Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1869-07-23
WESTWARD TO THE INDIES.
Attempts to Reach China by tae West
from Earliest Times to the Compile
tiOn of the z'acislc hallway.
tTrom the y W York Times.

The worlds ,nitayors TO End a way 10
tbs Iudics by tho Est, which coutipuri
tr 'm very remote antiquity until they have
eliminated 10 The cump!"tioJ Ct the Su, z
Gauai, We have skctchei IN 2 previous pa
pr. But from the m ~ ancient tiuir' =,
Nhile nJvigttors were making their way
Stward, th' re we're never wanting th ae
who be loved IL might he reached 10y sail
ing va an opposite direction. The anciruts
believed ia the existence Of rich lands in
The West, sud many of th~ir myths ii d
traditions took color irOu this belief.
Four centuries before Chris, the ship,
IRON Carthage veGtured into the Atlantic
a. fag n nth as the p ninsula % Carnw4li,
and work n miacs in ;hc CassitcriGes Of
ihe 5uciouts, ,u, posed 30 b. he islands Z
Silly, near tie sou h.Rtstcrn coast of
gllnd b sides th,ir loads &C liu, the
ha2eniaus also btlglt back from
Britain the Il rec Digs which they u,cd in
la tie worthy auCcrtirs Of the blood
hounds which in molern times tracked the
tug uyo slave through the swamYs Of @ aOr-
gia aud the Chrulnus. They carried, too,
~ ries OF islands far in tue west with rich
Cities, and fair lands purple with grapes aud
golden with flowing honey. The ancient
Greek p0ets also sang Of strange countries
jond the Mare TeaebrC m, aud Aristotle ,
S raJo, and Seneca all believed that ricu
Clthay might be reached by sailing straight
on from the Pillars Of Hercules. But
through the long night Of the dark ages,
the my tbs of history aud the theories OF
gcugral.hers we're obscured and almost for
gotten, aud upfo he middle Of the fifteenth
century few * ,lorers had been found bold
enough TO venture far from shore into the
waters Of the Atlantic. In the year 1870,
IA. nf Hra hrnAd o
ed aud stalw irt framed, and still young in
face though his hair and heard were gray,
was wont 10 attend mass 10 the little cap
OF q convent in the city of Lisbon. Kpeel-
ing daily at the same oltar, he watched
amid his prayers the figure of a mai len
who came from the neighOoring cloisters TO
her devotens. The maid was Donna Felipa
di PdleStrell0, whose father had been Gov.
crn II of Porto SintO, the first cJlonoy sent
to the islands west of Africa by Prince
Henry the Navigator. The man, gray. haired
before his prime, who looked on her with
growing interest, wss Christopher Color
Ut Gehba, From these meetings ~ ac,
| quaiutauce arose, ard before long tue maid
became his wife. With her love and he
| hand in marriage, Columbus also received
the rich legacy of Palestrello's maps and
| books, and al the tradit Ons Of western
| IOuNo w NSlu WHICH lah ipNNhNA Wv N"'
| of the Governor OF Porto Santn. For 81
the daring slips which sailed funniest wcs
bad caught on their keels drifts of fureigI
sea-weeds, or bits OF unknown wood o.
| other waits which pointed them TO countries
hey ond, 20 these groups of little island
seem to have caught the first rumors ah'
| vogue signs Of the land across the AIlanhc
| No other dogry with a wife could haN'
borne richer fruits than tho maps and pa
pers of tire dead Palestrel!o brought to tn
as piring Genoese.
Donna Felipa had also Inherited smal
estate in Porto SAnto, aud for awhile IN
newly married couple went there to reside
Not AN old sailcr there with whom Colun
bus talked hut could tell him legends
lands dim deserted TO Westward which
was believed might be the shores OF CalhaY
Gao had seen cuunlngly carved blt {
wood drifting past bis Ship another ma
picked up, Tar out at sea, strange oo'
Il laliug Empty upon the waves anu y'
another had seen IN the calm OF troplc sea
two dead bodies holting ON the wafer VII
unknown features and tro~n sklns, sue
as were ntycr astiyv under European shle
The most famous geographrr OF lh'
day was PaolO del PrZzo, known as Iosc'
neiH, aud 10 him Columbus wrote his theol
that the Indies might be reached by sal
ing west. Ttscanelli returned Inn ni'
ia which Asia lay oppos te 10 Atiea, sep
, rated by vide stretch of ocean, aud
letter ia which he WIute; "lhc Nay is n
5 easy, bat tho route fiom tho west Of l.
rope 60 the Spice miles is certain II u
track mafk ba followed out"
Q Columbus himself had computed that q
circumference OF the round EARTH W
twenty.fuur hours, OF which dteen h
q been explored already, and only nine ,
mained 10 be sailed over. Consequently
thought that the Great last could be reac
. ed from the Cape Yerdes In a few days, a
so no decided 10 sail west rather than es
IL is interesting TO know that Columb
was man of most childliko faith, and n
u superior 20 the .oredulity OF bis times.
Mt. Worldly Wiseman Of those days