USA > Maine > The history of Maine, from the earliest discovery of the region by the Northmen until the present time; including a narrative of the voyages and explorations of the early adventurers, the manners and customs of the Indian tribes, the hardships of the first settlers, etc > Part 2
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The ship encountered a series of terrible storms, and was driven far away to sea, they scarcely knew where. Turning homewards, they did not reach the ice-bound shores of Green- land until early in December, 1005. They landed at one of these cheerless settlements, greatly exhausted by the tempests against which they so long had struggled. Here Thorstein was taken sick and died, with many others of his crew. It is prob- able that the ship was frozen in, for she did not leave her dreary anchorage until the spring. The heart-stricken widow then returned to her friends.
A year passed away, and Gudrida was married again to a gen- tleman of Iceland, by the name of Thorfinn. He was a wealthy man, of illustrious birth, and distinguished for his virtues and his energy. Our own New England, the Vineland of the Ice- landers, was to them, in comparison with their icy abode, the land of fruits and flowers, of genial clime and sunny skies. Thorfinn, influenced, it is said, by the glowing description he had received from the lips of his wife, of these favored realms, fitted out another exploring expedition. It was probably his intention to establish a colony, for he took three ships and one hundred and sixty men.
The expedition set out from one of the southern ports in
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Greenland, in the summer of 1008. They sailed along the coast of Nova Scotia, then called Markland ; and then, keeping the land, of what is now called Maine, ever in sight, cruised along the shore until they reached Cape Cod. It does not appear that they landed at any point.
They sailed around Cape Cod, being much impressed with its long and sandy beaches. Passing the group of the Elizabeth Islands, with which they were much charmed, and where they saw water-fowl in such wonderful abundance that they could scarcely step upon the shore without treading upon their eggs, they cast anchor in Buzzard's Bay.
From this point a small party was sent out on an exploring tour to the north. The ships, with the remainder of the men, sailed westward, and again entered the beautiful sheet of water which their countrymen had previously visited, the Narraganset Bay. It may be doubted whether there is anywhere a more genial climate than that of southern New England. Farther north the winters are too cold; farther south the summers are too hot. In this temperate region there is perhaps as desirable a blending of heat and cold as can anywhere else be found.
Thorfinn was delighted with the spot. He found grapes in rich clusters, wheat growing wild. Through the winter no snow fell, and the cattle fed in the open fields. The natives, who may not have heard of the infamous assault of Thorwald in Massachusetts Bay, gathered around in large numbers and with the most friendly feelings. They brought in furs and skins, which they were eager to exchange for the knives, hatch- ets, and beads, which the strangers brought. The little hamlet of log huts which Thorfinn erected on the shore, he called Thorfinn's Buder, or Thorfinn's Building.
The Icelandic chronicler of this enterprise writes that the natives valued very highly the red cloth the strangers brought. They would give furs of the richest fibre for a piece not broader than a finger's breadth, which they bound around their heads like a crown.
We have mentioned, that, at Buzzard's Bay, an exploring party had been sent out to visit the region north and east. This company consisted of eight men, led by an Icelander of very
2
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enterprising spirit, named Thorhall. He is represented as a man of very dark complexion, of stout build, and great physical strength. They embarked in a large boat, sailed along the eastern coast of Cape Cod, and then struck across Massachu- setts Bay, north-westerly towards the coast of Maine.
On this passage he encountered a north-west wind of such fury and continuance, that, according to the almost incredible statement, he was driven entirely across the Atlantic Ocean to the coast of Ireland. As the story goes, he and his men, upon landing, were made slaves.
At the Narraganset settlement dissensions arose between the Northmen and the natives. Battles ensued. The Northmen were worsted in the conflict, as probably they deserved to be. Impartial history must declare, that, perhaps without exception, in the battles waged in this country between the Europeans and the natives, the Europeans were the aggressors. The natives seem invariably to have fought to avenge some wrongs previously received.
The Northmen, who were but little better armed than the . natives, and far outnumbered by them, found their position very perilous. Thorfinn decided to break up his colony and return to Greenland, but he had heard no tidings from Thorball : he therefore took one of his ships, and sailed in search of him. The rest of his company he left on the shore at Buzzard's Bay.
It is supposed that he reached the coast of Maine. There he cast anchor at the mouth of a river. Endless forests were spread out before him, with scarcely any open space. Thorfinn, disappointed in his search for Thorhall, returned to his com- panions whom he had left at Buzzard's Bay, and there he passed the winter. It was his third winter in Vineland.
In the spring of 1011 he again spread his sails, and returned to Greenland. There are some indications in the narrative, that a few men were left in the colony at the bay : this is, however, uncertain. Thorfinn took with him two native boys. Whether they were carried away by stealth, or of their own free will, is not known. The report he gave of the climate and its produc- tions, and the exhibition he made of its furs and skins, and of rare varieties of wood, inspired others with the desire to visit these regions of so much promise.
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It was then supposed that Vineland belonged to Europe, - that it was merely an extension of the coasts of Norway and Sweden. They called the natives Skrellings, or little men,1 the same name which they had given to the Esquimaux of the extreme north. In a very celebrated work, written about that time by Adam of Bremen, entitled " Ecclesiastical History of the North of Europe," we find the following curious passage : -
" Sueno, King of Denmark, to whom I paid a visit, described to me, in conversation on the northern countries, among many other islands, one which had been called Vineland, because the vine would grow there without any cultivation, and because it produced the best sort of wine. Plenty of fruits grow in this country without planting. This is not mere rumor. I have this news from very authentic and trustworthy relations of the Danes. Beyond this land, however, no habitable country is found. On the con- trary, every thing to the north is covered with ice and eternal night."
This is the first description of New England which is given to the reading public of Europe. It is supposed, from inciden- tal allusions which are found in the annals of those days, that after this there were many commercial expeditions to Vineland, to obtain furs, skins, wood, and other commodities, for the Greenland and Iceland markets. Of these no special record was made.
As it is stated, that, in the year 1121, a bishop by the name of Erik visited Vineland on a Christian mission, it is proba- ble that there was some colony on the coast, or perhaps scat- tered colonies, where Northmen were engaged in trading with the natives, fishing, and wood-cutting. The beauty, salubrity, and fertility of the country, compared with Greenland and Iceland, must have presented strong inducements to visit the sunny realm, and to remain there.
In Newport, R.I., there are the ruins of a stone tower, which have evidently been battered by the storms of ages. As the origin of the building is entirely lost in the haze of dis- tance, it is by many supposed that the tower was built by the hands of the Northmen. The architecture is neither above nor below their capabilities. The building might have been con-
1 This is probably the signification of the term, though various other interpre- tations have been suggested.
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structed as a citadel of defence, or for industrial purposes. In view of the facts contained in these pages, it is not unreasona- ble to suppose that the venerable tower remains a memorial of the Northmen's visit.
One or two hundred years of silence pass away. The storms of winter wail through the forests of Vineland. The suns of summer clothe the extended landscape in verd- ure, opening the flowers, and ripening the grapes. Indian hunting-bands, of unknown name and language, wander through the solitudes in pur- OLD STONE TOWER, OR MILL, NEWPORT. suit of the bear, the deer, the moose, and, after life's brief and joyless dream, vanish in death. But from these awful solitudes no voice reaches us. We have no record of the joys or griefs of these benighted children of . the forest. We simply know that everywhere upon this globe, - this residence of fallen humanity, - man is born to mourn. In the wigwam of the savage, as in the palace of the monarch, eyes must weep, and hearts must bleed.
As we have mentioned, the Northmen called Nova Scotia Markland, or, " The Country of the Woods." As there were no definite boundaries then conceived of, this name included the northern portion of Maine, as Vineland included its south- ern portion. An Icelandic geographer, in his description of the globe, writes, his language being translated into modern terms : -
" From northern Russia, the land extends northerly to uninhabited des- erts, until Greenland commences. Thence, towards the south, lie New- foundland, Nova Scotia, and Vineland. It is supposed that Vineland stretches out towards Africa. England and Scotland, form one island. Ice- land is a large island on the north of Ireland. All these countries are in that part of the world called Europe."
The fact must forever remain inexplicable, why the North- men, after having discovered and partially colonized the fair
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realms of Vineland, should have abandoned them entirely, while they continued their settlements in the dreary regions of Greenland and Iceland. They called the region " Vineland the Good." They extolled, in merited praise, the . capacious harbors and the beautiful rivers with which this goodly land was blessed. Here the purple grapes hung in clusters ; apples, pears, peaches, and an innumerable variety of plums, grew in orchards which Nature's hand had planted. Indian corn waved gracefully in spontaneous growth. They found pure water, fertile fields, and sunny skies. Wood was in abundance, for buildings, to cheer the winter fireside, and for the mechanic arts. Yet all this they abandoned for bleak and frigid realms in the neighborhood of the north pole.
The Northmen, as we have said, did not consider Vineland a new world. They thought it only a continuation of their own Scandinavian land. Iceland became quite a noted republic. Thriving colonies rose on the icebound coasts of Greenland ; and yet Vineland was left, for several hundred years, to the undisturbed possession of its savage inhabitants.
The centuries passed slowly away, and Vineland was forgot- ten. The colonies in Greenland perished. Iceland, far away amidst arctic seas, was isolated, and scarcely known to exist by Southern Europe. When, in 1492, Columbus discovered the islands of the West Indies, he supposed himself to be upon the coast of Asia. Five years after this, Henry VII. fitted out an expedition from Bristol, England, supposing that China might be reached by crossing the Atlantic in very high latitudes. The command of this expedition was probably intrusted to John Cabot." 1
This renowned voyager had three sons, Lewis, Sebastian, and Sancius, all of whom seem to have inherited in a degree the nau- tical taste and the love of adventure of their father. Sebastian, in particular, subsequently attained world-wide renown. A fleet of five ships sailed from Bristol, England, in the spring of 1497.
1 There has been much discussion by antiquarians in reference to the voyages of John Cabot and his son Sebastian, which it would be out of place to introduce here. Those who feel interested in that question will find it fully presented in the Documentary History of Maine, by William Willis, vol. i. I give the narra- tive here as it is generally received.
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John Cabot was intrusted with the command.1 His three sons accompanied him. In the instructions furnished by the king, he was authorized to sail under the royal banner to all parts, in search of islands or countries unknown to Christians. He was to plant that banner, and to reign over the countries he might discover, as the king's vassal. In this patent, as it was called, the voyage was to be directed to the east, west, or north ; it being understood that the south belonged to Spain and Portugal, as the first discoverers. Cabot and his associates were to provide every thing for the expedition at their own cost. They had nothing from the king, but the royal authority and protection as their passport.
We know but little in respect to this voyage. Sebastian wrote an account of it; but his manuscript is lost.2 It is con- jectured that the Cabots caught the first sight of the North- American Continent, on the coast of Labrador, on the 24th of June, 1497.3 Some contend that the land which they first made was the Island of Cape Breton. Having run along the coast, we know not whether north or south, three hundred . leagues, they returned to Bristol early in August, 1497. The Cabots were received with great joy ; for it was supposed that they had discovered the empire of China.
We hear nothing more of John Cabot. He probably soon died. One year after this, in 1498, Sebastian Cabot sailed with two ships from Bristol, in the month of May. It is said that he touched the coast of Labrador far in the north. Finding it intensely cold, even in July, with vast islands of ice floating around, and the land trending to the east, he directed his course to the south.4 Coasting the southern shores of Lab- rador, he cast anchor at Newfoundland. He was seeking a passage to India. As he cruised along, he kept the coast constantly in view on his right. Leaving behind him the forest- crowned cliffs of Nova Scotia, he entered what is called the
1 Some authorities say that there were but four vessels, and that the vessel which bore Admiral Cabot was called "The Mathew." It is also said that not John Cabot, but his son Sebastian, had the command.
2 See Biddle's Memoir of Sebastian Cabot, p. 221. London, 1832.
3 Biddle's Memoir, p. 52.
4 Galvano's Discoveries of the World, p. 88. London, 1601.
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broad Gulf of Maine, eagerly examining all the indentations of its sublime, jagged, solitary shores.
The highlands of Maine can be seen at a great distance on the ocean. There was a continuous line of coast reaching out before him. It is supposed that he continued his voyage along the whole length of the coast of Maine, and across Massachu- setts Bay, until he found himself land-locked, as it were, by the long curvature of Cape Cod.1 Rounding this hook of sand, his hopes were probably greatly revived by seeing the open ocean, extending far away to the west. Whether he discovered the harbor of New York can never be known. Finding, to his dis- appointment, the land taking a southern turn, and his provisions falling short, after reaching the latitude of Cape Hatteras he entered upon his homeward voyage.
Great was his disappointment at this result of his voyage. Instead of finding the rich and populous realms of China, he encountered only uncultivated and savage wilds, blocking up his way. He was the first to recognize that the new world was a vast barrier between Western Europe and Eastern Asia.2
It was this voyage of Sebastian Cabot, along so large a por- tion of the coast of the North American Continent, upon which England founded her claim to the possession of the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific shore. The breadth of the continent was then entirely unknown. It was a received law of nations, that the discovery of a coast entitled the nation by whom the discovery was made to the possession of that terri- tory, to the exclusion of the right of any other European power. It was also an acknowledged principle of national law, that the discovery and exploration of a river entitled the nation, by which this exploration was made, to the territory which that river and its tributaries drained.
English explorers were the first to behold the coast of these limitless and unexplored realms. Their flag was the first to wave over these waters. Hence England claimed the continent for nearly its whole extent.
1 Documentary History of the State of Maine, by William Willis, vol. i. p. 141.
2 New York Historical Collections, vol. i. p. 23.
3 Asher's Life of Henry Hudson. London, 1860.
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But France discovered the St. Lawrence, the series of majes- tic lakes ; and her flag first floated upon the Mississippi, from its source to its mouth. Hence France claimed the Valley of the Mississippi, in its then unknown grandeur of expanse, - almost a world in itself. These conflicting claims led to the clash of arms, to demoniac battles, to horrors of blood, misery, and death, which can never adequately be told.
Soon after the expedition of the Cabots, the Portuguese sent vessels to explore the coast of North America. In the year 1500 Gaspar Cortereal, a man of a noble family, left Lisbon with two ships. It is said that the first land he made was the east coast of Newfoundland. Following the shore towards the south, he came probably to the coast of Maine. He describes the country as abounding in forests, well adapted for ship-build- ing, with large rivers, and a sea-coast well stocked with fish of various kinds, especially with codfish.
With villany, which even the moral darkness of those days cannot extenuate, he enticed fifty-seven of the natives, men and boys, on board his ship, and, luring them below deck, closed the- hatchways upon them, and carried them off to sell as slaves in Spain. Fifty of these he had on board his own vessel. Seven he put in his consort. But an avenging God decided that he should not return to Spain to sell, in her slave-inarts, the victims he had stolen. In some fearful, ocean tragedy, which no eye but that of God beheld, the ship, its guilty commander, and all its inmates were ingulfed.1
The Venetian ambassador at Lisbon witnessed the arrival, in the Portuguese capital, of the seven Indians placed in the con- sort. In a letter which this Venetian, M. Pasqualigo, wrote, describing their appearance, he says, -
" These natives are tall, well-built, and in color, stature, and aspect, strongly resemble the Gypsies of Europe. They are admirably calculated for labor, and will make the best slaves I have ever seen." 2
1 History of the East Coast of North America. By Dr. J. G. Kohl. Bremen, Germany.
2 This letter was published in Vicenza, Italy, 1507. It was entitled, “Pæsi Novamenti Retrovati et Nova Mondo," (The Country newly discovered, and called the New World).
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About twenty years passed away when Francis I., king of France, fitted out an expedition of four ships to explore the coast of North America. The enterprise was intrusted to the command of an Italian from Florence, by the name of Giovanni da Verrazano. We have not a very full account of this voy- age. The most careful investigation has led to the opinion, that the little fleet sailed from France in the autumn of 1523. In a storm two ships were separated from the rest. Whether they were lost, or returned to France, we know not. We hear of them no more.
After various adventures and delays, it is supposed that Ver- razano, on the 10th of March, 1524, caught sight of the land at Cape Fear, on the coast of what is now North Carolina. He sailed about thirty leagues south ; finding no good harbor, he turned back to the north. He cast anchor, as is supposed, near New River Inlet, about sixty miles west of Cape Lookout. The following is his account of that region, as he then beheld it, and as it still appears : -
" The first line of the coast is sandy. Behind this bar, there are small rivers and arms of the sea, that enter at certain creeks, and wash the shore on both sides. Beyond this, there is seen a country rising in height above the sandy shore. It has many fair fields and plains, with forests of gigantic trees. The water is shallow, and the shore without harbors."
Continuing his cruise, he sailed around Cape Hatteras, and, at the distance of about one hundred and fifty miles north, cast anchor near the land. A French ship had been wrecked in this vicinity, and one poor boy was washed ashore. The In- dians nursed him as if he were their own child. They re- ceived Verrazano with the greatest hospitality. He requited them by enticing a little Indian boy on board his ship, and stealing him.1
Continuing to sail along in sight of the coast, coming to anchor every night, he reached, as is supposed, New York Har- bor. It can scarcely be doubted, that, in the following descrip- tion which he gives, he alludes to that region, and that the hills were the highlands of Neversink.
1 Expedition of Verrazano; Documentary History of the State of Maine, vol. i. p. 225.
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" We anchored at a very pleasant spot among prominent hills. In the midst of these there ran down to the sea a great body of water. It was so deep at its mouth, that any heavily-laden vessel might pass into it."
Sailing along the southern shore of Long Island, he again cast anchor, it is supposed, in the beautiful Narraganset Bay. He remained here, probably in Newport Harbor, a fortnight. The Indians, having forgotten the outrages of the Northmen, and not knowing what a treacherous man they had to deal with, received him confidingly, and welcomed him to their hospitable wigwams. He made several excursions into the interior, and was everywhere greeted with friendly words and deeds. Dur- ing this visit, it is probable that he kept the stolen boy carefully concealed.
Verrazano was the first European, after the Northmen, who entered this lovely bay. It is interesting to observe how singu- larly his description accords with theirs in his allusions to the beauty of the scenery, the fertility of the soil, and the luxuri- ance of its vines and grapes.
On the 5th of May he again spread his sails. Coasting along. the shores of New England, a distance of four hundred and fifty miles, keeping the land ever in view, he must have entered the great gulf of Maine. He gives quite a minute report of the coast of Maine, and of his intercourse with its inhabitants.1
He found the region mountainous, with dense forests of pines, hemlocks, spruce, firs, and such other trees as flourish in cold climates. He did not know that his predecessor in visiting that coast, Gaspar Cortereal, had practised, but three or four years before, villany upon the natives even surpassing his own ; for, while he had stolen but one boy, Cortereal had kidnapped fifty-seven of the unoffending Indians. He was therefore sur- prised to find that the Indians of Maine did not receive him with smiles of welcome. He writes, -
" They seem very different from the other Indians we have met. The others were very courteous and gentle. But these are rude and hostile. They are so barbarous, that by no efforts could we induce them to have any traffic with us. They clothe themselves with the skins of beasts. Their food, so far as we could perceive, was obtained from hunting and
1 Hakluyt's Voyages, vol. iii. p. 295. London, 1600.
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fishing, with certain fruits and roots which grew spontaneously. They had no grain, and we saw no sign of tillage. They would sometimes come to the seashore, and stand upon craggy rocks, while we approached in our boats beneath. They would let down a rope with whatever they were pleased to offer, demanding, in return, knives, fishhooks, and tools. They took no account of our courtesy, but kept a careful watch, that we should not be permitted to land. When we had nothing more to exchange, and departed, they showed all the signs of hatred which it was possible to invent. We went on shore with twenty-five armed men. They shot at us with their bows, made great outcries, and fled to the woods." 1
There is something truly affecting in the account thus given of the dread with which these outraged Indians regarded the kidnapping Europeans. Everywhere in the New World, where the Europeans first landed, they were received with truly brotherly kindness by the natives. They manifested no hostility until they became exasperated by the most atrocious wrongs.
During these years there were many private expeditions fitted out from England, France, Spain, and Portugal, of which no record has been made. It is certain that many of these unprincipled and reckless adventurers cheated, robbed, and insulted the Indians without any mercy.
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