New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-04-16
TIE RATTLE OF PETERSON.

There is one battle a revolutionary battle,
battle fought upon the soil of Paterson,
whose centennial has not been celebrated. In
making this assertion we are not to be under
stood as casting any reflections either upon
the patriotism or the public spirit of the peo-
ple of Paterson. The fact is, the battle Of
Paterson, although decidedly revolutionary in
its aim. only occurred on Friday last, so
that it will be apparent, even to the hunolcst
mathematician, that its centennial will not be
due for some time yet And without wishing
to anticipate the still unborn orator and poet
who Will tell Of the battle in strains Of supass-
ng cloqucncc mid rapturous and long-cOninucd
applause from appreciate but still unborn Pater-
sonians, We desire at this time, for the BEN
eft Of those whose engagements may not per-
nit them to bc present at the centennial, to
narrate the more salient, not to say spectacu-
lar, incidents OF the battle.
1t was fought between the Society for Estab-
fishing Useful Manufactures and the Washing
tonian Temperance Association. The name of
neither of these organizations is suggestive of
gore. Grim visaged war certainly is not use
full manufacture, while temperance makes
against the rising OF those angry passions upon
which war is conditioned But, all the same,
the Society for Establishing Useful Manuiac-
lures on Friday last came down Ike wolf on
the fold upon the Washinet0nian Temperance
Association, and the NashingtOnian Temper
ance Association resisted the wolf with daunt
less courage. 1t was a great afternoon for
Paterson, TcndcTy and with no provision
of what was to happen, the naughty day filed
her blue urn with fire some hours before the
Of. fl.a fpr
ect-me-nOts of the angels blossOmed all over
the sky the same as usual. And yet during
the interval between the filling of the urn and
the biossoming of the stars the embattled So
cety and Association aforesaid fired the shot
heard round jersey. The night before the
battle thee were two or three receptions, a
lecture, Il donation party, church fes-
tiyal and the semi-annual meeting of a
base ball club held at Paterson. Who
can tell if ever more shall meet the mu-
tual eyes that shone at those gatherings, since
on night so calm such awful morn should
riser The afternoon before the carnage began
the children, the goats and the hand-Organs
played merrily about the streets Of the city,
and soft eyes-ths in cOniidencc--lOOkcd love
TO eyes that spake again. Twcnty-four hours
later Hope for a season babe the place fare
well, and the WashingtOnian Temperance AS
ISOLATION shreked as several OF their numbers
fell with members Of the Society for Estab-
fishing Useful Manufactures on top of them.
1t is difficult to determine at this writing upon
which exclamation the orator OF the centcn-
NAL of the battle viii dwell with the
greater admiratlon-that made by a member
of the Society Tor Establishing Useful Manu-
features: "Give me that island or give me
death -; or the reply that came Kissing to him
from an impassoned Washingtonian ''This
Temperance Association dies but never sur
renders"
1t occurs to us, just here that we are not
presenting as clear and consecutive an account
OF the fight rs gentlemen in search OF data
for "a centennial Grafton could desire. Let us
endcavor to put it palmer. There is an island
lying in the Passaic River, at Paterson, which
the Society for Establishing Useful Manu-
features claim TO own. The Washingtonian
Temperance Association also claim TO
own it. Hence. A small bridge connects
this island with the mainland of Pater-
son. Some days ago the Society tore