Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-11-23

ding through an unhroken wilderness, and camping at Schoolcraft island in the lake he made a thorough exploration of the vicinity. Lake Itasca is a beauti- ful sheet of water ill the very heart of the primeval forest and some 1, 470 feet above the sea level. The whole Itascan basin, comprising some B square miles, has been set apart as public park by the state of Minnesota, and game and timber arc both protected from dcpreda- tions. The lake is about three miles long, is shaped like the head of an elk and was once called Elk lake by the In- dians. Dr. Coues found where the Ora died Achilles entered the lake and fol- lowed the stream until it was so narrow he could step across 1t.
 Lake Itasca was discovered about 1903 by William Morrison. fur trader who was littlo interested in the sub jcct In 1882 Henry R. Schoolcraft, the historian, and his party were guided to the lake by an Indian, and Schoolcraft named it Lake Itasca from parts of the Latin words ''Veritas caput, signifying in very poor Latin the true head" of tho Mississippi. Schoolcraft and his party were satisfied that they had found the true source of the great river, but four years later the French explorer, J. N. Nicollct, found the small stream which he called the Cradled Achilles and which he declared was the real in fant Mississippi. He also mapped the entire ltascan basin with such accuracy that the observations of subsequent cx- plorers merely confirmed every report he made concerning the region. One of the oldest facts concerning the source of the great river Is that the MiSsissip- pi flows due north for 90 miles be- fore beginning its grand rush south to- ward the gulf of Mexico, some 2, 555 miles distant.
 Not many years ago another complete survey of the Itascan region was made by Hon. J. V. Brewer under the aus piccs of the Minnesota State Historical society, and through the efforts of the society the state was induced to preserve the interesting region i'll its natural state by rcscrving it for a state park.
 The whole subject, " says Dr. Coues, twas bcfogged and thrown into dis putc by certain Captain Glazier, who, apparently for no other purpose than to advertise himself, publish ed his alleged discovery of new and true source of the Mississippi. By re- ducing the size of Lake Itasca, ignor- ing Nicollet's Cradled Achilles. magni- flying a small side lake. which he called Lake GlaZier. and by stretching out one of the feeders of the latter he produced q distorted map which actually imposed I on the Royal Geographical Society of Great Britain. My recent investigations have verified the observations of Nicol- let and Brewer, and 1 walked along the bed of the stream termed the infant | Mississippi by Captain Glazier and walked dry shod, for the stream was dried up.''
 Dr. Coues' statements carry decided weight for the reason that he ranks high among the scientists of the United States. He was born in Portsmouth, N. H., Sept. g, lS42, and was graduated from Columbian university an A. B. in 1861 and an M. D. in 1863. He then served a year ill hospital work ill Wash ington. He was appointed an assistant surgeon ill the United States army, and I while on duty in Arizona made valuable researches concerning the natural histo- " of the region. In 1873 ho did valua- blc work as surgeon and naturalist of the United States northern boundary survey commission, and in 1876 he was secretary and naturalist of the geological and geographical survey of the territo- rics. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1877 and be- longs to nearly all the important scien- tific societies of the United States and Europe. He has written many books on ornithology, zoology and kindred sub- jects. contributed 10, 900 words and six years work to the Century Dictionary and of late years has been an enthusi. | aStic theus0uhist.