Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1869-09-09
The Discovery of America by the
Chinese.

continent dlJeT III Iul, Ill ICIlOlt ages,
been found, peopled and forgotten by the
Old World? 1t is curious that this ques-
ton has not been more generally raised,
for it is very clear that one Of two things
must be true; either the people whom
Columbus found in America must have
been descended from emigants from the
/ Old World, and therefore America was
known to the Old World before Column
bus time, or else the aborigines Of the
Western Hemisphere were the result Of
spontaneous human generation, the de-
vclopment of man from a lower species of
animal, or descended from second Adam
and Eve, whose origin would be equally
/ pulling. Unless we are prepared to cast
aside the Holy Writ, and all our general
notions Of the origin of the human race,
we must believe that there was at one
time communication between the Old
World and the New. Probably this COM
munication took place on the opposite side
of the world to ours between the eastern
coast of Asia and the side of America
most remote from Europe; and believe
it is quite possible that the inhabitants of
Eastern Asia may have been aware of the
existence of America, and kept up inter
course with it, while our part of the Old
World never dreamt of its existence
The impenetrabe barrier the Chinese
were always anxious to preserve between
themselves and the rest Of the nations Of
the Old World renders it quite possible
that they should have kept their knowledge
of America to themselves or, at any rate,
from Europe The objection that the art
of navigation in such remote timesvas not
sufficiently advanced to enable the Chinese
to cross the Pacific and land on the west
ern shore of America is not conclusive as
we have now found that arts and sciences
which were once generally supposed to be
of quite modern origin existed in China
ages and ages before their discovery in
Europe, The arts of paper-making and
printing, amongst others, had been
practsed in China long before Europeans
had any idea Of them. Why, then, should
not the Chinese have been equally, or
more, in advance of us in navigation? The
stately ruins of Baalbec, with gigantic
arches across the streets whose erection
would puzzle our modern engineers The
Pyramids, and other remains Of stupen-
dous works, point to a state of civilization
and the existence of arts and sciences in
times of which European historians give
! no account.
One fact corroboratiye Of the idea that
the Old World, or, at least some Of the in
habtants Of Asia, were once aware OF the
existence Of America before its discovery
by Columbus is that many of the Arabian
UI6md with whom | have ConyerSed on the
subject are fully convinced that the an
cient Arabian geographers knew Of Ameri-
ca, and in support of this opinion, point to
passages in old works in which country
to the west Of the Atlantic is spoken Of.
An Arab gentleman, friend of mine Gen
eral HusScin PaSha, IN work he has Just
written ON America, called NesSr- Et-
Idrjr quotes from Djcldeki, and other old
writers, to show this.
There is, however, among Chinese
records not merely vague references to a
country to the west of the Atlantic, but Il
circumstantial account of its discovery by
the Chinese long before Columbus was
born.
A competent authority on such matters,
j. Hanay, the Chinese interpreter in San
Francisco, has lately written an essay on
this subject, from which we gather the fol-
lowing startling statements, drawn from
/ Chinese historians and geographers:
Fourteen hundred years ago even Amer
lea had been discovered by the Chinese,
and described by them. They stated that
land to be about 10000 Chinese miles dis
tant from China. About 800 years after
the birth Of Christ, Buddhist priests re-
paired there and brought back the news
that they had met with Buddhist idols and
religious writings in the country already.
Their descriptions, in many respects, re
SCmble those of the Spaniards a thousand
years after They called the country
" FuSanN' after tree which grew there,
whose leaves resemble those of the BAN
boo, whose bark the natives made clothes
and paper of and whose fruit they ate.
/ These particulars correspond exactly and
remarkably with those given by the Amer
lean historian, Prescott, about the maQuay
tree in Mexico. lie states that the Aztecs,
prepared pulp for paper making out o
the bark of this tree Then, even its
leaves were used for matching; its fibrcs
for making ropes; its roots yielded a
nouriShinc food, and its sap, by means
of fermentation, was made into an intON-
icating drink, The accounts given by
the Chinese and Spaniards, although a
thousand years apart agree in stating
that the natives did not possess any iron,
but only copper; that they made all their
tools for working in stone and metals out
of a mixture Of copper and tin; and they,
in comparison with the nations of Europe
and Asia thought but little of the worth
OF silver and gold The religious customs
and forms of worship presented the same
characteristics to the Chinese 400 years
ago as to the Spaniards 400 years ago.
There is, Moreover a remarkable rescm-
bance between the religion of the A2tecs
and the Buddhism Of the Chinese rs well
as between the manners and customs of
the Aztccs and those otthc people ofC China.
There is also n great similarity between
the features of the Indian tribes OF Middle
and South America and those Of the Chi.
ncse, and Us Hanlay, the Chinese interprc.
TOR nf whom W. smoke ahnvp Sfatns ba.