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NEW JERSEY. 



NEW JERSEY. The State of New Jersey 

 was one of the original thirteen, and is one of 

 the Middle States. It is almost entirely sur- 

 rounded by navigable waters, being separated 

 from Pennsylvania and Delaware on the west 

 and south by the river and bay of Delaware, 

 and on the east having the Atlantic Ocean, 

 Staten Island Sound, the Kills, and the Hudson 

 River. The northeastern boundary, which sep- 

 arates it from New York, is a line drawn from 

 40 on the Hudson, to a point on the Delaware 

 41 21' north latitude. The greatest length of 

 the State, from Cape May to Carpenter's Point, 

 is 166 miles. Its breadth varies from 40 to 75 

 miles, and the surface, is 7,276 square miles. 



The population of the State of New Jersey 

 is. by the census of 1860, 672,024. In 1850, it 

 was 489,319 whites, and 236 slaves. A num- 

 ber of legal slaves still exist in the State ; but 

 being mostly the attached servants of old fami- 

 lies, are not regarded in the light of slaves. 

 The progress of population in the State has 

 been very rapid in the last ten years by acces- 

 sions from New York. The soil of New Jersey 

 is good, and, by the valuation of the census, it 

 ranks higher than that of any other State. 



The number of the electoral votes of the State 

 is seven, and it was the only Northern vote 

 not given entirely to Mr. Lincoln. There were 

 cast three for Mr. Douglas. 



The Governor is elected for three years. The 

 Senate consists of twenty-one members, elected 

 for three years ; and the House of sixty, elected 

 for one year. The Governor is Chas. S. Olden. 



The city of Newark has a population of 72,- 

 000 ; and the census shows its annual manu- 

 factures at $23,264,313, of which $18,000,000 

 found a market at the South. 



The people of New Jersey were apparently 

 alive to the dangers which threatened the 

 country through the course of events. A 

 State Union Convention was called to meet at 

 Trenton on the llth of December, 1860, the 

 same day on which the South Carolina Sena- 

 tors withdrew from Congress. 



The following is the call for the Convention : 



The undersigned respectfully invite the people of 

 New Jersey to assemble in mass Convention at Tren- 

 ton on Tuesday, the llth instant, at 12 o'clock, at the 

 State House, to consider the condition of national 

 affairs, and to concert such measures as may be 

 deemed advisable under the_ present crisis of our Ke- 

 public. All national men in favor of constitutional 

 Union measures are invited to attend. 



The call was signed by representatives of all 

 the national parties in the State by thousands. 



The Convention assembled on the day ap- 

 pointed, amidst a vast concourse of people at 

 Trenton. 



The following preamble and resolutions were 

 adopted : 



Whereas, history records that to New Jersey is due 

 the credit of having given such instructions to her 

 Commissioners, which met at Annapolis in 1786, to 

 adopt measures for a more perfect union of the States, 

 which led to the assembling of the Convention of 1787, 

 which formed that admirable Constitution that, under 

 tie blessing of God, has conferred such inestimable 



benefits on the people of the United States ; and 

 whereas, New Jersey has always faithfully abided by 

 the compacts and agreements to which she assented 

 when she accepted and adopted the Constitution of 

 the United States; and whereas, that Constitution 

 was the result of generous and magnanimou> 

 cession and compromise, and New Jersey is now, as 

 formerly, willing to make any proper concession, or 

 give any proper additional guarantees which wisdom 

 and patriotism may require for its promotion ; and 

 whereas, from the foregoing consideration, it is evi- 

 dently proper that New Jersey should interpose, and 

 by her conservative voice invite her sister States, as 

 well as all extremists of all parties and sections, to 

 pause and deliberate, and consent to make one more 

 patriotic effort in the preservation of the Union which 

 Washington pronounced the " palladium of our lib- 

 erty ; " therefore be it 



Resolved, That there is imminent danger of the dis- 

 solution of the United States. 



Resolved, That the cause of the present portentous 

 crisis is the actual and threatened interference on the 

 part of the Northern agitators with the rights and 

 property of the people of fifteen States of this Union. 



Resolved, That we see no remedy for this deplorable 

 state of public affairs unless the North, in the most 

 prompt and explicit manner, shall avow its determina- 

 tion to remove all political agitation for the abolition 

 of slavery : shall repeal all acts designed to nullity or 

 embarrass the faithful execution of the fugitive slave 

 law ; shall consent to the citizen of the South enjoy- 

 ing the services of his domestic while temporarily 

 sojourning here on business or pleasure ; and shall 

 accord to the South all the rights of property guaran- 

 teed by the Constitution and the laws, and the deci- 

 sions of the Supreme Court in pursuance thereof. 



Resolved, That it is no valid objection to the conces- 

 sion or compromises which we have suggested that 

 they are compromises of political principles ; for the 

 Constitution was only made by concession and com- 

 promise of political principles, and in all its parts we 

 trace the evidence of the mutual surrender and com- 

 promise of political principles. 



Resolved, That five delegates from this Convention be 

 appointed to confer with our sister States, and urge up- 

 on them the necessity of the measures which we have 

 suggested as indispensable to the restoration of amity 

 between the States and the preservation of the Union. 



The following extracts, from letters addressed 

 to friends in Washington, by two among the 

 distinguished Jerseymen who participated in 

 the proceedings of the Convention, give an 

 idea of the prevailing sentiment : 



From Commodore Stockton. If the South will only 

 give us time, we will bring the North in entire and 

 honorable fraternity with the South. We will save the 

 Union if they (the South) will postpone action until 

 the spring. I have no doubt that the sentiment of the 

 North will be practically in accord with our address. 



From Samvel J. Bayard. We had a great Conven- 

 tion yesterday in Trenton. A more respectable or im- 

 posing body of men for character, property, gravity, 

 and every element of importance, never assembled in 

 New Jersey. The public mind is becoming much 

 alarmed in' New Jersey in spite of all attempts to 

 make light of current events. 



The Legislature assembled January 8th, and 

 the conservative feeling was strong. A spirit 

 of conciliation and compromise, blended with 

 anxiety for the Union and national honor, was 

 paramount among the people of the State, and 

 was strongly reflected in the tone of the Message 

 of the Governor. He remarked : " Unwilling 

 to abandon the cause, and clinging to the hope 

 that the Committee of Congress, appointed for 

 that purpose, will agree on measures of com- 



