Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-06-03
Popular Letter Writer.

At least twenty editions of the letters of
Vespuccius containing the narrative of his
nrst voyage to the new world were pub
lished In the Latin, Italian, German and
Dutch languages at Florence, Rome, Venice,
antwerp, Nuremberg, SaintDie, Leipsic,
Strassburg, Basic and Paris and it was in
the edition issued at Saint Die Nav <
1907, that the name America was first sug-
guested for the new world For more than
tnree centuries Vespuccius rested under the
oissrace or having usurped the glory of
Columbus. 1t was not until 1887 that Alex
ander Won Humboldt pointed out the real
culprft and demonstrated that the name
America first appeared in a paragraph in
, ai.tIe Laaln book on geography written by
Martin Waldseemuller at Saint-Die a vii
lage In southeastern Lorraine then a part
or France and now a part of Germany
This little book was entitled The Rudi-
authorship and publication and the unfore-
seen part 1t played in christening the west
ern hemisphere forms one of the most Gu
rlous and fascinating narratives in the his
tory of literature.
The manuscript of the "Cosmographiae
lntroductio' was begun during the summer
OF l56. within month, it may be, of the
day when Christopher Columbus, poor neg
iected and discredited by the sovereigns he
mad served so well, was laid in his humble
grave. The book was finished the following
winter and the first edition was published
on the VII Kalends, May, 1907" which, as
Mr.. Ihacher says, corresponds to the 9Th
of May in our calendar. The little book be-
came quite popular and was widely circu-
lated. Four editions were published within
five months. The title, translated from the
Latin. is as follows:
Introduction to geography, together with
some principles of geometry necessary to
the purpose. Also four voyages Of Ameri-
Gus Vespuccius A description of universal
cosmography both stereometrical and plan
ometrcal, together with what was unknown
n nd hoe haan
ered.''
The motto of the book is: Neither the
earth nor the stars possess anything greater
than God or Caesar for God rules the stars
and Caesar the chimes of the earth"
In the ninth chapter, entitled DE Out
busdam Cosmographiae Rudimentis,' the
author, having already described Europe
Asia and Africa, 1.-The other three grand
divisions of the earth designated by
Ptolemy, the great Egyptian geographer
says:
America" First Suggested
But now that these parts have been
more widely explored and another fourth
part has been discovered by Americas Yes
puccius (as will be seen hereafter), 1 do
not see why we should refuse to name it
America-namely, the land of Americus-
after it's discoverer. Americas Vespuccus,
a man of sagacious mind, since both Eu-
rope and Asia derive their names from
scription of the new world given by Ameri
Gus in his letters which had already been
published in Florence and elsewhere.
But for this suggestion made by an OBJ
scure scholar in a little village in the
mountains of Lorraine, the western hemi-
sphere might have been called "Colum-
bia," or New Spain.' The Indies.' as
it is officially designated in the records of
the Spanish government until the last CEN
fury. But, as the old proverb says, tall
oaks from little acorns grow, and Martin
Waldseemuler unconsciously, by care
less stroke of his pen, chrstened the new
world. His chapter America was copied
and recopied wherever the art of printing
was known, and few years later 1t
repubshed with a map upon which the
name America appears.
Several descendants of Americas VeSpuc-
cius are still living in Florence, and many
years ago Mr.. Edward Lester, the United
States consul, formed their acquaintance
and became interested in them, much
that he undertook to secure them pension
from government and a grant of land
in western territories. Miss Edna Vespuc-
cius, a very estimable lady, accompanied
Mr. Lester to Washington and remained
there for some months in 1850 trying to Sc
cure recognition for herself and her fam
lily, who united in a petition asking:
II. That the Congress of the United