St. Mary's beacon., 1857-04-16
THE MARINERS COMPASS.

The invention of the compass is usu.
all V ascrib 20 Flavio Gioai, of Amali,
In Campapia, about the year 1902; and
the Raiians are strenuous in supporting
this claim. Others affirm that Marcus
Paulus, Veniiian, having made Jour
ney to Chlua, brought back the inven-
ton with him in 1860. The French also
lay claim to the honor Of this invention,
| from the circumstance that all nations
distinguish the north point of The card by
tteur de lis, and With equal reason. the
English have laid claim to the same hon
or. from the name compass, by which
most nations have agreed 10 distinguish
=. But, whoever were the inventors, or
at whatever period this information was
first constructed, it does not appear that
! il was used in navigation in Europe be-
fore the year 1870, or few years before
the invention of printing.
In consequence oil the discov cry OF this
instrument, the coasts Of almost every
land on the surface Of the globe have
| beep .explora1, aud reg,ala- llsterrnv@@e
b. +tweent The nssst distal:t tiatson Ea'y~is'
The fate OF the grea: ..Cman ia,niliesz reF
deed. has heen M great measure g
cided by navigation. l. not the Ser
peiual Infancy of the Chinese owing chiefly
TO their ignorance OF the art! On the 0on-
rrary ifthe Japanese and the Malays ex-
hIbit character manly and interprising,
in comparison of that OF other Asiatices
It was formed at The epoch when their
squadrns traversed the great Eastern
Ocean. hich is at present filed with then 1
Coloni<ts.
What has kept the people Of Africa
stationary IN ignorance but their inland
sitratons, their restitution OF gulfs and
arms Of the sea, their Inaccessibllity TO
nsvigation' What has given their ascen-
dencv TO the European nations but their
knowledge of navigation, and the aptitude
OF their countries for carrying it on -
Since the compass and Columbus ap-
peared, has not a new world seen our
vessels land on its shores! has not new
Europe arisen and has moi the Atlantic
ocean become what the Mediterranean
was before - the great highway and
thoroughfare Of the civilized world.
from being termiaated: the wonders We
have witnessed may still be surpassed.
The Europeans have not confined them
selves 10 the shores of that Atlantic ocean
which, immense as it appeared to PhG-
nIcIan and the Greek navIgators, is only
an arm of the sea, compared to that ocean
which, under the names of the Indian
the Pacific and the Eastern, extends from
pole to pole. The American navigators
have already crossed the whole of the
aquatic hemisphere /; already British COL
onists have begun to settle in the inEum-
erable islands which form to the SOUTH
east OF ASA. fifth part of the world !;
and Australia, the most delightful coun-
try Of the globe, will pIobably, ere man,
ages pass away. have reached The high
est pIDacle of civilization. Lit another
Cacmus carry thither that torch Of reli-
gion and science which enlightens Eu.
rope: Let the colonist fraught with our
learning, found new Greece in Otaheite
or the Pelew I>land, then these grounds.
which now produce only aromatic herbs,
will be covered with towns and paia :es :;
bays, now shaded by forest of palms,
will display forest of mas,s; gold and
marble will be extrIca.ed from the bow.
els of mountains asyet untouched by the
minor: coral and pearls will BE- dragged
from the bottom oil the sea to adorn the
new capitals: and, one day. perhaps,
Europe. Asia, Africa and America viii
find equals and rivals ia countries whose
existence at this moment, scarcely occu-
pies their attention
An Irishman being told that the price
OF bread had fallen. exclaimed With emo
linn ssfhis ~ tha 6rxf a;rna 4 - -