The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-01-09

Ing. 1t lends color to the accusation that
the newspapers OF Philadelphia have been
In the habit OF being edited In the interest
OF Mr.. WANAMAKER. Is It not time for
them and him to deny the accusation and
present proof There seems to DO consider
able circumstantial evidence against them,
Was America Discovered by the North,
men?
It will be remembered that Mr.. BANCROFT
covery OF the North American mainland
was established by any clear historical EVIL
dence. He admitted. indeed. that there Is
nothing intrinsically improbable in the
notion that the colonizers OF Greenland
may have explored the coasts south Of 1t.
But the assertion that they actually did SO
rests. he said, on narratives NEUROLOGICAL
in form and obscure in meaning. which.
moreover. were not contemporary with the
events described. Mr.. JUSTIN WNsoR also.
In his lately published book about COLUM-
BUS. seems unwilling to admit the trust
worthiness Of the epical accounts Of the
voyages Of TIE Mortimer to the so-called
Vineland. Ne inclines to regard as
decisive negative evidence the absence
Of any authentic runio Inscriptions on this
continent outside Of Greenland. and he dis
putes the credibility Of the sagas on the
ground that at the date when the tradi-
tional oral chronicles were reduced to writ
ing i. romancing spirit had been imported
from the more southern countries. Since
Mr.. WNsoRs book was published. however.
the Scottish Reuiew. availing itself Of the
researches Of Mr.. ARTHUR MIDDLETON
REEvEs has come forward to maintain the
reality Of the discovery ascribed to tho
Mortimer. and has set forth an imposing
array Of evidence and argument In support
Of It's belief.
The objection on the score Of the non-ex.
istence Of runio inscriptions Is first and
easily disposed Of. The Mortimer never
pretended that they had colonized Vineland;
they simply recounted their discovery Of the
country and their unsuccessful attempts to
colonize It. Runio inscriptions. therefore.
and other archaeological remains are not to
be expected in q region where no perma-
nent settlements were made. Besides. as
Mr.. REEVES points out. the rigorous appli-
cation Of the test upon which Mr.. WNsoR
insists. would make the discovery Of Ice
land itself disputable.
6ao ACSoAoo CAo CACuADLAlGy VI Guo IcCOIUSs
Mr.. REEVES shows that the documentary
evidence Is not. as Mr.. BANCROFT and Mr..
WNsoR have assumed. derived from the
Sagas alone. He has. indeed. reproduced
the tests Of the three Sagas which bear on
the question Of discovery. and has applied
to their Interpretation all the resources of
modern scholarship. but he has also gath
cred together the preceding references to
the Vineland voyages. which are scattered
through the early history of Iceland. From
these aforementioned data 1t is demon
strable that the discovery Of the American
mainland. which took place about A. D.
1000. was well known In Greenland and Ice
land long before any Of the three Sagas
dealing with the theme were penned. for
there Is documentary proof reaching as far
back as about the year lilo.
The first mention OF Vineland or Wine
land the Good In Icelandlc literature
was made by ARR the Learned. other
wise kncwAes All tie Historian. who was
born in Iceland In 1867. and died at
the age Of 81. He was the father Of Ice
landic historiography. SNoRR1. the author
OF Heimskringla. says Of him: He was the
first Of men here In Iceland to write ancient
and modern lore In the northern tongue"
SNoRR1 tells how Arr was educated and
whence he got much Of his information. At
the age OF 7 Arr came to Haukadale to HAL
THoRAR1NsoN. with whom he remained
fourteen years. Now HAL THoRARINsoN
died In 1889 at the age Of 80. and is de-
scrlbed as man OF great knowledge and
excellent memory. Another OF ARI's
teachers was TRrr IsLEIFssoN, the
first Bishop of Iceland. and a third
informant was THURID. who could well
remember her father. SNoRRI. although
he was IS years old when Christianity was
| introduced into Iceland. It follows that,
while Arr was not born until sixty-seven
years after the discovery Of Vineland. he
was acquainted with those who were alive
when thu event happened.
His references to the event are indeed.
brief and cursory. but that Is what would he
| expected from one dealing with familiar
fact. In his Iandnamabok. which. accord
| ing to Dr.VrG u ssON. was written about ITO.
Arr the Lear ed says. when treating OF the
adventure Of Arr MARssoN: He was driven
out OF his course at sea to Whitemen's Land.
which is called by some persons Ireland the
Great: 1t lies westward In the sea near
| Wineland the Good. and is said to be six
| anolh her mention OF Vineland by Arr the
Learned in tho same work. whore he says
that the sou OF SNoRRI HEAD-THoRDssoN
and OF THORHILD PrARMIGAN was "THoRD
HoRsEHEAD. father OF KARLsEPNI, who
found Wineland the Good" In the Kristi
Saga. moreover. which is regarded as sup
p!ement Of the Landnamabok. occurs this
statement: "That summer King OLAF
| 7 L -.
claim the faith there. On this voyage
LEFT found Wineland the Good"
Another important reference to Vineland
by Arr the Learned Is found in his Libel
lus. an abridgement OF his Islendinga-
box. There ore extant two copies made
from his own manuscript OF this work.
The paragraph In question. narrating the
colonization Of Greenland. says that the set
tiers perceived from the dwellings. the frag-
ments OF boats aud the stone implements.
that that manner Of people had been there