Sharp County record., 1880-12-09

/ and fought. There was a hot shower Of mis-
| sil.s, because the SkrPllngs had sliugs." At
/ the outset, Karlsefne was forced to retreat,
| but a rally was made and the SkT9llings re-
/ treated. 1t is also said that two men fell on
karScfne's side, but number OF Skr1lilngs.'
/ The Saga states that Karlsefae was over
matched, so many natives appearing that 1t
was difficult 10 believe that they Were real
men, but rather optical illusions. In cOnncc-
/ ton with the fight an incident occurred which
seems to show that the SirRllings belonged
/ to a people of the stone age; for one OF them
/ found an AK and cut piece OF wood with II
/ and thought it was fine thing" But when
/ he tried to cut a stone it broke. Then "they
| thought it was of no use, because itwould not
cut stone, and threw it away" 1t would ap-
! pear from this that stone was their standard.
| Afterward, during short expedition north
ward the Mortimer found five SlTGllingS
/ clad in skins, asleep near the shore. They had
with them vessels containing animal marrow
mixed with blOOd.n These were killed. Soon
| after they fancied that they saw men with one
| lee called "Unipeds,n and for this piece Of
| imagination the narrative has been objectedto
/ as unreal, the ubectOr forgetting that the
! Unipcd is avery ancient institution frequently
mentioned by sailors. CharleyoiX reports ST.
! Malo captain, who, when in America, saw men
with "one leg and thigh" A young Labrador
| girl captured in III told of those hercomtry-
men who had only Onele leg.
Finally, karScfne decided not to expose his
! little colony, and prepared to sail for Green
| land. On the voyage home they landed in
! Markland, supposed to be Nova Scotia, and
found there five Skr9llings, and one was
bearded, two were females and two boys; they
took the boys but the others escaped, and the
| SkrGllingS sank down into the ground;" that
is, disappeared among the hillOckS or slipped
into their Subtcrranean denS. The saga says
that the boys were taught Icelandic and were
| baptised. They called their mother Nathelldi,
and their father Uvage. They also said that
two kings ruled over the Skrplings, one be-
ing named Avalldania and the other Valldda.
These boys also reported that they had no
houses in Markland, but that the people lived
in "caveS or holes"
The second narrative of Karlsefne treats the
subject Of the Skr9llings in the same way, eX-
cept that these people were of "small stat
urcn The third narrative states that when
the bull Zone of the small lcelandic specesl
began to below, the Skr8llings made OIL
with their bundles, and these were of furs, and
sablcs, and all sorts of skins, and they turned
and wanted to 90 into the houses, but Karl
seine defended the doors" Also before the
fight commenced there was more trading, and
the women brought out "mlk and dairy
products" which pleased the Slrallngs so
much, that as the Saga says, they carried
away their winnings in their bellies" Such is
the account that we have of the Skr8llings in
the Sagas relating to America. These people
do not appear to be referred to again in con-
ncction with the voyages, though geo
graphical fragment mentions " "Helluland,"
which is called "Skrellings Land" not far
from Vinland the Good
ho doliDnotiOn of tho DaODlp fOun1 nv tha
Icelanders in the mild regions of the Atlantic
coast is brief but it is sufficient to fix their
character. Rain, when editing the original
Icelandic records pointed out the fact that
these people agree with the EsquimauX and
Greenlanders of to-day. The critic who sup
posed that the Saga writer should have de-
Scribed people with the characteristics otthe
red,man fancied that he found an error indica-
ting their unhistOrical character The Indian
however, was a late conner upon the extreme
eastern border of North America. Indeed the
Oldest distribution of the American races does
not antedate the tenth century and therefore
the appearance of the Skr9lling in the Sagas,
instead of the Indian is precisely what truth
required.
1t is hardly necessary to restate the points
in the description; for instead of the tall red
man found by later vOyagers on the coast, so
gentle. kindly disposed, generous and hospit-
ablc-traits well nigh obliteratedb by subsequent
contact with the WhitcS-we have men OF short
stature, brushy hair, rude, fierce and devoid OF
every grace. Also, here in this country cov-
cred with fine forest trees, the principal artl-
Gle of value to the lcelander, the people made
their boats of skin like the Greenland kWack,
instead of the bark or the trunks of trees as
often practced by the Indians, and described
bv Champlain. The men described in the
Saga evidently did not know the use ofmetals,
and they deSpiscd the ak when it was found
that it would not cut stone. In the fight with
Karlsefne's men they slew Thorbrand with a
fat stone (taIqSte6a0, perhaps celt, which
they "drove into his head" thus illustra-
ting, possibly the rude warfare of the glacial
man. Nor should it be forgotten that while
even ia the dead of winter the New England
indians worea almost no clothing, these men,
encountered by the lcelandcrs were clad in
furS after the spring had set in.
Another resemblance is found in the fact
that both the SkrGllmgs and the Grcenanders
used sings, the latter being mentioned by
Davis the first European who visited Green
land in modern times But still more val
liable fact is mentioned by this writer in con-
nccton with the voyage of 1855. 1t has al
ready been stated that, when in Vinland,
Karlsefne found that the Skr9llngs used to
indicate peaceful intentions by pointing Ger
Idll implements LONdIu JIlC sun, NLIC, NNCiI
turned from the sun, theyindicated war. Thus
in Greenland the natives, to indicate peaceful
intentions, pointed to the sun with their
hands, ter striking their breasts, refusing to
trust themselves with the English until the
later had done the same, though one of their
number appointed for the purpose, "who
strooke his breast and poynted to the sunnc
after their order" Davis thus appears as
dealing with descendants of the glacial man,
FIVE are correct in supposing that there
was a glacial man and that the Skr8llings
were descendants Of such a glacial man, it1Ol-
lows that we have in the Sagas four of his
words, which may be the oldest known words
of human speech Vathclldi,n Uyage,"
" "Avalldadia,n and "Vallida," the names of
the parents Of the Skralling boys and of the
two kings. At least, in a recent note ad-
dressed TO the writer Professor Max Muller
SAYS that there is nothing in the language Of
the Esqumauy to prevent US from assigning
it 10 an antiquity as high as that Of the sup
posed glacial man.
During the eleventh century the red-man
lived upon the North Ameri an Continent,
while the eastern border of his territory could
not have been situated far away from the At
lantic coast. In New England he must have
succeeded the people known as Skr9llings.
Prior to that time his hunting grounds lay
toward the interior of the continent. In course
of time, however, he came into collision with
the ruder people on the Atlantic coast, the
descendants Of an almost amphibiOus glacial
man. Then the coast dweller, unable to main
tain his position, retreated toward the far
north. The northward movement, however,
may have been voluntary in part. During long
ages passed in the cOmpanionship of the gla-
cier, the race must have acquired that taste and