New-York tribune., 1900-12-29

According TO DOCUMENTS SaPPID'
x 5g ss. De xSiii sp SIS Philadelphia: J. B. Lppin
cott Company
The nucleus of these two formidable Voiufnes
IS TO be identified, as the author tells us, with
documents relating TO the early Christianizing
Of certain parts OF America discovered IN the
secret Papal archives. Around these hnds ne
has endeavored TO the results OF all re-
saarcbes into American antiquities with the
aim Of presenting a well balanced and reaoaoe
eccount Of a vast series OF historical facts
which. to many readers. is hazy or non-exist-
emf II must be confessed that Mr. De Roos
tremendous array of authorities is little dis
concerting: it is odd to cite on the same page
Of the photography a learned work WIN
Greek title by the old Florentine Platonist Mar
ssrius Ficinus. and q" The East Oregonian. daiiy
naner OF Pendleton, Oregon" Neither can II
be denied that in the main the work Is q re-
daction OF standard scholarship rather thah an
sndepeu dent contribution 10 historicai Aho"i
edge. ii is not vitalized by an unrnlstaAaD'e
rersonsl point Of view. But notwithstanding
- 80 :. NAV he that this generous uncer-
tatnty and seesaw Of impression Is the Only
o1er+ warranted by the present state OF our
knowledge Of the subject.
Asr De Roo takes no stock in the theory Oh an
xu+ochthonous or Indigenous American raoe'
neither does he believe the unscriptural Iapli
cation that America. not Asia. was the ci"Nie
o< mankind He holds that our continent p" as
neopled by successive immigrations from var
90. rarts Of the world. The bulk OF ule pliiiii
1--WE Americans he thinks Of Asiatic ORIGIN anu
ssserts as usual. that these people CAME "0i0
shs Behring Strait or by the easy route O.
so-aaa bv the South Pacific Islands The
80, o-s0,n If the Mayas who attained IN
vrcstsn such a splendid civilization ne ao-
TIa
.1,,,h, ,nfusions OF many other races, whlch ne
. % early irnrnigrations from Africa 10
,yr,s,,csan sailors or to wandering Jews IN
800, OF gold for Solomon's Temple Out He
.ss,gns 70 none Of these any very lnipoi 'o"'
go IN the composition Of the American aOO-
- Fza would very much like to oeheNe
o., there were even earlier immigrauons ny
~w,v ~ the stiu unsubmerged Atlanus'
rTh,s brings US 10 very curious ana lh'er
.x+,rS chapter in Mr.. De Roos WORK. h"Ni''''
81. .ccount Of the knowledge OF America "ie
tbs Greeks He believes that through 'ie s'0iiI9
. r,bcsn,c,an voyagers. in some more occuit
" ,--.a,s came to a real knowledge OF
a. .~sx.e,ca or 3 continent in the western
rT.-,,snbsre Bv a little Juggling with his quo
..+,,, marks he makes Pindar ident1y Ihe
ry.,,v Isles with our continent, thus: Ihev
.-rs,,a +ba road OF Jupiter to the castle Oh
saturn" I" in the northeastern parts OF America
.<xufere DER the Isles OF the Blest ocean oieeEe0
hlow and flowers CLEAN with gold MI De
Ron has slight doubt that the Atlanus OF
P1ato's ''Critias" and ''Tim@us' refers directiy
20 America. of which the philosopher had hearo
by tradition not very remote. Here one much
more readily agrees with Justin Winsor' that
the lost Atlantis Of Plato is pure mytn Win
perhaps Just that germ Of ancient. opJecuNe
reality which we grant TO any myth To the
Ss.rf-r n~an
and objectifying mind the genesis Of the splen-
did myth IS perfectly natural and Ineligible
There is no more reason 10 credit the actual
knowledge Of America by the Greeks than to
believe the opposing assertion Of contemporary
spiritists that they have had intimate dealings
with princesses from Atlantis. 1t is unthink-
able that no fancy OF blissfu land beyond the
pillars of Hercules and the setting sun should
ever occur TO a people imaginative as the
Greeks, nor is It unlikely that some glimmering
tradition Of such land may have been pre-
served from early prehistoric intercourse. This
is quite sufficient explain the passages in Pin
Oar and Plato and those other familiar passing
illusions TO a western land in Virgil, Horace,
Seneca, Dante and Pulci, OF which Mr.. De Roo
makes much
The chapters concerning the civic and artistic
development OF ancient America and the i'm
morality and misery Of popular life are par
ncTlarly good The crucial point OF the work
Hes within the three last chapters OF the
first volume. Despite a certain lack Of his
torical criticism in weighing opposite theories
and IN Sitting the truth from the boundless
chan OF the sixteenth century books of travel
Mr.. De Roo contrives to make out an excellent
case for HIS belief that not only pure monothe-
ism but many specific Christian doctrines and
practices existed in America long before Column
bus. His belief that st. Thomas the apostle
may have come to America is as yet too
ehimerical to demand space The theory that
seeds OF Christianity may have been brought
over from China is interesting. but still only
e dangerous hypothesis: but the belief in some
real and actual ground for the Incan legends
about ouetzalcoah is reasonable and safe. This
mysterious parsonage with white and bearded
face and a band Of cross-worshipping followers
like himself IN appearance, who left the tradi-
ton Of strangely Christianlike observances, who
made the coming Of Cortez seem the fulfilment
OF prophecy TO the superstitious Mexicans.
could scarcely have been other than some
European missionary
MI De Roo's second volume, which deals with
Scandinavian and other voyages and immigra-
lions to Iceland, Greenland and the American
continent, is, OF course, more tangible and con-
elusive than its predecessor The most notable
point in If is the great amount Of credit for
early acquaintance with America given to St
Brenoan and other Irish missionaries and
sailors. It was not very long ago that we
were Informed that the great Virgilius Marc
was an Irishman, and now still another laurel
goes TO the restless Celt. There is indeed a
certain fitness in thinking Of the Irish as the
original European discoveries of America
Probably none but the professional historian
VIII ever cease TO be sceptical toward the special