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32X

PUBLIC ARCHIVES OF CANADA

No.

NOVA SCOTIA BRANCH

ai'lu Oouagco to !^iucnta.

A I'AI'KI-! KK\I> liKldKK, IMK

'^IhoSc 3slaiiJ) ^^!i!sto^•ica^ -S)ocicty

I'.V

lAMHS PHIWHV BAXTHK, A. M,

l'K<»\ IDKNCK :

I'KINTKI) I'OK IHi: SOCIKTV.

1889.

X ■■ J ^

FRKSS OF C. H. BUFFFNOTON,
TAUNTON, MASS,

X^-y

NOTE FROM THE SOCIETY.

This valuable inuuuf^mpli un Ainorican history wuk ren<l l>y
Ml'. BiixttM', at a meeting of the Rho<l« Island IliHtoricnl So-
ciuty. held in its Cabinet, March U. 1888. when its author, a
corresponding member of the Society, received, on motion of the
Hon. Royal C. Taft seconded by the Kev. S. L. Caldwell, D. I).,
a unanimous vote of thanks for his elaborate and scholarly
paper. The branch of the subject i^Iatin^ to the voyages of
the Northmen awakened much interest among members of the Society
half a century ago, and the general interest therein is illustrated by
works published by the Koyal !S(K'iety of Northern Antiquaries at Copen-
hagen, which, though on the shelves of our library, are practically
beyond the reach of most of our members, being in a foreign language
with which they are not familiar.

Introduction, r

The fi)ll()\vin}^ account of luirly Voyaj^cs to America was
prepared in order to place before an audience in a somewhat
l)o|)ular form, a subject recpiirinj; for its proper exposition,
much lar<^er space and more critical treatment.

This statement should disarm the criticism of scholars,
and explain to those who have made an exhaustive study of
the various |)hases of the subject, and to whom nothing that
I am able to present can be novel, the raison tVctrc of this
publication, made by friends, who ha\e thought it of sufficient
interest to he put in type.

Novelty in the method of identifying- places described in
the .Sa^as is disclaimed, and the casual reader is remin.led
that this branch of the subject is purely conjectural; at the
same time, the accuracy with which the Sagas describe local-
ities about and in the vicinity of Rhode Island, Nantucket,
Cape Cod and Massachusetts Hay, is so remarkable as to be
entitled to nn)st careful consideration.

J.AMKS PUINNKV Ba.XTKK.

I'ortland, Auj^ust, 18S9.

EARLY VOYAGES TO AMERICA.

RKAIi HKK'lRK I'MK
RnoDK Isi.AM) UlSTOKIC.M. SnclKTV,

JaMKS ruiNNKY BaXIKK.

TIk' history «)f this Continent prior to its discovery by
luiroiK-ans is veiled in mystery. There are many dim al-
lusions of voyages made to it by adventurers, to be found in
ancient writings, but nothing of a strictly definite nature
prior to the fifteenth century ; for hitherto, the great ocean
which beat upon the western shores of lunope, bore appro-
priately the title of the Sea of Darkness, on account of the
absence of knowledge respecting it by the civilized World.

Speculations too chimerical to be profitably considered,
have been indulged in by fanciful" writers respecting the
colonization of our Continent. Athanasias Kircher has given
the Kgyptians the credit of colonizing it,^ basing his argu-
ment upon the religious worship found here ; while Kdward
Brerewood contends upon linguistic grounds, that the Tartars
are entitled to that credit ;- and Marc Lescarbot, with a faith

KIIOIH-: ISLAND MISTOKICAI. SOCIKTV.

almost enviable, strives to show, that the Canaanites. driven

out by Joshua, emigrated hither ; that Nt»ah was a native of
this country, and was borne back to his ancestral home by

the flood."

The first really serious attempt, however, to trace j;e«)-
graphically a voyage to this Continent, has been made by
I)e (iuignes,* who, basing; his arguments ufxHi the historian
Li Yen, contends that the Chinese reached our western
shores from Asia in the seventh century. This view has
been considered of sufficient importance to engage the atten-
tion of several able writers, who have op|>osed it with vary-
ing degrees of ability.'' That this Continent was inhabited in
prehistoric times by a race of men of a very different type
from the red men whom our forefathers found here is evi-
dent from the remarkable remains which are found so
abundantly throughout the We.st.

Of these earth works particularly, many are of such
remarkable extent as to strike the beholder with
wonder. Those at Marietta, in Ohio, cover an area
of three - fourths of a mile in length by half a mile
in breadth, and consist of tw(» immense squares, one
containing fifty, and the other twentv-seven acres, the
walls of the larger being nearly six feet in height
and more than twenty feet broad at the base. Near by is
an elliptical .structure thirty-five feet high ench>sed by a cir-
cular wall. Within the larger enclosure are four truncated
pyramids ; three being approached by graded passage ways
to their summits, and from the south wall runs a graded way
to the Muskingum valley six hundred feet in length by over

KAKI.V VOVAdKS V(t XMIKK A.

one- hiimlivd ami fifty feet in breadth. So thick wore similar
w«»rks where the City of St. l.oiiis now stands that it was
called Mound City. A jjroiii) between Alton and St. Louis
contained as many as .si.\ty structures." •

One of the.se works in the form of a parallelogram,
ninety feet in heij^ht, with sides at the base re.si>ectively .seven
hundred and five hundred feet in lenj;th, and a terrace on the
Southwest one hundred and sixty by three hundred feet, was
reached by a j^raded way, the summit beinj; truncated and
afifiirdinj; a platform two hundred by four hundred and fifty
feet. Upon this platform was a small mound about ten feet
hij;h, containin<; human bone.s, va.ses, and stone implements.

It is sup|)osed that a temple once .stood on the platform,
and that the rites of the priests could be beheld by the mul-
titudes below. In many of the mounds have been found cists
covered with slabs of limestone, enclosing skeletons, and often
at the head of the skeletons beautiful sjjecimens of jiottery,
statuettes, urns and drinkinj; vessels.

Isle Royal and the Northern shores of Lake Superior
are the Northwestern limits where these works of a lost
people are found. A recent writer says, ^that "the Mound
builders were in the distinctive character of their structures,
as marked a people as the Pelasgi, whose prehistoric works
can yet be traced throuj;hout (Greece and Italy. These
Pelasgi were the Wall Builders, for wherever they went
they threw up fortifications made of polygonal blocks. So
we can trace the Mound builders by their structures from

RHODK ISLAND M ISTOKIC.M. SOCIKTV.

the shores of the threat hikes to the milder re.y;ions of the
(iiilf of Mexico and Central America."

Hesides articles of potter)- often of elegant desi<;ns,
there are found in the mounds remains of textile fabrics.
The Indians found here by the earl)' voyagers did not i)ossess
such articles, nor were they capable of erecting such works ;
but if any farther proofs were wantinjjj that they were not the
builders of these mounds, it would be found in the character
of the skulls found in them, which cranioloi^ists declare are
entirely uidike those of the red men ; but whence these peo-
ple came, or to what race the\' be]on<;"ed. is at present
unkn(twn.

in attemj)t to unravel these m)steries is not our pres-
ent purpose, nor to indulge in speculations regarding them,
which have already been too abundant. We have called at-
tention briefl)' to the claims of Kircher, Hrerewood, Lescar-
bot, and De (iuignes. respecting the first voyagers hither
from the eastern hemisphere, and we now come to another
claim in favor of a Scandinavian occupation of our eastern
shores as early as the latter i)art of the tenth century.

The first allusion to this subject was made in the eccle-
siastical history of Adam von Hremen, written j)revious to
the year 107^.** I^Larly in the thirteenth century the
Chronicles of the Kings of Norway were written,'' when
it was again alluded to. it was not, however, until 1705,
that Thormodus Torfeus treated the subject particu-
larly ;'** yet it failed to attract attention until about fifty
years ago,. when historical .students began to .study it.

i:.\Ki,\ V()VA(;i:s ro amkkica.

About this time the Royal Society of Northern Anti-
quaries bej^an its investigations of old manuscripts which
might throw li,i;ht upon history and antiquities. Amonj^
these manuscripts were certain Saj^^as containing accounts
of voyages made to a western land, called Vinland.

The Saga grew out of a desire to perpetuate the memory
of great achievements, and was at first oral. That they
might run smoothly and be more readily committed to mem-
ory, many were turned into poetic measure by Saga-rnen.

These Saga-men were the literati of their time, and
were trained to relate accurately and in an attractive manner,
the traditional history of the past. The events related in
the Sagas with which we have to do, took place mostly dur-
ing the early part of the eleventh century ; but written lan-
guage had not been introduced into Iceland until about the
middle of the twelfth century, or about a century and a half
after these events took place. It was so difficult, however,
to obtain jjrepared skin.s, and the jirocess of writing was so
slow and costly, that not many Sagas were written out until
the thirteenth century. These written Sagas were subse-
quently collected and placed in the libraries of Copenhagen
and Stockholm.

A great variety of subjects are treated in these Sagas,
which comprise poems, stories, memoirs and historical narra-
tives ; but it is as easy to distinguish history from fiction in
tiicse ancient works as it is in modern ones.

Of course, in the Sagas occasionally occur statements of
a somewhat marvelous nature, but not more so than in the

KIIODK ISLAM) lllsroKILAL SOCIKIV,

accounts of voyajjes of a much later date, which are regarded as
history ; indeed, for the most part, the narratives are given in
such a simple and natural manner, and with such an appar-
ent regard for strict accuracy, as to commend themselves
to the reader. The most minute incidents are carefully
related, and events hased upon mere hearsay are given as
such."

At first the claims of the Swedish Antiquaries met with
vigorous opposition. Their opponents contended in some
cases, that there should have been found well defined re-
mains of a Scandinavian occupation if there had been one,
and even apjjoaled to the works of the mound builders as ex-
amples to show that the inhabitants of a country, if they
become extinct, leave behind them works to bear witness to
their former existence.

This argument, however, lacked force, since the Scan-
dinavians were not in the habit of building earth works,
— the most permanent under certain conditions of the works
of man, — and as it is not claimed that they ever made any
considerable settlements here, it is hardly to be supposed,
that such structures as they would have been likely to erect,
would survive the destroying energy of three centuries, amid
a barbarous and destructive people.

We know that the settlement at the mouth of the
Sagadahoc by the Popham Colonists, which consisted of a
fort and fifty habitations, wholly disappeared within a cen-
tury ; as well as Christopher Levet's strong house in Port-
land Harbor, and other similar .structures in New England.

'■'J

EAKI.V VOVACiES TO AMERICA.

I I

T^arded as
^iven in
in appar-
eni selves
carefully

<(iven as

met with
in some
■fined re-
een one,
rs as ex-
', if they
itness to

le Scan-
works,
." works
ade any
pposed,

erect,
s, amid

1 of the
led of a

a cen-
h Port-

igland.

Hut the enthusiastic advocates of a Scandinavian
occupancy of the American Continent were looking
about them for such evidences as their opponents
required to sati''.fy their doubt, and the first object which
engaged their attention was the old tower at Newport,

"My Stone built WiiuliiiiU"— in will of (fov. Arnold, Newixut, R. I.

which so well represents the mode of building by the Norse
people of about the twelfth century, and concerning the origin
of which no satisfactory explanation existed until recently ;

KIIODI". ISLAM) IIISTOKKAI. SOCIIllV,

; I

I i

but we now know that it was built by (iovornor Henedict
Arnolcl, about the year 1676,'-' aiul was copied from a
similar structure still standing; in his native '.own in luigland.

-Mill at the early home of (tov. Keiiedict Arnohl, Cliesteitmi, Kii(;lan<l.

This was followed by the discovery, near VnW River^
of the skeleton of a man, who had apparently been
buried in armor. A part of the breast-plate found with-
this skeleton was at once forwarded for analysis to
Herzelius, the noted Swedish chemist. Herzelius pro-

KAKi.v V()V.\<ii:s ro amkkica.

Benedict
d from a
1 England.

Klan<l.

ill Riveiv
itly been
nmd with-
lalysis to
el ills pro-

nounced it to be similar 10 Northern armor of the tenth
century, and his analysis showed it to be composed
of zinc, copper, lead, tin and iron, a composition nearly
identical with that of the bronze of that period.

Attention was also directed to the body which the Pil-
grims dug up shortly after their landing, which is spoken of
by Bradford, and is also to be found in Mourts' Relation.'^

"The next morning we followed certain beaten pathes
and tracts of the Indians into the woods, — as we came into
the ])laine ground we found a place like a grave, but it was
much bigger and longer than any we had yet seen. It was
also covered with boards, so as we mused what it should be,
and resolved to digge it up. where we found, first a Matt and
under that a faire Bow, and then another Matt, and under
that a boord about three (juarters long, finely carved and
paynted, with three tynes or brooches on the top like a
Crowne ; also, between the Matts we found Boules, Trayes,
Dishes and such like Trinkets ; at length we came to a faire
new Matt, and under that two bundles, the one bigger, the
other lesse. We opened the greater and found in it a great
quantity of fine and perfect red Powder, and in it the bones
and skull of a man. The skull had fine yellow haire still on
it, and some of the flesh was consumed ; there was bound
up with it a knife, a pack needle and two or three old irt)n
things. .

It was bound up in a saylers canvas casake, and a jwyre
of cloth breeches ; the red powder was a kind of I^mbaul-
ment, and yeelded a .strong but no offensive smell : It was
as fine as any flower. We opened the lesse bundle likewise,

KIIMIDK ISI.A.M* HISTOKICAI. SOCIKTV.

I >:

and found <»f the same jxjwdcr in it. and the bones and head
of a little childe, about the le«i<(.s and other parts of it was
bound strings, and bracelets '. f fine white Heads ; there was
also by it. a little b<»w, about three quarters lon^;, and some
other odd knackes ; we brou<jht sundry of the prettiest
thinj^s away with us, and coveretl the corjjs up a<;aine.

There was varietie of opinions anionji^st us about the
embalmed person ; some thoujjjht it was an Indian Lord or
Kin<j ; others sayd. the Indians have all blacke hayre, and
never any was seene with browne or yellow hayre ; some
thouj^ht it was a Christian of some special note, which had
dyed amongst them, and they thus buried him to honor him."

Those who claimed that this was the bodv of a Norse-
man called attentitm to the yellow hair, which so much ex-
cited the wonder of the Pilgrims, and which is the distin-
guishing mark of the Scandinavian people, and insisted that
the piece of wimkI "three quarters long, finely carved and
paynted. with three tynes or brooches on the top like a
crowne," was the three tined staff called the rymstock or
runic staff of the Norsemen.

The mcKle of burial, too, with mats and domestic uten-
sils, they claimed to be identical with the mode of burial
among these jjeople. When asked to account for the new
mat the\ replied. "The body was embalmed and still nothing
hardly but the skeleton was remaining, and therefore the
statement must be wnmg in this respect.

Doubtless this skeleton was in soil near some lime stone
spring, or of a nature to preserve it for a long time, as well
as the textile fabrics, it being well known that such things
have been presen-ed for ages in favt)rable localities." Hence,

KAKI.Y VOVACIKS TO AMKKICA.

and head

i of it was

there was

and some

prettiest
ine.

about the
I Lord (»r
hayre, and
^re ; some
which had
onor him."
)f a Norse-

nuich ex-
he dist in-
sisted that
arved and
op like a
nistock or

istic uten-
i of burial
or the new
ill nothin;;
:refore the

lime stone

je, as well

uch things

•• Hence,

they saiti, "some of the things may have aj^peared newer by
C(»mparison, while the very circumstances of the case show
that thev could not have been new."

Hut the Dighton Rock of all these supposed relics of
Norse origin, furnished in the estimation of the advocates of
a Scandinavian occupation the best evidence in support of
their claims."

1 6

HIIODK ISLAM) mSTOHICAI, SOCIKTV

. i

Runic scholars pronounced it a «jenuinc relic, and I'rof.
Katn, in the nrst glow of zeal, gave the World a translati()n.
This rock is on the shore of Taunton River, and has been a
jjuzzle to antiquarians.

Prof. Rafn has translated it as follows : " Thorfinn,
with one hundred and fifty-one Norse sea-faring men, took
possession of this land."

Edward Kverett, in the North American Review, said
after studying the subject, " That the rock contains some
rude delineations of the figures of men and animals is appar-
ent ()n the first inspection. The import of the other deline- -
ations and characters is more open to doubt. Hy some per-
sons the characters are regarded as Phoenician. The late
Mr. Samuel Harris, a very learned Orientalist, thought he
found the Hebrew word mclck (King) in these characters.

Colonel Valiancy considers them to be Scythian, and
Messrs. Rafn and Magnussen think them undoubtedly Runic.
In this great diversity of judgment, a decision is extremely
difficult."'"'' Everett's opinion is probably that of most stu-
dents to-day.

A curious allusion to the Dighton Rock is to be found
in the Sloane Manu.scripts in the British Museum, and
should be noted. In a letter to Sir Hans Sloane, from Cam-
bridge, December i8, 1730, are drawings of the inscriptions
upon the rock made by the Rev. Mr. Fisher and others, and.
this statement: "There was a Tradition current among ye
Eldest Indians that there came a Wooden House (and men
of another country in it) who fought ye Indians with mighty
success, &c." "This," .says the writer, "I think evidently

KAKI.V VOVACiES TO AMERICA.

and Prof,
ninslation.
la.s been a

' Thorfinn,
men, took

view, .said
ains some
s is appar-
ler deline-
some per-
The late
thought he
iracters.

thian, and

idly Runic.

extremely

'. most stu-

o be found
seum, and
from Cam-
nscriptions
:)thers, and*
: among ye
(and men
ith mighty
c evidently

shows that this .nonument was esteemed by ye Oldest In-
dians, not only very antique, but a ^Vork of a different
Nature from any of theirs." In another place this writer
adds, "They slew yr Saunchem."

This is certainly important, for it is to be observed that
the opinion that the inscription upon the Dighton Rock was
not the work of the Indians, was put forth more than a cen-
tury before the Norse voyages to this region were discussed.

In studying the Dighton Rock, however, several diffi-
culties present themselves. The inscription upon it has
been copied at various times during the past two centuries,
and the differences between the copies are many and strik-
ing. Lines appear in the later copies which one seeks for
in vain in earlier ones, while in the.se, one finds other lines
which do not exist in later copies.

This cannot be accounted for wholly upon the ground
of carelessness in copying. There is too much method in
.some of the changes, suggesting that irreverent hands have
assisted from time to time since the discovery of the rock by
Europeans, in the evolution of certain figures, while nature
herself has expunged and added many other lines.

This may be said to be the case with certain claimed to
be Norse writings upon the Maine coast, which an old resi-
dent in the vicinity averred that he, when a boy, assisted by
other boys, made upon the rocks, from time to time, for
sport. Natural lines and seams were brought together and
united by artificial scratches, and such additions made as
comported with the fancies of the rock artists.

KHODK ISLAND HISTOKrCAI, SOCIKTV

As for the Uijjjhton Rock, it is in any view of the case a
remarkable relic, which may well engaj^e our attention,
though we should be careful not to claim too much for it ;
indeed had not the early friends of the Scandinavian theory
placed so much dependence upon this and other curious
relics, it is probable that they would have met with less
ojiposition.

This opposition was active for a time, our careful his-
torian, Bancroft, being one of the most energetic of these
opjjonents. Perhaps it may be well to quote his own words.
He says in the first chapter of his History of the United
States : "The national pride of an Icelandic historian has
indeed claimed for his ancestors the glory of having discov-
ered the Western hemisphere. The geographical details are
too vague to sustain a conjecture ; the accounts of the mild
winter and fertile soil are on any modern hypothesis, fictions
or exaggerations ; the description of the natives applies only
to the Esquimaux, inhabitants of hyperborean regions ; the
remark which should define the shortest winter's day has
received interpretations, adapted to every latitude from New
York to Cape Farewell, and Vinland has been sought in all
directions from Greenland and the St. Lawrence to Africa.

Imagination has conceived the idea that vast inhabited
regions lay unexplored in the West ; and poets have de-
clared, that empires beyond the ocean would, one day, be
revealed to the daring navigator.

But Columbus deserves the undivided glory of having
realized that belief."^" ,

Certainly, with Bancroft, we must all render homage to
Columbus for his great and heroic efforts in bringing the

EARI.V VOYACES TO AMKKICA.

f the case a
• attention,
luich for it ;
I'ian theory
ler curious
with less

careful his-
tic of these
own words,
the United
storian has
ng discov-

details are
•f the mild
sis, fictions
pplies only
gions ; the
's day has

from New
•ught in all

to Africa.

inhabited
s have de-
ine day, be

' of having

homage to
inging the

Western Continent to the attention of the Nations of Eu-
rope ; at the same time, we should not fail to render what-
ever credit may be due to those who preceded him but
who made their discoveries at a time when the world was not
ready to avail itself of them. This will in no wise detract
from the honor due to the great Genoese navigator.

In spite, however, of all the opposition which has been
made, there is to-day among historical students, an almost
general consensus of opinion in favor of the validity of the
Scandinavian claims, and this opinion is the result of a care-
ful study of the documents themselves, which bear many in-
ternal evidences of their truthfulness.

Before examining them, however, let us glance briefly
at a few historical facts preceding them ; the discovery of
Iceland by Naddodd, and of Greenland by Erik the Red,
which show what daring navigators these Northmen were.

Naddodd, a viking or piratical trader, was the first re-
corded discoverer of Iceland. Returning from Norway in
the year 861, he was blown by a violent tempest from his
course. While lost in a boundless waste of waters, he saw
through the gloom the high hills of a strange land rising
from the bosom of the sea, and entering a bay, afterwards
known as Reider Fiord, he climbed a movmtain to survey
the Country, hopir.g to find it inhabited ; but :io sign of
human beings was discov^erable. Three years later, one
Gardar, a Swede, was driven to the same land, and wintered
there.

The fame of these discoveries spread abroad, and caused
an adventurous seaman named Floki to set out on its ex-

KIIODI-; ISLAND IIISTOKICAl. SOCIKTY.

ploration. Taking with him three crows, he touched at
Shetland and h'aroe, and after sailing a Jong distance from
the latter place, he let (me of the birds escape, which flew
away in the direction of the land left. Judging from this
that Faroe" was still the nearest land, he continued his voy-
age, after a while loosing another bird, which, rising high in
the air and circling about a while, return«;d to the ship,
seeing no place whither it might fly for rest. The third
bird, which he released several days later, however, flew
away from the ship, and following its flight, he soon came in
sight of the wished-for land.

Here he passed two winters, but becoming discouraged
at the loss of his cattle, for which he had not gathered
sufficient food during the summer, he returned to Norway.

The first permanent colony was planted in Iceland by
Ingolf. Ingolf and Leif were cousins, whose families had
long been uniced by common troubles, and were about to
become more closely united by the marriage of Leif with
Helga, the fair sister of his friend and cousin. At a feast
given by the cousins to the three rough sons of Atli Jarl,
with whom they had been in an evil hour co-partners in an
expedition, Holmstein, cme of Atli's .sons, who was a rude
and quarrelsome fellow, declared that he would wed Helga
and none other. This led to a battle, in which Holmstein
was slain.

The cousins, being shortly after attacked by another of
the brothers, slew him, aKso, and for these acts they were
banished, and set sail for the strange land which Naddodd
had discovered, and of which they had often heard.

l-.VKt.V \(»V.\(.KS in AMIKKA.

' touched at
stance from
which flew
f from this
led his voy-
iing hi^h in
) the ship.
The third
>wever, flew
)()n came in

discouraged
ot gathered
to Norway.

Iceland by

mi i lies had

re about to

Leif with

At a feast

Atli Jarl,

ners in an

was a rude

wed Helga

Holmstein

another of
they were
Naddodd

The cousins reached this land in 870. Ingolf, in the
Spring of the year 87 i, returned to N»)rway to dispose of his
effects there, and to get some of his friends to return with
him, while Leif made a voyage to Ireland ; voyages being
not uncommon at this peri«Kl between Norway and Ireland ;
whence he returned with an immense booty.

Ingolf induced many of his friends to undertake with
him the foundation of a colony in this new country, and in
874, he, with a number of his countrymen, set sail from
Norway without chart or compass, and boldly steered his
littfe ship out into the broad and unknown ocean in search
of a new home. Ingolf took with him the pillars of his old
home, and when approaching the coast, threw them over-
board, that he might be guided by them to a favorable place
for his new abode. Hut a storm came on, and, losing them,
he was obliged to land on the Southeastern shore, at a place
named for him, Ingolfshofde, where he and his party erected
habitation.s, and there remained for three years, at the end
of which time, some of Ingolf's servants having found the
pillars on the beach near what is known as Reikiavik, the
jjresent capital, he removed thither.

Thus was Iceland permanently settled in the year 874.
It is a .strange fact connected with this early settlement of
Iceland, that the Landnamabok or Land Roll of the first
.settlers, states that they found Christians there, men called
Papae who, it is said, came from the West over the Sea,
and with them Irish books and many other things, whence it
was known that they were Westmen, as the Irishmen were
called.

; I

KHODK ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY

The venerable Bede, who flourished in the eighth cen-
tury, says, that in his time, expeditions were made to Iceland,
and it is p.a that these things, meaning such things as the
first settlers in Iceland found among the people they called
Papae, have been found in the Isle of Papae, on the East
coast of Iceland, and at Papylio. This shows what frequent
and extensive voyages were made by Europeans at this early
day.

Thus far we have followed history,"^ but from this point
we will follow the Icelandic Sagas.'"

A century after the settlement of Iceland, Erik, sur-
named the Red, who, with his Father, Thorvakt, had been
banished from Norway for slaying a man, and who had set-
tled in Iceland, having in his new home again killed a man
in a quarrel, was banished from Iceland, and fitting out a
vessel he sailed Westward in search of the Rocks of Gunni-
born, rocky islands, which, it was said, one Gunniborn had
seen to the West of Iceland.

Iiirik told his friends that if he found these islands he
would re-visit them. After sailing Westward many days, he
at last ca;ne in sight of land, which he spent some time in ex
ploring. This was in the year 982. Having found a suitable
spot for habitation, he set out on his return v^oyage, which
he accomplished in safety. He gave glowing accounts of
the new country which he had discovered, misnaming it Green-
land, unless he named it from his credulous friends, and finall)-
induced a number of the people, with whom he appears to
have been popular, to accompany him.

He therefore set sail with twenty-five ships from Ice-
land ; fourteen of which only reached Greenland, the others

EARLY VOYAGES. TO AMERICA.

eighth cen-
to Iceland,
lings as the
they called
I the East
at frequent
It this early

n this point

Erik, sur-
, had been
ho had set-
cilled a man
tting out a
:s of Gunni-

niborn had

i islands he

my days, he

time in ex

id a suitable

yage, which

accounts of

n<r it Green-

, and finally

appears to

IS from Ice-
, the othrrs

having been lost or blown back to Iceland. Among those
who accompanied Erik was Heriulf, who was a worthy de-
scendant of Ingolf, the early settler of Iceland. This Heriulf
had a son, Bjarni Heriulfson, who, when his father sailed
with his friend Erik, was away in Norway.

This Bjarni, it seems, was an adventurous spirit, a
thorough seaman, and possessed with a great desire to see
strange lands, and at this time had obtained considerable
renown and wealth. His vv^inters were passed alternately
abroad and with his father in Iceland. Coming back in the
Summer to Iceland, he was surprised to find that his father
and his men had gone with Erik to the new country. West,
and he at once set out in search of him, saying that he
meant to pass the Winter with his father as usual, wherever
he was.

With Bjarni was a Christian from the Hebrides, we
are told, and this man is not again alluded to, except that
when passing a dangerous whirlpool, he is said to have sung
a hymn. At this time Bjarni and his crew had not been
converted to Christianity, and they probably regarded a
Chri.stian as somewhat of a curiosity. The very simplicity
of this allusion to the man of a strange belief, and to the
natural incident of his singing a hymn when in danger, may
certainly be properly pointed out as one of the internal evi-
dences of the truth of the narrative.

For three days they sailed with a fair wind, until land
was lost to view, when strong Northeasterly winds sprang
up, and dismal fogs prevailed. For many days they were
driven forward, till at length, the weather clearing, they saw

jTTTTyi

RHODK ISLAND HISTOKICAI. SOCIKTV.

ii' I!

i i

the sky again, and driving on anothtM- day they descried land.
The sailors wanted to know of Bjarni if this was Greenland,
but he was evidently too good a navigator to think it was,
and, approaching nearer, he was well satisfied that it was
not, since unlike Greenland, this country was not mountain-
ous, which was to them a striking fact, as nearly all the
countries they knew were.

This land was covered with forests and had rising
ground in many parts. Leaving it to the left, they put
about with the stern of the ship towards the land and sailed
on this course two days, when they again saw land. The
sailors asked Bjarni if this was Greenland, but he said that
it could not be, " Because in Greenland are said to be very
high ice hills." This land was low and thickly covered with
wood. The sailors wanted to land, but the prudent Bjarni
would not permit this, though they clamored loudly and tried
to make him believe that they were short of wood and water.

Doubtless he was afraid that if they once landed it
would take a long time to get them on board again ; besides,
the season was getting late, and unknown perils were before
him ; so, refusing the pressing entreaties of his men, he
pushed on to the Northeast, and after three days' sailing
again made land. They coasted along its shore till he per-
ceived that it was an island. Then he put the ship about
with its stern towards the land, and stood out to sea, with
the wind from the Southwest, which soon increased so that
they were obliged to shorten sail. So they sped on for four
days, when a mountainous land appeared in sight, and this
proved to be Greenland, where he found his father, and there
abode with him that Winter, 985-6.

KARI.V VOVAGES TO AMKKICA.

L'scried land.
Greenland,
[link it was,
that it was
t mountain-
early all the

i had rising
:, they put
1 and sailed

land. The
he said that

to be very
:overed with
dent Bjarni
lly and tried
d and water.
;e landed it
in ; besides,
were before
lis men, he
avs' sailino-

J o

till he per-

ship about

I) sea, with

sed so that

on for four

and this

r, and there

iiji-

Of eourse the diseovery of a land Southwest of Clreeii-
land caused a great deal of discussion, and Bjarni was much
blamed, especially in Norway, where he afterwards went, for
not pushing his exploration further. It was left, however, to
Leif, the eldest .son of Krik, to attempt the voyage.

Visiting Norway in 999, Leif embraced Christianity,
under the persuasive influence of King Olaf Tryggvason.
At the Court of this monarch, the discovery of Bjarni, Leif's
friend, was doubtless often discussed and his course cen-
sured. Leif determined to attempt the voyage himself, and
with this purpose in mind, he returned to Greenland with his
men, who had all embraced Christianity. Thus in the year
999 was Christianity introduced into (Greenland by Leif
Erikson, who, from what is related of him, was a man of noble
character and bearing. Reaching home, his first business was
to purchase his friend Bjarni's vessel, which, it appears, was a
good one for such a hazardous undertaking, and, with a crew
of thirty-five men, he, without chart or compass, set sail in
search of the new land which Bjarni had seen to the South-
west.

Of course he was not impelled by unselfish motives, for
rumor magnified in those days the wealth of all new coun-
tries. It is said that MxW, his father, had determined to ac-
company him on his dangerous voyage, but at the last
moment refused, though urgently pressed by his son, giving
as an excuse a slight accident*^ which had just happened to
him, a trifling incident, but such a one as would hardly have
been created by a romancer, who could have easily invented
something of a much more startling character. One of Leif's

-T—T-^^--l..~. --,.--.-

KHODK ISLAND MISTOKICAL SOCIKTV.

' i

■ Ir

ii I

i l!

1- m

crew was a man from the South country ; that is, Germany.
The name of this ipan was Tyrker, which signifies the Ger-
man, whom we shall find further along in the narrative,
appearing in a characteristic manner.

Following the description given of his course by Bjarni,
Leif finally made land, and going ashore, examined it.
Above were frozen heights ; no herbage appeared, and the
whole space between the heights and the sea was covered
with bare flat rocks. I^eif named this forbidding country
Helluland ; that is, flat-stone-land, and then put to sea, fol-
lowing the track which Bjarni had described. Rafn supposes
this to have been Newfoundland, and to one who has been
upon the coast, the description of Leif appears strikingly
accurate. Continuing his course, Leif again made land, which
he describes as Bjarni describes it, as being fiat and well wood-
ed, though he omits the small heights which Bjarni mentions.
Leif, however, unlike Bjarni, landed and saw more.

He says that the shores were low, and that they saw
about them wide stretches of white sand, which is a very
important addition to Bjarni's statement, and tends to iden-
tify the country with Nova Scotia, as the white sands and
long, level appearance of the hills from the sea, are particu-
larly noted by modern voyagers along the Nova Scotia coast.
The very differences in the two accounts of Bjarni and Leif
tend to establish the truthfulness of both, since these
differences naturally grow out of the different circumstances
under which they beheld the country.

"This land," .said Leif, "shall be named after its qualities
and called Markland," that is. Woodland. Again they sailed

iSI

Ji:

KAKI.V VOVAf.ES TO AMF.KILA.

;, Germany,
les the Ger-
Ke narrative,

le by Bjarni,
examined it.
red, and the
was covered
:lini; country
to sea, fol-
afn supposes
/ho has been
•s strikingly
s land, which
id well wood-
ni mentions,
re.

at they saw
h is a very
ids to iden-
e sands and
are particu-
Scotia coast,
ni and Leif
since these
rcumstances

its qualities
1 they sailed

V '41

two days, when they again made land, and approaching,
touched at an island, which lay opposite the easterly part of
the main land.

They found the air remarkably pleasant, and noticed
that the grass was covered with dew, which, touching acci-
dentally and conveying to the mouth, was found to be sweet
to the taste. What was this island } Starting from the
.sandy shores of Cape Sable, with a northwesterly wind, the
fir.st land fall would probably be Cape Cod or the Island of

Nantucket. Changes are supposed to have taken place in
this region, owing to the action of the Gulf Stream, which

have reduced the prominence of the ea.stern portion of the

promontory, and worn away islands which formerly existed

in the vicinity.

The sweet dew mentioned may have been caused by

Aphides, and is sometimes so abundant, says Brande, as to

fall from the leaves in drops. Its existence, therefore, is not

a myth, as .some critics have supposed.

Returning to the ship, they .sailed into a sound which
lay between the island and the promontory, which ran out
from the land eastwardly, and steered westerly past it.
At ebb tide, the shallows were so great .hat, says the Saga,
it was far to see from the ship to the water," but they were
o eager to land that they did not wait for the rising tide,
ut ran on shore at a place where a river fioAved o; t of a
lake ; but upon the flootl tide they floated their ship up the
river and into the lake.

There could hardly be a more exact description made by
a person, who, after passing the promontory and the mouth

I I [ iHi!i:

RHODE ISLAND HISTOKICAI. SOCIKTV.

of Buzzard's Bay, should take the Seaconnet passa^ije and
Pocasset River into Mount Hope Bay. It is said that after
counselling together, they concluded to pass the winter
there, and at once began building habitations. They
found abundance of salmon in both river and lake, and
thought that the nature of the country was such that cattle
would not require to be housed in Winter. They also ob-
served that the day and night were more equal than in
Greenland or Iceland ; the sun on the shortest day being
above the horizon from half past seven in the morning until
half past four in the afternoon.

Both of the foregoing .statements have met with opposi-
tion. We have seen that Bancroft has objected, that the
description of the climate of Vinland does not apply to the
climate of Rh«xle Island. The exact words of the Saga are,
" They thought that the nature of the country was so good
that cattle would not require house feeding in Winter ; for
there came no frost in Winter, and little did the grass wither
there. "

There can be no doubt that people coming from the icy
shores of Greenland, would find in such a locality as Mount
Hope Bay a most agreeable change from the extreme rigors
to which they had been accu.stomed, and would be likely
to exaggerate the mildness of the climate. A writer,
a few years since, in describing this region, has .said,
that in "most winters a .scanty substance might be i)rocure(l
for cattle, but this could not be depended upon. Farmers
generally house their cattle in Winter. We do not consider
it absolutely necessary, though a prudent husbandman will

KAKI.V VOYAdKS TO AMKKiCA.

passaj^e and
lid that after
i the winter
ions. They
nd lake, and
h that cattle
rhey also ob-
qual than in
5t day bein^

norninji^ until

with opposi-

ted, that the

apply to the

he Saga are,

was so good

Winter ; for

■ grass wither

from the icy
:y as Mount
reme rigors
Id be likely
A writer,
n, has said,
be procured
n. Farmers
not consider
:)andman will

do it. Some individuals in that vicinity do not shelter their
sheej), and say they thrive well and become robust.""^'

With regard to the length of the day, which would indi-
cate the latitude of the i)lace, much has been written. When
Bancroft wrote, he was probably influenced in his opinion by
the fact that Torfoeus, in calculating the latitude of the place
^ where Leif wintered, fixed it in Newfoundland, an error
: which is now known to have resulted from a misinterpre-
, tation. Rafn has, calculated the latitude to be 41 degrees,
24 minutes, 10 seconds, which is in the vicinity of Mount
Hope Hay. It is certainly remarkable that with their im-
perfect method of jcalculating time, the Norsemen should
have been so accurate in their statement.

Having "done with house building," says the narrative,
Leif divided his men into two companies, which were to take
turns daily in exploring and guarding the common property.
The exploring party was under orders to always return at
night, and never to separate. Leif, it is said, "was a great
and strong man, grave and well favored, therewith sensible
and moderate in all things."

Upon an evening when the explorers returned, it was
found that one of the party was missing. This was Tyrker,
the German. He had long been with Leif's father, and had
been loved by Leif from his childhood, hence the latter was
greatly disturbed at his absence, and sharjDly chided his men
for losing sight of him. Taking twelve men he started in
search of Tyrker, but had not gone far when he met the old
man returning. Leif joyfully received him, but perceived
that he was in an excited condition of mind, and enquired

''Ii

!!l

KHODK ISLAM) HISTOKICAI. SOCIKTV.

,4 ^,.L.

I; i

iiif;

why he was out so late, and how he became separated from
the party. Tyrker at first repeated some (lerman words,
rollinj; his eyes and twisting his mouth, and then answered
in Norse, " I have not been much further off, but still have
I something; new to tell of; I found vines and grapes."
" Hut IS that true, my fo.ster father.'" asked Leif. "Surely
is it true," replied he, "for I was bred up in the land where
there is no want of either wine (»r grapes."

This incident has been especially ridiculed, yet its
simplicit) is an argument in favor of its truth. Tyrker
is represented as a nervous man, with a high forehead, un-
steady eyes, a freckled face, and o^ small stature ; but a
skilled artisan. He had not seen grapes for many years,
and the discovery of them naturally occasioned great joy.
What explanation is more reajjonable, than that the excitable
old man should repeat in German, sayings learned in youth
in praise of the grape, of which many abound in the Ger-
man tongue .'

The next morning Leif set his men at work gathering
grapes, cutting vines and felling trees with which to load the
ship. The long boat it is .said he caused to be filled with
grapes. "Now," says the narrative, "was a cargo cut down

for the ship, and when Spring came they got ready and sail-
ed away ; and Leif gave the land a name after its qualities
and called it Vinland."

Having put to sea with a fair wind, they at length came
in sight of Greenland. As they approached, one of Leif's
men asked him why he steered so close to the wintl, and
was answered, that he was doing more than steering as

■H

i;.\i<i.\ \()\.\(;i:s to amekica.

parated from
rnian words,
on answered
lit still have
md j^rapes."
if. "Surely
land where

lied, yet its
h. Tyrker
rehead, un-
it ure ; but a
lany years,
d great joy.
le excitable

I in youth

II the Ger-

: gathering
to load the
filled with
) cut down
iy and sail-
s qualities

;ngth came

of Leifs

wind, and

Leering as

he saw something, but was not sure whether it was a ship or
a rock. Presently however, his quick eye saw that it was a
rock and men upon it.

(ioing to the assistance of the men, Tyrker asked, as
Leif brought his shij) to anchor near the rock, the name of
their leader, and was told that it was Thorer, a Norwegian by
birth. Thorer in turn asked the name of the Captain of
the shij) which had come to his rescue and was told that it
was Leif the son of I'Lrik the Red of Hrattahlid. Leif then
kindly took Thorer and his men, fifteen in all, on board with
as many of their goods as possible and sailed for home.

Leif showed Thorer and his companions great hos-
pitality and found employment for his men. For saving the
lives of these people, as well probably as for his successful
voyage, he was' ever afterwards called Leif the lucky. This
expedition contributed to his wealth and honor.

During the following winter, Thorer and a number of
his companions fell victims to a disease which prevaileil in
Greenland. Erik the Red, Leifs father, died also.

Leifs successful voyage was much discussed, and Thor-
jvald his brother thought th^ new country had not been suf-
[ficiently explored, whereupon Leif gave him leave to go to
Vinland, loaning his ship for the voyage, upon conditions
that she should first go and bring the timber which had been
[left upon the rock when Thorer was wrecked, which was
Edone. •'

We now come to the voyage of Thorvald which took
place in the Spring of 1002. Nothing is said of the
incidents connected with it. We are only told that it was

i^win

ij 1:1!

li i

KIIODK ISLAND MISTOKICAl. SOCIKTV.

propitious, and that the new World was reached in due time.
Thorvald found the dwellinj^s which Leif had erected, and
called them Leif's booths*.

Having drawn their ship on shore for safety, the Norse-
men pas.sed the Winter there. In the Sprinj;, Thorvald had
the ship put in order, and sent a crew in the long boat to
explore. I'hey found the land fair and well wooded alonj;
the coa.st, with white sand beaches, many islands and much

shallow water. The onl)- sign of habitation they found, was
a wooden shed.

The Summer was spent in exploration. The ne.xt sea-
son, Thorvald took the ship and explored the coast "east-
ward — and around to the land northward." This is a very
significant statement, as it is the direction they would be
obliged to take in explorations from this point towards the
North. When off a ness, or promontory, a .storm drove the
ship ashore and the keel was broken from it. This Thor-
vald .set up on the promontory and called it Kialarness or
Keel point.

They then sailed round the eastern shores and into the
neighboring bays, until they reached a beautifully wooded
point, where Thorvald landed exclaiming " Here is beautiful
^nd here would I like to rai.se my dwelling." Shortly after
they discovered three skin boats or canoes, and under each
of them three natives. Flight of these they killed, but (me
escaped and gave the alarm to his friends in the vicinity,
who attacked the Norse ship in their canoes, and after a
sharp battle were defeated.

■)ly

KAKi.v v()VA(;ks to amkkica.

in due time,
rcctcd, and

. the Norse-
horvald had
>nir boat to
:)oded alon^'
s and much

y found, was

le next sea-
coast "east-
is is a very
y would be
towards the
11 droxe the
This Thor-
ialarness or

and into the
"ully wooded

is beautiful
ihortlv after

under each
ed, but one
the vMcinity,
and after a

Thorvaid, however, received a mortal wound from an

irrow. Finding he was about to die, he said to his men,

I" Now counsel I ye that ye get ready instantly to depart, but

[ye shall bear me to that Cape, where I thought it best to

^dwell; it may be that a true word fell from my mouth, that I
should dwell there for a time ; there shall ye bury me, and
set up crosses at my head and feet, and call the place Kros-

:|saness, for ever in all time to come."

"Now Thorvaid died," says the Saga, "but they did all
things according to his directions, and then went away, and

■? returned to their companions, and told to each other the
tidings which they knew, and dwelt there for the Winter and
gathered grapes and vines to load the ship. But in the
Spring, they made ready to sail to Greenland and came in
their ship to Eriksfjord, and could now tell great tidings to
Leif. •

Thorstein, the younger son of Erik, being possessed
with a desire to go to Vinland to get the body of his brother
Thorvaid, fitted out the ship which Thorvaid had sailed in,
and with twenty-five men selected for their strength and
stature, and his wife Gudride set out for Vinland. Through
the entire summer they were tossed about by the sea, and
driven about by contrary winds. It was not till the begin-
ning of Winter that they made land, which they found to be
on the West coast of Greenland, at a place called Lysefjord.

Landing here to winter, a disease attacked his sailors,

and Thorstein commanded coffins to be made for them, for

^aid he " I will have all the bodies taken to Erik.sfjord in the

Summer ;" but Thorstein himself fell a prey to the disease.

i.i

'i'l

i:5

KIIODF. ISI.AXn IIISTOKIC.XI. SOCIKTV.

By the kindness of a man who dwelt at Lysefjord how-
ever, Thorstein's ship was taken back to Kriksfjord bearing;
("luchide and the bodies of Thorstein and those of his crew

who died.

Hut another voyage to the new world was to be made.
1)1 the Autumn of the year in which Gudride returned to
Hrattahlid, that is, in 1006, there came Thorfinn Karlsefne
in his ship from Iceland. Becoming enamored of the fair
widow he wooed and married her during the Winter.

The discourse at Brattahlid often turned upon the dis-
covery of Vinland the Good, and many thought that a pro-
fitable voyage might be made thither; hence, in the Spring,
three vessels were made ready for the expedition. Thorfinn
took command of his own ship, and was accompanied by
Gudride and other friends. Snorri Thorbrandson, a man of
distinguished lineage, commanded one of the vessels ; an-
other was commanded by Bjarni Grimolfson, and Thorhall
(iamlason who had passed the Christmas at Brattahlid, and
the ship in which Thorbjorn, Gudride's father, formerly came
from Iceland was made ready, and put under command of
Thorward, a son-in-law of Erik, who took with him his wife
P'reydis. The minuteness of the account is striking. The
ship which brought Thorbjorn from Iceland, wg.s an old one.
as the event occurred many years before, and bears so little
upon the narrative as to render it improbable that a ro-
mancer would introduce it into his story. It seems, indeed,
like one of the little details of a simple and truthful history.

They first sailed to Westerbygd, and thence in a south-
erly direction to Helluland, where they found fo.xes abund-

KARI.V V()VA<;KS to amkkica.

•scfjord hovv-

jorcl hearing

of his crew

() be made.

returned to
n Karlsefne

of the fair
inter,

)on the dis-
t that a i)r()-
1 the Spring,
n. Thorfinn
tmpanied by
pn, a man of

v'essels ; an-
nd Thorhall
ittahlid, and
)rmerly came

command of
him his wife
riking- The
i an old one.
;ars so little
that a ro-
ems, indeed,
thful history.
L' in a south-

oxes abund-

ant ; and then still southerly for two days, when they reach-
'Sed Markland, which was well vvooiled, as before mentioned by
their predecessors. In this account is added t«) the descrip-
tion of Markland, that it was well stocked with animals.
Thus by putting the various accounts together of the places
mentioned in the Sagas, we find that they more completely
describe the places we have supposed them to refer to, a fact
- which j^reatly strengthens our belief in their historical ac-
curacy. •

Leaving Markland they sailed South for two days and
.then turned to the southeast, and *♦ found a land covered
with wood, and many wild beasts upon it ; an island lay there
out from the land to the southeast ; there killed they a bear
and called the place Bear Island, but the land Markland."
This island is an important addition to the account, and well
applies to Cape Sable Island.

"Thence sailed they far to the Southward along the
land and came to a ness ; the land lay upon the right ; they
landed and found there upon the ness the keel of a ship"
and recognized it as Kialarness. The strands they called
P'durdudstrands, the Wonderstrands, on account of their ex-
tent and appearance.

This is another important addition to the former des-
criptions and well identifies Cape Cod. Let us read Hitch-
cock's description of the Cape. "The dunes, or sand hills,
wliich are often nearly or quite barren of vegetation and of
snowy whiteness, forcibly attract attention on account of
their peculiarity. As we approached the extremity of the
Cape, the sand and barrenness increased ; and in not a few

KIIODK ISI.ANM) 11 ISTOKICA I. SOCIKTV.

' ■ ■ : ■ III

w w

i II

places, it would need only a party of Bedouin Arabs to
cross the traveller's path, to make him feel that he was in
the depths of an Arabian or Lybian desert."^

It has been claimed by Dr. Kohl, the eminent historian,
that Thorfinn in sailing from Nova Scotia to Cape Cod, sail-
ed along the coast of Maine. He translates the account ot
this part of the voyage thus: " They coasted along a great-
way t(7 the Soutlnvcst /laving the land alivays on their star-
board until they came to Kialanwss.'"^^ This is an erroneous
rendering of the passage, which is as we have quoted it,
namely " Thence sailed they far to the southward along the
land, and came to a ness ; the land lay upon the right."

It is certainly quite evident that there is not the least
ground in the Sagas upon which to found Dr. Kohl's theory,
which seems to be the result of a careless rendering of the
original, by which it is made to appear that they sailed south-
ward along the shore with the land always upon their right
until they reached the Cape. To any one who will study the
conformation of the coast, it will be seen that this theory is
wholly untenable.

The narrative continues that the land became indented

with coves, one of which they entered with the ship. King
Olaf Tryggvason had given Thorfinn two Scots, a man and
a woman, who were swift of foot. These he put ashore very
lightly clad, with orders to run over the country to the south-
ward for three days, and to then return. When they return"
ed to the ship, they brought with them a . bunch of
grapes and an ear of corn to show what the land produced.
Proceeding on their course, the ships reached a frith
where lay an island, around which were powerful currents

KAKl.V V()YA(iK.S TO AMKKICA.

lin Arabs to
at he was in

lent historian,
lape Cod, sail-
he account ot
along a great-
)n their star-
s an erroneous
ve quoted it,
ard along the
e right. "
not the least
Kohl's theory,
idering of the
y sailed south-
in their right
will study the
this theory is

:ame indented
t ship. Kin;,^
:s, a man and
ut ashore very
y to the south-
n they return"
a .bunch of
and produced,
ached a frith
^rful currents.

The eider ducks were so plenty upon this island, that one
could hardly walk upon it without breaking the eggs of those
birds. They called the island Straumey, or the Isle of cur-
rents. This whole account points to the Isle of Martha's
Vineyard, or Cuttyhunk as the Straumey^ of the Norsemen.
The currents here are still strong and rapid and are due to
the (iulf Stream. The Islands in this vicinity were formerly
so much frequented by wild fowl as to have been called
l^gg Islands. The very fact that Leif and Thorvald did not
mention these rapid currents is significant, that they passed
across the mouth of, while Thorfinn sailed uj:) Buzzard's
Bay.

This bay, Thorfinn called Straumfj<M'd or Bay of cur-
rents. Here they disembarked and made ]jreparations for
^passing the Winter. They had brought cattle for which they
found pasturage and passed the Winter of 1007-8. They
spent considerable time in explorations, and fishing declining,
they were short of food for which they prayed to (iod,
but their prayers were not answered.

Thorhall having absented himself from them, they sought
and found him on a rock looking uj) to the sky and murmur-
ing something. This was shortly explained when they found
near by the body of a whale, which, Thorhall, who was
not a Christian, claimed was sent in answer to his verses to
Thor and not by Christ in answer to the Christians' prayer.
The flesh of the whale had made them sick, and when they
heard Thorhall's claim they cast the flesh of the whale back
into the sea. The weather now improved ; they were able to
get fish and er^gs from the island as well as game. Thorhall

Hifir

KHODK ISLAND IIISTOHICAL SOCIKTV.

now wanted to cruise northward, while Thorfinn preferred
to explore southward, hence they separated, hut only eij^ht
men accompanied Thorhall. It is said they were overtaken
hv a storm and blown to the Irish Coast, where thev were

J ■-'

made slaves.

. Thorfinn, however, and the others sailed southward
alon<,^ the coast and came to a river which " ran out from the
land through a lake into the sea." It was very shallow and
one could not enter the river without hi<;h water. They
sailed up as far as the mouth and called the place Hop. On
the low lands they found wild wheat, growing, while on the
high lands were vines.

The name given by the Norsemen to this Hay is notice-
able. It signifies a recess formed by the confluence of a
river and the sea, and perfectly describes Mount Hope Bay.
We know that Indian words were frequently anglicised ; as
in the instance of Pjepscot, which was transformed into
Bishop's Cot. Latin .scholars gave them a Latin form, as in
the case of Lacadia, which became Acadia, and Frenchmen
transformed them into French words, which they resembled
in .sound. This was the ca.se with the Indian word, Haup,
which was metamorphosed into Hoi)e. The question natu-
rally ari.ses, was the Indian name Haup derived from the
Norse residents there, and so handed down .' Whether this
is true or not, the coincidence is remarkable. The
Norsemen applied to the bay, which they described, and
which answers perfectly to the descripticm of Mount Hope-
Bay as before said, the name Hop; the Indians called it
Haup, and it is on majjs to-day, Hope, certainly a noticeable
coincidence.

KAKI.N' V()VA(ii;s TO AMKKICA.

n preferred
only ei<i,i"it

L.' overtaken
thev were

1 southvvani
out from the
shallow and
^ater. They
e Hop. On
rvhile on the

kiy is notice-
fluence of a
t Hope Bay.
iglicised ; as
formed into
n form, as in

Frenchmen
ey resembled
,vord, Haiip,
uestion natu-
-d from the
Vhether this
<able. The
scribed, ami
^lonnt Hope
ms called it

a noticeable

Another coincidence is quite noticeable. The Norse-
Ifemen called the Cape, which they described a ness, or naze,
'and Cape Cod was called by the Indians Nesset or Nauset.
Thorfinn's men found fish abundant in Hop Bay. By dig-
ging; holes near the shores they took many flat fish which
were left by the receding tide.

They passed half a month in this pleasant place,
liaving moved hither their cattle and other ])roperty. One
■morning they were surprised to see a number of canoes fill-
ed with savages coming around the Cape from the South.
Thorfinn raised up a white shield in token of peace. The
natives who are described as being swarthy and' ill fa\'ored,
ith coarse hair, large eyes and broad cheeks, gazed at them
pr a while in surprise, and then rowed away in the direction
which they came.

Thorfinn and his people erected dwellings about the
ake and passed the Winter there ; but on the appearance
f Spring they were again surprised one morning to see a
large number of canoes coming around the Cape from the
South. Thorfinn, as before, raised a white shield, and the
Natives soon opened a barter, exchanging furs for red cloth,
which they greatly coveted. They also wanted swords and
spears, which Thorfinn refused to let them have. J-'or a bit
of red cloth they gave a whole skin, and when the supply of
the precious cloth ran low, it was cut up into still smaller
bits and dealt out to them. Those who obtained strips of it
bound it about their heads.

Thorfinn finally treated them to some milk soup, which
they relished .so well, that they gave back the red cloth for it,

40^

RHODK ISLAM) HISTORICAL SOCIKTV.

and the chronicler say.s quaintly, "the traffic of the Skra^'l-
in<j^s wound up by their bearinj^ away their purchases in
their stomachs ; but Karlsefne and his companions retained
their goods and skins." It happened that a bull belonging
to the Norsemen ran from the woods bellowing, which great-
ly terrified the Savages, who fled in dismay. They were not
again seen for three weeks, ant! then they reappeared in
great numbers. A battle took place, which resulted in the
retreat of the Savages. Thorfinn had lost some of his men
in the tight, and although the country was good, they ap-
prehended danger from the natives ; therefore they thought
best to depart.

They sailed northward along the Coast, and surprised
five natives clothed in skins. They had with them vessels
containing marrow mixed with blood. Thorfinn supposed
them to be exiles fnmi their people, and his men killed them.
They afterwards came to a promontory abounding in wild
animals as they judged from marks which they saw. If we
have followed the Norsemen thus far correctly, this promon-
tory should be the one upon which the city of Providence
now .stands. From here they went to Straumfjord, where
they found abundance of food. Thorfinn now went West in
his ship in search of Thorhall, leaving .the other ship and
crew at Straumfjord. Sailing northward around Kialarness,
they went westward after passing that promontory, the land
laying to the left. - ., , -

When they had sailed for some time they came to a-
river which "fell out of the land from east to west ; they put
in to the mouth of the river, and lay by its .southern bank."

EAKLV VOVAGES TO AMERICA.

Not finding Thorhall they returned to Kialarness, from
whence they sailed southward. The hills, which they saw as
they sailed, they considered as being a part of the same range
which they had seen at Hoji.

This statement should be particularly noted, as it forms
an important link in the chain of evidence which we have
adduced in support of the accuracy with which the Sagas
describe Cape Cod and the regions laying both to the North
and Southwest of that remarkable headland.

The winter of 1009-10 was passed at Straumfjord.
During the first Autumn of their arrival a son had been
born to Thorfinn, whom he named after his friend Snorri,
and he was now in his third year. In the Spring of 10 10,
they set sail for Vinland, touching at Markland, where they
surprised several natives and succeeded in capturing two
boys, whom they took to Eriksfjord where they were taught
the Norse language and baptized. .

The other ship which accompanied Thorfinn, and which
was commanded by Bjarni Grimolfson, was blown eastward
and lost; a few only of the crew escaped in an open boat.
In the Spring, Thorfinn and Gudride sailed for Norway,
where they were received with great honor. The furs which
Thorfinn had obtained from the natives were considered
of much value.

The next season they departed from Norway for Ice-
land and passed the Winter at Reynisness. The next
Spring, Thorfinn bought the Glaumbae estate, and there pass-
ed the rest of his life.

4»

RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCFETV

We now come again to authentic history, having span-
ned a gap with the Sagas. The family of Thorfinn was
illustrious in Iceland and his descendants numerous, many of
them becoming well known in Scandinavian history. Gud-
ride and Snorri — the son born in the new world — lived on
his estate after the death of Thorfinn ; but when Snorri
married, his mother took a voyage to Rome. During her
absence Snorri, who was a devout Christian, built a church
at Glaumbae. After her return from Rome, Gudride remain-
ed with her son at Glaumbae for awhile, and then entered a
convent, where she passed the remainder of her life.

The next voyage to Vinland was made in loii, and
from this time voyages thither became frequent. In 1059 it
is said that an Irish priest named John went there to Christ-
ianize the natives and was murdered by them, while Erik,
called the first bishop of Greenland, is also said to have sail-
ed for Vinland in II 2 1.

The latest account is of a voyage to Markland in 1347
by a ship from Greenland. By this it is seen that inter-
course with Vinland was kept up until the middle of the
fourteenth century.

This brings us near the date of the voyage claimed to
have been made to the Western Continent by Nicolo Zeno,
in 1380. The Venetians made frequent voyages to the
North of Europe at this time, and had commercial in-
tercourse with the Scandinavians. -

On the famous map, made after his return by Zeno, and
which he hung up in his palace at Venice, a map which has
been the subject of much curious study to geographers for

EARLY VOYAGES Tf) AMERICA.

centuries, is depicted not only Greenland and the Faroe
Isles, but the coast of America. This map, it should be re-
membered, was in existence in Venice long before the voy-
age of Columbus was unueiiaken.

(!<

aO«^°/

^%^

,Mf

^■^>.

1 ^*w^

/ ''^^-T

l\^ /

■^"i j<ys

V .-kTstotiuwo

^9 /

ISp-^"-'

DHQG£tf%» /northern COASTOF/«E»»Cl«CLa(lD

^POOAU^

It will of course be asked why the Norse did not per-
manently colonize the new world. Large colonies could not
have been established by them at this period, and if small
ones were established it is probable that the colonists perish-
ed or amalgamated with the natives, for about the year 1350,
they must have been cut off entirely from the Greenland
Colonies.

About this time, the pestilence known as the black
death raged through Europe with fatal violence, almost de-

RHODK ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.

I)opulating vast districts, and is supposed to have ra^ed in
Greenland and greatly diminished its scattered population.
It is known to have been most fatal at Trondheim, where it
was introduced by an English ship, and this port held the
principal trade of Greenland. Intercourse was entirely cut
off with Greenland, and it is said that natives attacked the
colony in 1379 and killed eighteen of the inhabitants of
Westbygd and carried away two boys, and that when as-
sistance went from Eastbygd, not a human being was found.

Torfseus says, that no attempt was made to regain
Westbygd, and that the natives or Esquimaux occupied it in
peace. The Eastbygd continued to exist sometime longer,
and some intercourse with it continued through the 1 5th
century when it ceased, and the few inhabitants either per-
ished or amalgamated with the natives.

The records which have been preserved of the voy-
ages to Vinland, it has already been said, were discovered
in Iceland, and their preservation is doubtless due to the
fact, that this land being so remote from the church, after
Christianity was introduced there, such records were permit-
ted to exist by the native priests, who were of, and sympa-
thized with the people ; while in countries nearer the cen-
tral power of the Church every ancient record was ruth-
lessly destroyed.

Anderson says, "for ages Iceland was destined to be-
come the sanctuary and preserver of the grand old literature
of the North. Paganism prevailed there more than a cen-
tury after the island became inhabited ; the old traditio.is
were cherished and committed to memory, and shortly after

KAKI.V VOYACKS TO AMKKICA.

the introduction of Christianity the Norse Literature
was put in writin^ij. The ancient literature and traditions of
Iceland, excel anything- of the kind in Kurope tlurin<;- the
middle a^es. The orij^inal Teutonic life lived longer and
more independently in Norway, and es|)ecially in Iceland,
than elsewhere, and had more favorable opportunities to
^row and mature, and the Icelandic literature is the full
blown flower of Teutonic heathendom. This Teutonic
heathendom, with its beautiful and poetical mythology, was
rooted out by superstitious priests in Germany and the other
countries inhabited by Teutonic peoples, before it had de-
veloped suflficiently to produce blossoms, exceptinjjj in Kn<;-
land, where a kindred branch of the (lothic race rose to
eminence in letters, and produced the Anglo Saxon litera-
ture. "'*

It is to be noted, that in the account of the voyage
of Thorfinn it is said, that (ludride after the death of her
husband, made a pilgrimage to Rome. Gudride was greatly
interested in the new world, having attempted a voyage
thither with her first husband, and afterwards having ac-
companied her second husband, Thorfinn, thither, and she
doubtless related her experiences at the Court of Rome.

The Pope was greatly interested in learning of new
lands, which he could add to his jurisdiction, and he took
great pains to collect reports and charts of such lands.
Pontifical documents, the contents of which have come down
to our times, reveal to us the course which Christianity pur-
sued westward. Thus in 830, Pope Gregory IV. confirmed
Auscarius as the first Archbishop of Hamburg. In 860,

RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.

Pope Nicholas invested him as his legate, with jurisdiction
♦'over the Swedes, Danes and Slafs, as well as over any
other nations in those parts." Eighty-eight years later, Pope
Agapetus granted similar jurisdiction to Archbishop Adal-
garus over Swede;, Danes and Nonvegians. In 1022, Pope
Benedict VIII. granted the same over Swedes, Danes, Nor-
wegians and Icelanders. This is the first mention of Ice-
land in the pontifical documents. Thirty-one years later.
Pope Leo IX. confirmed these powers to Archbishop Adel-
bert over Swedes, Danes, Norwegians, Icelanders, Lapland-
ers and over Greenland!^ This is the first mention of Green-
land in the pontifical documents, while we learn that in 1 121
Erik Upsi was granted similar powers over the countries be-
fore mentioned, and in addition, Vinland. It is said that in
112 1 Erik Upsi was appointed Bishop of Iceland, Greenland
and Vinland.

It is also acknowledged that Columbus was in Iceland in
the year 1477, fifteen years before the discovery of America.
The most remarkable record perhaps, and one which it seems
Columbus must have seen, since he was a student and eager
to obtain knowledge of new countries, is that of Adam of
Bremen, who died in the year 1076. His book on the "Pro-
pagation of the Christian Religion in the North of Europe"
was published in io73 and read by educated men through-
out Europe.

At the end of this book is a geographical treatise en-
titled, " On the position of Denmark and other regions beyond
Denmark," and having given an account of Denmark, Sweden,
Norway, Iceland and Greenland, the author says, " Besides-

KAKI.V VOVACKS TO AMERICA.

these, there is still another region, which has been visited by
many, lying in that ocean, which is called Vinland, because
vines grow there spontaneously, producing very good wine ;
corn likewise springs up there without being sown," and
''This ivc know not by fabulous conjecture, but from positive
statements of the Danes. '"^

NOTES.

1. Vide Athanasii Kircheri E. Soc. Jesu, CEdipus ^gyptiaciis.
BomsB, MDCLII, p. 421, et seq.

2. Vide Enquiries touching the Diversity of Languages and
Religious through the Chief Parts of the World. By Edward Brere-
wood, London, MDCLXXIV, p. 117.

3. Vide Histoire de la Nouvelle France, Par Marc Lescarbot,
Paris, 1866, Vol.1, p. 23 et seq.

4. Vide Memoires de Litterature Tires des Registres, De L'Aca-
■demie Royale des Inscriptions, a Paris, MDCCLXI, Vol. 28, pp. 503-
525.

5. It is perhaps worth while to state that in the audience which
listened to the reading of this paper by the author, at Columbia College
in 1888, was Prince Roland Bonaparte, who was attending a session of the
Anthropological Society. At the close of the reading, the Prince greatly
interested those present by drawing with considerable facility upon the
blackboard, representations of symbolical figures with which he had
been familiar in China and which he stated he had been surprised to
find depicted upon ancient monuments in Mexico. From this he inferred
a connection at some period in the past between the people of China
and the southwestei-n shores of the North American Continent.

6. See these depicted in Pre-historic Races of the United States of
America. By J. W. Foster, LL. D., Chicago, 1874.

7. Vide Ibid, p. 97.

8. Vide Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Edited by Heni'y Pertz
HannoveraB, 1846. Though written as stated previous to 1073, the work of
Adam Von Bremen was not printed until 1679.

9. Vide The Heimskringla, or Chronicle of the Kings of Norway,
by Snorro Sturleson. Translated by Samuel Laing, Esq., London, 1844.
This allusion to the subject i,s as follows: — "The same writer was Leif,
the son of Eric the Red, witli King Olaf, in good repute, and embraced
Christianity. But the summer that Gissur went to Iceland, King Olaf

■f.'

KM()r)K ISI AM) IIISnmiCAI. SOCIKTV

Hont Leif to (ireciilund, in otder to niak(> known CIiriHtianity tliure. He
sailed tlic same Humnier to Greenland. Me found, in the sea, 8ome peo-
ple on a wreck and helped them; the same time di»covered he Vinhmd
the Kood, and came in harvest to Greeidand. He l«a<I with him a priest
and other clerks, and went to dwell at Brattahlid with Erik, his father.
Men called him Leif the liUcky; but Krik, his father, naid that those two
things went one against the other, inasmuch as Leif had saved the crew
of the ship, but brought evil men to Greenland, namely the priests."

l(t. Vide Historia Vinlandia^ Anticpue. etc., Per Thormodum Tor-
fsBum, Ilafniie. 1705.

IL Vide Antiquitates Aniericanie Kdidit Societal Uegia Antiqua-
riorium iSeptentrionalum. Studio et opera Caroli Christiani liafn, Ilaf-
niie, 1845.

12. Tlie following is an extract from a letter to the author
from Am«>8 Perry, Esq., of Providence, Superintendent of the Census of
Rhode Island in 1885. "When this date was inserted, I had before
me the first two propositions clearly established, and the following
statement from Peter Easton's Diary of August 28, lfi7o:— "On Saturday
night, forty years after the great storm in 1035, came much the like
storm, blew down our wind mill and did much harm." I knew that the
mill destroyed was built of wood and belonged to the colonists, and
hence was called out- wind mill, while Arnold called his building mi/
stone built wind mill. The former erected in 16ftJ by the colonists was
blown down about the last of August, 1675. Of the latter, I believe our
first information is derived from a Record of the Arnold family, dated
July 13, 1677, which may be found in the New England Genealogical
Register, 1, 1879, page 42J>. An inference (not however conclusive) may
be drawn from Easton's language and the condition of the place, that
our (i. e. the colonists) wind mill was the only one at Newport at that
date. In the absence of information on this point, we are led to infer
that the destruction ofttlie town mill gave rise to the Araold mill, which
in that case, could not have been completed before 1676, though the in-
ferences from admitted facts, and from the absence of positive infor-
mation, point to 1676 as the date of the erection of the Stone Mill."

Amos Perrv,
Superintendent of the Census of 1885.

13. Vide Mourt's Relation edited by Henry Martyn Dexter, Bos-
ton, 1865, pp. 32-34.

14. We are indebted for the cut of the Dighton Rock here shown
to the kindness of Capt. J. W. D. Hall, Secretary of tlie Old Colony
Historical Society, Taunton, Mass. It is doubtless the best deliniation
of this celebrated relic which has yet been produced. The reader should
compare it with those made by Dauforth in 1680; Cotton Mather in 1712;
Greenwood in 1730; Sewall in 1768: Winthrop in 1778; Baylies and Good-
win in 1790; Kendall in 1807; Gardner in 1812 and the Rhode Island His-

EARLY VOYAGES TO AMERICA.

topical Society in 18.'J0, all depiotod in the AntiquitatcH Americans of
Rafn before mentioned. Dijjliton Kock in now in poHsettgion of the
above Hociety.

15. Vide Tlie Nortli American Review for laSS, pp. lfll-203.

16. Vide History of tlio Unite<l StatcB. By George Bancroft, Bos-
ton, 1841, Vol. I., p. 56.

17. Dicuil in De Mensura Orbis Terra), shows that the Faroe la-
lands were known to the Irisli as early as 725 and Iceland in 705. Vide
Antiquitanes Amoricante, p. 2()4.

18. Vide History of the Voyages and Discoveries made in the
North, by John Reinhold Forster, Dublin, 1786. Also History of the
Northmen and Danes and Norsemen from the Earliest Times, etc. By
Henry Wheaton, London, 1881.

10. For an excellent translation of the Sajjas reference may be
made to Voyages of the Northmen to America. Prince Society, Boston,
1877. Edited by the Reverend Edmund F. Slafter, A. M.

20. In going to the ship the horse which he had mounted, stum-
bled causing tlie old man to fall off and bruise liis foot, which discour-
aged him from attempting the voyage.

21. Dr. Thomas H. Webb, secretary of the Rhode Island Histori-
cal Society, in Antiquitates Americanae, p. 388.

22. Vide Report on the Geology of Massachusetts, p. 06, et setj.

23. Vide Documentary History of the State of Maine by J. G.
Kohl. Portland, 1860, Vol. 1. p. 71.

24. Vide An Historical Sketch of the Discovery of America by
the Norsemen, by Rasmus B. Anderson. A. M., Chicago, 1874. p. 56, et
seq.

25. VideMigne's Patrology of the Latin Fathers, Vols. 110, 1.^3, 130.
143. Archbishop Adelbert was raised to the see of Hamburg in 1045 and
died in 1072. Adam of Bremen says of him, that, "he was so gentle, so
generous, so hospitable, so desirous of divine and human glory, that
little Bremen, having become known by his virtue like another Rome,
was devoutly resorted to from all quarters of the earth, especially from
the North. Among the comers were Icelandere, Greenlanders and
Arcadians, who came to ask for preachers. " Vide Gesta Pontificum
Ecclesiae Hamburgensis. Book III., ch. 33; also cf. Book IV., ch. 36.

26. Vide Monumenta Germaniae Historica. edited by George
Henry Pertz, Hannovera}, 1846. Tome VII. The following is perhaps
nearer the original. Adam speaking of his friend and patron Adelbert
says, " He spoke also of another island found in that ocean called W'in-
lund, because vines grow there spontaneously, yielding excellent wine.
For that fruit grew there spontaneously we know not by fabulous
report, but for certain, from the reports of the Danes. "