Chapter V: Geographical Fragments (1)

The first of these documents is from a work which professes to give a description of the earth in the middle age. From this it appears that the Icelanders had a correct idea of the location of Vinland in New England, though they did not comprehend the fact that they had discovered a new Continent. The document may be found in _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 283. In the appendix of that work may be seen a _fac simile_ of the original manuscript. The second document is from (_Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 292). It was found originally in the miscellaneous collection called the _Gripla_.

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE WHOLE EARTH.

The earth is said to be divided into three parts. One of these is called Asia, and extends from northeast to southwest, 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 where 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 that part of the earth called Asia, 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 reigned, 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 first of all men, sang Mass. Asia Minor is a region of Great Asia. There the Apostle John preached, and there also, in the city Ephesus, is his tomb. They say that four rivers flow out of Paradise. One is called Pison or Ganges; this empties into the 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 southwest to the northwest. There are Serkland, and three regions called Blaland (land of blackmen or negroes). The Mediterranean sea divides Europe from Africa. Europe is the third part of the earth, extended from west and northwest to the northeast. In the east of Europe is the kingdom of Russia. There are Holmgard, Palteskia and Smalenskia. South of Russia lies the kingdom of Greece. Of this kingdom, the chief city is Constantinople, which our people call Miklagard. In Miklagard is a church, which the people call St. Sophia, but the Northmen call it, Ægisif. 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 Lombardy, which we call Lombardland. North of the mountains on the east, is Germany, and on the southwest 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 northeast, and then towards 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 Greenland, southward, is Helluland; beyond that is Markland; from thence it is not far to Vinland, which some men are of the opinion, extends to Africa.[251] 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. Next to Denmark is Lesser Sweden; then is Oeland, then Gottland, then Helsingeland, then Vermeland, and the two Kvendlands, which lie north of Biarmeland. From Biarmeland stretches desert land towards the north, until Greenland begins. South of Greenland is Helluland; next is Markland, from thence it is not far to Vinland the Good, which some think goes out to Africa; and if this is so, the sea must extend between Vinland and Markland. It is told that Thorfinn Karlsefne cut wood here to ornament his house,[252] went afterwards to seek out Vinland the Good, and came there where they thought the land was, but did not reach it, and got none of the wealth of the land.[253] Leif the Lucky first discovered Vinland, and then he met some merchants in distress at sea, and by God's grace, saved their lives; and he introduced Christianity into Greenland, and it flourished so there 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 GRIPLA.

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; from thence the land extends to the northeast and east, until you come to Biarmeland; this land is under tribute to Gardaridge. From Biarmeland lie desert places 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 from 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 Norway, for one head hangs in Throndheim, and another in Bergen, and many others are to be found.][254] But there are bays, and the land stretches out towards the southwest; 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 Hvidserk. Thence the land trends north; but he who desires to go by the settlement, steers to the southwest. 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.

Now it should be told what is opposite Greenland, out from the bay, which was before named. Furdustrandur[255] 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 Helluland, which is called Skrællings land. Thence it is not far to Vinland the Good, which some think goes out to Africa.[256] Between Vinland and Greenland, is Ginnungagah, which runs from the sea called _Mare Oceanum_, and surrounds the whole earth.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] See Jones on _The Tyrian Period of America_.

[2] _Var. Hist._, lib. III, cap. xviii.

[3] See Plato's _Critias and Timæas_.

[4] _De Mundo_, cap. III. See _Prince Henry the Navigator_, chap. VII, by Major: London, 1868.

[5] _Odyssey_, book IV, l. 765.

[6] See _Prince Henry the Navigator_, p. 90.

[7] Strobo. lib. III.--_Plutarch._

[8] Pliny's _Natural History_, lib. VI, cap. 37.

[9] See p. 137.

[10] _Prince Henry the Navigator_, p. 137.

[11] 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 Bristol 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 rediscovered 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 tale (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 were rediscovered by Prince Henry is therefore incorrect. His expedition reached Porto Santo and Madeira in 1418-20.

[12] He also speculates upon the probability of this continent having been visited by Christian missionaries. See vol. VI, p. 410.

[13] Kingsborough's _Mexican Antiquities_, vol. VI, p. 285.

[14] Ibid., p. 332.

[15] _Monastikon Britannicum_, pp. 131-2-187-8. The fact that the word _America_ is here used, seems quite sufficient to upset the legend.

[16] The Irish were early known as Scots, and O'Halloran derives the name from Scota, high priest of Phoenius, and ancestor of Mileseuis.

Me quoque vicins pereuntem gentibus, inquit,
Munivit Stilicho. Totam cum Scotus Iernem,
Movit et infesto spumavit remige Thetys.

By him defended, when the neighboring hosts
Of warlike nations spread along our coasts;
When Scots came thundering from the Irish shores,
And the wide ocean foamed with hostile oars.

[17] Speaking of Britain and Ireland, Tacitus says of the latter, that "the approaches and harbors are better known, by reason of commerce and the merchants."--_Vit. Agri._, c. 24. The Irish, doubtless, mingled with the Carthagenians in mercantile transactions, and from them they not unlikely received the rites of Druidism.

[18] As the tradition of a Welch voyage to America under Prince Madoc, relates to a period _following_ the Icelandic voyages, the author does not deem it necessary to discuss the subject. This voyage by the son of Owen Gwyneth, is fixed for the year 1170, and is based on a Welch chronicle of no authority. See _Hackluyt_, vol. III, p. 1.

[19] _Turkish Spy_, vol. VIII, p. 159.

[20] See "Northmen in Iceland," _Sociètà des Antiquaires du Nord, Seance du 14 Mai_, 1859, pp. 12-14.

[21] It is sometimes, though improperly, called the _Norse_.

[22] In the time when the Irish monks occupied the island, it is said that it was "covered with woods between the mountains and the shores."

[23] _Setstakkar._ These were wooden pillars carved with images usually of Thor and Odin. In selecting a place for a settlement these were flung overboard, and wherever they were thrown up on the beach, there the settlement was to be formed. Ingolf, the first Norse settler of Iceland, lost sight of the seat-posts after they were thrown into the water, and was obliged to live for the space of three years at Ingolfshofdi. 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. III, p. 18, we find the following allusion:

"Through the whole length of the hall shone forth the table of oak wood,
Brighter than steel, and polished; the pillars twain of the high seats
Stood on each side thereof; two gods deep carved out of elm wood:
Odin with glance of a king, and Frey with the sun on his forhead."

[24] Ari Hinn Frode, or the Wise. The chief compiler of the famous _Landnama Book_, which contains a full account of all the early settlers in Iceland. 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 3000 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 continued by Kalstegg, Styrmer and Thordsen, and completed by Hauk Erlandson, Lagman, or Governor of Iceland, who died in the year 1334.

[25] "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."--_Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 202. This extract is followed by the statement of Ari Frode, and 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.

[26] All the information which we possess relating to the discovery by Gunnbiorn is given in the body of this work, in extracts from _Landanamabok_.

[27] Claudius Christophessen, the author of some Danish verses relating to the history of Greenland, supposes that Greenland was discovered in the year 770, though he gave no real reason for his belief. _M. Peyrere_ also tells us of a Papal Bull, issued in 835, by Gregory IV, which refers to the conversion of the Icelanders and Greenlanders. Yet this is beyond question fraud. Gunnbiorn was undoubtedly the first to gain a glimpse of Greenland.

[28] The Northmen reckoned by _winters_.

[29] See the Saga of Eric the Red.

[30] 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 thing.

[31] The author designs shortly to give some full account of the early Christianity on the Western Continent in a separate work, now well advanced towards completion. It will include both the _Pre_ and _Post_-Columbian eras.

[32] Gissur the White and Hialte, went on the same errand to Iceland in the year 1000, when the new religion was formally adopted at the public Thnig.

[33] It will be seen hereafter that he went and established himself in Vinland.

[34] See _Memoires des Antiquaires du Nord_, p. 383.

[35] 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 old maps.

[36] See Crantz's _Greenland_, vol. I, p. 252.

[37] These inscriptions are all in fair runic letters, about which there can be no mistake, and are totally unlike the imaginary runes, among which we may finally feel obliged to class those of the Dighton rock.

[38] See Egede's _Greenland_, p. xxv; Crantz's _Greenland_, vol. I, pp. 247-8; Purchas, _His Pilgrimes_, vol. III, p. 518; _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 300.

[39] _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. xxxix.

[40] For the account of the manuscripts upon which our knowledge of Greenland is founded, see _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 255.

[41] In that year parties are known to have contracted marriage at Gardar, from whom Finn Magnussen and other distinguished men owe their descent.

[42] Egede's _Greenland_, p. xlvii.

[43] Ibid., xlviii.

[44] Crantz's _Greenland_, vol. I, p. 264.

[45] Crantz's _Greenland_, p. 274.

[46] Ibid., p. 279.

[47] Hans Egede was a clergyman in priest's orders, and minister of the congregation at Vogen in the northern part of Norway, where he was highly esteemed and beloved. He spent fifteen years as a missionary in Greenland, and died at Copenhagen, 1758.

[48] The motto on the sword of Roger Guiscard was:

"_Appulus et Calaber Siculus mihi Servit et Afer._"

[49] See Laing's _Heimskringla_, vol. II, p. 450. This refers to his swimming match with Kiarten the Icelander, in which the king was beaten.

[50] See Saga of Saint (not king) Olaf.

[51] _Des Antiquaires du Nord_, 1859.

[52] Ledehammer. The point of land near the house of Lede, just below Drontheim.

[53] Laing's _Heimskringla_, vol. I, p. 457. It is related that while they were planking the ship, "it happened that Thorberg 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, 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."

[54] 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 amid ships. 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.

[55] The people of Iceland were always noted for their superiority 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 1011, 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.

[56] 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 _framework_ of Sagas which would actually be destroyed by the elimination of the narratives. There is only one question to be decided, and that is the _date_ of these compositions.

[57] The fact that Mr. Bancroft has in times past expressed opinions in opposition to this view will hardly have weight with those persons familiar with the subject. When that writer composed the first chapter of his _History of the United States_, he might have been excused for setting down the Icelandic narratives as shadowy fables; but, with all the knowledge shed upon the subject at present, we have a right to look for something better. It is therefore unsatisfactory to find him perpetuating his early views in each successive edition of the work, which show the same knowledge of the subject betrayed at the beginning. He tells us that these voyages "rest on narratives _mythological_ in form, and _obscure_ in meaning," which certainly cannot be the case. Furthermore they are "not contemporary;" which is true, even with regard to Mr. Bancroft's _own_ work. Again, "The chief document is an interpolation in the history of Sturleson." This cannot be true in the sense intended, for Mr. Bancroft conveys the idea that the principal narrative _first_ appeared in Sturleson's history when published at a _late day_. It is indeed well known that one version, but _not_ the principal version, was interpolated in Peringskiold's edition of Sturleson's _Heimskringla_, printed at Copenhagen. But Bancroft teaches that these relations are of a modern date, while it is well known that they were taken _verbatim_ from _Codex Flatöiensis_, finished in the year 1395. He is much mistaken in supposing that the northern Antiquarians think any more highly of the narratives in question, because they once happened to be printed in connection with Sturleson's great work. He tells us that Sturleson "could hardly have neglected the discovery of a continent," if such an event had taken place. But this, it should be remembered, depends upon _whether or not the discovery was considered of any particular importance_. This does _not_ appear to have been the case. The fact is nowhere dwelt upon for the purpose of exalting the actors. Besides, as Laing well observes, the discovery of land at the west had nothing to do with his subject, which was the history of the kings of Norway. The discovery of America gave rise to a little traffic, and nothing more. Moreover the kings of Norway took no part, _were not the patrons of the navigators_, and _had no influence whatever in instituting a single voyage_. Mr. Bancroft's last objection is that Vinland, the place discovered, "has been sought in all directions from Greenland and the St. Lawrence to Africa." This paragraph also conveys a false view of the subject, since the location of Vinland was as well known to the Northmen as the situation of Ireland, with which island they had uninterrupted communication. It is to be earnestly hoped that in the next edition, Mr. Bancroft may be persuaded to revise his unfounded opinions.

Washington Irving has expressed the same doubt in his Life of Columbus, _written before the means of examining this question were placed within his reach_, and in the appendix of his work he mixes the idle tales of St. Brandan's Isle with the authentic histories of the Northmen. A very limited inquiry would have led him to a different estimate.

[58] The word rune comes from _ryn_, a furrow. Odin has the credit of the invention, 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 afterwards cut upon a staff." This indicates the training the memory must have undergone among the Northmen.

[59] For a list of many Icelandic works, see the Introduction of Laing's _Heimskringla_.

[60] See Sir Edmund Head's _Viga Glum Saga_, pp. viii and ix.

[61] Ibid. Of course there was more or less poetry, yet poetry is something that is early developed among the rudest nations, while good prose tells that a people have become highly advanced in mental culture.

[62] As early as 1411, there was a considerable trade between Bristol and Iceland, and Columbus visited Iceland in the spring of the year 1477, where he _might_ have met Magnus Eyolfson, the bishop of Skalholt, or learned from some other scholar the facts in relation to the early Icelandic discoveries. Though Rafn supposes that by his visit, his opinions, previously formed regarding the existence of the Western continent, were confirmed, this is not altogether clear, for the reason that Columbus was not seeking a new continent, but a route to the Indies, which he believed he should find by sailing west. Accordingly when he found land he called it the _West_ Indies, supposing that he had reached the extreme boundary of the _East_ Indies. Irving tells us that Columbus founded his theory on (1), the nature of things; (2), the authority of learned writers; (3), the reports of navigators.

[63] Adam of Bremen even heard of the exploits of the Northmen in Vinland, and made mention of that country. But as it _might_ be said that his work did not appear until after the voyage of Columbus, and that the reference may be an interpolation, the author does not rest anything upon it. Still he unquestionably knew of the voyages of the Northmen, as he lived near the time they were made, and wrote his ecclesiastical history in about the year 1075, after he had made a visit to King Sweno of Denmark, and had accumulated much material. The passage in question is as follows: "Besides, it was stated [by the king] that a region had been discovered by many in that [the 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 rumor, but by the certain testimony of the Danes."

The very ancient Faroese ballad of Finn the Handsome (see Rafn's _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 319), also contains references to Vinland, which indicates that the country was known as well by the Irish as by the Icelanders.

[64] _History of New England_, vol. II, p. 53.

[65] The liability of the best historians to fail into error, is illustrated 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, Echard concur in stating that he was _beheaded_, and that he was condemned upon Saturday and executed 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. Savion, established on the coast of Maine, by Saussaye, in 1613. Bancroft 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 in the Atlantic Ocean.

[66] 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 outlines 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 Winthrop, of Harvard 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, dumb as the Sphinx. A copy of the inscription was shown to a Mohawk chief, who decided that it was nothing less than the representation of a triumph by 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 characters in the central part of the composition he was finally induced to reject, as having no connection with the rest. And whoever 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 Antiquarians, to whose notice it was brought by the Rhode Island Historical Society, felt strongly persuaded that the rock bears evidence of the Northman's visit to these shores. Mr. Laing, the accomplished translator of the _Heimskringla_, in discussing the theories in regard to the inscription, says, that the only real resemblance to letters is found in the middle of the stone, in which antiquarians discover the name of Thorfinn, that is, Thorfinn Karlsefne, the leader of the expedition which 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_. And according to the account of the voyage, Thorfinn lost _nine_ of the 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 here 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 antiquarians, who came to the conclusion, as Laing tells us, that it was a genuine inscription, referring to the battle of Braaville, fought in the year 680. It afterwards 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 _white_ men in a _bird_ landed there and were slaughtered by the aborigines. They also said thunder and lightening issued from the bird, which fact indicates that this event, if it occurred at all, must be referred to the age of gunpowder. 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 (_Antiquitates Americanæ_, pp. 355-71), are doubtless Indian inscriptions; while that on the island of Monhegan, off the coast of Maine, may perhaps be classed with the rock of Hoby. Yet 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 making the inscription is clear from the testimony of the Indians, who did not pretend to understand the portion thought to refer to Karlsefne. For the full discussion, see _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 378, _et seq._

[67] _Memoirs des Antiquaires du Nord_, 1839-9, p. 377.

[68] The Old Mill at Newport stands on an eminence in the centre 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 fire place. 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 powder house. Edward Pelham, who married Governor Arnold's granddaughter, 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. The old tower existing at the beginning of the settlement may have been adapted by him for the purposes of a mill, when the one mentioned by Easton was destroyed.

The family of the Governor is said to have come from Warwickshire, England, and one of his farms was called the Leamington 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 construction to that at Newport. It is supposed that it was erected on pillars for pneumatic reasons, and also that carts might thus go underneath and be loaded and unloaded with greater ease. And it has been suggested, that _if_ Gov. Arnold came from Warwickshire, of which the proof is not given, and _if_ the Chesterton Mill was standing at the time of his departure for New England, he might have built a mill at Newport after the same model. Yet this is something we know little about. And 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 structure also might have belonged to the class of Round Towers in Ireland, of which one at least was built by Northmen. All is therefore, in a measure, doubtful. It will hardly help the Northmen to class this Newport relic with their works. See Palfrey's _New England_, vol. I, pp. 57-9.

[69] Many have supposed that the skeleton in armor, dug up near Fall River, was a relic of the Northmen, and one of those men killed by the natives in the battle with Karlsefne. But it would be far 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. Malte Brun tells us that they worshiped the sun, knew the points of the compass, observed the position of some of the stars, and traced maps of their country. Before the French missionaries went among them they worshiped the figure of the Cross, and had a tradition that a venerable person once visited them, and during an epidemic cured many by the use of that symbol. See Malte Brun's _Geography_ (English edition), vol. V, p. 135. Malte Brun's authority is Father Leclerc's _Nouvelle Relation de la Gaspesie_, Paris, 1672.

[70] _The Landnama-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, with brief notices of their achievements. It was commenced by the celebrated Frode, the Wise, who was born 1067, and died 1148, and was continued by Kalstegg, Styrmer and Thordsen, and completed by Hauk Erlendson, _Lagman_, or Governor of Iceland, who died in the year 1334.

[71] Gunnbiorn appears to have been a Northman who settled in Iceland at an early day. Nothing more is known of him.

[72] Torfæus says that these rocks lie six sea miles out from Geirfuglesker, out from Reikiavek, and twelve miles south of Garde 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 more accessible than now. In the version of the Account of Greenland, by Ivar Bardason (see _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 301), given from a _Faroese Manuscript_, and curiously preserved by Purchas, _His Pilgrimage_, vol. III, p. 518, we read as follows:

"_Item_, men shall know, that, between _Island_ and _Greenland_, 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 cannot use the same old Passage as they thinke."

[73] Torfæus 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."

[74] The translation is literal or nearly so, and the sense is obscure.

[75] This shows that others had been there before. They were doubtless Icelanders who were sailing to Greenland. The place of concealment appears to have been an excavation covered with stone or wood. That the people were sometimes accustomed to hide money in this way, is evident. We read in the Saga of Eric the Red, that this person at first intended to go with his son, Leif, on his voyage to discover the land seen by Heriulf, and 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.

[76] This is believed to have been about February, which affords 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 from the rigging of their vessels, and the preparation for sea. In regard to the term Goe, _Grönland's Historiske Mindesmærker_ (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."

[77] 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 drift wood might supply all their wants for building purposes, where they could not obtain or use stone. Regarding drift wood, Crantz says, in speaking of Greenland: "For as He has denied this frigid, rocky region the growth of trees, He has bid the storms of the ocean to convey 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 to 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 quite bare of branches. A small part of this drift wood 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, reddish 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 wainscot their rooms with them."--_History of Greenland_, vol. I, p. 37.

[78] If any confirmation were needed of the truth of this narrative, or of the killing of Snæbiorn and Thorod, we might look for 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.

[79] In the southwest of Norway.

[80] See Colonization of Iceland, in the Introduction.

[81] See notes to Introduction.

[82] It is now impossible 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 once it was evidently more approachable than now. See Graah's _Expedition_.

[83] As we certainly know that Christianity was established in Iceland in the year A. D. 1000, the final settlement of Eric and his followers must have taken place during the year assigned, viz: 985.

[84] See _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 15, note _a_.

[85] Evidently an error. See _Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 15, note 3.

[86] This king propagated Christianity by physical force, and marked the course of his missionary tours with fire and blood; which might have been expected from a barbarian just converted from the worship of Odin and Thor.

[87] These thralls were slaves, though slavery in Iceland assumed peculiar features. The following from the _Saga of Gisli the Outlaw_, shows the relation that slaves held to freemen. We read, that on one occasion, Gisli had borrowed a famous sword of Koll, and the latter asked to have it back, but Gisli in reply asks if he will sell it, receiving a negative reply. Then he says: "I will give thee thy freedom and goods, so that thou mayest 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 declines, 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, 1866. Also the Saga of Eric 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.

[88] Original settler or freeholder, whose name and possessions were recorded in the _Landnama-bok_.

[89] 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 that finds itself inside, is in the greatest danger."--_Grönland's Historiske Mindismærker_, vol. I, p. 264. There does not appear to be any better foundation for this motion of the Hafgerdingar than of the old accounts of the Maelstrom, once supposed to exist on the coast of Norway. The Hafgardingar may have originated from seeing the powerful effect of a cross sea acting on the tide.

[90] 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.

[91] _Æyrar._ This is not the name of a place--for Heriulf dwelt in Iceland at a place called Dropstock--but of a natural feature of ground; _eyri_, still called an ayre in the Orkney islands, being a flat, sandy tongue of land, suitable for landing and drawing up boats upon. 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._

[92] The details of this voyage are very simple, yet whoever throws aside his old time prejudices, and considers the whole subject with the care which it deserves, cannot otherwise than feel persuaded that Biarne 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 accidental, something like the discovery of America by Columbus, who, in looking for the East Indies, stumbled upon a new world. Yet Biarne's discovery soon led to substantial results.

[93] 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 incorrect. Yet, in more modern times, there has been nothing to prevent 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, 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.

[94] 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.

[95] One recension of the Saga of Eric the Red, states that he went with Leif on his voyage to Vinland. Finn Magnusen says that the error arose from a change of one letter in a pair of short words. See _Grönland's Historiske Mindesmærker_, vol. I, p. 471.

[96] Horses could be kept in Greenland now, only with much expense. It appears that anciently it was not so. Undoubtedly there has been more or less of change in climate. Geologists find evidence that at one period, a highly tropical climate must have existed in the northern regions.

[97] 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 Grettir 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.

[98] Some suppose that he was a German, others claim that he was a Turk, as his name might indicate.

[99] Snowy mountains, _Jöklar miklir_, such as Chappell mentions having been seen on the coast, June 14, 1818.

[100] Helluland, from _Hella_, a flat stone, an abundance of which may be found in Labrador and the region round about.

[101] This agrees with the general features of the country. 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 appearance, between Cape Le Have and Port Medway, the coast to the seaward 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 southwest point into Barrington Bay, a low and woody island."--_Antiquitates Americanæ_, p. 423.

[102] Markland is supposed, with great reason, to be Nova Scotia, so well described, both in the Saga, and in the _Coast Pilot_. Markland means woodland. Two days sail thence, brought them in view of Cape Cod, though very likely the sailing time is not correct.

[103] This island has given the interpreters considerable trouble, from the fact that it is said to lie to the northward of the land. And Professor Rafn, in order to identify this island with Nantucket, shows that the north point of the Icelandic compass lay towards the east. But this does not fairly meet the case. There would, perhaps, have been no difficulty in the interpretation, if the Northern Antiquarians 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 disappeared, existed in the times of Gosnold, who sailed around Cape Cod, in 1602. The position of this island, together with the point of land, is delineated in the map given in the Appendix. At one time, some doubt existed in regard to the truthfulness of the accounts, 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 the name of 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 half a century ago, a portion of it still remained, being called Slut Bush. The subject has been very carefully gone into 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 remarkable region, I have repeatedly visited it during the past summer, and, in company with Mr. Otis, examined, on one occasion, with the most minute care, the evidence of the former existence of Isle Nauset and Point Gilbert. I found it as satisfactory 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 colaborers did not have in mind; especially as this discovery will help very materially to explain their descriptions. Now, in the first account of Thorfinn Karlsefne's passage around this part of the Vinland, it is said that they called the shore _Wonder-strand_, "because they were so long going by," Yet any one in sailing past the coast to-day will not be struck with its length. But by glancing at the reconstructed map of Cape Cod (see Appendix), 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 long distance; and, comparing this distance travelled with the distance actually gained, the Northmen might well grow weary, and call it Wonder-strand. This 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 Historic and Genealogical Register_, vol. XVIII, p. 37; and _Massachusetts Historical Collections_, vol. VIII, series III, pp. 72-93.