Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-10-21

TWELVE PAGES
THE MAN OF HIS TINE.

Four hundred years ago to-day Christie
pher Columbus, the bold Genoese mari
ner and first immigrant to our western
shores, was sailing around among the
newly-discovered Bahama Islands, think
ing himself arrived near the mainland of
India. He was a far-seeing man, with a
goodly spice of the worldly temperament
in him, and had taken care to contract
with the King of Spain, who furnished the
ships and outfit, for handsome rewards for
his service. He was, both himself and his
heirs male forever, to have the govern
ment of all the lands he should discover;
one-tenth of the net value of all the pre-
cious stones and metals and merchandise
within his Jurisdiction; and he might at
any time, advance one-eighth in any ven
ture and receive corresponding share of
the profits.
The King Of Spain was, however, above
contracts when it suited him, and Colum-
bus, some twelve years later, died poor,
broken-down man. If his spirit, and those
of his royal partners in his venture, are
permitted to look down this week upon
the monster celebrations of the event of
1892, how extraordinarily near-sighted
must seem to them human conception
four hundred years ago as to the material
progress of the race!
1t is a marvellous development, this of
the four centuries past With great diff
Guilty the King of Spain was then induced
to stake beggarly expenditure of II, 900
forms against the possibilities of the sup
posed land in the West Not until the
more enterprising Queen offered to pledge
her jewels did her royal consort take
heart to order the voyage. Now it is the
American continent which represents the
greatest resources Of the earth; here
science has wrought its greatest
achievements; here man has made his
most successful and promising experiment
in government; and here all the arts are
sure to ultimately reach their highest per-
fection.
There is not much moro of this old
earth to discover. Never again will an
explorer of this planet reach the fame of
Columbus. There is the Dark Continent
of Africa to be civilized, but its outlines
and features are known. No sup
possible land still lies out of the
path of the navigators II is to
the starry armament the eye must turn in
these days to be fired by the divine inspi-
ration of discovery. The men at the big
telescopes, and great in mathematics,
whose knowledge conquers distance and
lays bare the mysteries of the heavens, are
those whose fame is in the future to rank
with that of the Genoese sailor. These
astronomers are relatively better equipped
for their work than he was for his; and it
would be more ignorant and unworthy
skepticism than assailed Columbus to as
sumo that, long before another four hun
dred years shall have gone, the charts of
the planets of our solar system will not
be as well understood as is to-day the
chart of the North Atlantic ocean, which
in the time of Columbus excited only ter
TOR and superstition.
The enterprising Columbus has CON-
PEELED the scientist to seek other worlds
to conquer. Pretty much everything
movable is now understood about
The resources of this old earth of
ours; and the single question be-
fore man in relation to it to-day is
how to inhabit it so as to bring the race to
the worthiest state. In that vital particu-
lar there is made room for discovery yet
But everyone can take heart from the
certain fact that slow though evolution
be, all the forces of creation are working
together for the best and toward ultimate
harmony The pioneers like Columbus
are tremendous agencies for advancing by
many centuries the bettermept Of the race
by their intellectual conceptions and per-
sistent devotion to their purposes. tits in
that sense the celebrations of this month,
while on an immense scale, by no means
transcend their suhipct