The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1891-12-20

mont Of Count John Maurice Of Nassau ~ 0sv.
rnor-General Under his direction the Bra
Gillian colony 10 fourished that An annual In
come OF $4,000 horins was derived from =
duty Of 10 per cent on the exports OF sugar
alouA Butsos ths successful revolt 81 PORTUGAL
against Spain III 16l0. Il IL almost certain that
| Brazil would have remained Dutch depend
suoy, for the Portuguese colonists seem TO have
| preferred, upon the whole. Dutch to Spanish
| domination. TWAS the war made By Cromwell
| against Holland which compelled the 6tstes-
| General TO concentrate thor forces In the
l British Channel. and thus eave Portugal the
| opportunity 70 finally dsstroy the power Of the
| Dutch In Brazil The loss Of this colony was
| the death sentsnce Of the West india Com
pany. which was formally dissolved IN 1874.
| and. although o new company was subss-
qucntiy formed. IL operations were conducted
| In an inefncient and Improbable way. At
isngth. in the year 1900. when tho French rev.
| Dictionary armies took poessssion OF Holland.
the second West India Company Was swept
out Of existence. It ia. however. to be noted
that the first company was vigorous and re-
sourcsful whom the first colonial Government
wss provided for New NetheriAnd and d.
rector General Minuit WAS sent out Bsfcre no
was recalled. and during part Of Van Twill
ler's administration. the acme Of the COM
pAuy pxOpp0tlJy VIZ ovSmA1Vts III bhO SSnVt
hand. during the sdministrations Of Kieft and
stuyvesenk things went from bad to worse
| until at last In 1884. New Nsthsrlsnd. unsup-
ported BY tho company because Il was itself
on che brink OF ruin. was suffered to pass Into
foreign hands wlthouta blow.
Nv.
We come now to two chapters contributed
BY Gen. Wilson. whioh cover the period be-
tween Hudson's voyage In 1900 and the an
polntment Of william Kieft ss director IN
1854 Vas Henry Hudson the nrst to see the
river which bears his nAme9 We have seen
that Dr.. Do Costa shares the view quito sen-
orally accepted that the mouth OF the river. al
all events, was observed and described By
verrazano In 1924. The Dutch themselves
claimed that In 1893 the ships Of their Grcon-
land Company had anticipated Hudson's dis
oovery. and Mr. Justin Winsor. In his lately
published book on Columbus. thinks that there
can be but little doubt that the French. Span.
iah. and perhaps the English had visited the
bay OF New York much earlier. Gen. Wilson
Justly says. however. that whoever may have
been his casual precursors, the exploration
made by Henry Hudson can never lose any
Of It's distinctive significance because
II bore immediate fruit In trading
voyages and temporary settlements. presently
followed by permanent colonization. It Is an
interesting Circumstance that the French
Ambassador to the States-General was COM
peting with the directors Of the East India
Company for the services Of the English
mariner. Henry Hudson. and that had he been
successiul the valley Of the Hudson would
have been taken possession Of in the name Of
France. Az It was. tho objective OF the voyage
taken by Hudson in 1900 was not the new
world. but Nova Zembls. and It was only when
loo prevented him from reaching his destined
goal that Hudson proposed to his crew to seek
passage to India across the American Con-
tinent. He first struck the coast OF New
France. next Cape God, then the vicinity Of
Chesapeake Bay, and efterwsrd ooesting north
ward. Delaware Bay. finally sighting the small
steep hills around tho Narrows on Sept II.
1905. In tracing the navieator's ascent and
descent Of the river which bears his name
Gen. Wilson follows closely tho log book Of
Robert Juet. the English mate. It will suffice
here to say that Hudson went up the river un-
I'll he reached the head OF navigation. even for
shipping Of that time. Landing at Dartmouth
on his return voyage he was detained there by
the English authorities. though he was event.
ually permitted to send to tho directors OF the
East India Company his reports. which reached
Amsterdam In July. 1910, In the following
year his life OF perilous adventure had
characteristic end. for having again embarked
in the work OF Arctic exploration. he was sent
adrtit By his mutinous crew amid Ice aelds In
an open boat
Tho Dutch East India Company was pro-
hibited BY its charter from turning to account
discoveries on the American continent. But
the directors in their private capacity were at
liberty TO engage In mercantile enterprises
beyond the prescribed limits. number Of
merchants at once combined to send o vessel
to the REGION made known by Hudson In quest
Of furs- Gen. Wilson finds reason to believe
that several other ships were despatched from
the Netherlands to the valley OF the Hudson
before 1913. The nrst settlement seems to
have been made In the year Just named BY
Henry Christiaensep. He selected rs the most
appropriate place for establishing fur trade
with the Indians the island OF Manhattan.
In November OF the Same year. however.
an armed English ship commanded by Capt
Samuel Argal entered the bay OF New
York and compelled the handful OF Dutch
settlers to recognize tho sovereignty OF
England by agreeing to pay tribute. Soon
after the departure Of tho English. Christiaen-
sen. taking his vessel. the Fortune. went up the
river to point beyond its junction with the
Mohawk. where he erected o stockAde. To
| this first stronghold Of the Dutch In Kew Meth.
erland was given the namo OF Nassau while
about the same time another form OF the same
name, Mapritius. was applied to the Huds on
River Having left . garrison Of dozen men
with two cannon and eleven swivel guns 10 Fort
Nassau, christensen returned to his trading
post on Manhattan Island. where, not long af-
| terward. he was killed by nm Indian. It should
not be overlooked that while Christiaensen was
building his stockade in the north his partner.
Block. who after returning from Holland had
lost his ship by FRO. constructed a boat Of six
teen TONS the first vessel fashioned In the port
Of New York. With this little craft Block tl,reat-