New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-03-23
an VENEZUELAN MAPS.
rn PHILLIPS MAKES SOME INTEREST
ING COMMENTS ON THEM
A FEW OF THE MANY PUBLISHED ARE
VALUABLE AS ORIGINAL WORKS.

FEW OF THE MANY PUBLISHED ARE
VALUABLE AS ORIGINAL WORKS
rsy TELEGRAPH TO THE rRIBuNr)
,-s,rcton March 22.-Speakng to-day Of tho
49, rom which the Venezuelan maps used in
~ liant British Blue Book were derived. as we'll
y" =. N. general history Of American cartography.
80. Phillips, the pathological expert Of the Con-
-.sional Library. now attached to the Venezuelan
t.,Aary Commission, said:
rns maps of a country may count up into the
a,.ds but when critically examined number
80 few that contain original matter This
49, .xempfied by reference to Vlrgnian cartogra-
- II all but four OF the many hundred maps
rsnshed In aliases or separately from 1855 to 176l
-. destroyed the world would not be d loser
~..hv The first map. made by With In 1855.
...d ND TO the time of Captain John Smiths. in
us His In turn. was copied until Herman'e in
"a, and then came Fry's and Jeffersons. In 1851.
rs..s four were the only original surveyors; the
.h.r p-makers simply copied their work. Most
- the old maps were made by navgators who de-
.,.at.d the coast. The great inland country was
mspped out by missionaries. while facing with
u,,od fortitude the rgors OF Indictment climate.
hos,e natives and hardships of every kind in order
J. nropagate their religion. AS showing the indi-
~ but important influence which the missionaries
have sxerted In the making Of maps. / may refer
"A a passage found IN The Naturalists Library.
edinburgh lSl. Vol. 80. p. 70. in memoir OF
ubom5urgk up to his starting for British Guiana
IN December. Sao:
The destruction Of the missionary settlement
wSn,eh most OF the native tribes have been seen to
BE- at present existing, together with their wiling
nsss au OF ;ne missionaries have induced our
Government TO investigate the subject ana u was
;sst wnen a survey of the boundaries was deter,
mined upon and. under the sanction OF Koyai
Commisslon. Mr.. Schomburgk has been eelecteo
again to superntend and command an expedition
10 Gulana -.
Il might cite many examples OF the use tho oo
map makers made of each others work. The great
atlas OF Ba<uw, in twelve volumes. Is mostly
compilation from earlier materials. particularly the
volume devoted to America. Thus, the map OF
Guana l60 which Is referred to in the recent Brit
sh blue book the disputed Guianan boundary.
vas taken bodily from De LAets work Of 1885, called
Nieuwe Wereldt. ofts Beschruvinge van west
Inden.
der his name in 1911. is simply translation OF
Non,anus, and reproduces all his maps and plates.
excepting that Of America. which is. believe. also
derived from other sources. Alexander Won HUM
boldt In a note to the introduction to his personal
narrative Of travel in South America, arraigns inc
great English map maker. Arrowsmth win srea.
ssperity Ny general map OF tho Kingdom OF
New Spain, 1904 he says has been copied by Mr..
Arrowsfnith, who has appropriated IT 10 himseh ny
publishing It on a large scale under the utle OF
New Map of Mexico, Compiled from Original Docu-
nsuts" The conduct Of Mr.. Arrowsmith IS 30
much the moro reprehensibe as neither Messrs'
Darymple Rennell, DARCY de La Hochette' nor
any of the other excellent geographers England
boasts have ever given him the example either IN
their maps or the analyses which accompany thein'
N. r.cl.m.tious of a traveller must appear nrst
when more copies Of his labors are puoiisheo uhoer
the name of other persons
Again, take HALEY. one Of whose maps Is ci'eo
q authority and reproduced in the Same oiuo ooA'
The following extract concerning him SPEAKS io'
itself 1t IL taken from volume entitled Inc
Memorials Of the English and French Coh'ii'e
saries Concerning the Limits OF Nova Soo'~ ""N
Acadia London. 1885, page 20:
The three English cited by the FSsnch b. CS Mr
misaries are one by Mr. Hasly an0s ana 10 give
them the greater weight they are yey careful oiS
to the great od th Ul N Observe that
ET PSop. 1o hays T,ySs sur
Within the s,. ns rom the x ssa
fined to southeast part Of the Iennosa and az
that he very little attentive 10 Inc heen 10
sS9M tse in ae Rs m1n
s SSes a aes f Of g.ogrspSca errors THE
to have been his design. and The frencn o0nW W
S ;aev npen when they cited this chart speci
Of his profound knSwedge IN geosraPny; ;Sst
gen:leman's great skill in astronomy and however
perfect it may be in the light and for the purpose
"1'he same high authorities speak OF De LAet's
mans as made according TO his own opinion and no
tons OF the countries included in IT, They also men
ton page CO Of the same work. In rather shght-
INK manner. De Isle. Bellin and DAnvine' all h.sh
authorities whose maps have been used repeatedly
IN the settlement of treat boundary disputes. From
the same volume take the following excellent criti-
c.sm OF maps IN general:
Maps are from the nature Of them very slight evil
eopSns the Of one an
ether and 4 the t BE ay SHOW hs the ns
position Of country. the situation Of islands and
smne sf the limits Of territory which depend
tirely upon authentic proof; and the proofs IN ha
tive them any weight would be themselves better
evcence and therefore ought to be produced IN as
putes Of this nature. in which the rights OF King
doms concerned.
From Ortelius's Atlas, published In 1870. and the
many other great aliases OF the Dutch up 10 l7oo
The world reaped rich harvest, and. though many
reproduce older maps. on some new discoveries are
added Taking these maps in chronological order
We have Ortelius in 1870 Heyns in 1925 (the latter
giving only an epitome OF the formers work.. Gal
lasun in $780, Langenes in 1898 and Mcrcator in 1906
with the various editions OF his work by Hondius
Ortelius and Mercator bound by ties of friend
ship so the latter deferred the publication of his
atlas till after that Of Orteus had appeared. while
he in turn communicated all his special maps and
cartogra phical cancellations TO his friend Mercator
Following these and placing them in the order In
Which their works were Drought out are lie Laet'
lS5: Blaeuw. 1923: Janson. 1899 Vscher, aboW 1871
Nontanus 1911: Danckers about 1850; Devils, about
1876 which was made up from Baeuw. Vscher,
Janson and others; and finally Homann in 1853
The next maps in Importance for a knowledge OF
the American cartography from the seventeenth TO
the eighteenth century those of the French
Samson, d'Anvie, De Lise. Robert de Naugondy
and others: and here again. l must refer to the
obligations these map makers, and also the Spanish
and Italian. were under TO the missionaries par
uculary In the case OF America, the works OF
nrhers. Marquette. Hennepn and Charlevoix AS
Illustrating what has been said In the first part OF
mis- paper. take the maps OF Guiana. in which SO
much interest is centred present. The first refer
0ce made to a map of Guiana Is that in Sir waiter