NOTES.
(1) It has been claimed that the Icelandic discovery attained a practical result through the imparting of information to those to whom the discovery of America has been generally ascribed, and notably to Columbus and the Cabots. The tendency to qualify Columbus' fame as the original discoverer dates from the time of Ortelius[1], while the effort to show that his first voyage was influenced by information which he received from Icelandic sources was, perhaps, first formulated in extenso within the present century[2] The theory that Columbus obtained definite information from Icelandic channels rests, after all, upon the following vague letter, which is cited by Columbus' son in the biography of his father, as follows:
'In the month of February, of the year 1477, I sailed one hundred leagues beyond the island of Tile, the southern portion of which is seventy-three degrees removed from the equinoctial, and not sixty-three, as some will have it; nor is it situated within the line which includes Ptolemy's west, but is much further to the westward; and to this island, which is as large as England, the English come with their wares, especially those from Bristol. And at the time when I went thither the sea was not frozen, although the tides there are so great that in some places they rose twenty-six fathoms, and fell as much. It is, indeed, the fact that that Tile, of which Ptolemy makes mention, is situated where he describes it, and by the moderns this is called Frislanda[3].'
John and Sebastian Cabot are supposed, by similar theorists, to have derived knowledge
- ↑ '"Christophe Colombe," dit Ortelias, "a seulement mis le Nouvean-Monde en rapport durable de commerce 'et d'utilité avec I'Europe." [Theatr. Orbis terr. ed. 1601, pp. 5 et 6.] Ce jugement est beaucoup trop severe. D'ailleurs ropinion du géographe n'était point basée sur l'expédition an Vinland dont il ne fait aucimement mention, peut-etre parce que les ouvrages d'Adam de Breme ne fiirent imprimés qu'en 1579, mais sur les voyages de Nicolo et Antonio Zeni [13S81404], dont, pour le moins, la localité est restée problématique.' Alex. v. Himiboldt, Examen critique, Paris, 1837, vol. ii. p. 120.
- ↑ Finn Magnusen, 'Om de Engelskes Handel og Færd paa Island i det isde Aarhundrede, isser med Hensyn til Columbus's formentlige Reise dertil i Aaret 1477,' in Nord. Tidskr. for 01dk}-ndighed, Copenh. 1833. pp. 112-169.
- ↑ I have not been able to find that the original of this letter is in existence. The quotation i-s made from the Italian edition of the Biography, entitled: Historic Del. S. D. Fernando Colombo; nelle quali's' ha particolare, & vera relatione della vita, & de' fatti dell' Ammiraglio D. Christoforo Colombo, suo padre, * * noouamente di lingua Spagnuola tradotta nell Italiana dal S. Alfonso VUoa, Venice, 1571. On page 9 of this book, the letter is thus printed: 'Jo nauigai 1' anno MCCCCLXXVn nel mese di Febraio oltra Tile isola cento leghe, la cui parte Anstrale h lontana dall' Equinottiale settantatre gradi, & non sessantatre, come alcuni vogliono: ne giace dentro della linea, che include 1' Occidente di Tolomeo, ma é molto piii Occidentale. Et a quest' isola, che é tanto grande come 1' Jnghilterra, vanno gl" Jnglesi con de loro mercatantie, specialmente quelli di Bristol. Et al tiempo, che io vi andai, non era congelato il mare, quantunque vi fossero si grosse maree, che in alcuni luoghi ascendeua ventisei braccia, et discendeua altre tanti in altezza. E bene il vero, che Tile, quella di cui Tolomeo fa mentione, giace doue egli dice; & questa da' moderni é chiaraata Frislanda.
