The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-12-18

sworSs, after trying in vain 20 split their
a-tiiicially ;hickened skuila AT dawn Of
Saturday, October Is" he continues in his
journal. many OF the men came 20 the
SHIPS in canoes made out 81 the trunks OF
trees. each OF one piece and wonderfully
built, some containing forty men and oth-
ers but = single enc. They paddle with u
peel. Ike that Of q baker. and make great
speed, and II canoe capsizes all swim
about and hail out the water with Gala
bashes examined them Closely TO see ie
there any gold amongst them, notic-
ing that Some OF them wore small pieces
in their noses: and by signs l was able to
understand that by going TO the south. or
by so!ng around the island to the south
ward. would find king who had great
goo vessels and also native gold in album
dance. At this moment il is dark. and all
have gone ashore in their canoes. i have
determined To lose no time. but
To wait I'LL Tomorrow evening and then
sail for the southwest 10 try IL I
can hnd the Island Of Cipango."
Continuing on. Columbus sailed. in a
roundabout way. for the island OF Cuba.
reaching its north coast at point near
| the present port 81 Gihars. thence coast
ing to Cape Maisi. crossing the channel
to Haiti. where he lost his fla gship on u
reef in the harbor of Cape Haitien. built
a fort and left some forty OF his men, and
after reaching the Ray OF SANTANA re-
turned to Spain-to such glory awaiting
HIM as the world~uow knows
Now, were this merely a sentimental
journal. the writer would halt right hero
and allow the impression 10 prevail that
Columbus ana the Maria Teresa landed
at one and the same spot. But the mex
orahle truth must In the end come out.
ana that is that there is yet some doubt
as - the exact landfall Of Columbus. That
he first made land in the Bahamas. and
about midway Of the chain, is absolutely
certain. but different investigators place
that historic spot on different islands. tho
two extremes being some 800 miles apart.
or late, however. though Washington
Irving and Humboldt came to the conclu-
sion that the true lanafau was on Cat
island at Columbus point, yet later inves-
tigators have most generally determined
it TO ne on the northeast shore OF Wat
liugs island. which hes about fifty miles to
the eastward Of the Point.
Irving's conclusions were unquestioned
until little more than forty years ago,
when a work by Capt. Becher. Of the Brit
iSh navy, appeared entitled ''The Iandfall
of Columbus" and later the exhaustive
work OF Capt. c. Y. Fox. Of our own navy.
Becher advocated Watlings. and Capt. Fox
the island Of SANTANA, or Atwood Cay, as
the first landfan OF Columbus; the former
being supported ny Lieut. Mu1uoCh- oA iho
United States navy, who began his investi
cations at the coast of Cuba and followed
the track Of Columbus back TO the island
first sighted, which he determined was
Watlings-
AS TO the name at present applied 10
their island the unromantfc appenatlon
Of Cat" no one seems to know when 1t
was bestowed. The native name OF that
first island--he 1t Cat or Watlings-was
C;uanahani. and Columbus called 1t San
Salvador But, by whatever name known.
II will never become ASSOCIATED from thu
gallant deeds OF those heroes four centu-
ries apart-Columhus and Hobson- Tho
halo OF romance will forever enwrap It in
an idenl glory Washington Star.