The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1869-02-04
The History of the Mariners Compass.

The History OF the Mariners Compass.
In Our Young Folks for February.
James Parton commences his series OF
papers on Navigation and Discovery
before Columbus by an admirable sketch
explanatory of the uses and history OF the
mariners compass. The latter part We
copy, as it contains matters interesting to
old boys and girls as well as to the young
ones:
No one knows who invented the COM
pass, nor precisely when it was invented
nor even who first found the natural mag
net. The fancifuI Greeks. who had a
story about everything, used to say shat
shepherd, named Magnes, was tending
his sheep one day on Mount Ida, when
he noticed that the iron crook at the end
of his shepherds staff was attracted by a
piece of dark colored stone, which he
brought down the mountain. This Is
the reason the Greeks say, why the mag
net was called, in their language, Hughes.
The story is probably one of those pretty
tales which the Greeks delighted to in
Be this as it may, the Greeks, Romans,
the Chinese. and all the ancient civilized
nations, knew something about the at
tractive power Of the ioadstone and the
Chinese, it seems, employed the direct
ing power of the magnetic needle, more
than a thousand years ago, in the T. jour
neys across the wide, uninhabited plains
of Asia. But the compass, such as we
have it now, was unknown in Europe
until about the year 1900.
was saying the other day to gentle
man well versed in the Bible, that the
n Il - ,.
sailed the Mediterranean and 0 her inland
seas, or skirted along the coast Of the
ocean, without the aid Of this precious
instrument. But, he asked, scratch
ing his head with the end of his pen,
docs not St Paul say something about
using the compass on one OF his voyages
on the Mediterranean Sea ?'
Impossible, said |. There was
not a compass in existence at that time
in that part of the world.
Il think you are mistaken, he rejoin-
ed.
I handed him bible, and asked him
to find the pages, which he proceeded to
d. with the alacrity of man who is
about to win a victory. And,s enough
he soon turned to Acts xviii, verses II
and l3, and read as folio IS:
And, landing at Syracuse, we tarried
there three days. And from thence zee
fetched q compass. and came to Rhegium.
Here was Il triumph indeed. | must
confess that for moment was puzzled.
But, being positive that the compass was
not known either to the Greeks, the
Romans, or the jews thought that per-
haps the transators had used the word
compass some other instrument which
may have been used by the ancient nayi-
gators. 1t then occurred to Us to look
up the passage IN the Greek Testament,
and ascertain what the word was which
had beer translated compass The
myste-y vanished at once for we found
that st. Paul had used the Greek verb
which means the tack, to 60 about to
make a circuit, which sailors. in the days
of King James l., when our translation
was made, used to call tefcitingG compass.
The passage, therefore, simply means
this: And from Syracuse sc made a
circuit (around the island OF Sicily ''aGd
soon came to Rahegium' Ton the coast
of Italy,
The captain of the ship, then. that bore
the valiant Apostle Paul 20 the mouth Of
the Tlber, had no compass on board his
vessel, but was guided by the starr, the
sun, and the bold outline OF the shore.
Nevertheless, it was FROM the native land
of st. Paul that the Crusaders, about
seven hundred years ago, brought home
to Europe specimens of the ioadstoEe,
and some little knowledge Of its proper
ties The first Crusaders returned from
Palestine about the year 100. bus the
first mention which has been discovered
Of the directing power OF the magnetic
needle occurs III book that bears date
1850. In French book called The
Bible" published about 1870, there is u
passage too. In which the author express
ses the wish that the Pope were as safe
a point to look at as the North Star Is to
sailors, who can steer towards that star
by the direction of q naeiLe floating IN u
struD on q basin Of sc0ter, after being
touched by the magnet. And there is IA
still more interesting aliusion to the
needle in an account which has come
down to US of visit paid about the year
1850 by learned Italian to Rodger Ba-
con, the celebrated English philosopher,
the fame of whose learning had spread
over Europe.
ibid not fail, says the Italian schol-
ar Ito see Friar Bacon as soon as | arriv-
ed, and among other things. he showed
me black ugly stone called a magnet,
which has the surprising power Of draw
ing iron to it; and upon which, ifa needle
be rubbed, and afterwards fastened to IA
straw. SO that it shall swim upon water,
the needle will instantly turn towards the
Polar Star; therefore be the night ever
so dark, SO that neither moon nor star be
visible, yet shall the mariner be able,
by the help OF this needle, to steer his
vessel Alright.
1t would have been difficult for sailor,
tossing upon the wind, tenpestuous At
lantic. To keep the needle ailoat upon a
still surface Of water, and doubt very
much whether 1t was often attended.
There was another reason why the cap
tains of ships in that age would have
hesitated to employ such contris ance,
which our Italian thus explains:
This discovery which appears us eful
in so great a degree to all who travel by
sea, must remain concealed until other
times, because no master marines dares
to use it, lest he should fall under a sup
position of his being magician; nor
would even the sailors venture themselves
out at sea under his command If he took
with him an instrument which carries 50
great an appearance of being constructed
under the influence OF some internal
spirit.
Well might he say so in speaking OF
the poor Friar Bacon, who not many
years after this visit, was imprisoned IN
his convent cell, while his works were
condemned as dangerous and devillsh.
The ignorant monks of his time thought
he hust have sold ms soul to the Devil.
because he said that he aud other astron-
omers, by noting the movements of the
heavenly bodies. might be able to foreteil
their future movements, especially such
events as eclipses o. the sun and moon.