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Newspaper
Plainfield Gazette
Location
Plainfield, New Jersey, United States of America
Date
Feb 28, 1850
Page
2
Mr Albert D. Drake is named to receive subscriptions and advertisements for the Plainfield Lyceum. Members will meet in W. W. Davison's school house on Tuesday evenings from four to seven o clock. The question for Lennies more misery than War is to be discussed. The Ladies and the public are invited to attend. E. M. Dunx, Secretary.
Rev L Crandall continues the Lec tures to the Youth series in this place. The next talk will be held Sunday evening next in the Second Presbyterian Church.
The village mourns the passing of Mr. William P. Williamson who died Monday morning. Citizens recall his exemplary character and Christian life, offer condolences to his family, and pledge to remember his virtues with lasting gratitude.
The first annual report highlights county committee findings on overcrowded, neglected jails in New Jersey. It denounces dungeons as instruments of vengeance, calls for humane treatment, moral instruction, and reform focused on preventing crime. It notes Somerset and Essex counties show especially dire conditions including overcrowded cells, damp floors, and inadequate light and ventilation.
A long critique rails at sectarian churches and wealthy towns for neglecting prisoners and the poor while praising their brick and marble churches. It questions morality and calls for immediate action to reform prisons and charity, citing reports on fraud and political corruption and urging a vigilant public stance.
A bill to establish a House of Refuge with twenty one thousand dollars funding has passed both Houses. Backed by the Prison Reform Association, the measure is seen as highly beneficial and likely to become law, if properly administered.
The text asserts unwavering faith in the American people, denying fear of Union dissolution or surrender of liberty to slavery. It emphasizes that liberty and the Union are inseparably linked in the nation's conscience.
The old observer notes January 1850 was remembered as faintly as a somnolent month. He recalls no events that month while Maylike air prevails. Farmers discuss sowing oats and related tasks two months ahead amid unusual warmth.
A concise note states that a Toa man filled with questions remains calm and shows no anger amid inquiry. The line presents a reflective mood emphasizing restraint and curiosity over confrontation.
A large Capitaneeaton gathering backed Henry Clay’s proposed slave compromise with unanimous resolutions read by Nicholas Dean Esq. Mayor Woodhull presided as chairman with numerous vice chairs and secretaries. Speakers including J Depeyster Ogden Jay R Whiting and J L White emphasized union and peaceful conciliation amid high enthusiasm.
The President told a Southern Congressional delegation he would blockade all Southern ports and call out Northern Western and Southern volunteers to march against disunion. He warned disunionists of a path of blood but said he fears no disunion and that southern members would be replaced by more patriotic men. He asserted no war, but would not accept disunion.
The newspaper notes unusually spirited celebrations nationwide for the birthday of the Father of His Country. It hopes the memory will cement the Union’s perpetuity in the hearts of its people.
The discourse accuses Southern MPs of using every stratagem to extend the ambit of slavery. It warns that the 61st concession beyond constitutional bounds would earn the lasting execration of the nation. The piece questions how a liberty-principled government can tolerate property in man.
The Legislature will adjourn sine die on Friday March 1 after a resolution of that effect passed both Houses. The action ends the current session and clears the chamber of ongoing business.
The New Jersey Senate moved through a slate of measures including authorizing river and harbor works, chartering rail lines, and voting by ballot in various towns. It faced amendments to the General Banking law and advanced public school and House of Refuge bills while postponing others. The session also prepared a commemorative stone for the National Monument and approved allocations for a state agriculturist and public bills.
In Chicago the boiler of H. A. Wilbbeck's wagon and plow factory exploded on a Saturday afternoon. Engineer Mr Lunar died and four others, including Mr Wiltbeck, were seriously wounded as walls collapsed from the blast caused by pumping cold water into a hot boiler.
George Copway, noted Indian Chief, is slated as a speaker at the Land Reform meeting to be held at Tammany Hall on Friday evening, March 1.
A gentleman recounts hiring a new female servant who objects to a family game of whist. After an evening with his wife and neighbors, the servant warns the practice must stop or she will quit, claiming she disapproves of such games in homes where she works.
A mouse falls into a brewery beer vat and asks a cat for rescue. The cat agrees but warns of being eaten after. The mouse fears drowning in beer and survives as fumes trigger the cat to sneeze. The mouse again hides in its hole and cites being drunk when promising to eat him.
A Portland Pleasureboat report recalls belief in talking spirits that knock on floors to spell answers. Investigations by learned committees found the phenomenon implausible, and a past Rochester incident suggested a hidden mechanism, likely a tipping stone under a board caused by a cat.
The article extols the atmosphere as a grand, mobile sea of air surrounding Earth. It powers weather, winds, and skies, shaping sunrise, noon brightness, twilight, rain, and clouds. It sustains life and colors, enabling weather phenomena and diverse climates across the globe. Scientific American.
A reflective line on injury, deserving judgment, and injustice. It contrasts self-blame with moral accountability, noting the doer bears greater shame if harm was undeserved. It frames judgment as either earned or unjust and emphasizes the speaker's philosophical stance.
A boy taunts a fellow apprentice asking if he is such a one. The response blends injured pride and a look of piety as the counteroffer-answered figure coolly replies referencing Franklin.
A curious, fragmented line suggests a nature theory likening a drunkard to a churn built firm by drinking. The text presents a paradoxical image without clear provenance or events.
A critical view compares tyrannical regimes to tech schools that prefer flogging pupils to teaching them, highlighting harsh discipline over education.
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