New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-05-15


natural vision At the promontory Of Good Hope ter
ribe appartion confronted them. IL was the demon
Adamastor tho genius Of the Stormy Cape, who IN
appalling FORM waved back the Oversbod explorers
Camoens in the Lsiad sings of the direful encounter
Rising hro' the ds,LeIed eli,
- His red eyes glowing from their dusLJ caves
Shot Lyd arssi iaT eash0iHs Ger ''s waves
To their demand to know who he was, the Storm Flend
answered.:
Inme the spirit Of the Cape behold:
WIN ;l5stiss 2 5os,5 G g9%6t ei P. 3isSs
Nor Roman Prov, nor daring Tyrtan oar .,.,..
Fer dashed The white waves foam9E 70 ny shores
S o' SIS' p sea- ses 70 eais6 he trading gale
You, alone. have dared 70 pSE ny @ao ,.,,,
Have passed the bounds which Jealous nature DIRE"
To vail Der secret shrine FROM mortal view;
h hi bny,VI9gy .od 5 sail Ger your race descend
With sys bounding ieS I that 1ott aa ' ~ y 5s'
zach year, thy ship wrecked sous shalt thou teplorr,
Each year thy sLeeIed masts shall sire" my shore
But Da CANA feared failure more than Adamastor
whole legion Of demons and right in the teeth of tho tenn
nests he passed on His bravery rewarded and from
the time e rounded the cape his voyage seems to have
been among fayoring gales Ho landed here and there
OH the east coast OF Africa making small trades with tho
natives and meeting generally with frendlness ana
good faith It in May, 1893, the same year In when
Columbus first touched the continent OF America that
Vase da Cana anchored at Cacut the Maabar coast
in Hindostan.
Tho entrance OF European ships into the harbOr at
Calicut created the greatest wonder and excitement
The natives crowded the shores TO see the Porugese
disembark when Da Cana and his officers attempted
20 pass through the streets on their way to the palace OF
the Z,morin the press was great that many were
crushed 70 death The Rojah, "a title which the
Portuguese abbreviated to Zamorin) was prince OF
much dignity and intelligence He granted 70 Da Cana,
IA an envoy from the Portuguese monarch, private a'
dlence which was declared TO be an Unprecedented
honor.
Reclnipgon sofa OF white silk embroidered with gold,
he listened while DaGama, by the aid OF n Mohammedan
Interpreter declared him the glory OF King Manuel ana
his desire for alliance with the Eastern Monarch Ihe
Zamorln says tho Portuguese chronicler, wore tunio
OF white musn embroidered with and branches OF
beaten gold buttoned with large pearls and the
buttonholes we're wrought with gold. About his waist
| was a sash Of white muslin. His head had mtre
studded with towels his and his fingers sparked
with diamonds His arms and legs we're bare, except Tor
/ the bracelets which covered them"
But diplomacy even there proved full of pitfalls As
soou as II became known what errand the strange
ships had come and that their captain was an emoassa
dor 20 establish trade between the East and the West
strong faction the Court Of the Zamorn against
the Portuguese Tho Arab merchants, who did large
and onopozing trade with Cacut begun to fear both
for their profits and their religion. They hated the
Christians with Mohammedan zeal, stimulated by all
their fear OF the rivalry OF European merchants Their
oily tongues filed the ears Of the Indian monarch with
suspicious and fears They assured him that Da Cana
was pirate who accidentally sailing past Africa sought
10 Impose himself upon the ZamOrin as the ambassador
OF a king; they threatened him with withdrawal OF
their trade IL no encouraged the foreigners, and, alto
rether they told linn such fearful stories OF these
Christian nndels that the Zamorn was pulled this way
and that by contrary counses until at last he gave up In
DESPAIR and resolved let the Arabs aud pa Cana light
! IL out between themselves
| Finally an ambassador from Da Cana was detained
as prisoner at the palace of the Zamorn and Da CANA
himself was obliged retire TO his ships for fear Of cap
tire But the Portuguese shortly released and the
monarch sent some of his officers to the little neet bear
ing letter 20 the King Of Portugal Moro brief and TO
the point than communications between soyeregns
ran thus "vasco da CANA, gentleman Of thy house
hold camo Go my country, OF whose coming was glad
In my country there Is plenty OF cinnamon cloves pep
per and precious stones The things which am DESTROYS
OF receiving thy country gold, silver scarlet
and coral"
Ia CANA rather treacherousy kept as prisoners the
hearers Of this letter. and set sail at once for home Inc
indignant Zamorn sent feet in pursuit from which Da
Cana escaped with difficulty Aterward ne set ONO
OF his captyes on Shore with letter for the Zamorn as
surnc him that his designs toward all the prisoners we're
friendly that they TO be welltreated and that they
would shortly II he the rightful emDassa
| dor Of the King OF Portugal or no.
| IIo led back his fleet as nearly as possible In
|
and two months from the time of his setting out, no
reached Lisbon or his ships not one came back TO
| mort His last-the San Gabriel-had proved unsea
worthy and no had been obliged to finish the voyage IN
caraya which he chartered at the Cape Verde coohF'
OF his Quo hundred and fifty men only onethrdremaheu
| King Manuel received him with open arms he gave
him prIncey honors and entitled him Lord OF the Con
,,ost 30 Ethop,a and the indies" plan was immed-
tev formed for the establishment OF tradingposts all
the way around the continent Of Africa ana Dou Feuro
Alvarez dc Cabra sent with thirteen shps bar'no
omew Das was OF the captains AT inc Napo VI uoOu
Homo they deserted Adamasor' put aWater'spout
bepomenon which none OF them had ever before seem
Tbey hailed It as sign OF far weather. ana sailed JOY
su,, inward In few minutes, however, the fleet
rnc, nv hurricane, and five ships went down One Of
,len was commanded by Dias, VINO had hrst made the
pe known 10 nayigators Thus did the demon, as tho
saors thought vndcae his threats TO the unhappy son
., Portugal who had rs fahOned the secrets of his
| awful reign"
The voyage OF Da Cana the illumination of East
ern discovery. IL revoutonEed commerce and brought
many changes navigation Now for two centuries the
track OF Ia Cana has been the worlds highway 70 the
indies Yet commerce has never been satisfied with 1t
The overland India and Eastern Africa which
led across the Ithmus OF Suez into the Mediterranean
and out through the old gateway Of Hercules into the
Atlantic has been still used for the passage OF much
and costly merchandise Never for has trade
forgotten the track the little strip OF land which
tainted ancient mariners, and where the unfinished
channel of the Pharaohs still shows its traces in the
heaped-up sands.
In the time OF the first Napoleon the project Of the
sucE Canal was talked Even while the First Con-
sui busy with the conquest Of Egypt and following
In Syria the footsteps OF the great Alexander his qu
ego found time tho value OF passage for snP 20
tween the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. but 'uo DS
engineers no wiser than those Of the age OF 60,
that of Necho s declared that Red Sea was hsher