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fupreme court, are properly branches of this court, and are held by one of the judges of it, except that in the courts of oyer and terminer, fome of the gentlemen of the county are always added in the commiffion, as affiftants to the judge; but they cannot hold the court without him.

Fifthly, Orphan's Courts, lately eftablished by act of affembly, are held by the judges of the court of common pleas, ex officio, and have cognizance of all matters relating to wills, adminiftrations, &c.

Sixthly, Court of Chancery, held by the governor ex officio, always open. ' It is a court of law and equity, founded on the fame principles, and governed by the fame rules, as the court of chancery in England.

Seventhly, High Court of Errors and Appeals, compofed of the governor, and feven of the council, and is a court of appeals in the last refort, in all cafes of law.

All the English laws which had been practifed nupo in the state, nda which were not repugnant to revolution principles, were adopted by the conftitution, and very few alterations of confequence have fince been made, except in the descent of real eftates, which, inftead of defcending to the eldeft fon, agreeably to the old feudal fyftem, as formerly, are now divided (where there is no will) equally among the children, both male and female, except that the eldest fon has two fhares; a mode of defcent much more confiftent with republican principles.

Military frength.] The military ftrength of New-Jerfey confifts only of the militia about 30,000 in number, who have been too much neglected fince the war.

Revenue.] About £10,000 are raifed annually for the support of government, and for the payment of incidental charges, and of the pentions of thofe who were difabled in the public fervice during the war; and about £.44,000 raifed annually for the payment of the intereft on the public debt of this ftate, and their quota of the debt of the United States. This revenue is raised by a tax on lands, iron works, mills, diftilleries,. breweries, ferries, fifheries, carriages, stages, taverns, horses, cattle, &c.

Hiftory. It is a task of no fmall difficulty to give the reader a juft view of the hiftory of New-Jerfey. Dr. Douglafs obferves, in great truth, that the affairs of this colony have always been in a confufed ftate, which occafions an unavoidable confufion in its history.'

The first fettlers of New-Jersey, were a number of Dutch emigrants from New-York, who came over between the years 1614 and 1620, and fettled in the county of Bergen. Next after thefe, in 1627, came over a colony of Swedes and Finns, and fettled on the river Delaware, They afterwards purchafed of the Indians, the land on both fides NewSwedeland ftream, (now called Delaware river) from Cape Henlopen to the falls; and, by prefents to the Indian chiefs, obtained peaceable poffeffion of it. The Dutch and Swedes, though not in harmony with each other, kept poffeffion of the country many years. In 1683, the Dutch had a houfe devoted to religious worship at New Caftle; the Swedes at the fame time had three, befides one on the island of Tenecum, one at Chriftiana, and one at Wicoco. The prefent Swedish churches in Philadelphia and Gloucester county in New Jersey, are defcendants of thefe first fettlers.

In

In March, 1634, Charles II. granted all the territory, called by the Dutch New-Netherlands, to his brother the duke of York: And in June, 1664, the duke granted that part now called New-Jerfey, to Lord Berkley, of Stratton, and Sir George Carteret, jointly; who, in 1665, agreed upon certain conceffions with the people for the government of the province, and appointed Philip Carteret, Efq. their governor. He purchafed confiderable tracts of land from the Indians, for fmall confiderations, and the fettlements increased.

The Dutch reduced the country in 1672; but it was restored by the peace of Westminster, February 9th, 1674.

In confequence of the conqueft made by the Dutch, and to obviate any objections that might be made on account of it against the former grant, a new patent was iffued, in 1674, to the duke of York, for the fame country. In July of this year, New-Jerfey was divided, and Weft Jersey was granted, by the duke of York, to the affigns of Lord Berkley; and Eaft Jersey to Sir G. Carteret. The divifion line was to run from the fouth-east point of Little Egg Harbour, on Barnegate Creek, being about the middle between Cape May and Sandy Hook, to a creek, a little below Ancocus creek, on Delaware river, thence about thirty-five miles, ftrait courfe, along Delaware river, up to 41° 40′ north latitude. This line has never been fettled, but has ever fince continued to be a fubject of contention.

In 1675, West Jerfey, which had been granted to Lord Berkley, was fold to john Fenwick, in truft for Edward Bylinge. Fenwick came over with a colony, and fettled at Salem. Thefe were the firft English fettlers in Weft Jerfey. In 1676, the intereft of Bylinge in Weft Jersey, was affigned to William Penn, Gavin Laurie, and Nicholas Lucas, as trustees, for the ufe of his creditors. Mutual quit claims were executed between Sir George Carteret and the trustees of Bylinge. This partition was confirmed in 1719, by an act of the general affembly of the Jerfeys.

In 1678, the duke of York made a new grant of West Jersey to the affigns of Lord Berkley.

Agreeably to Sir George Carteret's will, dated December 5, 1678, Eaft Jerfey was fold, in 1682, to twelve proprietors, who by twelve feparate deeds, conveyed one-half of their intereft to twelve other perfons, feparately, in fee fimple. This grant was confirmed to thefe twentyfour proprietors, by the duke of York, the fame year. Thefe twentyfour fhares, by fales of fmall parts of them, and by these small parts being again divided among the children of fucceffive families, became at Jaft fubdivided in fuch a manner, as that fome of the proprietors had only one-40th part, of a 48th part of a 24th fhare. Weft Jersey was in the fame condition. This created much confufion in the management of the general proprietors, particularly in regard to appointing governors. Thefe inconveniences, aided by other caufes of complaint, which had been increafing for feveral years, and were faft advancing to a dangerous crifis, difpofed the proprietors to furrender the government to the crown, which was accordingly done, and accepted by queen Ann, on the 17th of April, 1702. Till this time the government of New-Jersey was proprietory; it now became royal, and fo continued till the memorable fourth of July, 1776.

This

This ftate was the feat of war for feveral years, during the bloody contest between Great-Britain and America. Her loffes both of men and property, in proportion to the population and wealth of the ftate, was greater than of any other of the thirteen ftates. When General Washington was retreating through the Jerfeys, almoft forfaken by all others, her militia were at all times obedient to his orders; and for a confiderable length of time compofed the ftrength of his army. There is hardly a town in the ftate that lay in the progrefs of the British army, that was not rendered fignal by fome enterprize or exploit. At Trenton the enemy received a check which may be faid with juftice to have turned the tide of the war. At Princeton, the feat of the mufes, they received another, which, united, obliged them to retire with precipitation, and to take refuge in difgraceful winter quarters. But whatever honour this ftate might derive from the relation, it is not our business to give a particular defcription of battles or fieges; we leave this to the pen of the hiftorian, and only obferve in general, that the many military achievements performed by the Jersey foldiers, give this ftate one of the first ranks among her fifters in a military view, and entitle her to a fhare of praise that bears no proportion to her fize, in the accomplishment of the late glorious revolution.

GOVERNORS of NEW-JERSEY, from the furrender of the Government by the PROPRIETORS in 1702, to the present time.

+ Edward, viscount Cornbury, 1702 to 1708, removed, and fucceeded by + John, Lord Lovelace, 1708 to 1709, died, and the government devolved to

Lt. Gov. Richard Ingoldfby, + Brigadier Robert Hunter, + William Burnet,

+ John Montgomery,

+ William Crosby,

1709 to 1710, when came in

1710 to 1720, who refigned in favour of 1720 to 1727, removed, and fucceeded by 1728 to 1731, died, and was fucceeded by 1731 to 1736, died, and the government devolved to

John Anderson, Prefident of the Council, 1736, by whofe death, about two weeks after, the government devolved to

John Hamilton, Prefident of the Council, 1736 to 1738.

Those marked + were Governors in chief, and down to this time were Governors of New-York and New-Jerfey, but from 1738 forward, New-Jersey has had a separate governor.

+ Lewis Morris,

John Hamilton, Prefident,
John Reading, Prefident,

+ Jonathan Belcher,

John Reading, Prefident,

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1757 to 1758.

Thomas Pownall, then Governor of Maffachusetts, being Lieutenant-Governor, arrived on the death of Governor Belcher, but continued in the province a few days only.

+ Francis

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Boundaries.] B OUNDED east, by Delaware river; north, by the parallel of 42° north latitude, which divides it from the state of New-York; fouth, by the parallel of 39° 43′ 18" north latitude, which divides it from the states of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia wett, by a meridian line, drawn from the termination of five degrees of longitude, from a point on Delaware river, near Wilmington, in the parallel of 39° 43′ 18" to interfect the parallel of 42°. This line divides the state from a part of Virginia, the Western Territory, (fo called) and from a tract of land, 20 miles square, which was confirmed to Connecticut by Congrefs. The northwest corner of Pennsylvania extends about one mile and an half into Lake Erie, and is about twenty miles weit of the old French fort at Presque Isle. The state lies in the form of a parallelogram, and contains about 44,900 square miles, equal to about 28,800,000 acres.

Mines and Minerals.] The following table exhibits the number, fituation, and various kinds of mines and minerals in this state. On the west fide of the mountains, vitriolic, aluminous, and other mineral earths are found in great abundance. Beds of coal, lying pretty deep, in a horizontal direction, are almost univerfal in this western country; but metallic ores of all kinds, especially that of iron, appear to be wanting; while they are found in great plenty eastward of the mountains. A very probable reason has been affigned why it should be so. It is this, The country eastward of the mountains, as hereafter mentioned, has evidently been torn to pieces by fome violent convulfion, while that on the other fide has remained undisturbed. During this convulfion, the iron ore was probably thrown up from very great depths, where, by its gravity, it was accumulated, and coal, which lay nearer the surface, was, by the fame convulfion, buried immenfely deep.

Civil divifions.] Pennsylvania is divided into twenty counties, which, with their county towns, situation, &c. are mentioned in the following

TABLE.

COUNTIES. County Towns.

Situation.

Settl'd Mines, &c.

Philadel. (City) Philadelphia. On Delaware R.

All

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Coal mines.

Luzerne. Wilksborough. On Susquchan. R.

York.
Cumberland. Carlifle.

Northumberland.

York.

On Susquehan. R.

Iron ore.

On Sufquehan. R.
On west branch S.

Lead mines&c

Sunbury.

Franklin. Chamberstown On Susquehan. R.

Bedford.

Bedford.

On Juniatta R. Huntingdon. Huntingdon. On Juniatta R. Westmoreland. Greensburg. On Allegany R.

Fayette.

Union. On Monongahela.

Washington. Washington. S. W. corner state.

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* A very large proportion of the vacant lands in the state are in this county, (Northumberland) to the amount of abrut eight millions of acres.

Rivers.

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