The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1892-09-02


PROFESSOR E. N. HoRsFoRn.
ing then Mt Moscow, n. Y, heard from his
mothers lips the tale Of the lost CITY of
Horumbega; its wealth and beauty and
power. The tabled story made deep i'm
preston OH the lad, but with other child
hood memories 1t was laid aside for years.
Meantime the boy grew In knowledge as
we'll as stature, became an authority IN
ssdence and taught and studied for wears.
finally becoming Runfori professor OF APP
piled sciences in Harvard university, and
making his permanent home In Cam
cridgS, Mass. During this time an no.
1uaintance with distinguished Scandina-
vim people and u love for the sncas of the
Norsemen aroused Il desire to find the lost
city. Professor Hor,Gord had become pos
sessed Of wealth as well rs knowledge.
Lacking either of the two he could not
awe pursued his Investigations.
Having both ne spared no puins to Sc
cure boohs and proofs at any cost Cd time
or money. He says: "Much of my interest
III the subject has been largely due to the
influence OF q northman, Ole Bull, in
whose genius and renoSvn we all have
Ir1dc." Also: "fo one modern writer
more than any other we are indebted for
keeping the story of Norumbega alive.
Rev. DR.. De Costa, at that time editor of
The American Magazine of History, wrote
and published few years ago the most
fascinating story OF the Lost City of New
England His conviction, however like
that of Champlain and all other personal
explorers except Allefonce and Theve<. WIS
that if the ruins of the city were cver 10 be
anywhere found they would he ON the
Penobscot."
Professor HorSford testifies that every
bit of the PenobScot has been examined
but no traces OF the city can be found. He
could not make the statements of the
saGas agree with that locality. The fail
uIe spurred him on to ascertain where the
cd fort OF Norumbegn and the city SINH
larly named were, and his search if SLOW
was very exciting. One of the clews was
tho discovery in a manuscript left by Allie
fonce in 1913 that there were two Cape
Bretons. and that Cape Ann was the
southern Cape Breton From the sacas
Norumbega had been determined to be be-
tween Cape Breton Cape Amy and Cape
Carenas Cape Cody.
When Professor Horsford had decided
where the Old fort ought to be he drove to
ale spot, at the junction of the Charles
river with Stony brook, and there found
aNe remains of extensive walls and bitches.
This was in 1885. -Four years later q tower
was completed there, built by him to COM
nemorate the discovery. Over the tablet
i'll its wall is Scandinavian falcon (the
symbol Of sovereignty in Iceland) about
TO aaight with q new world i'll it's taIons.
Mr. Whittier sent regrets that he could
not he present Mt the unwilling of the
tablet and wrotet
THAT Scandinavians visited New Eng
laid and attempted a settlement here hun
areds of years before Columbus is no ionper
asnatteP Of doubt. had supposed that
tho famed city of Norumbega was ON tho
Pendbecot when wrote my poem some
years ago, but am glad to think of it as
Oh the Charles, in our own Massachusetts.
Thy discovery Of traces of that early settle
nent at the mouth of Stony brook and at
Vatertown Is n matter of great archelog-
ical interest, and the memorial tower and
tablet may well emphasize the importance
of that discovery
But the site Of the wonderful CITY and of
the ancient Vinland where Left Erikson
settled were still unknown. The Allefone
manuscript located the Norumbega river
in the 43d degree aud said, 1T Is a tidal
river, mt its mouth full of islands which
stretch out ten or twelve leagues into the
sea-" The Charles river only answers to
this description. The final clew was OBJ
tanned from paragraph in a saga of
Thorfinn Karlsetln, abiding to something
made OF mosurr wood from Vinland A
study of mosurr or mazer wood revealed
the fact that 1t was the burrs growing ON
certain kinds Of trees, as oak, birch, hick-
ory, maple and ash. The story Of the sagas
showed that household articles were made
Of it, and that the blocks were floated down
to where they were shipped across the seas,
foz mazer wood was an important article
It commerce. To hoat che blocks required
canals or bitches; to snip them there must
be wharves or landing places
In 1889 Professor Horsford made COM
munication to the president and council
Of the American Geographical society in
which he said that Watertown, where they
were then in session, was the site OF the
city OF and that Cambridge was
within the ancient Vinland where he had
fond traces of Left Erikson's house and
many other interesting remains. In this
communication he said:
II do not deduce the mszer industry
from the presence of the dam at Water
town, but deduce the dam and seaport
and docks and wharves as essential to the
mazer industry revealed In the sagas. All
these are remains Of the ancient seaport OF
Norumhega- This was the sight pictured
on 80 many ancient maps at the head of
tidewater on the river that flowed
through lake to the sea- the HON Of