James Freeman Clarke, an American writer and Unitarian minister. Born at Hanover, N. H., in 1810; died at Jamaica Plain, June 8, 1888.[32]
James Freeman Clarke, an American writer and Unitarian minister. Born at Hanover, N. H., in 1810; died at Jamaica Plain, June 8, 1888.[32]
We think of Columbus as the great discoverer of America; we do not remember that his actual life was one of disappointment and failure. Even his discovery of America was a disappointment; he was looking for India, and utterly failed of this. He made maps and sold them to support his old father. Poverty, contumely, indignities of all sorts, met him wherever he turned. His expectations were considered extravagant, his schemes futile; the theologians exposed him with texts out of the Bible; he wasted seven years waiting in vain for encouragement at the court of Spain. He applied unsuccessfully to the governments of Venice, Portugal, Genoa, France, England. Practical men said, "It can't be done. He is a visionary." Doctors of divinity said, "He is a heretic; he contradicts the Bible." Isabella, being a woman, and a woman of sentiment, wished to help him; but her confessor said no. We all know how he was compelled to put down mutiny in his crew, and how, after his discovery was made, he was rewarded with chains and imprisonment, how he died in neglect, poverty, and pain, and only was rewarded by a sumptuous funeral. His great hope, his profound convictions, were his only support and strength.
Diego Clemencin, a Spanish statesman and author of merit. Born at Murcia, 1765; died, 1834. From his "Elogio de la Reina Catolica, Isabella de Castilla" (1851).
Diego Clemencin, a Spanish statesman and author of merit. Born at Murcia, 1765; died, 1834. From his "Elogio de la Reina Catolica, Isabella de Castilla" (1851).
A man obscure, and but little known, followed at this time the court. Confounded in the crowd of unfortunate applicants, feeding his imagination in the corners of antechambers with the pompous project of discovering a world, melancholy and dejected in the midst of the general rejoicing, he beheld with indifference, and almost with contempt, the conclusion of a conquest which swelled all bosoms with jubilee, and seemed to have reached the utmost bounds of desire. That man was Christopher Columbus.
James David Coleman, Supreme President of the Catholic Knights of America, in an address to the members of that body, September 10, 1892.
James David Coleman, Supreme President of the Catholic Knights of America, in an address to the members of that body, September 10, 1892.
History tells that the anxious journey was begun by Columbus and his resolute band, approaching Holy Communion at Palos, on August 3, 1492; that its prosecution, through sacrifices and perils, amid harrowing uncertainties, was stamped with an exalted faith and unyielding trust in God, and that its marvelous and glorious consummation, in October, 1492, was acknowledged by the chivalrous knight,in tearful gratitude, on bended knee, at the foot of the cross of Christ, as the merciful gift of his omnipotent Master. Then it was that Christopher Columbus, the first Catholic knight of America, made the gracious Christian tribute of grateful recognition of Divine assistance by planting upon the soil of his newly discovered land the true emblem of Christianity and of man's redemption—the cross of our Savior. And then, reverently kneeling before the cross, and with eyes and hearts uplifted to their immolated God, this valiant band of Christian knights uttered from the virgin sod of America the first pious supplication that He would abundantly bless His gift to Columbus; and the unequaled grandeur of our civil structure of to-day tells the manifest response to those prayers of 400 years ago.
Robert Collyer, a distinguished pulpit orator. Born at Keighley, Yorkshire, December 8, 1823.
Robert Collyer, a distinguished pulpit orator. Born at Keighley, Yorkshire, December 8, 1823.
The successful men in the long fight with fortune are the cheerful men, or those, certainly, who find the fair background of faith and hope. Columbus, but for this, had never found our New World.
In the city of Colon, Department of Panama, Colombia, stands a statue to the memory of Columbus, of some artistic merit. The great Genoese is represented as encircling the neck of an Indian youth with his protecting arm, a representation somewhat similar to the pose of the statue in the plaza of the city of Santo Domingo. This statue was donated by the ex-Empress of the French, and on a woodentablet attached to the concrete pedestal the following inscription appears:
Statue deCHRISTOPHE COLOMBDonnée parL'Impératrice EugénieErigée à ColonPar Decret de la Legislature deColombieAu 29 Juin, 1866,Par les soins de la CompagnieUniverselle du Canal MaritimeDe PanamaLe 21 Fevrier, 1886.[33]Translation:Statue ofCHRISTOPHER COLUMBUSPresented byThe Empress EugénieErected in honor of ColumbusBy Decree of the Legislature ofColombiaThe 29th of June, 1866,Under the Supervision of the UniversalCompany of the Maritime CanalOf PanamaThe 21st of February, 1886.
Francis Bacon, Baron Verulam, Viscount St. Albans, commonly called Lord Bacon, is generally so called. Born in London January 22, 1561; died April 19, 1626.
Sir William Herschel, one of the greatest astronomers that any age or nation has produced, is generally so termed. Born at Hanover November 15, 1738; died August, 1822.
Cyrus W. Field was termed "the Columbus of modern times, who, by his cable, had moored the New World alongside of the Old," by the Rt. Hon. John Bright, in a debate in the British Parliament soon after the successful completion of the Atlantic cable.
Galileo, the illustrious Italian mathematician and natural philosopher, is so styled by Edward Everett (post). He was born at Pisa February 15, 1564; died near Florence in January, 1642.[34]
Hernando Columbus, son of Christopher. Born at Cordova, 1488; died at Valladolid, 1539.
Hernando Columbus, son of Christopher. Born at Cordova, 1488; died at Valladolid, 1539.
He was tall, well formed, muscular, and of an elevated and dignified demeanor. His visage was long, neither full nor meager; his complexion fair and freckled, and inclined to ruddy; his nose aquiline; his cheek bones were rather high, his eyes light gray, and apt to enkindle; his whole countenance had an air of authority. His hair, in his youthful days, was of a light color, but care and trouble, according to Las Casas, soon turned it gray, and at thirty years of age it was quite white. He was moderate and simple in diet and apparel, eloquent in discourse, engaging and affable with strangers, and his amiability and suavity in domestic life strongly attached his household to his person. His temper was naturally irritable, but he subduedit by the magnanimity of his spirits, comporting himself with a courteous and gentle gravity, and never indulging in any intemperance of language. Throughout his life he was noted for strict attention to the offices of religion, observing rigorously the fasts and ceremonies of the church; nor did his piety consist in mere forms, but partook of that lofty and solemn enthusiasm with which his whole character was strongly tinctured.
Kinahan Cornwallis. From his "Song of America and Columbus; or, The Story of the New World." New York, 1892. Published by theDaily Investigator.
Kinahan Cornwallis. From his "Song of America and Columbus; or, The Story of the New World." New York, 1892. Published by theDaily Investigator.
Hail! to this New World nation; hail!That to Columbus tribute pays;That glorifies his name, all hail,And crowns his memory with bays.Hail! to Columbia's mighty realm,Which all her valiant sons revere,And foemen ne'er can overwhelm.Well may the world its prowess fear.Hail! to this richly favored land,For which the patriot fathers fought.Forever may the Union stand,To crown the noble deeds they wrought.
Hail! East and West, and North and South,From Bunker Hill to Mexico;The Lakes to Mississippi's mouth,And the Sierras crowned with snow.Hail! to the wondrous works of man,From Maine to California's shores;From ocean they to ocean span,And over all the eagle soars.
Six sail were in the squadron he possessed,And these he felt the Lord of Hosts had blessed,For he was ever faithful to the cross,With which compared, all else was earthly dross.Southwestward toward the equinoctial lineHe steered his barks, for vast was his design.There, like a mirror, the Atlantic lay,White dolphins on its breast were seen to play,And lazily the vessels rose and fell,With flapping sails, upon the gentle swell;While panting crews beneath the torrid sunLost strength and spirits—felt themselves undone.Day after day the air a furnace seemed,And fervid rays upon them brightly beamed,The burning decks displayed their yawning seams,And from the rigging tar ran down in streams.—Ibid.
Rudolph Cronau, the eminent author and scientist of Leipsic, Germany, has contributed to the World's Fair his extensive collection of paintings, sketches, and photographs, representing scenes in the life of Columbus, and places visited by Columbus during his voyages to the New World. Doctor Cronau has spent a great part of his life in the study of early American history, and has published a work on the subject, based entirely upon his personal investigations.
An indentation of the coast of Watling's Island, in the Bahamas, is known to this day as Columbus' Haven.
STATUE OF COLUMBUS IN THE CITY OF COLON, DEPARTMENT OF PANAMA, COLOMBIA.STATUE OF COLUMBUS IN THE CITY OF COLON, DEPARTMENT OF PANAMA, COLOMBIA.The gift of the ex-Empress of the French.(See page109.)
In the caves of Bellamar, near Matanzas, Cuba, are sparkling columns of crystal 150 feet high; one is called the "Mantle of Columbus."
The Hon.William Eleroy Curtis, an American journalist, Secretary of the Bureau of the American Republics, Washington, D. C. Born at Akron, Ohio. From an article, "The Columbus Portraits," in theCosmopolitan Magazine, January, 1892.
The Hon.William Eleroy Curtis, an American journalist, Secretary of the Bureau of the American Republics, Washington, D. C. Born at Akron, Ohio. From an article, "The Columbus Portraits," in theCosmopolitan Magazine, January, 1892.
Although Columbus twice mentioned in his alleged will that he was a native of Genoa, a dozen places still demand the honor of being considered his birthplace, and two claim to possess his bones. Nothing is certain about his parentage, and his age is the subject of dispute. The stories of his boyhood adventures are mythical, and his education at the University of Pavia is denied.
The same doubt attends the various portraits that pretend to represent his features. The most reliable authorities—and the subject has been under discussion for two centuries—agree that there is no tangible evidence to prove that the face of Columbus was ever painted or sketched or graven, during his life. His portrait has been painted, like that of the Madonna and those of the saints, by many famous artists, each dependent upon verbal descriptions of his appearance by contemporaneous writers, and each conveying to the canvas his own conception of what the great seaman's face must have been; but it may not be said that any of the portraits are genuine, and it is believed that all of them are more or less fanciful.
It must be considered that the art of painting portraits was in its infancy when Columbus lived. The honor was reserved for kings and queens and other dignitaries, and Columbus was regarded as an importunate adventurer,who at the close of his first voyage enjoyed a brief triumph, but from the termination of his second voyage was the victim of envy and misrepresentation to the close of his life. He was derided and condemned, was brought in chains like a common felon from the continent he had discovered, and for nearly two hundred years his descendants contested in the courts for the dignities and emoluments he demanded of the crown of Spain before undertaking what was then the most perilous and uncertain of adventures. Even the glory of giving his name to the lands he discovered was transferred to another—a man who followed in his track; and it is not strange, under such circumstances, that the artists of Spain did not leave the religious subjects upon which they were engaged to paint the portrait of one who said of himself that he was a beggar "without a penny to buy food."
The Hon.William Eleroy Curtis, in an able article in theChautauquan Magazine, September, 1892.
The Hon.William Eleroy Curtis, in an able article in theChautauquan Magazine, September, 1892.
Whether the meager results of recent investigation are more reliable than the testimony of earlier pens is a serious question, and the sympathetic and generous reader will challenge the right of modern historians to destroy and reject traditions to which centuries have paid reverence. The failure to supply evidence in place of that which has been discarded is of itself sufficient to impair faith in the modern creation, and simply demonstrates the fallacy of the theory that what can not be proven did not exist. If the same analysis to which the career of Columbus has been subjected should be applied to every character in sacred and secular history, there would be little left among the world's great heroes to admire. So we ask permission to retain the old ideal, and remember the discoverer of our hemisphere as a man of human weaknesses but of stern purpose, inflexible will, undaunted courage, patience, and professional theories most of which modern science has demonstrated to be true.
Giulio Dati, a Florentine poet. Born, 1560; died about 1630.
Giulio Dati, a Florentine poet. Born, 1560; died about 1630.
A lengthy poem, inottava rima(founded upon the first letter of Columbus announcing his success), was composed in 1493, by Giulio Dati, the famous Florentine poet, and was sung in the streets of that city to publish the discovery of the New World. The full Italian text is to be found in R. H. Major's "Select Letters of Christopher Columbus," Hakluyt Society, 1871.
Jean François Casimir Delavigne, a popular French poet and dramatist. Born at Havre, April 4, 1793; died at Lyons, December, 1843.
Jean François Casimir Delavigne, a popular French poet and dramatist. Born at Havre, April 4, 1793; died at Lyons, December, 1843.
On the deck stood Columbus; the ocean's expanse,Untried and unlimited, swept by his glance."Back to Spain!" cry his men; "put the vessel about!We venture no farther through danger and doubt.""Three days, and I give you a world," he replied;"Bear up, my brave comrades—three days shall decide."He sails—but no token of land is in sight;He sails—but the day shows no more than the night;On, onward he sails, while in vain o'er the leeThe lead is plunged down through a fathomless sea.The second day's past, and Columbus is sleeping,While mutiny near him its vigil is keeping."Shall he perish?" "Ay, death!" is the barbarous cry."He must triumph to-morrow, or, perjured, must die!"Ungrateful and blind! shall the world-linking sea,He traced, for the future his sepulcher be?Shall that sea, on the morrow, with pitiless waves,Fling his corse on that shore which his patient eye craves?The corse of a humble adventurer, then.One day later—Columbus, the first among men.But, hush! he is dreaming! A veil on the main,At the distant horizon, is parted in twain;And now on his dreaming eye—rapturous sight—Fresh bursts the New World from the darkness of night.O vision of glory! how dazzling it seems;How glistens the verdure! how sparkle the streams!How blue the far mountains! how glad the green isles!And the earth and the ocean, how dimpled with smiles!"Joy! joy!" cries Columbus, "this region is mine!"Ah, not e'en its name, wondrous dreamer, is thine.
The Rev.B. F. De Costa, D. D., a well-known New York divine and social reformer of the present day. Founder of the White Cross Society.
The Rev.B. F. De Costa, D. D., a well-known New York divine and social reformer of the present day. Founder of the White Cross Society.
Prof. Rafri, in "Antiquitates Americanæ," gives notices of numerous Icelandic voyages to American and other lands of the West. The existence of a great country southwest of Greenland is referred to, not as a matter of speculation merely, but as something perfectly well known. Let us remember that in vindicating the Northmen we honor those who not only give us the first knowledge possessed of the American continent, but to whom we are indebted besides for much that we esteem valuable.
Chauncey M. Depew, one of the leading American orators of the nineteenth century. From an oration on "Columbus and the Exposition," delivered in Chicago in 1890.
Chauncey M. Depew, one of the leading American orators of the nineteenth century. From an oration on "Columbus and the Exposition," delivered in Chicago in 1890.
It is not sacrilege to say that the two events to which civilization to-day owes its advanced position are the introduction of Christianity and the discovery of America.
When Columbus sailed from Palos, types had been discovered, but church and state held intelligence by the throat.
Sustained enthusiasm has been the motor of every movement in the progress of mankind.
Genius, pluck, endurance, and faith can be resisted by neither kings nor cabinets.
Columbus stands deservedly at the head of that most useful band of men—the heroic cranks in history.
The persistent enthusiast whom one generation despises as a lunatic with one idea, succeeding ones often worship as a benefactor.
This whole country is ripe and ready for the inspection of the world.
Aubrey Thomas de Vere, an English poet and political writer. Born, 1814. In a sonnet, "Genoa."
Aubrey Thomas de Vere, an English poet and political writer. Born, 1814. In a sonnet, "Genoa."
Whose prow descended first the Hesperian Sea,And gave our world her mate beyond the brine,Was nurtured, whilst an infant, at thy knee.
The crimson sun was sinking down to rest,Pavilioned on the cloudy verge of heaven;And ocean, on her gently heaving breast,Caught and flashed back the varying tints of even;When, on a fragment from the tall cliff riven,With folded arms, and doubtful thoughts opprest,Columbus sat, till sudden hope was given—A ray of gladness shooting from the West.Oh, what a glorious vision for mankindThen dawned upon the twilight of his mind;Thoughts shadowy still, but indistinctly grand.There stood his genie, face to face, and signed(So legends tell) far seaward with her hand,Till a new world sprang up, and bloomed beneath her wand.
He was a man whom danger could not daunt,Nor sophistry perplex, nor pain subdue;A stoic, reckless of the world's vain taunt,And steeled the path of honor to pursue.So, when by all deserted, still he knewHow best to soothe the heart-sick, or confrontSedition; schooled with equal eye to viewThe frowns of grief and the base pangs of want.But when he saw that promised land ariseIn all its rare and beautiful varieties,Lovelier than fondest fancy ever trod,Then softening nature melted in his eyes;He knew his fame was full, and blessed his God,And fell upon his face and kissed the virgin sod!—Ibid.
The Drake Fountain, Chicago, presented to the city by Mr. John B. Drake, a prominent and respected citizen, is to occupy a space between the city hall and the court house buildings, on the Washington Street frontage. Themonument is to be Gothic in style, and the base will be composed of granite from Baveno, Italy. The design includes a pedestal, on the front of which will be placed a bronze statue of Christopher Columbus, seven feet high, which is to be cast in the royal foundry at Rome. The statue will be the production of an American artist of reputation, Mr. R. H. Park of Chicago. The fountain is to be provided with an ice-chamber capable of holding two tons of ice, and is to be surrounded with a water-pipe containing ten faucets, each supplied with a bronze cup. The entire cost will be $15,000. Mr. Drake's generous gift to Chicago is to be ready for public use in 1892, and it will, therefore, be happily commemorative of the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus. The inscription on the fountain reads: "Ice-water drinking fountain presented to the City of Chicago by John B. Drake 1892." At the feet of the statue of Columbus, who is represented as a student of geography in his youth at the University of Pavia, is inscribed, "Christopher Columbus, 1492-1892."
The fountain is a very handsome piece of bronze art work, and Commissioner Aldrich has decided to place it in a conspicuous place, being none other than the area between the court house and the city hall, facing Washington Street. This central and accessible spot of public ground has been an unsightly stabling place for horses ever since the court house was built. It will now be sodded, flower-beds will be laid out, and macadamized walks will surround the Drake Fountain. The new feature will be a relief to weary eyes, and an ornament to Washington Street and the center of the city.
The red granite base for the fountain has been received at the custom house. It was made in Turin, Italy, and cost $3,300. Under the law, the stone came in duty free, as it is intended as a gift to the municipality.
John William Draper, a celebrated American chemist and scientist. Born near Liverpool, England, 1811; died January 4, 1882. From his "Intellectual Development of Europe," 1876. By permission of Messrs. Harper & Brothers, Publishers, New York.
John William Draper, a celebrated American chemist and scientist. Born near Liverpool, England, 1811; died January 4, 1882. From his "Intellectual Development of Europe," 1876. By permission of Messrs. Harper & Brothers, Publishers, New York.
Columbus appears to have formed his theory that the East Indies could be reached by sailing to the west about A. D. 1474. He was at that time in correspondence with Toscanelli, the Florentine astronomer, who held the same doctrine, and who sent him a map or chart constructed on the travels of Marco Polo. He offered his services first to his native city, then to Portugal, then to Spain, and, through his brother, to England; his chief inducement, in each instance, being that the riches of India might be thus secured. In Lisbon he had married. While he lay sick near Belem, an unknown voice whispered to him in a dream, "God will cause thy name to be wonderfully resounded through the earth, and will give thee the keys of the gates of the ocean which are closed with strong chains." The death of his wife appears to have broken the last link which held him to Portugal, where he had been since 1470. One evening, in the autumn of 1485, a man of majestic presence, pale, careworn, and, though in the meridian of life, with silver hair, leading a little boy by the hand, asked alms at the gate of the Franciscan convent near Palos—not for himself, but only a little bread and water for his child. This was that Columbus destined to give to Europe a new world.
The Right Rev.Anthony Durier, Bishop of Natchitoches, La., in a circular letter to the clergy and laity of the diocese, printed in the New OrleansMorning Star, September 10, 1892.
The Right Rev.Anthony Durier, Bishop of Natchitoches, La., in a circular letter to the clergy and laity of the diocese, printed in the New OrleansMorning Star, September 10, 1892.
We cherish the memory of the illustrious sailor, also of the lady and of the monk who were providentialinstruments in opening a new world to religion and civilization.
HEAD OF COLUMBUS.HEAD OF COLUMBUS.Designed by H. H. Zearing of Chicago.
Honor to the sailor, Christopher Columbus, the Christ-bearing dove, as his name tells, gentle as a dove of hallowed memory as Christ-bearer. In fact, he brought Christ to the New World. Look back at that sailor, 400 years ago, on bended knees, with hands uplifted in prayer, on the shores of Guanahani, first to invoke the name of Jesus in the New World; in fact, as in name, behold the Christ-bearing dove. Columbus was a knight of the cross, with his good cross-hilted sword, blessed by the church. The first aim and ambition of a knight of the cross, at that time, was to plant the cross in the midst of heathen nations, and to have them brought from "the region of the shadow of death" into the life-giving bosom of Mother Church.
Listen to the prayer of Columbus, as he brings his lips to, and kneels on, the blessed land he has discovered, that historic prayer which he had prepared long in advance, and which all Catholic discoverers repeated after him: "O Lord God, eternal and omnipotent, who by Thy divine word hast created the heavens, the earth, and the sea! Blessed and glorified be thy name and praised Thy majesty, who hast deigned by me, thy humble servant, to have that sacred name made known and preached in this other part of the world."
Behold the true knight of the cross, with cross-hilted sword in hand, the name of Jesus on his lips, the glory of Jesus in his heart. He does not say a word of the glory which, from the discovery, is bound to accrue to the name of Spain and to his own name; every word is directed to, and asking for, the glory of the name of Jesus.
The great discoverer has knelt down, kissed the ground, and said his prayer; now, look at that Catholic Spanishsailor standing up, in commanding dignity, and planting his Catholic cross and his Spanish flag on the discovered land; what does it mean? It means—the Spanish flag in America for a time, and the Catholic cross in America forever.
Hail, flag of the discoverer! Spanish flag, the flag of the noble and the daring. That Spanish flag came here first, had its glorious day, and still in glory went back. Hail, Catholic cross! the cross of the discoverer. That cross is not to go back, as the Spanish flag; no, not even in glory. About that cross, only two simple words, and that settles it; that Catholic cross is here to stay. Hail, American flag! star-spangled banner; the banner of the brave and of the free. That one, our own flag, came long after the Spanish flag, but we trust came to stay as long as the Catholic cross—until doom's-day.
Honor to the lady, Queen Isabella the Catholic. Among all illustrious women, Isabella alone has been graced with the title of "the Catholic,"—a peerless title! And truly did she deserve the peerless title, the lady who threw heart and soul, and, over and above, her gold, in the discovery by which, out of the spiritual domains of the Catholic church, the sun sets no more; the lady who paved the way over the bounding sea to the great discoverer. Bright and energetic lady! She at once understood Columbus and stood resolute, ready to pave him the way even with her jewels. Listen to her words: "I undertake the enterprise for my own crown of Castille, and I will pledge my jewels to raise the necessary funds."
The generous lady had not to pledge her jewels; yet her gold was freely spent, lavished on the expedition; and she stood by Columbus, in storm and sunshine, as long as she lived. Isabella stood by Columbus, in his success, with winsome gentleness, keeping up his daring spirit of enterprise; and, in his reverses, with the balm of unwavering devotion healing his bruised, bleeding heart. Isabella stood by Columbus, as a mother by her son, ever, ever true to her heroic son.
Honor to the humble monk, John Perez, Father John, as he was called in his convent. That monk whose name will live as long as the names of Columbus and Isabella; that monk, great by his learning and still better by his heart; that humble, plain man inspired the sailor with perseverance indomitable, the lady with generosity unlimited, and sustained in both sailor and lady that will power and mount-removing faith the result of which was to give "to the Spanish King innumerable countries and to God innumerable souls." As the Spanish poet, Lope de Vega, beautifully puts it:
Al Rey infinitas tierras,Y á Dios infinitas almas.
It is the Spanish throne which backed Columbus; but, mind! that monk was "the power behind the throne."
We Louisianians live, may be, in the fairest part of the New World discovered by Columbus. When Chevalier La Salle had explored the land, he gave it the beautiful name of Louisiana, and he wrote to his king, Louis XIV., these words: "The land we have explored and named Louisiana, after your Majesty's name, is a paradise, the Eden of the New World." Thanks be to God who has cast our lot in this paradise, the Eden of the New World, fair Louisiana! Let us honor and ever cherish the memory of the hero who led the way and opened this country to our forefathers. Louisiana was never blessed with the footprints of Columbus, yet by him it was opened to the onward march of the Christian nations.
To the great discoverer, Christopher Columbus, the gratitude of Louisiana, the Eden of the New World.
Rev. L. A. Duttoof Jackson, Miss., in an article, "Columbus in Portugal," in theCatholic World, April, 1892.
Rev. L. A. Duttoof Jackson, Miss., in an article, "Columbus in Portugal," in theCatholic World, April, 1892.
Columbus in 1492, accompanied by a motley crew of sailors of different nationalities, crossed the Atlantic and discovered America. Hence the glory of that event, second only in importance to the incarnation of Christ, is attributed very generally solely to him. As reflex lights of that glory, history mentions the names of Queen Isabella, of the Pinzon brothers, the friar Juan Perez. There is another name that should be placed at head of the list. That is, Bartolomeo Columbus, the brother of Christopher. From the beginning there existed a partnership between the two in the mighty undertaking; the effect of a common conviction that the land of spices, Cipango and Cathay, the East, could be reached by traveling west. Both of them spent the best years of their life in privation, hardship, and poverty, at times the laughing stock of the courts of Europe, in humbly begging from monarchies and republics the ships necessary to undertake their voyage. While Christopher patiently waited in the antechambers of the Catholic monarchs of Spain, Bartolomeo, map in hand, explained to Henry VII. of England the rotundity of the earth, and the feasibility of traveling to the antipodes. Having failed in his mission to the English king, he passed to France to ask of her what had been refused by Portugal, Spain, Venice, England, and Genoa. While he was there, Columbus, who had no means of communicating with him, sailed from Palos. Had there been, as now, a system of international mails, Bartolomeo would now share with his brother the title of Discoverer of America. Las Casas represents him as little inferior to Christopher in the art of navigation, and as a writer and in things pertaining to cartography as his superior. Gallo, the earliest biographer ofColumbus, and writing during his lifetime, has told us that Bartolomeo settled in Lisbon, and there made a living by drawing mariners' charts. Giustiniani, another countryman of Columbus, says in his polyglot Psalter, published in 1537, that Christopher learned cartography from his brother Bartolomeo, who had learned it himself in Lisbon. But what may appear more surprising is the plain statement of Gallo that Bartolomeo was the first to conceive the idea of reaching the East by way of the West, by a transatlantic voyage, and that he communicated it to his brother, who was more experienced than himself in nautical affairs.
Charles H. Eden, English historical writer and traveler. From "The West Indies."
Charles H. Eden, English historical writer and traveler. From "The West Indies."
Nearly four centuries ago, in the year 1492, before the southern point of the great African continent had been doubled, and when the barbaric splendor of Cathay and the wealth of Hindustan were only known to Europeans through the narratives of Marco Polo or Sir John Mandeville—early on the morning of Friday, October 12th, a man stood bareheaded on the deck of a caravel and watched the rising sun lighting up the luxuriant tropical vegetation of a level and beautiful island toward which the vessel was gently speeding her way. Three-and-thirty days had elapsed since the last known point of the Old World, the Island of Ferrol, had faded away over the high poop of his vessel; eventful weeks, during which he had to contend against the natural fears of the ignorant and superstitious men by whom he was surrounded, and by the stratagem of a double reckoning, together with promises of future wealth, to allay the murmuring which threatened to frustrate the project that for so many years had been nearest his heart. Never, in the darkest hour, did the courageof that man quail or his soul admit a single doubt of success. When the terrified mariners remarked with awe that the needle deviated from the pole star, their intrepid Admiral, by an ingenious theory of his own, explained the cause of the phenomenon and soothed the alarm that had arisen. When the steady trade-winds were reached, and the vessels flew rapidly for days toward the west, the commander hailed as a godsend the mysterious breeze that his followers regarded with awe as imposing an insuperable barrier to their return to sunny Spain. When the prow of the caravel was impeded, and her way deadened by the drifting network of the Sargasso Sea, the leader saw therein only assured indications of land, and resolutely shut his ears against those prophets who foresaw evil in every incident.
Now his hopes were fulfilled, the yearnings of a lifetime realized. During the night a light had been seen, and at 2 o'clock in the morning land became, beyond all doubt, visible. Then the three little vessels laid to, and with the earliest streak of dawn made sail toward the coast. A man stood bareheaded on the deck of the leading caravel and feasted his eyes upon the wooded shore; the man was Christopher Columbus, the land he gazed on the "West Indies."
San Salvador, or Watling's Island, is about twelve miles in length by six in breadth, having its interior largely cut up by salt-water lagoons, separated from each other by low woody hills. Being one of the most fertile of the group, it maintains nearly 2,000 inhabitants, who are scattered about over its surface. Peculiar interest will always attach itself to this spot as being the first land on which the discoverer of the New World set foot.—Ibid.
Xerif Al Edrisi, surnamed "The Nubian," an eminent Arabian geographer. Born at Ceuta, Africa, about 1100. In "A Description of Spain" (Conde's Spanish translation, Madrid, 1799). He wrote a celebrated treatise of geography, and made a silver terrestrial globe for Roger II., King of Sicily, at whose court he lived.
Xerif Al Edrisi, surnamed "The Nubian," an eminent Arabian geographer. Born at Ceuta, Africa, about 1100. In "A Description of Spain" (Conde's Spanish translation, Madrid, 1799). He wrote a celebrated treatise of geography, and made a silver terrestrial globe for Roger II., King of Sicily, at whose court he lived.
The ocean encircles the ultimate bounds of the inhabited earth, and all beyond it is unknown. No one has been able to verify anything concerning it, on account of its difficult and perilous navigation, its great obscurity, its profound depth, and frequent tempests; through fear of its mighty fishes and its haughty winds; yet there are many islands in it, some peopled, others uninhabited. There is no mariner who dares to enter into its deep waters; or, if any have done so, they have merely kept along its coasts, fearful of departing from them. The waves of this ocean, although they roll as high as mountains, yet maintain themselves without breaking, for if they broke it would be impossible for ship to plow them.
Prof.Maurice Francis Egan. From an article, "Columbus the Christ-Bearer," in the New YorkIndependent, June 2, 1892.
Prof.Maurice Francis Egan. From an article, "Columbus the Christ-Bearer," in the New YorkIndependent, June 2, 1892.
The caravels equipped at Palos were so unseaworthy, judged by the dangers of the Atlantic, that no crew in our time would have trusted in them. The people of Palos disliked this foreigner, Columbus. No man of Palos, except the Pinzons, ancient mariners, sympathized with him in his hopes. The populace overrated the risks of the voyage; the court, fortunately for Columbus, underrated them. The Admiral's own ships and his crew were not such as to inspire confidence. His friends, the friars, had somewhat calmed the popular feeling against the expedition; but ungrateful Palos never approved of it until it made her famous.
Samuel R. Elliott, in theCentury Magazine, September, 1892.
Samuel R. Elliott, in theCentury Magazine, September, 1892.
You have no heart? Ah, when the GenoeseBefore Spain's monarchs his great voyage planned,Small faith had they in worlds beyond the seas—AndyourColumbus yet may come to land!
Ralph Waldo Emerson, the well-known American essayist, poet, and speculative philosopher. Born in Boston, May 25, 1803; died at Concord, April 27, 1882. From his essay on "Success," inSociety and Solitude. Copyright, by Messrs. Houghton, Mifflin & Co., publishers, Boston, and with their permission.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, the well-known American essayist, poet, and speculative philosopher. Born in Boston, May 25, 1803; died at Concord, April 27, 1882. From his essay on "Success," inSociety and Solitude. Copyright, by Messrs. Houghton, Mifflin & Co., publishers, Boston, and with their permission.
Columbus at Veragua found plenty of gold; but, leaving the coast, the ship full of one hundred and fifty skillful seamen, some of them old pilots, and with too much experience of their craft and treachery to him, the wise Admiral kept his private record of his homeward path. And when he reached Spain, he told the King and Queen, "That they may ask all the pilots who came with him, Where is Veragua? Let them answer and say, if they know, where Veragua lies. I assert that they can give no other account than that they went to lands where there was abundance of gold, but they do not know the way to return thither, but would be obliged to go on a voyage of discovery as much as if they had never been there before. There is a mode of reckoning," he proudly adds, "derived from astronomy, which is sure and safe to any who understands it."