an island in the South Pacific Ocean, between S. Lat. 2° 40' and 4° 52'; E. Long. 150° 30' and 152° 50'. It is separated from New Britain on the S.W. by St George's Channel, and from New Hanover on the N.W. by Byron's Straits. It is about 200 miles long by 12 in average breadth; and the coasts are indented by several small harbours. The surface is hilly, the elevations attaining a height of 1500 or 2000 feet; but they are all covered with forests of bread-fruit, cocoa, and other trees. The lower parts are well cultivated, and produce the sugar-cane, the banana, yams, &c. Dogs, pigs, and turtles, are the chief animals. The inhabitants, like those of the neighbouring island of New Britain, belong to the race of Australian negroes. For a description of them see Australasia. Fancy woods and tortoise-shell seem to be the only articles of commercial value to be obtained in this island.

NEW JERSEY, one of the United States of North America, lying between N. Lat. 38° 55' and 41° 21', and W. Long. 73° 58' and 75° 29'; and bounded on the N. by New York; E. by the Hudson River and Staten Sound, which separate it from New York, and by the Atlantic; S.E. by the Atlantic; S.W. by Delaware Bay; and W. by the River Delaware, which separates it from the states of Delaware and Pennsylvania. Its length from N. to S. is about 168 miles; its breadth varies from 37 to 70 miles; and its area is 8320 square miles. The northern part of the state is hilly, being crossed from S.W. to N.E. by several branches of the Alleghany ridge. Of these the principal are,—the Blue Mountains in the extreme N.W., Schooley's Mountain, the Trowbridge range, and First Mountain, further to the S.E. These hills, though not remarkable for their height, present in general a bold and picturesque appearance, and inclose beautiful and fertile valleys, containing some of the best land in the state. The west bank of the Hudson is skirted for the length of 20 miles by a ridge of rocks called the Palisades or Cloister Hill, which in some places rises steeply above the river to the height of 200 feet. The middle part of the state is the most agricultural portion, and has a rich and beautiful appearance. That part of New Jersey which lies S. of Trenton and Raritan Bay consists of a flat sandy plain, never rising above 60 feet from the sea level, except to the S.E. of Raritan Bay, where the Nevisink Hills rise to the height of 300 or 400 feet, and present a conspicuous object to the navigator as he leaves the harbour of New York. From the low sandy promontory called Sandy Hook, opposite to the entrance of New York Harbour, to Cape May, which forms the eastern boundary of Delaware Bay, the whole coast consists of a low sandy shore, having in some places, inlets and long, narrow, and shallow lagoons. The heavy surf of the Atlantic is constantly beating against this beach, and the form of the coast-line is being constantly changed. The principal inlets on this coast are Barnegat Bay, Little Egg Harbour, Great Bay, and Great Egg Harbour. Further inland there is a tract of salt marsh, which gradually gives place to the sandy plain of the interior. The shores of Delaware Bay are skirted by a similar salt marsh; but along the left bank of the River Delaware the land is more elevated, and a branch of the mountains of Pennsylvania crosses the river at Trenton, and forms, by a ledge of rock over which the waters roll, the Falls of Trenton.

The rivers of New Jersey, with the exception of the Hudson and Delaware, which merely bound the state, are not of great size. The Hackensack from the north, and the Passaic, which follows a circuitous course from the New Jersey west, fall into Newark Bay; the former being navigable for small vessels to the distance of 15 miles, and the latter to that of 10 miles from the sea. The Passaic is remarkable for its falls near the village of Paterson, which are situated in the midst of wild and beautiful scenery; but the volume of water has been much diminished by being carried off for mills, and it is only in times of flood that the full magnificence of the cataract can be seen. The Raritan, from the west of the state, falls into the bay of the same name, and is navigable for 17 miles; the Great and Little Egg Harbour rivers fall into the Atlantic, and the Maurice falls into Delaware Bay, each being navigable for about 20 miles; and there are also numerous rivers, but none navigable, which discharge themselves into the Delaware. The hills in the north of the state consist for the most part of sandstone towards the west, and of gneiss towards the east; while in the valleys of this region are found strata of slate, sandstone, and limestone. The central and southern regions belong to the chalk formation, and contain beds of marl, which are of great value for manure. Besides these, the mineral riches of New Jersey consist of iron, which occurs in great abundance in various forms; copper, containing in some places silver ore; zinc, of which the mines in this state are among the richest in the Union; slate, marble, limestone, and granite. The soil of the country varies considerably in different parts; the central and southern regions, though not naturally rich in soil, may be easily made to produce excellent crops of wheat, maize, and potatoes; while the northern portions, though not very fertile, are well adapted both for agriculture and pasturage. The coldness of the climate is moderated in the south by the neighbourhood of the ocean; while in the north it resembles that of the south of the state of New York and the north of Pennsylvania. The mean temperature at Lambertville of the warmest month (July) for the year ending 30th June 1852 was 82° 43'; that of the coldest month (January), 30° 74'. The greatest heat in the same year was 97°, the greatest cold 16° 5, and the mean temperature of the year 57° 82'. The central and southern parts of the state contain extensive forests of pine, much of which is used for charcoal, and sold at Philadelphia. There are also cedar swamps in the south of New Jersey; and the principal other trees that occur here are oak, hickory, sycamore, dogwood, &c. The quantity of cultivated land in the state in 1850 was 1,767,991 acres; and the produce in that year comprised 1,601,190 bushels of wheat, 1,255,578 of rye, 8,759,704 of maize, 3,378,063 of oats, 14,174 of peas and beans, 3,715,261 of potatoes, 874,934 of buckwheat, 91,331 of grass seeds, 375,396 lb. of wool, 9,487,210 of butter, 565,756 of cheese, 182,965 of flax, 156,694 of bees' wax, 453,960 tons of hay, L126,511 worth of orchard produce, and L99,006 worth of market produce. The number of horses in New Jersey in the same year was 63,955; of milch cows, 118,736; of working oxen, 12,070; of other cattle, 80,455; of asses and mules, 4099; of sheep, 160,488; of swine, 250,370; and the total value of the live stock was L2,224,848. The state of New Jersey is, considering its population, extensively engaged in manufacturing industry. In 1850 there were 4374 manufactories, each annually producing goods to the value of L100 and upwards. Of these, 21 were cotton factories, employing 616 male and 1096 female hands, having a capital of L309,060, consuming L138,880 worth of raw material, and producing 8,122,580 yards of cloth, and 2,000,000 lb. of yarn, valued at L301,148; 41 woollen factories, employing 411 male, and 487 female hands, having a capital of L102,970, consuming L114,296 worth of raw material, and producing 771,100 yards of cloth, and 350,000 lb. of yarn, valued at L242,590; 108 furnaces, forges, &c., employing 1996 hands, having a capital of L536,891, consuming L198,894 worth of raw material, and producing 42,452 tons of cast and wrought iron, valued at L390,881; 133 tanneries, with a capital of L119,342, consuming L88,237 worth of raw material, and producing leather valued at L150,928; besides numerous breweries and distilleries, producing 34,750 barrels of ale, and 1,250,530 gallons of whisky and wine.

The state of New Jersey, as it lies directly between the two largest cities of the United States, New York, and Philadelphia, is traversed by several lines of railway, which have in general for their object the connection of New York with Pennsylvania. In January 1857 the length of the railways in the state was 492 miles. There are also several canals, the total length of which amounts to 145 miles. The foreign trade of New Jersey is not very great; for, though it is bordered on one side by the sea, and on two sides by navigable rivers, and though there are several seaports within its limits, the neighbouring great cities and harbours of New York and Philadelphia carry off most of the direct commerce to these places. The exports for the year ending June 30, 1856, amounted to L80, and the imports for the same year were L376. There is, however, an important internal and transit trade carried on through this state. The number of ships built in the state in the same year was 75, and their tonnage 9543. There were, in January 1857, 46 banks, with an aggregate capital of L1,371,406, and a circulation of L991,533.

The executive power in the state is in the hands of a governor, who is elected by the people for three years, and has a salary of L374 and fees. The legislature consists of a senate, elected for three years, composed of one member from each county; and a house of representatives, composed of sixty members, annually elected. The judiciary consists of a supreme court, composed of a chief and six associate justices, who are appointed for a period of seven years by the governor, with the consent of the senate. There are also a court of errors and appeals, consisting of a chancellor, the judges of the supreme court; and six others, appointed in the same way for six years; a court of chancery, over which the chancellor presides; circuit-courts, and courts of oyer and terminer, held thrice a year in each county by the judges of the supreme court; and courts of common pleas. New Jersey sends five members to the House of Representatives of the United States. The public revenue for 1856 was L37,804, and the expenditure for the same year L37,506.

The number of churches in the state in 1850 was 807, of which 107 belonged to Baptists, 66 to the Dutch Reformed Church, 51 to the Episcopalians, 52 to the Quakers, 312 to the Methodists, 146 to the Presbyterians, and 21 to the Roman Catholics. The proportion of churches to the whole population is 1 to every 606 inhabitants. The whole value of church property in the same year was L737,588. The educational establishments of the state consist of 3 colleges, having in all 72 professors, 460 students, and 33,000 volumes in their libraries; theological seminaries of the Presbyterian and Dutch Reformed Churches; besides numerous lower schools, at which, in 1856, 125,035 out of 176,350 children between 3 and 18 were educated. The whole number of teachers in the same year was 1942; and the total amount of funds raised for purposes of education was L107,132. The principal benevolent institution of New Jersey is the state lunatic asylum, at Trenton, containing 233 patients in 1856. There is also, at the same place, a state prison.

The earliest settlements in this country were made by the Dutch, not long after their arrival in New York, between 1614 and 1624. These were planted in the east of the district, between the Hudson and Delaware; the whole of which was claimed by the Dutch, although the Swedes had made some settlement in the western part of the same country. These claims were, however, disregarded by the British; for, in 1664, Charles II. granted to the Duke of Newmarket York the whole of this country, and in the same year the duke sold it to Lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret, in honour of the latter of whom, a native of Jersey, it received the name which it still bears. The Dutch again got possession of it in 1673, but resigned it on the conclusion of peace in the following year. New Jersey escaped the inroads of the savage tribes which desolated and afflicted most of the older colonies; but, in the war of the Revolution, it was the scene of several victories gained by the Americans, in most of which Washington was present. Among these were the battle of Princeton in 1776, and that of Monmouth in 1778. The state is divided into 20 counties; and had in 1850 a population of 489,555.