Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1911-04-25
Mistellaneuus Reaaina.
BELIEFS OF OLD eEoeRAPHERs.
Map Makers Had Strange Ideas About
the New World.

Map Makers Had Strange Ideas About
the New World.
Less than 100 years after Colum-
bus discovered the New World Sir
Martin Frobisher. an adventurer In
Queen Elizabeth's navy, attempted TO
teach mankind an advanced lesson In
geography by sailing around the
north end of America, through the
! fabulous northwest passage. The ac-
complishment of this feat became
world wide dream that haunted the
vision of men for more than two CEN
turies. The northwest passage was
but one of many geographical illu-
sions and astonishing absurdities.
In 1873 Louis de Baude, Comte de
Frontenac, governor general Of Can
ada under Louis XIV, sent joliet
and Father Marquette to visit and ex-
plore a great river which the Indians
said was in the west. These adVen-
turers fioated down the Father OF
Waters far enough to be convinced
that it must empty into the Gulf OF
Mexico and not into the Pacific ocean.
| Frontenac wrote to his king that ne
would in all probability prove once
for all that the great river flowed
into the Gulf of California, and he
was, no doubt, disappointed with his
establishment. Father Marquette
was equally disappointed, but he
promptly transferred all hopes of
that nature to the Missouri river, and
henceforth it was accepted as theo-
nv that the western ocean could be
reached by ascending the Missouri.
The Indians knew no geography be-
yond their own hunting grounds,
Those who dwelt along the Missis-
sippi or Missouri rivers knew not
whence these streams came nor
whittier they went. When Mar
ouette saw the Missouri river de-
bouching with such terrific force into
the placid Mississippi he was struck
with awe, for it was at the time OF
the June flood. He inquired OF the
natives through his interpreter about
this wonderful stream, which white
men had not seen before. The ma
tives informed him, so he recordeo
in his journal, that "by ascending
this river for four or five days one
reaches a fine prairie, 20 to 3O leagues
| long. This must be crossed III
northwesterly direction, and 1t ter
inmates at another small river, on
Sec
ond river flows toward the south
west for ten or fifteen leagues, after
which 1t enters a lake which hoWs
toward the west, when 1t falls into
the sea. l have hardly any doubt II
| is the vermilion sea-" That was the
name of the Gulf Of California In
Father Marquette's day.
La Sale was the first to visit the
mouth of the Mississippi river, where
he planted the Lilies of France,
the standard which still waved over
the land when Jefferson purchased
the country of Napoleon. La sane
was disappointed, like Father Mar
uuette, and, like him, transferred ms
hopes to the Missouri river. ne ne
| "conceived the hope of reaching the
South Sea by the Missouri river the
strangest theory that ever took pos
session of intelligent men.
Father Gabriel Mausest wrote a let
| ter from Kaskaskia in 1712, when
displays the prevailing misconception
| as to geographical matters. He
wrote: I'VE are but thirty leagues
from the mouth Of the Missouri or
Pek-i-tan-oni river. This is a large
river which flows into the Mississippi
and they pretend to say that 1t comes
from a still greater distance than that
f,ny hn
very near where the Spanish have
their mines in Mexico, and it is very
convenient for the French to travel
in this country" Here we get an
echo of the Spanish expedition OF
Coronado, who probably discovered
the Missouri simultaneously with De
Soto's discovery of the Mississippi.
1t is presumed that Coronado reacn-
| ed the Missouri river at or near Kan
sas City. The presumption Is based
on some very good, but inconclusiVe'
evidence. This great Spanish traveller
and explorer traversed through the
very heart of the region which became
the Great American Desert on the
maps which were studied in the
schools Of our country by men yet
living. The Great American Desert
began Immediately west Of Kansas
CITY and extended westward to the
mountains, while it had spacious
reach north and south. The map
markers of the time evidently did not
have access to Coronado's journals
and had probably never heard or the
groves of luscious plums on which ne
and his troops feasted.
Neither could these great mapmak-
ers have seen the great atlas made IN
l172S by that consummate German ge-
ographer, Matthew Seutter, and his
co-laborer, John Baptist Hamann,
both of Nuremburg, Germany, in
those days the center Of the worlds
mapmaking industry. The Seutter at
las is a large and costly work, and In
all probability did not circulate In
North America. The work was in two
volumes. The first volume ontains
| 1O6 maps, while the second contains
l102 maps. The pages are "a by Il
inches and the colors are brilliant.
The late Jefferson Brumbach Of Kan