New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-10-15
Ell DORADO AND CIBOLA.
THE TWO GREAT LEGENDARY QUESTS OF
SPANISH AMERICA
THE GrLDED MAN Gel Dorado, and Other Ple Ct,

THE G1LDED MAN El Dorado and Otner Pe ,,
ures of the Spanish Occupancy OF Amerisa,c 10y
A. +. Bandelier. pp. w, 3cz H. APP'c'0" u ~
How limited the human Imagination really Is.
This was never better exemplined than In the
supersttions which stimulated the activity OF the
Spanish Adventures of the sixteenth century III
the New World. Instead OF taking Things just as
they them. they accepted only such 'es,in'o".
of their eyes as agreed with their TRADITIONAL
notions They saw palaces where nothins eA-
listed save communal houses. They saw klhsS
where there were only Indian chieftains elected by
their tribes and subject 70 degradation AT any
moment In the extremely attractive studies whch
make up Professor Bardeer's new Noiuh'e' he
takes occasion to point out that 'orte% co'lp'''e'
misunderstood the position OF Monte@uha' Inc 80
called king was really only war chief ana IN
time OF peace was no more valued by the uloes VINO
elected him than the commonest Indian oil 'he'n an
Had the Spanish conqueror really understood the
Indian character he would have taken PAINS u
capture the medicine men: for these the guar
OF secret traditions were supposed to be the INK
between mortals and the supernatural po"e'''
II was their business to do penance for the con-
scious or unconscious sins of the tribe, ana 10
avert calamity by self-denlal and self-torment
Without them the tribe. in the expressive IAN
euare of the Pueblos. felt that II was an orptah'
osranged from the gods. and ripe Tor instant ue
struction The author dwclls upon the TACT mat
Coronado in his Northern cNpeul'oH ""'"t WV
repea,e ted among the Puebics exactly the mistake
of Cortez in Mexico only to find that the chiefs
whom he seized as hostages Of no value to
him.
II was the same in all the details of life In the
New World. The oonquerors had brought Europe
with them and whatever legend there was In the
Old World which had affected the minds OF men
for ages-his they transported TO America IL one
thinks that the men OF the present day are any
~. t,Ntt ct OK 10
crazy belief in sunkcn Atlantis. 1t must ne
said however that only the subordinate details
Of the legend of FL Dorado-liter.'ily Tn" 'il'e'
Man" as indicated In the title of Professor Ian
delicr's book-wcre brought from The GA Norld'
The Gilded Man himself ceremonial ana
historical reality lie was anontcd with unguents
and powdered gold dust until he glittered ike
one of III, rlatcd deitscs OF Greece But even after
the Standards had found him. they forgot the lesson
which they had learned. Time and again they re-
newcd the search for him and his country III ne"
directions. and they were initiated in THIS pE ue
Germans and the English, indeed by everybody
who came within the circle of this ragcal influence
Practically the first discoveries OF FL Dorado OK
hausted the treasures of his country. They re-
peated fin sense the folly Of the person VINO killed.
the goose that laid the golden egg For the country
of FL Dorado was not gold-producing land 1t
was a reservoir into which gold flowed In exchange
for one OF the prime necessities of life. The people
which they made were coveted by tribes p" leagues
AWAY Thus the people OF FL Dorado bought with
salt the gold which proved their ruin. Ana the
Spaniaris came to buy with blood IN" goI1 'nat
sipped through their fingers like water through a
sieve enrich the rest Of Europe.
But the narrow original fact and the legend
which grew out Of II by the natural processes Of
cxagCcration were enhanced 10y famous rene OF
antiaue folklore Tho superstition about the ANA
IONS had been mixed up Nth the MYTHS ~ many
Eastern nations. 1t inspired a famous episode III
| the story OF Athens. blossomci mNurihnily a. me
medieval romance %; Alexander the Great. and
now ii was arise in renewed strength IN ''"
West II WAS not only associated With IN" scare u
| for the gold country in South America. bat al'o
with similar quests In Norh America. II h1ttrl
| Ike a ghost before the diyersiac columns Of ai-
| yenturers bcckoning them in many eases 20 'n'r
| destruction Nevertheless II was a phantom when
thcy had brought with them. clothed now AMI thea
with the hYos Of rcaliiy by misunderstanding Of
the words Of native informants or 10y the accident
| ~ finding a village deserted by tn" Warrior. who
in their haste had let their women to tho mercy
OF the invaders.
In Xorth America tho legend OF tho Amazons
| vas assocated with another fancy nS Oriental AMI
as ancient a. Itself For - least 500 years The
number seven has eNcrci.ci phenomenal influence.
| sometimes mallgn. sometime h0nchc'ni, over Inc
minds Of civilized inon. II hrs h.'u mad" meas
IRE Of tine a Law OF the universe. a potency ~
| hell Thomas Paine once remarked that tho Eng
lish were so supcrstitious IN regard g. d that they
would never let tho Revolutionary War last much
beyond a period Of seven years. and * positively
| amazing 10 observe with WHIT sc"?uc liz"
Gibbon mentions every period Of seven years thhi
| comes 10 his attention The same superstition APP
| piled to geography animated all the early move
| mcnts Of the Spaniards nor;hwnrd from Mexico
| They sought far and vide FOR the Seven cities
.t.l al, .Is. ryftr. u,
supposititious saints. In Mcsico they succeeded In
| fastening their pet legend upon the Indian word
/ Ciboa though tho Indians themsclve5 were rs
innocent Of any crcdulous notions about the mum
Der seven babes.
| Professor Randelicr r"itoratos and strengthens
| with new arguments his opinion that n" far
famed Cbola was really ~ group Of Zuni village
In this he evidently agrees with Mr.. Cushing
He supposes the word Clbola 10 b" the nearest
| equivalent in Spanish 70 the name Of the
| Iuni country. Shvano. az uttered by the native
| themselves. Those vino are conscious from thcil
| own experience how easily IN" and ''l' may b"
taken for each other VIII readily sec H." force II
this derivation. The author does not so"m to give
much weight 20 the conjecture Of Fewkcs that the
Spanish-Inda word really ccFr ,sporicl 20 The
| maine OF "A dance Shvola which Is said to be In us'
| among the Zuns At all events he does not men
| ton II. The glimpse which Fray Marcos had 81
| the Zuni Valley I'm 1875 and the subsequent expe
ditlon under the command Of CORONADO" are d"el
upon by Professor Bandecr to show that his
| theory IL correct
| Then ne turns to another superstition. one TN
still has its effect upon certain more or less intel
Iigcnt minds in the West. namely. the legend ="
spccting the city OF Quivra He does not indeed al
lidc TO the almost insane theories that have beer
advanced on this topic all Of which assume that
there actually was somewhere in Kansas or Ne
braska permanent aboriginal city Of imposing di
mensions. He simply keeps the reader I'm mind o
what the Indians really were and stlll are, by th'
most careful study Of tn" records Of Coronados tx
! petition. He comes to the conclusion that the 90
called city Of Quivra In Kansas at the time
when Coronado II. but that nobody on earth car
guess where II had been the season before or where
II was the season following, since 1t was nohnl
bat "A collection OF wgwams familiar to the Indians
Of the praircs. \ careful pcrusa Of thes
CHAPTERS Of Professor Pandcers book will help 4