Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-02-19
OUACKENBOS' BOSH.
False Htstory--The Actaat Discore,cr of
-dWlericH.


To the Editor of The GLOBE.
Your issue of Saturday contains COM
munication from one "G'' in criticism of the
first chapter of Quackenbos' American his
tory for schools, text book about to be
forced into the public schools by the Merrill
book law. l will not stop to consider
whether &c" is right or wrong in his attack
on the character of Columbus as the reputed
discoverer of America, but simply to point
out the fact that if we are to have a COM
plete history of America in our public
schools, the author should 90 back to a
period long prior to Columbus. There are
abundant evidences of the discovery of
America at periods long before the fifteenth
century, and it is proper that the youth of
America should have some knowledge of
them. The annals Of Ireland tell us that
st. Brendan sailed to the Atlantic land in
A. D. $40, and the account of this voy-
age is well authenticated by various writers
from his time down. He landed on the
continent somewhere near the Virginia capes
and marched into the interior of the coun-
try for fifteen days. After this voyage. st.
Brendan returned to Ireland, and lived not
only to tell and write of the wonders he had
seen in the new land, but to become one of
the most eminent Irish saints. He founded
the celebrated Abbey of Clorfert, said to
have had at one time within it's clustered
walls no less than 5000 monks, and whose
schools were frequented by students from all
parts of the continent of Europe. He was
the author of several works, and man of
most wonderful sanctity, and may be Justly
styled ''The Patron Saint of America
The Scandinavians have established claim
to the discovery of America, FIVE centuries
before Columbus. The ':Norse Sagas,'' as
translated and published in 1887, by the cele-
brated Danish historian Prof Rafu. claim
the discovery of the northern part of the
continent by the Scandinavians, but also give
the honor of the first discovery to Irishmen,
at much earlier period, and they cali
this country 'Ireland it .Mikla.' .
or "Great Ireland They further state,
that when some of the Norsemen went down
to a region called Hint1a- Maunaland (proba-
bly, the Carolinas and Georgia,) s'they found
there" says Rafu, ''a white people, different
from the Esquimaux IT the North. having
long robes or cloaks, and frequently bearing
crosses in a sort of religious procession. and
their speech was Irish.'' These were proba-
bly, the descendants of St. Brendan's long
robed cross bearing voyaguers. If SO, then
to the Celtic race belongs in fact the honor
OF discovering and peop]ing America. work
they are yet industriously engaged in. And
in proof of this discovery, besides the COM
plete and authentic Irish annals, there is pre-
served in the Bi5liothegue Ianperiub at
Paris, no less than eleven Latin MSS. vary
ing In dates from the eleventh to the four
teen century, all prior to Columbus era, be-
sides numerous similar works in possession
of other countries of the European Cont
nent.
st. Virgilius, CTergaD an Irish monk,
who, IN the eighth century, preached the
gospel in Germany with St. Boniface, dis
covered the sphericity of the earth. 1t is
said that the accounts of the voyage Of st.
Brendan and the works of st. Virgilius, the
Irish bishop of Salisbury, first suggested to
Columbus the idea of the existence of the
Western Continent. It is fact not gener-
ally known that the first man of Columbus
expedition to set foot on American soil was
an Hishnan. This is recorded in the work
of an Italian priest, John Baptiste Torni-
tori, published in the seventeenth century,
copy of which is in the University Library
of st. Louis. This work relates that when
Columbus neared the land, the small boats
were launched to carry the admiral on shore
Among the crew was one P0trici,ss Ma
gurus Patrick Maguire) vAo jumped out
OF the boat before they had reached land
and waded to the shore being the first man
of the party that ever landed on Ameaican
soil.
Now, Mr.. Editor, l will con
clude my remarks with the sue
gestion that if we are to have q complete his
tory of the discovery of America in the pub
nc schools, it must be something different
from the Quackenbos- Merrill edition, and TO,
fear that Judge Goodrich may prevent thu
canonization of Columbus, let us take st
brendan as the patron saint Of America.
| Yours, &C., Mac.