The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1909-08-27

The oldest document of American
history will be on exhibition in the
Swedish village at the Minnesota state
fair, Sept. 6 to II, and should prove
one of the most interesting features OF
this latest novelty to be offered the
patronage of the state fair.
In 1898 stone inscribed on two
sides with runic characters of ancient
and weathered appearance, was discov,
cred underneath Il large tree near Ken
were engaged in grubbing out the tim
Der. The stone will be on free exhi
bition at the Swedish village of the
Minnesota state fair, Sept. 6 to IL
1909 and the inscription reads as fol
lows:
Eight Swedes and twenty-five Nor
wegians upon journey of discovery
from Vinland- Nova Scotia-westwar
We had Il camp by two skerries rocks
in the water-one days journey
north of this stone. We were out fish
ing one day When we returned home
we found ten men red with blood and
dead. Ave Maria! Save us from evil
eve have ten men by the sea to
look after Our vessel 4l-?-days' jour
ney from this island. Year 1890"
Peculiarities in the language prove
that the inscription was made by a
Swede.
Says Hjalmar r. Holland, A. NJ:
"The evidence proving this to be a
genuine rune stone of 1862 and thus
the oldest document of American his
tory are two fold:
''The perfect harmony of the Ian
guage, in the inscription with the Ian
guage in other literature of that time
such as Kong Eriks Kronike," ''Den
Gamle Konninghelov," ''Den Skaanske
Low" and others.
The harmony of the runic characters
of Mariklagers. the Onl v other runiC
inscription of Sweden dating from the
fourteenth century Mariklagens runes
were not, however, accessible to stu
dents until its publication in Illus
treret Svensk Litteraturhistoria several
years after the Kensington stone was
found
"A number of affidavits have been
secured from old and reputable farm
ers who live near the finding place and
all agree that the stone was found en-
braced in the roots of tree in such
a manner that the stone must have
been there at least as long as the tree
These affidavits all state that the stone
was found underneath an ash about ten
inches in diameter, that one of the
roots penetrated almost directly down
ward along the side of the stone and
was fiat OH the side where it had been
in contact with the stone; that the
other large root had followed hori-
zontal course across the face of the
stone until it had reached its further
edge where it had made an abrupt
turn and continued downward along
the other side of the stone This root
too was fiat on the inside. From these
Iaffidavits it is plain that the seed of
this tree must have sprouted upon its
edge and that the first flexible roots
had wound around its moist surface
before becoming rigid.
"As this tree grew in what had been
until recently a dense forest and upon
high elevation, its growth must have
been slow. Being ten inches in dame
ter it is estimated by competent for
esters that it could not have been les,
than forty years old. Being found IL
1898, forty years would bring us bacl
to 1888, or about ten years befor,
Douglas county where it was found
had single white settler At tn,
time there was not settler With,
100 miles of the finding place and tn,
nearest railroad station was 400 mile
away
''The possibility of someone havin.
planted" the stone there since whit,
men came there is therefore quite ex
cluded.
"These affidavits were secured bv DIR
Knut Hoegh of Minneapolis and TIN
writer and are in keeping of the for
mer.
ssfTba nlaaniOn af tbo