Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1869-08-18
Ncv Books.

Tim. Tam ,>rFprc Rufv,y., its l,aatf1u f.nt-
ures and advantages under the Ia Sere grlutol
1853 by simon Stevens, President of thc
r', . W.. linn, Sd,on5 ~ , r -,, VIM
ID Aupleton 4 "a
This is a very attractive volume. both by tbe
eleo,pce off miner printin, and biudiur. and tho
Importance and novelty ar the .uhiect Tbc In
Sere g1rpt. made by Ne1i.o I'm ls67 and uerlee,-
ed in 1869 by transfer to the Tehuantepcc Railway
C,mnany which was chartered by Vermont In
lists riya, tbe riybt &, c,n.tr1ctn IA lwov. bigh
,yav and tele.,ranb ocr,ss fine i.tbnp. or r.
buantenec The leng+h IF This r,il,yov p, ,,npe...
tie Atlantic and Pacific conan. il. opi, ana. b,,n.
dred and sirty.t,yo miles and the e.-imoteI c,.t
off railway and worop Rad. including continent
+. e.. than ciobt millions of dollars rio scl,e,,
is tberecre within the EASY reach of pri,,te Gin.
terprize without government ad aol indeed
within the means Of few reptlotoo, In Nor
Yorl, citt who have control Of IL and yet Mex
icoas,i.ts in the construction of the r,od by GRANT.
ing the riahtof,wav and half of the unclaimed
lands c,r, le,.,,,. .,r, ,, side ,r i,,, randi Tbo
lime .r,..e. tia r,rr,,r..t r,rt off Nm, i.tl,,.,.
CONNECTING North and S,utb Ameri,,. and nj the
Northern Dart ofit--tbu.. for tbec,mmerce of tb.
Atlantic and Pacific coast. of the United States
swing more than "a tbou.apd mile. over ettbc,
the Panama rilyay or tle promised Darisn a.
nal InIsi7. the President of tine United ~t,t...
tbrourh the Secretary of State. (Bucbauan
offered Mexico fifteen million. of dollar. for h,
rightof way at Tehuantepes and. if wearenot
mistaken. Secretary Seward recently pr,pl.el d
Dorien Canal We state these fact. Il. sbo,c tL,
high estimate nut ON this scheme. and it's treat
ADVANTAGE over the others named in p1int of ti..
lance and economy. If be said Tint the Darisr
Canal would be for commerce superior 10 tho
railway. we answer Chat the surveys of the re-
huantepec route develop the fact that it is lea.ib,
fora canal as well as a railway
Theyolume before us contains am introduction. b,
Simon Stevens the orant bv Ncxic., tbe cbsrte,
by Vermont. and all the official documents concern
inc the organization mowers and privilege. of M,
Corporation the engineer. rep5rt of survey apd
estimates with mans and fine top,o1,phv If Nh,
isthmus with ten Illustrations. one of the NAM,
is chart of the world. on Nlereat,r's projection
showing all the important line, of commerce n,
railways, steamships and sailing vessels. viii
these is the chapter Of history and geography, b,
Henry Stevens, which is best described by its fr-
words" A retrospect of four centuries" 1t Is
an interesting and valuable history of geographic
al discoveries tracing, in an original and strict,
chronological manner, the progress of geogiaph,
>, from the fall of Consantnople, 1853. 10 a quar-
ter of century after the death of Columbus Il
Mr. Stevens is not mistaken, he has discoyere.
the key which explains and reconciles in a greaI
degree the earliest maps Of the world after III,
discovery of America, such as those Of Martir
Beheim, juan de la Cosa, Johann Ruysch. Petcl
Martyr, llilacomylus, schooner, and others The-,
maps, so far as the northeastern coast Of America
is concerned, have led geogaphers, from Hum
boldt and Ritter to D'Aymc MAJOR and Kohl
into lahyrinths of error, inasmuch as what tn,
old geoglnphers laid down as the northeastern
coast of Asia was interpreted to represent IA,
northeastern coast Of America The false coa,
lines that crept into the earliest maps Of Amcric
before the discovery Of the Pacific in 1913, IN,
voyages Of Magellan in 1922, and Of Gomez in
1924, were not completely got rid of before III,
days of Captain John Smith.
The Maine Historical Society. under the liber,
patronage of that State has recently issued A mos
elaborate volume by John g. Kohl, IL. d.. TIN
distinguished gcographer of Bremen. and Mon