The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1908-07-31


Event club of Blackfoot. Mrs. Jones
is careful, painstaking and accurate
with any work assigned to her. She
is on the program for the first dis
trict federation meet at Mackay in
September. Clubs would do we'll to
preserve such paper as this for
future reference and reciprocity
work. 81
THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE
AMERICAN NATION.
BY Mrs. D. r. Jones, Blackfoot. Ida.
The history of the United States is
the most important section In the
annals of the human race. No 9TH
er paragraph In the vast story OF
mankind possesses so rich an inter-
est, no other is SO full of promise, of
prophecy, and of inspiration. Many
great peoples have appeared success
sively In the historical tableau Of the
world; but not the Hindu the Per-
sian, Of the Greek, Roman, Celt; not
even the Teuton, with his activity
and strength has been able, in Asia,
Africa, or in Europe, to create In q
century or in ages, a historical pro-
duct more worthy of admiration than
the magnificent result of history in
the great American Republic. For
what was the western Hemisphere
before the coming Of the white man?
The three Americas, North, South
and Central, were vast dominion
Of nature, darkened with solitary for
ests, dappled with great prairies,
emphasized with majestic mountains,
and traversed by three of the might
lest rivers Of the globe.
Let us look for moment upon the
face Of the New World at the period
of discovery. Only here and there do
we find slight traces by which to de-
tect the presence and the work Of
human beings. We see the City of
Mexico and by close attention we
may discover traces of armies In the
streets. Farther south in the en-
pire Of Vximal the ruins Of cities
and temples. In the highlands OF
Peru there are evidences of human
work. High up in the Andes We dis
cover huge walls of cut stone, and
in some Of the basins are remains
Of marvellous structures equal to the
stone works of the great races of the
east. AS matter of fact the abort
gines were everywhere.
The northern parts OF our CONT
nent were held by race rarely, or
never, found more than thirty miles
from the frozen sea. For the Eski-
mos were then, as now a people dis
tinctly of the shore. To the south
lay the vast country of the interior
inhabited by the copper-colored race
to whom the mistaken Spaniards
gave the name of Indians. No part
of the present United States was UNI
traversed by the wild and untutored
barbarians who made no effort to re-
duce 1t to any civilized condition.
The time came when adventures
of Aryan descent first found them
selves on the western shores of the
great Atlantic. But down to the
close of the tenth century men Of
the white race had probably never
visited our continent. The epoch of
visitation began with the Morse Ad-
venturers, they reached Labrador
Iceland, the northern part Of Ameri-
ca. They came In the order OF sea
kings, and their ventures were heroic
but only few traces of their pres
ence In America remains to testify
to the daring deeds Of Lief the Lucky
and Eric the Red, Thorwald, and a
great many other vikings, who came
across the North Atlantic in open
ships, wearing their chain armor and
walrus tusks and eagle-winged he'll
NETS, which are described in the Ice
landic Sagas. After the visits of
these Morse navigators and adventur-
ers to the curtain, which had been
lifted for a moment, fell and rested
for several centuries on the world
had reserved the great work for cer-
tain navigators and dreamers who
acquired skill in the MEDITERRANEAN
waters, and who had the courage and
aggressiveness of the Roman race.
In the latter half of the fifteenth
century the best representatives Of
that race dwelt in the maratine CT
ties of Portugal, Italy and Spain,
and from them came the great adj
venturers across the great Atlantic
and reached the islands of the west
ern seas. This was the uplifting of
the darkness. The discovery of the
New World by Columbus was the
most dramatic incident in the history
of mankind. 1t may be that some
thing of heroism or sacrifice more
grand and enobling has occurred;
but among the distinctly human
events nothing so inspiring has been
witnessed since the uprise of darkness
and the revelation at dawn on that
October, 1892, when the cry Land
Ho" was heard from the prov of the
little ship Pinta.
Now before the man of the fif-
teenth century lay the unknown is
lands in the unknown seas, and. Just
beyond was the coast line of the
continent waiting to receive its
Aryan visitors. And thus began the
epoch of discovery. The maritime
nations of Western Europe at this
time were Portugal, Spain, England,
France. Holland was subject to
Spain. Italy and Germany were brok-
en- up into numerous weak states.
Norway had no prestige, and Sweden
was not strong enough to enter into
the contest for the possession of the
New World.