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THE 
 
 PRE-COLUMBIAN 
 
 DISCOVERY OF AMERICA 
 
 THK NORTHMAN, 
 
 TRANSLATIONS FROM THE ICELANDIC SAGAS. 
 
 B. F. De COSTA. 
 
 THIRD EDITION RKVISED. 
 
 ALBANY, N. Y.: 
 
 JOEL MDNSKLl's sons, PUBLISHERS. 
 
 1901. 
 

 .^ 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 I. Preface. 
 
 II. General Introduction. — Historic Fancies; The Sea 
 
 of Darkness; Juba's Expedition; Traditions; The 
 Northmen; The Colonization of Iceland; The 
 Papal Letters ; Settlement of Greenland ; Organi- 
 zation of the Church; Monuments and Euins; 
 Explorations in Greenland; The Decline of Green- 
 land ; Lost Greenland Found ; The Character and 
 Achievements of the Northmen; The Ships of 
 the Northmen; The Literature of Iceland; The 
 Manuscripts; The Truthfulness of the Narratives; 
 Early Voyages from England to Iceland. 
 
 III. Gunnbiorn and his Rocks. 
 
 lY. Eric the Red's voyages to Green- 
 land and his settlement, - A. D. 983-986. 
 Y. Biarne Heriulfsson's voyage to the 
 
 coast of America, - - A. D. 986, 
 YI. Leif Ericson's voyage to Yinland, A. D. 1000-1001. 
 YII. Thorvald Ericson's voyage to Yin- 
 land A. D. 1002. 
 
 YIII. Thorstein Ericson's attempt to 
 
 Seek Yinland, - - - A. D. 1005. 
 IX. Thorfinn Karlsefne's settlement in 
 
 Yinland, _ A. D. 1006-1009. 
 
 X. Frevdis's voyage and settlement in 
 
 Yinland, - - - - A. D. 1010-1012. 
 
 MINOR NARRATIVES, AND LETTERS. 
 
 I. Are Marson's Soiourn in Hvitramanna- 
 
 land, - - 1 - - - - - - A. D. 983. 
 
 II. Yoyage of Biorn Asbrandson, - A. D. 999. 
 III. Gudleif Gudlaugson's voyage, - - A. D- 1027. 
 lY. Allusions to Voyages found in Ancient 
 
 Manuscripts. 
 Y. Saga of Einer Sokkeson - {circu7n) A. D. 1175. 
 YI. Ge'ographical Fragments. 
 YII. Papal Letters, Letters from the Vatican 
 
 Library. 
 YIII. The Bull of Gregory lY, - - - - A. D. 834. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The chief aim of this work is to place within the reach 
 of the English-reading public every portion of the Ice- 
 landic-Sagas relating to the Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 America by the Northmen, and to indicate the movements 
 by which that discovery was preceded. The reader will, 
 therefore, find in this volume material from the Sagas not 
 to be found in any other work in an English form. 
 
 The Sagas have been left, in the main, to tell their own 
 story, though the necessary notes and explanations have 
 been added. 
 
 So long ago as the year 1838, a distinguished writer in 
 the North American Review, in closing a valuable and 
 appreciative article on the Sagas relating to America, 
 said: "We trust that some zealous student of these subjects 
 will be immediately found, who will put the Icelandic 
 authorities into an English dress, and prepare them, with 
 proper literary apparatus, for the perusal of the general 
 reader." 
 
 In 1868 this suggestion was acted upon by the writer. 
 Availing himself liberally of the studies of those who had 
 preceded him, he brought out a volume devoted to the sub- 
 ject. That work, however, owing to a large demand, 
 soon went out of print; while in 1890 the progress of dis- 
 cussion, and the nearness of the coming Columbian Cele- 
 brat on, justified a new edition, which was brought out, 
 with various improvements, being soon exhausted. 
 
 A third edition is now called for, and, in fact, rendered 
 necessary by the discovery in the Vatican Library, at Rome, 
 of a number of Papal letters that exhibit the subject in 
 a new light. The testimony of these letters is of the high- 
 est value. 
 
 [5] 
 
Q Pkeface. 
 
 In treating the Sagas, the writer has not felt called upon 
 to modify his views on any important point, and, substan- 
 tially, his interpretation of these documents is the same as 
 that undertaken in the original work. Time has only served 
 to strengthen the belief of scholars in the historical char- 
 acter of the Sagas, while geographical studies now point, as 
 formerly, to New England as one scene of the Northman's 
 exploits, many of which have left no record, though traces 
 of Icelandic occupation may yet be found on the coast 
 between Cape Cod and Nova Scotia. 
 
 The author is strengthened in his opinion, not only by 
 his own studies, but by the growing favor with which 
 the profoundest scholars in Europe regard the Icelandic 
 historical literature. Everywhere societies, as well as dis- 
 tinguished students of history, are in one way or another 
 expressing their belief in the authenticitj of the Sagas re- 
 lating to the Pre-Columbian Discovery of America. Speak- 
 ing of the Icelandic voyagers, and their acquaintance with 
 America, Professor Max Muller says: "I have met with 
 nothing to shake my belief in the fact that the Northmen 
 possessed such knowledge."* 
 
 This work is not issued with the least intention of seek- 
 ing to detract from the glory of the achievements of Colum- 
 bus. That were impossible, though we should remember 
 the claim of the Cabots, the great fellow countrymen of 
 the Genoese, who saw the Continent of America before 
 Columbus himself viewed it. The desire is to place before 
 the reader the story preceding that of 1492, which is so 
 interesting and important. 
 
 The author hopes that the Sagas have not been misin- 
 terpreted, or left obscure, especially as these records relat- 
 ing to the Pre-Columbian voyages are given in Professor 
 Rafn's work on the Antiquities of America, accompanied 
 by helpful notes and versions in Latin and Danish. In 
 everything relating to the latter tongue, the author has 
 had the invaluable assistance and advice of one who has 
 
 * Letter to the Author, August 14, 1889. 
 
Pkeface. 7 
 
 spoken it from childhood. He has also had most import- 
 ant and indispensable aid in connection with the Icelandic. 
 
 This work being strictly historical, both in spirit and de- 
 sign, the poetical extracts which occm- here and there are 
 translated as literally as possible, without any attempt to 
 garnish them with metre and rhyme. Nevertheless ex- 
 amples in rhyme are given in the ISTotes. 
 
 It will be seen that the author differs on some points from 
 Professor Raf n ; yet it is believed that if that great student 
 of Northern Antiquities could have gone over the subject 
 again, studying it on the ground, and amid the scenes in 
 which so many of the exploits of the Northmen were per- 
 formed, he would have modified some of his views. 
 
 On the other hand, the author has sought to strengthen 
 several of the conclusions of that noble and laborious inves- 
 tigator, and particularly by bringing out more fully the 
 truthfulness of the Icelandic descriptions of the New Eng- 
 land coast, which, centuries ago, presented an aspect that it 
 does not now possess. 
 
 Let us remember, too, that in vindicating the Icelanders 
 we honor those who gave, not indeed the first knowledge 
 of the American Continent, but men to whom we are in- 
 debted for much that we esteem very valuable besides the 
 immortal Sagas. In reality we fable, in a great measure, 
 when we speak of our " Saxon inheritance." It is rather 
 from the Northmen that we derived vital energy, freedom 
 of thought, and, in a measure that we do not yet suspect, 
 our strength of speech. Yet, happily, the people are be- 
 coming conscious of their indebtedness; so that it is to be 
 hoped that the time is not far distant when the Northmen 
 may be recognized in their true social, political and liter- 
 ary character, and at the same time, as navigators assume 
 their rightful position in the Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 America. 
 
 It is gratifying to to be able to state here, in conclud- 
 ing, that, after the publication of the Second Edition of 
 this work (just before 1890), the distinguished historian of 
 the United States, the Hon. George Bancroft, under date 
 
8 Peeface. 
 
 of Washington, D. C, Dec. 30, 1889, communicated to 
 the author the fact that he had withdrawn his objections 
 to the historic character of the voyages recorded in the 
 Sagas, and that he struck out reference to the subject in 
 his last work, not only for the reason that he was engaged 
 in condensing the narrative, but because he recognized 
 that he had long been in error. This is certainly a most 
 important admission. 
 
 B. F. De COSTA. 
 
PRE-COLUMBIAN DISCOVERT. 
 
 GENERAL INTEODUCTION. 
 
 HISTORIC FANCIES. 
 
 Before the plains of Europe rose above the primeval seas 
 the Continent of America emerged from the watery waste 
 that encircled the whole globe, and became the scene of 
 animate life. The so-called New World is in reality the 
 Old, and bears abundant proofs of hoary age. But at what 
 period it became the abode of man we are unable even to 
 conjecture. Down to the close of the tenth century of 
 the Christian era it had little or no written history even in 
 Central America. Traces of a rude civilization that suggest 
 a high antiquity are by no means wanting. Monuments 
 and mounds remain that point to periods the contemplation 
 of which would cause Chronos himself to grow giddy; yet 
 among all these great and often impressive memorials there 
 is no monument, inscription or sculptured frieze that satis- 
 factorily explains their origin. Tradition itself is dumb, 
 and the theme chiefly kindles when brought within the 
 realm of imagination. "We can only infer that age after 
 age nations and tribes rose to greatness and then fell into 
 decline, barbarism and a rude culture holding alternate 
 Bway. ' 
 
 Nevertheless, men have enjoyed no small degree of sat- 
 isfaction in conjuring up theories to explain the origin of 
 the early races on the "Western Continent. What a charm 
 
 ^ Of course we must not overlook the recent researches into 
 the history of Central America, and especially the studies in 
 connection with Yucatan. 
 
 [9J 
 
10 Pee-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 lingers around the supposed trans-Atlantic voyages of tlie 
 hardy Phenician, the luxurious sailors of Tyre, and, later, 
 of the bold Basque. What stories might the lost picture- 
 records of Mexico and the chronicles of Dieppe tell. Now 
 we are presented with the splendid view of great fleets, the 
 remnant of some conquered race, bearing across the ocean 
 to re-create in new and unknown lands the cities and monu- 
 ments they were forever leaving behind; and now it is 
 simply the story of some storm-tossed mariner, who blindly 
 drives across the sea to the western strand, and lays the 
 foundation of empire. Again it is the devotee of mammon 
 in search of gainful traffic or golden fleece. How roman 
 tic is the picture of his little solitary bark setting out in the 
 days of Koman greatness, or in the splendid age of Charle- 
 magne, sailing trustingly away between the pillars of Her- 
 cules, and tossing toward the Isles of the Blessed and the 
 Fountains of Eternal Youth. In time the Ultima Thiile 
 of the known world is passed, and favoring gales bear the 
 merchant-sailor to new and wondrous lands. We see him 
 coasting the unknown shores, passing from cape to cape, 
 and from bay to inlet, gazing upon the marvels of the New 
 World, trafficking with the bronzed Indian, bartering cur- 
 ious wares for barbaric gold; and then shaping his course 
 again for the markets of the distant East, to pour strange 
 tales into incredulous ears. Still this may not be all fancy. 
 
 THE SEA OF DARKNESS. 
 
 In early times the Atlantic ocean, like all things without 
 known bounds, was viewed by man with mixed feelings 
 of fear and awe. It was called the Sea of Darkness. Yet, 
 / nevertheless, there wei-e those who professed to have some 
 knowledge of its extent, and of what lay beyond. The 
 earliest reference to this sea is that bj Theopompus, in the 
 fourth century before the Christian era, given in a frag- 
 ment of ^Elian,^ where a vast island is described, lying far 
 in the west, and peopled by strange races. To this we may 
 
 1 Var. Hist. lib. Ill, cap. XVIII. 
 
America by the Nokthmkn. 11 
 
 — \ 
 add the reference of Plato' to the island called "Atlantis," ' 
 
 west of the Pillars of Hercules, which was estimated to be 
 larger than Asia and Africa combined." Aristotle also 
 thought that many other lands existed beyond the Atlantic, 
 Plato supposed that Atlantis was sunk by an earthquake, and 
 Grantor declares that he found the same account related by i 
 the Priests of Sais three hundred years after the time of 
 Solon, from whom the grandfather of Critias had his 
 information. Plato says, that after Atlantis disappeared, 1/ 
 navigation was rendered too difficult to be attempted on 
 account of the slime which resulted from the sinking of 
 the land. It is probable that he had in mind the immense 1 
 fields of drifting sea-weed found in that locality, estimated 
 by Humboldt to cover a portion of the Atlantic ocean six 
 times as large as all Germany. _ 
 
 It is thought that Homer ^ obtained the idea of his Ely- 
 sium in the Western ocean from the voyages of the Phe- 
 nicians, who, as is well known, sailed regularly to the 
 British Islands. They are also supposed by some to have 
 pushed their discoveries as far as the Western Gontinent. 
 Cadiz, situated on the shore of Andalusia, was established 
 by the Tyrians twelve centuries before the birth of Ghrist; 
 and when Gadiz, the ancient Gadir, was full live hundred 
 years old, a Greek trader, Golseus, there bought rare 
 merchandise, a long and severe gale having driven his ships 
 beyond the Pillars of Hercules. 
 
 THE PHENICIANS. 
 
 In the ninth century before the Ghristian era, the Phe- 
 nicians had established colonies on the western coast of 
 Africa ; and three hundred years later, according to Herod- 
 otus, Pharaoh Necho, son of Psammiticus, sent an expedi- 
 tion, manned by Phenician sailors, around the entire coast 
 
 I ' See Plato's Critias and Timceas. 
 
 ' De Mundo, cap. III. See Prince Henry the Navigator, 
 chap. VII, by Major, London, i868. 
 
 • Odyssey, book IV, 1. 765. 
 
12 Pke- Columbian Discovery of 
 
 of Africa. YivieD de St. Martin fixes the date of this 
 expedition at 570 before Christ. St. Martin, in his account 
 of the voyage, improves slightly upon the views of Carl 
 Muller, and is followed by Bougainville.* A notice of this 
 voyage performed by Hanno under the direction of Pha- 
 raoh, was inscribed in the Punic language on a Carthage- 
 nian temple, being afterward translated into Greek. 
 
 That the Canary Islands were discovered and colonized 
 by the Phenicians, there need be no doubt. Tradition had 
 palways located islands in that vicinity. Strabo speaks of 
 \ the Islands of the Blessed, as lying not far from Mauri- 
 ! tania, opposite Gadir or Cadiz. He distinctly says, " That 
 those who pointed out these things were the Phenicians^ 
 who, before the time of Homer, had possession of the best 
 part of Africa and Spain."- "When we remember that the 
 Phenicians sought to monopolize trade, and hold the knowl- 
 edge of their commercial resorts a secret, it is not surpris- 
 ing that we should hear no more of the Fortunate Isles 
 until about eighty -two years before Christ, when the Roman 
 Sertorius met some Lusitanian sailors on the coast of Spain 
 who had just returned from the Fortunate Isles. They are 
 described as two delightful islands, separated by a narrow 
 strait, distant from Africa five hundred leagues. Twenty 
 years after the death of Sertorius, Statins Sebosue drew 
 up a chart of a group of five islands, each mentioned by 
 name, and which Pliny calls the Hesperides, including the 
 Fortunate Isles. This mention of the Canaries was sixty- 
 three years before Christ. 
 
 juba's expedition. 
 
 When King Juba II returned to Mauritania, he sent an 
 expedition to the Fortunate Isles. A fragment of the nar- 
 ratives of this expedition is found in the works of Pliny. 
 The islands are described as lying south-west, six hundred 
 and twenty-five miles from Purpurariae. To reach them 
 
 • See "Prince Henry the Navigator," p. 90. 
 •Strabo, lib. III. 
 
America by the Nokthmen. 13 
 
 from the latter place, tliey fii-st sailed two hundred and 
 fifty miles westward, and then three hundred and seventy- 
 five miles eastward. Pliny says: " The first is called 
 Ombrios, and affords no traces of buildings. It contains 
 a pool in the midst of mountains, and trees like ferules, 
 from which water may be pressed. It is bitter from the 
 black kinds, but from the light kinds pleasant to drink. 
 The second is called Junonia, and contains a small temple 
 built entirely of stone. Near it is another smaller island 
 having the same name. Then comes Capraria, which is 
 full of large lizards. Within sight of these is Mvaria, 
 named from the snow and fogs with which it is always cov- 
 ered. Not far from Mvaria is Canaria, called thus on 
 account of the great number of large dogs therein, two of 
 which were brought to King Juba. There were traces of 
 buildings in these islands. All the islands abound in apples 
 and in birds of every kind, and in palms covered with dates 
 and in the pine nut. There is also plenty of fish. The 
 papyrus grows there, and the silurus fish is found in the 
 rivers." * 
 
 The author of Prince Henry the Navigator,^ says that in 
 Ombrios, we recognize the Pluvialia of Sebosus. Con- 
 vallis of Sebosus, in Pliny, becomes Nivaria, the Peak of 
 Teneriffe, which lifts litsef up to the majestic height of 
 nine thousand feet, its snow-capped pinnacle seeming to 
 pierce the sky. Planaria is displaced by Canaria, which 
 term, first applied to the great central island, now gives the 
 name to the whole group. Ombrios or Pluvialia, evidently 
 means the island of Palma, which had '' a pool in the midst 
 of mountains, " now represented by the crater of an extinct 
 volcano. This the sailors of King Juba evidently saw. 
 Major says : ' ' The distance of this island (Palma) from 
 Fuerteventura agrees with that of the two hundred and 
 fifty miles indicated by Juba's navigators as existing be- 
 tween Ombrios and the Purpurariae. It has already been 
 
 •Pliny's "Natural History," lib. VI, cap. XXXVII. 
 ' See p. 137, First Edition. 
 
14 Pre-Columbiax Discovery of 
 
 seen that the latter agree with Lancerote and Fuerte Ven- 
 tura, in respect of their distance, from the Continent and 
 from each other, as described by Plutarch. That the Pur- 
 purariae are not, as M. Bory de St. Vincent supposed, the 
 Madeira group, is not only shown by the \^ant of inhab- 
 itants in the latter, but by the orchil, which supplies the 
 purple dye, being derived from and sought for especially 
 from the Canaries, and not from the Madeira group, 
 although it is to be found there. Junonia," he continues, 
 " the nearest to Ombrios, will be Gomera. It may be pre- 
 sumed that the temple found therein was, like the island, 
 dedicated to Juno. Capraria, which implies the island of 
 goats, agrees correctly with the island ot Ferro, . . . for 
 these animals were found there in large numbers when the 
 island was invaded by Jean de Bethencourt, in 1402. But 
 a yet more striking proof of the identity of this island with 
 Capraria, is the account of the great number of lizards 
 found therein. Bethencourt's chaplains, describing their 
 visit to the islands, in 1402, state : ' There are lizards in 
 it as big as cats, but they are harmless, although very hide- 
 ous to look at.' " ' 
 
 We see, then, that the navigators of Juba visited the 
 Canaries^ at an early period, as did the Phenicians, who 
 doubtless built the temple in the island of Junonia. For 
 aught we know, early navigators may have passed over 
 
 ' "Prince Henry the Navigator," p. 137. 
 
 ' After this mention by Pliny, the Canaries, or Fortunate 
 Isles, are lost sight of for a period of thirteen hundred years. 
 In the reign of Edward III of England, at the beginning of 
 the fourteenth century, one Robert Machin sailed from Bris- 
 tol for France, carrying away a lady of rank, who had eloped 
 with him, and was driven by a storm to the Canaries, where 
 he landed, and thus re-discovered the lost Fortunate Isles. 
 This fact is curiously established by Major, in the "Life of 
 Prince Henry," so that it can no longer be regarded as an idle 
 tales. (See pp. 66-77). In 1341 a voyage was also made to 
 the Canaries, under the auspices of King Henry of Portugal. 
 The report, so widely circulated by De Barros, that the islands 
 
America by the Northmen. 15 
 
 to the "Western Continent and laid the foundation of those 
 strange nations whose monuments still remain. Both Phe- 
 nician and Tyrian voyages to the Western Continent have 
 been advocated; while Lord Kingsborough published his 
 magnificent volumes on the Mexican Antiquities, to show 
 that the Jews settled this continent at an early day. * If it 
 is true that all the tribes of the earth sprang from one cen- 
 tral Asiatic family, it is not unlikely that some of the origi- 
 nal inhabitants of the American Continent crossed the At- 
 lantic, instead of piercing the frozen regions of the north, 
 or coming in by the way of Behring Straits. From 
 the Canaries to the coast of Florida, it is a short voyage, 
 and the bold sailors of the Mediterranean, after touching 
 at the Canaries, need only spread their sails before the 
 steady -breathing monsoon to find themselves wafted safely 
 to the western shore. 
 
 TRADITIONS. 
 
 There is a tradition that America was visited b}' St. 
 Columba," and also by the Apostle St. Thomas,' who pene- 
 trated even as far as Peru. This opinion is founded on 
 the resemblance existing between certain rites and doctrines 
 which might seeTn to have been held in common by Chris- 
 tians and the early inhabitants of Mexico. The first Span- 
 ish missionaries were surprised to find the Mexicans appar- 
 ently bowing in adoration before a figure of the cross, 
 and inferred that these people were of a Christian origin. 
 Yet the inference has no special value, when we remember 
 that Christianity is far less ancient than the symbol of the 
 
 were re-discovered by Prince Henry is, therefore, incorrect. 
 His expedition reached Porto Santo and Madeira in 1418- 
 1420. 
 
 ^ He also speculates upon the probability of this Continent 
 having been visited by Christian missionaries. The Hebrew 
 theory is hardly tenable, and must be classed with the specu- 
 lations of the famous Major Noah. See vol. VI, p. 410. 
 
 "^YAvig^oxGw^'s Mexican Antiquities, vol. VI, p. 285. 
 
 ' Ibid., p. 332. 
 
16 Pbe-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 cross, which existed among the Egyptians and other an- 
 cient people. - 
 
 Attention must be given to the activity of the Irish. 
 Broughton brings forward a passage in which St. Patrick 
 is represented as sending missionaries to the Isles of 
 America.'^ A claim has been urged of a more respectable 
 character, supported by striking, though not wholly con- 
 clusive allusions in the chronicles of the North, in which 
 a distant land is spoken of as "Ireland the Great." The 
 Irish, in the early times, might easily have passed over to 
 the "Western Continent, for which voyage they undoubtedly 
 had the facilities. Professor Rafn, after alluding to the 
 well-known fact that the Northmen were preceded in Ice- 
 land by the Irish, says, that it is by no means improbable 
 that the Irish should also have anticipated them in Amer- 
 ca. The Irish were a sea-faring people, and have been 
 assigned a Phenician origin by Moore and others who have 
 examined the subject.^ If this is so, the tradition would 
 appear to be somewhat strengthened. Even as early as 
 the year 296, the Irish are said to have invaded Denmark 
 
 ' In Mexico they seem to have used the Epyptian ankh, the 
 sign of life. 
 
 "" Monastikon Brittanicutn, pp. 1 31-132, 187-188. The 
 fact that the word America is here used seems hardly suffi- 
 cient to upset the legend. Speaking of the claims to Pre- 
 Columbian discovery at the west by the various eastern peo- 
 ples, Mr. Winsor admits that "there is no good reason why 
 any one of them may not have done all that is claimed." 
 Narrative and Critical History of Atnerica, vol. I, p. 59. 
 
 ' The Irish were early known as Scots, and O'Halloran de- 
 rives the name from Scota, high priest of Phoenius, and ances- 
 tor of Mileseuis. 
 
 Me quoque vicins pereuntem gentibus, inquit, 
 Munivit Stilicho. Totam cum Scotus lernem, 
 Movit et infesto spumavit remige Thetys. 
 
 By him defended, when the neighboring hosts 
 Of warlike nations spread along our coast; 
 When Scots came thundering from the Irish shores, 
 And the wild ocean foamed with the hostile oars. 
 
Ameeica by the Northmen. 17 
 
 with a large fleet. In 396, Niall made a descent upon the 
 coast of Lancashire with a considerable navy, where he was 
 met by the Roman, Stilicho, whose achievements were 
 celebrated by Claudian in the days of the Roman occupa- 
 tion of England. At that period the Irish were in most 
 respects in advance of the Northmen, not yet having fallen 
 into decline, and quite as likely as any people then ex- 
 isting to brave the dangers of an ocean voyage.' The Ice- 
 landic documents, clearly referring to the Irish, will be 
 given in their proper place. In truth as the wish is so 
 
 ^ Speaking of Britain and Ireland, Tacitus says of the latter, 
 that "the approaches and harbors are better known, by rea- 
 son of Commerce and the merchants." — Vtt. Agri., c. 24. 
 The Irish, doubtless, mingled with the Carthagenians in mer- 
 cantile transactions, and from them they not unlikely received 
 the rites of Druidism. The story of a Welsh voyage to Amer- 
 ica, under Prince Madoc, relates to a period following the 
 Icelandic voyages. This voyage by the son of Owen Gwyneth 
 is fixed for the year 11 70, and is based on Welsh chronicles, 
 poems and genealogical authority. See Hackluyt, vol. Ill, p. i. 
 See, also, America Discovered by the Welsh in 11 70, by 
 Bowen, Philadelphia, 1876 ; A71 Enquiry into the Truth of the 
 Tradition, concerning the Discovery ofAtnerica by Prince Madog ab 
 Owen Gwyneth, about the year 1 170, by John Williams, etc., Lon- 
 don, 1 791, p. 85; 2xA, Farther Observations on the Discovery 
 of America by Prince Madog ab Owen Gwyneth, etc., 1792, 
 p. 5 1 . The following is from the London Standard, September 
 6, 1888, "Great interest was excited yesterday in North Wales 
 by the announcement that the tomb of Madoc ap Gryifydd- 
 maelor, a great Welsh warrior in the eleventh and twelfth cen- 
 turies, grandson of Owen Gwynedd, Prince of Wales, had been 
 discovered in the ruins of Valle Crucis Abbey, Llangollen. The 
 Rev. H. T. Owen, warden of the abbey, who is now engaged 
 upon some excavations, was searching for old stained glass in 
 the dormitory, when he disinterred a large stone slab bearing 
 the name of Madoc, and an inscription, which has not yet 
 been fully deciphered. Down the centre of the stone is an in- 
 cised sword in sheath. Further excavations led to the dis- 
 2 
 
18 Pre-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 often father to the thought, it would be an easy task to find 
 resemblance in the languages of the aborigines to almost 
 any language that is spoken in our day, so far as mere 
 sounds may be concerned. 
 
 Much labor has been given to the subject, yet the early 
 history of the American Continent is still veiled in mystery, 
 and it is not until near the close of the tenth century of 
 the present era that we can point to a known trans- Atlan- 
 tic voyage, though prior to that time Europeans had reached 
 Greenland. 
 
 THE NORTHMEN. 
 
 The first voyage to America, of which we now have any 
 account, was performed by Northmen. But who were 
 the Northmen? 
 
 The Northmen were the descendants of a race that in 
 early times migrated from Asia and traveled toward the 
 north, settling in what is now the kingdom of Denmark. 
 Thence they overran Norway and Sweden, and afterward 
 colonized Iceland and Greenland. Their language was the 
 
 covery of four other stones, each about five feet by eighteen 
 inches; two bear floriated crosses, one an inscribed spear, and 
 the other a Grecian ornament. The stones form part of the 
 vaulting of the corridor leading to the old burial ground of the 
 monks. Madoc ap Gryffydd founded the abbey, which was 
 a Cistercian Monastery, about the year 1200. After the ven- 
 erable building became a ruin, the chapter-house and scrip- 
 torium were used for several generations as a farmstead, and 
 were practically destroyed by fire. During the repairs it is con- 
 jectured that the stones of Madoc's tomb were used to complete 
 the vaulting. In 1851 the debris covering the area of the 
 abbey was removed by Lord Dungannon, and the tombs of 
 benefactors, buried in front of the high altar, the figure of a 
 knight in chain armour, and a stone coffin were laid bare. 
 During the excavations of last year the monk's well and spring 
 were discovered. " The reader may consult the writer's "Myvye- 
 rian Archaiology, " Albany, Joel Munsell's Sons, 1891, which 
 shows the probabilities. On St. Brenden, see Gen. Butterfield, 
 \Xi Freeman'' s Journal, July 27, 1901. 
 
America by the Northmen. 19 
 
 old Danish {DonsJc tunga) once spoken all over the north,* 
 but now preserved in Iceland, being called the Icelandic 
 or old Korthern," upon which is founded the modern 
 Swedish, Danish and Norse or Norwegian. 
 
 After the Northmen pushed on from Denmark to Nor- 
 way, the condition of public affairs in the latter country 
 gradually became such that a large portion of the better 
 classes found their life intolerable. In the reign of Har- 
 old Harfagr (the Fair-haired), an attempt was made by 
 the king to deprive the petty jarls of their ancient udal or 
 feudal rights, and to usurp all authority for the crown. 
 To this the proud jarls would not submit ; and, feeling them 
 selves degraded in the eyes of their retainers, they resolved 
 to leave those lands and homes which they could now 
 hardly call theii own. Whither, then, should they go ? 
 
 THE COLONIZATION OF ICELAND, 
 
 In the cold North sea, a little below the Arctic circle, 
 lay a great island. As early as the year 860, it had been 
 made known to the Northmen by a Dane of Swedish 
 descent named Gardar, who called it Gardar's Island, 
 and four years later by the pirate Nadodd, who sailed 
 thither in 864 and called it Snowland. Presenting in the 
 main the form of an irregular ellipse, this island occupies 
 an area of about one hundred and thirty-seven thousand 
 square miles, affording the dull diversity of valleys -vvithout 
 verdure and mountains without trees. ^ Desolation has there 
 fixed its abode. It broods among the dells, and looks 
 down upon the gloomy fiords. The country is threaded 
 with streams and dotted with tarns, yet the geologist finds 
 
 'See "Northmen in Iceland," Societe des Antiquaries du 
 Nord^ Stance du \\ Mai, 1859, pp. 12-14. 
 
 ' It is sometimes, though improperly, called the Norse. 
 Society des Antiquaries, etc., 1840-44, p. 165. 
 
 ^ In the earlier times when the Irish monks occupied the 
 island, it is said that it was "covered with woods between the 
 mountains and the shores." 
 
20 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 but little evidence in the structure of the earth to point to 
 the action of water. On the other hand, every rock 
 and hillside is covered with signs that prove their igneous 
 origin, and indicate that the entire island, at some distant 
 period, has already seethed and bubbled in the fervent 
 heat, in anticipation of the long promised Palingenesia. 
 Even now the ground trembles in the throes ol the earth- 
 quake, the Geyser spouts scalding water, and the plain 
 belches mud; while the great jokull, clad in white robes 
 of eternal snow — true priest of Ormuzd — brandishes aloft 
 its volcanic torch, and threatens to be the incendiary of 
 the sky. 
 
 The greater portion of the land forms the homestead of 
 the reindeer and the fox, who share their domain with the 
 occasional white bear that may float ovei from Greenland 
 on some berg. Only two quadrupeds, the fox and the 
 moose, are indigenous. Life is here purchased with a strug- 
 gle. Indeed the neighboring ocean is more hospitable than 
 the dry land. Of the thirty-four species of mammalia, 
 twenty-four find their food in the roaring main. The same 
 is true of the feathered tribes, fifty-four out of ninety being 
 water-fowl. Here and there may be seen patches of 
 meadow and a few sheep pastures and tracts of arable land 
 warmed into fruitfulness by the brief summer's sun; yet, 
 on the whole, so poor is the soil that man, like the lower 
 orders, must eke out a scanty subsistence by resorting to 
 the sea. 
 
 It was toward this land, which the settlers called Ice- 
 hind, that the proud Norwegian jarl turned his eyes, and 
 there he resolved to found a home. The first settler was 
 Ingolf. lie approached the coast in the year 875, threw 
 overboard his seat-posts,* and waited to see tliem touch the 
 land. But in this he was disappointed, and those sacred 
 columns, carved with the images of the gods, drifted away 
 
 ' Setsiakkar. These were wooden pillars carve with images, 
 usually of Thor and Odin. In selecting a place for a settle- 
 ment they were flung overboard, and wherever they were 
 
Ameeica by the Northmen. 21 
 
 from sight. He nevertheless landed on a pleasant promon- 
 tory at the south-eastern extremity of the island, and built 
 his habitation on the spot which is called Ingolfshofdi to 
 this day. Three years after, his servants found the sea- 
 posts in the southwestern part of the island, and hither, in 
 obedience to what was held to be the express wish of the 
 gods,^ he removed his household, laying the foundation of 
 Reikiavik, the capital of this ice-bound isle. He was rap- 
 idly followed by others, and in a short time no inconsider- 
 able population was gathered here. 
 
 But the first Scandinavian settlers did not find this bar- 
 ren country entirely destitute of human beings. Ari 
 Frode,^ than whom there is no higher authority, says: 
 *' Then were here Christian people whom the Northmen 
 
 thrown up on the beach, there the settlement was to be formed 
 These idols were also called "stocks," and the site of " Stock- 
 holm," Sweden, was chosen by the same rule. 
 
 * In another case a settler did not find his posts for twelve 
 years, nevertheless he changed his abode then. In Frithiof's 
 Saga (American edition) chap. Ill, p. i8, we find the follow- 
 ing allusion : 
 
 " Through the whole length of the hall shone forth the table of oak 
 wood, 
 Brighter than steel, and poliehed; the pillars twain of the high seats 
 Stood on each side thereof; two gods deep carved out of eiin wood: 
 Odin with glance of a king, and Frey with the sun on his forehead." 
 
 * Ari Hinn Frode, or the Wise. The chief compiler of the 
 famous Latidatiama Bok, which contains a full account of all 
 the early settlers in Ifeland. It is of the same character, though 
 vastly superior to the English "Doomsday Book," and is 
 probably the most complete record of the kind ever made 
 by any nation. It contains the names of 3,000 persons, and 
 1,400 places. It gives a correct account of the genealogies of 
 the families, and brief notices of personal achievements. It 
 was begun by Frode (born 1067, died 1148), and was contin- 
 ued by Kalstegg, Styrmer and Thorsden, and completed by 
 Hauk Erlandson, Lagman, or Governor of Iceland, who died 
 in the year 1334. 
 
22 Pre-Coltjmbian Discovery of 
 
 called Papas, but they afterward went away, because they 
 would not be here among heathens; and left behind them 
 Irish books, and bells, and croziers, from which it could 
 be seen that they were Irishmen." He repeats substan- 
 tially the same thing in the Landanama Boh, the author- 
 ity of which, no one acquainted with the subject, will 
 question, adding, that books and other relics were found in 
 the island of Papey and Papyli, and says that the circum- 
 stance is also mentioned in English books. This is also 
 stated in an edition of King Olaf Tryggvesson's Saga, 
 made near the end of the fourteenth century, thus recog- 
 nizing the priority of the Irish. 
 
 The monks or Culdees, who had come hithei* from Ire- 
 land to be alone with God, took their departure on the 
 arrival of the heathen followers of Odin and Thor, and 
 the Northmen were thus left in undisputed possession of 
 the soil. In about twenty years the island became quite 
 thickly settled, though the tide of hnmigration continued 
 to flow in strongly for fifty years, so that at the beginning 
 of the tenth century Iceland possessed a population vari- 
 ously estimated from sixty to seventy thousand souls. 
 But few undertook the voyage who were not able to buy 
 their own vessels, in which they carried over their own 
 cattle, thralls, and household goods. So great was the num- 
 ber of people who left Norway, thai King Harold tried to 
 prevent emigration by royal authority, though, as might 
 have been predicted, his efforts were altogether in vain. 
 Here, in Iceland, therefore, was formed a large commun- 
 ity, taking the shape of an aristocratic republic, which 
 framed its own laws, and for a long time maintained a 
 genuine independence, in opposition to all the assump- 
 tions and threats of the Norwegian king. 
 
 THE SETTLEMENT OF GREENLAND. 
 
 As time passed, the people of Iceland felt a new impulse 
 for colonization in strange lands, and the tide of emigra- 
 tion began to tend toward Greenland in the west. This 
 was chiefly inaugurated by a man named Eric the Red, 
 
America by the Northmen. 23 
 
 born in Norway in the year 935. On account of man- 
 slaughter, he was obliged to flee from Jardar and take 
 up his abode in Iceland. The date of removal to Iceland 
 is not given, though it is said that at that time the island 
 was very generally inhabited. Here, however, he could 
 not live in peace, and early in the year 982, he was again 
 outlawed by the king for manslaughter and condemned to 
 banishment. He accordingly fitted out a ship, and an- 
 nounced his determination to go in search of the land 
 lying in the ocean at the west, which, it was said, Gunn- 
 biorn,' Ulf Krage's son, saw when, in the year 876, he was 
 driven out to sea by a storm, Eric sailed westward and 
 found land, where he remained and explored the country 
 for three years. At the end of this period he returned to 
 Iceland, giving the newly-discovered land the name of 
 Greenland, in order, as he said, to attract settlers, who 
 would be favorably impressed by so pleasing a name, 
 which, however, did not originate with him. 
 
 The summer after his return to Iceland, he sailed once 
 more for Greenland, taking with him a fleet oi thirty-five 
 ships, only fourteen of which reached their destination, the 
 rest being either driven back or lost. This event took 
 place, as the Saga says, fifteen winters before the introduc- 
 tion of Christianity into Iceland, which we know was ac- 
 complished in the year A. D. 1000. The date of Eric's 
 second voyage is, therefore, set down at 9.85. 
 
 At this point, however, we must turn to call distinct atten- 
 tion to the fact that the discovery of Greenland bj Eric 
 was at the best a rediscovery. 
 
 Following the authority of Geoffrey of Monmouth, it 
 appears that the earliest known movement northward was 
 that inaugurated by King Arthur, about the year 505. 
 Geoffrey of Monmouth was bishop of Saint Asaph in 
 1152, and wrote the Historia Britonmn, a work which 
 
 ' All the information which we possess relating to the dis- 
 covery by Gunnbiorn is given in the body of this work, in ex- 
 tracts from Landanama Bok. 
 
24 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 afforded a basis for the fables and romances of the "Knights 
 of the Round Table." Nevertheless, whoever inclines to 
 turn from all the statements of Geoffrey, for the reason 
 that they contain much that is unhistorical, should ponder 
 the well-considered words of Hume ("England," I, 38, 
 ed. 1822), who says of the Prince of Silures: " This is that 
 Arthur so much celebrated in the songe of Thaliessin and 
 the other British bards, and whose military achievements 
 have been blended with so many fables as even to give 
 occasion for entertaining a doubt of his real existence. 
 But poets," he continues," though they disfigure the most 
 certain history of their fictions, and use strange liberties 
 with truth, where they are the sole historians as among 
 the Britons, have commonly some foundation for their 
 wildest exaggerations." The Bishop of Saint Asaph, 
 who was not a poet, may be credited, therefore, when he 
 states such simple facts as that, about the year 505, King 
 Arthur, after the " Conquest of Ireland," received the sub- 
 mission of the Orkneys and sailed to Iceland, " which he 
 also subdued;" at a subsequent period overcoming his foes 
 in Norway. (B. IX, c. 10.) As to the Conquest of Ire- 
 land, it may have been some small victory magnified by the 
 writer, even though it is represented that much blood was 
 shed.' The Conquest of Ireland, if he went there, could 
 not have involved any great struggle." 
 
 ' See Hyde's "Literary History of Ireland," p. 572. 
 
 ' Hakluyt (I, i), treating this matter, quotes from Galfridus 
 Monumetensis, who says that, after subduing Ireland, Arthur 
 went to Iceland, and " brought it and the people thereof under 
 his subjection." The same author mentions " Maluasius " 
 as " King " of Iceland, and tells of soldiers that he furnished. 
 The "King," however, may perhaps be reduced to a figure 
 of speech, while there could have been few soldiers, unless 
 indeed, Arthur, as elsewhere stated, transported people to the 
 north. See " Inventio Fortunata. Arctic Exploraiton, with an 
 account of Nicholas of Lynn," etc. By B. F. De Costa, New 
 York, 1 86 1, p. 5. Unfortunately of this period we know little 
 
America by the Northmen. 25 
 
 We have already learned from LandanaTna^MhoX the Irish 
 were in Iceland before the Northmen arrived. How lon^ 
 they had been there it would be impossible to say; but we 
 know that after the conversion of Ireland, and the death 
 of St. Patrick, near the end of the fifth century, the Irish 
 Religious went far and wide. Among the English writers 
 referred to by Frode was Bede. He writes: " Thus saith 
 the holy priest Bede. . . . Therefore learned men think 
 that it is Iceland which is called Thule. . . . But the holy 
 priest Bede died dccxxxv years after the birth of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, more than a hundred years before Iceland was 
 inhabited by the Northmen. " This extract shows that the 
 Irish Christians retired to Iceland at a very early day. 
 The Irish monk Dicuil also refers to this solitary island, 
 which, about the year 795, was visited by some monks 
 with whom he had conversed.^ In this connection the re- 
 sults of the Danish invasion of Ireland should be considered, 
 since that may have resulted in driving men to both Ice- 
 land and Greenland. 
 
 In connection with Greenland the investigator seems to 
 stand on solider ground. Christophessen declared that 
 Greenland was discovered in the year 770; and Pontanus 
 gives a bull of Gregory IV, 835, which shows that both 
 Iceland and Greenland were known at that period." Yet 
 it is generally understood and laid down, tliat Eric the Red 
 first led colonists into those parts. We have seen, how- 
 ever, that Eric in 983 went west in search of the land found 
 by Gunnbiorn in 876; while the Sagas admit that the 
 Irish were in America before the men of Iceland reached 
 
 or nothing, and can neither afifirm nor deny, as is the case so 
 often with Early Irish History. 
 
 ' Antiquitates AmericatKS, p. 202. 
 
 * It is also referred to by Peyrere. In 1869, when publish- 
 ing "The Sailing Directions of Henry Hudson," the author 
 was sceptical about the authenticity of this bull, which had been 
 questioned by the Bollandists. It is found in Rerum Dani- 
 carum Hisforia, by Pontanus. 
 
26 Pre-Columbian Discoveey of 
 
 that country. Turning to the Minor Narratives, toward 
 the end of this volume, the reader will find the story. 
 The Irish, through Ralf the Limerick merchant, reported 
 one Are Marson, an Icelander, as held a prisoner in a coun- 
 try at the west, called ' ' Ireland the Great. ' ' He was 
 among Christians, apparently, as he had been baptized there. 
 In 981 Marson was a well-known man in Iceland. He 
 went on a voyage and disappeared, but was found later. 
 On the spread of the missionaries and monks following the 
 conquest of Ireland by St. Patrick, Irishmen probably 
 found their way to Greenland and parts of the mainland 
 of America, as they did to Iceland. The fact that we have 
 only vague and shadowy reports of their actions has noth- 
 ing to do with the reality of the explorations. In denying 
 these reports, men simply make their ignorance a basis for 
 disbelief. The early days of America, no doubt, were 
 marked by much maritime adventure that has left no 
 record. 
 
 Both Christophessen and Pontanus had authority for 
 their statements, but now from the Yatican archives, we 
 have a confirmation of Pontanus. These archives will be 
 discussed later, but attention must here be called to the letter 
 of Pope Nicholas Y, Sept. 20, 1M8, in which he says: 
 " From the natives and inhabitants of Greenland, an island 
 said to be situated in the most distant parts of the ocean 
 off the northern coast of the Kingdom of Norway, in the 
 Province of Drontheim a mournful wail has reached our 
 ears and saddened our hearts. This people nearly six 
 hundred years ago received the faith. ' ' This letter will be 
 given in its place. It is referred to here for the fact that it 
 confirms the statement in the Bull of Gregory lY, by ear- 
 ring back the Church in Greenland to about 848, more than 
 a century earlier than the time of Eric the Ped. We may 
 next expect confirmation of the date of Christophessen^ 770. 
 The Icelanders made no claim to priority, but conceded it 
 to the Irish in the lands at the west, even as in Iceland. 
 
 The Bull of Gregory lY is not given in its perfect form 
 by Pontanus, the date being wanting, but this is supplied, 
 
America by the N^orthmen. 27 
 
 eubstantially, by the reference to the rescript of the Em- 
 peror Louis which precedes it and to which it refers. This 
 document bears the date of May 21, 834. The Bull gives / 
 the new archbishop jurisdiction not only over Sweden and 
 Norway, but Iceland and Greenland. It shows that the 
 Papal rule was exercised over those regions remote from 
 Europe at an early day, and also disposes of the priority of 
 Eric the Bed.' 
 
 THE PROGRESS OF THE GREENLAND COLONIES. 
 
 There is a lack of continuity in the history of the Ice- 
 landic occupation of Greenland. We have already seen 
 that the second voyage of Eric the Red took place in the 
 year 985. Colonists appear to have followed him in con- 
 siderable numbers, and the best portions of the land were 
 soon appropriated by the principal men, who gave the 
 chief bays and capes names that indicated the occupants, 
 following the example of Eric, who dwelt in Bi-attahlid, 
 in Ericsfiord. 
 
 In the year 999, Leif, son of Eric, sailed from Greenland 
 to Norway, and passed the winter at the court of King Olaf 
 Tryggvesson, where he accepted the Christian faith, which 
 was then being zealously propagated by the king. He was 
 accordingly baptized, and, when the spring returned, the 
 king requested him to undertake the introduction of Chris- 
 tianity in Greenland, urging the consideration that no man 
 was better qualified for the task. Accordingly he set sail 
 from Norway, with a priest and several members of a re- 
 ligious order, arriving at Brattahlid, in Greenland, without , 
 any accident. ^ His pagan father was incensed by the bring- 
 ing in of the priest, which act he regarded ap pregnant with 
 
 ' For literary illustrations of Irish fearlessness on the sea 
 and their eagerness to battle with the waves, see Hyde's "Lit- 
 erary History of Ireland," pp. 366-9. 
 
 " The statement, found in several places, that he discovered 
 Vinland while on his way to Greenland, is incorrect. The 
 full account of his voyages shows that his Vinland voyage was 
 an entirely separate achievement. 
 
28 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 evil; yet, after some persuasion on the part of Leif, he re- 
 nounced heathenism and nominally accepted tlie Catholic 
 religion, being baptized by the priest. His wife Thor- 
 hild made less opposition, and appears to have received 
 the new Faith with much willingness. One of her firs* 
 acts was to build a church, which was known far and wide 
 as Thorhild's church. These examples seem to have 
 been very generally followed, and Christianity was adopted 
 . / in both Iceland and Greenland at about the same peroid,' 
 ^ though its acceptance did not immediately produce any 
 radical social changes. In course of time a number of 
 churches were built, the ruins of which remain down to 
 our day.' 
 
 In the year 1003, the Greenlanders became tributary to 
 Norway. The principal settlement was formed on the 
 western coast. What was known as the eastern disti'ict did 
 not extend farther than the southern extremity toward 
 Cape Farewell. In modern times it came to be supposed 
 that the east district was located on the eastern coast of 
 Greenland; but the researches of Captain Graah, whose 
 expedition went out under the auspices of the Danish gov- 
 ernment, proved very conclusively that no settlement ever 
 existed on the eastern shore, which for centuries has remained 
 blocked up by vast accumulations of ice thai floated down 
 from the Arctic seas. In early times, as we are informed 
 by the Sagas, the eastern coast was more accessible, yet 
 the western shores were so superior in their attractions that 
 the colonist fixed his habitation there. The site of the east- 
 ern settlement, eastern relative to the western, is that 
 included in the modern district of Julian's Hope, now 
 occupied by a Danish colony. The western settlement is 
 represented by the habitation of Frederikshab, Godthaab, 
 Sukkertoppen and Holsteinborg. 
 
 ' Gissur the White and Hialte went on the same errand to 
 Iceland in the year iooo,when the new religion was formally 
 adopted at the public Thing. 
 
 ' See Bradford's work on Greenland, with an introduction 
 by the present writer; also his edition of Bardsen's Relation. 
 
America by the Northmen. 29 
 
 the organization of the church. 
 
 Christians in Greenland multiplied to such an extent, 
 both by conversions and by the immigration from Iceland, 
 that it was found necessary, in the beginning of the twelfth 
 century, to take measures for the government of the 
 church, especially as they could not hope for regular 
 visits from the bishops of Iceland. They, therefore, 
 resolved to make an eifort to secure a bishop of theii own. 
 Eric Gnupson, a priest of Iceland, was selected for the 
 office, and proceeded to Greenland about the year 1112, 
 without being consecrated. He returned to Iceland in 
 1120, and afterward went to Denmark, where he was 
 consecrated in Lund, by Archbishop Adzer. Yet he never 
 undertook episcopal duties in Greenland, but soon after 
 declined that bishopric and accepted another,' thus leav- 
 ing Greenland still without an episcopal director. 
 
 In the year 1123, Sokke, one of the principal men of 
 Greenland, assembled the people and represented to them 
 that both the welfare of the Christian faith and their own 
 honor demanded that they should follow the example of 
 other people and maintain a bishop. To this view they 
 gave their unanimous approval; and Einar, son of Sokke, 
 was appointed a delegate to the court of King Sigurd, of 
 Norway. He carried a present of ivory and fur, and a 
 petition for the appointment of a bishop. His mission was 
 successful, and, in the year 1126, Arnald, the successor of 
 Eric,'^ came into Greenland, and set up the Episcopal seat 
 at Gardar.^ Torfseus and Baron Holberg* give a list of 
 
 ' It will be seen hereafter that he went and established him- 
 self in Vinland. 
 
 ■■' See Me'moires des Antiquaires du Nord, p. 2>^2>- 
 
 ' The location of Gardar is now uncertain. At one time it 
 was supposed to have been situated on the eastern coast; but, 
 since it became so clear that the east coast was never inhabited, 
 that view has been abandoned, though the name appears in 
 maps of a late date. 
 
 * See Crantz's "Greenland," vol. I, p. 252. 
 
30 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 seventeen bishops who ruled in Greenland, ending with 
 Andrew. The latter was consecrated and went thither 
 in 1408. 
 
 A history of Old Greenland is found in the Ecclesiasti- 
 cal Annals, and consists of a skeleton of facts. As in Ice- 
 land, Ireland and ISTorway there was no end of broils and 
 bloodshed. A yqyj considerable trade was evidently car- 
 ried on between that country and Norway, which is the 
 case at the present time with Denmark. As the land 
 afforded no materials for ships, they depended in too great 
 a measure upon Europe foi communication with the riiother 
 countries. 
 
 This, in substance, was nearly all that could be said with 
 much certainty in the previous edition of this w^ork, but 
 new and important material has now been found in the 
 Vatican. 
 
 In 1892 the American Congress passed a resolution 
 requesting the Roman Pontiff to make some contribution 
 to the Columbian Exposition, and Cardinal Rampolla in- 
 stituted an examination in the Vatican Archives, finding, 
 among other material, important letters by popes relat- 
 ing to Greenland, thus illuminating the pre-Columbian 
 history of this continent. Twelve copies of these let. 
 ters were made in fac simile, while a small edition was 
 prepared and printed in Roman letter by the late J. C. 
 Heywood, one of the chamberlains of Leo XIII, the work 
 being marked by his broad and well-known scholarship.' 
 A fac simile copy was exhibited at Chicago. The let- 
 ters were found in the registers or letter books, of which 
 there remain about twelve thousand, some being of parch- 
 ment and others of paper. Copies of the letters were 
 sent to the persons for whom they were intended. The 
 collection begins, Mr. Heywood says, with Pope Innocent 
 III, 1198-1216. All the documents of a previous date 
 
 ' Several copies were donated to the more distinguished 
 libraries in the United States, one going to Harvard Univer- 
 sity. 
 
America by the Noethmex. 31 
 
 have disappeared.^ This is the more "anfortnnate, for the 
 reason that the lost letters covered the most interesting 
 period, which embraced the Icelandic occupation of New 
 England. 
 
 The new material begins with a letter by Innocent III, 
 dated Feb. 13, 1206, addressed to the Archbishop of 
 Drontheim, Norway. In this letter he says that Pope 
 Eugene III, about 1148, established the See of Drontheim, 
 "Iceland and Greenland," and now, acting "by virtue 
 of the privilege granted him from on high in the person 
 of the Prince of the Apostles " to judge and settle "the 
 causes of all" and confirm the Christian faith "through- 
 out the world," Innocent reaffirms the decree and confers 
 the pallium on the new appointee, whose archdiocese 
 extended into North America. Vinland is not mentioned, 
 but at an early period mission work had been undertaken 
 there from Greenland; we may consider New England as 
 included in the province of which Drontheim was the seat. 
 The supremacy of Peter is openly declared in this letter. 
 
 Next we have four letters from Pope John XXI to the 
 Archbishop of Drontheim, bearing date of December 4, 
 1276. Seventy-one years had passed and the world was 
 witnessing new and strange scenes. The Crusades were 
 in progress. Sinews of war were needed, and the Arch- 
 bishop of Drontheim was commanded to collect the tithes 
 throughout his vast jurisdiction which included parts of 
 the great world of the west. It was computed that six 
 years could be spent in going through the territory, and, 
 finally, on representation, some relief was granted in the 
 work by the letter of Pope Nicholas III, January 31, 1279. 
 
 The same pontiff, it will be seen by reference to the let- 
 ters, on June 9, 1279, was arranging to supply wine and 
 
 ' Still a person representing the United States Government 
 wrote: "Until Leo XIII came to the Vatican no amount of 
 argument cr influence was able to unlock the mysterious manu- 
 scripts, which for eighteen [j-/V] hundred years had been accumu- 
 lating upon the shelves of the Holy See." 
 
32 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 altar bread for the northern jurisdiction, including parts 
 of America. 
 
 In 1281, Pope Martin lY recognizes that "the only 
 tithes which can be collected in Greenland consist of skins 
 of the elk or musk-ox or of seals and teeth of whales," and 
 orders the Archbishop to exchange them foi current coin 
 to the best advantage. 
 
 Unfortunately, one hundred and sixty-one years pass 
 before we find another letter. This is by Pope Nicholas 
 Y, September 20, 1448, though we know that the succession 
 of Greenland bishops was maintained in the meanwhile. 
 He gives a mournful view of the situation, as will be 
 seen by reference to his letter, saying: " This people, nearly 
 six hundred years ago, accepted the faith from their glori- 
 ous apostle, the blessed King Olaf, and preserved it pure 
 and unchanged guided by the rites of the holy Eoman 
 Church and the Apostolic See. In lapse of time, animated 
 by a tireless devotion, they built many churches and a 
 splendid cathedral, in which the worship of God was faith- 
 fully maintained until thirty years ago." This would 
 give the date of 1418, near the year when Bishop Andrew 
 was heard from last. "At that time," he says, " the barba- 
 rians invaded Greenland from the neighboring shores and 
 many churches were destroyed, only nine parish churches 
 remaining. Many of the people were carried away pris- 
 oners. Finally, however, the people rallied, and were at 
 this period seeking help from the See of Rome. The 
 Bishops of Skalholt and Holar, in Iceland, were, accord- 
 ingly directed to examine the reports, and, ii found true, 
 they were to send fitting priests to the relief of the Green- 
 land Church. They were also empowered to consecrate 
 a bishop. Bishop Andrew's administration was ended 
 by this incursion of natives from the mainland of America 
 who, probably, were a populous people resembling the 
 Eskimo. ' 
 
 ' These incursions of the natives are recognized in Bardsen's 
 narrative, where it is said that " he was chosen a captain to 
 
America by the Northmen, 33 
 
 Nearly half a century more passes, and, while Colum- 
 bus is absent on his first great voyage, Pope Alexander YI, 
 1492-3, is found engaged in providing a bishop for Green- 
 land. The bishop designated was Matthias, a poor monk 
 of the order of St. Benedict, who was filled with zeal and 
 compassion, and wished to consecrate himself to the cause 
 of Greenland. How the communication was kept up 
 with Greenland does not appear, but Pope Innocent YIII 
 had heard of the fallen state of the people, who were with- 
 out a priest, and nominated Matthias. Whether he actually 
 reached Greenland cannot now be determined. Yet Matthias 
 was resolved to go, while "Rome claimed the jurisdiction and 
 made the appointment. 
 
 The narrative of Bardsen affords a minute account of the 
 condition of Greenland, dwelling upon the towns and vil- 
 lages, together with the number and extent of the churches, 
 giving an account of their revenues and the resom'ces of 
 the country. Tlie cathedral had the benefit of the whale 
 fishery and claimed the right to hunt the white bears. 
 
 MONUMENTS AND RUINS IN GREENLAND. 
 
 The villages and farms of the Northmen in Greenland 
 were numerous. They probably numbered several hun- 
 dred, the ruins now left being both abmidant and extensive. 
 Near Igaliko, supposed to be the same as the ancient Ein- 
 arsfiord, are the ruins of a church, probably the Cathedral y/^ 
 of Gardar. It is called the Karkortok Church. It was of 
 simple but massive architecture, and the material was taken 
 from the neighboring cliffs. The stone is rough hewn, 
 and but few signs of mortar are visible. It is fifty-one 
 feet long and twenty-five wide. The north and south walls 
 are over four feet thick, while the end walls are still 
 more massive. 
 
 Nor are other monuments wanting. At Igaliko, nine 
 
 go to the west district to drive thence the Skraellings, but when 
 he came there he found no men, neither Christians nor pagans. ' ' 
 "Sailing Directions of Henry Hudson," etc., p. 95. 
 
34 Pke-Columbian Discoveet of 
 
 miles from Julian's Hope, a Greenlander being one day 
 employed in obtaining stones to repair his house, found 
 among a pile of fragments a smooth stone that bore, what 
 seemed to him, written characters. He mentioned the cir- 
 cumstance to Mr. Mathieson, the colonial director a Julian's 
 Hope, who inferred that it must be a runic stone. The 
 man was so fortunate as to find it afterward, and Mr. 
 Mathieson accordingly sent it to Copenhagen, where it 
 arrived in the year 1830. The runes, which were perfectly 
 distinct, showed that it was a tombstone. The inscription 
 was translated as follows: 
 
 ' ' YioDis Mars Daughter Rests Here. 
 May God Gladdkn Her Soul." 
 
 Another, found in 1831, by the Rev. Mr. De Fries, 
 principal of the Moravian Mission, bore the following 
 inscription in runic letter: 
 
 "Here Rests Hroar Kolgrimsson. " 
 
 This stone, now in the museum at Copenhagen, was found 
 built into the wall ovei the entrance of a Greenland house, 
 having been taken for that purpose from a heap of ruins, 
 about two miles north of Frederichsthal. The stone is 
 more than three feet long, being eighteen inches wide in 
 the narrowest part, and about five inchee thick. It bears 
 every sign of a high antiquity.' 
 
 One of the most interesting remains proving the Ice- 
 landic occupation of Greenland, is the runic stone found 
 by Parry, in 182-1, in the island of Kingiktorsoak, lying 
 in 72° 55' N. and 56° 51' W. It contained a somewhat 
 lengthy inscription. Copies of it were sent to three of 
 the first scholars of the age, Finn Magnusson, Professor 
 Rask, and Dr. Bryniulfson, who, without consulting one 
 another, at once arrived at the same conclusion, and united 
 in giving the following translation: 
 
 ' See Memoires de la Societe Royale Des Antiquaires du Nord, 
 1 840- 1 844, Copenhagen, p. loi. 
 
America by the Northmen. 35 
 
 '* Erling Sighvatson and Biorn Thord arson and Ein- 
 DRiD Oddson, on Saturday before Ascension week, 
 raised these marks and cleared ground, 1135."^ 
 
 The Icelandic colonists in Greenland do not appear to 
 have been confined to a small portion of territory. We 
 find considerable relating to this subject in the invaluable 
 chronicle of Ivar Bardsen,^ the steward of one of the 
 bishops of Greenland; yet, though used extensively by 
 Torfaeus in his Greenlandia^ modern researches in the 
 country prove that it is in some minor respects faulty. 
 In this chronicle, as in the Sagas, the colonists are spoken 
 of as possessing horses, sheep and oxen; and their churches 
 and religious houses appear to have been well supported. 
 
 ' These inscriptions are all in fair Runic letters, about which 
 there can be no mistake, and are totally unlike the imaginary 
 runes. 
 
 ^ See Egede's Greenland, p. xxv; Crantz's Greenland, 
 vol. I, pp. 247-8; Purchas, His Filgrimes, vol. Ill, p. 518; 
 Antiquitates Americana:, p. 300. See the Chronicle in 
 Sailing Directions of Henry Hudson, Munsell, 1869. 
 
 ^ Historia Vinlandice Antiques seu Paries AmericcB Septen- 
 trionalis, ubi Nominis ratio recenfetur sitis terrce ex dieruinbiu 
 maliu?n Spatio expenditiir. Soli fertilatis £sr nicolarutn barbaries, 
 peregrinorum tejnporarius incolatus & gesta, vici7iarum terrarutn 
 nomina and fades Antiquitatibus Islandicis in lucem producta 
 exponunta per Thormodum Torfceutn Rerum Norvegicarum His- 
 toriographum Regium. Havnice Ex Typographeo Regies Magist, 
 and Universil 1705. Impensis Authorise 
 
 Gronlandia Antiqua seu Gronlandics descriptio, ubi coeli 
 marisqve nalura, term, locorutn 6^ villarum situs, animalum 
 terrestrium aqvatilivmqve varia genera, Gentis origo 6-' incre- 
 menta, status Politicus cs^ Ecclesiasticus, gesta memorabilia 6^ 
 vicissitiidines, ex antiqvis memoriis, prxcipue Islandicis qva fieri 
 potuit industria collecta exponuntur, authore Thormo Torfceo, 
 Rerum Nori'egicarum Hisforiographo Rcgio, Havia: iapud 
 Hieron ; Christ: Paulli Reg: Universit : Bibliopolatn. Anno 
 1715. 
 
36 Pbe-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 EXPLORATION IN GREENLAND. 
 
 Much was done, it appears, in the way of exploring 
 the extreme northern portions of the country known as 
 Nordrsetur. In tlie year 1266, a voyage was made under the 
 auspices of some of the priests, and the adventurers pene- 
 trated north of Lancaster Sound, reaching about the same 
 latitude that was obtained by Parry in 1827, This expedi- 
 tion was of sufficient importance to justify some notice 
 of it here. The account is found in Rafn's Antiquitates 
 AtnericaiKB (p. 269). It sets out with the statement that 
 a narrative of the expedition was sent by Haldor, a 
 priest, to Amald, the Chaplain of King Magnus in Nor- 
 way. They sailed out of Kroksfiardarheidi in an open 
 boat, and met with southerly winds and thick weather, 
 which forced them to let the boat drive before the wind. 
 "When the weather cleared they saw a n amber of islands, 
 together with whales and seals and bears. They made 
 their way into the most distant portion of the sea, and 
 observed glaciers south of them as far as the eye could 
 reach. They also saw indications of the natives, who were 
 called Skra?lings, but they did not land, on account of 
 the number of the bears. They, therefore, put about, 
 and laid their course southward for nearly three days, 
 finding more islands with traces of the natives. They saw 
 a mountain which they called Snsefell, and, on St. James' 
 day, July 25, they had a severe weather, being obliged to 
 row long and hard. It froze during the night in that 
 region, but the sun was above the horizon both day and 
 night. When the sun was on the southern meridian, 
 and a man lay down crosswise in a six-oared boat, the 
 shadow of the gunwale toward the sun would reach as 
 far as his feet, which, of course, indicates that the sun 
 was very low. Afterward they all returned in safety 
 to Gardar.^ Rafn fixes the position ol the point attained 
 by the expedition in the parallel of 75° 46'. Such an 
 
 * Antiquitates Ai/iencancc, p. xxxix. 
 
America by the Northmen. 37 
 
 achievement at that day indicates a degree of boldness quite 
 6urT)rising. ^ 
 
 THE DECLINE OF GREENLAND. 
 
 Of the reality and importance of the Greenland colony 
 there exists no doubt, notwithstanding the records are so 
 meagre and fragmentary. ^ It maintained its connection 
 with the mother countries for a period of not less than five 
 hundred years; yet it finally disappeared and was nearly 
 forgotten. 
 
 Many causes led to the suspension of communication, 
 though it is difficult to account for the extinction of the 
 colony, if it actually became extinct. It does not appear 
 ever to have been in much danger from the Skriiellings, 
 though, on one occasion, in 1349, or later, the natives at- 
 tacked the western settlement, it is said, and killed eighteen 
 Greenlanders of Icelandic lineage, carrying away two boys 
 captives.^ 
 
 Trade was carried on with Denmark until the end of the 
 fourteenth century, although the voyages were not regular. 
 The last bishop, Andrew, was sent out in 1408, and Pro- 
 fessor Finn Magnussen has established the fact that he offi- 
 ciated in the cathedral at Gardar in 1409.* A pagan in- 
 vasion soon followed. 
 
 * Antiquitates Americance, p. xxxix. 
 
 ' For the account of the manuscripts upon which our knowl- 
 edge of Greenland is founded, see Antiquitates AmericancB, 
 p. 255. 
 
 ' Islenzkir Ann&lar. 
 
 * In that year parties are known to have contracted marriage 
 at Gardar, from whom Finn Magnussen and other distinguished 
 men owe their descent. Hakluyt quotes Lambord, to the effect 
 that Arthur made his way to Greenland. The Icelandic chron- 
 icles distinctly say that, half a century before the voyage of 
 Eric, a great country was known at the west, being called "Ire- 
 land the Great." So far as we know, this country was first 
 reached by the Irish, whose prior discovery was conceded by 
 the Icelanders. The Irish had described it, evidently, as a land 
 
38 Pbe-Coltjmbian Discovery of 
 
 After this time nothing appears to be certain. As we 
 have seen, Pope Innocent VIII, 1484, had information 
 about Greenland, but the date is not given. Alexander 
 VI says that " no ship is supposed to have touched there 
 during eighty years last past." To this might be opposed 
 the statement that "Wormius is said to have told Peyrere 
 of his having read in a Danish manuscript, that down to 
 the year 1484, there was a company of more than forty 
 sailors at Bergen, in Norway, who still traded with Green- 
 land.* But this is doubtful, as the revenue at that time be- 
 longed to Queen Margaret of Denmark, no one could visit 
 Greenland without the royal permission. A company of 
 sailors driven upon the Greenland coast, came near suf- 
 fering the penalty of the law on their return. Crantz^ 
 says, that "about the year 1530, Bishop Amund of Skal- 
 holt in Iceland is said to have been driven by a storm, on 
 his return from Norway, so near the coast of Greenland 
 by Heriulfness, that he could see the people driving in their 
 cattle. But he did not land, because just then a good wind 
 arose, which carried the ship the same night to Iceland. 
 The Icelander, Biiernvon Skardfa, who relates this, also 
 says further, that a Hamburgh mariner, Jon Greenlander 
 by name, was driven three times on the Greenland island, 
 where he saw such fishers huts for drying fish as they have 
 in Iceland, but saw no men; further, that pieces of shat- 
 tered boats, nay, in the year 1625, an entire boat, fas- 
 tened together with sinews and wooden pegs, and pitched 
 with seal blubber, have been driven ashore at Iceland from 
 
 of verdure, while the Saga says that Eric applied the name of 
 "Greenland" to the part he visited, not from any peculiar fit- 
 ness but from motives of policy, saying that "men would be 
 persuaded to go to a land with so good a name." Possibly 
 the term "Greenland" was originally applied to the whole of 
 North America, as were other names that finally came to have 
 a local meaning. See "Verrazano the Explorer." 
 
 ' Egede's Greenland^ p. xlvii. 
 
 * Ibid., xlviii. 
 
America by the Northmen. 39 
 
 time to time ; and since then thej found once an oar with 
 a sentence written in Runic letters: Oft var ek dasa, dur 
 elk di'othik, that is, 'Oft was I tired when I drew thee.' '" 
 It would at least appear that there was reason for believ- 
 ing the colony in existence in 1484 or 1492. 
 
 LOST GREENLAND FOUND. 
 
 But, whatever may be the value of the preceding state- 
 ments of Skardfa, it is clear that Greenland was never 
 forgotten. The first person who proposed to re-open com- 
 munication was Eric Walkendorf, Archbishop of Dron- 
 theim, who familiarized himself with tlie subject, and made 
 every preparation necessary in order to re-establish the col- 
 ony; but, having fallen under the displeasure of King 
 Christian II, he left the country and went to Rome, where 
 he died in the year 1521. Thus his plans came to nothing.* 
 Christian III abrogated the decree of Queen Margaret, 
 prohibiting trade with Greenland without the royal per- 
 mission, and encouraged voyages by fitting out a vessel 
 to search for Greenland, which, however, was not found. 
 In 1578, Frederic II sent out Magnus Henningsen. He 
 came in sight of the land, but does not appear to have 
 had the courage to proceed further. Crantz, in his work 
 on Greenland, gives an account of the number of voyages 
 undertaken to the coast, but says " that at last Greenland 
 was so buried in ol)livion that one hai»dly^ would believe 
 that such a land as Greenland was inhabited by Christian 
 Norwegians."^ 
 
 It remained, therefore, for Hans Egede,* in 1721, to re- 
 open communication. Columbus himself did not endure 
 much greater mortification than did this good man foi the 
 
 ' Crantz's Greenland, vol. I, p. 264. 
 
 " Ibid., p. 274. 
 
 ' Ibid., p. 279. 
 
 * Hans Egede was a Protestant clergyman, and minister of 
 the congregation at Vogen, in the northern part of Norway, 
 where he was highly esteemed and beloved. He spent fifteen 
 
40 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 space of eleven years, during which period he labored to 
 persuade the Danish and Norwegian authorities to under- 
 take the re-discovery. But his faith and zeal finally over- 
 came all hostility and ridicule. On the 2d day of May, 
 1721, he went on board the Hope, with his wife and four 
 young children, and landed at Ball's river in Greenland 
 on the third of the following month. Here he spent the 
 best portion of his life in attempting to teach the natives, 
 and in making those explorations the results of which 
 filled the mind of Europe with surprise, affording confir- 
 mation of the truthfulness of the Sagas. 
 
 THE CHARACTER AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE NORTHMEN. 
 
 Let US now return to the consideration of the Icelandic 
 voyages to the American Continent, though not without 
 first seeking a better acquaintance with the men by whom 
 they were performed. 
 
 We have already seen that the iJ^orthraen were a people 
 of no inferior attainments. Indeed, they constituted a 
 most enterprising portion of the race, and, on general prin- 
 ciples, we should, therefore, view them as fitted, even 
 above all the men of their time, for the important work 
 of exploration beyond the seas. They had made them- 
 selves known in every part of the civilized world by their 
 daring as soldiers and navigators. Straying away into the 
 distant east whence they originally came, we see them lay- 
 ing the foundation of the Russian empire, swinging their 
 battle-axes in the streets of Constantinople, carving their 
 mystic runes upon the Lions of the Areopagus, and filling 
 the heart of even the great Charlemagne with dismay.^ 
 Says Dasent, when summing up their achievements: 
 
 years as a missionary in Greenland, and died at Copenhagen, 
 1758. Reference here is exclusively to the Scandinavians, as 
 we remember voyages like those of Davis and Frobisher from 
 England. 
 
 ' The motto on the sword of Roger Guiscard was : 
 Appulus et Calaber Siculus mihi Servit et Afer. 
 
Amekica by the Northmen. 41 
 
 **In Byzantium they are the leaders of the Greek em- 
 peror's body guard, and the main support of his totter- 
 ing throne. From France, led by Rollo, they tear away 
 her fairest province and found a long line of kings. In 
 Saxon England they are the bosom friends of such kings 
 as Athelstane, and the sworn foes of Ethelred the Un- 
 ready. In Danish England they are the foremost among 
 the thanes of Canute, Swein and Hardicanute, and keep 
 down the native population with an iron heel. In Nor- 
 man England," he continues, " the most serious opposi- 
 tion the conqueror meets with is from the colonists of his 
 own race settled in Northumbria. He wastes their lands 
 with lire and sword, and drives them across the border, 
 where we still find their energy, their perseverance, and 
 their speech existing in the lowland Scotch. In Norway 
 they dive into the river with King Olaf Tryggvesson, the 
 best and strongest champion of his age, and hold him down 
 beneath the waves so long that the bystanders wonder 
 whether either king or Icelander will ever reappear on the 
 surface.' Some follow Saint Olaf in his crusades against 
 the old (pagan) faith. '^ Some are his obstinate foes and 
 assi?t at his martyrdom. Many follow Harold the Stern 
 to England when he goes to get his ' seven feet ' of Eng- 
 lish earth, and almost to a man they get their portion of the 
 same soil, while their names grow bright in song and 
 story." Finally, " From Iceland as a base, they push on 
 to Greenland and colonize it: nay, they discover America 
 in those half -decked barks." ^ 
 
 THE SHIPS OF THE NOKTHJilEN. 
 
 The Northmen were excellent navigators. They were, 
 moreover, it has been claimed, the first to learn the art of 
 sailing on the wind. They had good sea-going vessels, 
 
 ' See Laing's Hei/nskringia , vol. II, p. 40. This refers to 
 his swimming match with Kiarten the Icelander, in which the 
 king was beaten. 
 
 ' See Saga of Saint (not king) Olaf. 
 
 ' Des Antiquaires du Nord, 1859. 
 
42 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 some of which were of large size. We liave an account in 
 the Saga of Olaf Tryggvesson of one that in some respects 
 was remarkable. It is said that ' ' the winter after King Olaf 
 Tryggvesson came from Halegoland, he had a great ship 
 built at Ledehammer,^ which was larger than any ship in 
 the country, and of which the beam-knees are still to be 
 seen. The length of the keel that rested upon the grass 
 was seventy-four ells. Thorberg Skafting was the man's 
 name who was the master builder of the ship, but there 
 were many others besides; some to fell the wood, some to 
 shape, some to make nails, some to carry timber, and all 
 that was used was the best. The ship was both long and 
 broad and high sided, and strongly timbered. . . . 
 The ship was a dragon, built after the one that the king 
 had captured in Halegoland, but it was far longer and 
 more carefully put together in all her parts. The Long 
 Serpent (her name) had thirty-four benches for rowers. 
 The head and arched tail were both gilt, and the bul- 
 warks were as high as in sea-going ships. This ship was 
 the best and most costly ever built in Norway. ' ' ^ 
 
 ' Ledehammer. The point of land near the house of Lede, 
 just below Drontheim. 
 
 ■•' Laing's Neimskringia, vol. I, p. 457. It is related that 
 while they were planking the ship, " it happened that Thor- 
 berg had to go home to his farm upon some urgent business; 
 and as he stayed there a long time, the ship was planked upon 
 both sides when he came back. In the evening the king went 
 out and Thorberg with him, to see how the ship looked, and 
 all said that never was seen so large and fine a ship of war. 
 Then the king went back to the town. Early the next morning 
 the king came back again to the ship, and Thorberg with him. 
 The carpenters were there before them, but all were standing 
 idle with their hands across. The king asked, * What is the 
 matter? ' They said the ship was ruined; for somebody had gone 
 from stem to stern, and cut one deep notch after another down 
 the one side of the planking. When the king came nearer he 
 saw that it was so, and said with an oath, ' The man shall die 
 who has thus ruined the ship out of malice, if he can be found, 
 
America by the Northmen. 43 
 
 Laing computes the tonnage of this ship at about nine 
 hundred and forty-two tons, thus giving a length of about 
 one hundred feet, which is nearly the size oi a forty-two 
 gun ship. By steam tonnage it would give a capacity of 
 a little less than three hundred tons, and one hundred and 
 twenty horse power. "We apprehend, however, that the 
 estimate is sufficiently large; yet we are nol concerned to 
 show any great capacity for the Icelandic ships. All the 
 vessels employed in the early times on the American coasts 
 were small. The Anna Pink, a craft that accompanied 
 Lord Anson in his expedition around the world, measured 
 only sixteen tons.* The vessels of the Northmen were 
 every way adapted for ocean voyages. 
 
 and I will give a great reward to him who finds him out.' 
 * I can tell you, king, ' says Thorberg, * who has done this piece 
 of work.' ' I don't think that any one is so likely to find it out 
 as thou art. ' Thorberg says : ' I will tell you, king, who did it, 
 I did it myself.' The king says, ' Thou must restore it all to 
 the same condition as before, or thy life shall pay for it. ' Then 
 Thorberg went and chipped the planks until the deep notches 
 were all smoothed and made even with the rest; and the king 
 and all present declared that the ship was much handsomer on 
 the side of the hull which Thorberg had chipped, and bade him 
 shape the other side in the same way and gave him great thanks 
 for the improvement. " 
 
 ^ A few years ago two very ancient vessels, which probably 
 belonged to the seventh century, were exhumed on the coast 
 of Denmark, seven thousand feet from the sea, where they 
 were scuttled and sunk. The changes in the coast finally left 
 them imbedded in the sand. One vessel was seventy-two feet 
 long, and nine feet wide amidships. The other was forty-two 
 feet long, and contained two eight-sided spars, twenty-four feet 
 long. The bottoms were covered with mats of withes for the 
 purpose of keeping them dry. Among the contents was a 
 Damascened sword, with runes, showing that the letter existed 
 among the Northmen in the seventh century. See Horsford's 
 notice of an ancient ship, Address at the unveiling of the 
 Statue of Leif Erickson, p. 21. Also illustrations in Narra- 
 
44 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 In nautical knowledge, also, they were not behind the 
 age. The importance of cultivating the studj of naviga- 
 tion was fully understood. The Raudulf of Oesterdal, in 
 Norway, taught his son to calculate the course of the sun 
 and moon, and how to measure time by the stars. In 1520 
 Olaus Magnus complained that the knowledge of the peo- 
 ple in this respect had been diminished. In that noble 
 work called Speculum Regale^ " The Royal Mirror," the 
 Icelander is taught to make an especial study of commerce 
 and naWgation, of the divisions of time and the movements 
 of the heavenly bodies, together with arithmetic, the rig- 
 ging of vessels and morals} Without a high degree of 
 knowledge they could never have achieved their many 
 voyages. 
 
 THE SAGAS AND THE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA. 
 
 We find that the Northmen were well acquainted with 
 other parts of the world, and that they possessed all the 
 means of reaching the Continent in the west. We come, 
 therefore, to the question: Did the Northmen actually 
 discover and explore the coast of the country now known 
 as America ? It is, however, already answered. 
 
 tive and Critical History, I, 62-4. These two ships are pre- 
 served in the Museum at Christiania, Norway, and were in- 
 spected, with their contents, by the writer in 1892. 
 
 ^ The people of Iceland were always noted for their superior- 
 ity in this respect over their kinsmen in Denmark and Norway. 
 There is one significant fact bearing on this point, which is 
 this : that, while a few of the people of Iceland went at an early 
 period to engage in piratical excursions with the vikings of 
 Norway, not a single pirate ship ever sailed from Iceland. 
 Such ways were condemned altogether at an early day, while 
 various European nations continued to sanction piracy down 
 to recent periods. Again it should be remembered that in 
 Iceland duelling was also solemnly declared illegal as early as 
 loii, and in Norway the following year; while in England it 
 did not cease to be a part of the judicial process until 1818. 
 See Sir Edmund Head's Viga-Glum Saga, p. 120. 
 
America by the Northmen. 45 
 
 No one can now say that the idea wears any appear- 
 ance of imprdbability, for there was certainly nothing 
 wonderful in the exploit. After conceding the fact that 
 colonies of the Northmen existed in Greenland for at least 
 four hundred years, we must prepare ourselves for some- 
 thing of this kind. Indeed it is well nigh, if not alto- 
 gether unreasonable, to suppose that a sea-faring people 
 like the Northmen could live for centuries within a 
 short voyage of this Continent and never become aware 
 of its existence. A belief like this implies a rare credu- 
 lity. Whoever is capable of holding it must be capable 
 of believing almost anything. 
 
 But on this point we are not left to conjecture. The de- 
 cision, in the absence of proofs like those furnished by 
 Greenland, turns upon a question of fact. The point is 
 this : Do the vianuscrijpts which describe these 'voyages helong 
 to the pre- Columhian age ? If so, then the Northmen 
 are entitled to the credit of the discovery of America 
 subsequently to the Irish period. That these manu- 
 scripts belong to the Pre-Columbian age is as capable of 
 demonstration as the fact that the writings of Homer ex- 
 isted prior to the age of Christ. Before intelligent per- 
 sons deny either of these points they must first succeed 
 in blotting out numberless pages of well-known history. 
 The manuscript in which we have versions of all the Sagas 
 relating to America is found in the celebrated Codex 
 Flatoiensis, a work that was finished in the year 13 8 Y, 
 or 1395 at the latest. This collection, made with great 
 care, is now preserved in its integrity ^ in the archives of 
 
 ' Those who imagine that these manuscripts, while of pre- 
 Columbian origin, have been tampered with and interpolated, 
 show that they have not the faintest conception of the state of 
 the question. The accounts of the voyages of the Northmen 
 to America form the fra7newo7-k of Sagas which would actu- 
 ally be destroyed by the elimination of the narratives. There 
 is only one question to be decided, and that is the date of the 
 compositions. 
 
46 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 Copenhagen, These manuscripts were for a time supposed 
 to be lost, but were ultimately found safely lodged in their 
 repository in the monastery library of the island of Flato, 
 from whence they were transferred to Copenhagen with a 
 large quantity of other literary material collected from the 
 various localities. If these Sagas which refer to America 
 were interpolations, it would have early become apparent, 
 as abundant means exist for detecting frauds; yet most 
 competent critics who have examined the whole question 
 do not find any evidence that invalidates their historical 
 statements. In the absence, therefore, of respectable tes- 
 timony to the contrary, we accept it as a fact that the 
 Sagas relating to America are the productions of the men 
 who gave them in their present form nearly, if not quite, 
 an entire century before the age of Columbus. 
 
 It might also be argued, if it were at all necessary, that, 
 if these Sagas were post-Columbian compositions drawn 
 up by Icelanders jealous of the fame of the Genoese navi- 
 gator, we should certainly be able to point out something 
 either in their structure, bearing, or style by which it would 
 be indicated. Yet such is not the case. These writings 
 reveal no anxiety to show the connection of the I^orthmen 
 with the great land lying at the west. The authors do not 
 see any thing remarkable or meritorious in the explora- 
 tions, which were conducted for the purpose of gain. Those 
 marks which would certainly have been impressed by a 
 more modern writer forging a historical composition de- 
 signed to show an occupation of the country before the 
 time of Columbus, are wholly wanting. There is no 
 special pleading or rivalry, and no desire to show prior 
 and superior knowledge of the country to which the navi- 
 gators had from time to time sailed. We discover only a 
 straightforward, honest endeavor to tell the story of cer- 
 tain men's lives. This is done in a simple, artless way, and 
 with every indication of a desire to mete out even-handed 
 justice to all. Candid readers who come to the subject 
 with minds free from prejudice will be powerfully impressed 
 with the belief that they are reading authentic histories 
 
America by the Northmen. 47 
 
 written by honest men, who also freely concede the pri- 
 ority of the Irish, 
 
 the literature of ICELAND. 
 
 Before speaking particularly of the substance of the 
 Sagas, it will be necessary to trace briefly the origin and 
 history of Icelandic literature in general. 
 
 We have already mentioned the fact that Iceland was 
 mainly settled by Norwegians of superior qualities. This 
 superiority was always maintained, though it was some- 
 what slow in manifesting itself in the form of literature. 
 Prior to the year 1000, the Runic alphabet had existed in 
 Iceland, but it was generally used for the simplest purposes. ' 
 History and literature derived no advantage, as the runes 
 were used chiefly for monumental inscriptions, and for mot- 
 toes and charms on such things as drinking cups, sacrificial 
 vessels and swords. Yet the people were not without a 
 kind of intellectual stimulus. It had long been the custom 
 to preserve family and general histories, and recite them 
 from memory as occasion seemed to warrant. This was 
 done with a wonderful degree of accuracy and fidelity, 
 by men more or less trained for the purpose, whose per- 
 formances at times were altogether surprising. They also 
 had their scalds or poets, who were accustomed both to 
 repeat the old songs and poems and extemporize new ones. 
 Every good fighter was expected to prove himself a poet 
 when the emergency required it. The poet was strongly 
 encouraged. "When Eyvind Skialdespilder sang his great 
 song in praise of Iceland every peasant in the island, it 
 
 ' The word rune comes from 7-yn, a furrow. Odin has the 
 credit of the invention of runes, yet they are probably of 
 Phenician origin. They were sometimes used for poetical 
 purposes. Halmund, in the Grettir Saga (see Sabing Baring- 
 Gould's Iceland^, says to his daughter: " Thou shalt now 
 listen whilst I relate my deeds and sing thereof a song, which 
 thou shalt afterward cut upon a staff." This indicates the 
 training the memory must have undergone among the North- 
 men. 
 
48 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 is said, contributed three pieces of silver to buy a clasp for 
 his mantle of liftj marks' weight. These scalds were 
 sometimes employed by the politicians, and on one occa- 
 sion a satire so nettled Harold, king of Denmark, that he 
 sent a fleet to ravage Iceland, and made the repetition an 
 offense punishable with death. The Icelandic poets also 
 went to England, to the Orkneys and to ISTorway, where, 
 at the king's court they were held in the highest estimation, 
 furnishing poetical effusions on every public or private 
 occasion which demanded the exercise of their gifts. The 
 degree to which they had cultivated tlieir memories was 
 surprising. Old Blind Skald Stuf could repeat between 
 two and three hundred poems. The Ssga-men had the 
 same power of memory. This we know may be improved 
 to a very great extent by cultivation. But v/ith the advent 
 of the Church came the Koman alphabet, which proved 
 an easy method of expressing thought. Christianity, 
 however, did not stop here. Its service was a reasonable 
 service, and demanded of its votaries a high intelligence. 
 The priest of Odin need do no more than recite a short 
 vow, or mutter a brief prayer. He had no divine records 
 to read and to explain. But the minister of the new re- 
 ligion came with a system that demanded broad learning 
 and culture. His calling required the aid of books, and 
 the very sight of books proved a mental stimulus to this 
 hard-brained race. Besides, Christianity opened to the 
 minds of the people new fields of thouglit. These rude 
 sons of war began to understand that certain victories, 
 not to be despised, might be gained through peace; and 
 erelong letters came to be somewhat familiar to the public 
 mind. The earliest written efforts very naturally related 
 to the lives of the Saints, which on Sundays and holy days 
 were read in public for the edification of the people. Dur- 
 ing the eleventh century these exercises shared the public 
 attention with those of the professional Saga-man, who still 
 labored to hand down the oral versions of the national history 
 and traditions. In the beginning of the twelfth century the 
 use of letters was extended, and at last the Saga-man found 
 
America by the Nokthmen. 49 
 
 his occupation gone, the national history now being gath- 
 ered up by zealous students and scribes, and committed 
 to the more lasting custody of the written page. Among 
 the writers was Ari Frode, who began the compilation of 
 the Icelandic Dooms-day Booh, which contained a record 
 of the early settlers. Scarcely less useful was Ssemund 
 the "Wise, who collected the poetical literature of the North 
 and arranged it in a goodly tome. The example of these 
 great men was followed, and by the end of the twelfth 
 century all the Sagas relating to the pagan period of the 
 country had been reduced to writing. This was an era of 
 great literary activity, and the century following showed 
 the same zeal. Finally Iceland possessed a body of prose 
 literature superior in quantity and value to that of any 
 other modern nation of its time.- Indeed the people of 
 Europe at this period had no prose or other species of 
 literature really worthy of the name ; and, taken altogether, 
 the Sagas formed the first prose literature in any modern 
 language spoken by the people. ^ Says Sir Edmund Head, 
 "No doubt there were translations in Anglo-Saxon from 
 the Latin by Alfred, of an earlier date, but there was in 
 truth no vernacular literature. I cannot name," he says, 
 "any work in high or low German prose which can be 
 carried back to this period. In France, prose writing 
 cannot be said to have begun before the time of Yillehar- 
 douin (1204), and Joinville (1202). Castilian prose cer- 
 tainly did not commence before the time of Alphonso X 
 (1252). Don Juan Manvel, the author of the Conde 
 Lucanor, was not born till 1282. The Cronica General de 
 Espafia was not composed till at least the middle of the 
 thirteenth century. About the same time the language of 
 Italy was acquiring that softness and strength which was 
 
 ' For a list of many Icelandic works, see the Introduction of 
 Laing's Heimsk7-ingla. See also Horn's History of the Litera- 
 ture of the Scandinavian North. Translated by Anderson, 
 Chicago, 1884. Also the work of William and Mary Howitt. 
 
 "See Sir Edmuud Head's Viga Glum Saga, pp. viii and ix. 
 4 
 
50 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 destined to appear so conspicuously in the prose of Boc- 
 caccio, and tlie writers of the next century."^ 
 
 Thus, while some nations -were backward in literature, 
 the intellect of Iceland was in active exercise, and works 
 like the Eddas and the Heimskringla, were conserved, being 
 works inspired by a lofty genius that will rank with the 
 writings of Homer and Herodotus while time endures. 
 
 In the beginning of the sixteenth century, however, 
 the literature of Iceland reached the period of its greatest 
 excellence and began to decline. Books continued to be 
 written, but works of genius were wanting. Yet in Ice- 
 land there has never been an absence of literary indus- 
 try, while during the recent period the national reputation 
 has been sustained by Finn Magnussen and similar great 
 names. One hundred years before the Plymouth colonists, 
 following in the track of Thorwald Ericson, landed on the 
 sands of Cape Cod, the people of Iceland had set up the 
 printing press, and produced numerous works both in the 
 native language and the Latin tongue. 
 
 It is to this people, whom Saxo Grammaticus points out 
 as a people distinguished for their devotion to letters, that 
 we are indebted for the narratives of the pre-Columbian 
 voyages to America. Though first arranged for oral reci- 
 tation, the Sagas, as we have seen, were afterward com- 
 mitted to manuscript, the earliest of which perhaps do not 
 now exist, while the latest were those preserved in the cele- 
 brated Flato collection nearly a century before the re-dis- 
 covery of America by Columbus. 
 
 It is no longer necessary to spend time in this connection 
 since the character and value of the Icelandic writings have 
 come to be generally acknowledged, and especially since 
 scholars and antiquaries like Humboldt and Max Muller 
 have fully acknowledged their authenticity and authority. 
 
 ' Ibid. Of course there was more or less poetrj', yet poetry 
 is early developed among the rudest nations, while good prose 
 proves that a people have become highly advanced in mental 
 culture. 
 
America by thk Northmen. 51 
 
 early english voyages to iceland. 
 
 It is proper to notice here the fact that not a few have 
 imao;ined that the clamis of the Northmen have been 
 brought forward to detract from the fame of Columbus; 
 yet, nothing could be farther from the truth, since no one 
 denies that it was by the voyages of Col ambus that the 
 Continent became of great value to the Old World, though 
 we must always remember that North America is chiefly 
 indebted to the Cabots, who were Catholics sent out, like 
 Columbus, by a Catholic king. 
 
 But nothing should deter us from inquiring into the re- 
 lation held by Columbus to the pilots and geographers of 
 the North,* especially since so many fancy thai the northern 
 regions were little visited at the period of his activity. "We 
 find, however, that in the fourteenth century the fisheries 
 were commonly pursued around Iceland, whose people 
 were in regular communication with Greenland. The 
 English also knew Greenland at the time, though, in com- 
 mon with the people of Iceland and Norway, they did not 
 appreciate the importance of this knowledge. In the four- 
 teenth century, proof is found both in the Icelandic and 
 English annals, of the connection between the two coun- 
 tries. The Icelandic contains indications oi the arrival of 
 English ships, but it is clear that their coming was so well 
 known as to gain only a casual allusion, the interest 
 standing connected with the news brought. The entries 
 were made at the time, and are now set down in chrono- 
 logical order, in accordance with the language of the origi- 
 nal. Let us, therefore, notice these entries. 
 
 In 1348, news reached Iceland that in England the mor- 
 tality was 60 great that 200,000 persons had died.^ The 
 
 ' Bulletin de Geographic, 1858, p. 177. Are Frode in 1608, 
 speaking of the visit paid to Iceland by Floke Vilgerderson, 
 says that in those times men had no loadstone in the northern 
 countries. The Bible Guyot, 1150, speaks of the loadstone 
 as un pierre laida et brumiere. 
 
 * Islenzkir Anndlar, Hafniae, p. 276. The Icelandic is as 
 
62 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 next year the death of English sailors at Bergen, in Norway 
 opposite Iceland, was reported, and recorded in the Sagas,' 
 This is all that we find at present in connection with the 
 fourteenth century in Iceland; but the reference of the 
 Saga to the great mortality in England is confirmed by 
 Stow's "Annals," which slate that the plague reached 
 England in 1348, touching the seaports first. Thence, no 
 doubt, the news was at once carried by fishermen to Ice- 
 land." If the voyages of the English to Iceland had pos- 
 sessed greater interest, there would have been some more 
 definite notice in the Sagas. We are free, however, to 
 admit that, early in this century, the merchant trade may 
 have been small, as in 1328 Edward III does not mention 
 Iceland in his Pro Mercatoribus Extraneis. Nor does he 
 mention Denmark or Norway, but these are included in 
 the general language. Omnium aliarum Terrarum et lo- 
 corum extranorunt,^ Nevertheless, the mandate of Edward 
 III, dated March 18, 1354, recognizes the fact that the 
 king maintained a fleet for service in the " parts Boreal," 
 John de Haddon being the Admiral.* It was probablj de- 
 signed to protect the fishermen and merchants from pirates 
 around the north of Britain. 
 
 In the Icelandic annals of the fifteenth century, the first 
 clear entry is that of 1407, when news was received of the 
 death of the Archbishop of York.^ In 1412, it was recorded 
 that five English sailors had separated from their ship and 
 wintered in the island.^ In 1413, ' 'thirty more fishing vessels 
 came from England." Some of them were blown to the 
 northern part of Iceland, and possibly to the Greenland coast.' 
 
 follows : Mannfall ogurlegt a Englefidi sva at tv'd hundred thou- 
 sand dait nidr. 
 
 ' Ibid., 278. 
 
 » Stow's Annals, p. 245, Ed. 1631. 
 
 * Rymer's Foedera, IV, 361 
 
 * Ibid., V, 778. 
 
 * Annalar, p. 382. 
 •Ibid., p. 386. 
 
 * Ibid., p. 388. 
 
Amekica by the Northmen. 53 
 
 In 1415, six English ships sailed to Iceland, and made 
 their port in the Westmann Islands.' In 1416, six ships 
 anchored in Hafnafiord, in the south-west of Iceland.- In 
 1419, many English ships were wrecked on the coast of Ice- 
 land, and a large number of lives were lost.^ The "Annals," 
 in the present compilation, end with the year 1430, and 
 these six entries are all that we find. If carefully consid- 
 ered, however, it will appear that these mentions really 
 form memorabilia. This will be seen by turning to the 
 English annals for the corresponding period. The first 
 reference to Iceland in the Fcedera is that oi 1415, when 
 Henry Y, for the satisfaction of the King of Denmark, 
 ordered that during the year none of his subjects should 
 presume to visit any of " the coasts of the islands belonging 
 to Denmark and Norway, and especially to the island of 
 Iceland," for the purpose of fishing or trading, '' otherwise 
 than according to the ancient custom" {aliter quam anti- 
 quitus fieri constcevit).* This notice was served upon the 
 authorities of the various seaports of England. Here, 
 then, we learn, in connection with 1415, that in the ancient 
 times voyages to Iceland had become frequent. It is clear 
 from the complaint of the Danish king that the old rules 
 respecting trafiic had been broken habitually, and that 
 they were now to be observed, at least for one year. Of 
 the exact nature of the ancient law we cannot speak, but it 
 would appear as though the prohibition related to the shore 
 fisheries, which they were not to intrude upon, and hence, 
 when the English went to Iceland, in 1415, they harbored 
 off the coast of the "Westmann Islands. The arrival of 
 the ships, under the circumstances, formed a noticeable 
 event, and for this reason it was recorded. The Icelandic 
 
 ' Ibid., p. 390. 
 
 ' Ibid., p. 392. 
 
 ' Ibid., p. 394. — In this connection the author employs 
 material given by him in his _ Inventio Fortunata, devoted to 
 the subject of Arctic Discovery. 
 
 * "Foedera,'' IX, 322. 
 
64 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 Annals add, immediately after mentioning their arrival, 
 that " the ships brought letters from the King of Eng- 
 land to the people and the chief men of Iceland. ' ' 
 
 There is, then, a complete agreement between the Eng- 
 lish and the Icelandic Annals, both showing that an English 
 fleet visited Iceland in 1415 — a circumstance which should 
 go very far to establish the general value and credibility 
 of those records of a distant age.^ 
 
 In 1416, the English were again in Iceland, but the 
 Feeder a does not mention voyages until 1436, when Henry 
 VI issued a license to John, the Icelandic Bishop of Ho- 
 lem, then in London, authorizing him to engage John May, 
 with his ship " Catherine," for a voyage to Iceland, where 
 May, evidently an old voyager, was to act as his attorney, 
 and transact certain business for him, the Bishop himself 
 not wishing to undertake the voyage.^ In 1436, Kich- 
 ard Weston, of London, a " stockfishmonger, " was well 
 known by the Icelanders.^ In 1440, Henry VI sent two 
 ships to Iceland, with supplies. It was feared that with- 
 out this aid from England, the sacraments even would be 
 omitted, there being neither wine nor salt in the country, 
 and only milk and water {lac et aquam)} Eight years later, 
 we have seen, Pope Nicholas V was writing about the dis- 
 tressed condition of the Church in Greenland. 
 
 In connection with the year 1445, another voyage is indi- 
 cated by the Admiralty " Black Book," action having been 
 taken against William Byggeman, and two men of Lynn, 
 
 ' This agreement between the English and Icelandic author- 
 ities was pointed out for the first time, in Invcntio Fortunata. 
 
 '^ Fcedera, x, 645 and 659, Ed. 1877. With an Icelandic 
 bishop residing for the time in London, the English must cer- 
 tainly have learned through him of Greenland and Vinland. 
 
 ° Ibid., X, 762. These supplies were sent to the Bishop of 
 Skalholt, who alone was authorized by the Synod of Denmark 
 to supply the elements of the sacraments to the churches. 
 See Kirchengefchichte von Da7iemark una Norwegan (Miinter), 
 III, 16. 
 
 * Ibid., X, 645. 
 
America by the Northmen. 55 
 
 who visited Icleand in a " dogger," called the " Trinity." 
 They kidnapped a boy whom they brought to Swetesham 
 and held in servitude, contrary to law.^ 
 
 In 1450, a treaty was made between the Kings of Den- 
 mark and England, which prohibited trading in Iceland; 
 but a special provision of Parliament exempted Thomas 
 Canynges, Mayor of Bristol, from the prohibition, in con- 
 eideration of his great services to Iceland. He was accord- 
 ingly allowed to send two ships thither to load with tish 
 or other commodities. His trade with Iceland was a mat- 
 ter of general knowledge, and throws additional light upon 
 a certain remark by Columbus. 
 
 It should be remembered also, that the Zeno Brothers 
 made their voyage to Greenland, and a part of the Ameri- 
 can coast called " Estotiland," and " Drogeo," in 1400. 
 It suffices here to say: The Zeno Map, published with the 
 narrative in 1558, shows that the Zeno family had a knowl- 
 edge of Greenland that could have been obtained only dur- 
 ing the pre-Columbian times. ^ Pope Innocent YIII 
 may have heard of Greenland through Zeno. 
 
 In this connection the investigator must not overlook the 
 voyage of Skolnus the Pole, which took place in 1476. 
 Hakluyt says that this voyage is mentioned by Gemma 
 
 ' Item quod Willelums Byggemane de Suetesham magister 
 Gujusdem navis vocatae le Trinyte, dictae vulgariter dogger, 
 Johannis Pigot et Henrici Sorysbi de Lenna Episcopi, circa fes- 
 tum Exuhacionis Sanctse Crucis anno dicti regis vicesimo tertio, 
 cepit unum pueram in partibus de Islandia, et ipsum duxit in 
 dictu navi ad ibidem usque Suetsham, adsibi serviendum, contra 
 statu ta regia in hoc parte facta." — Monuinenta Juridicia (Black 
 Book), I, 273. 
 
 " On Zeno, see "The Sailing Directions of Henry Hudson." p. 
 5 j ** The Northmen in Maine," p. 30. Also a full discussion of 
 the subject in the Hakluyt Society's edition of the voyage, 
 edited by Major. The last unsuccessful attempt to invalidate 
 the voyage of Zeno is that of Mr. Lucas, London, 1898. On 
 this see notice in "The American Historical Review," July, 
 1899. 
 
56 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 Frisius and Girava.^ It is certainly referred to on an an- 
 cient globe of about 1540, preserved in Paris, and known 
 as " The Rouen Globe," whereon, near the north-west 
 coast of Greenland, is a legend declaring that Skolnus 
 reached that point in 1476. This globe seems to ante- 
 date Goniara (1553). 
 
 Next attention should be directed to the voyage of 
 Columbus to the North, of which the Genoese himself 
 gives the following account: 
 
 " In the month of February, 1477, I sailed a lumdred 
 leagues beyond the island of Thyle, the southern part of 
 which is distant from the equinoctial 73 degrees, and not 
 63, as some wish it to be; nor does it lie upon the line where 
 Ptolemy's west begins, but much more toward the west. 
 And to this island, which is as large as England, the Eng- 
 lish come for traffic, and especially those of Bristol. And 
 at the time I was there the sea was not frozen, but in 
 some places the tide rose 26 fathoms [feet], and fell the 
 same."" "Whoever wrote the life of the Admiral, there 
 
 * Hakluyt makes his reference in a general way, giving neither 
 chapter nor page. Frisius published De Principius Astro- 
 nomiae & Cosmographias, &c., in 1530. The Cosmograph- 
 iae, of Hieronimo Girava was printed 1556. Gomara men- 
 tions Skolnus in his Historia, c. xxxvii, Ed. 1553. See "The 
 Sailing Directions of Henry Hudson," p. 23, in connection 
 with Wytfliet and Pontanus. For Hakluyt, see Maine Coll., 
 S. 2, vol. n, p. 148. 
 
 'The Italian runs as follows " lo navigai I'anno 1477, nel 
 mese di Febraio oltra Tile isola cento leghe, la ciu parte Aus- 
 trale e lontana dall' Equinottiale settantatre gradi, et non sessan- 
 tra, come alcuni vogliono: ne giace dentro della linea, che in- 
 clude rOccidente di Tolomeo, ma e molto piu Occidentale. Et a 
 quest' isola, che e tan to grande come ITnghilterra, vanno 
 glTnglesi can le loro mercatantie, specialmente quelli di Bris- 
 tol. Et al tempo, che io vi andai, non era congelelate il mare 
 che in alcuni luoghi ascendena ventesi braccia, et discen- 
 dena altro tanti in altezza." {Historia del S. D. Fernando 
 Colombo, 1571, c. vi.) "Braccia" is evidently a clerical error 
 
Amkkica by the Northmen. 57 
 
 is no question but that he made the voyage. Finn Mag- 
 nussen has pointed out an interesting confirmation of the 
 statement of Columbus respecting the mild weather in 
 1477, where he shows from the "Annals," the remark- 
 able fact, that, in 1477, snow had not been seen at 
 Eyafjord, in the north of Iceland, as late as March.' 
 
 To this period belongs the voyage of Robert Alcock, 
 of Hull, who, in 1478, was commissioned by Edward lY 
 to send a ship of 240 tons to Iceland, which was " to reload 
 with fish or other goods. "^ He was licensed again in 1483. 
 
 Chaucer in the prologue to the Canterbury Tales, shows 
 by his ' ' Shipman, ' ' something of the activity of the Brit- 
 ish sailor at this period. 
 
 as the original Spanish will doubtless show, if ever found. 
 That Columbus was familiar with the map in the Ptolemy of 
 i486, showing the northern regions, with Greenland as an 
 extension of Europe, can hardly be doubted. His remark re- 
 specting Thyle appears to be intended almost as a correction of 
 that map, on which the Orcades and Thyle are laid down north 
 of Scotland, Thyle being in 6^° N., while it apears again fur- 
 ther north as " Islandia." This double representation of Ice- 
 land on the map was a blunder, the island being laid down first 
 according to Ptolemy, and then according to the prevailing 
 ideas of the day. This peculiarity of the map entitles it to 
 interest as a Columbian map, though the feature referred to 
 does not appear to have been remarked upon hitherto by any 
 except the writer. 
 
 ' The fact was produced from the Annals by Finn Magnussen, 
 in Nordisk Tidskrift for Olkyndighed, vol. 11, p. 128. It 
 has been suggested, though without reason, that the voyage of 
 Columbus was made in 1467. See Barrow's Chronological His- 
 tory, p. 26. Columbus gives the wrong latitudes for the places 
 visited, but this may be the fault of the editor; while Humboldt 
 says that they were not the result of his own observations during 
 a rough wintry voyage. See Exainen Critique, II, 115, and v, 
 214, n. In 1550 a Bristol ship was lost at Iceland. See Bar- 
 rett's Bristol. 
 
 ' Foedera, XII, 94. 
 
58 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 An indication more to our present purpose is found in 
 the poem on " The Policie of Keeping the Sea," which be- 
 longs to the middle of the fifteenth century. At that time 
 the northern region was so well known that the author of 
 the poem disposes of the subject briefij; 
 
 " Of Island to write is little nede, 
 Save of stockfish; yet forsooth, indeed, 
 Out of Bristowe, and castes many one, 
 Men have practiced by needle and stone 
 Thider wardes within a little while 
 Within twelve yere, and without perill 
 Gon and come, as men were wont of old 
 Of Scarborough unto the costes cold." ' 
 
 Thus, at the time when the poet wrote, Bristol had re- 
 vived her old enterprise. The maritime enterprise of this 
 period is greatly underrated by Mr. Froude. The sketch 
 now given of voyages toward the north, especially during 
 the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, is quite general. 
 It would be easy to swell the citations from various sources, 
 among which may be mentioned the voyages to the west 
 of Ireland so well known to Columbus, as his biography 
 proves. Yet enough has been said to show the real charac- 
 ter of the period. The times, both before and after the 
 general date assigned to the voyage of Columbus, were 
 marked by great activity, and expeditions to the nortli 
 were so common that neither the English nor the Icelanders 
 took the trouble to mention them, except when they stood 
 connected with circumstances of particular interest. The 
 intercourse between Iceland and England was so frequent, 
 that sailors like John May, who served as the representa- 
 tive of the Bishop of Holem, must have acquired a fair 
 knowledge of the language spoken in that distant isle. 
 Indeed, at one time, under the Normans, the Icelandic 
 tongue gave a person the advantage at the courts of both 
 England and France.' 
 
 But enough has been said to prove that the voyage of 
 
 * Hakluyt, vol. I, p. 201. Ed. 1599 1600. 
 •Laing's Heimskritigla, vol. i, chap, viii, p. 61. 
 
America by the NoRTHME^f. 59 
 
 Columbus, in 1477, foraied no novelty. His actions take 
 their place with entire naturalness in the annals of his age. 
 Yet all the while the English voyagers did not, so far 
 as we now know, touch Greenland. 
 
 Columbus had the most ample opportunities for learn- 
 ing of the voyages of the Northmen. He could not asso- 
 ciate Avith the English sailors without hearing more or less 
 about Iceland, and presumably of Greenland. He knew 
 that voyages were made to the west, though he did not 
 appreciate the importance of the information and failed to 
 put it to use. He argued, that the land at the west vis- 
 ited by the Icelanders, was not the Indies, of which he was 
 in search.^ This led him to take the Southern route 
 across the Atlantic' In this connection, however, the 
 author has no interest in the work of lessening the deserved 
 fame of Columbus. That Columbus knew of the west- 
 ward voyages of the Icelanders is sufficiently evident. He 
 
 ^ When at the western end of Cuba on his second voyage, so 
 certain was Columbus that he had reached the eastern coast of 
 Asia that he required his officers, under oath, to declare that 
 Cuba was not an island but the continent, under penalty of 
 10,000 maravedis, and having their tongues cut out. See docu- 
 ment in Navarrete's Colkcion, vol. II, p. 155. See, also, 
 Gravier's translation of the Author's Treatise on the Lenox 
 Globe, Le Globe Lenox de 15 11. Traduit de Anglaise par 
 Gabriel Gravier, Rouen, 1880, p. 25. 
 
 2 See the author's " Columbus and the Geographers of the 
 North." Hartford, 1872. Those who are interested in belit- 
 tling the great work of Columbus can consult Goodrich's "Life 
 of Columbus." See, also, "An Inglorious Columbus," by Ed. 
 P. Vining, New York, 1885, a somewhat remarkable book; to- 
 gether, with "America not Discovered by Columbus. An 
 Historical Sketch of the Discovery of America by the Norse- 
 men, in the Tenth Century, by Rasmus B. Anderson, A. M., 
 with an Appendix on the Historical, Linguistic and Scientific 
 Value of the Scandinavian Languages. New and Improved 
 Edition. Chicago, 1877." On the routes across the Atlantic, 
 see "Narrative and Critical History," III, 172. 
 
60 Pre-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 clearly believed, as the Northmen did, namely, that Green- 
 land lay west of Norway, and that Vinland stood contigu- 
 ous. What he desired was to reach the eastern coast of 
 Asia.^ Vinland did not interest him. 
 
 THE PRESENT STATE OF THE DISCUSSION. 
 
 About sixty years have passed since the publication of 
 Rafn's work on the Antiquities of America, which gives 
 the Icelandic text of the Sagas, accompanied by transla- 
 tions in Latin and Danish. The appearance of that remark- 
 able work excited surprise in many intelligent circles, 
 though a general knowledge of the Icelandic voyages had 
 long been in the possession of a class ol scholars, especially 
 through the writings of Torfaeus. The volume was favor- 
 ably reviewed by Edward Everett, and, both in America 
 and Europe, at once commanded the attention of histor- 
 ians and antiquaries.^ While some of the more enthusi- 
 astic conclusions of Prof. Rafn have been disallowed, his 
 main proposition has steadily gained favor, it being con- 
 eded that voyages were made by the Northmen to New 
 England in the eleventh century. 
 
 On this subject Humboldt speaks most emphatically, 
 saying with regard to ' ' the undoubted first discovery of 
 
 ' The author does not find evidence of any desire on the 
 part of the authorities of the Roman Church to suppress 
 knowledge of the Icelandic voyages, in order to exalt Colum- 
 bus. When invited to canonize Columbus, the body to which the 
 subject was referred reported adversely, one reason being that 
 they had "grave doubts" concerning the private character of 
 Columbus, a subject that historical writers are not called to 
 concern themselves about. Besides, in this country, Catholic 
 writers use the establishment of the Icelanders in New Eng- 
 land as a ground of their own ecclesiastical priority. See 
 Roman Catholic writers in general, and especially Dr. John 
 Gilmary Shea and Dr. Clarke. On this point see the work 
 of Marie A. Brown on the Northmen, and the four numbers of 
 her Journal, "Leif Ericson, " as examples of decadence. 
 
 ' "North American Review." 
 
America by the Northmen. 61 
 
 America, in its northern portion by the Northmen, " that, 
 ''whilst the Caliphate still flourished under the Abassides 
 at Bagdad, and Persia was under the dominion of Saman- 
 ides, whose age was so favorable to poetry, America was 
 discovered in the year 1000 by Leif, son ol Eric the Red, 
 by the northern route and as far 41° 30' north latitude." ^ 
 
 Turning to our own country we have the testimony of 
 a laborious and painstaking investigator like Palfrey, 
 who examined the whole subject, and gives us as his final 
 conclusion respecting the Sagas, that "their antiquity and 
 genuineness appear to be well established, nor is their any 
 thing to bring their credibility into question beyond the 
 general doubt which always attaches to what is new or 
 strange." '' 
 
 As the result, historical writers in general accept the 
 Sagas as authorit}', and usually locate Leif Eircson's set- 
 lement in New England.^ 
 
 A large proportion of the American school histories 
 give the voyages of the Northmen to America, and there 
 is now being raised up a generation that will be free from 
 that old bias, which formerly gave Columbus the field, to 
 the exclusion not only of the Irish, the Zeno Brothers and 
 Northmen, but of the Cabots, who saw the American Con- 
 tinent before Columbus could have done so.* 
 
 In New England the study of the Icelandic Sagas has 
 resulted in the erection of a statue to Leif Ericson in the 
 City of Boston. This was not accomplished without 
 opposition, the movement having been opposed hy a class 
 of men, small in numbers, but whose general attainments 
 
 ' Cosmos, vol. II, p, 603. Also Examen Critique. 
 
 '"History of New England," vol. II, p. 53. 
 
 ' See such works as the Bryant-Gay "History of the United 
 States. ' ' 
 
 * See author's article on the claim of Cabot in the Independ- 
 ent, and Dr. Deane's discussion of the Cabot question, " Nar- 
 rative and Critical History," vol. Ill, and, separate, Cambridge, 
 
62 Pre-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 and devotion to the study of historical subjects entitle any 
 opinion they may present to respectful consideration. They 
 represent what, in some respects, may, perhaps, be re- 
 garded as a skeptical element, an element of value in con- 
 nection with historical study, even as when joined to poli- 
 tics and sociology. It often, however, misses its aim, 
 and helps forward, ratner than hinders, the progress of a 
 new line of thought. Certain it is in the present case, 
 that opposition has stimulated investigation and advanced 
 the influence of the Sagas as historical documents. It 
 is, therefore, in vain that those to whom reference is made 
 imdertake to declare, that " There is the same sort of reason 
 for believing in the existence of Leif Erieson that there 
 is for believing in the existence of Agamemnon; they are 
 both traditions accepted by later writers." Both have been 
 vindicated. 
 
 It is sufficiently evident that local feeling, which often 
 vitiates the studies of the most accomplished men, enters 
 into this singular declaration. It serves no special pur- 
 pose, beyond proving a feeling of irritation on the part of 
 those accustomed to have every utterance received with 
 deference, but who have discovered their inability to con- 
 trol public opinion in connection with historical monu- 
 ments. The scholars have moved on, and left them 
 behind. But, notwithstanding this opposition, the study 
 of the whole subject of Pre-Columbian Discovery is in- 
 debted to their efforts, and the student of the Sagas should 
 regard it as fortunate, that the opposition came from an 
 influential source, since, in the future, it may prove a 
 source of satisfaction to know that the veracity of the old 
 Icelandic chronicler was established in the face of perse- 
 vering and determined organized opposition.' The future 
 
 ' Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings, ' ' December, 
 1887. The opinion of so distinguislied an Icelandic scholar 
 as Professor Dasent alone would be accepted in critical circles 
 as disposing of any opinion propounded by the Comnaittee re- 
 sponsible for the above statement. 
 
America by the Northmen. 63 
 
 of the Icelandic Sagas relating to America is plain. Their 
 simple, unaffected statements, all uncolored either by per- 
 sonal vanity or national ambition, will more and more win 
 the confidence of historians, who find in these statements, 
 committed to writing, as all the testimony proves, in Pre- 
 Columbian times, convincing and unanswerable proof of 
 the fact that Leif Ericson and other adventurers found 
 America and visited New England during the times and 
 under the circumstances described.* 
 
 After this exhibition of the subject it would perhaps 
 prove a reflection upon the intelligence of the reader to 
 argue further. It may, nevertheless, be observed, that the 
 discovery of the Papal letters in the Vatican Library afford 
 additional proof of the belief that the period in which the 
 Sagas originated was dominated by a true historical spirit, 
 and that the Sagas take their proper place in the Northern 
 school of genuine historical composition. The literary spirit 
 prevailed in all the countries on the North Atlantic. Like 
 the Irish, who for nearly two thousand years have proved 
 themselves a literary people, the Icelanders have shown 
 their devotion to intellectual efforts along legitimate lines. 
 Their work cannot be taken out of its true connection with 
 the literary history of the Irish, the "Welsh, the Danes and 
 Norwegians. Much less can it now be viewed apart from 
 
 ' Pp.76-132, vol. I, "Narrative and Critical History," con- 
 tain a large amount of matter relating to this subject, and the 
 contribution is one of much value ; though it is to be regretted 
 that the labor should be employed, largely, it would seem, 
 for the purpose of belittling the voyages. Yet, with unequalled 
 facilities at the editor's command, it cannot be said that the 
 authority of the Sagas has been shaken. We find, substantially, 
 opinion arrayed against argument, and the wealth of bibliog- 
 raphy and illustration simply renders more apparent the weak- 
 ness of the Editor's cause. Adverse criticism cannot grapple 
 successfully with the subject, and has now done its worst, 
 while unfortunately the attempt leaves behind on the pages 
 of a noble work what in the future will be recognized not so 
 much as a useful and stimulating contribution, but as a scar. 
 
64 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 the fact that Iceland, Greenland and Yinland stood con- 
 nected with Italy, and, in particular, with Rome. Mr. 
 George Bancroft deliberately dropped his early charge, 
 though repeated in many editions, that the Sagas were of a 
 mythological character. He had never read the Sagas at 
 the time the charge was made, and knew them only by 
 garbled reports. The Sagas, as the reader will perceive, 
 are not mythological, either in form or substance, but are 
 cast in the old Norwegian form of genuine historical writ- 
 ing. The Sagas were composed at a time when the coun- 
 tries treated of were well known, a fact that must have 
 saved them from an infusion ol the imagination. The peo- 
 ple and the Church in the new lands were also perfectly 
 known and there was no field open to romance. Bishops 
 and priests, and laymen of all professions and degrees, were 
 travelling between Italy and the western world. The Scan- 
 dinavian gods were dead. A Christian realism pervaded 
 Icelandic society and gave character to Icelandic composi- 
 tion. The mythic theory, as applied to the Sagas, is itself 
 dead, and common sense and fidelity to history demand 
 that it should now be buried out of sight. 
 
 THE ICELANDIC NARRATIVES. 
 
 It now remains to give the reader some general account 
 of the contents of the narratives which relate more or less 
 to the discovery of the Western continent. It may be well 
 first, however, to notice an attempt at criticism made in 
 the North American Review,' which assumes that the Sagas 
 are simply reductions of old ballads, because Sturleson 
 admits that a part of his '' Heimskringla" was so pro- 
 duced. As it happens, however, the Vinland Sagas 
 contain only four poetical fragments, while in the Heim- 
 skringla they abound, A few verses are also found in 
 Landanama, in its second part, the origin ol which is abso- 
 lutely known. The first part was composed in the eleventh 
 century and the second in the fourteenth, when the 
 ballad theory becomes positively absurd. This work like- 
 
 •July, 1869, pp, 265-72. 
 
America by the Northmen. 65 
 
 wise contains two more extracts from the poem '* Havger- 
 dinger," which is also quoted in the Saga relating to the 
 first voyage of Biarne to America, proving clearlj; that it 
 was a well-known and popular song, quoted by the differ- 
 ent writers just as parts of Shakespere are quoted to-day. 
 Sometimes, too, these quotations have no real relation to 
 the subject, having. been introduced on the principle which 
 governs the introductions of songs and hymns on oratorical 
 occasions in our times. 
 
 Nevertheless empty theories like this were devised, 
 showing that the critic has no proper conception of the 
 nature of Icelandic literature, either in prose or verse. ^ 
 
 In speaking of these records the order followed will be 
 that which is indicated by the table of contents at the 
 beginning of the volume. 
 
 The first extracts given are very brief. They are taken 
 from the Landanama Book, and relate to the report in 
 general circulation, indicating one Gunnbiorn as the dis- 
 coverer of Greenland, an event which has been fixed at 
 the year 876. These fragments also give an account of a 
 voyage to what was called Gunnbiorn's Rocks, where the 
 adventurers passed the winter, and found in a hole or exca- 
 vation, a sum of money, which indicated the class of people 
 who frequented the place before them, colonists fleeing from 
 pirates. 
 
 The next narrative relates to the re-discovery of Green- 
 land by the outlaw, Eric the Red, in 983, who there passed 
 two years in exile, and afterward returned to Iceland. 
 About the year 986, he brought out to Greenland a 
 considerable colony of settlers, who fixed their abode at 
 Brattahlid, in Ericsfiord. 
 
 Then follow two versions of the voyage of Biarne 
 Heriulfson, who, in the same year, 986, when sailing for 
 Greenland, was driven away during a storm, and saw a 
 
 ^ The critic in question was replied to by the author in 
 "Notes on a Review of the Pre-Columbian Discovery of Amer- 
 ica by the Northmen." Charlestown, Mass., 1869. 
 5 
 
66 Pre-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 new land at the southward, which he did not visit. He 
 was complained of, because he did not describe it care- 
 fully, Avith the result that Leif had only the most vague 
 reports for his guidance in following voyage. 
 
 Next we have three separate accounts of the voyage of 
 Leif, son of Eric the Ked, who, in the year 1000, sailed 
 from Brattahlid, in Greenland, to find the land which 
 Biarne saw. Two of these accounts are hardly more than 
 notices of the voyage, but the third is of considerable 
 length, and details the successes of Leif, who found and 
 explored this new land, where he spent the winter, return- 
 ing to Greenland the following spring. With his descrip- 
 tions we find ourselves on solider ground than in the case 
 of the voyage of Biarne. 
 
 After this follows the voyage of Thorvald Ericson, 
 brother of Leif, who sailed to Vinland from Greenland, 
 which was the point of departure in all these voyages. 
 This expedition was begun ia 1002, and it cost him his 
 life, as an arrow from one of the natives pierced his side. 
 
 Thorstein, his brother, went to seek Vinland, with the 
 intention of bringing home his body, but failed in tlie 
 attempt, and was driven back, passing the winter in a part 
 of Greenland remote from Brattahlid, where he died before 
 the spring fully opened. 
 
 The most distinguished explorer was the great Thorfinn 
 Karlsefne, an Icelander whose genealogy runs back in the 
 old Northern annals, through Danish, Swedish, and even 
 Scotch and Irish ancestors, some of whom were of royal 
 blood. In the year 1006 he went to Greenland, where he 
 met Gudrid, widow of Thorstein, whom he married. Ac- 
 companied by his wife, who urged him to the undertaking, 
 he sailed for Vinland in tlie spring of 1007, with three ves- 
 sels and one hundred and sixty men. He remained in 
 Vinland three years. Here his son Snorre was born. 
 This Snorre afterwards l>ecame the founder of a e:reat fam- 
 ily in Iceland, which gave the island sovcral of its earlier 
 bishops. Thorfinn finally left Vinland because he found 
 it difficult to sustain himself against the attacks of the 
 
America by the Northmen. 67 
 
 natives. He seems to have spent the most of the time in the 
 vicinity of Mount Hope Bay in Ehode Island. Of this 
 expedition we have three narratives, all of which are given. 
 
 The next to undertake a voyage was a wicked woman 
 named Freydis, sister of Leif Ericson, who went to Yin- 
 land in 1011, where she lived for a time with her two ships' 
 crews in the same places occupied by Leif and Thorfinn. 
 Before returning she caused the crew ol one ship to be 
 cruelly murdered, assisting in the butchery with her own 
 hands. 
 
 After this we have what are called the Minor Narra- 
 tives, which are not perhaps essential, yet they are given, 
 that the reader may be in possession of all that relates to 
 the subject. The lirst of these refers to a voyage of Are 
 Marson to a land south-west of Ireland, called Hvitram- 
 mana-land, or Great Ireland. This was prior to Leif's 
 voyage to Vinland, or New England, taking place in the 
 year 983. Biorn Asbrandson is supposed to have gone to 
 the same place in 999. The voyage of Gudleif, who went 
 thither, is assigned to the year 1027. The narrative of 
 Asbrandson is given for the sake of the allusion at the close. 
 
 Finally we have a few scraps of history which speak of 
 a voyage of Bishop Eric to Yinland in 1121, of the re-dis- 
 covery of Helluland (Newfoundland) in 1285, and of a 
 voyage to Markland (Nova Scotia) in 13-17, whither the 
 Northmen came to cut timber. "With such brief notices 
 the accounts come to an end. 
 
 THE TRUTHFULNESS OF THE NARRATIVES: 
 
 The reader will occasionally find in these narratives in- 
 stances of a marvelous and supernatural character, but 
 there is nothing at all mythological, as persons ignorant of 
 their nature have supposed. Besides there are multitudes 
 of narratives of a later date, to be found in all languages, 
 which afford as many statements of a marvelous nature as 
 these Sagas, which, nevertheless, contain a substantial 
 ground-work of truth. All early histories abound in the 
 marvelous, and these things are so well known that illus- 
 
68 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 trations are hardly needed. The relation of prodigies in 
 nowise destroys the credibility of historical statement. If 
 this were not so, we should be obliged to discard tlie greater 
 portion of well-knowu history, and even suspect plain mat- 
 ters of fact in the writings of such men as Dr. Johnson, 
 because the great scholar fully believed in the apparition 
 known in London as the Cock-Lane Ghost. The Sagas 
 are as free from superstition and imagination as most other 
 narratives of that age, and are just as much entitled to 
 belief. 
 
 There will also in certain cases be found contradictions. 
 The statements of the different narratives do not always 
 coincide. The disagreenients are, however, neither very 
 numerous nor remarkable. The discrepancies are exactly 
 what we should expect to find in a series of narratives 
 written at different times and by different hands. The 
 men who recorded the various expeditions to I^ew England 
 in the eleventh century agree, on the whole, quite as well 
 as the writers of our own day, who, with vastly greater 
 advantages, undertake to narrate the events of the coloni- 
 zation of America in the seventeenth century. ' 
 
 Therefore these marvelous statements and occasional 
 contradictions in nowise detract from the historic value of 
 the documents themselves, which, even in their very truth- 
 
 ^ The Hability of the best historians to fall into error is illus- 
 trated by Paley, who shows the serious blunders in the accounts 
 of the Marquis of Argyle's death, in the reign of Charles II: 
 * ' Lord Clarendon relates that he was condemned to be hanged, 
 which was performed the same day; on the contrary, Burnet, 
 Woodrow, Heath and Echard concur in stating that he was 
 beheaded, and that he was condemned upon Saturday and exe- 
 cuted on Monday." — "Evidences of Christianity," part III, 
 chap. i. So Mr. Bancroft found it impossible to give with any 
 accuracy the location of the French colony of St. Saviour, estab- 
 lished on the coast of Maine, by Saussaye, in 1613. Bancoft tells 
 us that it was on the north bank of the Penobscot, while it is 
 perfectly well known that it was located on the island of Mount 
 Desert, a long way off, on the edge of the ocean. 
 
America by the Northmen. 69 
 
 fulness to the times, ^ive every evidence of authenticity 
 and great worth. To this general appearance of truthful- 
 ness we may, however, add tlie force of those undesigned 
 coincidences between writers widely sepai-ated and desti- 
 tute of all means of knowing what had been already said. 
 The same argument may be used with the Sagas which had 
 been so powerfully employed by Paley and others in vin- 
 dicating the historical character of the New Testament.^ 
 In these narratives, as in those of SS. Paul and John, 
 it may be used with overwhelming effect. Yet we should 
 not fear to dispense with all auxiliary aids. We are will- 
 ing to rest the whole question of the 'value of these narra- 
 tives ujpon their age; for if the Sagas date back to a period 
 long prior to the voyage of Columbus, then the Northmen 
 are entitled to the credit of having been among the first 
 Europeans to land upon these shores. But the date of 
 these narratives has now been settled beyond reasonable 
 question. The doubts of the ablest critical niinds, both 
 in Europe and America, have been effectually laid to rest, 
 and at the end of all the years that have passed since the 
 first edition of this work came from the press, we are 
 obliged to repeat that the reply now given to the Northern 
 Antiquary is often some feeble paragraph pointed with 
 a sneer. 
 
 We need not, therefore, appear before the public to cry, 
 ' ' Place for the Northmen ! ' ' They win their own place 
 as they did of old. They are as strong to-day in ideas, 
 as anciently in arms. 
 
 MONUMENTS AND REMAINS. 
 
 That the Northmen left no pronounced architectural 
 remains in New England may be true. Professor Rafn 
 
 ^ This is the language held in the first edition of the work, 
 though one might infer from the language employed by Diman, 
 in his review of the book in the North American Review (July, 
 1869), that the author was at that time wholly unacquainted 
 with the fact. Our language seems to have escaped the atten- 
 tion of the reviewer. 
 
YO Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 supposed that he found in the celebrated Digliton Rock' 
 and the stone mill at Newport, evddeneee of the Icelandic 
 occupation. Any efforts to identify the Dighton inscrip- 
 tion and the Newport Mill with the age of the Northmen 
 can only serve to injure a good cause. If Professor Rafn 
 
 ^ Dighton Rock, known as the Writing Rock, is situated six 
 and a half miles south of Taunton, Mass., on the east side of 
 Taunton river, formed by Assonnet Neck. It lies in the edge 
 of the river, and is left dry at low water. It is a boulder of 
 fire graywack, twelve feet long and five feet high, and faces 
 the bed of the river. Its front is now covered with chiseled 
 inscriptions of what appear to be letters and outHnes of men, 
 animals and birds. As early as the year 1680, Dr. Danforth 
 secured a drawing of the upper portion; Cotton Mather made 
 a full copy in 1712; and in 1788, Professor Win throp, of Har- 
 vard College, took a full sized impression on prepared paper. 
 Various other copies have been made at different times, all 
 of which present substantially the same features. Yet in the 
 interpretation of the inscription there has been little agreement. 
 The old rock is a riddle. A copy of the inscription was shown 
 to a Mohawk chief, who decided that it was nothing less than 
 the representation of a triumph of Indians over a wild beast, 
 which took place on this spot. Mr. Schoolcraft also showed 
 a copy to Chingwank, an Algonquin well versed in picture- 
 writing, who gave a similar interpretation. The Roman charac- 
 ters in the central part of the composition he was finally 
 induced to reject, as having no connection with the rest. Who- 
 ever compares this inscription with those of undeniably Indian 
 origin found elsewhere, cannot fail to be impressed with the 
 similarity. Nevertheless, members of the Royal Society of 
 Antiquaries, to whose notice it was brought by the Rhode Is- 
 land Historical Society, felt strongly persuaded that the rock 
 bore evidence of the Northman's visit to these shores. Mr. 
 Laing, the accomplished translator of the Hcimskringla, in 
 discussing the thories in regard to the inscription, says, that 
 the only resemblance to letters is found in the middle of the 
 stone, in which antiquaries discover the name of Thorfinn, that 
 is, Thorfinn Karlsefne, the leader of the expedition which 
 
America by the Northmen. 71 
 
 bad seen these memorials lie would doubtless bave been 
 among tbe first to question tbe trutb of the tbeorj wbicb 
 be set forth. 
 
 In regard to tbe structure at Newport, Professoi Rafn 
 says that be is inclined to believe "that it had a sacred 
 
 came to New England in 1007. Just over these letters is a 
 character, supposed to be Roman also, which may signify NA, 
 or MA, the letter A being formed by the last branch of M. 
 Now MA in Icelandic is used as an abbreviation of Madr, which 
 signifies the original settler of a country. Close to these two 
 letters are several numerals, construed to mean one hundred 
 and fifty-one. According to the account ol the voyage, Thor- 
 finn lost nine of the one hundred and sixty men with whom 
 it is presumed he started, and therefore one hundred and fifty- 
 one would exactly express the number with him at the time 
 he is supposed to have cut the inscription. This, then, 
 would mean altogether, that Thorfinn Karlsefne established 
 himself there with one hundred and fifty-one men. Yet, as 
 the testimony of this rock is not needed, we may readily forego 
 any advantage that can be derived from its study. Besides, 
 the history of similar cases should serve to temper our zeal. 
 In the time of Saxo Grammatticus (1160), there was a stone 
 at Hoby, near Runamoe, in the Swedish province of Bleking, 
 which was supposed to be sculptured with runes. At a late 
 day copies were furnished the antiquary, who came to the con- 
 clusion, as Laing tells us, that it was a genuine inscription, re- 
 ferring to the battle of Braaville, fought in the year 680. 
 It afterward turned out that the apparent inscription was 
 made by the disintegration of veins of a soft material existing 
 in the rock. Yet the Dighton inscription is beyond question 
 the work of man. Mr. A. E. Kendal, writing in 1807, says 
 that there was a tradition that Assonnet Neck, on which tongue 
 of land the rock is situated, was once a place of banishment 
 among the Indians. He states, further, that the Indians had 
 a tradition to the effect that in ancient times some rvhife men 
 in a l>i7'd landed there and were slaughtered by the aborigines. 
 They also said thunder and lightning issued from the bird, which 
 fact indicates that this event, if it occurred at all, must be re- 
 
72 Pre-Coliimbian Discovert of 
 
 destination, and that it belonged to some monastery oi Chris- 
 tian place of worship of one of the chief parishes in V in- 
 land. In Greenland," he says, "there are to be found 
 ruins of several round buildings in the vicinity of the 
 churches. One of this description, in diameter about 
 twenty-six feet, is situated at the distance of three hundred 
 feet to the eastward of the great church in Igalliko ; another 
 of forty-four feet in diameter, at the distance of four hun- 
 dred and forty feet to the eastward of the church in Kar- 
 kortok; ... a third, of thirty-two feet in diameter 
 amongst the ruins of sixteen buildings at Kanitsok.'" 
 He supposes that these ancient remains of the Icelanders, 
 seen in Greenland to-day, are baptisteries, similar to those 
 of Italy. 
 
 According to this view, there must have been a consider- 
 able ecclesiastical establishment in Yinland, which is not 
 indicated by the Sagas, from which we learn no more than 
 the simple fact that Bishop Eric sailed on a voyage to this 
 place in the year 1121. But is it probable that the North- 
 
 ferred to the age of gunpowder, suggesting the visit made 
 by Verrazano to New England, but very likely pointing to some 
 later navigator. Mr. Kendal mentions the story of a ship's 
 anchor having been found there at an early day. In former 
 years the rock was frequently dug under by the people, in the 
 hope of finding concealed treasures. It is said that a small 
 rock once existed near by, which also bore marks of human 
 hands. The Portsmouth and Tiverton Rocks, described by 
 Mr. Webb {Anfiquita/es Americance, pp. 355-71), are doubt- 
 less Indian inscriptions; while that on the island of Monhegan, 
 off the coast of Maine, may perhaps be classed with the rock 
 of Hoby. After all, it is possible that the central portion of 
 the inscription on the Dighton Rock may be the work of the 
 Northmen. That two distinct parties were concerned in mak- 
 ing the inscription is clear from the testimony of the Indians, 
 who did not pretend to understand that portion thought to refer 
 to Karlsefne. For the full discussion, see Antiquitates Ameri- 
 cance, p. 378 et seq. 
 
 "^ Mdtnoirs des Antiquaires du Nord, 1839-9, P* 377* 
 
America by the Northmen. 7S 
 
 men would have erected a baptistery like this, and, at the 
 same time, left no other monument ? It seems hardly rea- 
 sonable. Besides, whoever examines this ancient structure 
 must be impressed by its modern aspect, so especially 
 apparent in the mortar, which has been analyzed and found 
 to be substantially the same as the mortar used in some of 
 the early structures of Newport.^ 
 
 '■ See Mag. American History, vol. III, p. 541. The Old 
 Mill at Newport stands on an eminence in the center of the 
 town, being about twenty-four feet high, and twenty-three 
 feet in diameter. It rests upon eight piers and arches. It 
 has four small windows, and, high up the wall, above the 
 arches, was a small fireplace. It is first distinctly mentioned 
 in the will of Governor Benedict Arnold, of Newport, where 
 it is called, "my stone-built wind mill." It is known that 
 during the eighteenth century it served both as a mill and pow- 
 der-house. Edward Pelham, who married Governor Arnold's 
 grand- daughter, in 1740, also called it "an old stone mill." Peter 
 Easton, who early went to live in Newport, wrote in 1663, that 
 "this year we built the first windmill;" and August 28, 1675, 
 he says, "a storm blew down our windmill." What Easton 
 relates occurred before Governor Arnold writes about his stone 
 windmill, and it is not unreasonable to suppose that when the 
 one spoken of by Easton was destroyed he built something more 
 substantial. Yet we cannot say that this was actually the case. 
 Some old tower may have been adapted by him for the pur- 
 poses of a mill, when the one used by Easton was destroyed. 
 The family of the Governor is said to have come from War- 
 wickshire, England. One of his farms was called the Leam- 
 ington Farm, as is supposed, from the place by that name near 
 Warwick. In addition to this, in the Chesterton Parish, three 
 miles from Leamington, there is an old windmill similar in con- 
 struction to that at Newport. It is supposed that it was erected 
 on pillars for pneumatic reasons, and, also, that carts might thus 
 go underneath to be loaded and unloaded with greater ease. It 
 has been suggested that (f Governor Arnold came from Warwick- 
 shire, of which proof is not given, and {/ the Chesterton mill was 
 standing at the time of his departure for New England, he might 
 
74 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 In Greenland the evidences oi the Northmen's occupa- 
 tion are abundant, because they were regularly established 
 on the ground for generations, and formed their public 
 and private edifices of the only material at hand, which was 
 well nigh imperishable. But their visits to New England 
 were comparatively few, and were scattered over many 
 years. Owing to the weakness of their numbers, they may 
 have found permanent colonies impracticable. Thorlinn 
 Karlselfne deliberately gave up the attempt at the end of a 
 three years' experiment, saying that it would be impossible 
 to maintain the position against the numerous bands of 
 natives. So far as we know the various companies that 
 came into Vinland, occupied huts or booths, like Leif's 
 booths, and simply added others similar to them wlien 
 they afforded insufficient quarters. To ask for monumen- 
 tal proofs of the occupation of the Northmen is, therefore, 
 unreasonable, since their huts and timber crosses must soon 
 have disappeared. The memorial we have a right to ex- 
 pect is some relic, a coin or amulet, perhaps, that chance 
 may yet throw in the antiquary's way,' or some excava- 
 
 have built a mill at Newport after the same model. Yet this is 
 something we know little about. Whence came the Chesterton 
 Mill itself? There was a tradition that it was built after a design 
 by Inigo Jones, but this is only a tradition. That struc- 
 ture also might have belonged to the class of Towers, of which 
 one at least was probably built by Northmen in Greenland. 
 It will not help the Northmen to class this Newport relic with 
 their works. See Palfrey's New England, vol. I, pp. 57-59. 
 Scribner''s Monthly, March, 1879. The windmill is now out 
 of the story. 
 
 * Some have fancied that "the skeleton in armor," dug up 
 near Fall River, was a relic of the Northmen, being the re- 
 mains of one of those men killed by the natives in the battle 
 with Karlsefne. But it would be fai more reasonable to look 
 for traces of the Northmen among the Indians of Gaspe, who, 
 at an early day, were distinguished for an unusual degree of 
 civilization. Make Brun tells us that they worshiped the sun, 
 knew the points of the compass, observed the position of some 
 
America by the Northmen. 75 
 
 tion, it may be a trench, conduit, cellar or incipient for- 
 tress. In the meanwhile, among scholars, the Icelandic 
 narratives are steadily winning their way to unquestioned 
 belief. This is all the more gratifying in an age like the 
 
 of the stars, and traced maps of their country. Before the 
 French missionaries went among them it is said they worshiped 
 the figure of the cross, and had a tradition that a venerable 
 person once visited them, during an epidemic, curing many 
 by the use of that symbol. See Malte Brun's Geography 
 (English edition), vol. v, p. 135. Malte Brunn's authority 
 is Father Leclerc's Nouvelle Relation de la Gaspesie. Paris, 
 1672. See on "The Skeleton in Armour," Mass. Hist. Coll. 
 1837; also Williamson, "The Northmen in Maine," Hist. Mag. 
 Jan. 1869, p. 30. At Pittston, Me., trees three feet in diam- 
 eter and with six hundred annular rings, were found associated 
 with brick work, which, so far as appearances went, antedated 
 the trees. See in opposition, Mass. Hist. Proceedings, 2 series, 
 vol. v, p. 337. 
 
 Attention may be called to the writings of the late Prof. 
 Eben N. Horsford, a most remarkable series of monographs 
 on the subject, containing maps of great value and unique 
 interest. The volumes were printed at the Riverside Press, 
 in the following order: "Discovery of America by the North- 
 men," etc., 1888; "The Problem of the Northmen," 1889; 
 " Discovery of the Ancient City of Norombega, " 1890; 
 " Watertown the Site of Norombega," 1890; "A Reply to 
 Olson's Review, '' etc., 1890; "The Defences of Norombega,'' 
 1 891; "Sketch of the Norse Discovery, "etc., 1891; "The 
 Landfall of Leif Erickson," 1892; " Leif's House in Vinland," 
 1893. 
 
 These works have been followed by others from the pen of 
 Prof. Horsford 's accomplished daughter, Miss Cornelia Hors- 
 ford, as follows : 
 
 " Graves of the Northmen," 1893; "An Inscribed Stone," 
 1895; "Dwellings of the Saga Time in Iceland, Greenland 
 and Vinland," 1898; "Vinland and Its Ruins,'' 1899; " Ruins 
 of the Saga-time by Thorstein Erlingss^oi, Report oi the Expe- 
 dition sent to Iceland, by Cornelia Horsford, published by the 
 
76 Pki;-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 present, in wliich portions of history are being dismissed 
 to the realms of hoary fable, and all the annals of the past 
 are being studied in a critical spirit, with true auns and a 
 pure zeal. 
 
 PRE-COLUMBIAN mSCOYERT. 
 
 I. FEAGMENTS FROM LAND A NAM A BOOK. 
 
 The following extracts from the Landanama,' give us 
 the earliest information on record, in regard to the west- 
 ward movements of the Icelanders. The men referred to 
 
 Viking Club of London," 1899. These works are carefully 
 prepared and indicate a broad vision. They support the view 
 of Prof. Horsford, who held that remains found on the Charles 
 date from the times of the Northmen, and presumably belong 
 to the eleventh century. The present writer locates Norom- 
 bega on the Penobscot in Maine, yet however that may be, 
 the modern character of the remains on the Charles is not 
 proven. What is called the "Fort of Norombega, thus far 
 has no reasonable explanation on the theory that it is a recent 
 work. The remains of the house uncovered by Miss Horsford 
 may be the ruins of an Icelandic structure, yet Leif's booth 
 is placed by the writer in Rhode Island. These questions, how- 
 ever, do not affect the historical character of Leif's narrative, 
 parts of which, like many writings of our day, are obscure. 
 Miss Horsford has laid students of history under indebted- 
 ness by her contributions to the subject, in all of which she 
 wins much praise for her loyalty to the memory and work of 
 her father, who did so much to advance study. 
 
 * The Landanama-bok. This is probably the most complete 
 record of the kind ever made by any nation. It is of the same 
 general character as the English Doomsday Book, but vastly 
 superior in interest and value. It contains the names of three 
 thousand persons and one thousand four hundred places. It 
 gives a correct account of genealogies of the first settlers, 
 
America by the NoRTiniEx. 77 
 
 were well known, and the mention of their names and 
 exploits in this great work, than which no highei authority 
 could be produced, is gratifying. These extracts, which 
 are given in the order in which they stand in vol. I, of 
 Gronland's Historiske Mindesmcerker, "The Historical 
 Monuments of Greenland," the greater portion of which 
 work is the labor of Finn Magnussen, have probably never 
 appeared before in English dress. The first extract sim- 
 ply mentions Gunnbiorn and his Rocks; the second shows 
 that Eric the Red obtained at least a portion of his knowl- 
 edge of Greenland through this person; the third again 
 gives the name of Gunnbiorn; while the fourth furnishes 
 a brief account of an early voyage to the Rocks. It appears 
 from these references, that, previous to the sailing of Eric 
 the Red, the existence of land at the west was well under- 
 stood. The report of Gunnbiorn's adventure was quite 
 generally circulated amongst the people. Are Marson's 
 voyage to the West, we shall see, was 983, or three years 
 earlier. 
 
 1. There was a man named Grimkel [A. D. 876], son 
 of UK Hreiparson, called Krage, and brother to Gunn- 
 biorn, ' after whom Gunnbiorn's Rocks' are named. He 
 
 with brief notices of their achievements. It was commenced 
 by the celebrated Frode the Wise, who was born 1067, and 
 died 1 148, and was continued by Kalstegg, Styrmer and Thord- 
 sen, being completed by Hauk Erlendson, Lagman, or Gov- 
 ernor of Iceland, who died in the year 1334. 
 
 ■ Gunnbiorn appears to have been a Northman who settled in 
 Iceland at an early day. Nothing more is known of him. 
 
 " Torfseus says that these rocks lie six sea miles out from Geir- 
 fuglesker, west from Reikiavik, and twelve miles south of Gar- 
 dar in Greenland, yet they cannot now be found. It is not 
 too much to suppose that they have been sunk by some of those 
 fearful convulsions which have taken place in Iceland; yet it 
 is quite as reasonable to conclude that these rocks were located 
 elsewhere, probably nearer the east coast, which was formerly 
 
78 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 took possession of that piece of land that extends from 
 Berevigs Koin to Ness Koin, and to around the point of 
 the cape. He lived on Saxahval. He drove away Saxe, 
 a son of Alfarin Valeson, and he lived on the Eoin of 
 Saxahval. Alfarin Yaleson had first taken possession of 
 the cape between Berevigs Roin and Enne. 
 
 2. Eric Red [A. D. 983] said tliat he intended to find 
 the land that was seen by Gunnbiorn/ Ulf Krage's son, 
 when he was driven by a storm west from Iceland, and 
 found Gunnbiorn's Rocks. [A. D. 876.] At the same 
 time he said if he did not find the land he would return to 
 his friends. 
 
 3. Two sons of Gunnbiorn, Ulf Krage's son, after whom 
 Gunnbiorn's Rocks were named, were called Gunstein 
 and Haldor. They took possession of Skotufiorden, Loi- 
 gardelen and Ogursvigen to Mjorfiord. Berse was Hal- 
 dor's son, father to Thormod Kalbrunarskald. 
 
 4. Sngebiorn (Holmstein's son), called Galte, owned a 
 ship [A.. D. 970], that lay in the mouth of Grimsar (in 
 Borgafiorden). Rolf, from Rodesand, bought a half of 
 the ship. Each of the parties mustered twelve men. 
 With Sngebiorn was Thorkel and Sumarlide, sons of Thor- 
 gier Red, son of Einar, from Stafholdt. 
 
 Snsebiorn also took Thorod from Thingness, his step- 
 more accessible than now. In the version of the account of 
 Greenland by Ivar Bardson (Antiquitates Americanae, p. 301), 
 given from a Faroese Manuscript, and curiously preserved by 
 Purchas, "His Pilgrimage," vol. Ill, p. 518, we read as fol- 
 lows: " Item, men shall know that between Island and Green- 
 land, lyeth a Risse called Gornbornse-Skare. There were they 
 wont to haue their passage for Gronland. But as they report 
 there is Ice upon the same Risse, come out of the Long North 
 Bottome, so that we can not use the same old Passage as they 
 thinke." See "Sailing Directions of Henry Hudson." 
 
 ' Torfseus says (Greenlandia, p. 73) that "Eric the Red 
 first lived in Greenland, but it was discovered by the man 
 called Gunnbiorn. After him Gunnbiorn's Rocks are called" 
 (2d ed. 1755)- 
 
America by the Northmen, 79 
 
 father and his five sons, and Rolf took Stserbiorn. The 
 last named recited the following verse, after he had a 
 dream: 
 
 Both ours 
 dead I see; 
 all empty 
 
 in Northwestern Sea; 
 cold weather 
 great suffering, 
 I expect 
 Snaebiorn's death.' 
 
 They sought Gunnbiorn's Rocks and found land. Snse- 
 biorn would not permit any one to go ashore in the night. 
 Stserbiorn landed, notwithstanding, and found a purse '^ 
 with money in an earth hole, and concealed it. Snae- 
 biorn hit him with an axe so that the purse dropped. 
 
 They built a cabin to live in, and it was all covered with 
 snow. Thorkel Red's son found that there was water on 
 a shelf that stood out of the cabin window. This was 
 in the month of Goe.' They shoveled the snow away. 
 
 ' The translation is literal, or nearly so, and the sense is 
 obscure. 
 
 ^ The place of concealment appears to have been an exca- 
 vation covered with stone or wood. That the people were 
 sometimes accustomed to hide money in this way is evident. 
 This was hidden there by Irishmen or Icelanders who may 
 have been on their way to Greenland. We read in the Saga 
 of Eric the Red, that Eric at first intended to go with his son, 
 Leif, on his voyage to discover the land seen by Heriulf, 
 which Leif named Vinland. On his way to the ship, Eric's 
 horse stumbled, and he fell to the ground seriously injured, 
 and was obliged to abandon the voyage. He accepted this as 
 a judgment for having, as one preparation for his absence, 
 buried his money, where his wife, Thorhild, would not be able 
 to find it. 
 
 3 This is believed to have been about February, affording 
 
 one of many indications that the climate of that region has 
 
 become more rigorous than formerly. The fact that water 
 
 did not freeze indicates mild weather, which we might infer 
 
 6 
 
80 Pre-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 Sngebiorn rigged the ship; Thorod and five of his party 
 were in the hut, and Stserbiorn and several men of Rolf's 
 party. Some hunted.^ Sta3rbiorn killed Thorod, but 
 both he and Rolf killed Snsebiorn. Red's sons and all the 
 rest were obliged to take the oath of allegiance to save 
 their lives. They arrived on their return at Helgeland, 
 Norway, and later at Vadil in Iceland.' 
 
 from the fact of their rigging their vessels, and from the prep- 
 aration made for sea. In regard to the term " Goe, " Gron- 
 land' s Historiske Mindes77icBrker (vol. I, p. 7), says: "This 
 name was before used in Denmark, which Etatsraad Werlauf 
 has discovered on the inscription of a Danish Rune-Stone." 
 
 ' The facts that they engaged in hunting, and that they 
 built a cabin to live in, might at first lead some to suppose that 
 the place contained a forest or more or less trees, to supply 
 wood. Yet this does not follow, as driftwood supplied all wants 
 for building purposes where they could not obtain or use 
 stone. Regarding driftwood, Crantz says, in speaking of 
 Greenland: " For as He had denied this frigid, rocky region 
 the growth of trees, He has bid the storms oi the ocean con- 
 vey to its shores a great deal of wood, which accordingly comes 
 floating thither, part without ice, but the most part along 
 with it, and lodges itself between the islands. Were it not 
 for this, we Europeans should have no wood I0 burn there. 
 Among this wood are great trees torn up by the roots, 
 which by driving up and down for many years and dashing and 
 rubbing on the ice, are quiet bare of branches. A small part of 
 the driftwood are willows, alder and birch trees, which come out 
 of the bays in the south; also large trunks of aspen trees, 
 but the greatest part is pine and fir. We find, also, a 
 good deal of a sort of wood, finely veined, and with few branches; 
 this, I fancy, is larchwood. . . . There is also a solid, red- 
 dish wood of a more agreeable fragrancy than the common fir, 
 with visible cross veins, which I take to be the same species as the 
 beautiful silver firs, or zirbel, that have the smell of cedar, 
 and grow on the high Grison hills, and the Switzers wainscoat 
 their rooms with them.'' — History 0/ Greenland, vol. I, p. 37. 
 
 " If any confirmation were needed of the truth of this narra- 
 
America by the Northmen. 81 
 
 II. THE COLONIZATION OF GREENLAND. 
 
 The first document relating to the settlement of Green- 
 land by the Northmen, is taken from the Saga of Eric 
 the Red, as given in Professor Rafn's Antiquitates Ameri- 
 cancB. Besides the history of Eric and his sons, that Saga 
 contains notices of other voyages. The following are sim- 
 ply extracts. The vdiole Saga does not necessarily apply to 
 the subject under examination — the Discovery of America. 
 The second extract, which gives more of the particulars, 
 is from Gi'onland^s HistorisTce MindesmcErheT, vol. 11, 
 p. 201. The third is also taken from the same great his- 
 torical depository. 
 
 FIRST NARRATIVE. 
 
 There was a man named Thorvald, son of Osvald, son 
 of Ulf-Oexna Thorerisson. Thorvald and his son were 
 obliged to leave Jardar ^ and go to Iceland, on account of 
 manslaughter. At that time Iceland was generally colo- 
 nized."' They first lived in Drangey, where Thorvald died. 
 Then Eric married Thorhild, daughter of Jorund and 
 Thorbiarg Knarrabringa, whom afterward Thorbiorn of 
 Haukdale married. Eric moved from the north, and fixed 
 his abode in Ericstad opposite Yatshorn, The son of Eric 
 and Thorhild was named Leif . But after Eyulf Soers and 
 Holm -Gang Rafn's murder, Eric was banished from Hauk- 
 dale. Eric went westward to Breidafiord and lived at Oex- 
 ney in Ericstad. He lent Thorgest his seat-posts,^ and he 
 could not get them again. He then demanded them. Then 
 came disputes aod hostility between him and Thorgest, 
 
 tive, or of the kilHng of Snaebiorn and Thorod, we might look 
 or it in the equally well-known fact, that after the return 
 of the voyagers to Iceland, the death of these two men was 
 fearfully revenged by their friends. 
 
 ' South-west of Norway. 
 
 ' See Colonization of Iceland, in the Introduction. 
 
 ' See notes to Introduction. 
 
82 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 which is told m the history of Eric. Stjr Thorgrim's 
 son, Ejulf of Svinoe, the sons of Brand of Aptelfiord and 
 Thorbiorn Vililsson plead the cause of Eric; Thorder 
 Gellurson and Thorgeir of Hitardale plead for Thorgest. 
 Eric was declared outlawed by the king, aEd prepared his 
 ship for sea in Eric's Bay. Styr and the others went with 
 him beyond the island. [A. D. 982.] Then Eric declared 
 it to be his resolution to seek the land which Gunnbiorn, 
 Ulf Krage's son, saw [A. D. 876] when driven into the 
 Western Ocean, where he found Gunnbiorn's Rocks, 
 saying, that if he did not find the land he would return 
 to his friends. Eric set sail from Snaefellsjokul, and found 
 land which from its height he called Midjokul, now called 
 Blaeserk. Thence he sailed along the shore in a southerly 
 direction, seeking for the nearest habitable land. The 
 first winter he passed in Ericseya,^ near the middle of the 
 east district. The following year he came into Erics- 
 fiord, where he fixed his seat. 
 
 The same summer he explored the western desert, and 
 gave names to many places. The following winter he 
 passed on a holm opposite Rafnsgnipa, and the third year 
 he came into Iceland and brought his ship into Breidafiord. 
 The land which he found, he named Greenland, saying 
 that men would be persuaded to go to a land with so good 
 a name. 2 Eric stayed in Iceland that winter, and the sum- 
 mer after he went over to the land which he had found, 
 and fixed his abode in Brattahlid in Ericsfiord. [A. D. 
 986.] Men acquainted with affairs, say that this same 
 
 ' It is now difficult to identify these localities. The old 
 view, that what is called the East-bygd, or District, was on the 
 eastern coast of Greenland, is now abandoned. It is probable 
 that no settlement was ever effected on the east coast, though 
 formerly it was evidently more approachable than now. See 
 Graah's Expeditioti. 
 
 ' As we certainly know that Christianity was established in 
 Iceland in the year A. D. looo, the final settlement of Eric 
 and his followers must have taken place during the year assigned 
 viz., 985. 
 
America by the Northmen. 83 
 
 summer in which Eric went to settle in Greenland, thirty- 
 five ships sailed from Breidafiord and Bogaf jord, of which 
 only fourteen arrived, and the rest were driven back or 
 lost. This event took place fifteen winters ' before the 
 Christian religion was established in Iceland. The same 
 summer, Bishop Frederick and Thorvold Kodranson 
 went from Iceland.''^ Among those who emigrated with 
 
 ' See Antiqiiitates Americancz, p. 15, note a. 
 
 ''Evidently an error. See Antiqiiitates AmericancB, p. 15, 
 note 3. On the state of society in Greenland al this period the 
 reader may consult Prof. Keyser, from whose work on the 
 Religion of the Northmen we may give the following, which is 
 a translation of a part of the Saga of Eric that is given in Rafn's 
 work : 
 
 "At that time there was great famine in Greenland. Those 
 who had gone to the wild districts (hunting and fishing) had 
 met with little success, on account of the storms and bad 
 paths. Some had never returned. There was a woman living 
 in the settlement, whose name was Thorbjorg; she was a Spae- 
 wife, and was called the little Valla or Prophetess. She 
 had nine sisters, of whom she was the only survivor. Thorbjorg 
 was in the habit of going around to the festivals, and she was 
 invited chiefly by those who wished to learn their fate and the 
 coming seasons. As Thorkel was the best man of the settle- 
 ment, it seemed to be incumbent upon him to gain some infor- 
 mation when the prevailing famine should cease. Thorkel, 
 therefore, invites the Spae-wife to his house and prepares for 
 her a good reception, such as was customary when a woman of 
 her standing was expected. A cushion was prepared for her; 
 it had to be stuffed with hen feathers. It was laid upon a high 
 seat in the evening, when she came in with the man who had 
 been sent out to receive her. She was dressed on this occasion 
 as follows: She wore a blue cloak with fastenings of cords, set 
 with stones around the border from top to bottom. Around 
 her neck she had glass beads; upon her head a black lambskin 
 hood, lined with white catskin. She carried a staff mounted 
 with brass, with the head inlaid with stones. She was girded 
 with a young bearskin belt, and to this hung a large pouch in 
 
84 Pbe-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 Eric and established themselves, were Heriulf Heriulfs- 
 fiord who took Heriulfsness, and abode in Heriulfsness, 
 Ketil Ketilsiiord, Rafn Rafnsfiord, Solvi Solvidale, Helgi 
 Thorbrandson Alptafiord, Thorbjornglora Siglefjord, Ei- 
 nar Einarsfiord, Hafgrim, Hafgrimsfiord and Yatnahver, 
 Arnlaug, Arnlaugsfiord and other men went to the west 
 district. 
 
 which she kept the instruments of magic belonging to her oc- 
 cupation. On her feet she wore shaggy calfskin shoes with 
 long, heavy thongs, on the ends of which were large brass but- 
 tons. She had catskin gloves upon her hands, white within, 
 and shaggy. When she entered, every one felt it a duty to 
 greet her with reverence; she returned their salutations, ac- 
 cording to what she thought of each individually. Thorkel 
 took the wise woman by the hand, and conducted her to the 
 seat prepared for her. He requested her to cast her eyes over 
 his herds, and property and house. She said but Httle concern- 
 ing this. In the evening the tables were set, and now it shall 
 be told what dishes were made ready for the Spae-wife. There 
 were groats made of goat's milk; but her food was prepared 
 from the heart of every animal in the neighborhood. She 
 had a brass spoon and a knife of copper with a shaft of walrus 
 tooth, and a double sheath, the point of which was broken off. 
 When the tables were cleared Thorkel Bondi goes up to Thorb- 
 jorg and asks what she thinks of the house and the appearance 
 of the people, and also how soon she will have a revelation 
 concerning the things he has asked her about and which the 
 people are all anxious to know. She answers that she cannot 
 make this known before morning, after she has slept there 
 over night. Early in the morning all the arrangements were 
 made for her which belong to the incantation of Seidr. She 
 then asked them to furnish hei with women who knew the magic 
 formulas of that ceremony, and who are called Vardloktcr, 
 e. /., the watch-guard; but none could be found who knew it, 
 although inquiry was made at the neighboring houses. Then 
 Gudrid, a young girl who was present, said, ' I am not skilled in 
 magic, nor any wise woman; but my foster-mother in Iceland 
 taught me a formula, which she called Vardlokur.^ Thorkel 
 
America by the Nokthmen. 85 
 
 The Baptism of Leif the Fortunate. 
 
 Wlien the sixth winter had passed [A. D. 999], since 
 Eric Red went to live in Greenland, Leif, son of Eric, went 
 over from Greenland to Norway, and in the autumn arrived 
 in Throndheira, and came north to King Olaf Trygvesson,' 
 from Hegeland. He brought his ship to Nidaros and 
 went at once to King Olaf. The king commanded Leif 
 
 said, 'Thou art wiser than I thought.' Gudrid answered, 
 * This formula and the proceedings connected with it are of such 
 a character that I cannot be present to assist with them; for 
 I am a Christian.' Thorkel replied, Thou couldst help us in 
 this matter without harming thyself thereby; I should be glad 
 to furnish Thorbjorg what is necessary.' He then persuaded 
 Gudrid so long that she at length promised to fulfill his wishes. 
 Now Thorbjorg sat upon the witch seat, and the women formed 
 a circle around her. Gudrid sang the song so beautifully and 
 well that no one of the bystanders thought they had ever 
 heard a fairer song. Even the Spae-wife thought the song 
 was beautiful to hear, and thanked her for it when done. 'Now, 
 says Thorbjorg, ' I have reflected upon the matter, how it will 
 be both with the sickness and the seasons; and much has now 
 been made clear to me that before was hidden from me and 
 from others.' She then foretold that the famine and sick- 
 ness, that were raging, should both disappear in the spring. 
 To Gudrid she prophesied, in return for the services she had 
 rendered, a very happy fate in the future, and also that a re- 
 nowned family should be descended from her. Afterward, all 
 the company went one after another to consult her about the 
 future matters that they wished to know, and she gave them 
 definite answers. Soon afterward she was invited to another 
 house, and went hither; and her prophesies concerning the com- 
 ing events of the year were entirely fulfilled." " The Religion 
 of the Northmen," by Rudolph Keyser, p. 292. 
 
 ^ This king propagated Christianity by physical force, and 
 marked the course of his tours by fire and blood; which might 
 have been expected from a barbarian just turned from the wor- 
 ship of Odin and Thor. 
 
86 Prk-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 and some other pagan men to come to him. They were 
 exhorted to accept religion, which the king easily arranged 
 with Leif, when he and all his sailors were baptized, and 
 passed the winter with the king, being liberally enter- 
 tained. 
 
 SECOND NAEEATIVE. 
 
 Thorvold the son of Us void, son of TJlf, son of Oexne- 
 Thorer, and his son, Eric Red, left Jardar, in Norway, on 
 account of manslaughter, and took possession of a piece 
 of land on Hornastrand [Iceland], and lived there at 
 Drangey. There Thorvold died. Eric then married 
 Thorhild, daughter of Jorund Atleson and Thorbiarg 
 Knarrabringa, whom Thorbiorn of Haukdale afterward 
 married. Then Eric went from the north and ploughed 
 the fields in Haukdale. Then he lived in Ericstadt by Yats- 
 horn. There his Ijiralls ^ let a piece of rock tumble down 
 
 ' These thralls were slaves, though slavery in Iceland assumed 
 peculiar features. The following, from the " Saga of Gisli 
 the Oulaw, ' ' shows the relation that slaves held to freemen. We 
 read, that on one occasion, Gisli had borrowed a famous sword 
 of KoU, and the latter asked to have it back, but GisH in reply 
 asks if he will sell it, receiving a negative reply. Then he says : 
 ' ' I will give thee thy freedom and thy goods, so that thou mayst 
 fare whither thou wilt with other men." This is also declined, 
 when Gisli continues: " Then I will give thee thy freedom, and 
 lease, or give thee land, and besides I will give thee sheep, and 
 cattle and goods, as much as thou needest. " This he also de- 
 clines, and Kol, when Gisli asks him to name a price, offering any 
 sum of money, besides his freedom, and "a becoming match, if 
 thou hast a liking for any one." But Kol refused to sell it at 
 any price, which refusal led to a fight, and in the first onset, 
 the slave's axe sank into Gisli' s brain, while the disputed 
 sword, Graysteel, clove the thick skull of Kol. See the Saga 
 of Gisli the Outlaw, p. 6, Edinburgh, 1886. Also the Saga 
 of Eric the Red, where Thorbiorn thinks it an indignity that 
 Einar should ask for the hand of his daughter in marriage, 
 Einar being the son of a slave. 
 
America bt the Noethmkn. 87 
 
 over Yaltbiof 's house in Valthiosfstadt. But his relation, 
 Eyulf Soirs, killed the thralls at Kneide-Brinke above Yats- 
 horn. For this cause, Eric killed Eyulf Soirs, He also 
 killed Holm-Gang Kafn at Leikskaale. Geirstein and 
 Odd at Jorund. Ejulf Soirs' relations brought a suit 
 against the slayer. Eric was then banished from Hauk- 
 dale and took possession of the islands, Broko and Oexno, 
 but lived in Todum at Sydero, the first winter. Then he 
 loaned Thorgest his seat-posts. Eric moved to Oexno and 
 lived in Ericstadt. Then he demanded his seat-posts, but 
 did not get them. Eric took them thereaftei from Bredo- 
 bolstad, but Thorgest followed him. They fought near 
 the house at Drangey. Two sons of Thorgest fell, and 
 some other men. Thereafter they both kept their fol- 
 lowers with them. Styr, Eyulf of Svino, Thorbrand's 
 sons of Alptefiord, and Thorbiorn Yifilsson, were of 
 Eric's party. But Thord Gelleirson, Thorgeir from Hitar- 
 dale, Aslak of Langedale, and Illuge's Son helped Thor- 
 gest. Eric and his party were sentenced to be banished 
 at Thorsness Thing. He iitted out a ship in Ericsfiord, but 
 Eyulf concealed him in Dimonsvaag, while Thorgest and 
 his men sought after him on the highlands. Thorbiorn, 
 Eyulf and Styr followed with Eric out to sea beyond the 
 islands. He said that he meant to seek the land Gunn- 
 biorn, Ulf Krage's son, saw [A. D. 876] when he was 
 driven by a storm west from Iceland and found Gunn- 
 biorn's Rocks; though he said at the time that if he dis- 
 covered the land he would return to his friends. [A. D. 
 982.] Eric laid his course to the west from Snjtefieldness, 
 and approached [Greenland] from the sea to land at Mid- 
 jokul, in that place that is called Blaesark.^ From thence 
 he went along the coast to the south, to see ii the land was 
 tit to live in. The first year he stayed all winter in Eirckso, 
 nearly in the middle of the west bygd. The next spring 
 [A. D. 983] he went to Ericsfiord and there found a dwell- 
 ing. Next summer he went to the west bygd and gave 
 
 - Blue shirt. 
 
88 Pre-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 certain names to many places. The second winter he lived 
 in Ericsholm, at Hvarfo Fiedspidse, and at the third sum- 
 mer [A. D. 984] he went north to Snsefield, inside of 
 Kafnsfiord. He thought then that the place where Erics- 
 fiord bent was opposite the place where he came. He then 
 returned and spent the third winter in Erickso opposite the 
 mouth of Ericsfiord. The next summer [A. D. 985] he 
 went to Iceland and landed at Breidafiord. The next win- 
 ter he stayed at Holmstater with Ingolf. Next spring he 
 fought with Thorgest and lost the battle. That summer 
 [A. D. 986], Eric began to settle the land which he had 
 discovered and which he called Greenland, because he said 
 that the people would not like to move there if the land did 
 not have a good name. * Learned men say that twenty -five 
 ships went that summer to Greenland from Breidafiord 
 and Borgaf jord, but only fourteen arrived. Of the rest, 
 some were driven back and others were wrecked. This 
 happened fifteen winters before Christianity was introduced 
 into Iceland. 
 
 THIRD NARRATIVE. 
 
 The land some call Greenland was discovered and settled 
 from Iceland. Eric the Red was the name of the Breida- 
 fiord man who [A, D. 986] went from here [Iceland] to 
 there, and took possession of that part of the land which 
 later was called Ericsfiord. He named the land and called 
 it Greenland,^ and said it would encourage people to come 
 there if the land had a good name. They found there, 
 both east and west, ruins of houses and pieces ol boats, and 
 begun stonework.' From which it is to be seen what kind 
 of people have lived in Yinland, and which the Green- 
 landers call Skraelings, and who had been there. He [Eric] 
 began to settle the land fourteen or fifteen years before 
 the introduction of Christianity in Iceland. Afterward this 
 
 * Ante, p. 38. 
 
 * Cartier in the Gulf of St. Lawrence gave names that had 
 been used before. 
 
 ^ The stonework points to Europeans, say the Irish. 
 
America by the ISToethmen. 89 
 
 was told of Greenland to Tliorkel Gelleirson, by a man 
 who had himself followed Eric Red. 
 
 III. THE VOYAGE OF BIARNE. 
 
 The voyage of Biarne to Greenland was attended by 
 many hardships. His vessel was blown away from the 
 course during a storm, at which time he saw the shores of 
 the American Continent, yet he made no attempt to land. 
 Of this voyage we have two versions. The first is a trans- 
 lation of a passage from Codex Flatoiensis, given in Anti- 
 quitates Americanse, p. 17. The second is taken from 
 Gronland's Historiske Mindesmserker, or Greenland's 
 Historical Monuments, I, 180-1. The date oi this voy- 
 age is fixed by the fact that Biarne sailed the same season 
 that his father settled in Greenland, which, as we learn 
 from the narrative of Eric, was in the year 985. There 
 is a complete agreement, in the main points, between this 
 account and the preceding. 
 
 FIRST NARRATIVE. 
 
 Heriulf was the son of Bard, Heriulf's son, who was a 
 relation of Ingolf the Landuamsman. ' Ingolf gave Heriulf 
 land between Yog and Reikianess. Heriulf dwelt first 
 at Dropstock. His wife was called Tliorgird, and their 
 son was called Biarne.^ He was a promising young man. 
 In his earliest youth he had a desire to go abroad, and he 
 soon gathered property and reputation; and was by turns 
 a year abroad, and a year with his father. Biarne was 
 soon in possession of a merchant ship of his own. The 
 last winter [A. D. 985] while he was in Norway, Heriulf 
 prepared to go to Greenland with Eric, and gave up his 
 dwelling. There was a Christian man belonging to the 
 
 ' Original settler or freeholder whose name and possessions 
 were recorded in the Landanama book. 
 ' Bear. 
 
90 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 Hebrides along with Heriulf, who composed the Laj called 
 the Hafgerdingar ^ Song, in which is this stave : 
 
 May he whose hand protects so well 
 The simple monk in lonely cell, 
 And o'er the world upholds the sky. 
 His own blue hall, still stand me by.* 
 
 Heriulf settled at Heriulf ness [A. D. 985] and became 
 a very distinguished man. Eric Ked took up his abode at 
 Brattahlid, and was in great consideration, and honored 
 by all. These were Eric's children: Leif, Thorvold, and 
 Thorstein ; and his daughter was called Freydis. She was 
 married to a man called Thorvald, and they dwelt at Gar- 
 dar, which is now a bishop's seat.^ She was a haughty, 
 proud woman ; and he was but a mean man. She was much 
 given to gathering wealth. The people of Greenland were 
 heathen at this time. Biarne came over the same summer 
 [A. D. 985] with his ship to the strand * which his father 
 
 ' This poem no longer exists. Its subject, the Hafgerdingar, 
 is described as a fearful body of water, " which sometimes 
 rises in the sea near Greenland in such a way that three large 
 rows of waves inclose a part of the sea, so that the ship, inside, 
 is in the greatest danger." — Gronland's Historiske Mindis- 
 mserker, vol. I, p. 264. There does not appeal to be any bet- 
 ter foundation for this notion of the Hafgerdingar than for 
 the old accounts of the Maelstrom, once supposed to exist on 
 the coast of Norway. The Hafgerdingar may have originated 
 from seeing the powerful effect of a cross sea acting on the 
 tide. 
 
 ■' To this translation may be added another in metre, by 
 Beamish : 
 
 O thou who triest holy men! 
 Now guide me on my way; 
 Lord of the earth's wide vault, extend 
 Thy gracious hand to me. 
 
 This appears to be the earliest Christian prayer thus far found 
 in connection with this period of American history. 
 
 ^ See later on this subject. 
 
 * ^yrar. This is not the name of a place — for Heriulf 
 dwelt in Iceland at a place called Dropstock — but of a natural 
 
America by the Northmen. 91 
 
 had sailed abroad from in the spring. He was much struck 
 with the news, and would not unload his vessel. When 
 his crew asked him what he intended to do, he replied 
 that he was resolved to follow his old custom by taking up 
 his winter abode with his father. " So I will steer for 
 Greenland if ye will go ■with me." They one and all 
 agreed to go with him. Biarne said, " Our voyage will 
 be thought foolish, as none of us have been on the Green- 
 land sea before. ' ' I*^evertheless they set out to sea as soon 
 as they were ready, and sailed for three days, until they 
 lost sight of the land they left. But wlien the wind failed 
 a north wind with fog set in, and they knew not where 
 they were sailing to; and this lasted many days. At last 
 they saw the sun, and could distinguish the quarter of the 
 sky ; so they hoisted sail again, and sailed a whole day and 
 night, when they made land. They spoke among them- 
 selves what this land could be, and Biarne said that, in 
 his opinion, it could not be Greenland. On the question, 
 if he should sail nearer to it, he said, " It is my advice that 
 we sail up close to the land." They did so; and they soon 
 saw that the land was without mountains, was covered 
 with woods, and that there were small hills inland. ' They 
 left the land on the larboard side, and had their sheet 
 on the land side. Then they sailed two days and nights 
 before they got sight of land again. They asked Biarne 
 if he thought this would be Greenland; but he gave his 
 opinion that the land was no more Greenland than the 
 land they had seen before. " For on Greenland, it is said, 
 there are great snow mountains." They soon came near 
 
 feature of ground eyri, still called an ay re in the Orkney 
 Islands, being a flat sandy tongue of land, suitable for land- 
 ing and drawing up boats. All ancient dwellings in those 
 islands, and probably in Iceland also, are situated so as to 
 have the advantage of this kind of natural wharf, and the spit 
 of land called an ayre, very often has a small lake or pond 
 inside of it, which shelters boats. — Laing. 
 'The "Markland" of Leif. 
 
92 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 to the land, and saw that it was flat and covered with trees. ^ 
 Now, as the wind fell, the ship's people talked of its being 
 advisable to make for the land ; but Biarne would not agree 
 to it. They thought that they would need wood and water ; 
 but Biarne said: "Ye are not in want of either." The 
 men blamed him for this. He ordered them to hoist the 
 sail, which was done. They now turned the ship's bow 
 from the land, and kept the sea for three days and nights, 
 with a fine breeze from south-west. Then they saw a third 
 land, which was high and mountainous, and with snowy 
 mountains. Then they asked Biarne if he would land here ; 
 but he refused altogether: '' For in my opinion this land is 
 not what we want."^ Now they let the sails stand and 
 
 * This we accept as Labrador, and in the account we notice 
 that in this Saga the inland elevations are not considered 
 mountains, though Leif in his account as we shall see speaks 
 of them as "large snowy mountains of the country." The 
 main feature of a high region characterizes both accounts, and 
 this undesigned coincidence will have more effect upon the 
 mind than the narratives would have afforded, il both had used 
 the same language. Besides we are not to suppose that Biarne 
 and Leif saw the land in the same place, and at the same 
 point the inland hills would deserve the name of mountains more 
 than others. Leif 's narrative incorrectly calls this the last point 
 visited by Biarne before reaching Greenland. Helluland the 
 " Great " and the " Little " were names applied to Labra- 
 dor and Newfoundland. The Sagas furnish the correction. 
 See the notes on the voyages of Lief which follow. Still it 
 must be confessed that the statements are obscure, like even many 
 English narrations of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. 
 
 ^ The details of this voyage are very simple, yet whoever 
 throws aside his old time predjuices, and considers the subject 
 with the care it deserves, cannot otherwise than feel persuaded 
 that Eiarne was driven upon this Continent, and that the 
 land seen was the coast of that great territory which stretches 
 between Massachusetts and Newfoundland, for there is no 
 other land to answer the description. Of course no particular 
 merit can be claimed for this discovery. It was also acci- 
 dental. Yet Biarne's discovery soon led to substantial results. 
 
America by the Northmen. 93 
 
 kept along the land and saw it was an island.' Then they 
 turned from the land and stood out to sea with the same 
 breeze; but the gale increased, and Biarne ordered a reef 
 to be taken in, and not to sail harder than the ship and 
 her tackle could easily bear. After sailing three days and 
 nights, they made, the fourth time, land; and when they 
 asked Biarne if he thought this was Greenland or not, 
 Biarne replied: " This is most like what has been told me 
 of Greenland; and here we shall take to the land." They 
 did so, and came to the land in the evening, under a ness, 
 where they found a boat. On this ness dwelt Biarne's 
 father, Heriulf; and from that it is called Heriulfness. 
 Biarne went to his father's, gave up sea-faring, and after 
 his father's death, continued to dwell there when at home. 
 
 SECOND NARRATIVE. 
 
 A man named Heriulf, son of Bard, son of Heriulf,' 
 a relation to Landnamsman Ingolf, who gave the last- 
 named Heriulf the piece of land that lies between Vaag 
 and Reikianess. The younger Heriulf went to Greenland, 
 when Eric Red began to settle there, and on his ship was 
 a Christian man from the South Islands [the Hebrides] 
 who was the author of the poem, Ilavgerdingar, in which 
 was the following verse : 
 
 I to the monk's protector pray 
 That he will give my voyage luck! 
 The heaven's great Ruler 
 Save me from danger. 
 
 Heriulf took possession of Heriulf sfiord, and became one 
 of the chief men. Eric Red took to himself Ericsfiord, 
 and lived in Brattahlid, and Leif, his son, after his death. 
 Those men who at the same time went away with Eric 
 took possession of the following pieces of land: Heriulf 
 
 ' The present Island of Disco, called in the Saga of Karl- 
 sefne, "Blarney. " 
 
 ' This piece makes no reference to the voyage of Biarne, 
 but confirms important statements in the first narrative. 
 
94 Pre-Columbian Discovery op 
 
 Heriulfsfiord, and lie lived in Heriulfness, Ketil Ketilsfiord, 
 Rafn Rafnsfiord, Solve Solvedale, Snorro Tliorbrandson 
 Alptefiord, Tliorbiornglora SigleHord, Einar Einarstiord, 
 Havgrim Havgrimsfiord and Vatnaliverfe, Arnlaug Arn- 
 laiigfiord ; but some went to the west bygd. A man named 
 Tliorkel Farserk, cousin to Eric Red on their mother's 
 side, went to Greenland with Eric, and took possession of 
 Hvalsofiord, together with the greater part of the piece 
 of land between Eyolfsfiord and Einarsfiord, and lived in 
 Hvalosofirde. From him came the Hvalsofiord people. 
 He was very strong. Once Eric Red visited him, and he 
 would welcome his guest in the best way possible, but he 
 had no boats at hand which he could use. He had to swim 
 out to Hvalso, and get a full-grown sheep,* and carry it 
 on his back home to his house. It was a good half mile. 
 Thorkel was buried in a cave in the field of Hvalsofiord. 
 
 lY. LEIF'S YOYAGE TO YINLAND. 
 
 This voyage is recorded in the Flato 3fanuscript, and 
 is given in Antiquitates Americance. pp. 26-40. It con- 
 tains the account of the voyage of Leif, son of Eric the 
 Red, who, following out the hints of Biarne, sailed to dis- 
 
 ' Considerable has been said at various times in opposition 
 to these accounts, because cattle and sheep, and sometimes 
 horses, are mentioned in connection with Greenland. Some 
 have supposed that, for these reasons, the Saga must be incor- 
 rect. Yet, in more modern times, there has been nothing to pre- 
 vent the people from keeping such animals, though it has been 
 found better to substitute dogs for horses. Crantz says, that 
 in "the year 1759, one of our missionaries brought three sheep 
 with him from Denmark to new Herrnhuth. These have so 
 increased by bringing some two, some three lambs a year, that 
 they have been able to kill some every year since, to send some 
 to Lichtenfels, for a beginning there, and, after all, to winter 
 ten at present. We may judge how vastly sweet and nutritive 
 the grass is here from the following tokens: that tho' three 
 lambs come from one ewe, they are larger, even in autumn, 
 
America by the Northmen. 95 
 
 cover the new land which he called Yinland. on account 
 of the quantity of vines that he found growing wild. 
 Several extracts are appended, because of interest in con- 
 nection with the subject. The Saga o± Eric was written 
 in Greenland, a fact not to be overlooked, that of Thor- 
 finn having been composed in Iceland.' 
 
 [A. D. 984.] It is next to be told thai Biarne Heriulf- 
 son came over from Greenland to Norway, on a visit to 
 Earl Eric, who received him well. Biarne tells of this ex- 
 pedition of his, in which he had discovered unknown land ; 
 and people thought he had nol been very curious to get 
 knowledge, as he could not give any account of those coun- 
 tries, and he was somewhat blamed on this account. [A. D. 
 986.] Biarne was made a Court man of the earl, and the 
 summer after he went over to Greenland; and afterward 
 there was much talk about discovering unknown lands. 
 Leif , a son of Eric Red of Brattahlid, went over ' to Biarne 
 Heriulfson, and bought the ship from him, and manned 
 
 than a sheep of a year old in Germany." He says that in the 
 summer they could pasture two hundred sheep around New 
 Herrnhuth; and that they formerly kept cows, but that it 
 proved too much trouble. — History of Greenland^ vol. I, p. 74. 
 
 ' There are discrepancies between the Saga of Eric and his 
 Son's and those relating to Thorfinn, of such a nature as to leave 
 no doubt that they must have come to us from two wholly dis- 
 tinct sources. Torfseus was the first to direct attention to 
 these discrepancies, at the same time remarking that they were 
 of a nature to confirm rather than to disprove the statements. 
 The Eric Sagas were evidently composed in Greenland, while 
 those relating to Thorfinn had their origin in Iceland. The 
 discrepancies are in themselves of very little consequence, 
 but they serve to establish the important fact that the Sagas of 
 Eric and of Thorfinn must be received as two independent 
 authorities." North American Jieview, vol. CXIX, pp. 265-72. 
 See ante, p. 
 
 ° He must have gone over to Greenland from Norway then, 
 as in the year 1000, he returned and introduced Christianity 
 into Greenland. The language used is indefinite. 
 
96 Pbe-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 the vessel, so that in all, there were thirty-five men on 
 board. Leif begged his father Eric to go as commander 
 of the expedition ; but he excused himself, saying he was 
 getting old, and not so able as formerly to undergo the 
 hardship of a sea voyage. Leif insisted that he among all 
 their relations was the most likely to have good luck on such 
 an expedition; and Eric consented, and rode from home 
 with Leif, when they had got all ready f oi sea ; but as they 
 were getting near the ship,^ the horse on which Eric was 
 riding, stumbled, and he fell from his horse' and hurt his 
 foot. " Tt is destined," said Eric, "that I should never 
 discover more lands than this of Greenland on which we 
 live; and now we must not run hastily into this adventure."^ 
 Eric accordingly went back to Brattahlid, but Leif, with 
 his comrades, in all thirty-five men, rigged out their 
 vessel. There was a man from the south country called 
 
 ' One recension of the Saga of Eric the Red, states that he 
 went with Leif on his voyage to Vinland. Finn Magnussen 
 says that the error arose from a change of one letter in a 
 pair of short words. See Gronlatid^ s Historiske Mindes7noer- 
 ker, vol. I, p. 471. In a similar way the change may have 
 been made which incorrectly represents Leif as covaingjirsi to 
 the last point visited by Biarne. 
 
 "^ Horses could be kept in Greenland now, only with much 
 expense. It appears that anciently it was not so. Undoubt- 
 edly there has been more or less change in the climate, during 
 the last thousand years by the procession of the equinox. 
 Geologists find evidence that at one period a highly tropical 
 climate must have existed in the northern regions. Fossil 
 figs and tropic trees are among the wonders of Greenland. 
 
 ' Superstition was the bane of the Northman's life. He 
 was also a firm believer in Fate. The doctrines of Fate held 
 the finest Northern minds in a vice-like grasp, so that in 
 many cases their lives were continually overshadowed by a great 
 sorrow. One of the saddest illustrations of this belief may be 
 found in the Saga of GretHr the Strong (given in Baring- 
 Gould's work on Iceland), a Saga in which the doctrine appears 
 with a power that is well-nigh appalling. 
 
America by the Northmen. 97 
 
 Tjrker,' with the expedition. [A. D. 1000.] They put the 
 ship in order, and went to sea when they were ready. They 
 fii-st came to the land which Biarne had last [first] dis- 
 covered," sailed up to it, cast anchor, put out a boat and 
 went on shore; but there was no grass to be seen. There 
 were large snowy mountains ' up the country ; but all the 
 way from the sea up to these ridges, the land was one field 
 of snow, and it appeared to them a country of no advan- 
 tages. Leif said : " It shall not be said of us, as it was of 
 Biarne, that we did not come upon the land; for I will 
 give the country a name, and call it Helluland.' Then 
 they went on board again and put to sea, and found another 
 land. They sailed in toward it, put out a boat and landed. 
 The country was flat, and overgrown with wood; and the 
 strand far around, consisted of white sand, and low toward 
 the sea. Then Leif said: " We shall give this land a name 
 according to its kind, and called it Markland.' Then 
 
 * Some suppose that he was a German, others claim that he 
 was a Turk, as his name might indicate. 
 
 Ante, p. 89. 
 ^ Snowy mountains, Joklar miklir, such as Chappell men- 
 tions having been seen on the coast, June 14, 181 8. 
 
 * Helluland, from Hella, a flatstone, an abundance of which 
 may be found in Labrador and the region round about. But 
 it should be noted that the country between the sea and the 
 mountains or hills was level. Ante, p. 92, note 2. 
 
 ^This agrees with the general features of Nova Scotia. The 
 North American Pilot describes the land around Halifax, as " low 
 in general, and not visible twenty miles off; except from the quarter 
 deck of a seventy-four. Apostogon hills have a long, level appear- 
 ance, between Cape Le Have and Port Medway, the coast to the 
 eastward being level and low, and the shores with white rocks and 
 low barren points ; from thence to Shelburne and Port Roseway, are 
 woods. Near Port Haldiman are several barren places, and thence 
 to Cape Sable, which makes the south-west point into Harrington 
 Bay, a low and woody island. ' ' Antiquitates Americance , p. 423. 
 Markland is therefore supposed, with great reason, to be Nova 
 Scotia, so well described, both in the Saga, and in the Coast Pilot. 
 
98 Pke-Coltjmbian Discovery of 
 
 they hastened on board, and put to sea again with the wind 
 from the nortli-east, and were out for two dajE. and made 
 land. They sailed toward it, and came to an island ' which 
 
 Markland means woodland. Two days' sail thence, brought 
 them in view of Cape Cod, though very likely the sailing time 
 is not correctly given. 
 
 * This island has given the interpreters considerable trouble, 
 from the fact that it is said to lie to the northward of the land. 
 Professor Rafn, in order to identify the island with Nantucket, 
 shows that the north point of the Icelandic compass lay 
 toward the east. But this does not fairly meet the case. 
 There would, perhaps, have been no difficulty in the interpre- 
 tation if the northern antiquaries had been acquainted with 
 the fact, that in early times an island existed northward from 
 Nantucket, on the opposite coast of Cape Cod. This island, 
 together with a large point of land, which now has also dis- 
 appeared, existed in the times of Gosnold, who sailed around 
 Cape Cod, in 1602. At one time some doubt existed in regard 
 to the truthfulness of the accounts of this island, for the 
 reason that those portions of land described, no longer existed. 
 Yet their positions were laid down with scientific accuracy; 
 the outer portion of the island being called Point Care, while 
 the other point was called Point Gilbert. Neither Archer nor 
 Brereton in their accounts of Gosnold' s voyage, give any name 
 to the island; but Captain John Smith, in 1614, calls it " Isle 
 Nawset." Smith's History of Virginia, vol. II, p. 183. This 
 island was of the drift formation, and as late as little more than 
 half a century ago a portion of it still remained, being called 
 Slut Bush. The subject has been very carefully gone over by 
 Mr. Otis, in his pamphlet on the Discovery of an Ancient Ship 
 on Cape Cod. Professor Agassiz, writing December 17, 1863, 
 says: "Surprising and perhaps incredible as the statements of 
 Mr. Amos Otis may appear, they are nevertheless the direct 
 and natural inference of the observations which may be easily 
 made along the eastern coast of Cape Cod. Having of late 
 felt a special interest in the geological structure of that remark- 
 able region, I have repeatedly visited it during the past sum- 
 mer, and in company with Mr. Otis, examined, on one occasion, 
 
America by the Nokthmen. 99 
 
 lay on the north side oi the land, where thej disembarked* 
 to wait for good weather. There was dew upon the grass ; 
 
 with the most minute care, the evidence of the former exist- 
 ence of Isle Nauset and Point Gilbert. I found it as satisfac- 
 tory as any geological evidence can be. Besides its scientific 
 interest," he adds, " this result has some historical importance. 
 At all events it fully vindicates Archer's account of the aspect 
 of Cape Cod, at the time of its discovery in 1602, and shows 
 him to have been a truthful and accurate observer." But 
 possibly the vindication may extend back even to the Northmen, 
 whom the learned professor and his co-laborers did not have 
 in mind; especially as this discovery will help very materially 
 to explain their descriptions. Now, in the accounts of Thor- 
 finn Karlsefne's passage around this part of Vinland, it is said 
 that they called the shore Wonder- strand, " because they were 
 so long going by." Any one in sailing past the coast to-day 
 will be struck with its length. But by glancing at a recon- 
 structed map of Cape Cod, the reader will find that the coast 
 line is greatly increased, so that in order to pass around the 
 cape, the navigator must sail a longer distance than now. 
 Comparing the distance traveled with the distance gained, the 
 Northmen might well grow weary, and call it " Wonder-strand." 
 Our knowledge of this island quite relieves the difficulty that 
 was felt by Professor Rafn, who labored to show that the 
 island in question was Nantucket, notwithstanding the fact that 
 it lay too far east. For a fuller knowledge of Isle Nauset, see 
 New-England Historical and Genealogical Register, vol. xviii, p. 
 37; and Massachusetts Historical Collections, vol. viii, series iii, 
 pp. 72-93. "Webb's Island, " which existed at the close of the last 
 century, was the remains of Gosnold's * ' Point Gilbert. ' ' The peo- 
 ple of Nantucket formerly used to cut wood there. See Morse's 
 Universal Gazeteer, vol. i, p. 357, Ed. 1783. Capt. Vetch anchored 
 under Webb's Island Nov. 16, 1701. See O'Callaghan's interest- 
 ing monograph " The voyage of the Sloop Mary," Munsell, Al- 
 bany, 1866. O'Callaghan says that "it has since been swallowed up 
 by the sea. " " Sloop Mary, ' ' pp. ix and 2 7 , also Mass Mag. ( 1 1 1 - 
 151), which says, "The water is six fathoms deep on this spot.'' 
 ^ In speaking of the immediate vicinity of Wonder-strand, 
 the second account of Thorfinn's expedition, says: "There 
 
 L.o^O. 
 
100 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 and, having accidentally gotten some of the dew upon 
 their hands and put it in their mouths, they thought that 
 they had never tasted any thing so sweet as it was.^ Then 
 they went on board and sailed into a sound ^ that was be- 
 tween the island and a ness ^ that went out northward from 
 the land, and sailed westward ^ past the ness. There was 
 
 were places without harbors," which has always been the case, 
 this coast being dangerous; yet it is said above that "they 
 landed to wait for good weather." This would be impracti- 
 cable now, except at Chatham; yet at that day, notwithstanding 
 the absence of harbors, they would find accommodation for 
 their small vessel somewhere between the island and the main- 
 land. From Bradford's History, p. 217, we learn that in 1626-7 
 there was at this place "a small blind harbore " that "lyes 
 aboute ye middle of Manamoyake Bay," which to-day is filled 
 up by recently formed sandy wastes and salt meadows. This 
 "blind harbore," had at its mouth a treacheous bar of sand. 
 If this harbor had existed in the days of the Northmen, they 
 would not of necessity discover it; and hence while Leif might 
 have landed here and found protection, Thorfinn in his much 
 larger ship, might have found it needful to anchor, as he appears 
 to have done, in the grounds between Isle Nauset and Point Gil- 
 bert, while explorations were being made on the land. 
 
 ' "Honey dew," says Dr. Webb, "occurs in this neighbor- 
 hood." — Antiquitates AmericancR, p. 443. 
 
 ' This sound may have been the water between Point Gil- 
 bert and Isle Nauset. Modern explorations on the Atlantic 
 coast have often given as much trouble as these Icelandic Nar- 
 ratives. The voyage of Pring in 1 603 was long a case in hand. 
 
 'Archer says in his account of Gosnold's voyage: "Twelve 
 leagues from (the end of) Cape Cod, we descried a point 
 (Point Gilbert) with some breach, a good distance off." It 
 is said that the ness, or cape, went out northward but we must 
 remember that eastward is meant. 
 
 ' This is precisely the course they would steer after doub- 
 ling that ness or cape which existed in Gosnold's day, and 
 which he named Point Gilbert. The author does not agree 
 with Professor Rafn, in making this point to be at the east- 
 
America by the Northmen. 101 
 
 very shallow' water in ebb tide, so that their ship lay 
 dry; and there was a long way between their ship and the 
 water. They were so desirouf to get to the land that they 
 would not wait till their ship floated, but. ran to the land, 
 to a place where the river comes out of a lake. Ae soon 
 as their ship was afloat they took the boats, rowed to the 
 ship, towed her up the riv^er,'' and from thence into the 
 lake,^ where they cast anchor, carried their beds out of 
 the ship, and set up their tents. They resolved to put 
 things in order for wintering there, and they built a 
 large house. They did not want for salmon,^ both in the 
 river and in the lake; and they thought the salmon larger 
 than any they had ever seen before. The country ap- 
 peared to them of so good a kind, that it would not be 
 
 ern entrance to Buzzard's Bay. If he had known of the ex- 
 istence of the Isle Nauset, he would not have looked for the 
 ness in that neighborhood. At that time Cape Malabar prob- 
 ably did not exist, as we know how rapidly land is formed in 
 the vicinity; yet it would not have attracted notice in compari- 
 son with the great broad point mentioned by Archer. 
 
 ' After passing Point Gilbert shoal water may almost any- 
 where be found which appears to have been the case anciently. 
 
 " The river may have been Seaconnet passage and Pocasset 
 river. 
 
 ' This lake is thought to answer Mount Hope Bay. The 
 writer of the Saga passes over that part of the voyage imme- 
 diately following the doubling of the ness. The tourist in 
 traveling that way by rail will at first take Mount Hope Bay for 
 a lake. 
 
 * Salmon were formerly so plenty in this vicinity, that it is 
 said a rule was made, providing that masters should not oblige 
 their apprentices to eat this fish more than twice a week. 
 Still I may repeat a quotation from Henry V (ist A., sc. 4, 
 5) : "I warrant you shall find in the comparisons between 
 Macedon and Monmouth that the situation, look you, is both 
 alike. There is a river at Macedon, and there is also more- 
 over a river at Monmouth; it is called Wye at Monmouth, 
 but it is out of my prains what is the name of the other river, 
 
102 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 necessary to gather fodder for the cattle for winter,^ There 
 was no frost in winter, ^ and the grass was not much 
 withered. Day and night were more equal than in Green- 
 land and Iceland; for on the shortest daj the sun was in 
 the sky between Eyktarstad^ and the Dagmalastad. Kow 
 
 but 'tis all one; 'tis alike as my fingers is to my fingers, and 
 there is salmon in both." The authenticity of the Sagas does 
 not depend upon any of these identifications. 
 
 ^ It is well known that cattle in this vicinity can pass the 
 winter with little or no shelter, and the sheep on Nantucket, 
 can, when necessary, take care of themselves. 
 
 " This is an exaggeration, or, possibly the writer, who was 
 not with the expedition, meant to convey the idea that there 
 was no frost, compared with what was experienced in Green- 
 land and Iceland. The early narrator of the voyage unques- 
 tionably tried to make a good impression as regards the cli- 
 mate. In so doing, he has been followed by nearly all who have 
 come after him. Eric the Red told some almost fabu- 
 lous stories about the climate of Greenland; and yet, because 
 his accounts do not agree with facts, who is so foolish as to 
 deny that he ever saw Greenland ? With as much reason we 
 might deny that Leif came to Vinland. With equal reason, 
 too, we might deny that Morton was ever at Merry Mount; 
 for he tells us, in his New English Canaa?i, that coughs -^nd 
 colds are unknown in New England. Leutenant-Governor 
 Dudley of Massachusetts complained of false representations 
 in his day. See " Footprints of Miles Standish, " p. 24. 
 
 ' This passage was misunderstood by Torfaeus, the earliest 
 writer who inquired into these questions. He was followed 
 by Peringskiold, Malte-Brun and others, who, by their reckon- 
 ings, made the latitude of Vinland somewhere near Nova Scotia. 
 Yet the recent studies of Rafn and Finn Magnussen, have 
 elucidated the point: "The Northmen divided the heavens or 
 horizons into eight principal divisions, and the times of the 
 day according to the sun's apparent motion through these 
 divisions, the passage through each of which they supposed to 
 occupy a period of three hours. The day was therefore di- 
 vided into portions of time corresponding with these eight divi- 
 
America by the Northmen. 103 
 
 wlien thej were ready with their house building, [A. D. 
 1001] Leif said to his fellow travelers: " Now I will di- 
 vide the crew into two divisions and explore the country. 
 
 sions, each of which was called an eykt, signifying an eighth 
 part. This eykt was again divided, like each of the grand divi- 
 sions of the heavens, into two smaller and equal portions, 
 called stimd or wa/. In order to determine these divisions of 
 time, the inhabitant of each place carefully observed the diurnal 
 course of the sun, and noted the terrestrial objects over which 
 it seemed to stand. Such an object, whether artificial or natu- 
 ral, was called by the Icelanders dagsmark (daymark). They 
 were also led to make these daymarks by a division of the hori- 
 zon according to the principal winds, as well as by the wants 
 of their domestic economy. The shepherd's rising time, for 
 instance, was called Hirdis rismal, which corresponds with 
 half-past four o'clock, a. m., and this was the beginning of the 
 natural day of twenty-four hours. Reckoning from Hirdis 
 rismal the eighth stund or eighth half eykt ended at just half- 
 past four p. M., and therefore this particular period was called 
 Kai' €|oxV» EYKT. This eykt strictly speaking, commenced at 
 three o'clock p. m., and ended at half-past four p. m., 
 when it was said to be in eyktarstadr or the termination of the 
 eykt. The precise moment that the sun appeared in this place 
 indicated the termination of the artificial day {dagr) and half 
 the natural day (dagr) and was therefore held especially deserv- 
 ing of notice; the hours of labor, also, are supposed to have 
 ended at this time. Six o'clock a. m., was called midr mor- 
 gufi; half -past seven a. m., Dagmal; nine a. m., Dagverdar- 
 mal. Winter was considered to commence in Iceland about 
 the seventeenth of October, and Bishop Thorlacius, the calcu- 
 lator of the astronomical calendar, fixes sunrise in the south 
 of Iceland on the seventeenth of Octobei at half-past seven 
 a. m. At this hour, according to the Saga, it rose in Vinland 
 on the shortest day, and set at half -past four p. M., which 
 date fix the latitude of the place at 41° 43' 10" being nearly 
 that of Mount Hope Bay." See Mem. Atitiq. du Nord, 
 1836-7, p. 165. Rain's calculations make the position 41° 24' 
 lo". It is based on the view that the observation was made 
 
104 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 Half shall stay at home and do the work, and the other 
 half shall search the land; bnt so thai they dc not go far- 
 ther than they can come back in the evening, and that they 
 do not wander from each other." This they continued to 
 do for some time. Leif changed about, sometimes with 
 them and sometimes with those at home. Leif was a stout 
 and strong man and of manly appearance, and was, besides, 
 a prudent and sagacious man in all respects. 
 
 It happened one evening that a man of the party was 
 missing, and it was the south countryman, Tyrker, Leif 
 was very sorry for this because Tyrker had long been in 
 his father's house, and he loved Tyrker in his childhood. 
 Leif blamed his comrades very much, and proposed to go 
 with twelve men on an expedition to tind him; but they 
 had only gone a short way from the station when Tyrker 
 came to meet them, and he was joyfully received. Leif 
 soon perceived that his foster father' was quite merry. 
 
 in Vinland when only the upper portion of the disc had appeared 
 above the horizon. The difference, of course, is not im- 
 portant. Thus we know the position of the Icelandic settle- 
 ment in New England. See Antiquitates Atnericanae, p. 436. 
 Also a different view in Cleasby's Icelandic Dictionary, p. 135. 
 ' In those turbulent times children were not brought up at 
 home, but were sent to be trained up in the families of trusty 
 friends. This was done to preserve the family line. Often, 
 in some bloody feud, a household would be destroyed, yet the 
 children being out at foster, would be preserved, and in due 
 time come to represent the family. In Leif's day heathenism 
 and lawlessness were on the decline. We have a true picture 
 given us by Dasent, of the way in which children were treated 
 in the heathen age. He says: "With us an old house can 
 stand upon a crooked as well as upon a straight support. But 
 in Iceland, in the tenth century, as in all the branches of that 
 great family, it was only healthy children that were allowed to 
 live. The deformed, as a burden to themselves, their friends, 
 and to society, were consigned to destruction by exposure 
 to the violence of the elements. This was the father's stern 
 light, and though the mothers of that age were generally blest 
 
America by the Northmen. 105 
 
 Tjrrker had a high forehead, sharp eyes, with a small face, 
 and was little in size, and ugly; but was very dexterous 
 in all feats.* Leif said to him, "Why art thou so late, 
 
 with robust offspring, still the right, was often exercised. As 
 soon as it was born, the infant was laid upon the bare ground, 
 and, until the father came and looked at it, heard and saw 
 that it was strong in lung and limb, took it up in his arms and 
 handed it over to the nurse, its fate hung in the balance and 
 life or death depended upon the sentence of its sire. That 
 danger over, it was duly washed, signed with the Thunderer's 
 (Thor's) holy hammer — the symbol of all manliness and strength 
 — and solemnly received into the family as the faithful cham- 
 pion of the ancient gods. When it came to be named there 
 was what we should call the christening ale. There was sad- 
 dling, mounting and riding among kith and kin. Cousins 
 came in bands from all points of the compass; dependents, 
 freedmen and thralls all mustered strong. The ale is broached, 
 the board is set, and the benches are thronged with guests; 
 the mirth and revelry are at the highest, when in strides into 
 the hall a being of awful power, in whom that simple age set 
 full faith. This was the Nome, the wandering prophetess, 
 sybil fortune teller, a woman to whom it was given to know 
 the weirds of men, and who had come to do honor to the child, 
 and tell his fortune. . . . After the child was named, he was 
 often put out to foster with some neighbor, his father's inferior 
 in power, and there he grew up with the children of the house, 
 and contracted those friendships and affections which were 
 reckoned better and more binding than the ties of blood." 
 ^ There is nothing in this to indicate that Tyrker was intoxi- 
 cated, as some have absurdly supposed. In this far off land 
 he found grapes, which powerfully reminded him of his own 
 country, and the association of ideas is so strong, that when 
 he first meets Leif, he breaks out in the language of his child- 
 hood, and, like an ordinary epicure, expresses his joy, which 
 is all the more marked on account of his grotesque appearance. 
 Is not this a stroke of genuine nature, something that a writer, 
 framing the account of a fictitious voyage, would not dream 
 of ? Similar cases are found in literature. — Antiquaires du 
 Nord, 1859, pp. 8-9. 
 
106 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 my foster father? and why didst thou leave thy comrades?" 
 He spoke at first long in German, rolled his eyes and knit 
 his brows; they could not make out what he was say- 
 ing. After a while, and some delay, he said in Icelandic, 
 "I did not go much further than they; and yet I have 
 something altogether new to relate, for I found vines 
 and grapes. " ' "Is that true, my foster father ? ' ' said Leif . 
 "Yes, true it is," answered he, "for I was born where 
 there was no scarcity of grapes." They slept all night, 
 and the next morning Leif said to his men, "[N'ow we shall 
 have two occupations to attend to, and daj about; namely, 
 to gather grapes or cut vines, and to fell wood in the for- 
 est to lade our vessel." This advice was followed. It 
 is related that their stern boat was filled with grapes, and 
 then a cargo of wood was hewn for the vessel.^ Toward 
 spring they made ready and sailed away, and Leif gave 
 the country a name from its products, and called it Yin- 
 land.^ They now sailed into the open sea and had a fair 
 
 ' Grapes grow wild almost everywhere on this coast. They 
 may be found on Cape Cod ripening among the scrub oaks, 
 almost within the reach of the open spray, where 'the author 
 has gathered them in Truro. On the contrary grapes were not 
 really found in Nova Scotia. 
 
 ' In Peringskiold's Heimskringla, which Laing has followed 
 in translating Leif's voyage for his appendix, this statement of 
 the cutting of wood is supplemented by the following state- 
 ment: "There was also self-sown wheat in the fields, and a 
 tree which is called massur. Of all these they took samples; 
 and some of the trees were so large that they were used in 
 houses." It is thought that the massur wood was a species of 
 maple. Others have declared that it must have been mahogany, 
 and therefore that the account of Leif's discovery is false. 
 They forgot that even George Popham, in writing home to his 
 patron from Sagadahoc, in 1607, says that among the produc- 
 tions of the country are "nutmegs and cinnamon." Yet shall 
 we infer from this that Popham never saw New England? 
 
 'Adam of Bremen, who wrote 1075, after he had made a 
 ivsit to the king of Denmark, at whose court he heard of the 
 
America by the Korthmen. 107 
 
 wind until they came in sight of Greenland and the land 
 below the ice mountains. Then a man put in a word and 
 said to Leif, "Why do you steer so close on the wind?" 
 Leif replied: "I mind my helm and tend to other things 
 too; do you notice any thing?" They said that they saw 
 nothing remarkable. "1 do not know," said Leif, "whether 
 I see a ship or a rock." Then thej looked and saw that 
 it was a rock. But he saw so much better than they, that 
 he discovered men upon the rock. "Now I will," said 
 Leif, "tliat we hold to the wind, that we may come up to 
 them if they should need help ; and if they should not be 
 friendly inclined, it is in our power to do as we please 
 and not theirs." Now they sailed under the rock, 
 lowered their sails, cast anchor, and put out another small 
 boat which they had with them. Then Tyrker asked who 
 their leader was. He said hie name was Thorer, and that 
 he was a Northman;^ "But what is your name?" said 
 
 exploits of the Icelanders, says: "Besides it was stated by 
 the King that a region had been discovered by many in that 
 [Western] ocean which was called Winland, because vines 
 grow there spontaneously, making excellent wine; for that 
 fruits, not planted grow there of their own accord, we know 
 not by false rumors, but by the certain testimony of the Danes. ' ' 
 See also, Rafn's Antiqiiitates, etc., p. 319. 
 
 ' These were evidently Norwegian traders who were ship- 
 wrecked while approaching the coast and sailing for the Green- 
 land ports. Here attention may be called to the truthful 
 description of the Sagas as one proof of their authenticity 
 and historical value. We employ the well-considered words 
 of Henry Cabot Lodge, who says; 
 
 "The Sagas may then be accepted as authentic historical 
 records. A detailed examination of them would result in 
 almost complete proof of Norse visits to America. Such an 
 examination would be impossible within the limits of a notice, 
 but some of the most striking portions are worthy of attention 
 If one takes a map of North America, it will be seen at once 
 that a vessel starting from Cape Farewell and steering almost 
 due south would make the coast of Newfoundland, possibly 
 
108 Pke-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 he. Leif told liis name. "Are you the son of Eric the 
 Red of Brattalilid?" he asked. Leif said that was so. 
 "Kow I will," said Leif, "take ye and all on board my 
 ship, and as much of the goods as the ship will store." 
 Tbey took up this offer, and sailed away to Erichord 
 with the cargo, and from thence to Brattalilid, where 
 they unloaded the ship, Leif offered Thorer and his wife, 
 
 Labrador. The first land made by the Northmen after leaving 
 Greenland was Helluland, distinguished by its rocky appear- 
 ance, like the northern Newfoundland coast. Further to the 
 south, the next shores would be that of Nova Scotia, a thickly 
 wooded country, and called by the Northmen Markland. Sev- 
 eral days of open water and Cape Cod or Cape Kiarlarness 
 would be reached The description of the cape in the Sagas, 
 where it is frequently mentioned, corresponds perfectly with 
 Cape Cod. The features of the shore are accurately described, 
 long stretches of flats and sand dunes rising up behind them. 
 To the south of this cape a bay was entered by the Norsemen, 
 and named from its numerous currents, for which Buzzard's 
 Bay is remarkable. The large island covered with the eggs 
 of sea-birds lies in the southern part of the bay. The long 
 beaches of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket are famous to-day, 
 as in the tenth century, for large quantities of sea-fowl's eggs. 
 In this country wild grapes grew in great profusion. Even 
 supposing great changes of climate, this fact may be fairly 
 taken to exclude Greenland and Labrador, in both of which 
 countries wild grapes would be an anomaly. Grapes do grow, 
 however, in Rhode Island. Examples might be multiplied. 
 It is a very strong case of cumulative evidence. Vinland must 
 have been some portion of the eastern coast of the American 
 Continent. Nothing then is more likely than that the Norse- 
 men visited New England. The description of the Sagas coin- 
 cide exactly with the south-eastern coast of Rhode Island and 
 Massachusetts. The Sagas are in the main certainly accurate 
 and truthful. If these premises are admitted, and it seems 
 impossible to deny them, the visits of the Norsemen are suffi- 
 ciently well proved. ' North American Review, vol. cxix, 
 p. 177. 
 
America by the Northmen. 109 
 
 Gudrid, and three others, lodging with himself, and offer- 
 ing lodging elsewhere for the resi ol the people, both of 
 Thorer's crew and his own. Leif took fifteen men from 
 the rock, and thereafter was called Leif the Lucky. After 
 that time Leif advanced greatly in wealth and considera- 
 tion. That winter sickness came among Thorer's people, 
 and he himself, and a great part of his crew, died. The 
 same winter Eric Red died. This expedition to Vinland 
 was much talked of, and Leif 's brother, Thorvald, thought 
 that the country had not been explored enough in different 
 places. Then Leif said to Thorvald, "You may go, 
 brother, in my ship to Yinland if you like ; but I will first 
 send the ship for the timber which Thorer left upon the 
 rock." So it was done. 
 
 SECOND NARRATIVB. 
 
 The same spring King Olaf , as said before, sent Gissur 
 and Hialte* to Iceland. The king also sent Leif to Green- 
 land to proclaim Christianity there. The king sent with 
 him a priest and some other religious men, to baptize the 
 people and teach them the true faith. Leif sailed the same 
 summer to Greenland ; he took up out of the ocean the peo- 
 ple of a ship who were on a wreck completely destroyed, 
 and in a perishing condition. On thi? same voyage he dis- 
 covered Yinland the Good,^ and came at the close of sum- 
 
 ' Gissur, called the White, was one of the greatest lawyers 
 of Iceland. We read that "there was a man named Gissur 
 White, he was Teit's son, Kettlebiarne the Old's son, of Moss- 
 fell (Iceland). Bishop Isleif was Gissur's son. Gissur the 
 White kept house at Mossf ell, and was a great Chief. ' * Saga of 
 Burnt Nial, vol I, p. 146. 
 
 2 Hialte was doubtless the same person who entered the 
 swimming match with King Olaf. See Saga of Olaf Tryggves- 
 son. 
 
 ^ This is an error, unless the wiiter means that the voyage 
 to Vinland, afterward undertaken, was a part of the same gene- 
 ral expedition. Leif went to Greenland first, as we have already 
 seen. 
 
110 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 mer to Brattahlid, to his father Eric. After that time 
 the people called him Leif the Fortunate; but hie father 
 Eric said that these two things went against one another; 
 that Leif had saved the crew of the ship, and delivered 
 them from death, and that he had [brought] that bad man 
 into Greenland, that is what he called the priest; but after 
 much urging, Eric was baptized,' as well as all the people 
 of Greenland. 
 
 THIRD NARRATIVE. 
 
 The same winter, Leif, the son of Eric the Red, was in 
 high favor with King Olaf, and embraced Christianity. 
 But the summer that Gissur went to Iceland, King Olaf 
 sent Leif to Greenland, to proclaim Christianity. He 
 sailed the same summer for Greenland. He found some 
 men in the sea on a wreck, and helped them; the same 
 voyage,' he discovered Yinland the Good, and came at har- 
 vest time to Greenland. He brought with him a priest 
 and other religious^ men, and went to live at Brattahlid 
 with his father Eric. He was afterward called, Leif the 
 Fortunate. But his father Eric said, that these two things 
 were opposed to one another, because Leif had saved the 
 crew of the ship, and brought evil men to Greenland, 
 meaning the priests. 
 
 Y. THORVALD ERICSON'S EXPEDITION. 
 
 The greater portion of this voyage appears to have been 
 performed during two summers, the expedition, after visit- 
 ing the Bay of Boston, finally returning to Greenland on 
 account of the death of their leader. The narrative is 
 taken from Codex Flatoiensis as given in Antiquitates 
 Americanae. 
 
 * These pagans did not always yield even so readily as Eric. 
 Some in Norway died foi the faith of Odin. See Saga of 
 Olaf Tryggvesson [passim) in vol. I, of Heimskringla . 
 
 ' See note to foregoing account. 
 
 ' These appear to have been members of some Order. 
 
America by the ISTorthmen. Ill 
 
 Now Thorvald [A. D. 1002] made ready for his voyage 
 with thirty men, after consulting hie brother Leif. They 
 rigged their ship, and put to sea. Nothing is related of 
 this expedition until they came to Yinland, to the booths 
 put up by Leif, where they secured the ship and tackle, 
 and remained quiet all winter and lived by fishing. In 
 the spring [A. D. 1003] Thorvald ordered the vessel to be 
 rigged, and that some men should proceed in the long- 
 boat westward along the coast, and explore it during the 
 summer.^ They thought the country beautiful and well 
 wooded, the distance small between the forest and the sea, 
 and th3 strand full of white sand. There were also many 
 islands and very shallow water. They found no abode for 
 man or beast, but on an island far toward the west, they 
 found a corn barn constructed oi wood.'' They found no 
 other traces of human work, and came back in autumn to 
 Leif 's booths. The following spring [A. D. lOOi] Thor- 
 vald, with his merchant ship, proceeded eastward, and to- 
 ward the north along the land. Opposite to a cape^ they 
 
 ' Assuming that the expedition was located in Rhode Island, 
 this westward exploration would indicate a movement along 
 the shore of Connecticut, which answers well enough to the 
 description. 
 
 ' A building of this character would point to Europeans, 
 possibly Irish, who, according to the minor narratives, preceded 
 the Icelanders in America, possibly Ireland the Great. 
 
 ' This cape was not Point Gilbert, but the terminus of Cape 
 Cod, known as "Race Point," a dangerous place for naviga- 
 tion. It would seem that this was the locality referred to, 
 for the reason that the next place mentioned is the shore near 
 Plymouth, which is readily seen from the end of Cape Cod 
 in a clear day. Here there is a hiatus in the narrative. It 
 was the vicinity of Race Point that they called "Kialarness, " 
 or Keel Cape. From Cape Cod it would seem they crossed 
 to Plymouth, whose heights were in view of the cape in clear 
 weather, and then worked along eastward, though the passage 
 across the mouth of Cape Cod Bay is not mentioned, reaching 
 the mouth of Boston Harbor, where Thorvald said, "Here 
 
112 Prp>Columbian Discovery of 
 
 met bad weather, and drove upon the land and broke the 
 keel, and remained there a long time to repair the ves- 
 sel. Thorvald said to his companions: "We will stick up 
 the keel here upon the ness, and call the place Kialarness;" 
 which they did. Then they sailed away eastward along 
 the country, entering the mouths of the bays, to a point 
 of land which was everywhere covered vtdth woods. They 
 moored the vessel to the land, laid out gangways to the 
 shore, and Thorvald, with all his ship's company, landed. 
 He said, " Here it is so beautiful, and I would willingly 
 set up my abode here." ' They afterward went on board, 
 and saw three specks upon the sand within the point, and 
 went to them and found there were three skin boats with 
 three men under each boat. They divided their men and 
 took all of them prisoners, except one man, who escaped 
 with his boat. They killed eight of them, and then 
 went to the point and looked about them. Within this 
 bay they saw several eminences, which they took to be 
 habitations. Then a great drowsiness came upon them 
 and they could not keep themselves awake, but all of them 
 
 it is beautiful," even as John Smith wrote of it as "the Para- 
 dise of all these parts," and where evidently the French had 
 been before him. Indeed every thing goes to prove, that from 
 the time of Allefonsce, 1542, down to Bellinger, 1583, the 
 French often resorted thither. If we are correct in this view, 
 Boston is a singularly appropriate place for a monument to the 
 Northmen. Afterward they speak of "the bay'' and habita- 
 tions, all of which is in keeping with Boston Harbor. Who- 
 ever takes the trouble to analyze the language, will discover 
 by the occasional hiatus that the writer speaks from a fullness 
 of knowledge, and that he could have added many particulars, 
 showing that he was writing about actual events. 
 
 ^ Here, Antiqtiitates Americance, p. 42, is followed, instead 
 of Peringskiold, whose version does not mention the point of 
 land. This place is regarded as Point Alderton, below Boston 
 Harbor. Thorvald evidently sailed along the shore to this 
 point, which is the most remarkable on the east coast. 
 
America by the Northmen. 113 
 
 fell asleep.^ A sudden scream came to them and they 
 all awoke; and mixed with the scream they thought they 
 heard the words: "Awake, Thorvald, with all thy com- 
 rades, if ye will save your lives. Go on board your ship 
 as fast as you can, and leave this land without delay." 
 In the same moment an innumerable multitude, from the 
 interior of the bay, came in skin boats and laid themselves 
 alongside. Then said Thorvald, ""We shall put up our 
 war screens^ along the gunwales and defend ourselves 
 as well as we can, but not use our weapons much against 
 them." They did so accordingly. The Skraellings ^ shot 
 
 ' Nothing supernatural is here intended, simply the result of 
 fatigue 
 
 " These screens were made of planks which could be quickly 
 arranged above the bulwarks, thus affording particular protec- 
 tion against arrows and stones. 
 
 " These people are sometimes called Smsellingar, or small 
 men. Others deduce their name from skraela, to dry, allud- 
 ing to their shriveled aspect; and otheis from skraekia to shout. 
 It is evident from the accounts of Egede and Crantz, that 
 they formerly inhabited this part of the country, but were 
 gradually obliged to go northward. It is well known that in 
 other parts of America, these migrations were common. They 
 were more likely to take refuge in Greenland than even the 
 Northmen themselves. Critics have been concerned to know 
 how it comes that the people met by the Northmen in New 
 England appeared to be Esquimaux, and not Red Indians. 
 This is because the Red Indians had not then become masters 
 of the coast, which was held by a littoral people who once 
 occupied the coast from Florida to Greenland, being the de- 
 scendants of what may be called the " glacial man." The 
 Indian who said that the Great Spirit gave him the country, 
 simply wrested it from the Skraellings, whose stone imple- 
 ments are now, perhaps, those found in the Trenton gravels. 
 See author's Glacial Man in America; Pop. Science Review, 
 vol. XVIII, p. 31. The skin boats of the Skraellings were in 
 keeping with habits of a littoral people. The Red man who 
 followed used bark, or fashioned canoes out of solid logs, as 
 described by Sebastian Cabot, Verrazano and Lescarbot. 
 
114 Pbe-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 at them for a while, and then fled away as fast as they 
 could. Then Thorvald asked if anyone was wounded, 
 and they said nobody was hurt. He said: "I have a 
 wound under the arni.^ An arrow flew between the gunwale 
 and the shield under my arm ; here is the arrow and it will 
 be my death wound. Now I advise you to make ready 
 with all speed to return ; but ye shall carry me to the point 
 which I thought would be so convenient for a dwelling. 
 It may be that it was true what I said, that here would I 
 dwell for a while. Te shall bury me there, and place a 
 cross at my head and one at my feet, and call the place 
 Crossness." Christianity had been established in Green- 
 land at this time;^ but Eric Red was dead ^ before Chris- 
 tianity was introduced. Now Thorvald died, and they 
 did everything as he had ordered. Then thej went away 
 
 ' The conduct of Thorvald indicates magnanimity of character, 
 thinking first of his men, and afterward of himself. 
 
 ' Christianity was re-introduced into Greenland by Leif, Thor- 
 vald' s brother, in 1 001-2, ante, p. 
 
 ' This is evidently an error, for the Catholic Religion was 
 introduced by Leif, before he sailed on his voyage to Vin- 
 land. Errors like this abound in all early annals, and why should 
 Icelandic chronicles be free from them? Every such case will 
 be impartially pointed out. The treatment of this passage by 
 Smith, in his Dialogues on the North?neti, p. 127, is far from 
 being candid. He translates the passage thus: "But Eric the 
 Red had died without professing Christianity," and refers the 
 English reader to the Saga of Thorfinn Karlsefne, Antiquitates 
 A/nericance, pp. 119-20, as if he would there find a reason for 
 his rendering of the text, which is unequivocal, and is trans- 
 lated literally above. On turning to the authority in question, 
 we find nothing more said than that "Eric was slow to 
 give up his (pagan) religion," and that the affair caused a 
 separation between him and his wife. That he was slo7v 
 to give up his pagan belief would seem to indicate that he 
 did give it up eventually. Moreover we have the direct 
 statement that he was baptized. See second Narrative of 
 Leif, ante, p. 109. 
 
Amkkica by the Northmen. 115 
 
 in search of their fellow- voyagers,' and they related to each 
 other all the news. They remained in their dwelling all 
 winter, and gathered vines and grapes,^ and put them on 
 board their ships. Toward spring, they prepared to return 
 to Greenland, where they arrived with their vessel, and 
 landed at Ericsfiord, bringing heavy tidings to Leif. 
 
 YI. THOKSTEIN ERICSONS' ATTEMPT TO FIND 
 VINLAND. 
 
 This version is fi'om Codsx Flatoiensis, and is given in 
 Antiquitates AinericancB, pp. 47-55. The expedition was 
 wholly unsuccessful, and the leader finally died without 
 reaching the desired land. One cannot help believing, 
 notwithstanding the marvelous events recorded, that the 
 basis of this account is formed of solid fact. The narra- 
 tive is not one likely to have been invented by an impos- 
 tor, especially as there was no motive suggesting imposture. 
 
 In the meantime it had happened in Greenland that 
 Thorstein of Ericsfiord had married and taken to wife [A. 
 D. 1005] Gudrid,' the daughter of Thorbiorn, who had 
 been married, as before related, to Thorer, the Eastman.* 
 Thorstein Ericson bethought him now that he would go 
 to Vinland for his brother Thorvald's body. He rigged 
 out the same vessel and chose an able and stout crew. 
 He had with him twenty-five men and hie wife Gudrid, 
 
 ' That is, they returned around Cape Cod to the rendezvous 
 in Rhode Island. 
 
 ^ Gathering and drying them, evidently. 
 
 ^ This Gudrid who was rescued from the rock in the sea by 
 Leif Ericson, is now married the second time, and as we shall 
 see later on, was married a third time, and became the head 
 of a most important family, afterward going to Rome. 
 
 * Norway lay east of Iceland, and hence the people of that 
 country were sometimes called Eastmen. 
 
116 Pbe-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 and as soon as they were readj he put to sea. They quickly 
 lost sight of the land. They drove aboul on the ocean the 
 whole summer without kuowing where they were,^ and 
 in the first week of winter * they landed at Lysifiord in 
 Greenland, in the western settlement. Thorstein looked for 
 lodgings for his men and got his whole ship's crew accom- 
 modated, but not himself and wife, so that for some nights 
 they had to sleep on board. At that time Christianitj was 
 but recent in Greenland. One day, early in the morning, 
 some men came to their tent and the leader asked them 
 what people were in the tent? Thorstein replies, "Two; 
 who is it that asks ? " " Thorstein," was the reply, " and 
 I am called Thorstein the Black, and it is my errand here 
 to offer thee and thy wife lodging beside me." Thor- 
 stein said he would speak to his wife about it, and as she 
 gave her consent he agreed to it. "Then I shall come for 
 you to-morrow with my horses,^ for I do not want means to 
 entertain you ; bitt few care to live in my house ; I and my 
 wife live lonely, and I am very gloomy. I have also a 
 different religion* from yours, although I think the one you 
 have the best. ' ' Now the following morning he came for 
 them with horses, and they toot up their abode with Thor- 
 stein Black, who was very friendly toward them. Gudrid 
 had a good outward appearance and was knowing, and un- 
 derstood well how to behave with strangers. Early in the 
 winter a sickness prevailed among Thorstein Ericson's peo- 
 ple, and many of his ship-men died. He ordered that cof- 
 
 ^ If Vinland had been situated in Labrador, it would be 
 rather idle to suppose that they could have lost the summer 
 in trying to find it. This expedition aimed at reaching the 
 place called "Crossaness," Cape of the Holy Cross, near the 
 Bay of Boston. 
 
 ''Winter began October 17. 
 
 ^ They probably had, at least, diminutive horses or ponies 
 in Greenland like those of Iceland to-day. 
 
 * Thorstein Black was a pagan, who nevertheless saw the 
 superior value of the new Faith. 
 
America by the Noethmen. 117 
 
 fills should be made for the bodies of the dead and that they 
 should be brought on board and stowed away carefully, 
 for he said, *' I will transport all the bodies to Ericsfiord 
 in summer.'" It was not long before sickness broke out 
 in Thorstein Black's house, and his wife, who was called 
 GrimLild, fell sick first. She was very stout and as strong 
 as a man, but yet she could not bear up against the illness. 
 Soon after Thorstein Ericson also fell sick and they both 
 lay ill in bed at the same time; but Grimhild, Thorstein 
 Black's wife, died first. When she was dead, Thorstein 
 went out of the room for a skin to lay over the corpse. 
 Then Gudrid said, "My dear Thorstein, be not long away," 
 which he promised. Then said Thorstein Ericson, "Our 
 housewife is wonderful, for she raises herself up with her 
 elbows, moves herself forward over the bed-frame, and is 
 feeling for her shoes." In the same moment, Thorstein 
 the Goodman, came back, and instantly Grimhild laid her- 
 self down, so that it made every beam that was in the house 
 crack. Thorstein now made a coffin for Grimhild 's corpse, 
 removed it outside, and buried it. He was a stout and 
 strong man, but it required all his strength to remove the 
 corpse from the house. Now Thorstein Ericson's illness 
 increased upon him, and he died, which Gudrid, his wife, 
 took with great grief. They were all in the room, and 
 Gudrid had set herself upon a stool before the bench on 
 which her husband Thorstein's body lay. Now Thor- 
 stein the Goodman took Gudrid from the stool in his arms, 
 and set himself with her upon a bench just opposite to 
 Thorstein's body,^ and spoke mucli with her. lie con- 
 soled her, and promised to go with her in summer to Erics- 
 fiord, with her husband Thorstein's corpse, and those of 
 his crew. "And," said he, " I shall take with me many 
 servants to console and assist. ' ' She thanked him for this. 
 
 * See The Graves of the Northmen, Church Monthly, 1865. 
 
 ' We here must remember the simphcity of manners, which 
 then (as now) prevailed among the Icelanders. It is said that, 
 the tourist in Iceland is surprised by the absence of prudery. 
 
118 Pkk-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 Thorstein Ericson then raised himself up and said, "Where 
 is Gudrid ?" And thrice he said this; but she was silent. 
 Then she said to Thorstein the Goodman, "Shall I give 
 answer or not?" He told her not to answer. Then went 
 Thorstein the Goodman across the room, and sat down in 
 a chair, and Gudrid set herself on his knee; and Thor- 
 stein the Goodman said: " What wilt thou make known ?" 
 After a while the corpse replies, " I wish to tell Gudrid 
 her fate beforehand, that she may be the better able to 
 bear my death ; for I have come to a blessed resting place. 
 This I have now to tell thee, Gudrid, that thou wilt be 
 married to an Iceland man, and ye will live long together 
 and from you will descend many men, brave, gallant and 
 wise, and a well-pleasing race of posterity. Ye shall go 
 from Greenland to Norway, and from thence to Iceland, 
 where ye shall dwell. Long will ye live together, but thou 
 wilt survive him; and then thou shalt go abroad, and go 
 southward,^ and shall return to thy home in Iceland. 
 And there must a church be built, and thou must remain 
 there and be consecrated a nun, and there end thy days. "^ 
 
 ' That is, visit Italy, and especially Rome. 
 
 " Whoever inclines to dismiss this narrative as an idle fiction, 
 must remember that all history is more or less pervaded by 
 similar stories. The Rev. Cotton Mather, in his Magnalia 
 of New England, gives the account of a great number of super- 
 natural events of the same character as this related in the 
 Snga. Some are ludicrous in the extreme, and others are 
 horrible, both in their inception and end. Among other stories, 
 is that of Mr. Phillip Smith, deacon of the church at Hadley, 
 Mass., and a member of the General Court, who appears to 
 have been bewitched. He was finally obliged to keep his 
 bed. Then it is said that the people "beheld fire sometimes on 
 the bed; and when the beholders began to discourse of it, it van- 
 ished away. Divers people acually felt something often stir in the 
 bed, at a considerable distance from the man; it seemed as big 
 as a cat, but they could never grasp it. Several trying to lean 
 on the bed's head, tho' the sick man lay wholly still, the 
 bed would shake so as to knock their heads uncomfortably. 
 
America by the Northmen. 119 
 
 And then Thorstein sank backward, and bis corpse was put 
 in order and carried to tbe sbip. Thorstein the Goodman 
 did all that he had promised. He sold in spring [A. D. 1006] 
 his land and cattle, and went with Gudrid and all her 
 goods ; made ready the ship, got men for it, and then went 
 
 A very strong man could not lift the sick man, to make him lie 
 more easily, tho' he apply'd his utmost strength unto it; and 
 yet he could go presently and lift the bedstead and a bed, and 
 a man lying on it, without any strain to himself at all. Mr. 
 Smith dies. . , . After the opinio ft of all had pronounc'd 
 him dead, his countenance continued as lively as though he had 
 been alive. . . . Divers noises were heard in the room where 
 the corpse lay; as the clattering of chairs and stools, whereof 
 no account could be given." — Magnalia, ed. 1853, vol. I, p. 
 455. The account is vouched for by the author, who was one of 
 the most learned divines of his day. Another is given, among 
 the multitude of which he had the most convincing proof. He 
 writes: "It was on the 2d day of May, in the year 1687, that 
 a most ingenious, accomplish'd and well-dispos'd young gentle- 
 man, Mr. Joseph Beacon by Name, about 5 o'clock in the 
 morning, as he lay, whether sleeping or waking he could not 
 say (but he judged the latter of them), had a view of his 
 brother, then at London, although he was himself at our Bos- 
 ton, distanc'd from him a thousand leagues. This his brother 
 appear'd to him in the morning (I say) about 5 o'clock, at 
 Boston, having on him a Bengale gown, which he usually 
 wore, with a napkin ty'd about his head; his countenance was 
 very pale, ghastly, deadly, and he had a bloody wound on the 
 side of his forehead. 'Brother,' says the afif righted Joseph, 
 'Brother,' answered the apparition. Said Joseph, 'What's the 
 matter. Brother ? how came you here ?' The apparition replied, 
 'Brother, 1 have been most barbarously and inhumanly murdered 
 by a debauch' d fellow, to whom I never did any wrong in my 
 life. ' Whereupon he gave a particular description of the murderer ■, 
 adding, 'Brother, this fellow, changing his name, is attempting 
 to come over to New England in Foy or Wi/d; I would pray you 
 on the arrival of either of these, to get an order from the gov- 
 ernour to seize the person whom I now have describ'd, and then 
 
120 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 to Ericsfiord. The body was buried at the church.' 
 Gudrid went to Leif' s at Brattahlid, and Thorstein the 
 Black took his abode in Ericsfiord, and dwelt there as 
 long as he lived ; and was reckoned an able man. 
 
 VII. THORFINN KARLSEFITE'S EXPEDITION 
 TO VINLAND. 
 
 This was in many respects the most important expedition 
 to New England, both as regards the numbers engaged, 
 and the information and experience derived. We have 
 three different accounts of the expedition. The first is 
 from the somewhat lengthy Saga of Thorfinn Karlsefne, 
 in the Arnm-MagncBan Collection; the second is from the 
 Saga of Eric the Red, being called " The Account of 
 Thorfinn; " while the third is a briefer relation from Codex 
 Flatoiensis. The first two may be found in Rafn's An- 
 tiquitates Americans, pp. 75-200; while the last is also 
 given in the same work, on pp. 55-64. 
 
 The Saga of Karlsefne is occupied largely at the begin- 
 ning with accounts of various matters connected with social 
 life; yet, as such subjects are not essential to the treat- 
 ment of the voyage, they are all omitted, except the account 
 
 do you indict him for the murder of your brother.' And so 
 he vanished." Mather then adds an account, which shows that 
 Beacon's brother was actually murdered as described, dying 
 within the very hour in which his apparition appeared in Bos- 
 ton. He says that the murderer was tried, but, with the aid 
 of his friends, saved his Ufe. Joseph himself, our author says, 
 died " a pious and hopeful death," and gave him the account 
 written and signed with his own hand. While New England 
 history affords marvelous stories like this, men incline to ques- 
 tion an Icelandic writer, because he occasionally indulges in 
 things of the same sort. Rather should we look for them as 
 authentic contemporary signs, like the well-attested marvels that 
 disturbed the Wesley family. 
 
 ' Thorhild's Church. See AntiquitaUs Americana^ p. 119. 
 
America by the Northmen. 121 
 
 of Thorfinn's marriage with tlie widow of Thorstein 
 Ericson. 
 
 The notes to the narrative of Leif's expedition, which 
 precede this Saga in the chronological order, do awaj with 
 the necessity of treating a numbei of important points sug- 
 gested again in the present narrative. 
 
 It is believed that the principal manuscript of Thorfinn 
 Karlsefne is an autograph by one of his descendants, the 
 celebrated Hank Erlandson, the Governor or Lagman of 
 Iceland, in 1295, who also was one of the compilers of the 
 Landnama-hoh. Erlandson was the ninth in descent from 
 Thorfinn. Torfseus, who supposed that this manuscript 
 was lost, knew it only through corrupt extracts in the col- 
 lection of Biorn Johnson. 
 
 There will be found a substantial agreement between 
 the different accounts, notwithstanding they ma;y not have 
 been composed by eye witnesses. The differences are 
 evidently such as would not appear in the case of three 
 writers who had banded togethei for the purpose of carry- 
 ing out a historical fraud. The Saga of Thorfinn, we may 
 again remind the student, was written in Iceland, while 
 that of Eric was composed in Greenland. The account 
 from the Flato Manuscript was probably written in the 
 island which bears that name, and is extremely brief, 
 wanting many essential particulars. It is time, however, 
 that we had done talking about fraud in connection with 
 the work of the Icelanders, who knoM; no spirit of rivalry 
 and were not competing with any foreign claimants. 
 
 NARRATIVE OF THORFINN KARLSEFNE. 
 
 There was a man named Thord who dwelt at Hofda, 
 in Hofda- Strand. He married Fridgerda, daughter of 
 Thorer the Idle, and of Fridgerda, the daughter of Kiar- 
 val. King of the Irish. Thord was the son of Biarne But- 
 ter'-Tub, son of Thorvald, son of Aslak, son of Biarne 
 Ironsides, son of Ragnar Lodbrok. They had a son named 
 
 ' Byrdusmjor. 
 
122 Pjre-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 Snorre, who married Thorhild the Partridge, daughter 
 of Thord Geller. They had a son named Thord Horsehead. 
 Thorfinn Karlsefne^ was his son, whose mother's name was 
 Thoruna, Thorfinn occupied his time in merchant voy- 
 ages and was thought a good trader. One summer he 
 fitted out his ship for a voyage to Greenland, attended by 
 Snorre Thorbrandson of Alptafiord, and a crew of forty 
 men. There was a man named Biarne Grhnolfson of 
 Breidafiord, and another named Thorhall Gamlason of 
 Austfiord. These men fitted out a ship at the same time 
 to voyage to Greenhmd. They also had a crew ' of forty 
 men. This ship and that of Thorfinn, as soon as they 
 were ready, put to sea. It is not said how long they were 
 on the voyage; it is only told that both ships arrived at 
 Ericsfiord in the autumn of that year, Leif " and other 
 people rode down to the ships and friendly exchanges were 
 made. The captains requested Leif to take whatever he 
 desired of their goods. Leif, in return, entertained 
 them well and invited the principal men of both ships to 
 spend the winter with him at Brattahlid. The merchants 
 accepted his invitation with thanks. Afterward their goods 
 were moved to Brattahlid, where they had every entertain- 
 ment that they could desire ; therefore their winter quarters 
 pleased them much. When the Yule feast began, Leif 
 
 ^ "Karl" is the equivalent of the Anglo-Saxon "Carl," sig- 
 nifying a "Man." "Efni " finds its equivalent in the Latin 
 Materia, signifying "Stuff." "Mannsefni" stood for a "prom- 
 ising man," and "Karlsefni" foT a "real " or "sterUng " man. 
 The name was often used in the sense of a nickname, and indi- 
 cated that the person to whom it was applied was made of 
 " good stuff." See i?ifra, p. 148, n. i. 
 
 ^ Throughout this narrative of Thorfinn, the name of Eric 
 occurs where that of Leif should be given. Eric died five 
 years before Thorfinn came over to Greenland. This account 
 having been written in Iceland, the author made a very natural 
 mistake in supposing that Eric was still at: the head of the fam- 
 ily. The proper change has been made in the translation to 
 avoid confusion. 
 
America by the Northmen. 123 
 
 was silent and more depressed than usual. Then Karl- 
 sefne said to Leif : "Are you sick, friend Leif ? you do not 
 seem to be in your usual spirits. You have entertained 
 us most liberally, for which we desire to render you all the 
 service in our power. Tell me what it is that ails you." 
 " You have received what I have been able to ofEer you," 
 said Leif, " in the kindest manner and there is no idea in 
 my mind that you have been wanting in courtesy; but I 
 am afraid lest when you go away it may be said that you 
 never saw a Yule' feast so meanly celebrated as that which 
 draws near at which you will be entertained by Leif of 
 Brattahlid." " That shall never be the case, friend," 
 said Karlsefne, " we have ample stores in the sliip; take 
 of these what you wish and make a feast as splendid as you 
 please." Leif accepted this offer and the Yule began. So 
 well were Leif's plans made, that all were surprised that 
 such a rich feast could be prepared in so poor a country. 
 After the Yule feast, Karlsefne began to treat with Leif, 
 as to the marriage of Gudrid, Leif being the person to 
 whom the right of betrothal belonged. Leif gave a fav- 
 orable reply, and said she must fulfill that, destiny which 
 fate had assigned,^ and that he had heard of none except a 
 good report of him ; and in the end it turned out that 
 Karlsefne married Gudrid, and their wedding was held 
 at Brattahlid, this same winter. 
 
 [A. D. 1007.] The conversation often turned at Brattah- 
 lid, on the discovery of Yinland the Good, and they said 
 
 * Yule was a pagan festival held originally in honor of Thor, 
 the God of War, at the beginning of February, which was 
 the opening of the Northman's year. But as Christianity had 
 been established in Greenland for five years, the festival was 
 now probably changed to December, and held by the Church 
 in honor of Christ. 
 
 ^ Ante, p. 1 1 8. Widow of Thorstein Ericson. Rafn thinks, 
 as she is mentioned m this Saga by two names, Gudrid and 
 Thurid, that one was her name in childhood, and the other 
 in her maturer years, when Christianity came to have a prac- 
 tical bearing. Her father's name was Thorbiorn, derived from 
 
124 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 that a voyage there had great hope of gain.' After this 
 Karlsefne and Snorre made ready for going on a voyage 
 there the following spring. Biarne and Thorhall Gam- 
 lason, before mentioned, joined him with a ship. There 
 was a man named Thorvald, who married Freydis, natural 
 daughter of Eric the Red, and he decided to go with them, 
 as did also Thorvald, son of Eric.^ Thorhall, commonly 
 called the Hunter, who had been the huntsman of Eric in 
 the summer, and his steward in the winter, also went. 
 This Thorhall was a man of immense size and of great 
 strength, and dark complexion and taciturn, and when he 
 spoke it was always jestingly. He was always inclined 
 to give Leif evil advice. He was an enemy to Christianity. 
 He knew rfluch about desert lands; and was in the same 
 ship with Thorvord and Thorvald. These used the ship 
 which brought Thorbiorn from Iceland. There were in 
 all, forty men and a hundred.^ They sailed to the West 
 district [of Greenland] , and thence to Blarney ; * hence 
 
 Thor. It was supposed that those who bore the names of gods 
 would find in these names a charm or special protection from 
 danger. 
 
 ' It was gain, not glory. They never boasted of their voyages. 
 
 ° This is a mistake, Eric's son was dead and buried at Cros- 
 saness in Vinland. It must have been another Thorvald. 
 
 ' The Northmen had two ways of reckoning a hundred, the 
 short and the long. The long hundred was a hundred and 
 twenty. We read in Tegner's Frithiof s Saga: 
 
 " But a house for itself was the banquet hall, fashioned in fir wood; 
 Not five hundred, though told ten dozen to every hundred. 
 Filled that chamber so vast, when they gathered for Yule tide 
 carousing." 
 
 American ed., chap. Ill, p. 13. 
 
 Professor Rafn infers that the long hundred was here meant, 
 because he thinks that the central inscription on Dighton 
 Rock indicates CLI., the number of men Karlsefne had with 
 him, after losing nine. But are we sure that the Rock bears any 
 Runic letters ? 
 
 * The present island of Disco, also called by the Northmen 
 Biarney, or Bear Island. 
 
America by the Northmen. 125 
 
 they sailed south a night and a day. Then land was seen, 
 and they launched a boat and explored the land; they 
 found great flat stones, many of which were twelve ells 
 broad. There were a great number of foxes there. They 
 called the land Helluland.* Then they sailed a daj and a 
 night in a southerly course, and came to a land covered 
 with woods, in which there were many wild animals. Be- 
 yond this land to the south-east, lay an island on which 
 they slew a bear. They called the island Bear island, ^ and 
 the land, Markland. Thence they sailed long south by 
 the laud and came to a cape. The land lay on the right 
 [starboard] side of the ship, and there were long shores 
 of sand. They came to land, and found on the cape, the 
 keel of a ship, from which they called the place Kiar- 
 larness,^ and the shores they also called "Wonder-strand, 
 because it seemed so long sailing by.* Then the land be- 
 came indented with coves, and they ran the ship into a 
 bay,^ whither they dii'ected their course. King Olaf Trygg- 
 
 * The northern coast of America was called Helluland the 
 Great, and Newfoundland, Helluland, or Little Helluland. — 
 Antiquitates Americance, p. 419. The sailing time is put too 
 short. 
 
 ' Supposed to be the Isle of Sable, but probably not. 
 
 ^ Thorvald had left the keel of his vessel here on the point 
 of this cape, which was Cape Cod. In calling it by this name, 
 they simply followed his example, as in the case of Helluland 
 and Markland. 
 
 * Ante, p. 99, n. 
 
 ^ If correct in regard to the general situation, this bay was 
 probably the bay then situated between Point Gilbert and Isle 
 Nauset, which Professor Agassiz proves to have existed. The 
 writers do not mention this island in either of the accounts of 
 Thorfinn's voyage; but it has been shown that Isle Nauset 
 lay close to the shore, so that they might not know that it was 
 an island without particular examination; and, if they were 
 aware of its existence, it was not necessary to speak of it. Leif 
 landed upon it, and therefore, it was mentioned by the author 
 who wrote the account of his voyage. Yet Thorfinn's chron- 
 
126 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 vesson had given Leif two Scots/ a man named Haki and 
 a woman named Hekia; tliey were swifter of foot than 
 wild animals. These were in Karlsefne's ship. When 
 they had passed beyond Wonder-strand, they put these 
 Scots ashore, and told them to run over the land to the 
 south-west, three days, and discover the nature of the land, 
 and then return. They had a kind of garment that they 
 called kifal, that was so made that a hat was on top, and 
 it was open at the sides, and no arms ; fastened between the 
 legs with a button and strap, otherwise they were naked. 
 When they returned, one had in his hand a bunch of 
 grapes, and the other a spear of wheat. They went on 
 board and afterward the course was obstructed by anotlier 
 bay. Beyond this bay was an island,^ on each side of 
 
 iclers help to prove its existence, by showing that beyond Won- 
 der-strand there was a bay where they rode at anchor for three 
 days. It must be noticed that the events are not set down 
 in their exact order, for, after the writer gets the vessels into the 
 bay, he goes back to speak of the landing of the Scots, which 
 is often the case where a writer is full of his subject. Gos- 
 nold anchored in the same place in the night, and in the morn- 
 ing he remarked the number of coves, or as he calls them 
 "breaches," in the land. The Saga mentions the same thing, 
 saying, that the land "became indented with coves." These 
 coves have now disappeared, yet the testimony of Gosnold 
 seems to show how accurately the Northmen observed this part 
 of the coast. Like Gosnold, they found it convenient and safe 
 to lie here for awhile. See Ante, p. 99, on "Sloop Mary." 
 
 ^ This is the first we hear of slaves in Vinland. We have 
 already seen that among the proud Northmen, slavery, "thrall- 
 dom," was a reality. One of the near relations of Ingolf, 
 the first Northman who settled in Iceland, was murdered by 
 his Scotch (Irish) slaves. See on their dress, Rafn Antiquitates, 
 p. 140, note a. The grain found was called "Hveiti, " wheat, 
 or in general language "corn," not meaning the Indian maize. 
 
 " This, if we are correct, was Nantucket or Martha's Vine- 
 yard, then perhaps united, forming one island. Great changes 
 have taken place in that entire region. 
 
America by the Northmen. 127 
 
 wliicli was a rapid current, that tliej called the Isle of Cur- 
 rents.- There was so great a number of eider ducks * there, 
 that thej could hardly step without treading on their eggs. 
 They called this place Stream Bay.^ Here they brought 
 their ships to land, and prepared to stay. They had with 
 them all kinds of cattle. The situation ol the place* was 
 pleasant, but they did not care for any thing, except to 
 explore the land. Here they wintered without sufficient 
 food. The next summer [A. D. 1008], failing to catch 
 fish, they began to want food. Then Thorhall the Hunter 
 disappeared. 
 
 They found Thorhall, whom they sought three days, 
 on the top of a rock, where he lay breathing, blowing 
 through his nose and mouth, and muttering. They asked 
 why he had gone there. He replied thai this was nothing 
 that concerned them.^ They said that he should go home 
 with them, which he did. Afterward a whale was cast 
 ashore* in that place; and they assembled and cut it up, 
 not knowing what kind of a whale it was. They boiled 
 it with water and ate it, and were taken sick. Then 
 Thorhall said: "Now you see that Thor' is more prompt 
 
 ' Straiimey, or Straum Isle, which indicates the powerful 
 currents in this region. 
 
 " The gull, or some similar bird is here referred to. 
 
 ' Buzzard's Bay. See note to p. 101. 
 
 ^ The shore opposite Martha's Vineyard. 
 
 ^ It would appear from what follows that he was engaged in 
 a heathen invocation. This is the only instance on record of 
 honor being paid to this heathen god on the shores of New 
 England, yet we unwittingly recognize him every time we say 
 "Thursday," that is, "Thor's Day." 
 
 " In olden times a certain portion of every whale cast ashore 
 on Cape Cod, formed a perquisite of the clergy. Drift whales 
 were set apart to swell the fund in aid of building Trinity 
 church New York. 
 
 "^ Literally the Red-beard, as Thor, the Thunderer, was sup- 
 posed to have had a beard of that color. The principal deity 
 of the Northmen was Odin, a king who died in his bed in 
 
128 Pee-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 to give aid than jour Christ. This was cast ashore ae a 
 reward for the hymn which I composed to my patron 
 Thor, who rarely forsakes me. ' ' ' When they knew this 
 they cast all the remains of the whale into the sea, and 
 commended their aifairs to God, After which the air be- 
 came milder, and opportunities were given for fishing. 
 From that time there was an abundance of food ; and there 
 were beasts on the laud, eggs in the island, and fish in the 
 sea 
 
 They say that Thorhall desired to go northward around 
 Wonder-strand to explore Yinland, but Karlsefne wished 
 to go along the shore south. Then Thorhall prepared him- 
 
 Sweden, and was afterward apotheosized. He was called 
 the "Terrible god.'' The souls of men slain in battle were 
 received by him into the hall of the gods. Next was Frey, 
 considered a god of earth. Thor the Red-beard was synony- 
 mous with Jupiter. These three composed the supreme coun- 
 cil of the gods. Afterward came the good and gentle Balder, 
 with him came Brage, patron of eloquence and poetry, and his 
 wife Iduna, charged with the care of certain apples. Also 
 Heimdal the porter of the gods and builder of the rainbow, and 
 Loke, a kind of Satan or evil principle aided by his children, 
 the Wolf Fenris, the Serpent Midgard, and Hela or Death. 
 The American red-breasted Robin is sacred to the red-bearded 
 Thunderer; which explains the belief in some quarters, that 
 whoever injures a robin will be struck by lightning. 
 
 ^ The Saga has already stated {ante, p. 124) that Thorhall 
 " knew much about desert lands." He appears as a stubborn 
 and pronounced character, full of his own opinions. Now, 
 therefore, we have an illustration of the man. The critic 
 should place the man's character and attainments in connec- 
 tion with this performance, and note how thoroughly they are 
 in keeping. These statements are of the nature of undesigned 
 coincidences, and show here, as a multitude of instances 
 elsewhere demonstrate, that the writer was treating well- 
 known characters in connection with a well-known voyage. 
 These are the points which should be dwelt upon by the 
 student. 
 
America by the Northmen. 129 
 
 self at the island,- but did not have more than nine men 
 in his whole company, and all the others went in the com- 
 pany of Karlsefne. "When Thorhall was carrying water 
 to his ship, he sang this verse: 
 
 ' People said when hither I 
 Came, that I the best 
 Drink would have, but the land. 
 It justly becomes me to blame; 
 I, a warrior, am now obliged 
 To bear the pail ; 
 Wine touches not my lips. 
 But I bow down to the spring." 
 
 When they made ready and were about to sail, Thor- 
 hall sang: 
 
 " Let us return 
 Thither where [our] countrymen rejoice, 
 Let the ship try 
 The smooth ways of the sea; 
 While the strong heroes 
 Live on Wonder-strand 
 And there boil whales, 
 Which is an honor to the land." * 
 
 Afterward he sailed north to go around "Wonder-strand 
 and Kiarlarness, but when he wished to sail westward, they 
 were met by a storm from the wesi and driven to Ireland, 
 where they were beaten and made slaves. As merchants ' 
 reported, there Thorhall died. 
 
 ' This is obscure about the "island," but the statement 
 when duly considered proves again that we are reading a 
 genuine narrative, and that there was a well-known island at 
 this point. Every hiatus in the narrative must prove suggestive 
 to the critical mind. 
 
 ' This is Thorhall' s sarcasm. 
 
 ' The period of the Danish invasion of Ireland, which lasted 
 during two centuries, was nearly drawing to its close, and this 
 party of Scandinavians, speaking the language of the invaders, 
 fell upon the coast of Ireland in evil times, and were fortu- 
 nate in saving their lives, being recognized as foes of Ireland. 
 This is quite an unexpected evidence of the historic character 
 9 
 
130 Pee-Columbian Discovekt of 
 
 It is said that Karlsefne, with Snorre and Biarne and his 
 comrades, sailed along the coast south. They sailed long 
 until they came to a river flowing down from the land 
 through a lake into the sea, where there were sandy shoals, 
 where it was impossible to pass up, except with the high- 
 est tide. Karlsefne sailed up to the mouth of the river 
 with his folk, and called the place Hop.' Having come 
 to the land, they saw that where the ground was low 
 corn^ grew, and where it was higher, vines were found. 
 Every river was full of fish. 
 
 They dug pits where the land began, and where the 
 land was highest; and when the tide went down, there 
 were sacred fish in the pits.' There were a great number 
 
 of the Saga, which lands Thorhall at the right time to receive 
 the welcome due to invaders who had filled Ireland with fire 
 and blood for generations. 
 
 ' This may correspond to Mount Hope Bay. The Taunton 
 river runs through it, and thence flows to the sea by Pocasset 
 river and Seconnet passage. Hop is from the Icelandic / 
 Hopi, to recede, hence to form a bay. The coincidence in 
 the name is curious. The fact that there is no lake here has 
 been pointed out by one who appeared to have a fair equip- 
 ment for criticism; but who, nevertheless, failed to recognize 
 the fact that words equivalent to "Lake" were applied by 
 Scandinavians to arms and branches of the sea, as well to 
 waters entirely enclosed by land. In Scotland, where the North- 
 men colonized, and so generally employed their own nomen- 
 clature, the popular usage is that of the Scandinavians, arms 
 of the sea being, like the lakes, designated as "Lochs,'' while 
 the Irish have the word "Lough." The Icelandic, in this case, 
 is "vatn, " generally meaning "water," but in the present 
 connection it means a lake, like the English "Derwent Water." 
 Rafn translates it lacus. 
 
 " Wheat. Sialfsana hveitiakrar. 
 
 ' In Iceland the halibut is called the Sacred Fish. Pliny 
 uses the same name, which indicates that the water is safe 
 where they were found. The halibut and most of the flat fish 
 such as flounders, abound in that vicinity. The flounders are 
 
America by the Northmen. 131 
 
 of all kinds of wild beasts in the woods. They stayed there 
 half a month and enjoyed themselves, and did not notice 
 any thing; they had their cattle with them. Early one 
 morning, when they looked around, they saw a great many 
 skin boats, and poles were swung upon them, and it sounded 
 like reeds shaken by the wind, and they pointed to the 
 sun. ' Then said Karlsef ne, ' ' What may this mean ? ' ' 
 Snorre Thorbrandson replied, " It may be that this is a sign 
 of peace, so let us take a white shield and hold it toward 
 them." They did so. Thereupon they rowed toward 
 them, wondering at them, and came to land. These peo- 
 ple were swarthy and fierce, and had bushy hair on their 
 heads; they had very large eyes and broad cheeks. They 
 stayed there for a time, and gazed upon those they met, 
 and afterward rowed away southward around the ness. 
 
 Karlsef ne and his people had made their houses above 
 the lake, and some of the houses were neai the lake, and 
 others more distant. They wintered there, and there was 
 no snow, and all their cattle fed themselves on the grass.' 
 
 easily taken, and those who know how, often find them in very 
 shoal water, burrowing just under the surface of the sand like 
 a king crab. The Icelandic name of the hsh is Helgis fiskar 
 c-'nd the Danish, Heleflyndre, which Rafn exhibits as Pleor- 
 nectes Hippoglossus. Professor Horsford points out what he 
 believes to have been ancient pits to catch fish, on the Charles 
 river. 
 
 ' Davis, speaking of the natives of Greenland, in his voyage 
 of 1585, says, that, to indicate peaceful intentions, they pointed 
 to the sun with their hands, after striking their breasts, refus- 
 ing to trust themselves to the English until they had done the 
 same, through one of their number appointed for the purpose, 
 " who stroke his breast and pointed to the sunne after their 
 order." This pointing to the sun in token of peace, taken with 
 the description of the people, shows conclusively that the people 
 seen by Karlsefne and Davis may have been the same tribe or 
 race, formerly occupying a more southern locality. 
 
 ^ This is language that might be employed by an Icelander, 
 to indicate the difference between the new country and his 
 
132 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 But when spring came [A. D. 1009] they sa-w one morning 
 early, that a number of canoes rowed from the south 
 around the ness; so many, as if the sea were sown with 
 coal; poles were also swung on each boat. Karlsefne and 
 his people then raised up the shield, and when they came 
 together they began to trade. These people would rather 
 have red cloth; for this they offered skins and real furs. 
 They would also buy swords and spears, but this, Karl- 
 sefne and Snorre forbade. For a whole fur skin, the 
 Skraellings took a piece of red cloth, a span long, and 
 bound it around their heads. Thus went on their traffic 
 for a time. Next the cloth began to be scarce with Karl- 
 sefne and his people, and they cut it up into small pieces, 
 which were not wider than a finger's breadth, and yet the 
 Skraellings gave just as much as before, and more. 
 
 It happened that a bull which Karlsefne had ran out of 
 the wood and roared aloud; this frightened the Skrsel- 
 lings, and they rushed to their canoes and rowed away 
 toward the south. After that they were not seen for 
 three whole weeks. But at the end of that time, a great 
 number of Skraelling's ships were seen coming from the 
 south like a rushing torrent, all the poles turned from the 
 sun, and they all yelled very loud. Then Karlsefne's 
 people took a red ^ shield and held it toward them. The 
 Skrfellings leaped out of their vessels, and after this, 
 they went against each other and fought. There was a 
 
 own. It may have been an intentional exaggeration, similar 
 to those of Eric in describing Greenland. Yet even if it were 
 a serious attempt at history, it could not be regarded as far- 
 ther from the truth than Dr. Cotton IVfather's description of 
 the cHmate of New England, where he tells us, in his Christian 
 Philosopher, that formerly water, tossed up in the air, came 
 down ice; and that in one place in Massachusetts it actually 
 snowed wool, some of which he preserved in a box in his study. 
 See his "Christian Philosopher." Of late years the snow on 
 lower Cape Cod has failed to appear as formerly. 
 
 ' The red shield was the sign of war, and the white, of 
 peace. 
 
America by the Northmen. 133 
 
 hot shower of weapons, because the Skraellings had shngs. ' 
 Karlsefne's people saw that thej raised upon a pole a 
 very large ball, something like a sheep's paunch, and of 
 a blue color; this they swung from the pole over Karl- 
 sefne's men, upon the ground, and it made a great noise 
 as it fell down.* This caused great fear with Karlsefne 
 and his men, so that they only thought of running away; 
 and they retreated along the river, foi it seemed to them 
 that the Skrsellings pressed them on all sides. They did 
 not stop until they came to some rocks where they made 
 a bold stand. Fredps came out and saw that Karlsefne's 
 people fell back, and she cried out, " Why do you run, 
 strong men as you are, before these miserable creatures 
 whom I thought you would knock down like cattle ? If 
 I had arms, methinks I could tight bettei thau an^ of you. ' ' 
 They gave no heed to her words. Freydis would go with 
 them, but she was slower because she was pregnant; still 
 she followed after them in the woods. She found a dead 
 man in the woods; it was Thorbrand Snorreson, and there 
 
 ' Davis mentions their slings, and his general description of 
 the people agrees with that of the Icelanders. See Inventio 
 Fortunata. 
 
 ^ This can be explained. These people, doubtless, had their 
 own ideas of the best method of conducting a fight. They 
 were evidently Esquimaux, and formerly, according to Crantz, 
 appear to have lived on this coast before it was occupied by 
 the Indians, who, being a superior race, soon drove them away. 
 But by referring to Schoolcraft's work on the Indians (vol. 
 I, p. 83,) we find that such an instrument was actually em- 
 ployed in this country at a very early period. Schoolcraft 
 says that many generations ago the natives used to sew up a 
 round boulder in the skin of an animal and hang it upon a 
 pole which was borne by several warriors, and when brought 
 down suddenly upon a group of men produced consternation and 
 death. This mode of warfare, learned perhaps by the In- 
 dians from the Skraellings, has not been practised for the last 
 three hundred years, but prevailed at the period when the 
 Northmen were in America. 
 
134 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 stood a flat stone stuck in his head; tlib sword lay naked 
 by his side. This she took up and made ready to defend 
 herself. Then came the SkrajUing.' toward her; she drew 
 out her breasts from under her clothes and dashed them 
 against the naked sword. By this the Skrsellings became 
 frightened and ran off to their ships and rowed away.' 
 Karlsefne and his men then came up and praised her cour- 
 age. Two men fell on Karlsefne's side, but a number 
 of the Skrsellings. Karlsefne's band was overmatched. 
 Next they went home to their dwellings and bound up 
 their wounds, and considered what people that was that 
 pressed upon them from the land side. It now seemed to 
 them that it could have hardly been real men from the ships, 
 but that these must have been optical illusions. The Skrael- 
 lings also found a dead man and an axe lay by him; one 
 of them took up the axe and cut wood with it, and then 
 one after another did the same and thought it was a fine 
 thinor and cut well. After that one took it and cut at a 
 stone so that the axe broke, and then they thought that it 
 was of no use because it would not cut stone, and they cast 
 it away." 
 
 ^ In the Irish Saga of Cuchalain Hght is thrown upon the 
 action. It was considered by the Irish geis, or tabu, to be- 
 hold the exposed breast of a woman, yet the ladies of Emania 
 resorted to this course in order to restrain the king when rush- 
 ing upon his destiny. It is said, "He is the first of whom it is 
 re'^ounted that women uncovered before him their bosoms." 
 See Hyde's Literary History of Ireland, pp. 301-348. It 
 would appear that the idea prevailed among the Icelanders 
 also, and that Freydis used this means as a last resort, think- 
 ing that the enemy would be intimidated. 
 
 2 The narrator goes back to mention what appeared to him 
 curious incidents. These Skraellings were still in the Stone 
 Age, and evidently did not know the use oi iron. Stone was 
 the'r standard of excellence, and when the iron would not cut 
 the stone they threw it away. From the third account of 
 Karlsefne's expedition we shall see that the man killed was a 
 Skrselling. Abbott's researches show, beyond question, that 
 
America by the Northmen. 135 
 
 Karlsefne and his people now thought they saw, that 
 although the laud had many good qualities, they still would 
 always be exposed to the fear of attacks from the original 
 dwellers. They decided, therefore, to go away and to re- 
 turn to their own land. They coasted northward along the 
 shore ' and found five Skrsellings clad in skins, sleeping 
 near the sea. They had with thenj vesseh containing ani- 
 mal marrow mixed with blood. ^ Karlsefne's people thought 
 that these men had been banished from the land; they 
 killed them. After that they came to a ness, and many 
 wild beasts were there, and the ness was covered all over 
 with dung from the beasts which had lain there during the 
 night. !Now they came back to Straumfiord, and there was 
 a plenty of everything that they wanted to have. [It is 
 thus that some men say that Biarne and Gudrid stayed 
 behind and one hundred men with them, and did not go 
 farther; but that Karlsefne and Snorre went southward 
 and forty men with them, and were no longer in Hop 
 than barely two months, and the same summer came back.] ^ 
 Karlsefne then went with one ship to seek Thorhall the 
 Hunter, but the rest remained behind, and they sailed 
 northward past Kiarlarness, and thence westward, and the 
 land was upon their larboard hand. There were wild 
 woods over all, as far as they could see, and scarcely any 
 open places. When they had sailed long a river ran out 
 of the land east and west. They sailed into the mouth of 
 the river, and lay by its bank.^ 
 
 the Indian was preceded by a people like the Esquimaux, whose 
 stone implements are found in the Trenton gravel, large num- 
 bers of which are shown in the Peabody Museum, Cambridge. 
 See Abbott's work on "The Trenton Valley Stone Implements." 
 
 ' This may have been a short exploration up Narragansett Bay. 
 
 " The ancient Mexicans mixed human blood with bread offered 
 on the altar of their deities. 
 
 ^ The lines inclosed in brackets, convey what the writer 
 understood to be a mere rumor. This report was evidently 
 untrue, yet it shows his honest intentions. 
 
 *They appear to have sailed around Cape Cod, then steered 
 
136 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 It chanced one morning that Karlsefne and his people 
 saw opposite in an open place in the woods, a speck which 
 glittered in their sight, and thej called out towards it, 
 and it was a Uniped,^ which thereupon hurried down to 
 the bank of the river, where they lay. Thorvald Ericson 
 stood at the helm, and the Uniped shot an arrow into his 
 
 across to Plymouth, coasted up the shore and entered Boston 
 harbor, or some other river mouth. 
 
 ' Einfoeti?igr, from eifi, one, and fotr, foot. This term 
 appears to have been given by some old writers, to one of the 
 African tribes, on account of a peculiarity of dress, which 
 Wormskiold describes as a triangular cloth, hanging down so 
 low, both before and behind, that the feet were concealed. 
 In an old work called Rimhigla, a tribe of this class, dwelling in 
 Blaland, Ethiopia, are thus described. — Beamish, p. loi. We 
 do not say how far the Saga writer employs his fancy on the 
 Uniped, yet he is quite excusable, considering the weakness 
 of modern writers. In 1634, Hans Egede wrote as follows 
 about a hideous monster: "July 6, a most hideous sea monster 
 was seen, which reared itself so high above the water, that 
 its head overtopped our mainsail. . . . Instead of fins, it had 
 broad flaps like wings; its body seemed to be overgrown like 
 shell work. ... It was shaped like a serpent behind, and when 
 it dived, . . . raised its tail above the water, a whole ship's 
 length." — Egede's Greenland, p. 85; Crantz's Greetilatid, 
 vol. Ill, p. 1x6. Hudson even describe a mermaid. St. Augus- 
 tine in one place refers to Unipeds. 
 
 The Rev. Dr. Cotton Mather, who has before been quoted, 
 gives among other notable facts in his Magnalia, the state- 
 ment, that in June, 1682, Mary Hortado, of Salmon Falls, 
 was going with her husband ''over the river in her canoe, 
 when they saw the head of a man, and about three feet off, the 
 tail of a cat swimming before the canoe, but no body to join 
 them. ... A stone thrown by an invisible hand after this, 
 caus'd a swelling and a soreness in her head; and she was 
 bitten on both arms black and blue, and her breast scratched. 
 The impression of the teeth, which were like a man's teeth, 
 were seen by many." — Magnalia, vol. I, p. 454. 
 
America by the Northmen. 137 
 
 bowels. Thorvald drew out the arrow and said: "It has 
 killed me ! To a rich land we have come, but hardly 
 shall we enjoy any benefit from it." Thorvald soon after 
 died' of his wound. Upon this the Unipcd ran away to 
 the northward. Karlsefne and his people went after him, 
 and saw him now and then, and the last time thej saw him, 
 he ran out into a bay. Then they turned back, and a man 
 sang these verses: 
 
 The people chased 
 A uniped 
 
 Down to the beach. 
 Behold he ran 
 Straight over the sea — 
 Hear thou, Thorfinn ! 
 
 They drew off to the northward, and saw the country 
 of the Unipeds, but they would not then expose their 
 men any longer. They looked upon the mountain range 
 that was at Hop, and that which they now found,' as all 
 one, and it also appeared to be of equal length from 
 Straumfiord to both places. The third winter they were 
 in Straumfiord. They now became much divided by party 
 feeling, and the women were the cause of it, foi those who 
 were unmarried would injure those who were married, and 
 hence arose great disturbance. There was born the first 
 autumn, Snorre, Karlsefne 's son, and he was three years 
 old when they went away. "When they sailed from Yin- 
 land they had a south wind, and then came to Markland, 
 
 '■ Evidently this name is wrongly given; Thorvald Ericson 
 had been killed in a previous expedition. The second narra- 
 tive of Karlsefne says that this Thorvald was a relation of Eric. 
 
 2 Probably the Blue Hills of Milton, which are considered 
 as extending almost if not quite, to Mount Hops, in Rhode 
 Island. The distance is given conjecturally, but it shows 
 that the writer was describing a veritable voyage, reminding 
 one of some of the statements with regard to hills in Wey- 
 mouth's voyage to Kennebec. Some critics demand form 
 the Northmen more exact descriptions of the coast than are 
 given by many navigators of the seventeenth century. 
 
138 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 and found tliere five Skraellings, and one was bearded ; two 
 were females, and two boys; thej took the boys, but the 
 others escaped, and the Skraellings sank down in the 
 ground." These boys they took with tlieni; they taught 
 them the language, and they were baptized. They called 
 their mother Vathelldi, and their father, Uvsege. They 
 said that two kings ruled over the Skraellings, and that 
 one was named Avalldania, but the other Yalldidia." They 
 said that no houses were there. People lived in caves or 
 in holes. They said there was a land on the other side, 
 just opposite their country, where people lived who wore 
 white clothes, and carried poles before them, and to these 
 were fastened flags, and they shouted loud; and the peo- 
 ple think that this was White-man's land, or Great Ire- 
 land.' 
 
 Biarne Grimolfson was driven with his ship into the 
 Irish ocean, and they came into a worm sea,* and soon the 
 ship began to sink under them. They had a boat which 
 was smeared with oil, for the worms do not attack that. 
 
 ' That is, they fled into hiding places or got into under- 
 ground abodes. 
 
 '' If we are correct in supposing that there was a glacial 
 man, and that the Skraellings were descendants of such a gla- 
 cial man, it follows that we have in the Sagas foui of his words, 
 which may be the oldest known words of human speech: 
 Vathelldi, Uvaege, Avalldania, and Valldidia, the names of 
 the parents of the Skrselling boys, and of the two kings. At 
 least, in a recent note addressed to the writer, Prof. Max Mul- 
 ler says, that there is nothing in the language of the Esqui- 
 maux to prevent us from assigning it to an antiquity as high 
 as that of the supposed glacial man. See "Glacial Man," 
 etc. Popular S. Rev., xviii, p. 39. 
 
 ^ The location of this place will be discussed in the minor 
 narratives. 
 
 * This was the teredo, which is often so destructive, and 
 which caused Columbus to abandon a ship at Puerto Bello, be- 
 cause he could not keep her afloat. See Irving's Co/umdusy 
 p. 287. 
 
America by the Korthmen. 139 
 
 They went into the boat, and then saw that it could not 
 hold them all. Then said Biarne: ''As the boat will 
 not hold more than half of our men, it is my counsel that 
 lots should be drawn for those to go in the boat, for it shall 
 not be according to rank." This, thej all thought was so 
 generous an offer, that no one would oppose it. They 
 then did so that lots were drawn, and it fell to Biarne to 
 go in the boat, and the half of the men with him, for the 
 boat had not room for more. But when thej had gotten 
 into the boat, an Icelandic man that was in the ship, and 
 had come with Biarne from Iceland, said : ' ' Dost thou 
 mean, Biarne, to leave me here?" Biarne said: "So it 
 seems." Then said the other: " Yery different was the 
 promise to my father, when 1 went with thee from Iceland, 
 than thus to leave me, for thou said that, we should both 
 share the same fate." Biarne said, "It shall not be thus; 
 go down into the boat, and I will go up into the ship, 
 since I see that thou art so anxious to live." ^ Then Biarne 
 went up into the ship, and this man down into the boat, 
 and after that they went on their voyage, until they came 
 
 ' This was truly in accordance with the noble spirit of the 
 great Northmen, who had no feai of death, which to heroes, 
 is the shining gate of Valhalla, Biarne joined Karlsefne with 
 a ship. Anfe, p. 122, There may be some confusion here so 
 far as relates to the statement that the survivors reached Dub- 
 lin. Thorhall the Hunter, we are elsewhere told, was driven 
 to Ireland, but Biarne was not with him. The first narra- 
 tive states distinctly that he remained with Thorfinn Karl- 
 sefne, and only two ships are mentioned, his own and 
 Biarne's. It appears, however, that there was a third, probably a 
 small one, in which Thorhall, the Hunter, went northward around 
 Vinland. It may be perfectly true, that two parties from 
 Karlsefne's expedition finally brought up in Ireland, as the 
 annals of shipwreck furnish multitudes of most curious and 
 remarkable incidents which outdo the creations of romance. 
 See the recent case of the woman carried alone in a small fish- 
 ing vessel from the coast of England in a severe gale, and 
 cast upon the coast of Norway, 
 
140 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 to Dublin, in Ireland, and there told these things; but it 
 is most people's belief that Biarne and his companions 
 were lost in the worm sea, for nothing was heard of them 
 after that time. 
 
 THE ACCOUNT OF THORFINN. 
 
 That same winter [A. D. 1006-7], there was much dis- 
 cussion about the affairs of Brattahlid ; and thej set up the 
 game of chess, and sought amusement in the reciting of 
 history,' and in many other things, and were able to pass 
 life joyfully. Karlsefne and Snorre resolved to seek Yin- 
 land, but there was much discussion about it. It turned 
 out that Karlsefne and Snorre prepared their ships to seek 
 Vinland the following summer. [A. D. 1007.] In 
 this enterprise Biarne and Thorhall joined as comrades 
 with their own ship and crew, who were their followers. 
 There was a man named Tliorvald, a relation' of Eric. 
 Thorhall was called the Hunter. He long had hunted 
 with Eric in summer, and had the care of many things. 
 Thorhall was of great stature, large and swarthy face, 
 of a hard nature, taciturn, saying little of affairs, and 
 nevertheless crafty and malicious, always inclined to evil, 
 and opposed in his mind to the Christian religion, from 
 its first introduction into Greenland. Thorhall indulged 
 in trifling, but nevertheless Eric was used to his familiar- 
 ity. He went in the ship with Tliorvald, and was well 
 acquainted with uninhabitable places. He used the ship 
 in which Thorbiorn came; and Karlsefne engaged com- 
 rades for the expedition ; and the best part oi the sailors of 
 Greenland were with him. They carried in their ships 
 forty and a hundred men. Afterward they sailed to West 
 bygd and Biarney-isle. They sailed from Biarney-isle 
 with a north wind, and were on the sea a day and night, 
 when they found land, and, sending a boat to the shore, 
 
 ' Here we have a distinct evidence of the fact that history 
 was cultivated in Greenland. 
 
 ^ Here, the writer is correct. See ante, p. 1 24, n. 
 
America by the Northmen. 141 
 
 explored the land, where they found many flat stones of 
 such great size, that they exceeded in length the size of two 
 men. There were foxes there. They gave the land a 
 name, and called it Helluland. After this they sailed 
 a night and a day with a north wind. The}' came to a 
 land in which were great woods and many animals. 
 South-west, opposite the land, lay an island. Here they 
 found a bear, and called the island Bear island.' This land, 
 where there were woods, they called Markhmd. After 
 a voyage of a day and a night, they saw land, and they 
 sailed near the land and saw that it was a cape; they kept 
 close to the shore Avitli the wind on the starboard side, 
 and left the land upon the right side of the ship. There were 
 places without harbors, long shores and sands. When 
 they went to the shore with a boat, they found the keel of 
 a ship, and they called the place, Kiarlarness ;" and they 
 gave the shore a name, and called it "Wonder-strand, be- 
 cause they were so long going by. Then anothei bay ex- 
 tended into the land, and they steered into the bay.^ When 
 Leif was with King Olaf Tryggvesson, he sent him to 
 establish the Christian religion in Greenland ; then the king 
 gave him two Scots-folk, a man named Hake, and a 
 woman named Hekia. The king told Leif to take them 
 with his men, if he would have his commands done quickly, 
 
 ' Disco. 
 
 'See on all these passages, anfe, p. iii. It is rather ab- 
 surd to suppose that the Northmen would have stayed three 
 years at a point only three days' sail from Greenland, which 
 is the time given to the Keel Cape, without communicating 
 with home. We must extend the distance. 
 
 ' The same bay referred to in the previous account, and 
 which lay between Point Gilbert and Isle Nauset. Archer, 
 in his account of Gosnold's voyage, says, that when they 
 rounded Point Care, the extremity of Isle Nauset, "We bore 
 up again with the land, and in the night, came with it anchor- 
 ing in eight fathoms, the ground good." Here i1 will be seen 
 that the Northmen lay safely foi three days. An/e, p. 125. 
 
142 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 as they were swifter than beasts. These folk, Leif and 
 Eric gave to Ivarlsefne, as followers. When they were 
 come opposite Wonder-strand, they put the Scots on the 
 shore, and told them to run southward and explore the 
 county, and return before the end of three days. They 
 were thus clothed, having a garment called a Biafal;^ it 
 was made so that a hat was on top, open at the sides, with- 
 out arms, buttoned between the legs, and fastened with a 
 button and a strap; and the rest was bare. 
 
 They came to anchor and lay by until the three days 
 passed, 2 when they returned, one having in his hand a vine, 
 and the other, self-sown wheat. Karlsefue said that they 
 had found a fruitful land. Afterward they were received 
 into the ship, and they went on their waj until a bay in- 
 tersected the land. They steered the ship into the bay. 
 On the outside was an island,^ and there was a great tide 
 around the island. This they called Straumey,* There was 
 a great number of birds, and it was scarcely possible to find 
 a place for their feet among the eggs. Then they steered 
 into a long bay which they called Straumfiord, where they 
 landed from their ships and began to prepare habitations.^ 
 
 ' In the first account it is called a Kiafal, 
 
 " The Sloop Mary delayed under similar circumstances, 
 A?ite, p, 99, note, 
 
 ^ The agreement with the first account is substantial. 
 
 * This island may have been the modern Nantucket. See 
 ante, p. io8, n. 
 
 " The identification of particular localities may be interest- 
 ing, but it is not essential, so long as we are able to show the 
 general agreement of a description with some unmistakable 
 region. Torfteus found, in the various accounts, a region 
 which he expressed by a drawing, showing a large promontory 
 extending northward similar to Cape Cod, the general features 
 of which, in connection with the coast south and south-west 
 are well delineated in all the Saga descriptions of "Vinland, " 
 The temperature and productions of the country likewise agree, 
 and though the sailing distance in reaching the Keel Cape 
 {Kiarlarness) may be too short, we can easily understand how 
 
America by the Northmen. 143 
 
 They brought with them all kinds oi cattle, and they found 
 sufficient pasturage. There were mountains and the pros- 
 pect was pleasant; but they cared for nothing except to ex- 
 plore the land; there was a great abundance of grass. 
 Here they wintered, and the winter was severe, and they 
 did not have stores laid up; they began to be in want of 
 food and failed to catch lisli. So they sailed over to the 
 island,' hoping that they might find means of subsistence 
 either on what they could catch or what was cast ashore. 
 But they found but little better fare, though the cattle were 
 better off. [A. D. 1008.] Afterward they prayed to God 
 to send them food, which prayer was not answered as soon 
 as desired. Then Tliorhall disappeared and a search was 
 made which lasted three days. On the morning of the 
 fourth day Karlsefne and Biarne found him lying on the 
 top of a rock; there he lay stretched out, with open eyes, 
 blowing through his mouth, and muttering to himself. 
 They asked him why he had gone there. He replied that 
 it did not concern them, and not to wonder, as he was old 
 enough to take care of himself without their troublinff 
 themselves with his affairs. They asked him to go home 
 with them; this he did. After that a whale was cast up 
 and they went down to cut it up ; nevertlieless they did not 
 know what kind it was. Neither did Karlsefne, though 
 acquainted with whales, know this one. Then the cooks 
 dressed the whale and they all ate of it, and it made them 
 all sick. Then Thorhall said, "It is clear now that the 
 
 that came about, and can add to the time what may be needed ; 
 but we cannot modify the general description of the country 
 with its great cape, the passage around which is so many 
 times described. These general features are distinct and in- 
 destructible, and show conclusively that the Northmen in 
 their various expeditions were accustomed to sail around Cape 
 Cod, finding a rendezvous at the south or south-west not far 
 from the heel of the cape. 
 
 ^ This incident is not mentioned in the first narrative. We 
 repeat that the island may have been Martha's Vineyard. 
 
144 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 Eed-beard is more prompt to give aid than jour Christ. 
 This food is a reward for a hymn which I made to my god, 
 Thor, who has seldom deserted me." When they heard 
 this none would eat any more, and threw what was left 
 from the rock, committing themselves to God. After this 
 the opportunity was given of going after fish, and there 
 was no lack of food. They sailed into Straumfiord ' and 
 had abundance of food and hunting on the mainland, with 
 many eggs and fish from the sea. 
 
 Now they began to consider w^here they should settle 
 next. Tliorhal] the Hunter wished to go northward around 
 Wonder-strand and Kiarlarness to explore Yinland, but 
 Karlsefne wished to go south-west, thinking likely that 
 there would be larger tracts of country tlie further they 
 went south. Thorhall made ready at the island ^ and only 
 nine men went with him ; all the rest of the ship folk went 
 with Karlsefne. One day Thorhall was carrying water 
 to his ship; he drank it and sang this verse: 
 
 " People promised me when hither I 
 Caiue, then the best drink 
 I should have ; but the country 
 I must denounce to all ; 
 Here you are forced by hand 
 To bear the pail to the water, 
 I must bend me down to the spring ; 
 Wine did not come to my lips." 
 
 Afterward they left the land and Karlsefne went with 
 them to the island. Before they hoisted sail, Thorhall 
 sang these verses: 
 
 ' Observe that it is not said that they left the "island," 
 but that thev went to Straumfiord and hunted on the main- 
 land, which is another of the many coincidences agreeing with 
 the first narrative which mentions their leaving the island. 
 Such unexpected agreements should not be lost with students 
 really bent upon knowing the nature of these compositions. 
 
 ^ These narratives were originally recited, doubtless in the 
 hearing of some of those who had taken part in the ex- 
 pedition, — and what island was intended must have been clear 
 
America by the Nokthmen. 145 
 
 " Let us return 
 
 Home to our countrymen, 
 
 Let the vessel try 
 
 The broad path of the sea ; 
 
 While the peraevering 
 
 Men who praise the land 
 
 Are building ' and boil the whales 
 
 Here on Wonder-strand." 
 
 Thereupon they sailed northward around Wonder-strand 
 and Kiarlarness. But when they wished to cruise west- 
 ward, a storm came against them, and drove them to 
 Ireland, where they were beaten and made slaves. There 
 Thorhall passed his life.^ 
 
 Karlsefne, with Snorre and Biarne and the resi; of his 
 comrades sailed south. They sailed long until they came 
 to a river, which flowed from the land through a lake, 
 and passed into the sea. Before the mouth of the river 
 were great islands, and they were not able to enter the 
 river except at the highest tide.^ Karlsefne sailed into the 
 mouth of the river, and called the land Hop. There 
 they found fields, where the land was low, with wild corn, 
 and where the land was high, were vines. Every river 
 was full of fish. They made pits in the sand, where the 
 tide rose highest, and at low tide, sacred fish were found 
 in these pits, and in the woods was a great number of all 
 kinds of beasts. Here they stayed half a month, enjoying 
 themselves, but observing nothing new. Earlj one morn- 
 
 to them. These little omissions prove much to a critical mind. 
 Ante, p. 112, ?iote. 
 
 ' Notice the word building. Karlsefne evidently erected 
 some kind of structures as well as Leif, and their enterprise 
 seems to excite the ridicule of Thorhall. This version of his 
 song varies from the previous (p. 129), which does not mention 
 the building. 
 
 ^ The first narrative says substantially the same thing, 
 namely, that Thorhall died in Ireland. An^e, p. 129. 
 
 ^ The first narrative speaks of the shoals. Since that time 
 changes have taken place in the physical aspects of the region. 
 On the lake. See ante, p. 130, n. i. 
 10 
 
146 Pke-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 ing on looking around, they saw nine skin boats, in which 
 were poles that, vibrating toward the sun, gave oul, a sound 
 like reeds shaken by the wind. Then Karlsefne said: 
 ' ' What, think you, does this mean ? ' ' Snorre said : " It 
 is possible that it is a sign of peace ; let us raise up a white 
 shield and hold it toward them:" this they did. Then they 
 rowed toward them, wondering at them, and came to land. 
 These men were small of stature and fierce, having a bushy 
 head of hair, and very greal eyes and wide cheeks. They 
 remained some time wondering at them, and afterward 
 rowed southward around the cape.^ They built dwellings 
 beyond the lake, others made houses near the mainland, 
 and others near the lake. Here they spent the winter. 
 ]S"o snow fell,^ and all theii cattle fed under the open sky. 
 They decided to explore all the mountains ^ that were in Hop ; 
 which done, they [A. D. 1009] went and passed the third 
 winter in Straum bay. At this time they had much con- 
 tention among themselves, and the unmarried women 
 vexed the married. The first autumn, Snorre, Karlsefne 's 
 son, was born, and he [was three years old] when they went 
 away. They had a south wind, and came to Markland, 
 and found five Skrgellings, of whom one was a man, and 
 two women, and two were boys. Karlsefne took the boys, 
 and the others escaped and sank down into the earth. 
 They carried the boys away with them, and taught them 
 the language and they were baptized. The name of their 
 mother was V^atheldi, and their fathei', Uvsege. They said 
 
 ^ This narrative wholly omits the battle with the Skrsellings. 
 Each writer, as in the Gospel narratives, seems to dwell upon 
 the points in which he oi others felt a particular interest. 
 
 ' This might have been the case on some remarkable sea- 
 son like one well-known season in Iceland. 
 
 ^ This range extends to the Blue Hills of Massachusetts, 
 which indicates considerable activity in exploration {ante, p. 
 137). This Saga says distinctly that they expected to explore 
 the land. During the three years spent here Karlsefne must 
 have done much. 
 
America by the I'^okthmen. 147 
 
 that two kings ruled over the Skrsellinger's land ; one was 
 named Avalldania, and the other, Valldidia;* that they 
 had no houses, but lived in dens and caves. In another 
 part of the country, there was a region where the people 
 wore white clothes, and shouted loud, and carried poles 
 with flags. This they thought to be White-man's land. 
 
 After this they came into Greenland, and passed the 
 winter with Leif, son of Eric Red. Biarne Grimolf- 
 son was carried out into the Greenland ^ sea, and came into 
 a worm sea, which they did nol observe, until their ship 
 was full of worm holes. They considered what should 
 be done. They had a stern boat, smeared with oil. They 
 say that wood covered with oil the worms will not bore. 
 The result of the council was, thai as many should go into 
 the boat as it would hold. It then appeared thai the boat 
 would not hold more than one-half of the men. Then 
 Biarne ordered that the men should go into the boat by 
 lot, and not according to rank. As it would not hold all, 
 they accepted the saying, and when the lots were drawn, 
 the men went out of the ship into the boat. The lot was, 
 that Biarne should go down from the ship to the boat 
 with one -half of the men. Then those to whom the lot fell 
 went down from the ship to the boat. When they had 
 come into the boat, a young Icelander, who was the com- 
 panion of Biarne, said: " Now thus do you intend to leave 
 me, Biarne?" Biarne replied, "That now seems neces- 
 sary." He replied with these words: " Thou art not true 
 to the promise made when I left my father's house in 
 Iceland." Biarne replied: "In this thing I do not see 
 any other way; " continuing, " Whal course can you sug- 
 gest ? " He said, " I see this, that we change places and 
 thou come up here and I go down there." Biarne replied: 
 "Let it be so, since I see that you are so anxious to live, 
 and are frightened by the prospect of death." Then they 
 changed places, and he descended into the boat with the 
 
 ' See ante, p. 138, n. 2. 
 
 ' Also called the Irish Sea, and the sea beiore Vinland. 
 
148 Pke-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 men, and Biarne went up into the ship. It is related 
 that Biarne, and the sailors with him in the ship, perished 
 in the worm sea. Those who went in the boat, went on 
 their course until they came to land, where they told all 
 these things.^ 
 
 After the next summer, Karlsefne went to Iceland with 
 his son Snorre, and he went to his own home at Reikianess. 
 The daughter of Snorre, son of Karlsefne, was Hallfrida, 
 mother to Bishop Thorlak Runolfson. They had a son 
 named Thorbiorn, whose daughter was named Thoruna, 
 mother of Bishop Biarne. Thorgeii was the name of the 
 other son of Snorre, Karlsefue's son, father to Ingveld, 
 and mother of the first bishop of Brand. And this is the 
 end of the history. 
 
 THIRD NARRATIVE. 
 
 That same summer came a ship from Norway to Green- 
 land. The man was called Thortinn Karlsefne who steered 
 the ship. He was a son of Thord Horsehead, a son of 
 Snorre Thordarson, from Hofda. [Head] Thorfinn Karl- 
 sefne was a man of great wealth, and was in Brattahlid 
 with Leif Ericson. Soon he fell in love with Gudrid, and 
 courted her, and she referred to Leii to answer for her. 
 Afterward she was betrothed to him, and their wedding 
 was held the same winter. At this time, as before, much 
 was spoken about a Vinland voyage; and both Gudrid and 
 others persuaded Karlsefne much to that expedition. Now 
 this expedition was resolved upon, and they got ready a 
 crew of sixty men, and five women ; ^ and then they made 
 the agreement, Karlsefne and his people, that each of 
 them should have equal share in what they made of gain. 
 
 ' The first narrative (an^e, p. 139) says that they reached 
 Dublin. We have suggested that this statement was confused 
 with the case of Thorhall, who was carried there. The state- 
 ment of this narrative hardly allows us to suppose that the sur- 
 vivors reached Greenland, as clearly their fate was not known. 
 
 ' This account leaves out Biarne and Thorhall, who evidently 
 had two ships. A/iU', p. 139, n. 
 
America by the Northmen. 149 
 
 They had with them all kinds of cattle,^ having the inten- 
 tion to settle in the land, if they could. Karlsefne asked 
 Leif for his houses in Vinland, but he said he would lend 
 them, but not give them. Then tliej put to sea with the 
 ship, and came to Leif 's houses ^ safe, and carried up their 
 goods. They soon had in hand a great and good prize, 
 for a whale had been driven on shore, both large and ex- 
 cellent.^ They went to it and cut it up, and had no want 
 of food. Their cattle went up into the land ; but soon they 
 were unruly, and gave trouble to them. They had one 
 bull with them. Karlsefne let wood be felled and hewed 
 
 ' These could be easily carried, especially as their cattle 
 were small. The early Portuguese expeditions carried their live 
 stock with them. See "Prince Henry the Navigator." 
 
 ^ The different events are here stated with some rapidity 
 and we seem to reach Leif' s booths or huts sooner than neces- 
 sary. According to the two previous accounts, they did not 
 reach the locality of Leif's booths until the summer after they 
 found the whale. These booths, it would appear, were at Mt, 
 Hope Bay. This is either the result of confusion in the mind 
 of the writer, or else it is founded on the fact that Leif erected 
 habitations at 3o^/i places. In the first two accounts of Thor- 
 finn Karlsefne's expedition, Leifs booths are not alluded to. 
 There may be no real contradiction after all. 
 
 ^ The other accounts say that the whale made them sick; 
 but that was not because the flesh of the whale was spoiled. 
 Beamish, in his translation of the song of Thorhall, indeed 
 makes that disagreeable pagan tell his comrades, that, if they 
 wish, they 
 
 " Feti'f whales may boil 
 Here on Furdustrand 
 Far from Fatherland;" 
 
 but there is nothing in the text to throw suspicion upon the 
 whale. The trouble was, perhaps, that a sudden overfeeding 
 caused nausea, and the whale was thrown away afterward 
 in religious disgust. Yet the event is out of its chronological 
 order, and properly belongs in the account of the next year, 
 and gives only the favorable aspect of the case. 
 
150 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 for shipping, and had it laid on a rock to dry. They 
 had all the good of the products of the land, which were 
 these: both grapes and wood, and other products. Aiter 
 that first winter, and when summer came [A. D. 1008], 
 they were aware of Skraellings being there; and a great 
 troop of men came out of the woods. The cattle were 
 near to them, and the bull began to bellow and roar very 
 loud. With that the Skrgel lings were frightened, and made 
 oil with their bundles, — and these were of furs and 
 sables and all sorts of skins; and they turned and wanted 
 to go into the houses, but Karlsefne defended the doors. 
 Neither party understood the language of the other. 
 Then the Skraellings took their bundles and opened them, 
 and wanted to have weapons in exchange for them, but 
 Karlsefne forbade his men to sell weapons. Next he 
 adopted this plan with them, that he told the women to 
 bear out milk and dairy products to them. When they 
 saw these things, they would buy them and nothing else.^ 
 Now the trade for the Skraellings was such, that they 
 carried away their winnings in their stomachs; and Karl- 
 sefne and his comrades got both theii bags and skin goods, 
 
 ' The second narrative makes no mention of the barter, 
 while the first speaks of the anxiety of the natives to secure 
 red cloth {anife, p. 132). But this reference is perfectly consist- 
 ent with the first, the red cloth being exhausted, as appears 
 from the statement. Then, naturally, though it is not men- 
 tioned in the first account, the Northmen resorted to their 
 dairy products, which the natives, having no cattle, and not 
 knowing of such things, received with avidity. One writer was 
 thus more interested in the dairy, while the other was struck 
 by what had been told him respecting barter in red cloth. 
 Thus, wherever we turn in the Sagas, we find the statements 
 agreeing with one another at unexpected points, and supple- 
 menting one another, showing that there was a full and true 
 story of which each, with some slight differences, gave a ver- 
 sion. We repeat again, that this is the line on which the Sagas 
 should be studied. This internal evidence has been too much 
 neglected. 
 
America by the Northmen. 151 
 
 and so they went away. Next it is to be told that Karl- 
 sefne let a good strong fence be made around the habita- 
 tion, and strengthened it for defense.^ At this time 
 Gudrid,^ Karlsefne's wife, lay in of male child, and the 
 child was called Snorre. In the beginning of the next 
 winter came the Skreellings again to them, and in much 
 greater numbers than before, and with the same kind of 
 wares. Then said Karlsefne to the women, '' Now ye 
 shall carry out the same kind of food as was best liked the 
 last time, and nothing else. Then they saw that they 
 threw their bundles in over the fence, while Gudrid sat 
 in the door within, by the cradle of Snorre, her son. 
 There came a shadow to the door, and a. woman went in 
 with a black kirtle on, rather short, with a snood around 
 her head; clear, yellow hair; pale, with large eyes, so large 
 that none ever saw such eyes in a human head. She went 
 to where Gudrid was sitting, and said: " What art thou 
 called ? " "I am called Gudrid ; and what art thou called ? " 
 " I am called Gudrid," said she. Then the goodwife, 
 Gudrid, put out her hand to her, that she might sit down 
 beside her. At the same time Gudrid heard a great noise, 
 and the woman had vanished.^ At the same time one of 
 the Skraellings was killed by one of Karlsefne's housemen, 
 because he was about to take one oi their weapons ; and they 
 made off as soon as possible, leaving behind them goods 
 and clothes. No one had seen this woman but Gudrid. 
 
 ^ Possibly all evidences of this defense may have disappeared, 
 yet is it not improbable that such remains may yet be discovered 
 on Mount Hope Bay or in regions on the Massachusetts and 
 Maine coasts. Possibly camps of the Northmen were util- 
 ized by the Indians. See Prof. Horsford on * ' The Fort of 
 Norombega. ' ' 
 
 " This event belongs to the previous year. These facts are 
 not given in the other accounts, the writer appearing to have 
 different information. 
 
 ^ This is another somewhat marvelous occurrence, similar to 
 those with which Cotton Mathei and others were accustomed 
 to embellish New England history. It does not explain itself. 
 
152 Fre-Columeian Discovery of 
 
 *' Now," says Karlsefne, " we- must be cantious, and take 
 counsel; for I think they will come the third tmie with 
 hostility and many people. We shall now take the plan, 
 that ten men go out to the ness and show themselves there, 
 and the rest of our men shall go into the woods and make 
 a clearance for our cattle against the time the enemy comes 
 out of the forest; and we shall take the bull before us, and 
 let him go in front." So it happened, that at tlie place 
 where they were to meet, there wa? a lake on the one side, 
 and the forest on the other. The plan which Karlsefne 
 had laid down was adopted. The Skrajllings came to the 
 place where Karlsefne proposed to fight; and there was a 
 battle there, and many of the SkrseUings fell. There was 
 one stout, handsome man among the Skraelling people, 
 and Karlsefne thought that he must be their chief. One 
 of the Skraelhngs had taken np an axe and looked at it 
 a while, and wielded it against one ol his comrades and cut 
 him down, so that he fell dead instantly. Then the stoat 
 man took the axe,' looked at it a while, and threw it into 
 the sea as far as he could. They then fled to the woods 
 as fast as possible, and so ended the fight. Karlsefne 
 stayed there with his men the whole winter; but toward 
 spring he made known that he would not stay there 
 any longer, and would return to Greenland.^ Xow they 
 prepared for their voyage and took much goods from thence 
 
 ' For the previous versions of this affaii of the axe, see p. 
 134. This last account appears a little plainer, but is in agree- 
 ment with the first narrative, and also shows that Karlsefne had 
 a plan of campaign. 
 
 " It is true that he decided to leave the country, but he did 
 not carry out his intention until the following year, 10 10. 
 This narrative skips over all the events of the third year. It 
 is nevertheless given, in order that the reader may have the 
 fullest possible knowledge of any shortcomings that may exist 
 in the manuscripts. This is done with the more conf.dence, 
 for the reason that there is no doubt but that all the narra- 
 tives contain a broad substratum of solid historical facts which 
 there should be no difficulty in interpreting. 
 
Amekica by the Northmen. 153 
 
 — vines, grapes and skin wares. They put to sea, and tlieir 
 ship came to Ericsliord, and they there passed the winter. 
 
 The following summer* [A. D. 1011], Karlsefne went 
 to Iceland and Gudrid with him, and he went home to 
 Reikianess. His mother felt that he had made a poor 
 match, and for this reason Gudrid was not at home the 
 first winter. But when she saw that Gudrid was a noble 
 woman, she went home, and they got on well together. 
 Halfrid was the daughter of Suorre Karlsefneson, mother 
 to Bishop Thorlak Runolfson. Their son was named 
 Thorbiorn, and his daughter, Thoruna, mothei to Bishop 
 Biorne. Thorgeir was the son of Snorre Karlsefneson, 
 father to Ingveld, mother of the first Bishop Brand. 
 Snorre Karlsefneson had a daughter, Steinun, who married 
 Einar, son of Grundarketil, son of Thorvald Krok, the 
 son of Thorer, of Espihol; their son was Thorstein Raug- 
 latr. He was father to Gudrun, who married Jorund of 
 Keldum. Halla was their daughter, and she was mother 
 to Flose, father of Yalgerda, who was mother of Herr 
 Erland Sterka, father of Herr Hauk, the Lagman." An- 
 other daughter of Flose was Thordis, mother of Fru In- 
 gigerd the Rich; her daughter was Fru Hallbera, Abbess 
 of Stad, in Reikianess. Many other distinguished men 
 in Iceland are the descendants of Karlsefne and Thurid,^ 
 who are not here mentioned. God be with us. Amen.* 
 
 * From the statement at the end of the voyage of Freydis 
 (see p. 158), we learn that the summer in which he returned 
 from Iceland, Karlsefne went to Norway, and from thence the 
 following spring to Iceland. This does not conflict with the 
 statement in the above narrative, though at first it may appear 
 to. It does not say that he went the following summer from 
 Greenland to Iceland, but that on that summer, he went to 
 Iceland, which is perfectly true, tlio-igh poorly stated, and his 
 previous voyage to Norway being ignored. 
 
 ' Ante, p. 121. 
 
 ' Rafn says that " Thurid '' was another name for Gudrid. 
 Ante, p. 128, n. 2. 
 
 * In view of the facts of the case, the notion that any one 
 
154 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 VIII. THE VOYAGE OF FKEYDIS, HELGE, AND 
 FmBOGE. 
 
 This narrative is found in Antiquitates Americance, 
 p, 65. It shows that histor}^, among tlie Icelanders, was 
 not made subservient to family interests, and the truth 
 was told without respect to persons. At the conclusion we 
 have a (supplementary) notice of Thortinn and Gudrid, 
 after their retui'n to Iceland. 
 
 Now the conversation again began to turn upon a Vin- 
 land voyage, as the expedition was both gainful and honor- 
 able. The same summer [A. D. lOlOJ that Karlsefne 
 returned from Vinland, a ship arrived in Greenland from 
 Norway. Two brothers commanded the ship, Helge and 
 Finboge; and they remained that winter in Greenland. 
 The brothers were of Icelandic descent, from Earlfiord. 
 It is now to be told that Freydis, Eric's daughter, came 
 home from Gardar,^ and went to the abode of Finboge 
 
 of these Icelandic characters is to be viewed as " mythical," 
 or in the category with that of "Agamemnon," appears simply 
 preposterous. The history of the times proves that they are, 
 in the truest sense, historical characters. No genealogies, 
 apart from the Hebrew records, are better known than those 
 of prominent Icelandic families. There can be no reasonable 
 doubt cast upon the record which attests the family line of 
 Gudrid, the foundation of which was begun in New England, 
 furnishing an important part of the Episcopal succession in 
 Iceland. The attempt to question the record suggests, in a 
 feeble way, the method used to prove that no such person 
 as Napoleon Bonaparte ever existed. They are the work of 
 people who were in close touch with England and the Conti- 
 nent. In religion, they were under the supervision of the Roman 
 Pontiffs, who were familiar with their history and general con- 
 dition. Sagas and the Papal letters were synchronous. 
 
 * Gardar, it should be remembered, was the Episcopal seat 
 
America by the Northmen. 155 
 
 and Ilelge, and proposed to them that they sliould go to 
 Yinland with their vessel, and have half with her of all 
 the goods they could get there. They agreed to this. 
 Then she went to the abode of her brothei Leif, and asked 
 him to give her the honses he had built, in Vinland. He 
 answered as before, that he would lend, but not give, 
 the houses." It was agreed upon between the brothers and 
 Freydis, that each should have thirty fighting men, be- 
 sides women. But Freydis broke this and had five men 
 more, and concealed them. The brothers knew nothing 
 of it until they arrived in Yinland.^ They went to sea, 
 and had agreed beforehand to sail in company, if they 
 could do so. The difference was little, although the 
 brothers came a little earlier, and had carried up their bag- 
 gage to Leif's houses. When Freydis came to the land, 
 her people cleared the ship, and carried her baggage also 
 up to the house. Then said Freydis: "Why are you 
 carrying your things in here ? " " Because we thought, ' ' 
 said they, ' ' that the whole of the agreement with us should 
 be held." She said, "Leif lent the houses to me, not to 
 you. ' ' Then said Helge, ' ' In evil, we brothers cannot 
 strive with thee:" and bore out their luggage and made 
 a shed, and built it farther from the sea, on the borders of 
 a lake,^ and set all about it in order. Freydis had trees 
 cut down for her ship's cargo. Now winter set in, and 
 
 of Greenland. Freydis and her husband went to Vinland 
 with Karlsefne. It was she who intimidated the Skreeliings. 
 
 ' It would seem from this that the buildmgs were of a dur- 
 able character. 
 
 ' It appears that the route to Vinland had become so well 
 known, that the Saga writers no longer thought it necessary to 
 describe it. 
 
 ' Mount Hope Bay often appears like a lake. Brereton, in 
 his account of Gosnold's voyage, calls these same bays, lakes. 
 He writes: "From this [Elizabeth] island, we went right over 
 to the mayne, where we stood a wile as ravished at the beautie 
 and dilicacy of the sweetnesse, besides divers cleare lakes, 
 whereof we saw no end.'' 
 
156 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 the brothers proposed to have some games for amusement 
 to pass the time. So it was done for a time, till discord 
 came among them, and the games were given up, and none 
 went from one house to the other; and things went on so 
 during a great part of the winter. It happened one morn- 
 ing that Frejdis got out of her berth, and put on her 
 clothes, but not her shoes; and the weather was such that 
 much dew had fallen. She took the cloak ol hei husband 
 over her, and went out, and went to the liouse ol the 
 brothers, and to the door. A inan had gone out a little before 
 and left the door behind him half shut. She opened the door, 
 and stood in the doorway a little, and was silent. Fin- 
 boge lay the farthest inside the hut, and was awake. He 
 said: " What wilt thou have here, Freydis ? " She said, 
 " I want thee to get up and go out with me, for 1 would 
 speak with thee." He did so; they went to a tree that wa 
 lying under the eaves of the hut and sat down. " How 
 dost thou like this place ? " said she. He said, '' The coun- 
 try, methinks, is good, but I do not like this quarrel that 
 has arisen among us, for I. think there is no cause for it," 
 '' Thou art right," says she, " and I think so, too, and it 
 is my errand to thy dwelling that I want to buy the ship 
 of you brothers as your ship is larger than mine and I 
 would break up from hence." " I will lei it be so," said 
 he, "if that will please thee." Now they parted so and 
 she went home, and Finboge to his bed. She went up 
 into her berth and with her cold feet awakened Thorvard, 
 who asked why she was so cold and wet. She answered with 
 great warmth, " I went to these brothers," said she, " to 
 treat about their ship, for I want a larger ship,^ and they 
 took it so ill that they struck and abused me. And thou, 
 useless man ! will neither avenge my affront nor thy own. 
 Now must I feel that I am away from Greenland, but 
 I will separate^ from thee if thou dost not avenge this." 
 
 * Freydis was evidently the principal in most things. 
 " By Icelandic pagan law a woman could separate from her 
 husband for a slight cause. 
 
America by the IsTorthmen. 157 
 
 Then he could not bear her reproaches and told his men 
 to rise as fast as possible and take their weapons. They 
 did so and went to the huts of the brothers and went in 
 as they lay asleep and seized them all, bound them, and 
 led them out bound, one after the other, and Freydis had 
 each of them put to death as he came out. Now all the 
 men were killed, but the women were left and nobody 
 would kill them. Then said Freydis, " Give me an axe 
 in my hand." This was done, and she turned on those 
 five women and did not give ovei imtil thej were all dead. 
 Now they returned to their own hut after this evil deed, 
 and the people could onl}' observe that Freydis thought 
 she had done exceedingly well, and she said to her com- 
 rades, "If it be our lot to return to Greenland I shall take 
 the life of tlie man who speaks of this affair, and we shall 
 say that we left them here as we went away." Now they 
 got ready the ship early in the spring [A. D. 1011], which 
 had belonged to the brothers, with all the goods they could 
 get on that the ship would carry, sailed out to sea, and 
 had a good voyage, and the ship came early in the summer 
 to Ericsfiord. Karlsefne was there still * and had his ship 
 ready for sea, but waited a wind; and it was a common 
 saying that never a richer ship sailed from Greenland than 
 that which he steered. 
 
 Freydis went home now to her house which had stood 
 "without damage in the meanwhile. She bestowed many 
 gifts on her followers that they might conceal her wick- 
 edness, and she remained now on her farm. All were not 
 so silent about their misdeeds and wickedness that some- 
 thing did not come up about it. This came at last to the 
 ears of Leif, her brother, and he thought this report w^as 
 very bad. Leif took three men oi Freydis's followers and 
 tortured them to speak, and they acknowledged the whole 
 affair and their tales agreed together. " I do not care," 
 
 ' According to this statement, the expedition returned very 
 early, since Karlsefne went to Norway the same season, as pre- 
 viously told. 
 
158 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 says Leif, "to treat my sister as sbe deserves; but this I 
 will foretell them that their posterity will never thrive." 
 So it went that nobody thought any thing of them save 
 evil, from that time.' Now we have to say that Karlsefne 
 got ready his ship and sailed out to sea.' He came on well, 
 reached Norway safely, and remained there all winter and 
 sold his wares. He and his wife were held in esteem by 
 the best people in Norway. In the following spring, 
 he fitted out his ship for Iceland, and when he was quite 
 ready, and his ship lay outside the pier waiting a wind, 
 there came to him a south- country man, from Bremen, 
 in Saxon land, who would deal with him for his house- 
 bar.^ " I will not sell it," said he. " I will give thee half 
 a mark of gold for it," said the south-country man. Karl- 
 sefne thought it was a good offer, and sold it accordingly. 
 The south-country man went away with his house-bar, 
 and Karlsefne did not know what wood it was. It was 
 massur-wood * from Yinland. Now Karlsefne put to sea 
 [A. D. 1012], and his ship came to land north of Skaga- 
 fiord,^ and there he put up his vessel for winter. In spring 
 he purchased Glambneirland,* where he took up his abode, 
 
 ^ If this transaction had occurred during the previous cen- 
 tury, when paganism universally prevailed, the atrocious act 
 of the cold-blooded Freydis would have been the prelude to 
 almost endless strife. The teachings of the Church were slowly 
 telling upon the people. 
 
 ^ This account is supplementary to the foregoing and is 
 taken from the same work. Karlsefne, of course, sailed from 
 Greenland. 
 
 ^ Husasnotru has been translated "house-besom." The 
 exact meaning is not known. A besom-shaft would be too 
 small, however rare the wood, to be made into any thing of 
 great value. The bar for securing the house door was as com- 
 mon as necessary in every house, and this, perhaps, is what is 
 referred to. 
 
 * See note, p. io6. 
 
 ' In the north of Iceland. 
 
 • Not far from Skagafiord, in Iceland. 
 
Amekica by the Northmen. 159 
 
 and dwelt there as long as he lived, and was a man of great 
 consideration. Manj men are descended from him and 
 his wife Gudrid, and it was a good family. When Karl- 
 sefne died, Gudrid took the management of his estates, 
 and of Snorre, her son, who was born in Vinland. When 
 Snorre was married, Gudrid went out of the country, and 
 went to the south,^ and came back again to Snorre's estate, 
 and he had built a church at Glambse. Afterward Gudrid 
 became a nun, and lived a hermit's life, and did so as long 
 as she lived. ^ Snorre had a son called Thorgeir, who was 
 
 ^ It is understood that she went to Rome. It may be asked 
 why she did not spread the news ol hei son's voyage in those 
 parts of Europe whither she went, and make known the dis- 
 covery of the New World. To this it may again be repHed, 
 that the Icelanders had no idea that they had found a New 
 World, and did not appreciate the value of their geographical 
 knowledge. Besides, there is nothing to prove that Gudrid, and 
 others who went to Europe at this period, did not make known 
 the Icelandic discoveries. There is every reason for believing 
 that she did, and besides, moreover, that being a devout 
 Catholic she called attention to the condition of the people in 
 Greenland, where she found a priest on going to that country, 
 the priest introduced by the Christian Leif, and who clearly 
 did not lack a successor down to the time of the introduction 
 of the Episcopate in Greenland. Gudrid no doubt created what 
 may be called a sensation by her accounts of the world at the 
 West, and probably received authorization from the Pope to 
 undertake the religious life and work in Iceland. 
 
 ' It will be remembered that all this was foretold by her for- 
 mer husband, Thorstein Ericson, when life was revived in 
 the house of Thorstein Black, in Greenland; from which we 
 must infer that the voyage of Thorstein Ericson was composed 
 after, or during, the second widowhood of Gudrid, and that 
 circumstance, connected with Thorstein' s prophecy, were in 
 accordance with the spirit of the age, imagined in order to 
 meet the circumstances of the case (see p. ii8). That is to 
 say: Thorstein knew all about his wife's deep religious feeling 
 and of her favorable opinion of conventual life, and, in his 
 
160 Pbk-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 father to Bishop Brand's mother, Ingveld. The daughter 
 of Snorre Karlsefueson was called Ilalfrid. She was 
 mother of Ruiiolf, the father of Bishop Thorlak. Karl- 
 sefne and Gudrid ^ also had a son called Biorn. He was 
 father of Thoruna, the mother of Bishop Biorn. Many 
 people are descended from Karlsefne, and his kin have 
 been lucky; and Karlsefne has given the most particular 
 accounts of all these travels, of which something is here 
 related. 
 
 last hours, spoke of the probabilities of the case, as many 
 have done before, while some circumstances connected with 
 his prophecy were magnified. The entire matter bears the 
 stamp of the age, and is undoubtedly true, showing the power 
 of Christianity among a remote people in a distant age. 
 
 ' The relations existing between Leif Ericson and Gudrid were 
 fortuitous. It is said (p. 123) that Leif had the bestowal of 
 of her hand, and again (p. 148), that Gudrid referred Karlsefne 
 to Leif, yet Gudrid and Leif were not connected by family ties. 
 What is the explanation ? How did Leif acquire this influence ? 
 The answer is found in the fact that he saved Gudrid' s life in 
 the shipwreck and earned her gratitude. These undesigned 
 statements prove conclusively the solid historical character of the 
 narrative and show that the Sagas can stand the strictest internal 
 criticism. Ante, p. 148. Karlsefne is called son of Thord 
 " Horsehead. The Icelandic is Hesthofde. The father was called 
 Thord, of Horsehead, a place so called from its resemblance to 
 the head of a horse. 
 
MINOR NARRATIVES. 
 
 I. ARE M ARSON IN HVITRAM ANNA-LAND. 
 
 This narrative is from the Landiiama-hok, No. 107. 
 Folio; collated with Hauksbok, Melabok. and other manu- 
 scripts, in the Arnce-Magncen Collection. 
 
 It has frequently been observed that the Landnama-hok 
 is of the highest historical authority. It proves the fact, 
 that Rafn, the Limerick merchant, conveyed the narrative 
 relating to Marson, to Iceland from Ireland, wiiere the 
 circumstances of his voyage were well known. The 
 Laiidnama-bok, while it gives a tacit approval of the state- 
 ments of the narrative, does not enter upon the question 
 of the locality of the place to which Are Marson went. 
 Therefore, while we accept the narrative as genuine, we may 
 exercise caution in determinitig the locality of Hvitra- 
 manna-land. Nothing is to be gained by making any 
 forced deductions from the narrative; especially as the 
 pre-Columbian discovery oi America is abundantly proven. 
 
 It is perfectly clear that there was a country somewhere 
 on the Atlantic coast of North America, known as White- 
 man's Land, or Ireland the Great. It is equally clear, 
 from Icelandic testimony, from the Bull of Pope Gregory 
 IV. 835, from the Letter of Pope Nicholas V., 14-i8, and 
 Christophessen {ante, p. ), that Europeans were in 
 Greenland prior to Eric the Red, 985. Nor can there be 
 a reasonable doubt that the Irish were in America prior to 
 Eric. There is probably a truth behind the story of St. 
 Brenden, told in so many ancient manuscripts. One day 
 additional light will be thrown upon the story of Are 
 Marson, and a better understanding must, erelong, be 
 reached respecting the early social and commercial relations 
 that existed between Ireland and Iceland. 
 
 [162J 
 
America by the Northmen, 163 
 
 Ulf the Squinter, son of Hogni the "White, took the 
 whole of Reikianess between Thorkrafiord and Hafrafell;^ 
 he married Biorg, daughter of Eyvind the Eastuian,^ sis- 
 ter to Helge the Lean. They liad a son named Atli the 
 Red, who married Thorbiorg, sister oi Steinolf the Hum- 
 ble. Their son was named Mar oi Holum, who married 
 Thorkatla, daughter of Ilergil Neprass. She had a son 
 named Are, who [A. D. 928], wa.^ driven by a storm to 
 White-man's land,^ which some call Ireland the Great, 
 
 ' In Iceland the care bestowed upon genealogies is well 
 illustrated by the pains here taken to give the line of Marson. 
 It must be remembered again that Landnama-bok corresponds 
 with the Enghsh Doomsday Book, being devoted to a matter- 
 of-fact account of the people and theii lands in Iceland. 
 
 ' That is, the Dane. 
 
 ' Hvitraj7ianna-land. It will be remembered that in the 
 Saga of Thorfinn Karlsefne (p. 13S), this land was referred 
 to by the Skraelling boys whom he took prisoners and brought 
 up. They described it as a land inhabited by a people who 
 wore white clothes, carried poles before them, and shouted. 
 Yet the Saga writer there says no more than thnt the people think 
 that this was the place known as Ireland the Oreat. What the 
 Skrgellings say does not identify it with the land of Are Marson; 
 yet, in order to allow Professor Rafn, who held that this coun- 
 try was Florida, the full benefit of his theory, we give the 
 following extract from Wafer's voyage, which shows that, 
 in the year 1681, when he visited the Isthmus of Darien, 
 there were people among the natives who answered toler- 
 ably well to the description given in Karlsefne 's narrative. 
 Wafer says: " They are white, and there are them of both sexes; 
 yet there were few of them in comparison of the copper 
 colored, possibly but one to two or three hundred. They 
 differ from the other Indians, chiefly in respect of color, 
 though not in that only. Their skins are not of such a white, 
 as those of fair people among Europeans, with some tincture 
 of a blush or sanguine complexion; neither is their complexion 
 like that of our paler people, but 'tis rather a milk-white, 
 lighter than the color of any Europeans, and much like that 
 11 
 
164 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 which lies in the Western ocean opposite Yinland, six ' 
 days' sail west of Ireland. Are was not allowed to go 
 
 of a white horse. . . . Their bodies are beset all over, more or 
 less, with a fine, short, milk-white down. . . .The men would 
 probably have white bristles for beards, did they not prevent 
 them by their custom of plucking the young beard up by the 
 roots. . . .Their eyebrows are milk-white also, and so is the 
 hair of their heads," p. 107. He also adds, that "The men 
 have a value for Cloaths, and if any of them had an old shirt 
 given him by any of us, he would be sure to weai it, and strut 
 about at no ordinary rate. Besides this, they have a sort of 
 long cotton garments of theii own, some white, and others of 
 a rusty black, shaped like our carter's frocks, hanging down 
 to their heels, with a fringe of the same of cotton, about a 
 span long, and short, wide, open sleeves, reaching but to the 
 middle of their arms. . . .They are worn on some great oc- 
 casions. . . . When they are assembled, they will sometimes walk 
 about the place or plantation where they are, with these their 
 robes on. And once I saw Tacenta thus walking with two or 
 three hundred of these attending him, as if he was mustering 
 them. And I took notice that those in the black gowns walked 
 before him, and the white after him, each having their lances 
 of the same color with their lobes." These resemblances are 
 at least curious, but historians will ask for more solid proof 
 of the identity of the two people. 
 
 ^ Professor Rafn, in what seems to the author, his needless 
 anxiety to fix the exact locality of the White-man's land, 
 says that, as this part of the manuscript is difficult to de- 
 cipher, the original letters may have gotten changed, and vi 
 inserted instead of xx or xi, which numerals would afford time 
 for the voyager to reach the coast of America, in the vicinity 
 of Florida. Smith, in his Dialogues, has suppressed the term 
 six altogether, and substituted "by a number of days' sail 
 unknown." This at least is trifling with the subject. In 
 Gronland'' s Historiske Mitidesmoerker ^ chiefly the work of 
 Finn Magnussen, no question is raised on this point. The 
 various versions all give the numbei six, which limits the voyage 
 to the vicinity of the Azores. Schoning, to whom we are 
 
America by the Nokthmen. 165 
 
 away, and was baptized ' there. This was first told by 
 Rafn, the Limerick trader, who lived for a long time in 
 Ireland. So also Thorkel, son ol Geller, tells that certain 
 
 so largely indebted for the best edition of Heimskringla, lays 
 the scene of Marson's adventure at those islands, and suggests 
 that they may at thai time have covered a largei extent of terri- 
 tory than the present, and that they may have suffered from 
 earthquakes and floods, adding "It is likely, and all circum- 
 stances show, that the said land has been a piece of North 
 America." This is a bold, yet not very reasonable hypoth- 
 esis, though the volcanic character of the islands is well 
 known. In 1808, a volcanic mountain rose to the height 
 of 3,500 feet. Yet Schoning's suggestion is not needed. 
 The fact that the islands were not inhabited when discovered 
 by the Portuguese does not, however, settle any thing against 
 Schoning, because, in the course of five hundred years, the 
 people might either have migrated, or been swept away by 
 pestilence. Gronland'' s Histoi-iske Mindestnoo-kei' (vol. I, p. 
 150) says simply, that "It is thought that he (Are Marson) 
 ended his days in America, or at all events in one ol the larger 
 islands of the west. Some think that it was one of the Azore 
 islands. ' ' Upon the whole, we ourselves believe to the contrary. 
 The proper method seems to be that of Rafn, who would 
 correct the text. 
 
 ' The fact that Are Marson is said to have been baptized in 
 Ireland the Great does not prove that the place, wherever 
 located, was inhabited by a colony of Irish Christians. Yet 
 this view was urged by Professor Rafn and others, who held 
 that Great Ireland was situated in Florida. A Shawanese 
 tradition is given to prove that Florida was early settled by 
 white men from over the sea. We read that in 1818, "the 
 Shawanese were estabhshed in Ohio, whither they came from 
 Florida. Black Hoof, then eighty-five years old, was born 
 there, and remembered bathing in the sea. He told the 
 Indian Agent, that the people of his tribe had a tradition, that 
 their ancestors came over the sea, and that for a long time 
 they kept a yearly sacrifice for their safe arrival." — Archcuo- 
 logia Americana, vol. I, p. 273. Yet these Indians, the sup- 
 
166 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 Icelanders said, who heard Thorfinn, Earl oi the Orkneys, 
 say, that Are had been seen and known in White-man's 
 land, and that, though not allowed to leave, he was held 
 in much honor. Are had a wife named Thorgeir, daugh- 
 ter of Alf of Dolum. Theii sons were Thorgils, Gudleif 
 and Illuge, which is the family of Reikianess. Jorund 
 was the son of Ulf the Squinter. He married Thorbiorg 
 Knarrabringa. They had a daughter, Thorhild, whom 
 Eric the Red married. They had a son, Leif the Fortu- 
 nate of Greenland. Jorund was the name of the son of 
 Atli the Red; he married Thordis, daughter of Thorgeir 
 Suda; their daughter was Thorkatla, who married Thor- 
 gils Kollson. Jorund was also the father of Snorre.^ 
 
 II. BioRN asbrandso:n". 
 
 This narrative is taken from Eyrbyggia Saga, which 
 contains the early history of that part of Iceland lying 
 around Snasfells, on the west coast. The Saga is not of 
 a later date than the thirteenth century. Il is given here, 
 not because it applies largely to the main question under 
 
 posed descendants of eminently pious Christians from Ireland, 
 were not inclined to Christianity, and had no Christian 
 traditions. It is more reasonable, to allow that six, should 
 mean eleven or twenty days' sail, notwithstanding there is 
 difficulty in finding the white men for the land in question. 
 It will be found by the study of the subject of complexion in 
 historical narratives that the terms "white," "black," and 
 "red" are used comparatively. See Verrazano the Explorer, 
 p. 27. 
 
 ' It will appear from this genealogical account, that Are 
 Marson was no obscure or mythological character. In 981 
 he was one of the principal men of Iceland, and is highly 
 spoken of. Yet his connection with Ireland the Great was 
 undoubtedly real. This view will repay investigation. The 
 other characters mentioned aie equally well known. See Anti- 
 ^m fates AniericancB, pp. 2 1 1 - 1 2 . 
 
America by the Northmen'. 167 
 
 consideration, the pre-Columbian discovery of America, 
 but rather, because it will make the reader fully ac- 
 quainted with the hero, who afterward appears. 
 
 Bork the Fat, and Thordis, daughter of Sur, had a 
 daughter named Thurid, who married Thorbiorn the Fat, 
 living on the estate of Froda. He was a son of Orne 
 the Lean, who held and tilled the farm of Froda. Thor- 
 biorn had before been n^arried to Thurid, daughter of 
 Asbrand, of Kamb, in Breidavik, and sister of Biorne 
 Breidaviking the Athlete, soon to be nicntioned in this 
 Saga, and of Arnbiorn the Handy. The sons of Thorbiorn 
 and Thurid were Ketil the Chanipion, Gunnlaug and 
 Hallstein 
 
 Now this n.ust be related of Snorre the Priest,' that he 
 undertook the suit for the slaying of Thorbiorn, his kins- 
 n^an. He also caused his sister to remove to his own 
 home, at Helgefell, because it was told that Biorn Asbrand, 
 of Kamb, had come to pay her improper attention. 
 
 There was a man named Thorodd, of Medalfells Strand, 
 an upright man and a good merchant. He owned a trading 
 vessel in which he sailed to distant lands. Thorodd had 
 sailed to the west,' to Dublin, on a trading voyage. At 
 that time, Sigurd ' Hlodverson, Earl oi the Orkneys, had 
 made an expedition toward the west, to the Hebrides and 
 
 ' Priest or Gode. This was the heathen priest of Iceland, 
 whose duty was to provide the temple offerings, for which pur- 
 pose a contribution was made by every farm in the vicinity. 
 This office was also united with that of chiei judge and advo- 
 cate, and for the cases conducted by him at the Thing he re- 
 ceived the customary fees; yet he was obliged to depend for 
 his support, mainly, upon the products of his farm. The 
 office was hereditary, but could be sold, assigned, or forfeited, 
 though men of character and ability, could, independently 
 of such means, establish themselves in the priesthood. 
 
 2 Ireland was regarded west in respect to Scandinavia. 
 
 3 Killed in Ireland in a battle, 1013. 
 
168 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 the Man, and had laid a tribute upon the habitable part of 
 Man,^ Having- settled the peace, he left men to collect the 
 tribute; the earl himself returned to the Orkneys. Those 
 who were left to collect the tribute, got all ready and set 
 sail with a south-west wind. But after they had sailed 
 some time, to the south-east and east, a great storm arose, 
 which drove them to the northward as far as Ireland, and 
 their vessel was cast away on a barren, uninhabited island. 
 Just as they reached the island, Thorodd the Icelander 
 came sailing by from Dublin. The shipwrecked men 
 begged for aid. Thorodd put out a boat and went to them 
 himself. When he reached them, the agents of Sigurd 
 promised him money if he would carry them to their home 
 in the Orkneys. When he told them that he could by 
 no means do so, as he had made all ready to go back to 
 Iceland, they begged the harder, believing that neither 
 their money nor their liberty would be safe in Ireland or 
 the Hebrides, whither they had just before been with a 
 hostile army. At length Thorodd came to this, that he 
 would sell them his ship's long-boat for a large sum of 
 the tribute money; in this they reached the Orkneys, 
 and Thorodd sailed to Iceland without a boat. Having 
 reached the southern shores of the island, he laid hie course 
 along the coast to the westward, and entered Breidafiord, 
 and came to the harbor at Dogurdarness. The same 
 autumn he went to Helgefell to spend the winter with 
 Snorre the Priest, and from that time he was called Tho- 
 rodd the Tribute Taker. This took place just after the 
 murder of Thorbiorn the Fat. During the same winter 
 Thurid, tlie sister of Snorre the Priest, who had been the 
 wife of Thorbiorn the Fat, was at Helgefell. Thorodd 
 mad 3 proposals of marriage to Snorre the Priest, with re- 
 spect to Thurid. Being rich and known by Snorre to be 
 of good repute and that he would be useful in supporting 
 his administration of affairs, he consented. Therefore 
 
 ' Probably the present "Isle of Man," which still retains 
 " Manx " law. 
 
America by the Northmen. 169 
 
 their marriage was celebrated during this winter at Snorre's 
 house, at Plelgefell. In the following spring Thorodd 
 set himself up at Froda and was thought an ui^right man. 
 But when Thurid went to Froda, Biorn Asbrandson 
 often paid her visits, and it was commonly reported that 
 he had corrupted her chastity. Thorodd vainly tried to 
 put an end to these visits. At that time Thorodd Wooden 
 Clog lived at Arnahval. His sons, Ord and Val were 
 men grown and youths oi the greatest promise. The men 
 blamed Thorodd for allowing himself to be insulted so 
 greatly by Biorn, and offered him their aid, il desired, to 
 end his coming. It chanced one time when Biorn came 
 to Froda, that he sat with Thurid talking. It was Thorodd's 
 custom when Biorn was there to sit in the house. But 
 he was now nowhere to be seen. Then Thurid said, "Take 
 care, Biorn, for I fear Thorodd means to put a stop to 
 your visits here; I think he has secured the road and 
 means to attack you and overjjower you with unequal 
 numbers." Biorn replied, "That is possible," and then 
 sang these verses: 
 
 O Goddess ' whom bracelet adorns, 
 
 This day (I linger 
 
 In my beloved's arms) 
 
 Stay longest in the heavens, 
 
 As we both must wish ; 
 
 For I this night am drawn 
 
 To drink myself the parentals ' 
 
 Of my oft-departing joys. 
 
 Having done this Biorn, took his weapons and went to 
 return home. As he went up the hill Digramula five men 
 jmnped out upon him from their hiding place. These 
 were Thorodd and two of his men, and the sons of Thoror 
 Wooden Clog. They attacked Biorn, but he defended 
 himself bravely and well. The sons of Thoror pressed 
 him sharply, but he slew them both. Thorodd then 
 
 ' Literally, woman, with reference to Jord, the Earth, one 
 of the wives of Odin, and ailso mothei of Thor. 
 ^ Funeral cups. 
 
170 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 fled with his men, though he himself had only a slight 
 wound, and the others not any. Biorn went on until he 
 reached home and entered the house. The lady of the 
 house- ordered a maid to place food before him. When 
 the maid came into the room with the light and saw Biorn 
 wounded, she went and told Asbrand, his father, that 
 Biorn had returned covered with blood. Asbrand came 
 into the room and inquired what was the cause of his 
 wounds. He said, " Have you and Thorodd had a fight ? " 
 Biorn replied that it was so. Asbrand asked how the 
 affair had ended. Biorn replied with these verses: 
 
 Not so easy against a brave man 
 
 It is to fight ; 
 
 (Wooden Clog's two sons 
 
 Now I have slain). 
 
 As for the ship's commander, 
 
 A woman to embrace, 
 
 Or for the cowardly, 
 
 A golden tribute to buy.' 
 
 Asbrand bound up his son's wounds, and his strength 
 was soon restored. Thorodd went to Snorre the Priest, 
 to talk with him about setting a suit on foot against Biorn, 
 on account of the killing of Thoror's sons. This suit was 
 held in the court of Thornesthing. It was settled that 
 Asbrand, who became surety for his son. should paj the 
 usual fines. Biorn was exiled for three years ^ and went 
 abroad the same summer. During that summer, a son 
 was born to Thurid who was called Kiarten. He grew 
 up at home in Froda, and early gave great hope and 
 promise. 
 
 When Biorn crossed the sea he came into Denmark, 
 and went thence to Jomsberg. At that lime Palnatoki 
 was captain of the Jomsberg * Vikings. Biorn was ad- 
 
 ' Biorn's mother. 
 
 ' This is a fling at Thorodd the Tribute Taker. 
 
 ^ This shows, that while Biorn killed the men in self-defense, 
 it was the opinion of the court that he did not get what he 
 deserved. 
 
 * Jomsberg was the headquarters of an ordei of vikings or 
 
America by the Northmen. 171 
 
 mitted into the crew and won the name of the Athlete. 
 He was at Jomsberg when Styrbiorn the Hardj assaulted 
 it. He went into Sweden, when the Jomsberg Yikings 
 aided Styrbiorn;' he was in the battle of Tynsvall, in which 
 
 pirates, where a castle was also built by King Harold Blaat- 
 and of Denmark. It was situated on one of the outlets of the 
 Oder, on the coast of Pomerania, and was probably identical 
 with Julian, founded by the Wends, being recognized as the 
 island of Wallin, which Adam of Bremen, in the eleventh 
 century, described as the largest and most flourishing com- 
 mercial city in Europe. Burislaus, king of the Wends, sur- 
 rendered the neighboring territory into the hands of Palnatoki, 
 a great chief of Fionia, who ■ was pledged to his support. 
 Accordingly he bull*- a stronghold here, and organized a band 
 of pirates, commonly called vikings, though it must be ob- 
 served that while every viking was a pirate, every pirate was 
 not a viking. Only the pirates of princely blood were 
 properly called vikings, or sea-kings, who haunted the vicks, 
 or bays, and thus derived their name. The Jomsvikings were 
 distinguished for their rare courage, and for the fearlessness 
 with which they faced death. They were governed by strict 
 laws, hedged about by exact requirements, and were also, it 
 is said pledged to celibacy. Jomsberg was destroyed about the 
 year 1175, by Waldemar the Great, of Denmark, aided by 
 the Princes of Germany and the Chief, Barbarossa. Those 
 of the pirates who survived, escaped to a place neai the mouth 
 of the Elbe, where a few years after, they were annihilated by 
 the Danes, who in the reign ol Canute VI completely destroyed 
 their stronghold. Accounts of their achievements may be 
 found in the Saga of King Olaf Tryggvesson (vol. I of Laing's 
 Heimskringla) . The Icelanders sometimes joined the Nor- 
 way pirates, as was the case with Biorn, but they did not send 
 out pirate ships from Icelandic ports. Palnatoki died in the 
 yeai 993. 
 
 - Styrbiorn, son of King Olaf, ruled Sweden in connection 
 with Eric, called the Victorious. Styrbiorn' s ambition, to 
 which was added the crime of murder, led to his disgrace. 
 He joined the vikings, adding sixty ships to their force. He 
 
172 Pke-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 Styrbiorn was killed, and escaped with the other Joms- 
 vikings into the woods. "While Palnatoki lived, Biorn 
 remained with him, distinguished among all, as a man of 
 remarkable courage. 
 
 The same summer [A. D. 996], the brothers, Biorn 
 and Arnbiorn returned into Iceland to Ronhavnsos. 
 Biorne was always afterwards called the Athlete of Brei- 
 dav^ik. Arnbiorn, who had gotten much wealth abroad, 
 bought the Ba.kka estate in Raunhavn, the same smnmer, 
 lie lived there with little show or ostentation, and, in most 
 affairs, was silent, but was, nevertheless, a man active in 
 all things. Biorn, his brother, after his return from 
 abroad, lived in splendor and elegance, for during his ab- 
 sence, he had truly adopted the manners of courtiers. 
 He much excelled Arnbiorn in personal appearance, and 
 was none the less active in execution. He was far more 
 expert than his brother in martial exercises, having im- 
 proved much abroad. The same summer after his return, 
 there was a general meeting near Headbrink,^ within the 
 bay of Froda. All the merchants rode thither, clothed in 
 colored garments, and there was a great assembly. House 
 wife Thurid of Froda was there, with whom Biorn began 
 to talk ; no one censuring, because they expected their con- 
 versation would be long, as they had not seen each other 
 for a great while. On the same day there was a fight, 
 and one of the Nordenfield men was mortally wounded, 
 and was carried down under a bush on the beach. So 
 much blood flowed out ol the wound that there was a large 
 pool of blood in the bush. The boy Kiarten, Thurid of 
 Froda's son, was there. He had a little axe in his hand, 
 and ran to the bush and dipped the axe in the blood. 
 When the Sondensfield's men rode from the beach south, 
 
 was killed, as stated, in 984, in a battle with his uncle near 
 Upsula. 
 
 ' Dasent says in describing the coast: " Now we near the 
 stupendous crags, of Hofdabrekka, Headbrink, where the 
 mountains almost stride into the main." 
 
America by the Kokthmen. 1Y3 
 
 Thord Blib asked Biorn how the conversation between 
 him and Thurid of Froda ended. Biorn said that he was 
 well satisfied. Then Thord asked if he had seen the boy 
 Kiarten, their and Thorodd's son. " I saw him," said 
 Biorn. " What is your opinion of him?" asked Thord. 
 Biorn answered with the following song: 
 
 " I saw a boy run 
 With fearful eyes, 
 The woman's image to 
 The wolf's well ' in the wood ; 
 People will say, 
 That his true father [was] 
 He that ploughed the sea, 
 This the boy does not know." 
 
 Thord said: "What will Thorodd say when he hears 
 that the boy belongs to you ? ' ' Then Biorn sung : 
 
 " Then will the noble born woman [make] 
 Thorodd's suspicion 
 Come true, when she gives me 
 The same kind of sons ; 
 Always the slender, 
 Snow-white woman loved me, 
 I still to her 
 Am a lover." 
 
 Thord said, it will be best foi you not to have any thing 
 to do with each other, and that you turn your thoughts. 
 "It is certainly a good idea," said Biorn, " but it is far 
 from my intention; though there is some difference when 
 I have to do with such men as her brother Snorre. " " You 
 must take care of your own business, ' ' said Thord, and that 
 ended their talk. Biorn afterward went home to Kami), 
 and took the affairs of tlie family into his own hands, 
 for his fatlier was now dead. The following winter he 
 determined to make a journey over the hills, to Thurid. 
 Although Thorodd disliked this, he nevertheless saw that 
 it was not easy to prevent its occurrence, since before he 
 was defeated by him, and Biorn was much stronger, and 
 more skilled in arms than before. Therefore he bribed 
 
 ^ Referrinjj; to the dead man's blood. 
 
174 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 Thorgrim Galdrakin to raise a 6no"w -storm against Biorn 
 when lie crossed tlie hills. When a day came, Biorn 
 made a journey to Froda. When he proposed to retm-n 
 home, the sky was dark and the snow-storm began. When 
 he ascended the hills, the cold became intense, and the 
 snow fell so thickly that he could not see his way. Soon 
 the strength of the storm increased so much that he could 
 hardly walk. His clothes, already wet through, froze 
 around his body, and he wandered, he did not know where. 
 In the course of the night he reached a cave, and in this 
 cold house he passed the night. Then Biorn sung: 
 
 " Woman that bringest 
 Vestments,' would 
 Not like my 
 
 Dwelling in sucli a storm 
 If ste knew that 
 
 He who had before steered ships, 
 Now in the rock cave 
 Lay stiflFand cold." 
 
 Again he sang: 
 
 " The cold field of the swans, 
 From the east with loaded ship I ploughed, 
 Because the woman inspired me with love ; 
 I know that I have great trouble suffered 
 And now, for a time, the hero is 
 Not in a woman's bed, but in a cave." 
 
 Biorn stayed three days in the cave, before the storm 
 subsided; and on the fourth day he came home from the 
 mountain to Kamb. He was very weary. The servant 
 asked him where he was during the storm. Biorn sung: 
 
 " My deeds under 
 Styrbiorn's proud banner are known. 
 It came about that steel-clad Eric 
 Slew men in battle ; 
 Now I on the wide heaih, 
 Lost my way [and], 
 Could not in the witch-strong 
 Storm, find the rond." ' 
 
 ' In Iceland the women are accustomed to bring travelers 
 dry clothes. 
 
 ' All of these verses are extremely obscure and elliptical, 
 
America by the Northmen. 1Y5 
 
 Biorn passed the rest of the Avintei at home; the follow- 
 ing spring his brother Arnbiorn fixed his abode in Bakka, 
 in Raunhafn, but Biorn li^ed at Kamb, and had a grand 
 house. 
 
 This same summer Thorodd the Tribute Taker invited 
 Snorre the Priest, his kinsman, to a feast at his house in 
 Froda, Snorre went there with twenty men. In the 
 course of the feast, Thorodd told Snorre how much he was 
 hurt and disgraced by the visits of Biorn Asbrandnson, to 
 Thurid, his wife, Snorre 's sister, saying that it was right 
 for Snorre to do away with this scandal. Snorre, after 
 passing some days feasting with Thorodd, went home with 
 many presents. Then Snorre the Priest rode over the hills 
 and spread the report that he was going down to his ship 
 in the bay of Raunhafn. Tliis happened ia summer, in 
 the time of haymaking. "When he had gone as far south 
 as the Kambian hills, Snorre said: " Now let us ride back 
 from the hills to Kamb ; let it be known to you, ' ' he added, 
 " what I wish to do. I have resolved to attack and destroy 
 Biorn. But I am not willing to attack and destroy him in 
 his house, for it is a strong one, and Biorn is stout and 
 active, while our number is small. Even those who with 
 greater numbers have attacked brave men in their houses, 
 have fared badly, an example of whicli you know in the 
 case of Gissur the White; who, when with eighty men, 
 they attacked Gunnar ^ of Lithend, alone in his house, 
 many were wounded and many were killed, and they would 
 have been compelled to give up the attack, if Geir the 
 Priest had not learned that Gunnar was short of arrows. 
 Therefore," said he, "as we maj expect to find Biorn out 
 
 though far more intelligible to the modern mind than the com- 
 positions which belonged to a still older period. All the chief 
 men of Iceland practiced the composition of verse. Chaucer 
 makes his parson apologize for his inability to imitate the 
 practice. It was believed that certain women had power over 
 storms. 
 
 ' See the Saga of " Burnt Nial, " translated by Dasent. 
 
176 Pke-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 of doors, it being the time of haymaking, I appoint you my 
 kinsman. Mar, to give him the first wound; but I would 
 have you kuo^iv this, that there is no room foi child's play, 
 and you must expect a contest with a hungry wolf, unless 
 your first wound shall be his death blow. ' ' As they rode 
 from the hills toward his homestead, they saw Biorn in the 
 fields; he was making a sledge,^ and no one was near him. 
 He had no weapon but a small axe, and a large knife in 
 his hand of a span's length, which he used to round the 
 holes in the sledge. Biorn saw Snorre riding down from 
 the hills, and recognized him. Snorre the Priest had on 
 a blue cloak, and rode first. The idea suddenly occurred 
 to Biorn, that he ought to take his knife and go as fast as 
 he could to meet them, and as soon as he reached them, 
 lay hold of the sleeve of Snorre with one hand, and hold 
 the knife in the other, so that he might be able to pierce 
 Snorre to the heart, if he saw that his own safety required 
 it. Going to meet them, Biorn gave them hail, and Snorre 
 returned the salute. The hands of Mar fell, for he saw 
 that if he attacked Biorn, the latter would at once kill 
 Snorre. Then Biorn walked along with Snorre and his 
 comrades, asked what was the news, keeping his liands as 
 at first. Then he said: " I will not try to conceal, neigh- 
 bor Snorre, that my present attitude and look seem threat- 
 ening to you, which might appear wrong, but for that 
 I have understood that your coming is hostile. Now I 
 desire that if you have any business to transact with me, 
 you will take another course than the one you intended, and 
 that you will transact it openly. If none, ] will that you 
 make peace, which when done, I will return to my work, 
 as I do not wish to be led about like a fool." Snorre re- 
 plied : ' ' Our meeting has so turned out that we shall at this 
 time part in the same peace as before; but I desire to get a 
 pledge from you, that from this time you will leave off 
 visiting Thurid, because if you go on in this there can never 
 
 ' These sledges were used in drawing hay, as the roads were 
 then, as now, too poor for carts. 
 
Amebic A by the Northmen. 177 
 
 te any real friendship between us. " Biorn replied : " This I 
 will promise, and will keep it; but T do not know how I 
 shall be able to keep it so long as Thurid and J live in the 
 same land, " " There is nothing so great binding you here, 
 said Snorre, "as to keep you from going to some other 
 land." '•' "What you now say is true," replied Biorn, 
 " and so let it be, and let our meeting end with this 
 pledge, that neither you noi Thorodd shall have any trouble 
 from my visits to Thurid, in the next year." With this 
 they parted. Snorre the Priest rode down to his ship, 
 and then went home to Helgefell. The day after Biorn 
 rode south to Baunhafn, and engaged his passage in a ship 
 for the same smnmer [A. D. 999]. "When all was ready 
 they set sail with a north-east wind which blew during 
 the greater part of that summer. ^Nothing was heard of 
 the ship for a very long time.' 
 
 III. GUDLEIF GUDLAUGSON. 
 
 This narrative which shows what became of Biorn As- 
 brandson, whose adventures are partially related in the 
 previous sketch, is from the E}Tbyggia Saga. Notwith- 
 standing the somewliat romantic character of these two 
 narratives, there can be no doubt but that, in the main, 
 they are true histories. 
 
 There was a man named Gudleif, the son of Gudlaug 
 the Kich, of Straumfiord and brother of Thorfinn, from 
 
 ' This is the only paragraph which applies directly to the 
 subject in hand. The following narrative will bring Biorn to 
 notice again. Note, however, that the north-east wind, long 
 continued, would drive a ship toward the south-west, which, as 
 we shall see, was the case with the ship in which Biorn sailed. 
 This forms a curious and unexpected agreement with what 
 
 oUows. 
 
 12 
 
178 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 whom the Sturlingers are descended. Gudleif was a great 
 merchant. He had a trading vessel, and Thorolf Eyrar 
 Loptson had another, when they fought with Gyrid, son 
 of Sigvald Earl. Gyrid lost an eye in that fight. It hap- 
 pened near the end of the reign of King Olal the Saint, 
 that Gudleif went on a trading voyage to the west of 
 Dublin. On his return to Iceland, sailing from the west 
 of Ireland, he met with north-east winds, and was driven 
 far into the ocean west, and south-west, so that no land 
 was seen, the summer being now nearly gone. Many 
 prayers were offered that they might escape from the 
 sea. At length they saw land. It was of great extent but 
 they did not know what land it was. They took counsel 
 and resolved to make f oi the land, thinking it unwise to con- 
 tend with the violence ol the sea. They found a good har- 
 bor, and soon after went ashore. A number of men came 
 down to them. They did not recognize the people, but 
 thought that their language resembled the Irish. ^ In a 
 short time such a number of men had gathered around 
 them as numbered many hundred. These attacked them 
 and bound them all and drove them inland. Afterward 
 they were brought before an assembly, and it was consid- 
 ered what should be done with them. They thought that 
 some wished to kill them, and that others were for divid- 
 ing them among the villages as slaves. While this was 
 going on, they saw a great numl)er of men riding ^ toward 
 them with a banner lifted up, whence they inferred that 
 some great man was among them. When the company 
 drew near, they saw a man riding under the banner. He 
 
 ■ Few will infer much from this, since nothing is easier than 
 to find resemblances between languages. 
 
 ^ The language may indicate that they were horseback, 
 though it is not conclusive. At the period referred to, there 
 may have been no horses in America. They were introduced 
 by the Spaniards, after the discovery by Columbus. At least, 
 such is the common opinion. This statement is made with- 
 out reference to the proofs offered oi the existence of the horse 
 at an earlier period. 
 
America by the Xoktiimen. 179 
 
 was tall and had a martial air, and was aged and gray- 
 haired. All present treated this man with the utmost 
 honor and deference. They soon saw thai their case was 
 referred to his decision. He commanded Gndleif and his 
 comrades to be brought before him. Coming into his 
 presence, he addressed them in the Northern tongue, 
 and asked what land they came from. They replied that 
 the chief part were Icelanders. The man asked which of 
 them were Icelanders. Gudleif declared himself to be 
 an Icelander, and saluted the old man, which he 
 received kindly, and asked what part of Iceland he came 
 from. He replied that he came from the district some 
 called Bogafiord. He asked who lived in Bogafiord, to 
 which Gudleif replied at some length. Afterward this 
 man inquired particularly about all the principal men of 
 Bogafiord and Breidafiord. He inquired with special 
 interest into every thing relating to Snorre the Priest, and 
 to his sister Tliurid, (^f Froda, and for the great Kiarten, 
 her son. In the meanwhile the natives grew impatient 
 about the disposition of the sailors. Then tlie great man 
 left him, and took twelve of the natives apart, and con- 
 ferred with them. Afterward he returned. Then the 
 old man spoke to Gudleif and his comrades and said: 
 " We have had some debate concerning you, and the people 
 have left the matter to my decision; I now permit you to 
 go where you will, and although the summer is nearly 
 gone, I advise you to leave at once. These people are of 
 bad faith, and hard to deal with, and now they think they 
 have been deprived of their right." Then Gudleif asked, 
 "Who shall we say, if we reach our own country again, 
 to have given us our liberty? " He replied: '' That I will 
 not tell you, for I am not willing that anj of my friends 
 or kindred should come here, and meet with such a fate as 
 you would have met, but for me. Age now comee on so 
 fast, that I may almost expect any hour to be my last. 
 Though I may live some time longer, there are other men 
 of greater influence than myself, now at some distance 
 from this place, and these would not grant safetj" oi peace 
 
180 Pee-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 to any strange men." Then lie looked to the fitting out 
 of their ship, and stayed at this place until a fair wind 
 sprang up, so thai they might leave the port. Before they 
 went away, this man took a gold ring from his haad and 
 gave it to Gudleif, and also a good sword. Then he said 
 to Gudleif: " If fortune permits you to reach Iceland, 
 give this sword to Kiarten, hero of Froda, and this ring 
 to Thurid, his mother. ' ' Gudlief asked, ' ' Who shall I say 
 was the sender of this valuable gift ? " He replied: " Say 
 that he sent it who loved the lady of Froda better than her 
 brother, the Priest of Helgefell. Then if any man desires to 
 know who sent this valuable gift, repeat my words, that I for- 
 bid any one to seek me, for it is a dangerous voyage, un- 
 less others should meet with the same fortune as you. 
 This region is large, but has few good ports, and danger 
 threatens strangers on all sides from the people, unless 
 it shall fall to others as yourselves." After this they sep- 
 arated. Gudleif, with his comrades, went to sea, and 
 reached Ireland the same autumn, and passed the winter 
 in Dublin. The next spring they sailed to Iceland, and 
 Gudleif delivered the jewel into the hands of Thurid. It 
 was commonly believed that there was no doubt but that 
 the man seen was Biorn Breida\dking Kappa, but there is 
 no other reliable report to prove this. 
 
 ALLUSIONS TO VOYAGES FOUND IN ANCIENT 
 MANUSCRIPTS. 
 
 Professor Rafn, in Antiquitates Aonericance, gives brief 
 notices of numerous Icelandic v^oyages to America, and 
 other lands to the west, the particulars of which are not re- 
 corded. The works in which these notices appear are of 
 the highest respectability. It is only necessary here to give 
 the facts, which have been collected with much care. 
 They show that the pre-Columbian discovery of America 
 left its recollection scattered throughout nearly the entire 
 
America by the Northmen. 181 
 
 body of Icelandic history. Tlie existence ol a great land 
 south-west of Greenland is referred to, not as a matter of 
 speculation, but as something perfectly well known. All 
 these references combine to furnish indisputable proof 
 of the positions maintained in this work, showing as they 
 do, beyond all reasonable question, that the impression 
 which so generally prevailed in regard to the discovery 
 of this land, could not have been the result of a literary 
 fraud. Some of the facts are given below: 
 
 1121. Eric, Bishop of Greenland,' went to search out 
 Vinland. 
 Bishop Eric Upse sought Vinland. 
 1285. A new land is discovered west from Iceland. 
 
 New land is found ' 
 
 Adalbrand and Thorvald, the sons of Helge, found 
 
 the new land. 
 Adalbrand and Thorvald found new land west of 
 
 Iceland. 
 The Feather' Islands are discovered. 
 
 ' This is found in Annalcs Islandorum Regii, which gives 
 the history of Iceland from the beginning down to 1307. 
 Also in Annaks Flateyensis, and in Atina/es Resc7iiim. Eric 
 was appointed Bishop of Greenland, but performed no duties 
 and eventuall}' resigned that See, in order to undertake the 
 mission to Vinland. He is also spoken of in two works as 
 going to Vinland with the title of Bishop of Greenland, a title 
 which he had se-^eral years before his actual consecration. 
 Ritnbeg/a, p. 321, gives a list of the Bishops of Gardar, in 
 Greenland. See Memoires de la Societe Royale, etc., 1836-1839, 
 p. 382. 
 
 '•' The manuscript is deficient here, but we must remember 
 that Greenland had at this time, 1285, been known and ex- 
 plored for four hundred years, and, therefore, that the land 
 west of Iceland was beyond Greenland. Otherwise the entry 
 would have possessed no significance. 
 
 ' The Feather Islands are mentioned in the Ldgmanns An- 
 nall, or, Annals of the Governors of Iceland, and Annates 
 
182 Pke-Columbian Discoveby of 
 
 1288. Rolf is sent bj King Eric to search out the new 
 
 land,^ and called on people oi Iceland to go with 
 him. 
 
 1289. Kinff Eric sends Rolf to Iceland to seek out the 
 
 new land. 
 
 1290. Rolf traveled through Iceland, and called out men 
 
 for a voyage to the new land. 
 
 1295. Landa-Rolf died. 
 
 1357. There came thirteen large ships to Iceland. Ein- 
 dridesuden was wrecked in East Borgatiord, near 
 Langeness. The crew and the greater part of 
 the cargo were saved. Bessalangen was wrecked 
 outside of Sida. Of its crew, Haldor Magre 
 and Gunthorm Stale, and nineteen men alto- 
 gether, were drowned. The cargo suffered also. 
 There were also six ships driven back. There 
 came likewise a ship from Greenland,^ smaller 
 than the smallest ol Iceland ships, that came 
 in the outer bay. It had lost its anchor. 
 There were seventeen men on board, who had 
 gone to Markland,^ and on their return were 
 drifted here. But here altogether that winter, 
 
 Ska/hoifitii, or, Annals of the Bishopric of Skalholt, written in 
 the middle of the fourteenth century, long before Columbus 
 went to Iceland. Beamish suggests that these are the Pen- 
 guin and Bacaloa Islands. 
 
 ^ "The notices of Nyjaland and Duneyjar, would seem to 
 refer to a re-discovery of some parts of the eastern coast of 
 America, visited by earlier voyagers. The original appellation 
 of Nyjaland, or Nyjafundu-land, would have led naturally to 
 the modern English name of Newfoundland, given by Cabot, 
 to whose knowledge the discovery would [might] have come 
 through the medium of the commercial intercourse between 
 England and Iceland in the fifteenth century." Beamish. 
 
 " See the Decline of Greenland, in Introduction. 
 
 ' Markland (Woodland) was Nova Scotia, as we know from 
 the description of Leif and others. These vessels doubtless 
 went to get timber. All these accounts show that the West- 
 
Amekica by the Northmen. 183 
 
 were eighteen large ships, besides the two that 
 were wrecked iu the summer.^ 
 1357. There came a ship from Greenland that had sailed 
 to Markland, and there were eight men on board. 
 
 Y. THE SAGA OF E^AK SOKKESON. 
 
 This Saga is found in Gronland's Historishe Mindes- 
 mcBrker, or "The Historical Monuments of Greenland," 
 vol. II, pp. 669-724. Like the picture of Life in Green- 
 land, already given {ante, pp. 81-83) the Saga of Einar 
 Sokkeson exhibits real scenes occurring towards the middle 
 of the twelfth century in that remote portion of the North. 
 It affords a view of the state of societj in Greenland at that 
 period when religion was somewhat nominal, and men 
 gave full sway to their passions. Those who are familiar 
 with the history of the blood) feuds that so long prevailed 
 in Iceland, will recognize the resemblance which this narra- 
 tive bears to many in that country, where the modes of 
 settlement were the same. In perusing this Saga no one 
 need question its authenticity. It is a faithful description 
 of actual events, and was taken from the Flatey Book by 
 Finn Magnussen, for the Historical Monuments of Green- 
 land.^ The allusion to Ssemund helps to lix dates. 
 
 There was a man named Sokke, son of Thorer, who 
 lived at Brattahlid, in Greenland, He was friendly and 
 much esteemed. His son's name was Einar, and he like- 
 wise was of a friendly disposition. Both father and son 
 
 ern ocean was generally navigated in the middle of the four- 
 teenth century. 
 
 'March 12 1888, the "VV. L. White'' was abandoned near 
 Cape May, and drifted in a zig-zag course across the Atlantic, 
 some 5,050 miles, and brought up in the harboi of Stornoway, 
 November 29, following. 
 
 ■" See Memoires de la Societe Roy ale, 1840- 1844, p. 81, 
 with an abstract and notes. 
 
184 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 had much influence among the Green landers, and were 
 esteemed their principal men. On a time Sokke assembled 
 the people at a general meeting, when he told the people 
 that it was his desire that the country should no longer be 
 without a bishop, and that he willed that the people should 
 raise the means for promoting the erection of a bishop's 
 seat. All those present agreed to the proposition. Then 
 Sokke bade his son Einar prepare to go to Norway, as 
 he thought him the ablest man to carrj the message. He 
 said that he would go if it was his father's wish. Einar 
 took with him much fur goods and ivory, in order to gain 
 the fav^or of the chiefs. He arrived with his crew in Nor- 
 way when Sigurd Jorsalf ari was King of Norway. Einar came 
 to the king and gained his good will by means of his presents, 
 and afterwards made known his errand, and urged the king 
 earnestly to interest himself in this necessity of his coun- 
 try. The king thought it very needful, and afterwards 
 called a man named j^rnald. He was a piou& priest, and 
 well fitted to be a teacher of the jDeo^jle. The king asked 
 him to prepare for this difficult task for the sake of God 
 and his request. And then he said: " I will send thee to 
 Denmark, to Adzur, Archbishop of Lund, with letters 
 bearing my seal." Arnald answered that he was unwill- 
 ing to think of such a thing, in the lirst place, because he 
 did not think himself much inclined, that he did not wish 
 to part with his friends and relations, and in the third 
 place, that he would have to deal with a difficult set of 
 people. The king then said that as much more hardsliip 
 as men suffered here, so much greater would be tlie reward 
 they would have hereafter. Then Arnald said that he liad 
 not the heart to refuse the request of the king, "but," he 
 added, " if I am consecrated a bishop I propose the condi- 
 tion that Einar sliall bind himself with an oath to protect 
 the rights of the bishopric and tlie property consecrated 
 to God, and punish everyone who attacks it and be the 
 defender of all those things belonging to the chui'ch." 
 The king asked Einar if he was willina and Einar agreed 
 to the wish of the king. Thereafter the bishop-elect 
 
America by the Northmen. 185 
 
 went to Archbisliop Adzur and told his errand and deliv- 
 ered the king's letters. The archbishop received him well, 
 and having, by examination, found that this man was well 
 able to sustain such a high dignity, he consecrated Arnald 
 as bishop and dismissed hiia with honor. Afterwards 
 Bishop Arnald returned to the king who received him well. 
 Einar had brought with him from Greenland a bear, which 
 he gave to King Sigurd, and in return he received honors 
 and presents from the king. Thereafter Einar and the 
 bishop sailed in the same ship, but another ship was fitted 
 out bj Arnbiorn the Eastman, and several men of Norway 
 were enlisted with him to sail to Greenland. Then they 
 started on their voyage, but as they did not have favor- 
 able winds, the bishop and Einar came to Halltavotsos 
 under the Eyiafjokull. There dwelt Steinund the Wise 
 in Oddi. He came down to meet the bishop and invited him 
 to be his guest for the winter. The bishop thanked him, 
 and accepted his offer. Einar remained that winter under 
 Eyiafjokull. It is said that when the bishop rode from 
 the village with his men he let their horses take rest on 
 a certain village in Sandeyium, bui they rested themselves 
 outside. Then went out an old woman with a wool -card 
 in her hand; she came to a man and said, "Thou must 
 fasten, my little brother, the teeth in my card." He 
 received the card and agreed to mend it, and took a hammer 
 out of his sack and fastened the tooth so that the old woman 
 was very well pleased. This man was the bishop him- 
 self. He was very skilful to do everything, and this cir- 
 cumstance shows what a humble man he was. He staid 
 at Oddi all winter and Ssemund treated them all well. 
 But from j^rnbiorn nothing was heard, which seemed 
 strange, and so a few summers passed away. 
 
 The next summer Einar and the bishop sailed from Ice- 
 land and came to Greenland at Ericsfiord, where the peo. 
 pie received them exceedingly well. There was no far- 
 ther news from Arnbiorn and then the people began to 
 Bay that Arnbiorn and his crew must have been wrecked. 
 
 The bishop established his seat in Gardar and prepared 
 
186 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 to dwell there. Eiuar and liis father gave him their best 
 aid. They were also the most honored of all by the bishop. 
 
 AENBIOEN AND HIS MEN FOUND DEAD. 
 
 There was a Greenlander named Sigurd, the son of 
 Kial. He went out in the autumn to the desert regions to 
 hunt. He was a skilful sailor. He and his crew numbered 
 fifteen men. They came in the summer to the mountain 
 called Huitsark. There they found some good camping 
 places, where men had alread_y been and some opportunity 
 for hunting. Then Sigurd said, " What should you best 
 like to do, to return or to sail further ? But little of the 
 summer remains and the catch has been very small. The 
 men said they would like to return, foi it was dangerous 
 to life to sail in the great bays among the icebergs. He 
 agreed that it was true, but he added, "I fancy that bjr 
 far the greatest catch remains for us, if we could only 
 come to it." They asked him to decide, and said 
 that they had trusted to his skill for a long time and had 
 succeeded well. Then he said that he would go forward; 
 and so they did. One of the crew called Steinthor be- 
 gan to talk in this wise: " I dreamed last night, Sigurd, 
 a dream which I will relate to you now when we be- 
 gin to sail on this great fiord. It seemed to me that I had 
 come between some mountains and called for help. Si- 
 gurd said that the dream was only middling. " Take care 
 that thou do not tread under foot thy own safety, nor fall 
 into such distress that you cannot keep your ir^outh shut." 
 Steinthor was considered hasty of mind and very rash, 
 "When they came a little f artliei into the fiord , Sigurd said : 
 " It seems to me that there is a ship in the fiord." They 
 said that it was so. Sigurd said that they should soon 
 get knowledge about the matter. They steered into 
 the fiord and saw that the vessel was stranded at the 
 mouth of a river, and a fence was built before it at 
 the upper side. It was a very large sea-going ship. 
 Afterwards they went on shore and saw a great 
 
America by the Northmen. 187 
 
 hut, and a tent at a short distance. Then Sigurd said 
 that they would set up their ship-tent. The daj is now 
 gone, and I wish the crew to keep quiet and behave very 
 careful, which they did. The next morning they went out 
 and looked around. They saw a heavy stick of timber 
 in which an axe was fastened and the corpse of a man lying 
 at the side of the block. Sigurd said that the man who 
 hewed the timber had died of hunger. Afterwards they 
 came to the hut and saw there another corpse. Sigurd said 
 that he had gone as far as his strength would allow and that 
 these men must have been the servants of the party in the 
 hut. An axe was also lying at the side of this man. Then 
 Sigurd said: "It is my counsel to take the roof off of the 
 hut, that the stench of the bodies that have probably lain 
 a long time in a decayed state in the hut might go out. 
 Steinthor thought it was not worth while to take more 
 trouble than necessary, and tried to push the door in while 
 the others unroofed the hut. Immediately Steinthor be- 
 gan to scream and run, and his ship-mates ran after him, 
 when he leaped into a rift in the rock where no one could 
 get at him, and there met his death. Sigurd said that he was 
 indeed a man who dreamed such things as come to pass. 
 Afterward they took the roof off of the hut and did as 
 Sigurd ordered, and no harm happened to them. Then they 
 saw there in the hut dead men and a plenty of goods. 
 Then said Sigurd : " It seems to me advisable to put the 
 bodies in kettles which belonged to them, -with boiling 
 water, that the flesh may be separated from the bones, 
 which it will then be easier to carry to the church; and 
 I think it most likely that it is Arnbiorn who has been 
 detained at this place. I have heard that the beautiful 
 ship which lies here on the shore belonged to him. It 
 was a very good ship, with a carved prow, painted and 
 adorned with many wood carvings. The lower part 
 of the merchant ship was very much broken and Sigurd 
 said that according to his belief it could nol be put to any 
 use. They took the sails out of the ship and bm-ned her, 
 and then sailed away from these desert regions in their 
 own ship with the boat of the great ship. 
 
188 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 They readied the vicinity of their own homes and paid 
 the bishop a visit at Gardar, and told him the news and 
 the finding of the goods. ' 'Now, ' ' he said, ' ' I cannot view 
 it otherwise than that the property which was with the 
 corpses must be used in the most proper way, and if I 
 can use my power to promote this end, I will that it be so." 
 The bishop said that he had done prudently and well, 
 and the same said every man. Much property was found 
 with the bodies of the men. Sigurd said thai il was most 
 proper to give it to the bishopric for the good of their 
 souls. The rest of the goods the finders divided among 
 themselves according to the provisions of the laws of 
 Greenland. 
 
 When these things were told in Norway it wa* heard by 
 a man named Ozsur, and he was the nephew of Arnbiorn. 
 He and some men who had lost their relations fitted out 
 a ship in the hope that they might recover the property. 
 They came to Ericsfiord, and men went to them and be- 
 gan to trade. Afterwards the crew looked out places to 
 live in Ozsur, the master of the ship, went to Gardar to 
 the bishop and remained there during the winter. In tlie 
 East bygd (the eastern district of Greenland) Kolbein, 
 the son of Thorliot, a Norway man, began the transaction 
 of business. The master of the third ship was Therniund, 
 the son of Kodrum, and his brother Thorgils, and they had 
 with them a great many companions. 
 
 CONCERNING OZSUR AND THE BISHOP. 
 
 In the meantime it came to pass that Ozsur declared 
 to the bishop that he expected to receive the inheritance of 
 his relation Arnbiorn, and asked the bishop to deliver the 
 goods into the hands of himself and his companions The 
 bishop replied that he had received the goods in con- 
 formance to the laws of Greenland, provided for, and 
 said that he did so according to his own will, and said 
 that it was most proper that the goods should be used for 
 the benefit of the souls of the former owners and the 
 support of the church where their bones were entomiied, 
 
America by the Kokthmen. 189 
 
 and declared that it was a lack of true spirit now to present 
 claims on such property. Afterwards Ozsur would not 
 remain at Gardar with the bishop, but rejoined his crew, 
 and they passed the winter togetlier. In the spring 
 Ozsur brought the case before the Thing of Greenland 
 which was held at Gardar. To this place came the bishop 
 and Einar, son of Sokke, and many men in their company. 
 Ozsur came also with his crew. And when the jury was 
 seated Einar went to the court with his followers and 
 said that it would be a difficult thing to deal with for- 
 eigners in Norway if the case was there, but " here we 
 are wont to have the law which is in force in this coun- 
 try," said Einar. "When the decision of the court was 
 made their claims were rejected and they had to retire. 
 Ozsur was much displeased. He thought that he had ac- 
 quired disgrace but no property; therefore, he brewed 
 this mischief to go to the place where the painted ship was 
 lying and cut two planks on each side of the ship from the 
 keel. After that he escaped to the West bygd and met 
 there with Kalbein and Ketill the son of Kalf and told 
 them what had happened. Kalbein said that the case was 
 not properly treated and that the result was bad. Ketill 
 said : " I would advise you to seek yom safety with ue then. 
 I have heard that the bisliop and Einar have made an 
 agreement together, and it will be difficult foi you to with- 
 stand the skill of the bishop and the energy of Einar; 
 but let us all unite together." He said that it was most 
 likely that his counsel was the best. 
 
 In the company of these merchants was a certain man 
 called Steingrim. Ozsur returned thereafter to Kidia- 
 berg, where he had been before. 
 
 THE SLAYING OF OZSUK. 
 
 The bishop was very angry when he heard that the ship 
 was spoiled, and called Einar, the son of Sokke, and said: 
 " Now I must remind you of youi promise which you gave 
 by an oath before we left Norway, that you would revenge 
 
190 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 every wrong done against the bishopric and its property 
 whoever may have committed it. Now it seemed to me 
 that Ozsiir forfeited his life when he destroyed our prop- 
 erty, and I call you an oath-breaker if it end peaceably." 
 
 Einar answered: "It is not well done, my lord, but 
 some men say that there is something to excuse. Ozsnr, 
 because he has lost so much, though he did not conduct 
 himself when he saw the valuable property which belonged 
 to his relations and he could not get it. And I do not 
 know what I can say to the purpose in such a case. " They 
 parted dissatisfied with one another, and the bishop's coun- 
 tenance seemed angry. 
 
 But when the people were assembling to the feast of 
 the consecration of their church and to a festival at Long- 
 ness, the bishop was at the festival with Einar. Many came 
 to the service and the bishop sang mass. 
 
 Ozsur had come to the place, and was standing at the south 
 side of the church, close to the church wall, and a man called 
 Brandr, son of Thorde, one of the men ol the bishop's 
 household, spoke to him. This man bade Ozsur yield to 
 the bishop. "I expect," he said, "that all things will 
 thus come out right, but I fear danger." Ozsur answered 
 that he could not forget the bad manner in which he had 
 been treated, and about those things of which they were 
 now speaking. 
 
 Then the bishop went out of the church homeward to 
 the house and Einar with him. And when they came to 
 the principal entrance of the house, Einar turned away 
 from the company and went back to the churchyard alone 
 and took an axe from the hands of a man who had come 
 there to attend Divine service, and came to the south side 
 of the churchyard. Ozsur was standing there leaning upon 
 his axe. Einar gave him at once a mortal wound, and then 
 went where the tables were laid. Einar came up to the 
 table opposite the bishop, but said not a word. Afterwards 
 Brandr, the son of Thorde, came into the house before the 
 bishop and said: "Is there any news brought you, my 
 lord ? " The bishop said that he had not heard anything. 
 
Amekica by the Northmen. 191 
 
 " But what have vou to say ? " He replied, " Just now a 
 man was obHo;ed to fall down outside. " The bishop asked, 
 " Who was the cause of this thing, and to whom has it hap- 
 pened ? " Brandr replied that he was near the man who 
 was able to tell. The bishop asked, "Art thou the cause 
 of the death of Ozsur ? " He answered, "Of course I am. " 
 The bishop said, " Such works are evil, but for this there is 
 some excuse." 
 
 Brandr proposed that the corpse should be washed, and 
 that the vigilia should be sung over it. The bishop said 
 that he would give time for that purpose, and the men then 
 sat down at the tables, but did not eat much. 
 
 The bishop desiring to get a man to sing over the corpse 
 Einar insisted that it was right to give the body honorable 
 burial. The bishop said that he thought it was most proper 
 not to bring the body to tlie [cathedral] church, " but on 
 account of your request it shall be buried here at this 
 church where no priest lives. " But he would not allow the 
 men to sing over the corpse before it was dressed in the 
 burial clothes. The bishop said that he would not hurry 
 the case. 
 
 Then Einar said, " Here has been done a very bad deed, 
 chiefly at your instance, and now we have to deal with 
 mighty enemies, and I think that great trouble will rise up 
 among us." 
 
 the manslaughter of einar, son of sokke. 
 
 These things were now reported and the merchants heard 
 of them. Then said Ketill, the son of Kalf : " j^ot far 
 from what I predicted has it happened. I told him that 
 he would put his head in danger." A man named Simon, 
 one of the relations of Ozsur, was a mighty man and very 
 strong. Ketill said that it was very likely that if Simon 
 would do according to the best of his ability he might 
 reveno^e the death of Ozsur, his relation. Simon said that 
 he would not use many great words about it. Ketill allowed 
 their ship to be fitted out, and sent a message to Kalbein the 
 Steersman, that " I will have a suit against Einar, because 
 
192 Pke-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 I know the laws of Greenland, and I am obliged to be 
 present, and moreo\^er have a plenty of men when they 
 come to ns," 
 
 Kalbein said that he was willing to do according to the coun- 
 sel of Ketill. Afterwards he went away and met Kalbein and 
 told him about the light, and added the message of Ketill 
 that they should hasten to his assistance in time, and be 
 present at the Thing of the Greenlanders. Kalbein 
 answered that he would surely come if it was possible, and 
 he thought that the Greenlanders would get no benefit in 
 killinsr their men. Ketill was left to manage the cause and 
 started for the Thing in company with a few of his men, 
 and told the merchants to follow as soon as possible, and 
 bring their goods along with them. As soon as Kalbein 
 received this message he took his departure and asked his 
 companions to go to tlie Thing. He said, " I shall have 
 such a strong party, that it is uncertain whether the Green- 
 landers will be able to do as they like." !Now Kalbein and 
 Ketill met and laid plans together, and both were able 
 men. Now they sailed, and though the wind was unfavor- 
 able they at last arrived and had many men in their com- 
 pany, but not so many as they had expected. 
 
 Then came the men to the Thing, Sokke was already 
 present. He was a wise man, and was then old, and accus- 
 tomed to make judgments. He went to Kalbein and Ketill 
 and said, " I offer myself to examine the case that is 
 between you, and although it is a very difficult task for me, 
 as Einar is my son, still I will try to do what may be deemed 
 right by me and other competent men." Ketill said that 
 he thought that the suit should proceed until finished, but 
 that he would not object to a friendly settlement, and " if 
 also we have been badly treated we are not accustomed to 
 being subdued." Sokke said that he supposed that their 
 number would not be sufficient to stand a fight, and thought 
 it was certain that they would get more honor if he should 
 judge the cause. The merchants went to law and plead 
 the case against Einar, Then Einar said it will be reported 
 far and near that these people cited us before the law. And 
 
America by the Northmen. 193 
 
 he went to the jury and made dissension among the jm-ors, 
 so that they could not get justice. Then said Sokke, it is 
 open for you to receive my offer to settle the case. Ketill 
 said that he thought it should not be, and then asked, 
 ' ' what indemnilication could you offer, when there is the 
 same prejudice in favor of Einar in that cause ? ' ' Then 
 they separated for that time. 
 
 The merchants could not come from the "West bygd to the 
 Thing on account of the weather when they were ready to 
 sail with their two ships. But it was intended to settle the 
 affair at midsummer at Eide. Then the merchants came 
 from the west side, and cast their anchors at an isthmus 
 where all met together and kept their counsel. Then Kal- 
 bein said that it would not have been so near to a settle- 
 ment, if they had all been together, and it seems to me now 
 the best course that we all go to this meeting, as well pre- 
 pared as possible. Then they separated and hid themselves 
 in a bay in the neighborhood of the bishop's seat. 
 
 Once it happened at the bishop's seat when the bells 
 were rung for high mass, that Einar, the son of Sokke 
 arrived. And when the merchants heard that they said 
 that a very great honor was paid to Einar, because the bells 
 were rung to salute him, and said that it was a great shame 
 and were disgusted with it. Ketill said: "Do not mis- 
 apprehend that so much, for it may happen that this will 
 prove his death knell before evening. ' ' 
 
 Now Einar arrived with his attendants, and seated them- 
 selves on the slope of the hill. Sokke presented some things 
 for the settlement, and then estimates were made respecting 
 their value. Ketill said, " I wish that Hermund, the son of 
 Kodran, would fix the price of the valuables with me." 
 " Let it be so," Sokke said. Simon, the relation of Ozsur, 
 looking much displeased, was walking around while the value 
 of the goods was settled. Afterwards an old armour was 
 offered. Then said Simon, such an offer is shameful for 
 such a man as Ozsur was, and he threw the armour away 
 on the ground, and went to those who were seated on the 
 hill. 
 
 13 
 
194 Pre-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 When the Greenlanders saw that thej roused hastily and 
 went down the slope against Simon. Then Kalbein went 
 up at the side, where they all turned away and attacked 
 them in the rear alone separated from his men. And at 
 the same time he attacked Einar from behind and hewed 
 him between the shoulders, and the axe of Einar sank into his 
 head, and so they both got mortal wounds. Einar said 
 when he fell : ' ' Such things were to be expected. ' ' There- 
 after Thorder, the foster brother of Einar, came running 
 with the intention of hewing Kalbein down, but he turned 
 round and struck him in the throat with the point of the axe 
 and there he was killed. A hard fight arose between them. 
 The bishop was seated by Einar and he breathed his last 
 on his knee. 
 
 A man named Steingrimr told the parties that they 
 would do well to put an end to the tight, and he tried to 
 separate the men, but both sides were so enraged that Stein- 
 grimr was pierced with a sword in the heat of the fight. 
 Einar died at the top of the hill at the storehouse of tlie 
 Greenlanders. And now the men were dangerously 
 wounded, and Kalbein and his party went down to the boat 
 with three of their companions and departed over Einar 's 
 fiord to the place where the ships were lying on account of 
 the great haste in fitting them out. Kalbein told them that 
 it had been a hard fight, " and I do not believe that the 
 Greenlanders are more pleased with this issue than the 
 former time. Ketill said: " You happened to speak a true 
 word when you said that we might hear his death knell 
 before we should depart, and I think Einar had to be car- 
 ried away dead to the church. " Kalbein said that he had 
 tried to do his best for that purpose. Ketill said: " It is 
 likely that the Greenlanders will pay us a visit, therefore, 
 I consider it advisable to prepare to the extent of our 
 power, and that all men keep on board during the nights." 
 And this they did. 
 
 Sokke was very sorry when he heard the news, and called 
 upon the men of the country to come to his aid for the 
 approaching fight. 
 
America by the Nokthmen. 195 
 
 THE SETTLEMENT BETWEEN THE MEECHANT8 AND THE 
 GKKENLANDERS. 
 
 There was a man named Hallr. He lived in Solarfield, 
 and was a wise man and a thrifty peasant. He belonged 
 to the company of Sokke, and went the latest with his men. 
 He said to Sokke : " I do not expect much success from your 
 plan to engage great ships with small craft, and with such 
 means of defense as I am sure they have prepared. And 
 I do not know tliat you can trust the men you have. Of 
 course, all good men will do their best, but others will spare 
 themselves, and then very soon the leaders will be exhausted, 
 and then it will look darker respecting the issue of our 
 doings than before. Now, it seems to me advisable if we 
 are going to engage with the enemy that every man shall be 
 bound with an oath to fall or gain the victory." The men 
 were much discouraged when they heard such words of 
 Hallr. Sokke said, we cannot fix these things in such a 
 way that they may be well settled. Hallr said that he 
 would try to make up a settlement between them, and he 
 called to the merchants and said, Will it be open for me to 
 come and see you ? At this, Kalbein and Ketill answered 
 that he was at liberty to do so. Then he went and urged 
 them to settle affairs after all the things that had happened. 
 They replied that they were at present prepared for what- 
 ever the others had put into their minds, but that all these 
 outrages were committed by the inhabitants of the country. 
 " But now when you show such a good will towards us we 
 are willing to accept your offer to settle between us." He 
 declared himself willing to do so, and decide as he thought 
 most just, however, each party should like it. Afterwards 
 these things were related to Sokke. He also said that he 
 would submit to the judgment of Hallr. The merchants 
 should in the night fit. out their ships. Then it was said 
 that Sokke could not agree upon the other condition, that 
 they should depart as soon as possible, " but if they insist 
 upon remaining and annoy me it will certainly happen that 
 
196 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 the J shall fall as outlaws wherever they are found. ' ' 'Now 
 they departed, and a meeting for compromise was agreed 
 upon. Ketill said: It does not seem likely that we shall 
 soon be ready to sail, but our store of provisions begins to 
 diminish, therefore, I advise that we look out for food, and 
 I know where a man lives who has a plenty of provisions, 
 and I think we had better find it out. The crew said that 
 they were ready. Afterwards they started from the ship, 
 thirty men altogether, all armed, where all had gone away. 
 The name of the peasant who lived there was Thorer. 
 Then Ketill said, "My advice has not proved good." 
 Afterwards they left the village and went over the side of 
 a mountain back to the sliips, and there were shrubs grow- 
 ing where they went. Then Ketill said, " I feel sleepy," 
 and said he, " I wish to lie down and sleep." They told 
 him that it was not advisable to do so. Notwithstanding, 
 he lay down to sleep, and the people seated themselves 
 around him. After a short time he awoke and said: I 
 liave seen much in the dreams that will come to pass. I 
 think it will be profitable to pull up the bush that is under 
 my head. They pulled up the bush, and under it was a 
 great underground store. Ketill said let us first find out 
 what is here to catch. There they found sixty beeves and 
 twelve vettis ^ of butter, and a great quantity of dried fish. 
 " It is well," said Ketill, " that I did not tell you a story." 
 Now they departed to their ship with the stores that they 
 got. Now the time for the settlement drew near, and both 
 parties were present, the merchants as well as the inhabi- 
 tants of the land. Then spake Hallr in this way: This is 
 the settlement I propose between you. I will that the 
 manslaughter of Ozsur and Einar may offset each other, but 
 for the greater value of one of the men, the Eastmen shall 
 be considered outlaws, and not be allowed to have their 
 living nor abode in this country. That the manslaughter 
 of Steingrimr Bonder and Simon should be considered equal, 
 
 ' Vat. An old weight of about eighty pounds still used in 
 Ireland. 
 
America by the Northmen. 197 
 
 as well as that of Krak the Eastman and Thorfinn the Green- ■ 
 lander, of Yighoots the Eastman and Biarne the Green- 
 lander, of Thoris and of Thord. Now there remains the 
 manslaughter of a man named Thorer, for whom no fines 
 are paid, and he has left several children all under age, and 
 that this ought to be paid with money. 
 
 Sokke said that he and other Greenlanders objected to 
 the judgment that the men should be considered alike. 
 Hallr replied that he thought his decision should be final, 
 and so they departed. 
 
 Afterwards the ice was driven into the coast and all the 
 fiords were closed up, so that the Greenlanders entertained 
 the hope that they might yet attack the strangers, who could 
 not leave so soon as was agreed upon. But at the change 
 of the moon all the ice was driven away, and the merchants 
 had a fair wind from Greenland. They arrived in Norway, 
 and Kalbein had a white bear with him from Greenland, and 
 he brought the animal to the King Harald Gille, and pre- 
 sented it to him, and told the king that the Greenlanders 
 had deserved a severe punishment, and spoke very ill of 
 them. But the king was afterwards otherwise informed, 
 and he looked upon Kalbein as a bearer of false reports, so 
 that he did not receive any reward for the animal. 
 
 Afterwards Kalbein deserted to the party of Sigurd Hem- 
 bridge (the bad deacon), and attacked King Harald Gille 
 in his house and wounded him. But when they afterwards 
 passed the coast of Denmark in a fresh breeze, Kalbein 
 being in a boat taken in tow, the towing line broke and 
 Kalbein was drowned. Hermund and his crew came to 
 Iceland to their relations and estates. Thus the saga is ended. ^ 
 
 ' The date of Arnold's appointment as Bishop of Gardar, in 
 Greenland, may be uncertain. He remained in Greenland, how- 
 ever, till 1 150, when John I was sent out. In 1152 he was 
 translated to the See of Hammer, Norway. The Saga belongs to 
 near the middle of the century. Des Antiquaires dii Nord, 
 1840-4, p. 100. 
 
198 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 YI. GEOGKAPHICAL FRAGMENTS. 
 
 The rest of these documents come from a work which pro- 
 fesses to give a description of the earth in the middle age. 
 From this it appears tiiat the Icelanders had a correct idea 
 of the location of Vinland in New England, thougli they 
 did not comprehend the fact that they liad discovered a 
 new Continent. The account is found in Antiquitates 
 AmericancB, p. 283. In the appendix of that work may 
 be seen a/ac shnile of the original manuscript. The second 
 account is from Antiqultates Ainericanm, p. 292. It was 
 found originally in the miscellaneous collection called the 
 Grlpla. The failure to recognize modern discoveries shows 
 that the description is Pre-Columbian. 
 
 A BEIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE WHOLE EARTH. 
 
 The earth is said to be divided into three parts. ^ One 
 of these is called Asia, and extends from north-east to 
 south-west, and occupies the middle of the earth. In the 
 eastern part are three separate regions, called Indialand. 
 In the farthest India, the Apostle Bartholomew preached 
 the faith; and there he likewise gave up his life (for the 
 name of Christ). In the nearest India, the Apostle Thomas 
 preached, and there also he suffered death for the cause of 
 God. In tliat part of tlie earth called A-sia, is the city of 
 Nineveh, greatest of all cities. It is three days' journey 
 in length and one day's journey in breadth. There is also 
 the city of Babylon, ancient and very large. There King 
 Nebuchadnezzar formerly resided, but now that city is so 
 thoroughly destroyed that it is not inhabited by men, on 
 account of serpents and all manner of noxious creatures. 
 In Asia is Jerusalem, and also Antioch; in this city Peter 
 the Apostle founded an Episcopal seat, and where he, the 
 
 ' This is in accordance with the maps of that early period, 
 some of which, undoubtedly, were before the writer's eye. 
 
America by the Northmen. 199 
 
 first of all men, sang mass. Asia Minor is a region of 
 Grt at Asia. There the Apostle John preached, and there 
 also, in the city of Ephesus, is his tomb. They say that 
 fom- rivers flo^v out of Paradise.^ One is called Pison or 
 Ganges; this empties into tlie sea surrounding the world. 
 Pison rises under a mountain called Orcobares. The second 
 river flowing from Paradise, is called Tigris, and the third, 
 Euphrates. Both empty into the Mediterranean (sea), near 
 Antioch. The 'Nile, also called Geon, is the fourth river 
 that runs from Paradise. It separates Asia from Africa, 
 and flows through the whole of Egypt. ^ In Egypt is New 
 Babylon (Cairo), and the city called Alexandria. 
 
 The second part of the earth is called Africa, which 
 extends from the south-west to the north-west. ^ There are 
 Serkland, and three regions called Blaland (land of black- 
 men or negroes). The Mediterranean sea divddes Europe 
 from Africa. 
 
 Europe is the third part of the earth, extending from 
 west and north-west to the north-east. In the east of 
 Europe is the kingdom of Russia. There are Holmgard, 
 Palteskia and Smalenskia. South of Russia lies the king- 
 dom of Greece. Of this kingdom, the chief city is Con- 
 stantinople, which our people call Miklagard. In Mikla- 
 
 ' This is a confused geography, based on. Genesis II, 10-15. 
 
 ^ The modern discoveries in connection with the source of 
 the Nile are all shown in the maps of Ptolemy, proving that 
 the great lakes which serve as feeders were well known at a 
 very early period. Still the old northern geographer's ideas 
 were confused. 
 
 ^ This is the way Africa was represented at that early pe- 
 riod. That continent had been circumnavigated by Hanno, 
 though the maps did not show it, but indicated usually the 
 northern part of Africa, which was made to appear longest 
 from east to west. This fact, taken with the fact that the writer 
 has only a few words to say about Africa, proves that he wrote 
 at a very early period, even before the date of Pre-Columbian 
 sketches like those of Fra Mauro and Behaim. See the Atlases 
 of Lelewell and Santarem. Anfe, p. 12. 
 
200 Pke-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 gard is a cliurch, which the people call St. Sophia, but the 
 Northmen call it JEgisif.^ This church exceeds all the 
 other churches in the world, both as respects its structure 
 and size. Bulgaria and a great many islands, called the 
 Greek islands, belong to the kingdom of Greece. Crete 
 and Cyprus are the most noted of the Greek islands. Sicily 
 is a great kingdom in that part of the earth called Europe. 
 Italy is a country south of the great ridge of mountains, 
 called by us Mundia [Alps]. In the remotest part of Italy 
 is Apulia, called by the Northmen, Pulsland. In the 
 middle of Italy is Rome. In the north of Italy is Lom- 
 bardy, which we call Lombardland. North of the moun- 
 tains on the east, is Germany, and on the south-west is 
 France. Hispania, which we call Spainland, is a great 
 kingdom that extends south to the Mediterranean, between 
 Lombardy and France. The Rhine is a great river that 
 runs north from Mundia, between Germany and France. 
 Near the outlets of the Rhine is Friesland, northward from 
 the sea. North of Germany is Denmark. The ocean runs 
 into the Baltic sea, near Denmark. Sweden lies east of 
 Denmark, and Norway at the north. North of Norway is 
 Finnmark. The coast bends thence to the north-east, and 
 then toward the east, until it reaches Permia, which is 
 tributary to Russia. From Permia, desert tracts extend to 
 the north, reaching as far as Greenland.'^ Beyond Green- 
 
 ' The Northmen were familiar with Constantinople. 
 
 * Greenland appears in Ptolemy as an extension of Norway, 
 but was not placed sufificently fai west, showing that the map 
 makers did not fully understand the accounts they had re- 
 ceived. The Northmen understood that a great isthmus 
 extended from Norway to Greenland, through the high ice 
 regio.i, making the two lands one; while Greenland extended 
 to Vinland, which in turn went southward and turned eastward 
 until it nearly reached Africa. In fact South America pushes 
 eastward within twenty degrees of Cape Verde, Africa. On 
 the Lenox globe, 1508-9, these two points are placed in the 
 ame longitude, Africa and South America overlapping. So 
 much for the old northern geography. 
 
America by the Koethmen. 201 
 
 land, southward, is Helluland; bsj^ond that is Markland; 
 from thence it is not far to Vinland, which some men are 
 of the opinion extends to Africa.^ England and Scotland 
 are one island; but each is a separate kingdom. Ireland 
 is a great island. Iceland is also a great island north of 
 Ireland. All these countries are situated in that part of 
 the world called Europe. Kext to Denmark is Lesser Swe- 
 den; then is Oeland, then Gottland, then Helsingeland, 
 theu Vermel and, and the two Kvendlands, which lie north 
 of Biarmeland. From Biarmeland stretches desert land 
 toward the north, until Greenland begins. South of Green- 
 land is Helluland; next is Markland, from thence it is not 
 far to Yinland the Good, which some think goes out to 
 Africa; and if this is so, the sea must extend between Yin- 
 land and Markland. 2 It is told that Thorfinn Karlsefne cut 
 wood here [in Markland] to ornament his house, ^ and went 
 afterward to seek out Vinland the Good. He came there 
 where they thought the land was, but did not reach it,* and 
 
 ' In the face of this and a multitude of similar statements, 
 Mr. Bancroft endeavored to make his readers believe that the 
 locality of Vinland was uncertain. One might, with equal pro- 
 priety, tell us that the location of Masachusetts itself was uncer- 
 tain, because, according to the original grant, it extended to 
 the Pacific ocean, or that Virginia and Florida were uncertain 
 localities, because both at one time included Massachusetts. 
 
 ' This writer did not appear to be familiar with the narratives 
 of Karlsefne. The writer's argument is not plain, where he 
 says, "if this is so," etc.; but as Markland was Nova Scotia 
 and Vinland was Massachusetts, we may perhaps accept this 
 as a recognition of the Gulf of Maine and Massachusetts Bay. 
 When, in 1542, Allefonsce reached this region he did not know 
 whither the sea extended: "I have been at a bay as far as 
 forty-two degrees between Norumbega [Markland] and Florida 
 [Massachusetts], but I have not seen the end and I do not 
 know whether it extends any farther." "The Northmen in 
 Maine," p. 94. 
 
 ' See ante, p. 158, n. 3. 
 
 * This is erroneous. See Saga of Thorfinn, ante, p. 137. 
 
202 Pre-Columbian Discoveet of 
 
 got none of the wealth of the land. Leif the Lucky first 
 discovered Vinland, and then he met some merchants in 
 distress at sea, and by God's grace, saved their lives. He 
 introduced Christianity into Greenland, and it flourished so 
 much that an Episcopal seat was set up in the place called 
 Gardar. England and Scotland are an island, and yet each 
 is a separate kingdom. Ireland is a great island. These 
 countries are all in that part of the world called Europe. 
 
 FROM CmiPLA. 
 
 Bavaria is bounded by Saxony; Saxony is bounded by 
 Holstein, and next is Denmark. The sea runs between the 
 eastern countries. Sweden is east of Denmark. Norway 
 is to the north. Finmark is east of Norway, and from 
 thence the land extends to the north-east and east until you 
 come to Biarmeland. This land is under tribute to Gar- 
 daridge. From Biarmeland desert places lie all northward 
 to the land which is called Greenland [which, however, the 
 Greenlanders do not affirm, but believe to have seen it 
 otherwise, both from drift timber that is known and cut 
 down by men, and also f ron reindeer which have marks upon 
 their ears, or bands upon their horns, likewise from sheep 
 which stray here, of which there are some remaining in Nor- 
 way, for one head hangs in Throndheim, and another in Ber- 
 gen, and many others are to be found].* But there are bays, 
 and the land stretches out toward the south-west; there are 
 ice mountains, and bays, and islands lie out in front of the 
 ice mountains ; one of the ice mountains cannot be explored, 
 and the other is half a month's sail ; to the third, a week's 
 sail. This is nearest to the settlement called Ilvidserk. 
 Thence the land trends north; but he who desires to go 
 by the settlement steers to the south-west. Gardar, the 
 bishop's seat, is at the bottom of Ericsfiord; there is a church 
 consecrated to holy Nicholas. There are twelve churches 
 in the eastern settlement and four in the western. 
 
 * The part inclosed in brackets is an interpolation of a re- 
 cent date. 
 
America by the Northmen. 203 
 
 Now it should be told what is opposite Greenland, out 
 from the bay, which was before named. Furdustrandur ^ 
 is the name of the land ; the cold is so severe that it is not 
 habitable, so far as is known. South from thence is Hellu- 
 land, which is called Skmellings land. Thence it is not far 
 to Yinland the Good, which some think goes out to Africa.'^ 
 Between Yinland and Greenland is Ginnungagah, which 
 runs from the sea called Mare Oceanum^ and surrounds the 
 whole earth.' 
 
 ' Not to be confounded with the place of the same name at 
 Cape Cod. 
 
 ^ This is another passage upon which Bancroft absurdly 
 depended to prove that the locality of Vinland was unknown, 
 when in the Sagas the position is minutely described, the situ- 
 ation being as well known as that of Greenland. See sketches 
 designed to illustrate this statement in the Narrative and Criti- 
 cal History, vol. I, pp. 1 1 7-132. 
 
 ' This may perhaps be viewed as an indication of the " north- 
 west passage, ' ' whch in post-Columbian times was supposed 
 to be a navigable body of water leading to the Pacific, though 
 in this account the name Vinland is loosely applied, whereas 
 Vinland lay south of Markland, the present Nova Scotia. 
 The student should compare these geographical fragments 
 with the geography of Orosius (A. D. 416), translated and 
 improved by King Alfred the Great (Cir. 890), and found in 
 the "Jubilee Edition" of his works, marking the one-thou- 
 sandth year from his birth. London, 1858, vol. II, 17-61. 
 Page 46 contains the only reference to Iceland, but Alfred 
 speaks as though the country were well known at the time he 
 made his translation. This translation is of special interest, 
 as Alfred adds much knowledge belonging to his own time, 
 and narrates the facts about Ohthere, the Northman, who was 
 the most northern inhabitant of his race on the west coast of 
 Norway, north of him being the Finns. Ohthere made a 
 voyage, the first on record, around the north cape into the 
 sea at the eastward. Gardar, the Dane, had seen Iceland in 
 860. On Ohthere, see Hakluyt's "Navigations," vol. II, 
 pp, 4-5. Neither Orosius nor Alfred could say more about the 
 
204 Pre-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 YII. LETTEES FROM THE YATICAN. 
 
 The first of these documents is a letter of Pope Innocent 
 III, bearing the date of February 13, 1206, being addressed 
 to the Archbishop of Drontheim. It confirms his meiro- 
 pohtan rights over the diocese of Greenland, recognized bj 
 Pope Eugene III, in 1148. Regest Vat., vol. Ill, Ej). 214, 
 fol. 65, V. It is written in a beautiful hand, and is illumi- 
 nated. 
 
 The following is the list of the actual Bishops of Green- 
 land, so far as it can be made clear: Arnold, translated to 
 Hammer, Norway; John I. 1150-1178; John II. 1188- 
 1209; Helgo, 1212-1230; Nicholas, consecrated 1234, went 
 to his See 1239; died 1240; Olaf, 1246-1271, and absent 
 from his See about ten years ; Thorder, 1288-1314; Arnos, 
 1315-1346 or 50; John III., but may not have reached 
 Greenland ; Alfus, 1366, reached Greenland 1368 and died 
 1378; Henry, 1386-1389; Berthold (O. St. Francis), 1401; 
 Eskill, the last, 1410. Henry and Harold, without dates, 
 between John I. and John II., doubtful. 
 
 A series of Titular bishops followed, extending from 
 1411 to 1519, numbering about seventeen, including Mat- 
 thias, appointed 1492, by Alexander VI. These Bishops, 
 except Matthias, all paid into the Papal treasury the dues 
 supposed collectable from the See of Garder, in Green- 
 land. Thus it will appear that Greenland was never out 
 of the mind of the Popes, however infrequent may have 
 been the actual communication. Torfeus, in his Green- 
 landia, treats this subject, but for the fullest and most 
 valuable study, see the Pev. Fr. De Poos' "America 
 before Columbus," vol. II, chap. XX, and follomng. Its 
 discussion is not called for in this work on the Sagas. 
 
 southern part of Africa, than that a land of "barren, whirl- 
 ing-sand " extended southward to the ocean. It is clear that 
 they knew that Africa had been circumnavigated. 
 
America by the Northmen. 205 
 
 I. 
 
 '' Innocent III, to the Archbishop of Drontheim, and his 
 canonicallj appointed successors in perpetuity : Though the 
 power of binding and loosing was given to all, and although 
 the same common command to preach the Gospel to every 
 creature was laid upon all, a certain distinction of dignity 
 was nevertheless decreed and only one received above all 
 others the care of the Lord's sheep, in accordance with the 
 Lord's words: Peter, dost thou love me? Feed my sheep. 
 It was Peter also who attained to the pre-eminence above all 
 the Apostles. He received a particular command from the 
 Lord to confirm his brethren, that following generations 
 might know that while many were ordained to govern the 
 Church only one w^as to hold the supreme power, and be 
 over all the others in authority and jurisdiction. Therefore, 
 in accordance with this plan, a distinction of power is seen 
 in the Church, and even as in the human body the various 
 members thereof are intended for different uses, so in the 
 Church different persons attain to different orders for differ- 
 ent services. Some are set apart for particular churches 
 and some are ordained to the rule of different cities, and the 
 arrangement of different affairs. Others are set over certain 
 provinces, others have jurisdiction over their brethren for 
 the disposition of cases that relate to those under them. 
 But over all these, the Koman Pontiff, like Noah in the 
 ark, as holding the pre-eminence; for he, by virtue of 
 the power granted to him from above in the person of the 
 prince of the Apostles, judges and decides causes, and 
 ceases not to establish in the Christain faith the sons of the 
 church all over the world, by right seeking to prove that he 
 has heard the voice of the Lord, saying: "And thou 
 being once converted, confirm thy brethren. The Apostles 
 and men who have risen in regular order to the government 
 of the apostolic see since the blessed Peter, have likewise 
 endeavored with unfailing zeal to perform the same, and 
 either personally or by means of their legates have endeav- 
 ored to their utmost to correct whatever needed correction 
 and to decree what was required. Our predecessor of 
 
206 Pit E Columbian Discovery of 
 
 happy memory, Pope Eugene, following in their footsteps, 
 was desirous, in accordance with the obligations of Lis office, 
 to amend in the kingdom of Norway all that seemed to 
 demand amendment, by sowing the word of faith, and what 
 he himself was unable to do, on account of his care of the 
 universal Church, he entrusted for execution to his legate 
 JSTicholas, then bishop of Albano and afterwards Roman 
 pontiff, who, having gone to that country, loaned out, obedi- 
 ent to tlie commands of his master, the talent he had 
 received, and like a faithful and wise servant tried to derive 
 an increase thereof. Among other thing which he achieved 
 to the gloiy of God's name and his ministry, according as 
 he had been ordered by our said predecessor, he bestowed 
 the pallium upon thy predecessor John, and lest the prov- 
 ince of Norway should lack the direction of a metropolitan 
 he appointed the city of Nidras, now under thy charge, as 
 the metropolitan See in perpetuity of the said province and 
 gave to it as suffrage Sees in perpetuity Aslo, Amatrip, 
 Bergen, Stavangri, the Orkney, Faroe, and Subraie islands, 
 Iceland and Greenland, commanding the bishops of the 
 same to obey him and his successors as their metropolitans. 
 Lest any one should presume, however, to violate the order 
 of the aforesaid legate, we, after the example of the afore- 
 mentioned Eugene, of happy memory, of Alexander and of 
 Clement, our predecessors and Roman pontiffs, confirm the 
 same order by apostolic authority, and by this ordinance 
 ordering that the city of Nidras be ever considered as the 
 metropolitan See of the afore-mentioned cities; that their 
 bishops are to obey thee and thy successors as their metro- 
 politan, and to receive from thy hands the grace of conse- 
 cration; that thy successors, however, are to come to the 
 Roman pontiff alone, in order to receive the grace of con- 
 secration, and that they are to be subject to the Roman 
 Church alone. Besides, thy fraternity will use the pallium 
 which has been given thee, the emblem of the fullness of 
 the pontifical office, within church only during the solemn 
 celebration of mass throughout thy whole province, and 
 on those days only which are underwritten, viz., the Lord's 
 
America by the Northmen. 207 
 
 nativity, the Epiphany, the Lord's Supper, the Resurrec- 
 tion, Ascension and Pentecost, on the festivals of the blessed 
 Mother of God, Mary, ever virgin; the feasts of Saints 
 Peter and Paul, the finding and exaltation of the Holy 
 Cross, the nativity of Saint John the Baptist, the feast of 
 blessed John the Evangelist, on the commemoration of all 
 saints, when consecrating churclies or bishops, blessing 
 abbots or ordaining priests, on the anniversary of the con- 
 secration of thy own church, the feasts of the Holy Trinity 
 and of Saint Olaf and the anniversary of thy consecration. 
 "Wherefore let thy fraternity do all things with diligence 
 that the ornaments of thy administration may be in keeping 
 with the fullness of the great dignity thou hast received. 
 Let thy life be an example to all who are under thee, so 
 that they may learn therefrom what they should seek after 
 and what they are obliged to shun ; be distinguished for thy 
 prudence, chasteness of thought, purity of conduct, discre- 
 tion in silence, usefulness in speech. Endeavor rather to 
 do good to men than to rule them. In thyself thou shouidst 
 consider not the power of order, but the equality of thy 
 condition. Take care lest thy life render void thy teach- 
 ing or thy teaching prove in contradiction to thy conduct. 
 Remember that the government of souls is the art of arts. 
 Strive above all things to observe faithfully the decrees of 
 the apostolic see, and humbly obey the same as thy mother 
 and mistress. These, most beloved brother in Christ, are 
 some among the many obligations which pertain to thy 
 archiepiscopal and sacerdotal office, all of which thou canst 
 easily perform with Christ's aid, provided that thou hast 
 charity, which is the mother of all virtues, and humility, 
 and that thou hast inwardly what thou seemest outwardly 
 to have. 
 
 Accordingly we decree, etc. , unto the end. 
 
 Done in Rome, at Saint Peter's, by the hand of John, 
 cardinal, deacon of Saint Mary's, in Cosmedin, chancellor 
 of the holy Roman church, on the 13th day of February, 
 the sixth indiction, in the year of the Lord's Incarnation 1205, 
 and the 8th year of the pontificate of Pope Innocent HI. 
 
208 Pke-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 II. 
 
 Four letters from Pope John XXI to the archbishop of 
 Drontheim, about tithes in Greenland for the Crusades, 
 dated December 4, 1276. Johanis XXI, vol. 38, p. 23. 
 Epis. 93-94. The first two of these letters are written on 
 vellum, illuminated. 
 
 About all that needs to be said, perhaps, on the tithes of 
 Yineland. has been observed already. {Ante, p. 31). 
 Gravier and Riant both speak as though there were positive 
 proof of the collection of tithes for Crusades in Yineland, 
 yet it is a matter of inference, reasonable inference, one 
 might say. On every principle, the rule of the Bishop of 
 Greenland extended to the islands and continental lands 
 adjoining, and of the continuance of the voyages to Green- 
 land and Yinland, during long periods, there can be no 
 doubt. Bishop Helgo, 1212-30, was a special preacher of 
 ihe Crusades, and from time to time soldiers who had been 
 to Jerusalem, were seen in Greenland, and doubtless as well 
 in Yinland or New England. 
 
 John XXI to the archbishop of Drontheim : 
 
 Having received, by apostolic brief, the commission to 
 collect tithes in the kingdom of Norway for the Holy Land, 
 and having been expressly commanded in the same brief 
 to visit in person all the countries of the said kingdom for 
 this purpose, thy fraternity informs us that such visitation 
 seems in a measure impossible, for the diocese of Gardar, 
 which belongs to thy province and kingdom, is so far from 
 the metropolitan see and the difficulties of navigation are so 
 great that five years are scarcely sufficient for the whole 
 journey; therefore, thou hast reason to doubt whether the 
 apostolic mandate or thine will reach the said country within 
 the time named for the payment of the tithes. Therefore, 
 thou hast had recourse to the wisdom of the Apostolic See 
 for a remedy in this matter. We, therefore, in our desire 
 
America by the Northmen. 209 
 
 that the collection of the tithes be carefully attended to, do 
 wish and by apostolic letters command thy fraternity, the 
 above facts being true, to appoint certain capable and faith- 
 ful persons, regarding whom we charge thy conscience, who 
 shall visit that country and shall supervise and diligently 
 superintend the said collection. Thou shalt also carefully 
 provide whatsoever shall seem desirable in the said matter, 
 that thou mayest obtain thy reward of the Lord and merit 
 for thyself more abundaEtly the favor of the apostolic see. 
 Done at Yiterbo, December 4:th, in the first year. 
 
 To the same: 
 
 By apostolic brief you have received a commission to 
 collect tithes in the kingdom of Korway for the Holy Land, 
 and havino- been commanded in the same brief to visit in 
 person all the countries of the said country for this purpose, 
 but thy fraternity has informed us that several of the 
 dioceses in that kingdom belonging to thy province are so 
 widely scattered over the sea and so extensive in territory 
 that it would be difficult for thee to visit personally all the 
 districts of the said dioceses within a period of about six 
 years and without heavy expense to thy see, and since thou 
 wouldst have to journey some five or more seasons through 
 countries where, because there are no dwellings, thou 
 wouldst be obliged to carry tents, thou hast asked to be 
 authorized to depute, notwithstanding the apostolic brief to 
 the contrary, certain careful and capable commissaries to 
 collect the tithes in the said countries. Wherefore, in order 
 to spare thee and thy see such expense, we have concluded 
 to allow thee, by tenor of these present, liberty to appoint 
 such commissaries for the collection of tithes in the said 
 diocese, in case the above be according to the facts, and if 
 thou seest fit so to do, regarding which we charge thy con- 
 science. We wish thee, nevertheless, to visit in person 
 such of the aforesaid dioceses as may be possible, without 
 great inconvenience, and to attend to the collection of the 
 14 
 
210 Pke-Columbian Discovert of 
 
 said tithes, that thou raayest expect a recompense from the 
 Lord, whose work it is, and mayest more abundantly merit 
 the favor of the apostolic see. 
 
 Done at Yiterbo, December 4th, in the first year. 
 
 3. 
 
 To the same: 
 
 Thou hast informed us that, owing to the great extent of 
 the dioceses in the kingdom of Norway, wherein thou hast 
 been appointed by apostohc letter collector of tithes for the 
 relief of the Holy Land, the two collectors named, with 
 apostolic permission, for every diocese, are not enough for 
 the said work, nor can they perform the matter without 
 inconvenience and very great cost. By the advice and with 
 the assent of thy suffragans in the said kingdom, thou hast 
 appointed for the rural districts of the different dioceses 
 several other collectors, who by their own efforts and at 
 their personal cost are to collect the tithes and then convey 
 them to the two city collectors. Therefore, thou hast 
 humbly besought us to regard the labor and cost to which 
 these collectors put themselves and to grant them some 
 relief; hence, as we desire that these rural collectors may 
 gain some advantage from their labors and expense, we 
 grant them the indulgence which has been accorded to those 
 who by their labors and co-operation further the cause of 
 the Holy Land. 
 
 At Yiterbo, December 4th, in the first year. 
 
 4. 
 To the same: 
 
 Thou hast informed us that in the kingdom of !N'orway, 
 where thou hast been entrusted with the collection of tithes 
 for the Holy Land, the current money is so debased as to 
 be of no value outside the boundaries of the kingdom, and 
 that in some parts of the aforesaid kingdom money is not 
 in use, also no crops are cultivated, and no fruits are grown, 
 
America by the ]^orthmen. 211 
 
 the people living almost entirely upon milk, cheese and fish; 
 therefore, thou hast humbly requested us to tell thee what 
 thou shalt do with the tithes drawn from the aforesaid milk, 
 cheese, fish and money. Therefore, in our thought that 
 whatever is most profitable to be done in this matter, we 
 think it would be well, if the statement be exact, to exchange 
 so far as practicable all such coin and tithes for silver and 
 gold. In regard to the nuns and other religious orders of 
 the kingdom whose incomes and ecclesiastical revenues are 
 so small as to be insufficient for their support, thou canst 
 proceed according to that which has been set forth fuller in 
 the declarations relating to this collection of tithes. 
 Done at Yiterbo, December 4:th, first year. 
 
 III. 
 
 A letter from Pope Nicholas III, of January 31, 1279, 
 to the Archbishop of Drontheim, about tithes in Greenland. 
 Nicholas III, to his venerable brother, the Archbishop of 
 Drontheim : 
 
 "We have learned from thy letters to us, that the island on 
 which the city of Gardar is located is not often visited by 
 ships, on account of the storms of the ocean where it is 
 situated. Lately, therefore, when certain sailors went to 
 the said island to the said city, thou didst take advantage of 
 the opportunity to send in the company of the said sailors, 
 a careful person, whom thou didst appoint collector of the 
 tithes. Depending upon our approbation thou didst 
 empower him to absolve clerics from the pain of excom- 
 munication which had fallen upon them, on account ot non- 
 payment of tithes within the ordered time, and to release 
 them from whatever irregularity they may have committed. 
 Therefore, thou hast humbly requested us to grant our 
 gracious approval. But since we cannot favorably assent to 
 this desire because it is not based on reason, and desiring, 
 on this account, to comply with thy wislies by applying a 
 ready remedy for perils to souls, we hereby empower thee 
 
212 Pbe-Coltjmbian Discovery of 
 
 to give to those whom thou hast sent or may send in the 
 future to the said islands to absolve clerics, whether in the 
 aforementioned islands or others in the same ocean from 
 the aforesaid sentence according to the order of the Church, 
 and to dispense them from irregularity of this kind. 
 Done at Rome, at Saint Peter's, January 31, 1279. 
 
 IV. 
 
 From Pope Nicholas II, to Master Bertrand Arnabiie, 
 June 9, 1279, relating to wine and altar bread, for the 
 churches in Greenland. 
 " Nicholas III, to the said Master Bertrand Arnabrie: 
 
 We have recently been told by thee that certain revenues 
 have been apportioned by the devotion of the faithful 
 in the cathedral churches of Denmark and Sweden for 
 the express purpose of buying wine and altar bread for the 
 clergy of the churches within the said kingdom. Since, 
 however, thou hast consulted the Apostolic See in regard to 
 whether tithes ghould be taken from revenues of this kind, 
 while approving thy diligence, we do by apostolic letter 
 leave the question to thy judgment, in order that, if the 
 revenues be so large that thou art sure that a large sum will 
 be left over after providing wine and altar bread, we wish 
 that tithes be paid on that part. On the other hand, if 
 little or nothing is left of the said revenues, nothing is to 
 be paid out of regard for reverence for adoration and the 
 sacrament of the Lord. 
 
 Done in Rome, at Saint Peter's, June 9, 1279." 
 
 A letter of Pope Martin TV, to the Archbishop of Dron- 
 theim, March 4, 1281, in relation to the peltry and whale- 
 bone furnished as tithes by the people of Greenland. 
 " Martin IV, to the Archbishop of Drontheim: 
 
AmEKICA by the ISToRTHMEN. 213 
 
 Thy fraternity hast informed us that the tithes being paid 
 in Iceland and the Faroe Islands in the kingdom of Nor- 
 way, are composed of various commodities that cannot 
 easily be exchanged or sold, on which account the same 
 cannot readily be sent to Holy Land or to the Apostolic See. 
 Thou hast said, also, that the only tithes that can be gathered 
 in Greenland are composed of skins of the elk or the musk 
 ox or of seals, teeth ropes of whales, which by your account, 
 cannot be sold for any fair price. Therefore, thou hast 
 desired instructions of the apostolic see as to what course 
 you should take in this case. Therefore, while we admire 
 thy pious care, we reply to the question as follows: Thou 
 must seek to exchange the tithes of Greenland and the other 
 islands as you best may, for either silver or gold and for- 
 ward the same as soon as possible, together with other tithes 
 collected in the kingdom for the succour of Holy Land, 
 truly informing us in regard to the nature and the amount 
 of what thou dost send. "We also write to our most dear 
 son in Christ, the renowned king of Norway, requesting 
 him not to prevent or permit any one to prevent the free 
 exportation from his dominion of the tithes which are 
 devoted, as the Apostolic See shall deem iStting to the succour 
 of the said Holy Land, and to seek to repeal the order 
 decreed aganist clerics of said kingdom, that forbids any 
 layman of the kingdom selling easterlings or other silver. 
 
 Done at Orvieto, March 4, 1281. 
 
 VI. 
 
 A letter from Pope Nicholas Y, September 20, 1448, to 
 the Bishop of Skalholt and Eolar in Iceland, respecting the 
 church in Greenland. 
 
 The suggestion that this letter never reached its destina- 
 tion, based on the statement that voyages to Iceland were 
 rare at this period, has no support in fact. In 1448 the 
 traffic between England and Iceland had reached such pro- 
 portions that the King of Denmark felt concerned, and 
 
214 Pre-Columbian Discovekt of 
 
 obliged the King of England in 1450, to reduce the fleet 
 to two ships. The English were getting the better part of 
 the trade, which was claimed by Denmark. See Ante^ 
 p. 55. 
 
 *' Nicholas, etc., to om* venerable brothers. Bishop of 
 Skalholt and Bishop of Holar, Health, etc. : 
 By virtue of the apostolic charge given to us from on 
 high, in directing the affairs of the universal church, it is 
 our care, in God's name, to secure the salvation of souls 
 purchased by the precious blood of our Saviour, not only 
 by stilling the storms of irreligion and error which sweep 
 over them, but also by protecting them when subject to mis- 
 fortunes and whirlwinds of persecution. From the natives 
 and from dwellers in Greenland, an island said to be found 
 in the most distant parts of the ocean ofi the northern coasts 
 of the kingdom of Norway, in the province of Drontheim, 
 a sorrowful cry has come to our ears and saddened our heart. 
 These people, nearly six hundred years ago, received the 
 Faith from the lips of their glorious apostle, the blessed 
 King Olaf , and kept it unchanged and pure, in obedience 
 to the laws of the holy Roman Church and the Apostolic 
 See. After a time animated by unfailing devotion, they 
 built many churches besides a fine cathedral, in which the 
 worship of God was faithfully carried on until within thirty 
 years, by the permission of Him who, in his incomprehen- 
 sible wisdom and knowledge, afflicts those whom He loves to 
 make them perfect, barbarous people irom the neighboring 
 heathen shores sent ships to invade the island. The land 
 was laid waste with fire and sword, churches were every- 
 wliere destroyed in all the island, said to be of vast extent. 
 Only nine parish churches escaped, for the reason that being 
 built among the mountains they could not well be reached. 
 Many of the unhappy people of both sexes, who seemed 
 strong to bear the yoke of lasting slavery, and by reason of 
 physical strength appearing best suited for the labors of 
 their masters, were carried away as prisoners. Neverthe- 
 
America by the Northmen. 215 
 
 less, the same adds, that, after a time, many of them 
 returned to their native country; and having in various 
 places rebuilt what the invaders liad destroyed, they wished 
 to establish the worship of God and restore its former 
 splendor. Nevertheless, the misfortunes endured had left 
 them in such a starving and necessitous condition, that they 
 had no means of supporting a bishop and priests, and unless 
 in their desire for Divine worship they could perform a jour- 
 ney of a number of days to the churches that had survived 
 the destruction of the barbarians, they were without the 
 comforts of a pastor and the services of priests for thirty 
 years. Therefore, they have most humbly besought us, 
 that, in our paternal pity we would give them aid in satis- 
 fying their devout and beneficial desires ; also that we would 
 condescend to meet the supply of their spiritual needs and 
 exhibit our benevolence and that of the Apostolic See in 
 this case. Therefore, moved by the proper and rightful 
 prayers and wishes of the aforesaid natives and dwellers in 
 Greenland, and not having perfect knowledge of the above 
 facts and circumstances, we do, by apostolic letters, com- 
 mand one or both of you, whom we understand to be neigh- 
 boring bishops, after having carefully investigated and 
 comprehended the statements made above, to learn if it be 
 true. If this is the state of things and if you find the popu- 
 lation increased in number and resources to render the ful- 
 fillment of their desires expedient, it is our will that you 
 ordain suitable priests of holy life and furnish rectors for 
 the administration of the parishes that have been restored 
 and churches for the administration of the sacraments. In 
 addition, if to one or both of you it may seem timely and 
 expedient, having sought the advice of the metropolitan, if 
 the distance allows, we empower you to appoint and order 
 as bishop for them some profitable and qualified person in 
 communion with us and the Apostolic See, to consecrate, 
 with the customary form of the church, in our name, and 
 give to him the administration of spiritual and temporal 
 things, first receiving from him the proper and usual oath 
 of allegiance to us and the Apostolic See. Having made 
 
V 
 
 216 Pee-Columbian Discovery of 
 
 this a matter of consceince, we by our apostolic authority, 
 give to one or both of you full and unrestricted jurisdiction 
 in this case, according to the tenor of these presents all 
 statutes and constitutions, whether apostolic or of general 
 councils, or of any other kind whatsoever, notwithstanding. 
 Done at Rome, at Saint Potencianas', in the year fourteen 
 hundred and forty-eight, twelfth day before the Kalends of 
 October, the second year of our pontificate. ' ' 
 
 VII. 
 
 A letter of Pope Alexander YI, 1492-1493, by which he 
 appointed Matthias, a monk of Saint Benedict, to the Bish- 
 opric of Garder, Greenland. The entire volume, 492 pages, 
 is of paper, and the documents seem to have been written 
 carelessly by a rapid hand, except a few by a firm and 
 careful hand in an older style. We have placed Matthias 
 with the titular bishops, yet such was not the intention. 
 Matthias was fully resolved upon the mission. 
 
 " We learn that the church of Goder [Garder] situated 
 on the outer boundaries of the world, in the country of 
 Greenland, whose inhabitants are accustomed to live upon 
 dried fish and milk, for the reason that bread, wine and oil 
 are scarce, and for the reason that voyages are rarely made 
 to that region, on account of the freezing of the sea no ship 
 is supposed to have touched there during the past eighty 
 years. We are also informed, that voyages of this kind are 
 not thought possible except in the month of August, after 
 the ice melts, and that no resident bishop or priest has ruled 
 the Church for some eighty years past. Therefore, on 
 account of the lack of priests, it has come to pass that very 
 many of the people of that diocese, who were formerly Catho- 
 lics, have, alas ! denied the sacred baptism they had received. 
 It is said that the people of that land have no other relic of 
 the Christian religion than a corporal that they exhibit once 
 a year, upon which the body of Christ was consecrated by 
 the last priest who was resident one hundred years ago. On 
 
America by the Northmen. 217 
 
 account of these and other reasons, our predeceesor, Pope 
 Innocent YIII, of happy memory, desiring to furnish an 
 able and meritorious pastor for the said church, so long 
 deprived of that consolation, agreeable to the advice of his 
 brethren, of whom we were one, nominated to the said see, our 
 venerable Brother Matthias, a professed member of the Order 
 of Saint Benedict and now bishop elect of Gader [Gardar] 
 having been preconised on our motion, before an election. 
 In his intense zeal for those who had fallen away for 
 the recovery of those who have lapsed, and for the suppres- 
 sion of error, he has now resolved to set out upon this most 
 dangerous undertaking. "While greatly commending, in 
 the Lord, his holy and meritorious design, we wish to aid 
 him in some means on account of his poverty. Therefore, 
 on our own doing, cognisance and by the advice and consent 
 of our brethren, we direct, under penalty of excommunica- 
 tion, to follow ipso facto, our beloved sons, the copyists, 
 abriviators, solicitors, with the holders of seals, and the regis- 
 terator, and all other officials in the various offices, both of 
 the chancery and apostolic chamber, to forward and to have 
 forwarded promptly and entirely free of charge, all apos- 
 tolic letters concerning the advancement to the aforesniJ 
 church of Gader [Gardar] which need to be sent to the said 
 bishop elect. Moreover, by the same, with similar cog- 
 nisance and similar penalties, to be visited upon those who 
 incur, who fail to obey, and everything to the contrary not- 
 withstanding, we command the clerics and notaries of the 
 apostolic chamber to give to the said bishop all such briefs and 
 bulls without payment or requirement of any tax or any fees 
 or gratuities ordinarily paid on similar accounting. Let all 
 be done free in all the departments, because he is very poor. ' ' 
 
 On these documents consult the Kev. Fr. Franz Ehrle, 
 S. J. Frieburg, 1894: " Der Historische Gehalt derpapst- 
 lichen Abtheilung auf der Weltanstellung von Chicago." 
 
 Also, " Compte Rendu Congres Scientifique International 
 des Catholiques, 1891." Paris, Ricard 82 Rue Bounforte. 
 
218 Pke-Columbian Discoveky of 
 
 P. A. Munchs' " Pavilaye IS'imtiers Eegnskabs-og Dogs- 
 boger," Christiana, 1864, gives various letters bj a Scan- 
 dinavian bishop, order a collection of tithes for the Cru- 
 sades, in Greenland, dated Aug, 30, 1326, p. 173. 
 
 Valuable notes on these letters made by the author at the 
 Vatican, have, he deeply regrets, disappeared. Translations 
 are the work of others. 
 
 VIII. THE BULL OF GREGOEY IV., 834. 
 
 The imperial rescript to which this Bull refers begins: 
 *' In the name of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ, Louis, 
 by Divine permission and grace Emperor," and ends: 
 " Given the Ides of May in the twenty-first year of the 
 Emperor Louis' reign, in the Royal Palace of Aguis in the 
 name of God, Amen, A. D. 834." It speaks of rule among 
 the people " in the northern portions of the continent, 
 namely, among the Danes, Swedes, Norwegians, Farians, 
 Greenlanders, Helsingers, Icelanders, Scritifinlanders and all 
 the tribes in those northern parts, inasmuch as a great mul- 
 titude has been converted from one place or another to the 
 faith of Christ." His plan, therefore, was to erect the 
 entire region into an arch-diocese, which was done by 
 Gregory. Greenland, it will be noticed, is located in the 
 northern part of the continent of Europe, yet it was learned 
 only in modern times that Greenland was entirely discon- 
 nected. The Zeno map, and all the ancient Italian maps, 
 made Greenland a part of Europe, connecting it by a neck 
 of land extending through the north. This was the repre- 
 sentation in the Geography of Ptolemy, published in 1486. 
 Columbus and all men of that period were perfectly familiar 
 with this delineation, not dreaming that Greenland was part 
 of a great world at the west. See on this Bull, the valuable 
 discussion of De Roo: "America before Columbus, " vol. 
 II, chap. III. This Bull is found in Pontanus' Rerum 
 J)a/nicarum Historia^ etc., pp. 97-98. 
 
America ey the I^okthmex. 219 
 
 Gregory, Bishop, servant of the servants of God ; to all 
 the faithful be it known, that the most excellent Emperor 
 Charles, in the time of our ancestors, being influenced by 
 inspiration of the Divine Spirit, subdued the race of tlie 
 Saxons to the Christian religion, and imposed upon them 
 Christ's yoke, which is easy; and that he subdued the tierce 
 hearts as far as the boundaries of the Danes or Slavi, by 
 the sword; and that, in order that the part of the Empire 
 lying beyond the Elbe might not, lying as it did between 
 great perils, go back to the heathen religion, or perhaps 
 because it seemed best adapted to the care of nations yet to 
 be gained over, he so decreed to establish it by his own 
 imperial authority. But death having hindered his plans, 
 his son and most excellent successor, Louis the august 
 Emperor, effectually carried out his father's wishes, which 
 cause is to be confirmed to us by the venerable Racobfius 
 or Yernoldus, Bishop or Count Geroldus. Therefore, all 
 of us recognising in all this an appointment worthy of 
 Divine Providence, and also instructed by the presence of 
 our good Brother Ansgar, the first bishop of the Nordal- 
 bingians, consecrated by the hands of Deago Mateasis 
 Bishop, and the holy seal of honored emperors, both by 
 these presents and by the delivery of the Episcopal Pallium, 
 according to the ancient custom of our forefathers, have 
 resolved to confirm by whatsoever valid authority we pos- 
 sess, the said Ansgarius and his successors in ofiice, in order 
 that in winning over the nations they may be the more 
 mighty against the wiles of the Devil, and they are hereby 
 appointed over Legates Apostolic among all the nations 
 round about — the Danes, Swedes, Norwegians, Faroese, 
 Greenlanders, Helsingers, Icelanders, Slavi, as also all the 
 northern and eastern nations of whatever name they may 
 be called, and resting head and heart upon the body of the 
 faith of Saint Peter, we give them public authority to 
 preach the Gospel, and to occupy the Episcopal See itself. 
 "We decree that the See of the Nordalbingians, called Ham- 
 burg, shall be consecrated in honor of the Saviour and His 
 Immaculate Mother as an Archi-episcopal See. And until 
 
220 Pee-Columbian Discovery of America. 
 
 the number of bishops shall be increased, we commit the 
 consecration of bishops, provieionallj, to the care of the 
 Palatinate. But let the person elected for so great an office 
 and apt thereto, always be that of an earnest preacher, 
 that we do by our authority confirm and establish his pious 
 wishes and vows; and everyone who shall resist or gainsay^ 
 or in any way counteract these auspicious desires, we do 
 smite with the sharp edge of our anathema and adjudge the 
 guilty by perpetual vengeance to the doom of devils, accord- 
 ing to the manner of predecessors in office ; and being zealous 
 with pious effort, do all the more safely defend the Apos- 
 tolic See against all adversaries. 
 
 And forasmuch, most beloved Ansgar, the Divine Grace 
 has inclined thee in this new See to accept the office of an 
 archbishop, we do hereby transmit the pallium for your 
 celebration of the mass, which we authorize you to wear 
 during your lifetime. 
 
 May it please the most Holy Trinity long to spare your 
 life, and after the bitterness of this transitory state may you 
 obtain eternal felicity. Amen. Datum, 835. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Abassades, The., 61 
 
 Abbott, 134, n. 2. 
 
 Adam of Bremen, 106, n. 3, 
 
 171. 
 Adzer, Archbishop, 27, 184. 
 A<?amemnoii, 12. 
 ^lian, 10. 
 Africa, 11. 
 Agassiz, Prof., 98, n. 125, 
 
 71. 5. 
 
 Alcock, Robert, 57. 
 
 Alexander, 11, 33, 216. 
 
 Alexandria, 199. 
 
 Alfred, King, 49, 203, n. 3. 
 
 Alfonso, King, 49. 
 
 Alps, 200. 
 
 Allefousce, 112, n., 183, n. 2. 
 
 America, 6-9. 
 
 America, De Roo's, 218. 
 
 Amund, Bishop, 38. 
 
 Anderson, E., 49, n., 59, n. 2. 
 
 Andalusia, 11. 
 
 Andre, 30, 32. 
 
 Anndlar, 52, n. 
 
 Annales Islandormn Regii, 
 
 37, 48. 
 Annales Regii, 188; Flatey- 
 
 enses, 181; Reseniini, 
 
 181. 
 Ansgar, 219. 
 Anson, Lord, 43. 
 Antioch, 198. 
 Antiquitates Americanae, 25, 
 
 n., 36, 71, 1, 97, n. 5. 
 Apostogon Hills, 97, n. 
 Apostles, 205. 
 Arthur, King, 24, n. 
 
 Archaeologia, Americana, 88, 
 
 n. 
 Arnabrie, 212. 
 Archer, 100, 7i. 3. 
 Argyle, Marquis of, 68, n. 
 Aristotle, 11. 
 Arnald, Bishop, 29, 184. 
 Arnold, Gov. Benedict, 73, n. 
 Arnbiorn, 172. 
 Arnbiorn, The Eastman, 185. 
 Arthur, 24, n. 
 Asbrand, 167, 170. 
 Asia Minor, 199. 
 Assonet Neck, 70, 7%. 
 Athelstane, 41. 
 Atlantis, 11. 
 Avalldania, 138, 147. 
 Azore, Islands, 164, n. 
 
 Babjlon, 199. 
 
 Bacaloa, Islands of, 182, n. 
 
 Balder, 128, n. 
 
 Ball's River, 40. 
 
 Bancroft, George, 7, 68, n., 
 
 201, n. 1, 64, n. 1. 
 Bardarson, Ivar, 28-35. 
 Barbarosa, 171. 
 Bartholomew, the Apostle, 
 
 198. 
 Benedict, Saint, 217. 
 Beacon, Mr. Joseph, 119, n. 
 Beamish, 136, 7i. 1. 
 Bede, the Venerable, 25. 
 Bergen, 52. 
 Bellinger, 112, n. 
 Behaim, 199, ti. 
 Bethencourt, 14. 
 
 [221] 
 
222 
 
 Index. 
 
 Bible, Gnyot, 51. 
 
 Biarne, Heriulfson, 65, 89, 
 
 95, 139. 
 Boerne, of Kamb, 167. 
 Bishops, list of in Greenland, 
 
 204. 
 Bible, Guyot, 51, n. 
 Biarne, Bishop, 148. 
 Blarney, Isle, 140. 
 Biorn, Asbrandson Breidavl- 
 
 king, 169; exiled, 170; 
 
 returns, 172; goes 
 
 abroad, 177. 
 Blfesark, 87. 
 Black Hoof, 165. 
 Blue Hills, 137, n. 2, 143, 
 
 n. 3. 
 BoUandists, 25, n. 2. 
 Bonaparte, 154, n. 
 Bork, the Fat, 167. 
 Boston Harbor, 112, n. 
 Bougainville, 12. 
 Bory, de St. Vincent, 14. 
 Bradford, 28, n. 2, 100, n. 
 Brand, Bishop, 160. 
 Brattahlid, 27, QQ, 122. 
 Brereton, 98, n. 
 Bristol, 56. 
 
 Brown, Maiie A., 60, n. 1. 
 Broughton, 16. 
 Brun, Malte, 74, n. 
 Bulls, Papal, 26. 
 Brj'niiilfson, Dr. 34. 
 Buzzard's Bay, 101, n. 124, 
 
 n. 4. 
 Byggeman, William, 54. 
 
 Cabot, 6, 61, 113, n. 
 Cadiz, 12. 
 Canaria, 13. 
 Canary Islands, 12. 
 Canute, 171. 
 Canynges, 55. 
 
 Cape Cod, 16, 50, 98, 108, n., 
 old ship at, 98. 
 
 Cape Sable, 97, n. 
 Cape Malabar, 101. 
 Caprari, 13. 
 Cartier, 83, n. 
 Chaplains, 14. 
 Cinnamon, 106, n. 
 Chatham, 100, n. 
 Charles, 11, 68, n. 
 Chingwank, 70, n. 
 Christianity, in Iceland, 82, 
 
 n. 2; Greenlend, 95, 
 
 n. 2. 
 Christinia, Ships at, 44, n. 
 Charlemange, 10. 
 Chaucer, 57. 
 Christian, II, 39. 
 Christian III, 39. 
 Christ, 144. 
 Christophersen, Claudius, 25, 
 
 162. 
 Claudian, 17. 
 Chronos, 9. 
 
 Clarendon, Lord, 64, n. 
 Clarke, Dr., 60, n. 1. 
 Cleasby, 104, n. 
 Cock Lane Ghost, 68. 
 
 ColiBUS, 11. 
 
 Corporal, 216. 
 
 Columbus, 6, 33, 39, 56, 58, 
 
 59, n. 1, 60. 
 Congress, 30. 
 Constantinople, 40, 200. 
 Grantor, 11. 
 Crantz, 29, n. 4, 39. 
 Cronica General de Espana, 
 
 49. 
 Crusades, 31, 208. 
 Crossness, 114, 121. 
 Cuba, 59, n. 1. 
 Culdees, 22. 
 Cuchalin, Saga of, 134, n. 
 
 Dagmalstad, 1C2, n. 
 Danforth, Dr., 70, n. 
 Davis, 40, n. 3. 
 
Index. 
 
 223 
 
 Darien, Isthmus of, 163. 
 
 Daseiit, 40, 62, n. 1, 102, n. 
 
 Deane, Dr., 61. 
 
 De Barros, 14, n. 2. 
 
 De Fries, Rev., 34. 
 
 De Koo Fr., 204, 218. 
 
 Dicuil, 25. 
 
 Dighton Rock, 70, n. 
 
 Diman, Prof., 69, n. 1. 
 
 Disco, 93, n. 1, 124, n. 4. 
 
 Discrepancies, in Sagas, 95, 
 
 n. 1. 
 Donsk tunga, 19. 
 Doomsday Book, 49, 73, 195. 
 Dropstock, 90, n. 
 Drift-wood, 80, n. 
 Drogeo, 55. 
 
 Dublin, 139, 148, n. 180. 
 Dudley, Lieut. Gov., 102, 
 
 n. 2. 
 Dungannon, Lord, 18, n. 
 
 Eddas, 50. 
 
 Earth, brief description of, 
 198. 
 
 Easton, Peter, 73, n. 
 
 Edward III, 14, n. 2, 52. 
 
 Edward IV, 57. 
 
 Egede, Rev. Hans, 39, n., 
 136, n. 1. 
 
 Egypt, 199. 
 
 Einarsfield,-33. 
 
 Einar, son of Sokke, 29. 
 
 Eindridesuden, the ship, 1 82. 
 
 Elysium, 11. 
 
 English, 51. 
 
 Eric, Bishop, 181. 
 
 Eric, the Red, 15, 25; goes 
 to Greenland, 82, 87; re- 
 solves to seek new land, 
 87; banished, 87; his 
 children, 90 ; accident, 
 96; baptised, 110. 
 
 Ericson, Thorvald, 30 ; goes to 
 Vinland, 110; his death, 
 
 114; Thorstein sails for 
 Viniand, 115; returns, 
 110; his death, 117. 
 
 Ehrle, Fr., 217. 
 
 Eric, Bishop Upse, 181. 
 
 Erlandson, 21, 121. 
 
 Esquimaux, 134, n. 3. 
 
 Estotiland, 55, 110, n. 
 
 Eugene III, 31, 206. 
 
 Eyktarstad, 102. 
 
 Eyrbyggia Saga, 166. 
 
 Everett, Edward, 60. 
 
 Feather Islands, 181. 
 
 Fenris, 128, n. 4. 
 
 Festivals, 206, 
 
 Finboge, 154. 
 
 Fate, 96. 
 
 Fish, Sacred, 130. 
 
 Florida, 165, n. 
 
 Forsark, Thorkel, swims for 
 a sheep, 94. 
 
 Foster-father, 106, n. 
 
 Fossils, 96, n. 2. 
 
 Fragments, geographical, 180. 
 
 France, 182. 
 
 Frederic, II, 39. 
 
 Frederic, bishop, 79. 
 
 Frey, 125, n. 
 
 Freydis, 67, 133; sails for 
 Yinland, 154 ; quarrels 
 with the company, 153; 
 murders the brothers and 
 their company, 157; re- 
 turns to Greenland, 157. 
 
 Frisius, 5-6. 
 
 Frithiof 's Saga, 21, ?*., 122, n. 
 
 Frobisher, 40, 7i. 
 
 Froude, 58. 
 
 Erode, 21, ^i. 2, 49, 169. 
 
 Fuerteventura, 19. 
 
 Fort, of JSToronebega, 76, n. 
 
 Galdrakin, Thorgrim, 174. 
 Gardar, 19, 29, 33, 211. 
 
224: 
 
 Index. 
 
 Gaspe, Indians of, 74. 
 
 Geoo;raphical Fragments, 198. 
 
 Geoffrey, of Monmouth, 23. 
 
 Geis, 134, n. 1. 
 
 Genesis, 199, 7i. 1. 
 
 Ginnimgagah, 201. 
 
 Girava, 56. 
 
 Gisli, the Outlaw, 86, n. 
 
 Gissur, the "White, 28, n. 1, 
 175. 
 
 Glacial man, 113, n. 
 
 Globe, of Rouen, 56. 
 
 Globe, Lenox, 59, n. 2, 200, 
 n. 2. 
 
 Gnupson, Bishop Eric, 29. 
 
 Goodrich, 59, n. 2. u 
 
 Godthaab, 28. 
 
 Gode, 167, n. 
 
 Goe, Month of, 79. 
 
 Gomera, 14. 
 
 Gornbornese-Skare, 78, n. ; 
 see Gunnbiorn's Rocks. 
 
 Gosnold, 98, n. 1, 126, 
 n. 1. 
 
 Gould, Sabine-Baring, 47, n. 
 
 Graah, Captain, 28. 
 
 Grainmaticus, Saxo, 50, 71, n. 
 
 Grapes, 106, 115. 
 
 Gravier, Gabriel, 59, n. 1, 
 208. 
 
 Greenland, rediscovery of, 
 23 ; progress of, 27 ; trib- 
 utary to Norway, 28; 
 church organized in, 29; 
 monuments and ruins, 
 33; explorations in, 36; 
 decline of, 37; lost 
 Greenland found, 39 ; 
 Queen Margaret prohib- 
 its trade, 39; Christi- 
 anity introduced, 27, 110, 
 206; 218. 
 
 Grettir, Saga, 47, n., 96, 
 
 71.3. 
 
 Grimhild, 117. 
 
 Grimolfson, Biarne, 138; lost 
 
 in the Worm Sea, 139, 
 
 148. 
 Gripla, 198. 
 Gudlaag, 177. 
 Gudleif, 177; carried to sea, 
 
 178. 
 Gudrid, 66, 84, n. ; second 
 
 marriage, 115, 123, 148; 
 
 goes to Vinland, 124, 
 
 149 ; goes to Rome, 159, 
 
 n. ; her relations with 
 
 Leif, 160, n. 1. 
 Guiscard, Roger, 40, n. 1. 
 Gwyneth, Oweo, 17, n. 
 Gunnbiorn, 65, 78; his rocks, 
 
 77, 78, n. 2; money 
 
 found at, 79. 
 Gregory IV, 25, 26, 162, 
 
 218, 219. 
 
 Hafgerdingar, 90, 93. 
 
 Hake, 126, 141. 
 
 Hakia, 126, 141. 
 
 Haldor, 36. 
 
 Halifax, 97. 
 
 Hallbera, Fru, Abbess of 
 
 Stad, 153. 
 Halle, 195. 
 
 Hakluyt, 24, n. 2, 37, n. 4. 
 Haddon, John de, 49. 
 Harvard University, 30, n. 
 Harfagr, Harold, 19. 
 Hardicanute, 41. 
 Harold, 22, 41, 48. 
 Harvard College, 70, n. 
 Head-brink, 172, 7i. 
 Head, Sir Edmund, 44, n., 
 
 49, 7i. 
 Hebrides, 93, 167. 
 Heimdal, 128, n. 2. 
 Heimskringla, 41, 49, 45, 
 
 46. 
 Hercules, Pillars of, 10. 
 Hela, 125, 71. 2. 
 
Index. 
 
 225 
 
 Helge, sailed for Yinland, 
 
 155; murdered, 156. 
 Helluland, 97, 125, 141. 
 Henry VI, 54. 
 Henry, of Portugal, 14. 
 Henningsou, Magnus, 39. 
 Heriulfson, Biarne, 89; goes 
 
 to Norway, 89; goes to 
 
 Greenland, 90; sees new 
 
 land, 91. 
 Hermund, 193. 
 Herodotus, 11. 
 Hesperides, 12. 
 Hey wood, J. C, 30. 
 Hialte, 28, n. 1, 109. 
 Hiatus, 112, n. 
 Hirdis, Rismal, 103, n. 
 History, ]N^ar. and Crit., 63, n. 
 Historiske Mindesmserker, 
 
 Gronland's, 81, 89. 
 Hoby, 50. 
 Homer, 50. 
 Honey Dew, 100, n. 
 Hop, 127-143; see Mt Hope. 
 Hopi, 130, n. 1, 145. 
 Holy Land, 210, 213. 
 Holar, Bishop of, 214. 
 Horn, 49, n. 
 Horsehead, Thord, 122, 148, 
 
 160, n. 1. 
 Horsford, Prof. E. N., 43, 
 
 n., 75, n., 76, n. 
 Horsford, Miss Cornelia, 75, 
 
 n., 76, n. 
 Hortado, 136, n. 1. 
 Howitt, W. and M., 99, n. 
 Hume, 24, 155. 
 Husasnotru, 158, n. 3. 
 Hvalso, 91. 
 
 Humboldt, 11, 50, 57. 
 Hvalsoiiord, 91. 
 Hudson, Henry, 25, 136, n. 1. 
 Hvidserk, 202. 
 Hymn to Thor, 128. 
 Hyde, 24, n. 1, 134, n. 1. 
 15 
 
 Iceland, discovery, 19; col- 
 onization, 20; birds of 
 20; mammalia, 20; date 
 of manuscripts, 45; lit- 
 erature of, 47; the Saga- 
 men, 44; the Eddas, 50; 
 English in, 51. 
 
 Iduna, 128, n. 
 
 Igalliko, 33. 
 
 Innocent III, 31, 205. 
 
 Innocent VIII, 38, 55. 
 
 Inventio Fortunata, 24, n.j 
 53, n. 
 
 Ireland, 145. 
 
 Ireland, the Great, 26, 111, 
 n. 2, 163. 
 
 Irish, 16, 37, n., 45. 
 
 Irish Monks, 22; books, bells 
 and croziers of, 22, 165. 
 
 Islands, Blessed, 12. 
 
 Island, the, 98, 142. 
 
 Isle of Currents, 127; Nauset, 
 100, n. 1, 101, 127, n.\ 
 of Sable, 125, n. 
 
 Isles, of America, 16; of the 
 Blessed, 12; British, 11. 
 
 Jardar, 23. 
 Jerusalem, 198. 
 John, the Apostle, 198. 
 John, XXI, Pope, 31. 
 Johnson, Biorn, 121. 
 Johnson, Dr., 68. 
 Jomsberg, Vikings, 170. 
 Jon Greenlander, 38. 
 Jones, Inigo, 74, n. 
 Juba II, 12, 13. 
 Julian's Hope, 34. 
 Juno, Temple of, 14. 
 Junonia, 13. 
 Jupiter, 128, n. 
 Jorsalfari, 184. 
 
 Kalbein, 189. 
 
 Kalbrunar skald. Thormod , 78. 
 
226 
 
 Index. 
 
 Kanitsok, 72. 
 
 Karkortok, 33, 72. 
 
 Karlsefne, Thornfinn, Q6>, 
 119, n.; goes to Green- 
 land, 122; marriage, 123, 
 145; sails for Vinland, 
 124, 149; sails past 
 Wonderstrand, 126, 138; 
 trades, 132, 150; battle 
 with natives, 133; re- 
 turns to Greenland, 137; 
 goes to Iceland, 148, 153, 
 family line, 148. 
 
 Karlsefne, Snorre, 137, 151. 
 
 Kendal, A. E., 71, n. 
 
 Kennebec, 137. 
 
 Keyser, Prof., 83, n. 
 
 Kialarness, 108, 141, n. 
 
 Kiarten, 170, 172, 179. 
 
 King, Christian II, 39; 
 Christian III, 39 ; Fred- 
 eric II, 39; Harold, 41; 
 Juba II, 13; Olaf the 
 Saint, 41; Olaf Trygg- 
 vesson, 41; his swim- 
 ming match, 41 ; ship of, 
 42. 
 
 Kingsborough, 15. 
 
 Krage, Ulf,"23. 
 
 Kroksfiardarheidi, 36. 
 
 Labrador, 88, n. 
 
 Laing, 41, 43, 70, n. 
 
 Lake, 130; houses built at, 
 
 131. 
 Lancerote, 14. 
 Landa-Kolf, 182. 
 Landanaina Book, 25, 70, 
 
 162. 
 Llangollen, 17, n. 
 Lancaster, Sound of, 36. 
 Law of Matrimony, 156, n. 2. 
 Leamington, 73. 
 Lcclerc, Father, 75, n. 
 Lescarbot, 113, n. 
 
 Ledehammar, 42. 
 
 Leif, 27, 61, 85, goes to 
 Vinland, 94, returns to 
 Greenland, 103 ; finds 
 shipwrecked sailors, 107; 
 sent to proclaim Chris- 
 tianity in Greenland, 
 107; his Booths, 111, 
 149, n. ; his judgment on 
 Freydis, 158 ; the Lucky, 
 109. 
 
 Lelewell, 199, 7i. 3. 
 
 Leo XIII, 30. 
 
 Literature of Iceland, 47; 
 Anglo-Saxon, 49 ; of 
 France, 49 ; Castilian, 49. 
 
 Lizards, 14. 
 
 Lodge, Henry Cabot, 107, n. 
 
 Logman's Annall, 181, n. 3. 
 
 Loke, 128, n. 2. 
 
 Long Serpent, 42. 
 
 Louis, Emperor, 27, 218. 
 
 Lynn, Nicholas of, 24, n. 2. 
 
 Madoc, 18, n. 
 
 Machin, Kobert, 14, n. 2. 
 
 Madeira, 14. 
 
 Madr, 71, n. 
 
 Mary, Virgin, 207, 219. 
 
 Maelstrom, 90, n. 
 
 Magnus, King, 36. 
 
 Magnus, Olaus, 31, 39, 104. 
 
 Magnussen, Prof. Finn, 37, 
 
 57, 102, n. 3, 73, 93, n. 
 
 2, 161. 
 Magnolia, 119, n., 136, n. 1. 
 Maine, 55, n. 
 Major, 13, 14. 
 Make Brun, 74, n. 
 Manamoyake Bay, 100, n. 
 Manuscripts, date, 45. 
 Manvel, Juan, 49. 
 Man, 168. 
 Mar, 176. 
 Margaret, Queen, 38, 39. 
 
Index, 
 
 227 
 
 Mauro, Fra, 199, n. 3. 
 
 Martin IV, Pope, 32, 212. 
 
 Markland, 97, 125. 
 
 Mars, Vigdis, 34. 
 
 Marson, Are, 26, 162. 
 
 Martha's Vineyard, 108, n. 
 126, n. 
 
 Massachusetts, 108, n. 
 
 Mass. Hist. So., 62, n. 
 
 Massur Wood, 158. 
 
 Mather, Dr. Cotton, 118, n. 
 2, 136, n., 151, n. 3. 
 
 Matthias, 33, 216. 
 
 Mathieson, 34. 
 
 May, John, 54, 58. 
 
 Mauritania, 12. 
 
 Merry Mount, 99, n. 3. 
 
 Mexico, 15. 
 
 Milesieus, 16, n. 
 
 Mill, Newport, 69, 73; Ches- 
 terton, 73. 
 
 Mindesmoerker, Greenland's 
 81, 89. 
 
 Minor Narratives, 162. 
 
 Missionaries, French, 75, n. 
 
 Money found, 79. 
 
 Monhegan, 71, n. 
 
 Munch, 218. 
 
 Morton, New English Ca- 
 naan, 102, n. 2. 
 
 Mount Desert, 68. 
 
 Mount Hope Bay. 67, 101, n., 
 149, n. 2, 153, n. 
 
 Monumenta Juridica, 51, n. 
 
 Monuments, 34, 35. 
 
 Muller, Max, 50, 138, n. 2. 
 
 Nadodd, 19. 
 Nantucket, 99, n. 
 Nauset, 100, n., 101, n. 
 Navarrete, 59, n. 1. 
 Nebuchadnezzar, 198. 
 Neprass, Hergill, 163. 
 Newfoundland, 92, n. 1. 
 Newport, 73, n. 
 
 Niall, 16. 
 
 Nicholas V, 26, 32, 54, 162, 
 
 213. 
 Nicholas of Lynn, 23, n. 
 Nidras, 206. 
 Nile, 199. 
 Nivaria, 13. 
 Noah, 205. 
 Noah, M., 15, n. 1. 
 Nome, the, 105, n. 
 Nordrsetur, 36. 
 North American Review, 5, 
 
 64, n. 1, 65, 92, n. 1. 
 Northmen, 18; character and 
 
 achievements of, 40 ; 
 
 ships of, 41; rediscover 
 
 America, 44. 
 Northmen, in Maine, 75, n. 
 Nova Scotia, 106. 
 Norombega, 76, n., 201. 
 Nutmegs, 106, n. 
 Nyja Land, 182, n. 
 Nyjafundu-land, 182, n. 1. 
 
 Ohthere, 203, n. 3. 
 Odyssey, 11, n. 3. 
 Oddson, Eindrid, 30. 
 Odin, 20^8. 
 O'Halloran, 16, n. 3. 
 Olaf, the King, 32, 41, 82. 
 Ozsur, 188. 
 
 Papal Letters, 5. 
 Olaf, the Saint, 41. 
 Old Mill, 73, n. 
 Ombrios, 13. 
 Orosius, 203, n. 3. 
 Orkneys, 23, n., 165. 
 Otis, Amos, 98, n. 
 
 Pallium, 206, 219. 
 Paley, Dr., 69. 
 Palfrey, 61. 
 Palma, 13. 
 Palnatoki, 171, n. 1. 
 
328 
 
 Index. 
 
 Papal Letters, 154, n. 
 
 Papey, Island of, 22. 
 
 Papyli, Island of, 22. 
 
 Paradise, 199. 
 
 Parentals, 169. 
 
 Parry, 34, 36. 
 
 Peak of Teneriffe, 13. 
 
 Pellmm, Edward, 73, n. 
 
 Penguin Islands, 182, n. 
 
 Peringskiold, 102, n. 2, 106, n. 
 
 Peter, the Apostle, 31, 198. 
 
 Peyrere, 
 
 Pharaoli Neclio, 11. 
 
 Piienicians, 11, 12. 
 
 Pigot, John, 55, n. 1. 
 
 Plioenius, 16, n. 3. 
 
 Pillars of Hercules, 11. 
 
 Pison, 
 
 Plato, 11. 
 
 Planaria, 13. 
 
 Pliny, 12, 130, n. 3. 
 
 Pluviala, 13. 
 
 Plutarch, 14. 
 
 Plymouth Colonists, 50. 
 
 Point Alderton, 112, n. 
 
 Point Care, 98, n. 1. 
 
 Point Gilbert, 99, n. 1, 125, 
 
 n. 5. 
 Pontanus, 25. 
 Pontiff, Koman, 206. 
 Popliam, George, 106, n. 
 Port Haldiman, 97. 
 Porto Santo, 15. 
 Portsmouth Pocks, 72. 
 Pontanus, 56, n., 218. 
 Pluviala, 13. 
 Prince of Wales, 17, n. 
 Prince Henry the Navigator, 
 
 12, 13, 14. 
 Prince Madoc, 17, 18, n. 
 Pring, 100, n. 
 Ptolemy, 56, n., 200, n., 
 
 218. 
 Purpurarife, 12. 
 Pnrchas, 78, n. 
 
 Queen Margaret, 39. 
 
 Race Point, 111, n. 3. 
 Rafn, Prof., 6, 16, 36, 57, 68. 
 Ralf the Limerick merchant, 
 
 26, 162, 165. 
 Rask, Professor, 
 Rampolla, 30. 
 Raudulf, 
 
 Red -beard; see Thor. 
 Reikiavik, 21. 
 Riant, 208. 
 Rhode Island, 115, n. 
 Robin, the, 129, n. 
 Rimbegla, 136, n. 1. 
 Rollo, 41. 
 Rome, 115, n. 3. 
 Round Table, 24. 
 Runic Letters, on an oar, 39; 
 
 Age of Alphabet, 47. 
 Ruins, in Greenland, 33. 
 Runolfson, Bishop Thorlak, 
 
 148, 153. 
 Russia, 199. 
 Rymer, 52, n. 
 
 Sais, Priests of, 11. 
 
 Santarem, 199, n. 3. 
 
 Sifimund the Wise, 185. 
 
 Sagadahoc, 106, n. 
 
 Sagas, 44. 
 
 St. Asaph, Bishop of, 23. 
 
 St. Augustine, 136, 7i. 
 
 St. Brenden, 18, 7i. 162. 
 
 St. Columba, 15. 
 
 St. John, 199, 207. 
 
 St. Martin. Yivien, 12. 
 
 St. John, 69. 
 
 St. Paul, 69. 
 
 St. Patrick, 25. 
 
 St Thomas, 15, 198. 
 
 St. Yincent, Bory, 14. 
 
 Salmon, 101. 
 
 Saxon, 7. 
 
 Schoning, 165, n. 
 
Index. 
 
 229 
 
 Schoolcraft, Henry, 70, n. 
 
 Scotland, 183. 
 
 Scota, 16, n. 3. 
 
 Sea of Darkness, 10. 
 
 Seaconnet, 127. 
 
 Seat, Episcopal, 185. 
 
 Seat Posts, 81, 87. 
 
 Sebosus, 12. 
 
 See, Apostolic, 208, 212. 
 
 Seitoriiis, 12. 
 
 Setstakkar, 20, ?^. 
 
 Shakespere, 65. 
 
 Shea, J. G., 60, n. 1. 
 
 Shawanese Indians, 165, n. 
 
 Shields, 128, 130, 143. 
 
 Ships, 41, 43. 
 
 Sigurd, King, 29, 185. 
 
 Sighvatson, Erling, 35. 
 
 Skafting, 42. 
 
 Skalholt, Bishop of, 214. 
 
 Skardfa, Bioernvon, 38. 
 
 Skeleton in armor, 74, ^i., 
 
 75, n. 
 Skialdespilder, Eyvind, 47. 
 Skolnus, 55. 
 Skrffillings, 33, n, 88, 113, n. 
 
 3, 134, 150. 
 Slaves, 126. 
 Sloop Mary, 126, n., 142, 
 
 71. 2. 
 Slut Bush, 99, n. 
 SmasUingar, 113, ^i. 3. 
 Smith, Captain John, 98, n., 
 
 112, 71. ; Joshua Toul- 
 
 min, 114, ^. 3; Mr. 
 
 Philip, 118, 71. 
 Snaebiorn, killed, 8. 
 Snow, 146. 
 Snowland, 19. 
 Sling's, 133. 
 Snorre, the Priest, 168. 
 Sorysbi, Henry, 55. 
 South Islands, 93. 
 Sokke, 29. 
 Sokke, Einar, 29. 
 
 Solon, 11. 
 
 Sjjae-wife, 83, 7i. 
 
 Speculum Regali, 44, 183. 
 
 Standish, Miles, 102, ?r. 2. 
 
 Standard, London, 17, n. 
 
 Statins Sebosus, 12. 
 
 Stilicho, 16. 
 
 Stone Age, 134, 149. 
 
 Strabo, 12. 
 
 Sturleson, 
 
 Straumfiord, 142. 
 
 Styrbiorn, 171. 
 
 Stream Bay, 137, 139, 143. 
 
 Stow, 52. 
 
 St. James Day, 36. 
 
 Stuf , the Skald, 48. 
 
 Superstition, 96, ^. 3. 
 
 Tacitus, 17, 7i. 
 
 Taunton, 70, w. 
 
 Tegner, 124, ti. 
 
 Thaliessin, 24. 
 
 Thor, 20, 105, ^., 144. 
 
 Thor's Day, 127, n. 5. 
 
 Thorberg, 42. 
 
 Thorbrandson, 133. 
 
 Thorbjorg, 83, n. 
 
 Thorer the Eastman, 115. 
 
 Thorfinn, Earl of the Ork- 
 neys, 166. 
 
 Thorhall the Hunter, 124, 
 127, 135, 140, 143. 
 
 Thorhild, her church, 28. 
 
 Thorlakus, Bishop, 
 
 Thorodd, 167. 
 
 Thorstein Black, 116. 
 
 Theopompus, 10. 
 
 Thurid, of Froda, 167. 
 
 Timber cut, 106. 
 
 Tiverton Rocks, 72. 
 
 Torfseus, 29; works of, 35, 
 71. 2, 60, 77, 7i. 2. 
 
 Tradition, Indian, 72, n. 
 
 Traditions, 15. 
 
 Truro, 106, ti. 
 
230 
 
 Index. 
 
 Tyrians, 15. 
 Tyrker, 97, 105. 
 Thyle, Ultima, 56. 
 Thorgier, Red, 78. 
 
 Ulf Krage, 87. 
 Unipeds, 136. 
 JJv^ge, 138, 146. 
 Ultitna Thule, 10. 
 
 Yalldidia, 138, 147. 
 
 Valhalla, 139, n. 
 
 Yalgerda, 151. 
 
 Vathelldi, 138, 146. 
 
 Vatican Archives, 31, n. 
 
 Vatican Library, 5. 
 
 Vardlokur, 84, n. 
 
 Verrazano, 38, n., 113, n., 
 166, ^i-. 
 
 Viga Glum, 44, n., 49. 
 
 Vigdis Mars, 34. 
 
 Vikings, 44, n. 
 
 Vilgerdson, Flokke, 51. 
 
 Villehardouin, 49. 
 
 Vinland, 60, 104, 107, 108, 
 121, 141, 185. 
 
 Vining, E. P., 59, n. 2. 
 
 Vivien de St. Martin, 12. 
 
 Voyages — Eric the Red, 15, 
 25; Biarne, 65; Leif's, 
 27, 61, 85; Thorstein's, 
 115; Karlsefne's, 124- 
 129; Freydis, 154; 
 Helge, 154; Finboge, 
 154; Marson's, 26, 162; 
 Asbrandson's, 167, 170; 
 Giidlaugson's, 177; no- 
 tices of, 180. 
 
 Wafer, 163, n. 
 Waldemar, 171, n. 
 Walkendorf, Archbishop 
 
 Eric, 39. 
 Webb, Dr., 71, n. 
 Webb's Island, 99, n. 
 Welsh, The, 17, n. 
 Wesley Family, 120, n. 
 Westmann Islands, 53. 
 Weston, Richard, 54. 
 Whales, 127, 143. 
 Wheat, 103, 123, 127, 147. 
 White, the W. L., 183, 
 
 n. 1. 
 White-man's land, 147, 159, 
 
 162. 
 Williams, John, 17. 
 Williamson, 75, n. 
 Wine, 107, n. 1. 
 Winland, 107, n. 
 Winsor, Justin, 16, n. 2; 
 
 History, 59, n. 2. 
 Winthrop, Prof., 70, n. 
 Wonder -strand, 99, n. 141. 
 Woodrow, 68, n. 
 Wormius, 38, 
 Worm Sea, 138, 147. 
 Writing Rock; see Dighton 
 
 Rock. 
 Wytfliet, 56, n. 
 
 York, Archbishop of, 52. 
 Youth, Fountain of, 10. 
 Yule, 123. 
 Yucatan, 9, n. 
 
 Zeno, 55, n; map, 55, 218. 
 
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