Daily camera., 1898-05-31
HEYLYN,s GUSM OGRApHY.
A Rare Work Of Which Only Two
,Nopies Remain.
An Old Geographical History of the
World Its Most Interesting
Part Relates to
~ America.

A Boston paper recently announced
the sale of copy of Heylyn's Cosmog-
raphy, published in 1877, and stated that
it was the only copy Of the work extant.
This assertion, however, is not true, for
Mr.. E. A. Kent, of the firm of Kent &
6tuchfeld, of this city. has copy of
this valuab work in an excellent state
Of preservation. It was given him by
his father, and is valued heirloom in
the family.
The book, as its name implies, is ge-
ographical history of the world, writ
ten by Peter Heylyn and published in
London, according to the title page, 220
years ago, by Andrew Clark for Philip
Chctwind and Anne Seile. 1t is large,
strongly bound volume, printed in old
fashioned English, and divided into four
books.
The first book containes the chirog-
raphy and history of Italy, the Alpine
provinces, France, Spain and Britain,
with the isles thereof; the second book
of Belgium, Germany, Denmark,
Swethland, Museany, Poland, Hungary,
Dalmacia, Dacia, Greece, with the isles
thereof: the third book Greater and
Lesser Asia and all principal provinces,
Kingdoms seas and isles; while the
fourth and last book relates to Africa
and all the principal Kingdoms, prov
inces and isles, and America. The SPELL
ing of the above names is given as in the
book .
The most interesting portion of the
work is that relating to America, of
which comparatively little was known
at that time. In the opening chapter he
bounds it as follows: America, the
fourth and last part of the world, is
bounded on the east by the Atlantic
ocean and Virginian seas, by which it is
parted from Europe and Africa, which
seas the mariners call the Mare He,
Noordt; on the west by the Pacific
ocean, which mariners cali Mare Del
Eur, which divides it from Asia; on the
south by what is a part of Terra Aus
trails Incognita, from which it is sepa-
rated by long and narrow streight
called the Streight of Magellan. The
forth bounds of it hitherto not so we'll
discovered that we can certainly affirm
it to be island or continent"
twill be seen by the above that Aus
tralia was believed to reach to the
Straits Of the Magellan.
The maps, which are dated 1868, are
very complex and covered with multi
plicity of names. The contour of
South America is givenve accurately.
but that Of North America is scarcely
recognizable. The Massachusetts,, and
Virginia, and Florida coasts are fairly
good and many of the names of capes.
rivers and towns are the same which
they now have. However, the Gulf of ST.
Lawrence is shown to extend from the
ocean along the northern edge of New
England to point about where Chica-
go now stands, and here nearly joins
the southern point of Hudson's bay.
The great lakes are not designated
Santa Fe, N. NJ, is placed on about
the same latitude as New England.
while California is the name given to
what is now known as Lower Califor-
MIA, and is represented as a great
island, its northern end extending up
into the Terra 1ncognita.
Heylyn gives the general name of
Peruana to the northern and Mexicana
to THE southern continent. His maps
display tendency to recklessness in
the profusion of great rivers indicated,
many as large as the Nile. and flowing
complacently through the mountains
and valleys alike.
According to this work the scheme of
a canal to cut the Isthmus of Panama
was conceived at that early date. He
says: "Some have thought of turning
these twopeninsulas into perfect islands
by cutting through the isthmus. Ger
tain it is that many have motioned to
the council of Spain to do this, and
thus shorten the voyage to China and
Malucca."
The reasons given for not undertak-
ing the scheme were either lack of mon
ey or danger from giving pirates too
good an opportunity. With fine sar-
casm Heylyn adds that probably they
did not desire to endanger the lives of
the few remaining natives they had per-
mitted to live by putting them to
work. ----------------- ------------------
Il y -o,c of a Mu.charsen Ieylyn is