Transcript
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Title: The Dawn of Canadian History: A Chronicle of Aboriginal Canada
Author: Stephen Leacock
Editor: George ! "rong
H! H! Langton
#osting Date: $une %&' ())* +E,ook -.)/*0
1elease Date: arch' ())&
2irst #osted: 3o4e5ber &' ())%
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASC66
777 STA1T 82 TH6S #18$ECT G9TE3,E1G E,88 DA"3 82 CA3AD6A3 H6ST81;
777
#roduced by Gardner ,uchanan! HTL 4ersion by Al Haines!
CH1836CLES 82 CA3ADA
Edited by George ! "rong and H! H! Langton
6n thirty<two 4olu5es
#art 6
The 2irst European =isitors
THE DA"3 82 CA3AD6A3 H6ST81;
A Chronicle of Aboriginal Canada
,y
STE#HE3 LEAC8C
T8183T8' %*%>
C83TE3TS
6 ,E281E THE DA"3
66 A3 63 AE16CA
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666 THE A,816G63ES 82 CA3ADA
6= THE LEGE3D 82 THE 381SEE3
= THE ,16ST8L =8;AGES
=6 281E1933E1S 82 $AC?9ES CA1T6E1
,6,L68G1A#H6CAL 38TE
CHA#TE1 6
,E281E THE DA"3
"e always speak of Canada as a new country! 6n one sense' of course'
this is true! The settle5ent of Europeans on Canadian soil dates back
only three hundred years! Ci4ili@ation in Canada is but a thing of
yesterday' and its written history' when placed beside the long
5illenniu5s of the recorded annals of European and Eastern peoples'
see5s but a little span!
,ut there is another sense in which the Do5inion of Canada' or atleast
part of it' is perhaps the oldest country in the world! According to
the 3ebular Theory the whole of our planet was once a fiery 5olten
5ass
gradually cooling and hardening itself into the globe we know! 8n its
surface 5o4ed and swayed a liuid sea glowing with such a terrific
heat
that we can for5 no real idea of its intensity! As the 5ass cooled'
4ast layers of 4apour' great beds of cloud' 5iles and 5iles in
thickness' were for5ed and hung o4er the face of the globe' obscuring
fro5 its darkened surface the piercing bea5s of the sun! Slowly the
earth cooled' until great 5asses of solid 5atter' rock as we call it'
still penetrated with intense heat' rose to the surface of the
boiling
sea! 2orces of inconcei4able 5agnitude 5o4ed through the 5ass! The
outer surface of the globe as it cooled ripped and shri4elled like a
withering orange! Great ridges' the 5ountain chains of to<day' were
furrowed on its skin! Here in the darkness of the prehistoric night
there arose as the oldest part of the surface of the earth the great
rock bed that lies in a huge crescent round the shores of Hudson ,ay'
fro5 Labrador to the unknown wilderness of the barren lands of the
Copper5ine basin touching the Arctic sea! The wanderer who stands
to<day in the desolate country of $a5es ,ay or 9nga4a is a5ong the
oldest 5onu5ents of the world! The rugged rock which here and there
breaks through the thin soil of the infertile north has lain on the
spot fro5 the 4ery dawn of ti5e! illions of years ha4e probably
elapsed since the cooling of the outer crust of the globe produced
the
solid basis of our continents!
The ancient for5ation which thus 5arks the beginnings of the solid
surface of the globe is co55only called by geologists the Archaean
rock' and the 5yriads of uncounted years during which it slowly took
shape are called the Archaean age! ,ut the word BArchaeanB itself
tells
us nothing' being 5erely a Greek ter5 5eaning B4ery old!B This
Archaean
or original rock 5ust necessarily ha4e etended all o4er the surface
of
our sphere as it cooled fro5 its 5olten for5 and contracted into the
earth on which we li4e! ,ut in 5ost places this rock lies deep under
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the waters of the oceans' or buried below the heaped up strata of the
for5ations which the hand of ti5e piled thickly upon it! 8nly here
and
there can it still be seen as surface rock or as rock that lies but a
little distance below the soil! 6n Canada' 5ore than anywhere else in
the world' is this Archaean for5ation seen! 8n a geological 5ap it is
5arked as etending all round the basin of Hudson ,ay' fro5 Labradorto
the shores of the Arctic! 6t co4ers the whole of the country which we
call 3ew 8ntario' and also the upper part of the pro4ince of ?uebec!
8utside of this territory there was at the dawn of ti5e no other
BlandB
where 3orth A5erica now is' ecept a long island of rock that 5arks
the
backbone of what are now the Selkirk ountains and a long ridge that
is
now the 5ountain chain of the Alleghanies beside the Atlantic slope!
,ooks on geology trace out for us the long successi4e periods during
which the earthBs surface was for5ed! E4en in the Archaean ageso5ething in the for5 of life 5ay ha4e appeared! #erhaps 4ast 5asses
of
dank seaweed ger5inated as the earliest of plants in the stea5ing
oceans! The water warred against the land' tearing and breaking at
its
rock for5ation and distributing it in new strata' each buried beneath
the net and holding fast within it the fossili@ed re5ains that for5
the record of its history! Huge fern plants spread their giant fronds
in the dank sunless at5ospheres' to be buried later in 4ast beds of
decaying 4egetation that for5 the coal<fields of to<day!
Ani5al life began first' like the plants' in the boso5 of the ocean!
2ro5 the sli5y depths of the water life crawled hideous to the land!
Great reptiles dragged their sluggish length through the tangled
4egetation of the ungle of giant ferns!
Through countless thousands of years' perhaps' this gradual process
went on! 3ature' shifting its huge scenery' depressed the ocean beds
and piled up the dry land of the continents! 6n place of the 4ast
BContinental Sea'B which once filled the interior of 3orth A5erica'
there arose the great plateau or ele4ated plain that now runs fro5
the
acken@ie basin to the Gulf of eico! 6nstead of the rushing waters
of
the inland sea' these waters ha4e narrowed into great ri4ers<<the
acken@ie' the Saskatchewan' the ississippi<<that swept the face of
the plateau and wore down the surface of the rock and 5ountain slopes
to spread their powdered frag5ents on the broad le4el soil of the
prairies of the west! "ith each stage in the e4olution of the land
the
for5s of life appear to ha4e reached a higher de4elop5ent! 6n place
of
the seaweed and the giant ferns of the dawn of ti5e there arose the
5aples' the beeches' and other wa4ing trees that we now see in the
Canadian woods! The huge reptiles in the ungle of the Carboniferous
era passed out of eistence! 6n place of the5 ca5e the birds' the
5a55als'<<the 4aried types of ani5al life which we now know! Last in
the scale of ti5e and highest in point of e4olution' there appeared
5an!
"e 5ust not speak of the continents as ha4ing been 5ade once and for
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all in their present for5! 3o doubt in the countless centuries of
geological e4olution 4arious parts of the earth were alternately
raised
and depressed! Great forests grew' and by so5e con4ulsion were buried
beneath the ocean' co4ered deep as they lay there with a sedi5ent of
earth and rock' and at length raised again as the waters retreated!
Thecoal<beds of Cape ,reton are the re5ains of a forest buried beneath
the
sea! ,elow the soil of Alberta is a 4ast ungle of 4egetation' a
dense
5ass of giant fern trees! The Great Lakes were once part of a 5uch
4aster body of water' far greater in etent than they now are! The
ancient shore<line of Lake Superior 5ay be traced fi4e hundred feet
abo4e its present le4el!
6n that early period the continents and islands which we now see
wholly
separated were oined together at 4arious points! The ,ritish islands
for5ed a connected part of Europe! The Tha5es and the 1hine were oneand the sa5e ri4er' flowing towards the Arctic ocean o4er a plain
that
is now the shallow sunken bed of the 3orth Sea! 6t is probable that
during the last great age' the ?uaternary' as geologists call it' the
uphea4al of what is now the region of Siberia and Alaska' 5ade a
continuous chain of land fro5 Asia to A5erica! As the land was
depressed again it left behind it the islands in the ,ering Sea' like
stepping<stones fro5 shore to shore! 6n the sa5e way' there was
perhaps
a solid causeway of land fro5 Canada to Europe reaching out across
the
3orthern Atlantic! ,affin 6sland and other islands of the Canadian
3orth Sea' the great sub<continent of Greenland' 6celand' the 2aroe
6slands' and the ,ritish 6sles' all for5ed part of this continuous
chain!
As the last of the great changes' there ca5e the 6ce Age' which
profoundly affected the cli5ate and soil of Canada' and' when the ice
retreated' left its surface 5uch as we see it now! During this period
the whole of Canada fro5 the Atlantic to the 1ocky ountains lay
buried
under a 4ast sheet of ice! Heaped up in i55ense 5asses o4er the
fro@en
surface of the Hudson ,ay country' the ice' fro5 its own dead weight'
slid sidewise to the south! As it went it ground down the surface of
the land into deep furrows and channels it cut into the solid rock
like a 5o4ing plough' and carried with it enor5ous 5asses of loose
stone and boulders which it threw broadcast o4er the face of the
country! These stones and boulders were thus carried forty and fifty'
and in so5e cases 5any hundred 5iles before they were finally loosed
and dropped fro5 the sheet of 5o4ing ice! 6n 8ntario and ?uebec and
3ew
England great stones of the glacial drift are found which weigh fro5
one thousand to se4en thousand tons! They are deposited in so5e cases
on what is now the su55it of hills and 5ountains' showing how deep
the
sheet of ice 5ust ha4e been that could thus co4er the entire surface
of
the country' burying alike the 4alleys and the hills! The 5ass of ice
that 5o4ed slowly' century by century' across the face of Southern
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Canada to 3ew England is esti5ated to ha4e been in places a 5ile
thick!
The li5it to which it was carried went far south of the boundaries of
Canada! The path of the glacial drift is traced by geologists as far
down the Atlantic coast as the present site of 3ew ;ork' and in the
central plain of the continent it etended to what is now the state
ofissouri!
2acts see5 to support the theory that before the Great 6ce Age the
cli5ate of the northern part of Canada was 4ery different fro5 what
it
is now! 6t is 4ery probable that a war5 if not a torrid cli5ate
etended for hundreds of 5iles northward of the now habitable li5its
of
the Do5inion! The fro@en islands of the Arctic seas were once the
seat
of luurious 4egetation and tee5ed with life! 8n ,athurst 6sland'
which
lies in the latitude of F/ degrees' and is thus si hundred 5ilesnorth
of the Arctic Circle' there ha4e been found the bones of huge li@ards
that could only ha4e li4ed in the ungles of an al5ost tropical
cli5ate!
"e cannot tell with any certainty ust how and why these great
changes
ca5e about! ,ut geologists ha4e connected the5 with the alternating
rise and fall of the surface of the northern continent and its
altitude
at 4arious ti5es abo4e the le4el of the sea! Thus it see5s probable
that the glacial period with the ice sheet of which we ha4e spoken
was
brought about by a great ele4ation of the land' acco5panied by a
change
to intense cold! This led to the for5ation of enor5ous 5asses of ice
heaped up so high that they presently collapsed and 5o4ed of their
own
weight fro5 the ele4ated land of the north where they had been
for5ed!
Later on' the northern continent subsided again and the ice sheet
disappeared' but left behind it an entirely different le4el and a
different cli5ate fro5 those of the earlier ages! The e4idence of the
later 5o4e5ents of the land surface' and its rise and fall after the
close of the glacial epoch' 5ay still easily be traced! At a certain
ti5e after the 6ce Age' the surface sank so low that land which has
since been lifted up again to a considerable height was once the
beach
of the ancient ocean! These beaches are readily distinguished by the
great uantities of sea shells that lie about' often far distant fro5
the present sea! Thus at 3ach4ak in Labrador there is a beach fifteen
hundred feet abo4e the ocean! #robably in this period after the 6ce
Age
the shores of Eastern Canada had sunk so low that the St Lawrence was
not a ri4er at all' but a great gulf or ar5 of the sea! The ancient
shore can still be traced beside the 5ountain at ontreal and on the
hillsides round Lake 8ntario! Later on again the land rose' the ocean
retreated' and the rushing waters fro5 the shrunken lakes 5ade their
own path to the sea! 6n their foa5ing course to the lower le4el they
tore out the great gorge of 3iagara' and tossed and buffeted
the5sel4es
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o4er the unyielding ledges of Lachine!
ighty forces such as these 5ade and fashioned the continent on which
we li4e!
CHA#TE1 66
A3 63 AE16CA
6t was necessary to for5 so5e idea' if only in outline' of the
5agnitude and etent of the great geological changes of which we ha4e
ust spoken' in order to udge properly the uestion of the antiuity
and origin of 5an in A5erica!
"hen the Europeans ca5e to this continent at the end of the fifteenth
century they found it already inhabited by races of 5en 4ery
different
fro5 the5sel4es! These people' who5 they took to calling B6ndians'Bwere spread out' though 4ery thinly' fro5 one end of the continent to
the other! "ho were these nations' and how was their presence to be
accounted for
To the first disco4erers of A5erica' or rather to the disco4erers of
the fifteenth and siteenth centuries Colu5bus and his successorsI'
the origin of the 6ndians presented no difficulty! To the5 A5erica
was
supposed to be si5ply an outlying part of Eastern Asia' which had
been
known by repute and by tradition for centuries past! 2inding'
therefore' the tropical islands of the Caribbean sea with a cli5ate
and
plants and ani5als such as they i5agined those of Asia and the 6ndian
ocean to be' and inhabited by 5en of dusky colour and strange speech'
they naturally thought the place to be part of Asia' or the 6ndies!
The
na5e B6ndians'B gi4en to the aborigines of 3orth A5erica' records for
us this historical 5isunderstanding!
,ut a new 4iew beca5e necessary after ,alboa had crossed the isth5us
of
#ana5a and looked out upon the endless waters of the #acific' and
after
agellan and his Spanish co5rades had sailed round the foot of the
continent' and then pressed on across the #acific to the real 6ndies!
6t was now clear that A5erica was a different region fro5 Asia! E4en
then the old error died hard! Long after the Europeans reali@ed that'
at the south' A5erica and Asia were separated by a great sea' they
i5agined that these continents were oined together at the north! The
European ideas of distance and of the for5 of the globe were still
confused and ineact! A party of early eplorers in =irginia carried
a
letter of introduction with the5 fro5 the ing of England to the han
of Tartary: they epected to find hi5 at the head waters of the
Chickaho5iny! $acues Cartier' nearly half a century after Colu5bus'
was epecting that the Gulf of St Lawrence would open out into a
passage leading to China! ,ut after the disco4ery of the 3orth
#acific
ocean and ,ering Strait the idea that A5erica was part of Asia' that
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the nati4es were B6ndiansB in the old sense' was seen to be absurd!
6t
was clear that A5erica was' in a large sense' an island' an island
cut
off fro5 e4ery other continent! 6t then beca5e necessary to find so5e
eplanation for the see5ingly isolated position of a portion of
5ankindseparated fro5 their fellows by boundless oceans!
The earlier theories were certainly nai4e enough! Since no known
hu5an
agency could ha4e transported the 6ndians across the Atlantic or the
#acific' their presence in A5erica was accounted for by certain of
the
old writers as a particular work of the de4il! Thus Cotton ather'
the
fa5ous #uritan clergy5an of early 3ew England' 5aintained in all
seriousness that the de4il had in4eigled the 6ndians to A5erica to
get
the5 Bbeyond the tinkle of the gospel bells!B 8thers thought thatthey
were a washed<up re5nant of the great flood! 1oger "illia5s' the
founder of 1hode 6sland' wrote: B2ro5 Ada5 and 3oah that they spring'
it is granted on all hands!B E4en 5ore fantastic 4iews were ad4anced!
As late as in %J(J a London clergy5an wrote a book which he called BA
=iew of the A5erican 6ndians'B which was intended to Bshow the5 to be
the descendants of the ten tribes of 6srael!B
E4en when such ideas as these were set aside' historians endea4oured
to
find e4idence' or at least probability' of a 5igration of the 6ndians
fro5 the known continents across one or the other of the oceans! 6t
5ust be ad5itted that' e4en if we supposed the for5 and etent of the
continents to ha4e been always the sa5e as they are now' such a
5igration would ha4e been entirely possible! 6t is uite likely that
under the influence of eceptional weather<<winds blowing week after
week fro5 the sa5e point of the co5pass<<e4en a pri5iti4e craft of
prehistoric ti5es 5ight ha4e been dri4en across the Atlantic or the
#acific' and 5ight ha4e landed its occupants still ali4e and well on
the shores of A5erica! To pro4e this we need only re5e5ber that
history
records 5any such 4oyages! 6t has often happened that $apanese unks
ha4e been blown clear across the #acific! 6n %J&& a ship of this sort
was dri4en in a great stor5 fro5 $apan to the shores of the ?ueen
Charlotte 6slands off the coast of ,ritish Colu5bia! 6n the sa5e way
a
fishing s5ack fro5 2or5osa' which lies off the east coast of China'
was
once carried in safety across the ocean to the Sandwich 6slands!
Si5ilar long 4oyages ha4e been 5ade by the nati4es of the South Seas
against their will' under the influence of strong and continuous
winds'
and in craft no better than their open canoes! Captain ,eechey of the
1oyal 3a4y relates that in one of his 4oyages in the #acific he
picked
up a canoe filled with nati4es fro5 Tahiti who had been dri4en by a
gale of westerly wind si hundred 5iles fro5 their own island! 6t has
happened' too' fro5 ti5e to ti5e' since the disco4ery of A5erica'
that
ships ha4e been forcibly carried all the way across the Atlantic! A
glance at the 5ap of the world shows us that the eastern coast of
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,ra@il uts out into the South Atlantic so far that it is only
fifteen
hundred 5iles distant fro5 the si5ilar proection of Africa towards
the
west! The direction of the trade winds in the South Atlantic is such
that it has often been the practice of sailing 4essels bound fro5
England to South Africa to run clear across the ocean on a longstretch
till within sight of the coast of ,ra@il before turning towards the
Cape of Good Hope! All' howe4er' that we can deduce fro5 accidental
4oyages' like that of the Spaniard' Al4are@ de Cabral' across the
ocean
is that e4en if there had been no other way for 5ankind to reach
A5erica they could ha4e landed there by ship fro5 the 8ld "orld! 6n
such a case' of course' the co5ing of 5an to the A5erican continent
would ha4e been an etre5ely recent e4ent in the long history of the
world! 6t could not ha4e occurred until 5ankind had progressed far
enough to 5ake 4essels' or at least boats of a si5ple kind!
,ut there is e4idence that 5an had appeared on the earth long beforethe shaping of the continents had taken place! ,oth in Europe and
A5erica the buried traces of pri5iti4e 5an are 4ast in antiuity' and
carry us 5uch further back in ti5e than the final changes of earth
and
ocean which 5ade the continents as they are and' when we re5e5ber
this' it is easy to see how 5ankind could ha4e passed fro5 Asia or
Europe to A5erica! The connection of the land surface of the globe
was
different in early ti5es fro5 what it is to<day! E4en still' Siberia
and Alaska are separated only by the narrow ,ering Strait! 2ro5 the
shore of Asia the continent of 3orth A5erica is plainly 4isible the
islands which lie in and below the strait still look like
stepping<stones fro5 continent to continent! And' apart fro5 this' it
5ay well ha4e been that farther south' where now is the #acific
ocean'
there was for5erly direct land connection between Southern Asia and
South A5erica! The continuous chain of islands that runs fro5 the 3ew
Hebrides across the South #acific to within two thousand four hundred
5iles of the coast of Chile is perhaps the re5ains of a sunken
continent! 6n the 5ost easterly of these' Easter 6sland' ha4e been
found ruined te5ples and re5ains of great earthworks on a scale so
4ast
that to belie4e the5 the work of a s5all co55unity of islanders is
difficult! The fact that they bear so5e rese5blance to the buildings
and works of the ancient inhabitants of Chile and #eru has suggested
that perhaps South A5erica was once 5erely a part of a great #acific
continent! 8r again' turning to the other side of the continent' it
5ay
be argued with so5e show of e4idence that A5erica and Africa were
once
connected by land' and that a sunken continent is to be traced
between
,ra@il and the Guinea coast!
3e4ertheless' it appears to be i5possible to say whether or not an
early branch of the hu5an race e4er B5igratedB to A5erica!
Concei4ably
the race 5ay ha4e originated there! So5e authorities suppose that the
e4olution of 5ankind occurred at the sa5e ti5e and in the sa5e
fashion
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in two or 5ore distinct uarters of the globe! 8thers again think
that
5ankind e4ol4ed and spread o4er the surface of the world ust as did
the 4arious kinds of plants and ani5als! 8f course' the higher
endow5ent of 5en enabled the5 to 5o4e with greater ease fro5 place to
place than could beings of lesser faculties! ost writers of to<day'
howe4er' consider this unlikely' and think it 5ore probable that 5anoriginated first in so5e one region' and spread fro5 it throughout
the
earth! ,ut where this region was' they cannot tell! "e always think
of
the races of Europe as ha4ing co5e westward fro5 so5e original ho5e
in
Asia! This is' of course' perfectly true' since nearly all the
peoples
of Europe can be traced by descent fro5 the original stock of the
Aryan
fa5ily' which certainly 5ade such a 5igration! ,ut we know also that
races of 5en were dwelling in Europe ages before the Aryan 5igration!
"hat particular part of the globe was the first ho5e of 5ankind is auestion on which we can only speculate!
8f one thing we 5ay be certain! 6f there was a 5igration' there 5ust
ha4e been long ages of separation between 5ankind in A5erica and
5ankind in the 8ld "orld otherwise we should still find so5e trace
of
kinship in language which would oin the nati4es of A5erica to the
great racial fa5ilies of Europe' Asia' and Africa! ,ut not the
slightest 4estige of such kinship has yet been found! E4erybody knows
in a general way how the prehistoric relationships a5ong the peoples
of
Europe and Asia are still to be seen in the languages of to<day! The
2rench and 6talian languages are so alike that' if we did not know it
already' we could easily guess for the5 a co55on origin! "e speak of
these languages' along with others' as 1o5ance languages' to show
that
they are deri4ed fro5 Latin' in contrast with the closely related
tongues of the English' Dutch' and Ger5an peoples' which ca5e fro5
another co55on stock' the Teutonic! ,ut e4en the Teutonic and the
1o5ance languages are not entirely different! The si5ilarity in both
groups of old root words' like the nu5bers fro5 one to ten' point
again
to a co55on origin still 5ore re5ote! 6n this way we 5ay trace a
whole
fa5ily of languages' and with it a kinship of descent' fro5 Hindustan
to 6reland! Si5ilarly' another great group of tongues<<Arabic'
Hebrew'
etc!<<shows a branch of the hu5an fa5ily spread out fro5 #alestine
and
Egypt to orocco!
3ow when we co5e to inuire into the languages of the A5erican
6ndians
for e4idence of their relationship to other peoples we are struck
with
this fact: we cannot connect the languages of A5erica with those of
any
other part of the world! This is a 4ery notable circu5stance! The
languages of Europe and Asia are' as it were' do4etailed together'
and
run far and wide into Africa! 2ro5 Asia eastward' through the alay
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tongues' a connection 5ay be traced e4en with the speech of the aori
of 3ew Kealand' and with that of the re5otest islanders of the
#acific!
,ut si5ilar atte5pts to connect A5erican languages with the outside
world break down! There are found in 3orth A5erica' fro5 the Arctic
to
eico' so5e fifty<fi4e groups of languages still eisting orrecently
etinct! Throughout these we 5ay trace the sa5e affinities and
relationships that run through the languages of Europe and Asia! "e
can
also easily connect the speech of the nati4es of 3orth A5erica with
that of nati4es of Central and of South A5erica! E4en if we had not
the
si5ilarities of physical appearance' of tribal custo5s' and of
general
5anners to argue fro5' we should be able to say with certainty that
the
4arious fa5ilies of A5erican 6ndians all belonged to one race! The
Eski5os of 3orthern Canada are not 6ndians' and are perhaps aneception it is possible that a connection 5ay be traced between
the5
and the prehistoric ca4e<5en of 3orthern Europe! ,ut the 6ndians
belong
to one great race' and show no connection in language or custo5s with
the outside world! They belong to the A5erican continent' it has been
said' as strictly as its opossu5s and its ar5adillos' its 5ai@e and
its
golden rod' or any other of its aboriginal ani5als and plants!
,ut' here again' we 5ust not conclude too 5uch fro5 the fact that the
languages of A5erica ha4e no relation to those of Europe and Asia!
This
does not show that 5en originated separately on this continent! 2or
e4en in Europe and Asia' where no one supposes that different races
sprung fro5 wholly separate beginnings' we find languages isolated in
the sa5e way! The speech of the ,asues in the #yrenees has nothing
in
co55on with the European fa5ilies of languages!
"e 5ay' howe4er' regard the nati4es of A5erica as an aboriginal race'
if any portion of 5ankind can be 4iewed as such! So far as we know'
they are not an offshoot' or a 5igration' fro5 any people of what is
called the 8ld "orld' although they are' like the people of the other
continents' the descendants of a pri5iti4e hu5an stock!
"e 5ay turn to geology to find how long 5ankind has li4ed on this
continent! 6n a nu5ber of places in 3orth and South A5erica are found
traces of hu5an beings and their work so old that in co5parison the
beginning of the worldBs written history beco5es a thing of
yesterday!
#erhaps there were 5en in Canada long before the shores of its lakes
had assu5ed their present for5 long before nature had begun to
hollow
out the great gorge of the 3iagara ri4er or to lay down the outline
of
the present Lake 8ntario! Let us look at so5e of the notable e4idence
in respect to the age of 5an in A5erica! 6n 3icaragua' in Central
A5erica' the i5prints of hu5an feet ha4e been found' deeply buried
o4er
twenty feet below the present surface of the soil' under repeated
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deposits of 4olcanic rock! These i5pressions 5ust ha4e been 5ade in
soft 5uddy soil which was then co4ered by so5e geological con4ulsion
occurring long ages ago! E4en 5ore striking disco4eries ha4e been
5ade
along the #acific coast of South A5erica! 3ear the 5outh of the
Es5eraldas ri4er in Ecuador' o4er a stretch of so5e sity 5iles' the
surface soil of the coast co4ers a bed of 5arine clay! This clay isabout eight feet thick! 9nderneath it is a stratu5 of sand and loa5
such as 5ight once ha4e itself been surface soil! 6n this lower bed
there are found rude i5ple5ents of stone' orna5ents 5ade of gold' and
bits of broken pottery! Again' if we turn to the northern part of the
continent we find re5ains of the sa5e kind' chipped i5ple5ents of
stone
and broken frag5ents of uart@ buried in the drift of the ississippi
and issouri 4alleys! These ha4e so5eti5es been found lying beside or
under the bones of elephants and ani5als unknown in 3orth A5erica
since
the period of the Great 6ce! 3ot 5any years ago' so5e 5en engaged in
digging a well on a hillside that was once part of the beach of Lake
8ntario' ca5e across the re5ains of a pri5iti4e hearth buried underthe
accu5ulated soil! 2ro5 its situation we can only conclude that the
5en
who set together the stones of the hearth' and lighted on it their
fires' did so when the 4ast wall of the northern glacier was only
beginning to retreat' and long before the gorge of 3iagara had begun
to
be furrowed out of the rock!
any things point to the conclusion that there were 5en in 3orth and
South A5erica during the re5ote changes of the Great 6ce Age! ,ut how
far the antiuity of 5an on this continent reaches back into the
preceding ages we cannot say!
CHA#TE1 666
THE A,816G63ES 82 CA3ADA
8f the uncounted centuries of the history of the red 5an in A5erica
before the co5ing of the Europeans we know 4ery little indeed! =ery
few
of the tribes possessed e4en a pri5iti4e art of writing! 6t is true
that the A@tecs of eico' and the ancient Toltecs who preceded the5'
understood how to write in pictures' and that' by this 5eans' they
preser4ed so5e record of their rulers and of the great e4ents of
their
past! The sa5e is true of the ayas of Central A5erica' whose ruined
te5ples are still to be traced in the tangled forests of ;ucatan and
Guate5ala! The ancient #eru4ians also had a syste5' not eactly of
writing' but of record by 5eans of ?96#9S or twisted woollen cords of
different colours: it is through such records that we ha4e so5e
knowledge of #eru4ian history during about a hundred years before the
co5ing of the Spaniards' and so5e traditions reaching still further
back! ,ut nowhere was the art of writing sufficiently de4eloped in
A5erica to gi4e us a real history of the thoughts and deeds of its
people before the arri4al of Colu5bus!
This is especially true of those fa5ilies of the great red race which
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inhabited what is now Canada! They spent a pri5iti4e eistence'
li4ing
thinly scattered along the sea<coast' and in the forests and open
glades of the district of the Great Lakes' or wandering o4er the
prairies of the west! 6n hardly any case had they any settled abode
or
fied dwelling<places! The 6rouois and so5e Algonuins built LongHouses of wood and 5ade stockade forts of hea4y ti5ber! ,ut not e4en
these tribes' who represented the furthest ad4ance towards
ci4ili@ation
a5ong the sa4ages of 3orth A5erica' 5ade settle5ents in the real
sense!
They knew nothing of the use of the 5etals! Such poor weapons and
tools
as they had were 5ade of stone' of wood' and of bone! 6t is true that
ages ago prehistoric 5en had dug out copper fro5 the 5ines that lie
beside Lake Superior' for the traces of their operations there are
still found! ,ut the art of working 5etals probably progressed but a
little way and then was lost'<<o4erwhel5ed perhaps in so5e ancient
sa4age conuest! The 6ndians found by Cartier and Cha5plain knewnothing of the 5elting of 5etals for the 5anufacture of tools! 3or
had
they anything but the 5ost ele5entary for5 of agriculture! They
planted
corn in the openings of the forest' but they did not fell trees to
5ake
a clearing or plough the ground! The har4est pro4ided by nature and
the
products of the chase were their sole sources of supply' and in their
search for this food so casually offered they 5o4ed to and fro in the
depths of the forest or ro4ed endlessly upon the plains! 8ne great
ad4ance' and only one' they had been led to 5ake! The waterways of
3orth A5erica are natureBs highway through the forest! The bark canoe
in which the 6ndians floated o4er the surface of the Canadian lakes
and
ri4ers is a 5ar4el of construction and wonderfully adapted to its
purpose: This was their great in4ention! 6n nearly all other respects
the 6ndians of Canada had not e5erged e4en fro5 sa4agery to that
stage
half way to ci4ili@ation which is called barbaris5!
These Canadian aborigines see5 to ha4e been few in nu5ber! 6t is
probable that' when the continent was disco4ered' Canada' fro5 the
Atlantic to the #acific' contained about (()'))) nati4es<<about half
as
5any people as are now found in Toronto! They were di4ided into
tribes
or clans' a5ong which we 5ay distinguish certain fa5ily groups spread
out o4er great areas!
ost northerly of all was the great tribe of the Eski5os' who were
found all the way fro5 Greenland to 3orthern Siberia! The na5e Eski5o
was not gi4en by these people to the5sel4es! 6t was used by the
Abnaki
6ndians in describing to the whites the dwellers of the far north'
and
it 5eans Bthe people who eat raw 5eat!B The Eski5o called and still
call the5sel4es the 6nnuit' which 5eans Bthe people!B
The eact relation of the Eski5o to the other races of the continent
is
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hard to define! 2ro5 the fact that the race was found on both sides
of
the ,ering Sea' and that its 5e5bers ha4e dark hair and dark eyes' it
was often argued that they were akin to the ongolians of China! This
theory' howe4er' is now abandoned! The rese5blance in height and
colour
is only superficial' and a 5ore careful 4iew of the physical 5ake<upof
the Eski5o shows hi5 to rese5ble the other races of A5erica far 5ore
closely than he rese5bles those of Asia! A distinguished A5erican
historian' $ohn 2iske' belie4ed that the Eski5os are the last
re5nants
of the ancient ca4e<5en who in the Stone Age inhabited all the
northern
parts of Europe! 2iskeBs theory is that at this re5ote period
continuous land stretched by way of 6celand and Greenland fro5 Europe
to A5erica' and that by this 5eans the race of ca4e<5en was able to
etend itself all the way fro5 3orway and Sweden to the northern
coasts
of A5erica! 6n support of this 4iew he points to the strangelyingenious and artistic drawings of the Eski5os! These drawings are
5ade
on i4ory and bone' and are so like the ancient bone<pictures found
a5ong the relics of the ca4e<5en of Europe that they can scarcely be
distinguished!
The theory is only a conecture! 6t is certain that at one ti5e the
Eski5o race etended 5uch farther south than it did when the white
5en
ca5e to A5erica in earlier days there were Eski5os far south of
Hudson
,ay' and perhaps e4en south of the Great Lakes!
As a result of their situation the Eski5os led a 4ery different life
fro5 that of the 6ndians to the south! They 5ust rely on fishing and
hunting for food! 6n that al5ost treeless north they had no wood to
build boats or houses' and no 4egetables or plants to supply the5
either with food or with the 5aterials of industry! ,ut the 4ery
rigour
of their surroundings called forth in the5 a 5ar4ellous ingenuity!
They
5ade boats of seal skins stretched tight o4er walrus bones' and
clothes
of furs and of the skins and feathers of birds! They built winter
houses with great blocks of snow put together in the for5 of a bowl
turned upside down! They heated their houses by burning blubber or
fat
in dish<like la5ps chipped out of stones! They had' of course' no
written literature! They were' howe4er' not de4oid of art! They had
legends and folk<songs' handed down fro5 generation to generation
with
the ut5ost accuracy! 6n the long night of the Arctic winter they
gathered in their huts to hear strange 5onotonous singing by their
bards: a kind of low chanting' 4ery strange to European ears' and
intended to i5itate the sounds of nature' the 5ur5ur of running
waters
and the sobbing of the sea! The Eski5os belie4ed in spirits and
5onsters who5 they 5ust appease with gifts and incantations! They
thought that after death the soul either goes below the earth to a
place always war5 and co5fortable' or that it is taken up into the
cold
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forbidding brightness of the polar sky! "hen the aurora borealis' or
3orthern Lights' strea5ed across the hea4ens' the Eski5os thought it
the glea5 of the souls of the dead 4isible in their new ho5e!
2arthest east of all the ,ritish 3orth A5erican 6ndians were the
,eothuks! Their abode was chiefly 3ewfoundland' though they wandered
also in the neighbourhood of the Strait of ,elle 6sle and along thenorth shore of the Gulf of St Lawrence! They were in the lowest stage
of hu5an eistence and li4ed entirely by hunting and fishing! 9nlike
the Eski5os they had no dogs' and so stern were the conditions of
their
life that they 5aintained with difficulty the fight against the
rigour
of nature! The early eplorers found the5 on the rocky coasts of
,elle
6sle' wild and half clad! They s5eared their bodies with red ochre'
bright in colour' and this earned for the5 the na5e of 1ed 6ndians!
2ro5 the first' they had no friendly relations with the Europeans who
ca5e to their shores' but li4ed in a state of perpetual war with
the5!The 3ewfoundland fisher5en and settlers hunted down the 1ed 6ndians
as
if they were wild beasts' and killed the5 at sight! 3ow and again' a
few 5e5bers of this unhappy race were carried ho5e to England to be
ehibited at country fairs before a crowd of grinning yokels who paid
a
penny apiece to look at the Bwild 5en!B
Li4ing on the 5ainland' net to the red 5en of 3ewfoundland lay the
great race of the Algonuins' spread o4er a huge tract of country'
fro5
the Atlantic coast to the head of the Great Lakes' and e4en farther
west! The Algonuins were di4ided into a great 5any tribes' so5e of
whose na5es are still fa5iliar a5ong the 6ndians of to<day! The
ic5acs
of 3o4a Scotia' the alecite of 3ew ,runswick' the 3askapi of ?uebec'
the Chippewa of 8ntario' and the Crees of the prairie' are of this
stock! 6t is e4en held that the Algonuins are to be considered
typical
speci5ens of the A5erican race! They were of fine stature' and in
strength and 5uscular de4elop5ent were uite on a par with the races
of
the 8ld "orld! Their skin was copper<coloured' their lips and noses
were thin' and their hair in nearly all cases was straight and black!
"hen the Europeans first saw the Algonuins they had already 5ade
so5e
ad4ance towards industrial ci4ili@ation! They built huts of wo4en
boughs' and for defence so5eti5es surrounded a group of huts with a
palisade of stakes set up on end! They had no agriculture in the true
sense' but they culti4ated 6ndian corn and pu5pkins in the openings
of
the forests' and also the tobacco plant' with the 4irtues of which
they
were well acuainted! They 5ade for the5sel4es hea4y and clu5sy
pottery
and utensils of wood' they wo4e 5ats out of rushes for their houses'
and they 5ade clothes fro5 the skin of the deer' and head<dresses
fro5
the bright feathers of birds! 8f the 5etals they knew' at the ti5e of
the disco4ery of A5erica' hardly anything! They 5ade so5e use of
copper' which they chipped and ha55ered into rude tools and weapons!
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,ut they knew nothing of 5elting the 5etals' and their arrow<heads
and
spear<points were 5ade' for the 5ost part' not of 5etals' but of
stone!
Like other 6ndians' they showed great ingenuity in fashioning bark
canoes of wonderful lightness!
"e 5ust re5e5ber' howe4er' that with nearly all the aborigines of
A5erica' at least north of eico' the atte5pt to utili@e the
5aterials
and forces supplied by nature had 5ade only slight and painful
progress! "e are apt to think that it was the 5ere la@iness of the
6ndians which pre4ented 5ore rapid ad4ance! 6t 5ay be that we do not
reali@e their difficulties! "hen the white 5en first ca5e these rude
peoples were so backward and so little trained in using their
faculties
that any ad4ance towards art and industry was ine4itably slow and
difficult! This was also true' no doubt' of the peoples who' long
centuries before' had been in the sa5e degree of de4elop5ent in
Europe'and had begun the intricate tasks which a growth towards ci4ili@ation
in4ol4ed! The historian 1obertson describes in a 4i4id passage the
backward state of the sa4age tribes of A5erica! BThe 5ost si5ple
operation'B he says' Bwas to the5 an undertaking of i55ense
difficulty
and labour! To fell a tree with no other i5ple5ents than hatchets of
stone was e5ploy5ent for a 5onth! !!!Their operations in agriculture
were eually slow and defecti4e! 6n a country co4ered with woods of
the
hardest ti5ber' the clearing of a s5all field destined for culture
reuired the united efforts of a tribe' and was a work of 5uch ti5e
and
great toil!B
The religion of the Algonuin 6ndians see5s to ha4e been a rude
nature
worship! The Sun' as the great gi4er of war5th and light' was the
obect of their adoration to a lesser degree' they looked upon fire
as
a superhu5an thing' worthy of worship! The four winds of hea4en'
bringing stor5 and rain fro5 the unknown boundaries of the world'
were
regarded as spirits! Each 6ndian clan or section of a tribe chose for
its special de4otion an ani5al' the na5e of which beca5e the
distincti4e sy5bol of the clan! This is what is 5eant by the Btote5sB
of the different branches of a tribe!
The Algonuins knew nothing of the art of writing' beyond rude
pictures
scratched or painted on wood! The Algonuin tribes' as we ha4e seen'
roa5ed far to the west! 8ne branch freuented the upper Saskatchewan
ri4er! Here the ashes of the prairie fires discoloured their
5occasins
and turned the5 black' and' in conseuence' they were called the
,lackfeet 6ndians! E4en when they 5o4ed to other parts of the
country'
the na5e was still applied to the5!
8ccupying the stretch of country to the south of the Algonuins was
the
fa5ous race known as the 6rouoian 2a5ily! "e generally read of the
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Hurons and the 6rouois as separate tribes! They really belonged'
howe4er' to one fa5ily' though during the period of Canadian history
in
which they were pro5inent they had beco5e deadly ene5ies! "hen
Cartier
disco4ered the St Lawrence and 5ade his way to the island of
ontreal'Huron 6ndians inhabited all that part of the country! "hen Cha5plain
ca5e' two generations later' they had 4anished fro5 that region' but
they still occupied a part of 8ntario around Lake Si5coe and south
and
east of Georgian ,ay! "e always connect the na5e 6rouois with that
part of the stock which included the allied 2i4e 3ations<<the
ohawks'
8nondagas' Senecas' 8neidas' and Cayugas'<<and which occupied the
country between the Hudson ri4er and Lake 8ntario! This pro4ed to be
the strongest strategical position in 3orth A5erica! 6t lies in the
gap
or break of the Alleghany ridge' the one place south of the St
Lawrencewhere an easy and ready access is afforded fro5 the sea<coast to the
interior of the continent! Any one who casts a glance at the 5ap of
the
present Eastern states will reali@e this' and will see why it is that
3ew ;ork' at the 5outh of the Hudson' has beco5e the greatest city of
3orth A5erica! 3ow' the sa5e reason which has created 3ew ;ork ga4e
to
the position of the 2i4e 3ations its great i5portance in Canadian
history! ,ut in reality the racial stock of the 6rouois etended
5uch
farther than this' both west and south! 6t took in the well<known
tribe
of the Eries' and also the 6ndians of Chesapeake ,ay and the #oto5ac!
6t included e4en the Tuscaroras of the 1oanoke in 3orth Carolina' who
afterwards 5o4ed north and changed the fi4e nations into si!
The 6rouois were originally nati4es of the plain' connected 4ery
probably with the Dakotas of the west! ,ut they 5o4ed eastwards fro5
the ississippi 4alley towards 3iagara' conuering as they went! 3o
other tribe could co5pare with the5 in either bra4ery or ferocity!
They
possessed in a high degree both the 4irtues and the 4ices of 6ndian
character<<the unflinching courage and the diabolical cruelty which
ha4e 5ade the 6ndian an obect of 5ingled ad5iration and conte5pt! 6n
bodily strength and physical endurance they were unsurpassed! E4en in
5odern days the ener4ating influence of ci4ili@ation has not entirely
re5o4ed the original 4igour of the strain! During the A5erican Ci4il
"ar of fifty years ago the fi4e co5panies of 6rouois 6ndians
recruited
in Canada and in the state of 3ew ;ork were superior in height and
5easure5ent to any other body of fi4e hundred 5en in the northern
ar5ies!
"hen the 6rouoian 2a5ily 5igrated' the Hurons settled in the western
peninsula of 8ntario! The na5e of Lake Huron still recalls their
abode!
,ut a part of the race kept 5o4ing eastward! ,efore the co5ing of the
whites' they had fought their way al5ost to the sea! ,ut they were
able
to hold their new settle5ents only by hard fighting! The great
stockade
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which Cartier saw at Hochelaga' with its palisades and fighting
platfor5s' bore witness to the ferocity of the struggle! At that
place
Cartier and his co5panions were entertained with grueso5e tales of
6ndian fighting and of wholesale 5assacres! Se4enty years later' in
Cha5plainBs ti5e' the Hochelaga stockade had 4anished' and the Hurons
had been dri4en back into the interior! ,ut for nearly two centuriesafter Cha5plain the 6rouois retained their hold on the territory
fro5
Lake 8ntario to the Hudson! The conuests and wars of eter5ination
of
these sa4ages' and the terror which they inspired' ha4e been su55ed
up
by General 2rancis "alker in the saying: BThey were the scourge of
God
upon the aborigines of the continent!B
The 6rouois were in so5e respects superior to 5ost of the 6ndians of
the continent! Though they had a li5ited agriculture' and though they
5ade hardly any use of 5etals' they had ad4anced further in otherdirections than 5ost sa4ages! They built of logs' houses long enough
to
be di4ided into se4eral co5part5ents' with a fa5ily in each
co5part5ent! ,y setting a group of houses together' and surrounding
the5 with a palisade of stakes and trees set on end' the settle5ent
was
turned into a kind of fort' and could bid defiance to the li5ited
5eans
of attack possessed by their ene5ies! 6nside their houses they kept a
good store of corn' pu5pkins and dried 5eat' which belonged not to
each
5an singly but to the whole group in co55on! This was the type of
settle5ent seen at ?uebec and at Hochelaga' and' later on' a5ong the
2i4e 3ations! 6ndeed' the 2i4e 3ations ga4e to the5sel4es the
picturesue na5e of the Long House' for their confederation
rese5bled'
as it were' the long wooden houses that held the fa5ilies together!
All this shows that the superiority of the 6rouois o4er their
ene5ies
lay in organi@ation! 6n this they were superior e4en to their kins5en
the Hurons! All 6ndian tribes kept wo5en in a condition which we
should
think degrading! The 6ndian wo5en were drudges they carried the
burdens' and did the rude 5anual toil of the tribe! A5ong the
6rouois'
howe4er' wo5en were not wholly despised so5eti5es' if of forceful
character' they had great influence in the councils of the tribe!
A5ong
the Hurons' on the other hand' wo5en were treated with conte5pt or
brutal indifference! The Huron wo5an' worn out with arduous toil'
rapidly lost the brightness of her youth! At an age when the wo5en of
a
higher culture are still at the height of their char5 and
attracti4eness the wo5an of the Hurons had degenerated into a
shri4elled hag' horrible to the eye and often despicable in
character!
The inborn gentleness of wo5anhood had been dri4en fro5 her breast by
ill<treat5ent! 3ot e4en the cruelest of the warriors surpassed the
unhallowed fiendishness of the withered suaw in preparing the
tor5ents
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of the stake and in shrieking her toothless eultation beside the
torture fire!
"here wo5en are on such a footing as this it is always ill with the
co55unity at large! The Hurons were a5ong the 5ost despicable of the
6ndians in their 5anners! They were hideous gluttons' gorging
the5sel4es when occasion offered with the rapacity of 4ultures!Ga5bling and theft flourished a5ong the5! Ecept' indeed' for the
tradition of courage in fight and of endurance under pain we can find
scarcely anything in the5 to ad5ire!
3orth and west fro5 the Algonuins and Huron<6rouois were the fa5ily
of tribes belonging to the Athapascan stock! The general na5es of
Chipewyan and Tinne are also applied to the sa5e great branch of the
6ndian race! 6n a 4ariety of groups and tribes' the Athapascans
spread
out fro5 the Arctic to eico! Their na5e has since beco5e connected
with the geography of Canada alone' but in reality a nu5ber of the
tribes of the plains' like the well<known Apaches' as well as the
Hupasof California and the 3a4ahos' belong to the Athapascans! 6n Canada'
the Athapascans roa5ed o4er the country that lay between Hudson ,ay
and
the 1ocky ountains! They were found in the basin of the acken@ie
ri4er towards the Arctic sea' and along the 4alley of the 2raser to
the
4alley of the Chilcotin! Their language was broken into a great
nu5ber
of dialects which differed so widely that only the kindred groups
could
understand one anotherBs speech! ,ut the sa5e general rese5blance ran
through the 4arious branches of the Athapascans! They were a tall'
strong race' great in endurance' during their pri5e' though they had
little of the peculiar sta5ina that 5akes for long life and 4igorous
old age! Their descendants of to<day still show the sa5e facial
characteristics<<the low forehead with pro5inent ridge bones' and the
eyes set so5ewhat obliuely so as to suggest' though probably without
reason' a kinship with 8riental peoples!
The Athapascans stood low in the scale of ci4ili@ation! ost of the5
li4ed in a prairie country where a luuriant soil' not encu5bered
with
trees' would ha4e responded to the slightest labour! ,ut the
Athapascans' in Canada at least' knew nothing of agriculture! "ith
alternations of star4ation and rude plenty' they li4ed upon the
unaided
bounty of tribes of the far north' degraded by want and indolence'
were
often addicted to cannibalis5!
The 6ndians beyond the 5ountains' between the 1ockies and the sea'
were
for the 5ost part uite distinct fro5 those of the plains! So5e
tribes
of the Athapascans' as we ha4e seen' penetrated into ,ritish
Colu5bia'
but the greater part of the nati4es in that region were of wholly
different races! 8f course' we know hardly anything of these 6ndians
during the first two centuries of European settle5ent in A5erica! 3ot
until the eighteenth century' when 1ussian traders began to freuent
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the #acific coast and the Spanish and English pushed their 4oyages
into
the 3orth #acific'<<the Tlingit of the far north' the Salish'
Tsi5shian' Haida' wakiutl<3ootka and utenai! 6t is thought'
howe4er'
that nearly all the #acific 6ndians belong to one kindred stock!
Thereare' it is true' 5any distinct languages between California and
Alaska'
but the physical appearance and characteristics of the nati4es show a
si5ilarity throughout!
The total nu5ber of the original 6ndian population of the continent
can
be a 5atter of conecture only! There is e4ery reason' howe4er' to
think that it was far less than the absurdly eaggerated figures
gi4en
by early European writers! "hene4er the first eplorers found a
considerable body of sa4ages they concluded that the people they saw
were only a fraction of so5e large nation! The result was that theSpaniards esti5ated the inhabitants of #eru at thirty 5illions! Las
Casas' the Spanish historian' said that Hispaniola' the present
Hayti'
had a population of three 5illions a 5ore eact esti5ate' 5ade about
twenty years after the disco4ery of the island' brought the
population
down to fourteen thousand 6n the sa5e way onte@u5a was said to ha4e
co55anded three 5illion eican warriors<<an ob4ious absurdity! The
early $esuits reckoned the nu5bers of the 6rouois at about a hundred
thousand in reality there see5 to ha4e been' in the days of "olfe
and
ontcal5' about twel4e thousand! At the opening of the twentieth
century there were in A5erica north of eico about .)&'))) 6ndians'
of
who5 %)J'))) were in Canada! So5e writers go so far as to say that
the
nu5bers of the nati4es were probably ne4er 5uch greater than they are
to<day! ,ut e4en if we accept the 5ore general opinion that the
6ndian
population has declined' there is no e4idence to show that the
population was e4er 5ore than a thin scattering of wanderers o4er the
face of a 4ast country! ooney esti5ates that at the co5ing of the
white 5an there were only about J./'))) aborigines in the 9nited
States' (()'))) in ,ritish A5erica' F('))) in Alaska' and %)'))) in
Greenland' a total nati4e population of %'%.J'))) fro5 the
ississippi
to the Atlantic!
The li5ited 5eans of support possessed by the nati4es' their
pri5iti4e
agriculture' their habitual disinclination to settled life and
industry' their constant wars and the epide5ic diseases which' e4en
as
early as the ti5e of $acues Cartier' worked ha4oc a5ong the5' 5ust
always ha4e pre4ented the growth of a nu5erous population! The
eplorer
5ight wander for days in the depths of the A5erican forest without
encountering any trace of hu5an life! The continent was' in truth'
one
4ast silence' broken only by the roar of the waterfall or the cry of
the beasts and birds of the forest!
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CHA#TE1 6=
THE LEGE3D 82 THE 381SEE3
There are 5any stories of the co5ing of white 5en to the coasts of
A5erica and of their settle5ents in A5erica long before the 4oyage of
Christopher Colu5bus! E4en in the ti5e of the Greeks and 1o5ans there
were traditions and legends of sailors who had gone out into the BSea
of DarknessB beyond the #illars of Hercules<<the ancient na5e for the
Strait of Gibraltar<<and far to the west had found inhabited lands!
Aristotle thought that there 5ust be land out beyond the Atlantic'
and
#lato tells us that once upon a ti5e a 4ast island lay off the coasts
of Africa he calls it Atlantis' and it was' he says' sunk below the
sea by an earthuake! The #hoenicians were wonderful sailors their
ships had gone out of the editerranean into the other sea' and had
reached the ,ritish 6sles' and in all probability they sailed as farwest as the Canaries! "e find' indeed' in classical literature 5any
references to supposed islands and countries out beyond the Atlantic!
The ancients called these places the 6slands of the ,lessed and the
2ortunate 6sles! 6t is' perhaps' not unnatural that in the earlier
writers the eistence of these re5ote and 5ysterious regions should
be
linked with the ideas of the Elysian 2ields and of the abodes of the
dead! ,ut the later writers' such as #liny' and Strabo' the
geographer'
talked of the5 as actual places' and tried to esti5ate how 5any 1o5an
5iles they 5ust be distant fro5 the coast of Spain!
There were si5ilar legends a5ong the 6rish' legends preser4ed in
written for5 at least fi4e hundred years before Colu5bus! They
recount
wonderful 4oyages out into the Atlantic and the disco4ery of new
land!
,ut all these tales are 5ied up with ob4ious fable' with accounts of
places where there was ne4er any illness or infir5ity' and people
li4ed
for e4er' and drank delicious wine and laughed all day' and we cannot
certify to an ato5 of historic truth in the5!
Still 5ore interesting' if only for curiosityBs sake' are weird
stories
that ha4e been unearthed a5ong the early records of the Chinese!
These
are older than the 6rish legends' and date back to about the sith
century! According to the Chinese story' a certain Hoei<Sin sailed
out
into the #acific until he was four thousand 5iles east of $apan!
There
he found a new continent' which the Chinese records called 2usang'
because of a certain tree<<the fusang tree'<<out of the fibres of
which
the inhabitants 5ade' not only clothes' but paper' and e4en food!
Here
was truly a land of wonders! There were strange ani5als with
branching
horns on their heads' there were 5en who could not speak Chinese but
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barked like dogs' and other 5en with bodies painted in strange
colours!
So5e people ha4e endea4oured to pro4e by these legends that the
Chinese
5ust ha4e landed in ,ritish Colu5bia' or ha4e seen 5oose or reindeer'
since etinct' in the country far to the north! ,ut the whole account
is so 5ied up with the 5iraculous' and with descriptions of thingswhich certainly ne4er eisted on the #acific coast of A5erica' that
we
can place no reliance whate4er upon it!
The only i5portance that we can attach to such traditions of the
disco4ery of unknown lands and peoples on a new continent is their
bearing as a whole' their accu5ulated effect' on the likelihood of
such
disco4ery before the ti5e of Colu5bus! They at least 5ake us ready to
attach due weight to the circu5stantial and credible records of the
4oyages of the 3orse5en! These stand upon ground altogether different
fro5 that of the di5 and confused traditions of the classical writers
and of the 6rish and Chinese legends! 6n fact' 5any scholars are nowcon4inced that the eastern coast of Canada was known and 4isited by
the
3orse5en fi4e hundred years before Colu5bus!
2ro5 ti5e i55e5orial the 3orse5en were a5ong the 5ost daring and
skilful 5ariners e4er known! They built great wooden boats with tall'
sweeping bows and sterns! These ships' though open and without decks'
were yet stout and seaworthy! Their re5ains ha4e been found' at ti5es
lying deeply buried under the sand and preser4ed al5ost intact! 8ne
such 4essel' disco4ered on the shore of Den5ark' 5easured F( feet in
length! Another =iking ship' which was dug up in 3orway' and which is
preser4ed in the 5useu5 at Christiania' was FJ feet long and %F feet
wide! 8ne of the old 3orse sagas' or stories' tells how ing 8laf
Trygg4esson built a ship' the keel of which' as it lay on the grass'
was F. ells long in 5odern 5easure' it would be a 4essel of about
*.(
tons burden! E4en if we 5ake allowance for the eaggeration or
ignorance of the writer of the saga' there is still a 4ast contrast
between this 4essel and the little ship Centurion in which Anson
sailed
round the world!
6t is needless' howe4er' to pro4e that the 3orse5en could ha4e
reached
A5erica in their ships! The 4oyages fro5 6celand to Greenland which
we
know they 5ade continually for four hundred years were ust as
arduous
as a further 4oyage fro5 Greenland to the coast of Canada!
The story of the 3orse5en runs thus! Towards the end of the ninth
century' or nearly two hundred years before the 3or5an conuest'
there
was a great eodus or outswar5ing of the 3orse5en fro5 their original
ho5e in 3orway! A certain ing Harold had succeeded in 5aking hi5self
supre5e in 3orway' and great nu5bers of the lesser chiefs or arls
preferred to seek new ho5es across the seas rather than sub5it to his
rule! So they e5barked with their seafaring followers<<=ikings' as we
still call the5<<often' indeed' with their wi4es and fa5ilies' in
great
open ships' and sailed away' so5e to the coast of England' others to
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2rance' and others e4en to the editerranean' where they took ser4ice
under the ,y@antine e5perors! ,ut still others' lo4ing the cold rough
seas of the north' struck westward across the 3orth Sea and beyond
the
coasts of Scotland till they reached 6celand! This was in the year
JF.!
Here they 5ade a settle5ent that presently grew to a population offifty thousand people' ha4ing flocks and herds' solid houses of
stone'
and a fine trade in fish and oil with the countries of 3orthern
Europe!
These settlers in 6celand attained to a high standard of
ci4ili@ation!
They had 5any books' and were fond of tales and stories' as are all
these northern peoples who spend long winter e4enings round the
fireside! So5e of the sagas' or stories' which they told were true
accounts of the 4oyages and ad4entures of their forefathers others
were fanciful stories' like our 5odern ro5ances' created by the
i5agination others' again' were a 5iture of the two! Thus it is
so5eti5es hard to distinguish fact and fancy in these early tales ofthe 3orse5en! "e ha4e' howe4er' 5eans of testing the stories! A5ong
the
books written in 6celand there was one called the B3ational 3a5e<
,ook'B
in which all the na5es of the people were written down' with an
account
of their forefathers and of any notable things which they had done!
6t is fro5 this book and fro5 the old sagas that we learn how the
3orse5en ca5e to the coast of A5erica! 6t see5s that about *)) a
certain 5an called Gunnborn was dri4en westward in a great stor5 and
thrown on the rocky shore of an ice<bound country' where he spent the
winter! Gunnborn reached ho5e safely' and ne4er tried again to find
this new land but' long after his death' the story that there was
land
farther west still lingered a5ong the settlers in 6celand and the
8rkneys' and in other ho5es of the 3orse5en! So5e ti5e after
GunnbornBs 4oyage it happened that a 4ery bold and deter5ined 5an
called Eric the 1ed' who li4ed in the 8rkneys' was 5ade an outlaw for
ha4ing killed se4eral 5en in a uarrel! Eric fled westward o4er the
seas about the year *J)' and he ca5e to a new country with great
rocky
bays and fords as in 3orway! There were no trees' but the slopes of
the hillsides were bright with grass' so he called the country
Greenland' as it is called to this day! Eric and his 5en li4ed in
Greenland for three years' and the ruins of their rough stone houses
are still to be seen' hard by one of the little Danish settle5ents of
to<day! "hen Eric and his followers went back to 6celand they told of
what they had seen' and soon he led a new epedition to Greenland!
The
ad4enturers went in twenty<fi4e ships 5ore than half were lost on
the
way' but ele4en ships landed safely and founded a colony in
Greenland!
8ther settlers ca5e' and this Greenland colony had at one ti5e a
population of about two thousand people! 6ts inhabitants e5braced
Christianity when their kinsfolk in other places did so' and the
ruins
of their stone churches still eist! The settlers raised cattle and
sheep' and sent o hides and seal skins and walrus i4ory to Europe in
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trade for supplies! ,ut as there was no ti5ber in Greenland they
could
not build ships' and thus their co55unication with the outside world
was 5ore or less precarious! 6n spite of this' the colony lasted for
about four hundred years! 6t see5s to ha4e co5e to an end at about
the
beginning of the fifteenth century! The scanty records of its historycan be traced no later than the year %.)*! "hat happened to ter5inate
its eistence is not known! So5e writers' 5isled by the na5e
BGreenland'B ha4e thought that there 5ust ha4e been a change of
cli5ate
by which the country lost its original war5th and 4erdure and turned
into an arctic region! There is no ground for this belief! The na5e
BGreenlandB did not i5ply a country of trees and luuriant
4egetation'
but only referred to the bright carpet of grass still seen in the
short
Greenland su55er in the war5er hollows of the hillsides! 6t 5ay ha4e
been that the settle5ent' ne4er strong in nu5bers' was o4erwhel5ed by
the Eski5os' who are known to ha4e often attacked the colony: 4erylikely' too' it suffered fro5 the great plague' the ,lack Death' that
swept o4er all Europe in the fourteenth century! "hate4er the cause'
the colony ca5e to an end' and centuries elapsed before Greenland was
again known to Europe!
This whole story of the Greenland settle5ent is historical fact which
cannot be doubted! #artly by accident and partly by design' the
3orse5en had been carried fro5 3orway to the 8rkneys and the Hebrides
and 6celand' and fro5 there to Greenland! This ha4ing happened' it
was
natural that their ships should go beyond Greenland itself! During
the
four hundred years in which the 3orse ships went fro5 Europe to
Greenland' their na4igators had neither chart nor co5pass' and they
sailed huge open boats' carrying only a great suare sail! 6t is
e4ident that in stress of weather and in fog they 5ust again and
again
ha4e been dri4en past the foot of Greenland' and 5ust ha4e landed
so5ewhere in what is now Labrador! 6t would be inconcei4able that in
four centuries of 4oyages this ne4er happened! 6n 5ost cases' no
doubt'
the stor5<tossed and battered ships' like the fourteen 4essels that
Eric lost' were ne4er heard of again! ,ut in other cases sur4i4ors
5ust
ha4e returned to Greenland or 6celand to tell of what they had seen!
This is eactly what happened to a bold sailor called ,arne' the son
of Herulf' a few years after the Greenland colony was founded! 6n
*J/
he put out fro5 6celand to oin his father' who was in Greenland' the
purpose being that' after the good old 3orse custo5' they 5ight drink
their Christ5as ale together! 3either ,arne nor his 5en had e4er
sailed the Greenland sea before' but' like bold 5ariners' they relied
upon their seafaring instinct to guide the5 to its coast! As ,arneBs
ship was dri4en westward' great 5ists fell upon the face of the
waters!
There was neither sun nor stars' but day after day only the thick wet
fog that clung to the cold surface of the hea4ing sea! To<day
tra4ellers e4en on a palatial stea5ship' who spend a few hours
shuddering in the chill grey fog of the 3orth Atlantic' chafing at
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delay' 5ay for5 so5e idea of 4oyages such as that of ,arne Herulf
and
his 5en! These =ikings went on undaunted towards the west! At last'
after 5any days' they saw land' but when they drew near they saw that
it was not a rugged treeless region' such as they knew Greenland to
be'
but a country co4ered with forests' a country of low coasts risinginland to s5all hills' and with no 5ountains in sight! Accordingly'
,arne said that this was not Greenland' and he would not stop' but
turned the 4essel to the north! After two days they sighted land
again'
still on the left side' and again it was flat and thick with trees!
The
sea had fallen cal5' and ,arneBs 5en desired to land and see this
new
country' and take wood and water into the ship! ,ut ,arne would not!
So they held on their course' and presently a wind fro5 the south<
west
carried the5 onward for three days and three nights! Then again they
saw land' but this ti5e it was high and 5ountainous' with greatshining
caps of snow! And again ,arne said' BThis is not the land 6 seek!B
They did not go ashore' but sailing close to the coast they presently
found that the land was an island! "hen they stood out to sea again'
the south wind rose to a gale that swept the5 towards the north' with
sail reefed down and with their ship leaping through the foa5ing
surges! Three days and nights they ran before the gale! 8n the fourth
day land rose before the5' and this ti5e it was Greenland! There
,arne
found his father' and there' when not at sea' he settled for the rest
of his days!
Such is the story of ,arne Herulf' as the 3orse5en ha4e it! To the
unpreudiced 5ind there is e4ery reason to belie4e that his 4oyage
had
carried hi5 to A5erica' to the coast of the ariti5e #ro4inces' or of
3ewfoundland or Labrador! ore than this one cannot say! True' it is
hard to fit the Btwo daysB and the Bthree daysB of ,arneBs narrati4e
into the sailing distances! ,ut e4ery one who has read any pri5iti4e
literature' or e4en the Ho5eric poe5s' will re5e5ber how easily ti5es
and distances and nu5bers that are not eactly known are epressed in
loose phrases not to be taken as literal!
The news of ,arneBs 4oyage and of his disco4ery of land see5s to
ha4e
been carried presently to the 3orse5en in 6celand and in Europe! 6n
fact' ,arne hi5self 5ade a 4oyage to 3orway' and' on account of what
he had done' figured there as a person of so5e i5portance! ,ut people
bla5ed ,arne because he had not landed on the new coasts' and had
taken so little pains to find out 5ore about the region of hills and
forests which lay to the south and west of Greenland! 3aturally
others
were te5pted to follow the 5atter further! A5ong these was Leif' son
of
Eric the 1ed! Leif went to Greenland' found ,arne' bought his ship'
and 5anned it with a crew of thirty<fi4e! LeifBs father' Eric' now
li4ed in Greenland' and Leif asked hi5 to take co55and of the
epedition! He thought' the saga says' that' since Eric had found
Greenland' he would bring good luck to the new 4enture! 2or the ti5e'
Eric consented' but when all was ready' and he was riding down to the
shore to e5bark' his horse stu5bled and he fell fro5 the saddle and
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hurt his foot! Eric took this as an o5en of e4il' and would not go
but
Leif and his crew of thirty<fi4e set sail towards the south<west!
This
was in the year %))) A!D!' or four hundred and ninety<two years
before
Colu5bus landed in the "est 6ndies!
Leif and his 5en sailed on' the saga tells us' till they ca5e to the
last land which ,arne had disco4ered! Here they cast anchor' lowered
a
boat' and rowed ashore! They found no grass' but only a great field
of
snow stretching fro5 the sea to the 5ountains farther inland and
these
5ountains' too' glistened with snow! 6t see5ed to the 3orse5en a
forbidding place' and Leif christened it Helluland' or the country of
slate or flat stones! They did not linger' but sailed away at once!
The
description of the snow<co4ered hills' the great slabs of stone' andthe desolate aspect of the coast con4eys at least a 4ery strong
probability that the land was Labrador!
Leif and his 5en sailed away' and soon they disco4ered another land!
The chronicle does not say how 5any days they were at sea' so that we
cannot udge of the distance of this new country fro5 the Land of
Stones! ,ut e4idently it was entirely different in aspect' and was
situated in a war5er cli5ate! The coast was low' there were broad
beaches of white sand' and behind the beaches rose thick forests
spreading o4er the country! Again the 3orse5en landed! ,ecause of the
trees' they ga4e to this place the na5e of arkland' or the Country
of
2orests! So5e writers ha4e thought that arkland 5ust ha4e been
3ewfoundland' but the description also suggests Cape ,reton or 3o4a
Scotia! The coast of 3ewfoundland is' indeed' for the 5ost part'
bold'
rugged' and inhospitable!
Leif put to sea once 5ore! 2or two days the wind was fro5 the
north<east! Then again they reached land! This new region was the
fa5ous country which the 3orse5en called =ineland' and of which e4ery
schoolboy has read! There has been so 5uch dispute as to whether
=ineland<<this war5 country where grapes grew wild<<was 3o4a Scotia
or
3ew England' or so5e other region' that it is worth while to read the
account of the 3orse saga' literally translated:
They ca5e to an island' which lay on the north side
of the land' where they dise5barked to wait for good
weather! There was dew upon the grass and ha4ing
accidentally got so5e of the dew upon their hands and
put it to their 5ouths' they thought that they had
ne4er tasted anything so sweet! Then they went on
board and sailed into a sound that was between the
island and a point that went out northwards fro5 the
land' and sailed westward past the point! There was
4ery shallow water and ebb tide' so that their ship
lay dry and there was a long way between their ship
and the water! They were so desirous to get to the
land that they would not wait till their ship floated'
but ran to the land' to a place where a ri4er co5es
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out of a lake! As soon as their ship was afloat they
took the boats' rowed to the ship' towed her up the
ri4er' and fro5 thence into the lake' where they cast
anchor' carried their beds out of the ship' and set
up their tents!
They resol4ed to put things in order for wintering there' and they erected a large house! They did not
want for sal5on' in both the ri4er and the lake and
they thought the sal5on larger than any they had e4er
seen before! The country appeared to the5 to be of so
good a kind that it would not be necessary to gather
fodder for the cattle for winter! There was no frost
in winter' and the grass was not 5uch withered! Day
and night were 5ore eual than in Greenland and
6celand!
The chronicle goes on to tell how Leif and his 5en spent the winter
in
this place! They eplored the country round their enca5p5ent! Theyfound beautiful trees' trees big enough for use in building houses'
so5ething 4astly i5portant to 5en fro5 Greenland' where no trees
grow!
Delighted with this' Leif and his 5en cut down so5e trees and loaded
their ship with the ti5ber! 8ne day a sailor' whose ho5e had been in
a
Bsouth country'B where he had seen wine 5ade fro5 grapes' and who was
nickna5ed the BTurk'B found on the coast 4ines with grapes' growing
wild! He brought his co5panions to the spot' and they gathered grapes
sufficient to fill their shipBs boat! 6t was on this account that
Leif
called the country B=ineland!B They found patches of supposed corn
which grew wild like the grapes and reseeded itself fro5 year to
year!
6t is striking that the 3orse chronicle should na5e these si5ple
things! Had it been a work of fancy' probably we should ha4e heard'
as
in the Chinese legends' of strange de5ons and other a5a@ing
creatures!
,ut we hear instead of the beautiful forest etending to the shore'
the
5ountains in the background' the tangled 4ines' and the bright
patches
of wild grain of so5e kind ripening in the open glades<the 4ery
things
which caught the eye of Cartier when' fi4e centuries later' he first
ascended the St Lawrence!
"here =ineland was we cannot tell! 6f the 5en really found wild
grapes'
and not so5e kind of cranberry' =ineland 5ust ha4e been in the region
where grapes will grow! The 4ine grows as far north as #rince Edward
6sland and Cape ,reton' and' of course' is found in plenty on the
coasts of 3o4a Scotia and 3ew England! The chronicle says that the
winter days were longer in =ineland than in Greenland' and na5es the
eact length of the shortest day! 9nfortunately' howe4er' the
3orse5en
had no accurate syste5 for 5easuring ti5e otherwise the length of
the
shortest winter day would enable us to know at what eact spot LeifBs
settle5ent was 5ade!
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Leif and his 5en stayed in =ineland all winter' and sailed ho5e to
Greenland in the spring %))% A!D!I! As they brought ti5ber' 5uch
pri@ed in the Greenland settle5ent' their 4oyage caused a great deal
of
talk! 3aturally others wished to ri4al Leif! 6n the net few years
se4eral 4oyages to =ineland are briefly chronicled in the sagas!
2irst of all' Thorwald' LeifBs brother' borrowed his ship' sailed
away
to =ineland with thirty 5en' and spent two winters there! During his
first su55er in =ineland' Thorwald sent so5e 5en in a boat westward
along the coast! They found a beautiful country with thick woods
reaching to the shore' and great stretches of white sand! They found
a
kind of barn 5ade of wood' and were startled by this first indication
of the presence of 5an! Thorwald had' indeed' startling ad4entures!
6n
a great stor5 his ship was wrecked on the coast' and he and his 5en
hadto rebuild it! He selected for a settle5ent a point of land thickly
co4ered with forest! ,efore the 5en had built their houses they fell
in
with so5e sa4ages' who5 they 5ade prisoners! These sa4ages had bows
and
arrows' and used what the 3orse5en called Bskin boats!B 8ne of the
sa4ages escaped and roused his tribe' and presently a great flock of
canoes ca5e out of a large bay' surrounded the =iking ship' and
discharged a cloud of arrows! The 3orse5en beat off the sa4ages' but
in
the fight Thorwald recei4ed a 5ortal wound! As he lay dying he told
his
5en to bury hi5 there in =ineland' on the point where he had 5eant to
build his ho5e! This was done! ThorwaldBs 5en re5ained there for the
winter! 6n the spring they returned to Greenland' with the sad news
for
Leif of his brotherBs death!
8ther 4oyages followed! A certain Thorfinn arlse4ne e4en tried to
found a per5anent colony in =ineland! 6n the spring of %))F' he took
there a hundred and sity 5en' so5e wo5en' and 5any cattle! He and
his
people re5ained in =ineland for nearly four years! They traded with
the
sa4ages' gi4ing the5 cloth and trinkets for furs! arlse4neBs wife
ga4e
birth there to a son' who was christened Snorre' and who was perhaps
the first white child born in A5erica! The =ineland colony see5s to
ha4e prospered well enough' but unfortunately uarrels broke out
between the 3orse5en and the sa4ages' and so 5any of arlse4neBs
people
were killed that the re5ainder were glad to sail back to Greenland!
The 3orse chronicles contain a further story of how one of
arlse4neBs
co5panions' Thorward' and his wife 2reydis' who was a daughter of
Eric
the 1ed' 5ade a 4oyage to =ineland! This epedition ended in tragedy!
8ne night the 3orse5en uarrelled in their winter uarters' there was
a
tu5ult and a 5assacre! 2reydis herself killed fi4e wo5en with an ae'
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and the little colony was drenched in blood! The sur4i4ors returned
to
Greenland' but were shunned by all fro5 that hour!
After this story we ha4e no detailed accounts of 4oyages to =ineland!
There are' howe4er' references to it in 6celandic literature! There
does not see5 any ground to belie4e that the 3orse5en succeeded inplanting a lasting colony in =ineland! So5e people ha4e tried to
clai5
that certain ancient ruins on the 3ew England coast<<an old stone
5ill
at 3ewport' and so on<<are e4idences of such a settle5ent! ,ut the
clai5 has no sufficient proof behind it!
8n the whole' howe4er' there see5s e4ery ground to conclude that
again
and again the 3orse5en landed on the Atlantic coast of A5erica! "e do
not know where they 5ade their winter uarters' nor does this 5atter!
=ery likely there were te5porary settle5ents in both Barkland'B with
its thick woods bordering on the sea' and in other less pro5isingregions! 6t should be added that so5e writers of authority refuse
e4en
to ad5it that the 3orse5en reached A5erica! 8thers' like 3ansen' the
fa5ous Arctic eplorer' while ad5itting the probability of the
4oyages'
belie4e that the sagas are 5erely a sort of folklore' such as 5ay be
found in the pri5iti4e literature of all nations! 8n the other hand'
$ohn 2iske' the A5erican historian' who de4oted 5uch patient study to
the uestion' was con4inced that what is now the Canadian coast'
with'
probably' part of 3ew England too' was disco4ered' 4isited' and
thoroughly well known by the 3orse inhabitants of Greenland! 2or
se4eral centuries they appear to ha4e 5ade su55er 4oyages to and fro5
this B=ineland the GoodB as they called it' and to ha4e brought back
ti5ber and supplies not found in their own inhospitable country! 6t
is
uite possible that further in4estigation 5ay throw new light on the
3orse disco4eries' and e4en that undeniable traces of the buildings
or
i5ple5ents of the settlers in =ineland 5ay be found! eanwhile the
subect' interesting though it is' re5ains shrouded in 5ystery!
CHA#TE1 =
THE ,16ST8L =8;AGES
The disco4eries of the 3orse5en did not lead to the opening of
A5erica
to the nations of Europe! 2or this the ti5e was not yet ripe! As yet
European nations were backward' not only in na4igation' but in the
industries and co55erce which supply the real 5oti4e for occupying
new
lands! 6n the days of Eric the 1ed Europe was only beginning to
e5erge
fro5 a dark period! The 5ight and splendour of the 1o5an E5pire had
4anished' and the great kingdo5s which we know were still to rise!
All this changed in the fi4e hundred years between the foundation of
the Greenland colony and the 4oyage of Christopher Colu5bus! The
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disco4ery of A5erica took place as a direct result of the ad4ancing
ci4ili@ation and growing power of Europe! The e4ent itself was' in a
sense' due to pure accident! Colu5bus was seeking Asia when he found
hi5self a5ong the tropical islands of the "est 6ndies! 6n another
sense' howe4er' the disco4ery 5arks in world history a necessary
stage'
for which the preceding centuries had already 5ade the preparation!The
story of the 4oyages of Colu5bus for5s no part of our present
narrati4e! ,ut we cannot understand the background that lies behind
the
history of Canada without knowing why such 5en as Christopher
Colu5bus
and =asco da Ga5a and the Cabots began the work of disco4ery!
2irst' we ha4e to reali@e the peculiar relations between Europe'
ancient and 5ediae4al' and the great e5pires of Eastern Asia! The two
ci4ili@ations had ne4er been in direct contact! ;et in a sense they
were always connected! The Greeks and the 1o5ans had at least 4ague
reports of peoples who li4ed on the far eastern confines of theworld'
beyond e4en the conuests of Aleander the Great in Hindustan! 6t is
certain' too' that Europe and Asia had always traded with one another
in a strange and unconscious fashion! The spices and silks of the
unknown East passed westward fro5 trader to trader' fro5 cara4an to
cara4an' until they reached the #ersian Gulf' the 1ed Sea' and' at
last' the editerranean! The ourney was so slow' so tedious' the
goods
passed fro5 hand to hand so often' that when the #hoenician' Greek'
or
1o5an 5erchants bought the5 their origin had been forgotten! 2or
century after century this trade continued! "hen 1o5e fell' other
peoples of the editerranean continued the Eastern trade! Genoa and
=enice rose to greatness by this trade! As wealth and culture re4i4ed
after the Gothic conuest which o4erthrew 1o5e' the beautiful silks
and
the rare spices of the East were 5ore and 5ore pri@ed in a world of
increasing luury! The Crusades redisco4ered Egypt' Syria' and the
East
for Europe! Gold and ewels' dia5ond<hilted swords of Da5ascus steel'
car4ed i4ory' and priceless ge5s'<<all the treasures which the
warriors
of the Cross brought ho5e' helped to i5press on the 5ind of Europe
the
surpassing riches of the East!
Gradually a new interest was added! As ti5e went on doubts increased
regarding the true shape of the earth! Early peoples had thought it a
great flat epanse' with the blue sky propped o4er it like a do5e or
co4er! This conception was gi4ing way! The wise 5en who watched the
sky
at night' who saw the sweeping circles of the fied stars and the
wandering path of the strange lu5inous bodies called planets' began
to
suspect a 5ighty secret'<<that the obser4ing eye saw only half the
hea4ens' and that the course of the stars and the earth itself
rounded
out was below the darkness of the hori@on! 2ro5 this theory that the
earth was a great sphere floating in space followed the 5ost
enthralling conclusions! 6f the earth was really a globe' it 5ight be
possible to go round it and to reappear on the farther side of the
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hori@on! Then the East 5ight be reached' not only across the deserts
of
#ersia and Tartary' but also by striking out into the boundless ocean
that lay beyond the #illars of Hercules! 2or such an atte5pt an
al5ost
superhu5an courage was reuired! 3o 5an 5ight say what awful seas'
whatengulfing gloo5' 5ight lie across the fa5iliar waters which washed
the
shores of Europe! The 5ost fearless who' at e4ening' upon the cliffs
of
Spain or #ortugal' watched black night settle upon the far<spreading
waters of the Atlantic' 5ight well turn shuddering fro5 any atte5pt
to
sail into those unknown wastes!
6t was the stern logic of e4ents which co5pelled the enterprise!
,arbarous Turks swept westward! Arabia' Syria' the 6sles of Greece'
and' at last' in %.>&' Constantinople itself' fell into their hands!
The Eastern E5pire' the last sur4i4al of the E5pire of the 1o5ans'perished beneath the sword of aho5et! Then the pathway by land to
Asia' to the fabled e5pires of Cathay and Cipango' was blocked by the
Turkish conuest! Co55erce' howe4er' re5ained alert and enterprising'
and 5enBs 5inds soon turned to the hopes of a western passage which
should pro4ide a new route to the 6ndies!
All the world knows the story of Christopher Colu5bus' his long years
of hardship and discourage5ent the supre5e con4iction which
sustained
hi5 in his ad4ersity the final triu5ph which crowned his efforts! 6t
is no detraction fro5 the glory of Colu5bus to say that he was only
one
of 5any eager spirits occupied with new proble5s of disco4ery across
the sea! 3ot the least of these were $ohn and Sebastian Cabot' father
and son! $ohn Cabot' like Colu5bus' was a Genoese by birth a long
residence in =enice' howe4er' earned for hi5 in %.F/ the citi@enship
of
that republic! Like 5any in his ti5e' he see5s to ha4e been both a
scientific geographer and a practical sea<captain! At one ti5e he
5ade
charts and 5aps for his li4elihood! Sei@ed with the fe4er for
disco4ery' he is said to ha4e begged in 4ain fro5 the so4ereigns of
Spain and #ortugal for help in a 4oyage to the "est! About the ti5e
of
the great disco4ery of Colu5bus in %.*(' $ohn Cabot arri4ed in
,ristol!
6t 5ay be that he took part in so5e of the 4oyages of the ,ristol
5erchants' before the achie4e5ents of Colu5bus began to startle the
world!
At the close of the fifteenth century the town of ,ristol enoyed a
pre<e5inence which it has since lost! 6t stood second only to London
as
a ,ritish port! A group of wealthy 5erchants carried on fro5 ,ristol
a
li4ely trade with 6celand and the northern ports of Europe! The town
was the chief centre for an i5portant trade in codfish! Days of
fasting
were generally obser4ed at that ti5e on these the eating of 5eat was
forbidden by the church' and fish was conseuently in great de5and!
The
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5erchants of ,ristol were keen traders' and were always seeking the
further etension of their trade! Christopher Colu5bus hi5self is
said
to ha4e 5ade a 4oyage for the ,ristol 5erchants to 6celand in %.FF!
There is e4en a tale that' before Colu5bus was known to fa5e' an
epedition was euipped there in %.J) to seek the Bfabulous islandsB
ofthe "estern Sea! Certain it is that the Spanish a5bassador in
England'
whose business it was to keep his royal 5aster infor5ed of all that
was
being done by his ri4als' wrote ho5e in %.*J: B6t is se4en years
since
those of ,ristol used to send out' e4ery year' a fleet of two' three'
or four cara4els to go and search for the 6sle of ,ra@il and the
Se4en
Cities' according to the fancy of the Genoese!B
"e can therefore reali@e that when aster $ohn Cabot ca5e a5ong the
5erchants of this busy town with his plans he found a ready hearing!Cabot was soon brought to the notice of his august 5aesty Henry =66
of
England! The king had been shortsighted enough to reect o4ertures
5ade
to hi5 by ,artholo5ew Colu5bus' brother of Christopher' and no doubt
he
regretted his 5istake! 3ow he was eager enough to act as the patron
of
a new 4oyage! Accordingly' on arch >' %.*/' he granted a royal
licence
in the for5 of what was called Letters #atent' authori@ing $ohn Cabot
and his sons Lewis' Sebastian and Sancius to 5ake a 4oyage of
disco4ery
in the na5e of the king of England! The Cabots were to sail Bwith
fi4e
ships or 4essels of whate4er burden or uality soe4er they be' and
with
as 5any 5arines or 5en as they will ha4e with the5 in the said ships
upon their own proper costs and charges!B 6t will be seen that Henry
=66' the 5ost parsi5onious of kings' had no 5ind to pay the epense
of
the 4oyage! The epedition was Bto seek out' disco4er and find
whatsoe4er islands' countries' regions and pro4inces of the heathens
or
infidels' in whate4er part of the world they be' which before this
ti5e
ha4e been unknown to all Christians!B 6t was to sail only Bto the
seas
of the east and west and north'B for the king did not wish to lay any
clai5 to the lands disco4ered by the Spaniards and #ortuguese! The
disco4erers' howe4er' were to raise the English flag o4er any new
lands
that they found' to conuer and possess the5' and to acuire Bfor us
do5inion' title' and urisdiction o4er those towns' castles' islands'
and 5ainlands so disco4ered!B 8ne<fifth of the profits fro5 the
anticipated 4oyages to the new land was to fall to the king' but the
Cabots were to ha4e a 5onopoly of trade' and ,ristol was to enoy the
right of being the sole port of entry for the ships engaged in this
trade!
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3ot until the net year' %.*F' did $ohn Cabot set out! Then he
e5barked
fro5 ,ristol with a single ship' called in an old history the
atthew'
and a crew of eighteen 5en! 2irst' he sailed round the south of
6reland' and fro5 there struck out westward into the unknown sea! The
appliances of na4igation were then 4ery i5perfect! Sailors couldreckon
the latitude by looking up at the 3orth Star' and noting how high it
was abo4e the hori@on! Since the 3orth Star stands in the sky due
north' and the ais on which the earth spins points always towards
it'
it will appear to an obser4er in the northern he5isphere to be as
5any
degrees abo4e the hori@on as he hi5self is distant fro5 the pole or
top
of the earth! The old na4igators' therefore' could always tell how
far
north or south they were! oreo4er' as long as the weather was clear
they could' by this 5eans' strike' at night at least' a course dueeast
or west! ,ut when the weather was not fa4ourable for obser4ations
they
had to rely on the co5pass alone! 3ow the co5pass in actual fact does
not always and e4erywhere point due north! 6t is subect to
4ariation'
and in different ti5es and places points either considerably east of
north or west of it! 6n the path where Cabot sailed' the co5pass
pointed west of north and hence' though he thought he was sailing
straight west fro5 6reland' he was really pursuing a cur4ed path bent
round a little towards the south! This fact will beco5e of i5portance
when we consider where it was that Cabot landed! 2or finding distance
east and west the na4igators of the fifteenth century had no such
appliances as our 5odern chrono5eter and instru5ents of obser4ation!
They could tell how far they had sailed only by Bdead reckoningB
this
5eans that if their ship was going at such and such a speed' it was
supposed to ha4e 5ade such and such a distance in a gi4en ti5e! ,ut
when ships were being dri4en to and fro' and buffeted by ad4erse
winds'
this reckoning beca5e etre5ely uncertain!
$ohn Cabot and his 5en 5ere tossed about considerably in their little
ship! Though they see5 to ha4e set out early in ay of %.*F' it was
not
until $une (. that they sighted land! "hat the land was like' and
what
they thought of it' we know fro5 letters written in England by
4arious
persons after their return! Thus we learn that it was a B4ery good
and
te5perate country'B and that B,ra@il wood and silks grow there!B BThe
sea'B they reported' Bis co4ered with fishes' which are caught not
only
with the net' but with baskets' a stone being tied to the5 in order
that the baskets 5ay sink in the water!B Henceforth' it was said'
England would ha4e no 5ore need to buy fish fro5 6celand' for the
waters of the new land abounded in fish! Cabot and his 5en saw no
sa4ages' but they found proof that the land was inhabited! Here and
there in the forest they saw trees which had been felled' and also
snares of a rude kind set to catch ga5e! They were enthusiastic o4er
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their success! They reported that the new land 5ust certainly be
connected with Cipango' fro5 which all the spices and precious stones
of the world originated! 8nly a scanty stock of pro4isions' they
declared' pre4ented the5 fro5 sailing along the coast as far as
Cathay
and Cipango! As it was they planted on the land a great cross with
theflag of England and also the banner of St ark' the patron saint of
CabotBs city of =enice!
The older histories used always to speak as if $ohn Cabot had landed
so5ewhere on the coast of Labrador' and had at best gone no farther
south than 3ewfoundland! E4en if this were the whole truth about the
4oyage' to Cabot and his 5en would belong the signal honour of ha4ing
been the first Europeans' since the 3orse5en' to set foot on the
5ainland of 3orth A5erica! "ithout doubt they were the first to
unfurl
the flag of England' and to erect the cross upon soil which
afterwards
beca5e part of ,ritish 3orth A5erica! ,ut this is not all! 6t islikely
that Cabot reached a point far south of Labrador! His supposed
sailing
westward carried hi5 in reality south of the latitude of 6reland! He
5akes no 5ention of the icebergs which any 4oyager 5ust 5eet on the
Labrador coast fro5 $une to August! His account of a te5perate
cli5ate
suitable for growing dye<wood' of forest trees' and of a country so
fair that it see5ed the gateway of the enchanted lands of the East'
is
uite unsuited to the bare and forbidding aspect of Labrador! Cape
,reton island was probably the place of CabotBs landing! 6ts bal5y
su55er cli5ate' the abundant fish of its waters' fit in with CabotBs
eperiences! The e4idence fro5 5aps' one of which was 5ade by CabotBs
son Sebastian' points also to Cape ,reton as the first landing<place
of
English sailors in A5erica!
There is no doubt of the stir 5ade by CabotBs disco4ery on his safe
return to England! He was in London by August of %.*F' and he beca5e
at
once the obect of eager curiosity and interest! BHe is styled the
Great Ad5iral'B wrote a =enetian resident in London' Band 4ast honour
is paid to hi5! He dresses in silk' and the English run after hi5
like
5ad people!B The sunlight of royal fa4our broke o4er hi5 in a flood:
e4en Henry =66 pro4ed generous! The royal accounts show that' on
August
%)' %.*F' the king ga4e ten pounds Bto hi5 that found the new isle!B
A
few 5onths later the king granted to his Bwell<belo4ed $ohn Cabot' of
the parts of =enice' an annuity of twenty pounds sterling'B to be
paid
out of the custo5s of the port of ,ristol! The king' too' was la4ish
in
his pro5ises of help for a new epedition! HenryBs i5agination had
e4idently been fired with the idea of an 8riental e5pire! A
conte5porary writer tells us that Cabot was to ha4e ten ar5ed ships!
At
CabotBs reuest' the king conceded to hi5 all the prisoners needed to
5an this fleet' sa4ing only persons conde5ned for high treason! 6t is
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one of the ironies of history that on the first pages of its annals
the
beautiful new world is offered to the cri5inals of Europe!
During the winter that followed' $ohn Cabot was the hero of the hour!
,usy preparations went on for a new 4oyage! Letters patent were
issuedgi4ing Cabot power to take any si ships that he liked fro5 the ports
of the kingdo5' paying to their owners the sa5e price only as if
taken
for the kingBs ser4ice! The BGrand Ad5iralB beca5e a person of high
i5portance! 8n one friend he conferred the so4ereignty of an island
to
others he 5ade la4ish pro5ises certain poor friars who offered to
e5bark on his co5ing 4oyage were to be bishops o4er the heathen of
the
new land! E4en the 5erchants of London 4entured to send out goods for
trade' and brought to Cabot Bcoarse cloth' caps' laces' points' and
other trifles!B
The second epedition sailed fro5 the port of ,ristol in ay of %.*J!
$ohn Cabot and his son Sebastian were in co55and of the younger
brothers we hear no 5ore! ,ut the high hopes of the 4oyagers were
doo5ed to disappoint5ent! 8n arri4ing at the coast of A5erica CabotBs
ships see5 first to ha4e turned towards the north! The fatal idea'
that
the e5pires of Asia 5ight be reached through the northern seas
already
asserted its sway! The search for a north<west passage' that
will<oB<the<wisp of three centuries' had already begun! any years
later Sebastian Cabot related to a friend at Se4ille so5e details
regarding this unfortunate atte5pt of his father to reach the spice
islands of the East! The fleet' he said' with its three hundred 5en'
first directed its course so far to the north that' e4en in the 5onth
of $uly' 5onstrous heaps of ice were found floating on the sea!
BThere
was'B so Sebastian told his friend' Bin a 5anner' continual
daylight!B
The forbidding aspect of the coast' the bitter cold of the northern
seas' and the boundless etent of the silent drifting ice' chilled
the
hopes of the eplorers! They turned towards the south! Day after day'
week after week' they skirted the coast of 3orth A5erica! 6f we 5ay
belie4e SebastianBs friend' they reached a point as far south as
Gibraltar in Europe! 3o 5ore was there ice! The cold of Labrador
changed to soft bree@es fro5 the sanded coast of Carolina and fro5
the
5ild waters of the Gulf Strea5! ,ut of the fabled e5pires of Cathay
and
Cipango' and the Btowns and castlesB o4er which the Great Ad5iral was
to ha4e do5inion' they saw no trace! 1eluctantly the epedition
turned
again towards Europe' and with its turning ends our knowledge of what
happened on the 4oyage!
That the ships ca5e ho5e either as a fleet' or at least in part' we
ha4e certain proof! "e know that $ohn Cabot returned to ,ristol' for
the ancient accounts of the port show that he li4ed to draw at least
one or two instal5ents of his pension! ,ut the sunlight of royal
fa4our
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no longer illu5ined his path! 6n the annals of English history the
na5e
of $ohn Cabot is ne4er found again!
The son Sebastian sur4i4ed to continue a life of 5ariti5e ad4enture'
to
be counted one of the great sea<captains of the day' and to enoy anhonourable old age! 6n the year %>%( we hear of hi5 in the ser4ice of
2erdinand of Spain! He see5s to ha4e won great renown as a 5aker of
5aps and charts! He still cherished the idea of reaching Asia by way
of
the northern seas of A5erica! A north<west epedition with Sebastian
in
co55and had been decided upon' it is said' by 2erdinand' when the
death
of that illustrious so4ereign pre4ented the reali@ation of the
proect!
After 2erdinandBs death' Cabot fell out with the grandees of the
Spanish court' left adrid' and returned for so5e ti5e to England!
So5eha4e it that he 5ade a new 4oyage in the ser4ice of Henry =666' and
sailed through Hudson Strait' but this is probably only a confused
re5iniscence' handed down by hearsay' of the earlier 4oyages! Cabot
ser4ed Spain again under Charles =' and 5ade a 4oyage to ,ra@il and
the
La #lata ri4er! He reappears later in England' and was 5ade 6nspector
of the ingBs Ships by Edward =6! He was a leading spirit of the
erchant Ad4enturers who' in EdwardBs reign' first opened up trade by
sea with 1ussia!
The 4oyages of the ,ristol traders and the enterprise of England by
no
5eans ended with the eploits of the Cabots! Though our ordinary
history books tell us nothing 5ore of English 4oyages until we co5e
to
the days of the great Eli@abethan na4igators' Drake' 2robisher'
Hawkins' and to the planting of =irginia' as a 5atter of fact 5any
4oyages were 5ade under Henry =66 and Henry =666! ,oth so4ereigns
see5
to ha4e been anious to continue the eploration of the western seas'
but they had not the good fortune again to secure such 5aster<pilots
as
$ohn and Sebastian Cabot!
6n the first place' it see5s that the fisher5en of England' as well
as
those of the ,reton coast' followed close in the track of the Cabots!
As soon as the Atlantic passage to 3ewfoundland had been robbed of
the
terrors of the unknown' it was not regarded as difficult! "ith strong
east winds a ship of the siteenth century could 5ake the run fro5
,ristol or St alo to the Grand ,anks in less than twenty days! 8nce
a
ship was on the ,anks' the fish were found in an abundance utterly
unknown in European waters' and the ships usually returned ho5e with
great cargoes! During the early years of the siteenth century
English'
2rench' and #ortuguese fisher5en went fro5 Europe to the ,anks in
great
nu5bers! They landed at 4arious points in 3ewfoundland and Cape
,reton'
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and beca5e well acuainted with the outline of the coast! 6t was no
surprise to $acues Cartier' for instance' on his first 4oyage' to
find
a 2rench fishing 4essel lying off the north shore of the Gulf of St
Lawrence! ,ut these fishing crews thought nothing of eploration! The
har4est of the sea was their sole care' and beyond landing to cure
fishand to obtain wood and water they did nothing to clai5 or conuer the
land!
There were' howe4er' efforts fro5 ti5e to ti5e to follow up the
disco4eries of the Cabots! The 5erchants of ,ristol do not see5 to
ha4e
been disappointed with the result of the Cabot enterprises' for as
early as in %>)% they sent out a new epedition across the Atlantic!
The sanction of the king was again in4oked' and Henry =66 granted
letters patent to three 5en of ,ristol<<1ichard "arde' Tho5as
Ashehurst' and $ohn Tho5as<<to eplore the western seas! These na5es
ha4e a ho5ely English sound but associated with the5 were three
#ortuguese<<$ohn Gon@ales' and two 5en called 2ernande@' all of theA@ores' and probably of the class of 5aster<pilots to which the
Cabots
and Colu5bus belonged! "e know nothing of the results of the
epedition' but it returned in safety in the sa5e year' and the
parsi5onious king was 5o4ed to pay out fi4e pounds fro5 his treasury
Bto the 5en of ,ristol that found the isle!B
2rancis 2ernande@ and $ohn Gon@ales re5ained in the English ser4ice
and
beca5e subects of ing Henry! Again' in the su55er of %>)(' they
were
sent out on another 4oyage fro5 ,ristol! 6n Septe5ber they brought
their ships safely back' and' in proof of the strangeness of the new
lands they carried ho5e Bthree 5en brought out of an 6land forre
beyond
6relond' the which were clothed in ,eestes Skynnes and ate raw fflesh
and were rude in their de5eanure as ,eestes!B 2ro5 this description
written in an old atlas of the ti5eI' it looks as if the 2ernande@
epedition had turned north fro5 the Great ,anks and 4isited the
coast
where the Eski5os were found' either in Labrador or Greenland! This
ti5e Henry =66 ga4e 2ernande@ and Gon@ales a pension of ten pounds
each' and 5ade the5 BcaptainsB of the 3ew 2ound Land! A su5 of twenty
pounds was gi4en to the 5erchants of ,ristol who had acco5panied
the5!
"e 5ust re5e5ber that at this ti5e the 3ew 2ound Land was the general
na5e used for all the northern coast of A5erica!
There is e4idence that a further epedition went out fro5 ,ristol in
%>)&' and still another in %>).! 2ernande@ and Gon@ales' with two
English associates' were again the leaders! They were to ha4e a
5onopoly of trade for forty years' but were cautioned not to
interfere
with the territory of the king of #ortugal! 8f the fate of these
enterprises nothing is known!
,y the ti5e of Henry =666' who began to reign in %>)*' the annual
fishing fleet of the English which sailed to the A5erican coast had
beco5e i5portant! As early as in %>((' a royal ship of war was sent
to
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the 5outh of the English Channel to protect the Bco5ing ho5e of the
3ew
2ound 6slandBs fleet!B Henry =666 and his 5inister' Cardinal "olsey'
were e4idently anious to go on with the work of the pre4ious reign'
and especially to enlist the wealthy 5erchants and trade co5panies of
London in the cause of western eploration! 6n %>(% the cardinal
proposed to the Li4ery Co5panies of London<<the na5e gi4en to thetrade
organi@ations of the 5erchants<<that they should send out fi4e ships
on
a 4oyage into the 3ew 2ound Land! "hen the 5erchants see5ed
disinclined
to 5ake such a 4enture' the king Bspake sharply to the ayor to see
it
put in eecution to the best of his power!B ,ut' e4en with this
sti5ulus' se4eral years passed before a London epedition was sent
out!
At last' in %>(F' two little ships called the Sa5son and the ary of
Guildford set out fro5 London with instructions to find their way to
Cathay and the 6ndies by 5eans of the passage to the north! The twoships left London on ay %)' put into #ly5outh' and finally sailed
therefro5 on $une %)' %>(F! They followed CabotBs track' striking
westward fro5 the coast of 6reland! 2or three weeks they kept
together'
5aking good progress across the Atlantic! Then in a great stor5 that
arose the Sa5son was lost with all on board!
The ary of Guildford pursued her way alone' and her crew had
ad4entures strange e4en for those days! Her course' set well to the
north' brought her into the drift ice and the giant icebergs which
are
carried down the coast of A5erica at this season for the 5onth was
$ulyI fro5 the polar seas! 6n fear of the 5o4ing ice' she turned to
the
south' the sailors watching eagerly for the land' and sounding as
they
went! 2our days brought the5 to the coast of Labrador! They followed
it
southward for so5e days! #resently they entered an inlet where they
found a good harbour' 5any s5all islands' and the 5outh of a great
ri4er of fresh water! The region was a wilderness' its 5ountains and
woods apparently untenanted by 5an! 3ear the shore they saw the
foot5arks of di4ers great beasts' but' though they eplored the
country
for about thirty 5iles' they saw neither 5en nor ani5als! At the end
of
$uly' they set sail again' and passed down the coast of 3ewfoundland
to
the harbour of St $ohnBs' already a well<known rende@4ous! Here they
found fourteen ships of the fishing fleet' 5ostly 4essels fro5
3or5andy! 2ro5 3ewfoundland the ary of Guildford pursued her way
southward' and passed along the Atlantic coast of A5erica! 6f she had
had any one on board capable of accurate obser4ation' e4en after the
fashion of the ti5e' or of 5aking 5aps' the record of her 4oyage
would
ha4e added 5uch to the general knowledge of the continent!
9nfortunately' the 6talian pilot who directed the 4oyage was killed
in
a skir5ish with 6ndians during a te5porary landing! So5e ha4e thought
that this pilot who perished on the ary of Guildford 5ay ha4e been
the
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great na4igator =erra@ano' of who5 we shall presently speak!
The little 4essel sailed down the coast to the islands of the "est
6ndies! She reached #orto 1ico in the 5iddle of 3o4e5ber' and fro5
that
island she 5ade sail for the new Spanish settle5ents of San Do5ingo!
Here' as she lay at her anchorage' the ary of Guildford was firedupon
by the Spanish fort which co55anded the ri4er 5outh! At once she put
out into the open sea' and' heading eastward across the Atlantic' she
arri4ed safely at her port of London!
CHA#TE1 =6
281E1933E1S 82 $AC?9ES CA1T6E1
"e ha4e seen that after the return of the second epedition of the
Cabots no 4oyages to the coasts of Canada of first<rate i5portancewere
5ade by the English! This does not 5ean' howe4er' that nothing was
done
by other peoples to disco4er and eplore the northern coasts of
A5erica! The #ortuguese were the first after the Cabots to continue
the
search along the Canadian coast for the secret of the hidden East! At
this ti5e' we 5ust re5e5ber' the #ortuguese were one of the leading
nations of Europe' and they were specially interested in 5ariti5e
enterprise! Thanks to Colu5bus' the Spaniards had' it is true'
carried
off the grand pri@e of disco4ery! ,ut the #ortuguese had rendered
ser4ice not less useful! 2ro5 their coasts' utting far out into the
Atlantic' they had sailed southward and eastward' and had added 5uch
to
the knowledge of the globe! 2or generations' both before and after
Colu5bus' the pilots and sailors of #ortugal were a5ong the 5ost
successful and daring in the world!
2or nearly a hundred years before the disco4ery of A5erica the
#ortuguese had been endea4ouring to find an ocean route to the spice
islands of the East and to the great 8riental e5pires which'
tradition
said' lay far off on a distant ocean' and which arco #olo and other
tra4ellers had reached by years of painful land tra4el across the
interior of Asia! #rince Henry of #ortugal was busy with these tasks
at
the 5iddle of the fifteenth century! E4en before this' #ortuguese
sailors had found their way to the adeiras and the Canary 6slands'
and
to the A@ores' which lie a thousand 5iles out in the Atlantic! ,ut
under the lead of #rince Henry they began to grope their way down the
coast of Africa' bra4ing the torrid heats and awful cal5s of that
euatorial region' where the bla@ing sun' poised o4erhead in a
cloudless sky' was reflected on the boso5 of a stagnant and
glistening
ocean! 6t was their constant hope that at so5e point the land would
be
found to roll back and disclose an ocean pathway round Africa to the
East' the goal of their desire! ;ear after year they ad4anced
farther'
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until at last they achie4ed a 5o5entous result! 6n %.JF' ,artholo5ew
Dia@ sailed round the southern point of Africa' which recei4ed the
significant na5e of the BCape of Good Hope'B and entered the 6ndian
8cean! Henceforth a water pathway to the 2ar East was possible!
2ollowing Dia@' =asco da Ga5a' lea4ing Lisbon in %.*F' sailed round
the
south of Africa' and' reaching the ports of Hindustan' 5ade the5ariti5e route to 6ndia a definite reality!
Thus at the 5o5ent when the Spaniards were taking possession of the
western world the #ortuguese were establishing their trade in the
redisco4ered East! The two nations agreed to di4ide between the5
these
worlds of the East and the "est! They in4oked the friendly offices of
the #ope as 5ediator' and' henceforth' an i5aginary line drawn down
the
Atlantic di4ided the real5s! At first this arrange5ent see5ed to gi4e
Spain all the new regions in A5erica' but the line of di4ision was
set
so far to the "est that the disco4ery of ,ra@il' which uts outeastward into the Atlantic' ga4e the #ortuguese a 4ast territory in
South A5erica! At the ti5e of which we are now speaking' howe4er' the
#ortuguese were intent upon their interests in the 8rient! Their
great
ai5 was to pass beyond 6ndia' already reached by da Ga5a' to the
further e5pires of China and $apan! Like other na4igators of the
ti5e'
they thought that these places 5ight be reached not 5erely by
southern
but also by the northern seas! Hence it ca5e about that the
#ortuguese'
going far southward in Africa' went also far northward in A5erica and
sailed along the coast of Canada!
"e find' in conseuence' that when ing anoel of #ortugal was
fitting
out a fleet of twenty ships for a new epedition under da Ga5a' which
was to sail to the 6ndies by way of Africa' another #ortuguese
epedition' setting out with the sa5e obect' was sailing in the
opposite direction! At its head was Gaspar Corte<1eal' a noble5an of
the A@ores' who had followed with eager interest the disco4eries of
Colu5bus' Dia@' and da Ga5a! Corte<1eal sailed fro5 Lisbon in the
su55er of %>)) with a single ship! He touched at the A@ores! 6t is
possible that a second 4essel oined hi5 there' but this is not
clear!
2ro5 the A@ores his path lay north and west' till presently he
reached
a land described as a Bcool region with great woods!B Corte<1eal
called
it fro5 its 4erdure Bthe Green Land'B but the si5ilarity of na5e with
the place that we call Greenland is only an accident! 6n reality the
#ortuguese captain was on the coast of 3ewfoundland! He saw a nu5ber
of
nati4es! They appeared to the #ortuguese a barbarous people' who
dressed in skins' and li4ed in ca4es! They used bows and arrows' and
had wooden spears' the points of which they hardened with fire!
Corte<1eal directed his course northward' until he found hi5self off
the coast of Greenland! He sailed for so5e distance along those
rugged
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and forbidding shores' a land of desolation' with agged 5ountains
and
furrowed cliffs' wrapped in snow and ice! 3o trace of the lost
ci4ili@ation of the 3orse5en 5et his eyes! The #ortuguese pilot
considered Greenland at its southern point to be an outstanding
pro5ontory of Asia' and he struggled hard to pass beyond it westward
toa 5ore fa4oured region! ,ut his path was blocked by Benor5ous 5asses
of
fro@en snow floating on the sea' and 5o4ing under the influence of
the
wa4es!B 6t is clear that he was 5et not 5erely by the field ice of
the
Arctic ocean' but also by great icebergs 5o4ing slowly with the polar
current! The narrati4e tells how Corte<1ealBs crew obtained fresh
water
fro5 the icebergs! B8wing to the heat of the sun' fresh and clear
water
is 5elted on the su55its' and' descending by s5all channels for5ed by
the water itself' it eats away the base where it falls! The boatswere
sent in' and in that way as 5uch was taken as was needed!B
Corte<1eal 5ade his way as far as a place which was in latitude /)
degreesI where the sea about hi5 see5ed a flowing strea5 of snow' and
so he called it 1io 3e4ado' Bthe ri4er of snow!B #robably it was
Hudson
Strait!
Late in the sa5e season' Corte<1eal was back in Lisbon! He had
disco4ered nothing of i55ediate profit to the crown of #ortugal' but
his sur4ey of the coast of 3orth A5erica fro5 3ewfoundland to Hudson
Strait see5s to ha4e strengthened the belief that the best route to
6ndia lay in this direction! 6n any case' on ay %>' %>)%' he was
sent
out again with three ships! This ti5e the #ortuguese disco4ered a
region' so they said' which no one had before 4isited! The
description
indicates that they were on the coast of 3o4a Scotia and the adacent
part of 3ew England! The land was wooded with fine straight ti5ber'
fit
for the 5asts of ships' and Bwhen they landed they found delicious
fruits of 4arious kinds' and trees and pines of 5ar4ellous height and
thickness!B They saw 5any nati4es' occupied in hunting and fishing!
2ollowing the custo5 of the ti5e' they sei@ed fifty or sity nati4es'
and crowded these unhappy capti4es into the holds of their ships' to
carry ho5e as e4idence of the reality of their disco4eries' and to be
sold as sla4es! These sa4ages are described by those who saw the5 in
#ortugal as of shapely for5 and gentle 5anner' though uncouth and
e4en
dirty in person! They wore otter skins' and their faces were 5arked
with lines! The description would answer to any of the Algonuin
tribes
of the eastern coast! A5ong the nati4es seen on the coast there was a
boy who had in his ears two sil4er rings of =enetian 5ake! The
circu5stance led the #ortuguese to suppose that they were on the
coast
of Asia' and that a European ship had recently 4isited the sa5e spot!
The true eplanation' if the circu5stance is correctly reported'
would
see5 to be that the rings were relics of CabotBs 4oyages and of his
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trade in the trinkets supplied by the 5erchants!
Gaspar Corte<1eal sent his consort ships ho5e' pro5ising to eplore
the
coast further' and to return later in the season! The 4essels duly
reached Lisbon' bringing their capti4es and the news of the 4oyage!
Corte<1eal' howe4er' ne4er returned' nor is anything known of hisfate!
"hen a year had passed with no news of Gaspar Corte<1eal' his brother
iguel fitted out a new epedition of three ships and sailed westward
in search of hi5! 8n reaching the coast of 3ewfoundland' the ships of
iguel Corte<1eal separated in order to 5ake a diligent search in all
directions for the 5issing Gaspar! They followed the deep
indentations
of the island' noting its outstanding features! Here and there they
fell in with the nati4es and traded with the5' but they found nothing
of 4alue! To 5ake 5atters worse' when the ti5e ca5e to asse5ble' as
agreed' in the harbour of St $ohnBs' only two ships arri4ed at the
rende@4ous! That of iguel was 5issing! After waiting so5e ti5e theother 4essels returned without hi5 to #ortugal!
Two Corte<1eals were now lost! ing anoel transferred the rights of
Gaspar and iguel to another brother' and in the ensuing years sent
out
se4eral #ortuguese epeditions to search for the lost leaders' but
without success! The #ortuguese gained only a knowledge of the
abundance of fish in the region of the 3ewfoundland coast! This was
i5portant' and henceforth #ortuguese ships oined with the 3or5ans'
the
,retons' and the English in fishing on the Grand ,anks! 8f the
Corte<1eals nothing 5ore was e4er heard!
The net great 4oyage of disco4ery was that of $uan =erra@ano' so5e
twenty years after the loss of the Corte<1eals! Like so 5any other
pilots of his ti5e' =erra@ano was an 6talian! He had wandered 5uch
about the world' had 5ade his way to the East 6ndies by the new route
that the #ortuguese had opened' and had also' so it is said' been a
5e5ber of a shipBs co5pany in one of the fishing 4oyages to
3ewfoundland now 5ade in e4ery season!
The na5e of $uan =erra@ano has a peculiar significance in Canadian
history! 6n 5ore ways than one he was the forerunner of $acues
Cartier' Bthe disco4erer of Canada!B 3ot only did he sail along the
coast of Canada' but did so in the ser4ice of the king of 2rance' the
first representati4e of those rising a5bitions which were presently
to
result in the foundation of 3ew 2rance and the colonial e5pire of the
,ourbon 5onarchy! 2rancis 6' the 2rench king' was a 4igorous and
a5bitious prince! His eploits and ri4alries occupy the foreground of
European history in the earlier part of the siteenth century! 6t was
the obect of 2rancis to continue the work of Louis M6 by
consolidating
his people into a single powerful state! His 5arriage with the
heiress
of ,rittany oined that independent duchy' rich at least in the
seafaring bra4ery of its people' to the crown of 2rance! ,ut 2rancis
ai5ed higher still! He wished to 5ake hi5self the arbiter of Europe
and
the o4er<lord of the European kings! Ha4ing been defeated by the
eually fa5ous king of Spain' Charles =' in his effort to gain the
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position and title of Holy 1o5an E5peror and the leadership of
Europe'
he set hi5self to o4erthrow the rising greatness of Spain! The
history
of Europe for a uarter of a century turns upon the opposing
a5bitions
of the two 5onarchs!
As a part of his great design' 2rancis 6 turned towards western
disco4ery and eploration' in order to ri4al if possible the
achie4e5ents of Colu5bus and Cortes and to possess hi5self of
territories abounding in gold and sil4er' in sla4es and 5erchandise'
like the islands of Cuba and San Do5ingo and the newly conuered
e5pire
of onte@u5a' which Spain held! 6t was in this design that he sent
out
$uan =erra@ano in further pursuit of it he sent $acues Cartier ten
years later and the result was that 2rench do5inion afterwards'
pre4ailed in the 4alley of the St Lawrence and seeds were planted
fro5which grew the present Do5inion of Canada!
At the end of the year %>(& $uan =erra@ano set out fro5 the port of
Dieppe with four ships! ,eaten about by ad4erse stor5s' they put into
harbour at adeira' so badly strained by the rough weather that only
a
single seaworthy ship re5ained! 6n this' the Dauphine' =erra@ano set
forth on $anuary %F' %>(.' for his western disco4ery! The 4oyage was
prosperous' ecept for one awful te5pest in 5id<Atlantic' Bas
terrible'B wrote =erra@ano' Bas e4er any sailors suffered!B After
se4en
weeks of westward sailing =erra@ano sighted a coast Bne4er before
seen
of any 5an either ancient or 5odern!B This was the shore of 3orth
Carolina! 2ro5 this point the 2rench captain 5ade his way northward'
closely inspecting the coast' landing here and there' and taking note
of the appearance' the resources' and the nati4es of the country! The
4oyage was chiefly along the coast of what is now the 9nited States'
and does not therefore i55ediately concern the present narrati4e!
=erra@anoBs account of his disco4eries' as he afterwards wrote it
down'
is full of picturesue interest' and 5ay now be found translated into
English in HakluytBs =oyages! He tells of the sa4ages who flocked to
the low sandy shore to see the 2rench ship riding at anchor! They
wore
skins about their loins and light feathers in their hair' and they
were
Bof colour russet' and not 5uch unlike the Saracens!B =erra@ano said
that these 6ndians were of Bcheerful and steady look' not strong of
body' yet sharp<witted' ni5ble' and eceeding great runners!B As he
sailed northward he was struck with the wonderful 4egetation of the
A5erican coast' the beautiful forest of pine and cypress and other
trees' unknown to hi5' co4ered with tangled 4ines as prolific as the
4ines of Lo5bardy! =erra@anoBs 4oyage and his landings can be traced
all the way fro5 Carolina to the northern part of 3ew England! He
noted
the wonderful harbour at the 5outh of the Hudson' skirted the coast
eastward fro5 that point' and then followed northward along the
shores
of assachusetts and aine! ,eyond this =erra@ano see5s to ha4e 5ade
no
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landings' but he followed the coast of 3o4a Scotia and 3ewfoundland!
He
sailed' so he says' as far as fifty degrees north' or al5ost to the
Strait of ,elle 6sle! Then he turned eastward' headed out into the
great ocean' and reached 2rance in safety! 9nfortunately' =erra@ano
did
not write a detailed account of that part of his 4oyage which relatedto Canadian waters! ,ut there is no doubt that his glowing
descriptions
5ust ha4e done 5uch to sti5ulate the 2rench to further effort!
9nhappily' at the 5o5ent of his return' his royal 5aster was deeply
engaged in a disastrous in4asion of 6taly' where he shortly 5et the
crushing defeat at #a4ia %>(>I which left hi5 a capti4e in the hands
of his Spanish ri4al! His absence crippled 2rench enterprise' and
=erra@anoBs eplorations were not followed up till a change of
fortune
enabled 2rancis to send out the fa5ous epedition of $acues Cartier!
8ne other epedition to Canada deser4es brief 5ention before we co5e
toCartierBs crowning disco4ery of the St Lawrence ri4er! This is the
4oyage of Stephen Go5e@' who was sent out in the year %>(.! by
Charles
=' the ri4al of 2rancis 6! He spent about ten 5onths on the 4oyage'
following 5uch the sa5e course as =erra@ano' but ea5ining with far
greater care the coast of 3o4a Scotia and the territory about the
opening of the Gulf of St Lawrence! His course can be traced fro5 the
#enobscot ri4er in aine to the island of Cape ,reton! He entered the
,ay of 2undy' and probably went far enough to reali@e fro5 its tides'
rising so5eti5es to a height of sity or se4enty feet' that its
farther
end could not be free' and that it could not furnish an open passage
to
the "estern Sea! 1unning north<east along the shore of 3o4a Scotia'
Go5e@ sailed through the Gut of Canso' thus learning that Cape ,reton
was an island! He na5ed it the 6sland of St $ohn<or' rather' he
transferred to it this na5e' which the 5ap<5akers had already used!
Hence it ca5e about that the B6sland of St $ohnB occasions great
confusion in the early geography of Canada! The first 5ap<5akers who
used it secured their infor5ation indirectly' we 5ay suppose' fro5
the
Cabot 4oyages and the fisher5en who freuented the coast! They 5arked
it as an island lying in the B,ay of the ,retons'B which had co5e to
be
the na5e for the open 5outh of the Gulf of St Lawrence! Go5e@'
howe4er'
used the na5e for Cape ,reton island! Later on' the na5e was applied
to
what is now #rince Edward 6sland! All this is only typical of the
difficulties in understanding the accounts of the early 4oyages to
A5erica! Go5e@ duly returned to the port of Corunna in $une %>(>!
"e 5ay thus for5 so5e idea of the general position of A5erican
eploration and disco4ery at the ti5e when Cartier 5ade his 5o5entous
4oyages! The 5ariti5e nations of Europe' in searching for a passage
to
the half<5ythical e5pires of Asia' had stu5bled on a great continent!
At first they thought it Asia itself! Gradually they were reali@ing
that this was not Asia' but an outlying land that lay between Europe
and Asia and that 5ust be passed by the na4igator before Cathay and
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Cipango could rise upon the hori@on! ,ut the new continent was 4ast
in
etent! 6t blocked the westward path fro5 pole to pole! "ith each
4oyage' too' the resources and the nati4e beauty of the new land
beca5e
5ore apparent! The luuriant islands of the "est 6ndies' and the
A@tece5pire of eico' were already bringing wealth and grandeur to the
5onarchy of Spain! South of eico it had been already found that the
great barrier of the continent etended to the cold te5pestuous seas
of
the Antarctic region! agellanBs 4oyage %>%*<((I had pro4ed indeed
that by rounding South A5erica the way was open to the spice islands
of
the east! ,ut the route was infinitely long and arduous! The hope of
a
shorter passage by the north beckoned the eplorer! 8f this north
country nothing but its coast was known as yet! Cabot and the
fisher5en
had found a land of great forests' swept by the cold and leaden seasof
the Arctic' and holding its secret clasped in the iron grip of the
northern ice! The Corte<1eals' =erra@ano' and Go5e@ had looked upon
the
endless panora5a of the Atlantic coast of 3orth A5erica<<the glorious
forests draped with tangled 4ines etending to the sanded beaches of
the sea<<the wide inlets round the 5ouths of 5ighty ri4ers 5o4ing
silent and 5ysterious fro5 the heart of the unknown continent! Here
and
there a painted sa4age showed the bright feathers of his headgear as
he
lurked in the trees of the forest or stood' in fearless curiosity'
ga@ing fro5 the shore at the white<winged ships of the strange
4isitants fro5 the sky! ,ut for the 5ost part all' sa4e the sounds of
nature' was silence and 5ystery! The wa4es thundered upon the sanded
beach of Carolina and lashed in foa5 about the rocks of the iron
coasts
of 3ew England and the 3ew 2ound Land! The forest 5ingled its 5ur5urs
with the wa4es' and' as the sun sank behind the unknown hills' wafted
its perfu5e to the anchored ships that rode upon the placid boso5 of
the e4ening sea! And beyond all this was 5ystery<<the 5ystery of the
unknown East' the secret of the pathway that 5ust lie so5ewhere
hidden
in the bays and inlets of the continent of silent beauty' and abo4e
all
the 5ysterious sense of a great history still to co5e for this new
land
itself<<a sense of the 5ur5uring of 5any 4oices caught as the
undertone
of the rustling of the forest lea4es' but rising at last to the
5ighty
sound of the 4ast ci4ili@ation that in the centuries to co5e should
pour into the silent wildernesses of A5erica!
To such a land<<to such a 5ystery<<sailed forth $acues Cartier'
disco4erer of Canada!
,6,L68G1A#H6CAL 38TE
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The 6celandic sagas contain legends of a disco4ery of A5erica before
Colu5bus! ,ena5in de Costa' in his B#re<Colu5bian Disco4ery of
A5ericaB' has gi4en translations of a nu5ber of these legends! 8ther
works bearing on this 5ythical period are: A! ! 1ee4esBs BThe
2inding
of "ineland the GoodB $! E! 8lsonBs BThe =oyages of the 3orth5enB in
=ol! 6 of the B8riginal 3arrati4e of Early A5erican HistoryB' editedby
$! 2! $a5eson 2ridtof 3ansenBs B6n 3orthern istsB and $ohn
2iskeBs
BThe Disco4ery of A5ericaB! A nu5ber of general histories ha4e
chapters
bearing on pre<Colu5bian disco4ery the 5ost accessible of these are:
$ustin "insorBs B3arrati4e and Critical History of A5ericaB
Charle4oiBs BHistoire et description generale de la 3ou4elle 2ranceB
%F..I' translated with notes by $! G! Shea %JJ/I Henry HarrisseBs
BDisco4ery of 3orth A5ericaB and the BConuest of CanadaB' by the
author of BHochelagaB!
There are nu5erous works in the Spanish' 2rench' 6talian' and Englishlanguages dealing with Colu5bus and his ti5e! #re<e5inent a5ong the
latter are: 6r4ingBs BLife of Colu5busB "insorBs BChristopher
Colu5bus
and how he 1ecei4ed and 65parted the Spirit of Disco4eryB HelpsBs
BLife of Colu5busB #rescottBs BHistory of 2erdinand and 6sabellaB
Cro5ptonBs BLife of Colu5busB St $ohnBs BLife of Colu5busB and
aorBs BSelect Letters of Colu5busB a Hakluyt Society publicationI!
Likewise in e4ery i5portant work which deals with the early history
of
3orth or South A5erica' Colu5bus and his 4oyages are discussed!
The literature dealing with the Cabots is uite as 4olu5inous as that
bearing on Colu5bus! Henry HarrisseBs B$ohn Cabot' the Disco4erer of
3orth A5erica and Sebastian' his Son a Chapter of the ariti5e
History
of England under the Tudors' %.*/<%>>FB' is a 5ost ehausti4e work!
8ther authoritati4e works on the Cabots are 3icholsBs B1e5arkable
Life'
Ad4entures' and Disco4eries of Sebastian CabotB' in which an effort
is
5ade to gi4e the chief glory of the disco4ery of A5erica not to $ohn
Cabot' but to his son Sebastian DawsonBs BThe =oyages of the Cabots'
%.*F and %.*JB' BThe =oyages of the Cabots' a SeuelB' and BThe
=oyages
of the Cabots' Latest #hases of the Contro4ersyB' in BTransactions
1oyal Society of CanadaB ,iddleBs Be5oir of Sebastian CabotB
,ea@leyBs B$ohn and Sebastian Cabot' The Disco4ery of 3orth A5ericaB
and "eareBs BCabotBs Disco4ery of A5ericaB!
A nu5ber of European writers ha4e 5ade able studies of the work of
=erra@ano' and two A5erican scholars ha4e contributed 4aluable works
on
that eplorerBs life and achie4e5ents these are' De CostaBs
B=erra@ano
the Eplorer: a =indication of his Letter and =oyageB' and urphyBs
BThe =oyage of =erra@anoB!
6n addition to the general histories already 5entioned' the following
works contain 5uch infor5ation on the 4oyages of the forerunners of
$acues Cartier: #ark5anBs B#ioneers of 2ranceB ohlBs BDisco4ery of
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aineB "oodburyBs B1elation of the 2isheries to the Disco4ery of
3orth
A5ericaB in this work it is clai5ed that the ,asues antedated the
CabotsI DawsonBs BThe St Lawrence ,asin and 6ts ,orderlandsB
"eiseBs
BThe Disco4eries of A5ericaB BThe $ournal of Christopher Colu5busB'
and BDocu5ents relating to the =oyages of $ohn Cabot and GasparCorte<1ealB' translated with 3otes and an 6ntroduction by Sir
Cle5ents
1! arkha5 and ,iggarBs BThe #recursors of $acues Cartier'
%.*F<%>&.B! This last work is essential to the student of the early
4oyages to A5erica! 6t contains docu5ents' 5any published for the
first
ti5e' in Latin' #ortuguese' Spanish' 6talian' and 2rench dealing with
eploration! The notes are in4aluable' and the docu5ents' with the
eception of those in 2rench' are carefully though freely translated!
2or the nati4e tribes of A5erica the reader would do well to consult
the BHandbook of A5erican 6ndians 3orth of eicoB' published by the
,ureau of A5erican Ethnology' and the BHandbook of 6ndians ofCanadaB'
reprinted by the Canadian Go4ern5ent' with additions and 5inor
alterations' fro5 the preceding work' under the direction of $a5es
"hite' 2!1!G!S!
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