The Penn's Grove record., 1922-02-17

ruary z, 1922.
The history of New Jersey began
almost with the history of our country
and from the time when the first set
tiers reached her coast and laid out
their small farms and towns there has
been no movement in our National
history in which the men and women
OF New Jersey have not done their
part.
When the first white men came to
New Jersey or New Cesaria, as it was
first called, they found it a land of
dense forests, fertile river valleys and
dreary marshes, inhabitated only by
wild animals and scattered bands of
Indians. The early white settlers who
made friends with the Indians were
never molested by them. The Indians
taught the friendly white settlers how
to trap and fish and how to raise corn
without first clearing the land of trees.
This knowledge saved a number of the
early settlers from starvation.
Charles II of England gave the
lands which had been taken from HOl-
land to his brother James, Duke of
York, who in turn sold what is now
New Jersey to two of his friends,
Lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret.
In 1914 Berkeley sold his interest to
two Quakers who sold it to William
Penn. At this time the territory of
New Jersey was divided into East and
West Jersey. West Jersey being
PENIS Colony. In Salem County
there are at the present time towns
and townships bearing the name of
The homes Of the early settlers
contained few modern comforts.
Stoves were unknown. The huge fire
places might be heaped high with blaz-
ing logs of wood but most of the heat
went up the chimney. You could stand
or sit so near the roaring flames that
vor. face would be scorched While the
other side of your body was chilled.
All the boiling, frying, baking and
stewing were done in the enormous
freplaces. The lights were tallow dip
or wax candles and when a family
was too poor to buy or make them, 1t
used pine knots.
When the cold was severe a person
put on more clothes. The sight of a
man or boy incased in several coats or
pairs of trousers was not uncommon
on a cold day. Very rarely was a car
pet or wall paper seen. Long years
were to pass before the inventors be-
gan dreaming of the varied uses of
steam and electricity, of the sewing
machine. the typewriter, and a score
of other useful things that have be-
come necessities in modern civlllza-
ton. Oiled paper was used for win
dow panes. The housewife read the
time of day by the sundial or by the
shadow cast on a certain mark on the
wall or floor, when the sun did not
shine she used her skill in guessing.
The women were quantity dressed
in Jackets of cloth or silk and short
quilted petticoats. The hair was gen
orally pushed back from the forehead
and covered with a cap of muslin, cal
leo, lace or sometimes with a silk hood.
The men were ven more quantity
dressed. The usual costume was a
long wasted coat with the skirt reach
ing nearly to the knees, and baggy
knee trousers trimmed with buttons,
With these they wore gay lace trimmed
vests, black silk stockings, low shoes
with silver buckles, and a low crowned
hat. The people seldom travelled, but
when they did travel they went on
horseback or by private conveyance
over old Indian trails until the "wagon
road" was built and the first stage line
started in 1864.
As soon as a town was founded pro-
vision was made for the religious and
educational needs of the public. The
first school for the teaching of read
ing, writing and ciphering was started
at Bergen, now Jersey City, in 1862.
Church discipline was a powerful re
straint upon the amusements and
pleasures of the colonists. Dane
ing, card playing, and all forms of
gambling were strictlys forbidden by
Church law. For hunting, fishing and
contests of physical strenth, such as
boxing and fencing, were greatly en-
ioyed, but horse breeding and turf
racing led all other sports. So inter
ested were the great number of gen.
tlemen in this sport that a horses
head was used on the Great Seal of
New Jersey adopted in 1776. New
Jersey has been rightly called the
Warpath of the Revolution Her open
level lowlands between New York and
Trenton the main point of military
advantage between the north and the
south, were the camping grounds of
both armies. Some of the most dram
attic events of the war occurred here.
During the revolutionary war the
patriots of New Jersey endured great
err hardships than those of any other
state. Because of her central position
two conflicting armies camped,
marched and fought on her soil. New
Jersey was the first state to fly Nat
ional colors over continental troops.
New Jersey although forty-sixth in
size among the states, is third in den
sity of population, and sixth in the
value of manufactured articles. New
Jersey can harvest over one third of
the cranberry crop Of the world. New
Jersey has no town or village more
than seven miles distant from a rail
road. Because of her famous seashore
resorts, New Jersey has been called
the Playground of the World.
That disarmament conference has
given some hundreds of men a Hard