The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-06-28

is no record of two of the leaders of this
expedition, Thorhall Gamlason and
Snorri Thorbrandsson, and their follow
ers, ever having returned to Greenland.
They probably remained in Vinland and
settled there. 1t is very likely that a
colony was in existence there more than
a hundred years afterwards, otherwise
the first bishop of Greenland, Eirek,
would hardly have gone to Vinland, as
he did in 1121. Henever returned again
to his diocese.
During ThOrinn's stay in Vinland, his
eldest son, Snorri, was born there in
1908, the first person Of European blood
of whose birth in America we have any
record. This Snorri ThorfinnssOn after
wards became m Of the most powerful.
men in Iceland, and from him several
of. the most prominent families in that
country are descended. The world-re-
nOwned sculptor, Albert ThOrvaldsen,
was one of his descendants, so were pro-
fessors Finn MagnussOn and Bigger
Thorlacius, 81 were bishops Hannes
FinnssOn and Geir Vidalin and many
more remarkable men in this century.
One more expedition to Vinland was
undertaken by member of Eirek the
Reds family. His daughter Freydis
went there in 1011 and 1919 accompanied
by her husband ThOrvard. The expe-
ditiOn was unimpOrtant. I have named
the lady first, because she was the mas
ter of the house. She was a singular;
but by no means an amiable character,
an extremely strOng-minded woman, q
kind of prototype Of the, OF less,
fair champions for wOmen's rights Of
u day.
In the thirteenth century weread that
Helluland (NewfOundland) was visited
in 1886, and that the Norwegian King
Eirek Prestehader (the priest-hater) sent
an exploring expedition to this island in
1890. AS late as 1347 we find merchant
men from Greenland visiting MARYLAND
Nova SCOTIA to cut lumber. For want
Of space I will omit accidental arrivals
of several Icelanders, in, the eleventh
century, to a part Of the American con-
tinent, South of Vinland, which they
called Hvitrdmannaland.
1t is, by no means, Scandinavian au-
thors only who mention Vinland. In
his book ode Stu DaMj9," written about
1875, Adamus Bremensis says: Besides
these, he king Svend) mentioned an
other region, which has been visited by
many, lying in thatOcean (Which extends
between Norway, Iceland and Green
land), which is called Winland, because
vines grow there spontaneously, prOdu-
cling good wine corn likewise springs up
there without sowing. This we learn,
not from fabulous report; but from the
accurate accounts of the Danes"
We see, thus, that nearly all the East
ern coast of NOrth-America was, more
or less, known to the Mortimer about
500 years before the time of Columbus :;
and that the knowledge of those discov-
cries was not entirely lost when he visit
ed Iceland, in 1477, and when Cabot, in
1895, as King Henry VII envoy, carried
on negotiations with the Danish govern
ment concerning the English trade on
Iceland, is self-evident.
In the meanwhile, sad changes had
been goingO on in the scandinavian North.
The Icelandic republic, after having
been long divided by feuds between the
chiefs, had, as well as Greenland and
Vinland, etc., become a province of Nor
way, in 1853, and already then the inter-
| est in the Western discoveries had be-
guntO flag. Still, however, Northern men
were, the rulers of the Scandinavian
kingdoms but, alas, thatwas not to last
long. The three Kingdoms, with their
dependencies, were united in 1889 under
the sceptre of the great queen Margaret,
Under her, Denmark's last ruler of pure
Northman blood, the colonies in the
| Western ocean were not yet altogether
neglected. The last Roman Catholic
bishop, Greenland ever had, was sent
there in 1406. But Margaret died child,
less, in 1412, and with her the Scandina,
Wan union. For many years now one
German king succeeded another, every
one of them entirely unable to fill his
position and sublimely unacquainted
with the spirit Of the people he was tc
rule. Eternal quarrels with the Ger,
mans about the possession of Holster
drew the attention of people and gov
eminent from questions of much greater
importance, pursuits, that would have
worked both subjects and kings mucl
more honor. The Swedes soon tired o.
these German kings, with whom they
had nothing in common, and of these
German wars, in which the kings alone
were interested, and after a struggle
that lasted nearly a century, succeeded
in establishing q royal family of thei
own race, the Wasas,- n of the ables
dynasties history ever has Unparalleled
But between the two royal families, O.
course, an almost uninterrupted wa,
ragged, which impoverished the Scandi
navian countries and threw a thick vel
over the proud achievements of forme
times. Vinland was entirely forgotten
except by a few Icelandic scholars, wh'
could not make themselves understood
at the German court of Denmark, ant
the colony in Greenland was left to it
self. As a bright spot in this gloom!
picture may be mentioned that Eril
Walchendorph, the patriotic Norwegian
orohhishnn of Thronahiem- nndeaunraf