Norwich bulletin., 1914-06-27
THE LAND OF
 EEL DORADO" LOCATED
Tale of How the Story of the Exist
 ence of Such Was Started.

The lure of gold has ever been the
 basis for brave exploits and bold ad-
 venture, and often about 1t has been
 woven the enticing web Of mystery
 and myth to add to the Zest of its pur-
 suit. The ancient Argonauts sailed in
 search of the mythical Golden Fleece,
 while the golden apples of the myster-
 ious Hesperides lured on the g1ant
 Hercules. The bold Phoenicians sail
 ed to the shores of Spain to gather a
 golden harvest for the merchants Of
 Syria and the old Semitic navigators
 sailed out from the Red Sea to seek 1t at Tarshish and fin the famed mines
 of Ophir whose location is even now
 a mystery. The Portuguese as early
 as the middle Of the 18th century
 brought gold from the west coast of
 Africa and it was to ind a sea route
 to the gold and spice laden shores or
 the Far East that Nasco da Cana
 sailed around the Cape of Good Hope
 and Columbus finally embarked 10
 venture into unknown seas upon that
 memorable voyage of 14s2. The dis coyery of the New Word but added a new stimulus to the unceasing. rest
 less search for wealth. and in the marvellous tales of pearls and jewels
 rare and glittering golden ornaments
 decorating simple Savages who Knew but little of their value. the adven-
 turous and credulOus conquistadoreS
 saw a glorious land of promise.
 Among the most entiCing or these tales was the one the Coquetios In dians told the earliest settlers Of the colony of Coro, established Dy Juan de Ampues in 1927 on the narrow isthmus that connects the peninsula or Paraguana with the mainland about the Lake of Maracaybo in Nenezuels According to their stories. tribe or fierce but wealthy Indians dweE In the mountains some distance To Inc south. with whom gold was so abund-
 hat
 body of their chief with it's dust. And
 thus was started the tale of Fl
 Dorado, the gilded one. tale which
 in it's repeated telling grew into most
 wonderful fiction but which was
 founded in its first instance on a fact, according to the sketch of the life and
 work of the late Adolph Bandelier.
 by Edward AGbes, in the June number
 of the Monthly Bulletin of the Pan
 American Union, Washington, b. C.
 Bandelier, it seems. established the
 fact that "a chieftain who was gilded
 for a certain ceremonial occasion once
 really existed on the table-land of
 Bogota, in the Province of Cundiaa-
 marca, in the heart of ..ew Granada" On this high plain dwelt the agri-
 cultural village Indians known as the i Muysca- They woye cotton cloth, mined emeralds. and also salt. These
 products were exchanged for the gold of other tribes. and by thrift and in 1 duStry the prec.OuS metal Was accu- mulated to superfiuity on the table . land of RogOta. On the plateau were several lakes which were regarded by the Muyscas as holy places Each
 or them was the supposed seat "r x
 special divinity, 10 which gold and emeralds were offered by throwing them into the water. Among these the Lake of Guatavita became famous. Near the lake lay the village Of Gnat- aVita, whose inhabitants about the year 149O constituted an independent tribe. A legend was current among them that the wife of one of their earlier chiefs had thrown herself into the water to avoid punishment, and had subsequently become the goddess of the lake When a new chief of GuataVita was chosen an imposing ceremonial was observed, The male population marched cut in . lonS