Omaha daily bee., 1900-09-09
BEAT COLUMBUS MANY YEARS
Chimes. Navigators Said to Be the First
DISCOVERIES Of America,
FACTS REVEALED BY ANCIENT RECORDS
voyage of Bwui shan to Alaska aud
Down to Mcxico-Authenti-
Gated Account of the
Claims of china.


China claims almost everything in this
world, while the rest Of the world Is max
ing claims in China. At least the Chinese
have claimed almost everything that west
ern civilization has introduced TO them 10
modern times-gunpowder, the mariner
compass printing from movable blocks'
playing cards, chess and many other
things "Oh. we had that a thousand years
axo," has been their inevitable reply upon
seeing these things in the hands OF the
foreigner. But their claim TO the as
covery OF America, which Is beIleVeu Dy
every man and woman Of ordinary educa-
tion In China, is we'll founded and worthy
OF note. The records OF China extend
back further than those OF any other coun-
try ON the face Of the globe. The very
date corresponding to the year when
Joshua is said TO have commanded the
sun to stand still can be found on these
records II we follow down the official
chronologies to 499 A. d. we will find an ac-
count OF one Hwui Shan, who In that year
returned to China with the statement that
he had come from country lying great
distance to the east. His story so excited
the interest OF the government that the
imperial historlographer was commanded
to enter II upon his official records. Al
though the Chinese and Japanese both are
thoroughly familiar with the story OF
Hwui Shans discovery, the celebrated Chi.
nese scholar. Ma Twan Lin, searched the
original records and made a copy Of the
imperial historiographer's original digest
that It might be proved beyond the shadow
OF doubt
The Chinese Columbus.
nnIdhiat mis-
priest. with Ave brother missionaries he
left China, sailing north by the peninsula
Of Kamchatka to the Aleutian islands,
eastward to Alaska and thence to Fusang,
which is the name of the country he tells
the most about. He describes the people
he encountered on his voyage. The Aleu-
tian islanders, he said were happy, Joy
Gus people having the custom OF tattoolng
their bodies, and they received The
stranger with a great show Of hospitality.
East OF these islands was the country he
called the Great Han" whose inhabitants
had no implements OF war, nor carried on
a war with any one, but were content TO
live by hunting and fishing. This descrip-
tiou Of people applies truly to the in
habitants OF Alaska. the Esquimaux, who
are a peaceable people, never having been
known to have had wars Of any Kind.
X
berry Tree" is described as being situated
twice ten thousand Ii to the east Of
Great Han" BY a glance at the map it
will be seen that an easterly course from
that part OF Alaska nearest the Aleutian
islands would bring the navigator to
British Columbia, but then the old Budd-
hist missionary may have been careless in
regard to his sailing directions, or the
imperial historiographer may have care
lessly substituted east for southeast.
Twice ten thousand IT, is hg-
ured variously between 5000 and 1000 miles
and that distance in a southeasterly di-
rection from Alaska nearest the Aleutian
islands would bring the navigator off the
coast OF Mexico. Now, Hwui Shan's ac-
count OF Fusang and it's people where he
appears to have tarred some time, applies
TO Mexico His particular attention was
called to the fact that the inhabitants or
the country had no walled cities or towns,
which would be the first natural observa-
tion OF a Chinaman arriving in a thickly
populated country from one where every
thing is encompasscd with a wall, 2s in
China.
Proofs In the Old Records.
Hwui Shan describes the houses OF Fu-
sang as being constructed OF adobcs or sun
dried bricks similar to those of the Pueblo
Indians Of the present day, and then he
gives faithful description of the Mexican
Agave, that most useful OF all plants to
the native Mexican He said they made
cordage and paper from it's fiber and ate
the tender sprouts of its young roots. lie
speaks OF a milk which was probably none
other than the fermentcd juice of the
maguey. the pulque Of the present day, and
calls the tuna, the fruit Of the cactus
which We call a prickly pear, red pear
which, II not plucked, remains on the tree
throughout the season. The people had nc
iron but used copper in a variety OF ways
and gold was OF no value. Speaking o
the inhabitants, he said the children mar
ried at very young age, which Is
true OF the aboriginal tribes OF Mexico
Buddha Religion Founded.
The religion OF Buddha was founded II
Central India about the beginning OF the
Christian era. No jew, Greek, Roman ol
Brahman had ever thought of convertini
any one to his religion. BY them religion
was considered a private or national prop
erty, with which no outsider had any bust
ness to Interfere. But Buddha. the founder
OF Buddhism, commanded his proselytes e
20 forth with the doctrines and preaci
them in every part of the world. Thus
with religion East Indian arts were carried
into China and Buddhism was eventual!
accepted as a religion by the Chinese, witt
preserve in their records accounts of jour
neys made by various devotees Of tn
Buddhist religion in 1856 \. D.. 800. SIS an
go. These accounts are all written by tn
Buddhists themselves, whereas the ac
count OF Hwui Shan is chronced by tn
imperial historiographer
After the destruction OF the dynasty o
Tsin in 42O China was divided into tw
empires, that OF the north and that of tn
south. Ii Yen Chen, a Chinese historian
who wrote the history OF these two empire