The Coolidge examiner., 1935-05-10

volcanic origin. Considering the
depth Of the surrounding sea. and
the abysmal chasms which every
where eleave Madelras mountain
Gus surface. II IL evident that a
vast period Of time must have
elapsed since the beginning of the
countless erupuons which went
toward the making Of this island
Today no live crnfcrs exist IN this
group. as on the Canzry and Cape
Verde islands.
Early History of Madeira.
Much traditional lore Is asso-
ciaied vita the discovery of Ma
delra. Romans. Arabs Italians
Spanlards. French. English. and
Irish have all been credited as the
frst 20 glimpse the island The
most romantic Of the legends con.
Germs two English lovers OF the
Fourteenth century. Robert Machln
and Anna d'Arfet. who cloped from
Bristol In a small craft and were
blown southwark 10 Madeira's east
eru shore.
With the coming ~ the Fifteenth
century history is on aFmer ground.
II IL known that the Portuguese ma
riner. Zarco. sent out by Henry The
Navigator. reached Porto Santo 10
isig. then sailed across 10 a larger
Island. = miles away. bravlng a
dark cloud which hung over II. an
evil omen 10 ihe EuparsiIilons
sailors % that day. The forbid.
ding cloud proved TO be yapor hang.
ing over the mountains of a beau
llfnl, densely wooded land. Znrco
and his followers landed on the
shore of a sheltered bay about IL
miles northeast 81 FunchaL Be-
cause Of It's forests the new land
was named Madeira" the Portu-
gnese word for wood.
A worid.renowned figure stands
out In the early history Of Porto
Santo and Madeira. Christopher
Columbus resilessly sailing these
seas In search OF information re-
gardiug the then unknown western
ocean. came 20 Porto Santo. He
married pretty Phillppa Uerezello.
the governors daughter. The house
where they lived In villa Baielra.
the only town In Porto Santo. can
still be seen.
Columbus devoted himself 20
chart-making. from time TO time
visiting Funchal TO gather Informa-
ton. In the Madelras. Canarles,
and Azores he listened 10 the tale
o. every adventurous sailor he en-
eountered. picked mp valuable nau-
teal hints and pondered deeply on
the drift borne lslandward from the
west.
Sugar cane. introduced from Sicily.
was responsible for Madeira pros
perlty during the early years OF its
colonization. Negro and Moorish
slaves were imported from Africa
TO work on the sugar plantations
and TO build roads and aqueducts.
The stone irrlgatlng canals. or
-leyadas." extending for miles
down the steep mountain sides stIll
render efficient service. without
them the lower regions would be
waterless large part OF the year.
Origin Of Its Wine.
Soon after the colonization OF
Madeira. the Malayesi vine was I'M
ported by Prince Henry from Crete,
and other varieties were introduced
at later period. Today one type
OF Madeira wine bears the old
name, ''Malvasia." or "Malmsey." IA
nous In England when western Eu-
ropean wines OF that name were
well known. and later wh-a Ma
deIra wines had taken their place.
Our naval hero. John Panl Jones,
was AT one time master OF the Two
Friends, a Madeira wine ship. The
finest wines OF the island were In
demand In the American Colonies.
ships from Boston, New York, Phil
adelphia. and Savannah. laden with
pipe slaves, timber. train oil, dried
fish. and rice, brought back pipes
OF Madeira to the wealthy Amer
lean merchants and planters.
Madeira is a small island. little
more than 80 miles in length and
less than half this In width: but II
Is so mountainous, and 80 gashed
by deep gorges and guarded By gl-
gantic headlands, that access is
difficult to certain Of Its sun-kissed
coastal villages, cool, mist-envel-
oped uplands. and deep, fern-hung
canyons. Motor busses, which con-
meet the villages on the paved high.
ways, have made a marked change
In the manner OF life and outlook of
the country people.