The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-06-28
The Ante. C Columbian Discovery
of the American Continent
by the Mortimer.
Stt3tal cltiQltt

New World, has long been assigned to
Christopher Columbus; and, though
some g%eographers, as for instance Matte
Brun, by births Dane, and others, were
not entirely ignorant of earlier discov-
cries on this continent by the old North
men, still this knowledge was very in
accurate and vague, and orthe plurality
of the learned world the old Icelandic
manuscripts belonged to the category of
"nOn leguRtUr," simply because their
language was understood by very few.
This hindrance was removed when Dan
ish antiQuaries had the old records trans
lated into Danish and Latin andprinted
in a large quarto volume under the title:
"AntiQuitates American9, etc., Hdtnie
1872 By this work. it isprOved, beyond
any doubt whatever, that this continent
was discovered and partially explored
by Scandinavians, in the tenth and elev-
enth centuries. To these hardy, enter
prising, adventurous men then, the hon
or, which hitherto has surrounded the
name of the famous Genoese, ought to be
transferred.
Columbus did NO more than touch the
American continent in the fifteenth CEN
fury, while the Mortimer discovered
and explored the Eastern coast Of North
America some four orfive hundred years
before him. Besides this, we must well
recollect, that Columbus always thought
he had reached the coast of East-Asia,
Marco Polo's Cathay and Xipangu,
whereas the Mortimer were perfectly
aware that they had discovered an en-
tirely new continent. Columbus was, in
reality, only the discoyerer of the West
Indies, and the Venitian, John Cabot, so
long looked upon as the first European
who set his foot on the shore of New
foundland, actually only went to that
island after having ascertained its exist
ence during q stay in the Scandinavian
North.
All the branches of the Northman or
Scandinavian race, the Icelanders, Nor
| wegians, Swedes and Danes are, more
over, of the closest kindred with the old.
stock whence the Anglish Cless correctly
called AnglO-Saxon) race has sprung,
and the qualities which were so striking
ly displayed by the daring adventures,
who from Iceland and Greenland crossed
over to this continent, are the very same
which have ever adorned the national
character of the Englishmen and have
raised them and the Anglo-Americans
to the prominent rank, they deservedly
| hold among the nations of the earth.
This question ought, therefore, to be of
| the greatest interest to every man of
English blood; but principally to those
| born inthe New World.
Here is not the place to give an ex-
hausting account Of the voyages to and
discoveries in America, made by the old
Northmen; all that can be done here is
shortly to recapitulate the chief points
| of these expeditions. Neither can there
| go into any augmentation to prove the
authenticity Of the old pergament man
uscripts, in which they are recorded; |
can only state that these manuscripts
| date back at least two centuries before
the days of Columbus.
AS incontrOvertible facts, then, must
be put down, that the old Scandinavians
discovered and colOnized Iceland and
| Greenland and, at least, discovered the
Eastern coast of North-America. Ice
land, discovered by the pirate NadOdd
in 861, was colonized in 875 by IngOlf, q
Norwegian. Greenland was discovered
in 982 and ~colonized in 985 by Eirek
Thorvaldsson the Red, a Norwegian by
birth, who left Iceland accompanied by
twenty-five vessels Of which only four
teen reached Greenland. One ofEirek's
companions was Herjulf, a kinsman Of
Ingolf, the first ettlerinIceland. Biarni
the son of HeEjulf, arrived from Norway
to Iceland in the summer 995, his father
havingleft shortly before. After having
refftted his vessel, he set out to sea with
a fair wind to go to Greenland; but, af.
ter three days, strong northeastern
sprang up, before which they were borne
for many days, they knew not whittier
Atlast, they successivel saw three lands
now known as New England, Nova SEQ.
tia and Newfoundland, before they Fl.
nallylandedat Herjulfsnessint the South.
Eastern part of Greenland, where Her
iulf hadf fixed his residence. This Barn
Herjulfsson, then, was the ;stdscOUerel
of the american continent in 985. &a
During the long winter nights in Green.
land much was, undoubtedly, spoken O.
these discoveries, and the sons of Eirel
the Red, who lived at Brattahlid nea1
Herjulfsness, may, as boys, many a time
have listened with breathless interest tt
the narratives of Biarni OF ONE of hi
crew. At last, when they were grown
up, Left Erickson, the Oldest of them
wishing to explore the countries, discov
cred fifteen years previously, purchased
Biarni's ship and manned it with a crev
of thirty.fve men. They set sail in tn
year 1900 and explored the Eastern coas
of Newfoundland, which Left called
Helluland Gland of broad stones, AMI
Nova Scotia, which he called Marklant
(woodlandl, and, at last, they arrived a
a land, where they stayed the white
over and built houses, which afterward
were called Leifsbudir Leif's booths
This country, which corresponds to Til
Southern New England States, Leifcall
, Ell Vinland (wine land1, because vine
and grapes were found growing Their