Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1906-06-21

Dayton entered the service at sixteen
and served to the close Of the war.
Colonel David Brearley was under
thirty-fve years of age when he served
under Sullivan in his famous expedi-
ton against the Six Nations. Such Of
ficers as these, together with the mem-
cries of Princeton and Trenton and
Monmouth, have established New Jer-
sey's place in the Revolution beyond
controversy and beyond the forgetful-
ness Of time. At Trenton the British
hopes were forever blasted and the
tide turned in favor of the colonies.
Monmouth marked the last important
battle on Jersey soil.
Not alone upon the field OF battle did
our heroic forefathers endure suffer
ing and display heroism. AS Valley
Forge stands out as one of the con-
spicuous scenes in the, patriotism of
that time, so New Jersey was the
scene of winter encampments that put
the virtue and patience of the Con
tinental army to the seyerest trial.
Sickness and contagious disease re-
duced the armies more than the bullet
and the sword. This condition was
intensified by lack of proper supplies
Morristown the army was for five or
six days without bread, as many days
without meat and once or twice, two
or three days without either, At one
time the soldiers ate every kind of
horse food but hay. Add to this the
suffering caused by want of clothes and
blankets and proper shelter, to COM
plete the desperation of the cause of
liberty. So great was the hunger and
suffering at one time that in order to
divert the soldiers minds from their
wretched condition, they were actually
put to work on the construction of for
tifications as a substitute for food. The
fact that the discipline of the Cont
mental Army could be maintained I'm,
der these conditions. that it could be
kept intact and saved from dissolution
by desertion, was an example of heroic
patience not surpassed in the military
annals of the world It was during
this season that at the headquarters
at Morristown could be seen such dis
tinguished men as Alexander Hamil
ton, General Greene, Baron Won Steu
ben, Kosciusko, Pulaski, Light Horse
Harry Lee, Israel Putnam, Mad An
thony Wayne, Chevalier de la Luzerne
the Minister from France. and Don
Juan de Mirailles the Special Envoy
from Spain.
The service Of the loyal women of
the State at this trying hour, is worthy
of the highest commentator. A cen
trail organization was formed, with
branches in all the thirteen counties
then comprising the State. Blankets,
coats, hats, trousers, long knit stock
ings shirts, linen for beds and the use
of the sick in the hospital camps, were
gathered and forwarded to the Quar-
termaster-General to be by him dis
tributed for the use Of the shivering
and ill-clad troops. 1t was the patrio
tic women of Essex County who fur
nished the first uniforms for the Jer-
sey Blues, an organization whose yalor
and fame throughout the war, have
been preserved in the use of their title
as a synonym for loyalty and fidelity.
New Jersey has never lost the spirit
that characterized that famous mill
tary organization of the Revolution.
1t was shown in her patriotic service
in 1872, in her response to Lincoln's
calls in 1860, in her cheerful enlist
ments in the Spanish-American War
and still abides in the heroism of her
manhood and womanhood, her loyalty
to the flag, her sense of justice, her
high ideals of right and wrong.
New Jersey. history from Revolu-
tionary days is a sufficient refutation of
her critics and maligners and the
as a traitor State In each generation
- To- r. j @1<~,-l =
strengthened our ancestral virtues.
Our State is as dear to the men and
women of today as it was to the fore
fathers of 1777, to our great-grand-
fathers of 1872 and to our grandfathers
of 1860 and they can be as confidently
relied upon for civic or military vir-
tue.
This spot bears witness to the heroic
mould in which Americans are cast.
Rhode Islands valor is still Rhode Is,
lands valor. We are proud that some
of her heroic deeds were done on Jer-
sey soil. AS for New Jersey in the
campaign resulting in the battle of
Red Bank. and. in the battle itself,
we're troops from Burlington, Cape
May, Cumberland, Gloucester and Sa-s
lem Counties. 1t was fitting that these
defenders of this section should have
been serving in this important action.
1t is a spot hallowed from the earliest
days of colonial history. Near here
in 1888 was built Fort Nassau, indicat-
ing the claim of Holland to rights upon
the Delaware. In 1856 near this spot,
the citizens of the three or four towns
of West Jersey, met and declared that
they possessed inherent right to erect
a county government Independent Of
Legislative authority. This was the
spirit that lowered over this spot when
Colonel Christopher Greene made the
memorable defense, and with the odds
five to one against him, drove back the
invaders in confusion and rout. No
wonder that time has preserved this
heroic chapter of our history as worthy
of the homage of future generations
More than a century has passed The
gallant defenders of Fort Mercer are
better known today than in the hours
of their actual service. Time has vim