The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1893-06-01
COMPARATIVELY a NEW OCEAN
The Pacific Regard as "a Spanish
Lake Until About n Centuary

The Pacific Regard as "a Spanish
Lake Until About Centuary
1t seems rather curious to recall the
fact that very little more than 100
years ago the Pacific was regarded as
a Spanish lake, says the Washington
Star. That nation claimed 1t on the
strength of Balboa's discovery in 1913,
and insisted that it should be regarded
as a mere clausum. When Sir Francis
Drake circumnavigated the globe his
sailing across these waters was seri-
ouSly resented by Spain, which de-
manded restitution to her of the plum
der he took, but Queen Elizabeth made
naughty reply. Not long before the
close of the last century the Spanish
crown again began to make fuss be-
cause its monopoly of the Pacific was
infringed ON. 1t ordered the comman-
| dante of San Francisco to seize the
Columbia, the first vessel that carried
| the American flag around Cape Horn.
In 1889 two Spanish men-of-war seized
| several English fur traders on the
| hOA IL"SSI COlSI anu wal was FSAJ
| nearly the result. 1t is odd that the
| Spaniards, though discoveries of new
lands and waters, were among the
| poorest navigatOrS of their time. After
coming upon the Solomon islands they
| could not find them again, and they
were lost for $50 years. The water
| supply of their galleons was not kept
in casks, but in big earthen jars. AS it
was impossible to provide a sufficient
supply for n six months voyage on
! board of a ship carrying 400 or 500 peo-
pie they always took to sea great num-
| berS of mats. Whenever it rained the
mats were spread to catch the drops,
which were drained off into jars
| through split bamboos. The mortality
from scurvy on long trips was fright
| full.
| COrtes, after the conquest of Mexico,
! fitted out three small ships to sail to
/ the Moluccas and reinforce the Span
iards there. They were scattered by a
tempest and two of them were lost.
One of these is imagined to have been
the strange vessel which was wrecked
on the rocks of Hawaii about the same
time as nearly as can be reckOncd.
According to tradition only the captain
and his sister were saved. The natives
received them kindly and gave them
food They intermarried with the Ha-
waiians and became the progenitors of
certain well known families of chiefs.
In early times the control of land on
the Hawaiian islands was held by the
ruling chiefs, who reserved what por-
ton they pleased for their own use and
divided the rest among the leading men
! subject to them. The position of the
latter was analogous to that Of the
barons of European feudalism. They
furnished supplies to their sovereign
and in case of war were expected to
take the field with what fighting me1
their estates could furnish. These bar.
ons held almost despotic sway over
their domains, apportioning the terri,
tory which they controlled among the
followers according to the whim of the
moment or demand of policy. Every
time a new chief came into power
there was fresh distribution Of lands
Thus the country was always full Of
people who were dispossessed an(
homeless. Kamechameha III. over
: turned this system by granting to his
people a bill Of rights which made theil
. tenure Of the soil permanent.