The Irish standard., 1901-01-19
Country Called "Ireand the Great by Norsemen
Who Came In the 1enth Century.
Irishmen introduced Christianity Among tho Aborgines
Many Centuries Before Columbus
Legend of Brendan Voyage Has Been Celebrated INF
Literature Of European Nations J

The San Francisco Monitor publishes
a comprehensive and interesting re-
view Of work by Rev. P. De Roo Of
the Oregon City archdiocese, on the
"History of America before Colum-
bus; According to Documents and Ap-
proved Authors From the article we
take the following:
/, The history of America before it's
discovery by Columbus is necessarily
largely speculative. The aboriginal
races have left no written records to
tell their history, as they appear to
have been ignorant of the art of writ
ing, for we can scarcely designate as
such the Mexican picture writing or
the rows of complex hieroglyphics
found sculptured in the ruins of Cen
trail America, and which still remain
undeciphered.
The origin, therefore, of the Ameri-
can nations, their history, government,
languages and condition, are yelled in
obscurity, and nothing really definite
has hitherto been ascertained regard
ing their distant past. Men are turn
ing their eyes in wonderment to the
America of today; they see here, in the
short space of a century, the growth
of an empire, great in its extent and
fertility, greater in the enterprise and
energy Of it's people, greatest in the
freedom of it's institutions and in it's
magnificent promise Of the future; and
they believe that here, under the fos-
tering care and encouragement of
these institutions, man is destined, in
the not very distant future, to reach
) the highest physical and intellectual
development. We have succeeded,
Through the influence of our example,
In changing, during the century just
closing, the monarchies of Europe into
almost free democracies; we have lifted
man up to higher plane Of civil lib.
erty than he had hitherto elsewhere
. attained, and the comforts and luxu-
ries of life are more universally dis
tributed among the people than in any
other country; and if we remain true
to the teachings of those who founded
this government, we are destined to
exercise greater influence upon the
civil affairs of mankind than has hith-
erto been given to any people to
achieve.
It is true that the races that are ac-
complishing these things for mankind
are not the old races Of America. These
sit stolidly by, welded to their ancient
customs, and though they have been
living in contact with us for almost
three centuries, they are still as un-
touched by our civilization, customs
and manners as though we did not
exist. To trace the history of these
ancient peoples, to lift the veil that
shuts out their past, to exhume from
the mounds of the Ohio valley, or trace
in the ruined temples of Mexico, Yu-
catan and Peru the story of the races
that built them, of the civilization that
produced them, present problems not
less interesting, perhaps not less in
strpctive, than does the study of the
phenomenal development of the Amer
ica of today.
In the two volumes before us, the
author has epitomized all that has
hitherto been published Of interest re-
garding the early history Of our coun-
try. He has shown a marvellous in
dustry in the collection of his materi-
ais, and discriminating judgment in
their arrangement that will make his
history of permanent value to all who
are interested in the subject Of which
he treats.
The first volume is devoted to "The
American Aborigines," and begins
with an inquiry into the "Origin of the
American Man." and, incidentally, into
the origin Of man in general. It is
needless to say that he ad-
heres to the Biblical account of
the origin of man. In seeking
to account for the great antiquity
of man on this continent, he does not
deem it improbable that Adam and
Eve might have been created in Amer
lea, ''nor even that the ark of Noe did
not land on some of our mountains"
and that it is just as possible that the
''old world" might have been peopled
from the new, as to suppose the con-
trary. He calls attention to the SINH
larity of the mounds in the Ohio valley
to the mounds found in Ireland, which
are known in our days as Danish
forts;' and he thinks it quite prob
able that the same people built both.
As a further proof Of this theory, he
points to the BasQues of the Pyrenees
! as, an American colony, whose Ian