
nose again, and took the face into his mouth, straining
and gathering his
lips sometimes by one side of his mouth, sometimes by
the other; at the
shoulders he was a long time puzzled, often haling and
stretching the
hare out at length, and straining forward first one side of
his mouth then
the other, 'till got at last he the whole body into his
throat. Then we
went to him, and taking the twist band off from my hat, I
made a noose and
put it about his neck: This made him at length very
furious, but we
having secured him, put him into one end of a wallet, and
carried him on
horseback five miles to Mr. J. B.'s house where we lodged
that night, with
a design to have sent him to Dr. C. at Williamsburg; but
Mr. B. was so
careful of his slaves, that he would not let him be put into
his boat for fear
he should get loose and mischief them; therefore the
next morning we
killed him, and took the hare out of his belly, the head
of the hare began
to be digested, and the hair falling off; having lain
about eighteen
hours in the snake's belly.
"In my youth
I was a bear-hunting in the woods above the inhabitants, and
having straggled
from my companions, I was entertamed at my return, with
the relation of a
pleasant rencounter, between a dog and a rattle-snake,
about a squirrel.
The snake had got the head and shoulders of the squirrel
into his mouth,
which being something too large for his throat, it took
him up sometime to
moisten the fur of the squirrel with his spawn, to make
it slip down. The
dog took this advantage, seiz'd the hinder parts of the
squirrel, and
tug'd with all his might. The snake on the other side would
not let go his
hold for a long time, 'till at last, fearing he might be
bruised by the
dog's running away with him, he gave up his prey to the
dog, the dog eat
the squirrel, and felt no harm.
"Another
curiosity concerning this viper, which I never met with in print,
I will also
relate from my own observation.
"Some time
after my observation of the charm, my waiting boy being sent
abroad on an
errand, also took upon himself to bring home a rattle snake
in a noose. I cut
off the head of this snake, leaving about an inch of the
neck with it;
this I laid upon the head of a tobacco hogshead, one S. L. a
carpenter, now
alive, being with me. Now you must note, that these snakes
have but two
teeth, by which they convey their poison, and they are
placedd in the
upper jaw, pretty forward in the mouth, one on each side;
these teeth are
hollow and crooked like a cock's spur; they are also loose
or springing in
the mouth, and not fastened in the jaw-bone as all the
other teeth are;
the hollow has a vent also through by a small hole a
little below the
point of the tooth; these two teeth are kept lying down
along the jaw, or
shut like a spring-knife, and don't shrink up as the
talons of a cat
or panther; that have also over them a loose thin film or
skin of a flesh
colour, which rises over them when they are raised, which
I take to be only
at the will of the snake to do injury; this skin does
not break by the
rising of the tooth only, but keeps whole 'till the bite
is given, and
then is pierced by the tooth, by which the poison is let
out. The head
being laid upon the hogshead, I took two little twigs or
splinters of
sticks, and having turn'd the head upon its crown, opened the
mouth, and lifted
up the fang or springing tooth on one side several
times, in doing
of which I at last broke the skin; the head gave a sudden
champ with its
mouth, breaking from my sticks, in which I observed that
the poison ran
down in a lump like oyl, round the root of the tooth. Then
I turn'd the
other side of the head, and resolved to be more careful to
keep the mouth
open on the like occasion, and observe more narrowly the
consequence; for
it is observed, that though the heads of snakes,
terrapins and
such like vermin, be cut off; yet the body will not die in a
long time after;
the general saying is 'till the sun sets. After opening
the mouth on the
other side, and lifting up that fang also several times,
he endeavoured to
give another bite or champ; but I kept his mouth open,
and the tooth
pierced the film and emitted a stream like one full of blood
in blood-letting,
and cast some drops upon the sleeve of the carpenter's
shirt, who had no
waistcoat on. I advised him to pull off his shirt, but
he would not, and
received no harm; and tho' nothing could then be seen of
it upon the
shirt, yet in washing there appeared five green specks, which
every washing
appeared plainer and plainer, and lasted so long as the
shirt did, which
the carpenter told me was about three years after. The
head we threw
afterwards down upon the ground, and a sow came and eat it
before our faces;
and received no harm. Now I believe, had this poison
lighted upon any
place of the carpenter's skin, that was scratched or
hurt, it might
have poisoned him. I take the poison to rest in a small bag
or receptacle in
the hollow at the root of these teeth; but I never had
the opportunity
afterwards to make a farther discovery of that. Beverly's
Hist. of Virg.,
p. 262 to 266.
24 His son kill'd
one this present summer 1765.