The Syracuse Journal, Volume 20, Number 23, Syracuse, Kosciusko County, 6 October 1927 — Page 2

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By ELMO SCOTT WATSON > S OCTOBER 12, Columbus day. comes

around again to remind us of that hold navigator who Is universally credited with discovering the New world, it brings to mind once * more also the Innumerable questions about the life of Columbus which still arise after these 435 years and which have never' yet been satisfactorily answered. It | would seem that four centuries of I Investigation should have clean'd up any mystery about him, but the

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tact remains that historians are not yet ready to sgree upon at least three Important facts connected with his career and almost every year •ees some new theory advanced about one or more of the three. The three questions which are yet unsolved are the following: Was Columbus the real “discoverer” of the New world? What was his paternity and nationality? Where is the last resting place of his bones? For - many years the beat historical scholarship as the times credited Columbus with being the first European to reach the shores of America. Then later Investigations brought forth other rialmants and some of these are backed by what appears to be conclusive proof that more than one man looked upon the New world in the dawn of modern history and have a right to the title of 'discoverer’* which antedates that of Columbus. I»oe* it belong to some Norse sea rover who pushed out from Iceland about the year 1000 and reached the shores of “Vlnland"? Was tt some member of an expedition from Brittany which reached the coast of what is now the United States some time tn the Fourteenth century? Or wan It some of the peoples living In Northern Africa who crossed over to the western continent at an even earlier date and In what la now South and Central America gave rise to the Artec »nd Maya civilisations which still are a puzzle to the scholars’ Even In Columbus’ day there may have been some who felt the urge to “sail on. sail on,” until they reached the new land long before Columbus did. There is the story of some unknown sea captain. either a Spaniard or Portuguese, who discovered the West Indies before 1435 and of still another unknown, who eight years later, sailed from Cape Verde to South America. Then there is the theory recently advanced by Marius Andre, the distinguished French historian, that Columbus was successful In his historic voyage because he had the use of maps and other papers of an unknown captain who had reached the Antilles near the coast of Central America, but who was thipwrecked on the return voyage. He was picked up by a Spanish ship on which Columbus was serving tn some minor capacity and was cared tar on his death bed by the young Columbus, who, unknown to his captain, took possession of the pa|*ers of the dead man and from them got the Inspiration for his exiwiitlon. In Its main details this story jibes with the account of a voyage of one Alfonso Sanches, a Portuguese, who sailed from Lisbon In 148<» for the weat coast of Africa, stopped at the Canary

- —- Report Discovery of Indian Rock Carving

What Is described as the largest specimen of petroglyphs, or Indian .rock earrings, la Canada was recently reported to the archeological office of the Canadian National museum at Ottawa. This carving is said to be SW feet long and Is near Yale. British Columbia. According to the reports. It is carved on a vertical face of reddish rock sheltered by an overhanging ledge. It is about half a mile

islands and there heard of a new land tar to the west. So he set out for this land and is said to have landed on an island which he called San Salvador on August 6, 1486. In a battle with the natives Sanchez and several of his followers were slain, but the others made their way back to the f , Madeira islands where Columbus became acquainted with one of them. This man, realizing that death was near, gave the log of Sanchez’ ship to Columbus, who made use of It on his voyage. Even more baffling than the question of Columbus* right to the title of discoverer is the question of his paternity and nationality. No less [ than five nations have claimed him and three of them. Italy. Spain and Portugal, apparently have a good right to do so. The fourth. England, has only a shadowy claim, based upon a treatise written by Charles Mallay in 1682 in which he refers to “a discontented native of this isle, the famous Columbus, born in England, but resident in Genoa,” and It may be dismissed as of little consequence. The fifth, France, has an equally shadowy claim based on the assertion that he was born In Corsica, once a French possession. Italy's claim, agreed to by many historians and apparently accepted by popular belief, declares that he was born In Genoa, the son of Domenico Colombo, a cloth weaver, and Susanna Fontanarossa, a Jewess, and Is based principally upon the wording of his will in which be wrote in two different places that he was born in Genoa. Up to 25 years ago the accepted biographies of Columbus were based upon two works—the “Life of Columbus.” written In Spanish by his son. Ferdlnando Colon, and the “Critical History of the Enterprise of Christopher Columbus.” by Henry Vignaud, for years counselor of the American embassy in Paris, based upon documents which Vlgnaud gathered together over a long period of years and which have recently come into possession of the University of Michigan. Both books place his birthplace at Genoa and the date between August 26 and October 31. 1451. Portugal recently came forward with her claim as the native land of Columbus through the investigations of Maj, Santos Ferreira who; has announced that in the archives of that country he bus discovered documents of an old Lisbon convent. contemporary with Columbus, which show that the explorer’s real name was Salvador Goncalve Zarco and that he was the grandson of the famous Portuguese navigator of the same name, who discovered the Madeira Islands In the Atlantic oft. northern Africa. In furthering this claim Patrocinla Ribeiro, a member of the-l*ortuguese Academy of Sciences, develops the theory of Columbus’ Jewish origin. Documents have been discovered which show that the money for Columbus’ expedition was advanced by Spanish and Portuguese Jews to Queen Isabella, who had not pawned her jewels (as the familiar tradition has It), and that the Spanish, name for Columbus, "Cristobal Colon." was not an uncommon one among the Spanish and Portuguese Jews of that time. It was also learned that Columbus had had personal relations with Joseph Veclnbo, physician to King Joao of Portugal, and with various learned Jews of Lisbon. Veclnho gave him the astronomical tables of Abraham Zacuto and at Salamanca Columbus met the author himself. At Malaga he

of the eastern end of the Alexander bridge on the Caribou highway, and near the Canadian National railway. A trout fishing trail, from which tt can probably be seen, runs up in Its direction. Previously, the largest known rock carving was on the west side of a TlMoot canyon, about one mile south of Mackenzie highway. tn the “Norway of Canada.* near Bella Cools, B. C. tt the 250-toot carving

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Is verified, efforts will probably be made to have the region set aside as a national monument. To Breed Perfect Worms In an effort to produce perfect silkworms. the Sericulture college In Cheefoo. China, is favoring the perfect egg. Not only are disease-free silkworm eggs bred, but students are being taught the care of the egg and the worm, the growing of oaks and mulberfy trees. M a diet for the worm, and to reel the silk from the cocoon. a

THE SYRACUSE JOURNAL

met the Jewish official. Isaac Abravanel. who, t* is said, took the first steps toward financing the first expedition. The fact that Columbus’ first public appearance was in Portugal, that he married a Portuguese woman. Felope Moniz de Perestrello, the daughter of an explorer, and that he lived in that country also are regarded as strength- , ening Portugal’s claim. Os all the countries, however, Spain seems to be most desirous of establishing proof of the fact * that the man known as Christopher Columbus was Cristobal Colon, a native of Galicia in the northwest part of Spain. In fact one Madrid newspaper has offered a prize of 50,000 pesetas ($7,500) for anyone who can bring forward indisputable proof. Although the Spahish Academy of History is not yet satisfied that the attempts made thus far are satisfactory, the Spanish populace still hopes that It can bg done, because it would enhance the prestige of their country if it can be shown that It “discovered, conquered and civilized the greater part of the American continent.” The first attempt made was by the Spanish historian Don Celso Garcia de la Riega in his book, "Columbus, a Spaniard.” based upon documents found in the peninsula of Pontrevedra in Galicia, dealing with land transfers, money payments, etc., from 1428 to 1528 which indicate that the family of Colon or Columbus was well known there and that Cristobal Colon was born there. Although the Spanish Academy Is not yet convinced that Don de la Riega made out a complete ease, there Is strong evidence that he Is on the right track. Among these are the fact that Columbus was never known to speak Italian, that no paper remains on which he wrote in Italian; his autographs clearly show that his handwriting had * the Spanish and not the Italian outlines of those days; his records are in Castilian, with now and then a colloquial Gallclan word: all of the maps he used had nothing but Spanish words and signs; he named his son Diego, which is not an Italian name; and perhaps most significant of all is the fact that In naming the places of his discovery he used Spanish names and not a single Italian name. The little town of San Salvador on the peninsula of Pontevedra claims to be his birthplace and proudly shows the house where he was born, and it Is interesting to note that Columbus named the spot on which he first landed in the New world San Salvador. More than that, Spain has a perfectly good explanation to offset the claims of Genoa. Italy, to being the birthplace of Columbus. While admitting that he may have lived in Genoa and changed 'his name from Colon (the name which Columbus himself always signed in his letters and documents) to Columbus, there was a good reason for his having done so. That reason is concerned °with his Jewish descent. Fearing that If that tact became known in Spain, where great intolerance toward his race still prevailed, his chances of getting help for his projected voyage would be lessened. he deliberately tried to convince the rulers of Spain that he was an Italian and took the Italian name of Columbus to aid in the deception. So ont of all this contradictory evidence there emerges the uncertainty as to his nationality. Everything considered, the Spanish theory sounds most plausible and the combined Spanish and Portuguese elements seem to offset the Italian. The province of his birthplace is near the border line of Portugal, which would explain his marriage to a Portuguese girl even though a native of Galicia, Spain. His Jewish ancestry would make passible a close connection with both Portuguese ; and Spanish Jews. As to Columbus’ last resting place there are two {daces that lay claim to that honor—Santo Domingo. Haiti, and Seville. Spain. Columbus died In Valladolid. Spain. May 20. 1506. and was buried in a monastery near Seville. In 1538 his remains and those of his son were removed to Santo Domingo and buried in the cathedral there. When Haiti was ceded to France in 1796 the bodies were romoved to Havana; Cuba, and at the elose of the Spanish-American war were taken back to Spain and placed in the magnificent tomb tn the cathedral at Seville so familiar to tourists. At least the latter is the commonly accepted belief. However* in 1887 workmen repairing the cathedral at . Santo Domingo unelrthed a leaden casket bearing an inscription which read “Illustrious and Noble Man, Christopher Columbus." Inside this was a smaller casket bearing a similar inscription. In which tt was said the remains had first been buried in Spain. It is believed that some body other than that of Columbus, had been removed from Santo Domingo to Havana in 1796. and then to Seville a century later. So it is possible that Columbus still sleeps in the land which he “discovered.” j ' ■ r t ' ;

The object Is to take the last avail- ; able yard of perfect fiber from each COCfHAi. Economical City Fathers The city fathers of Jacksonville, i Fla., successfully tried a new way of providing music for toe frequenters ■ of the city’s ten larger parka. One outstanding musical organization was engaged to play in a studio and the music then was broadcast through batteries of loud speakers in the parks in all parts of toe city. . ’-A. Jr".

Reconditioned Battleship Texas Now Flag Ship •

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The United States battleship Texas passing under the Manhattan bridge, New York, on her way to take her place as flagship of the United States fleet, replacing thd Seattle. The Texas has just passed through a long process of reconditioning, at a cost of more than $2,000,000. She has been converted from a coal burner to an oil burner and fitted with blisters for protection against torpedo attack, and also provided with new deck armor to give additionhl protection against Bbmbs from the air. Her masts have been changed; the old foremast, of the “cage” type, iuts been alteredto a-tripod, resembling the British masts, and the other mast has been converted from the “cage” type to the ordinary type.

Battle on Over An Old Cemetery

Court Order Forbids Use of Historic Ground as Pasture. 'A ! Valparaiso, Ind. —Historic Baillytown, nestled tn Westchester township, on the southern edge of the old CaluI met river bottom in the dune region j of Porter county, once the stamping ground of friendly Indian tribes, now is the battleground for what appears to be a long and bitter fight. Desecration of the now famous Baillytown cemetery, wherein lie the bones of Joseph Bailly, grizzled pioneer and founder of the town which bears his name, has resulted in 24 ' citizens filing injunction proceedings in the Porter Circuit court here. Carl, John and Ansonia Danielson are the targets for the legal attack : launched by the plaintiffs. The Danielsons, it is charged, have permitted cattle to roam about thf cemetery, j turning the heretofore sacred ground I into a pasture. Members of the tiny I community, who stanchly believe that the three-acre plot should forever be, preserved, are up in arras and have announced their A tent ion of battling !to the finish. And Baillytown, a usually tranquil place, is buzzing with excitement, While the war rages. Judge Grant Crumpacker has granted a temporary restraining order without notice and thereby gained a point for the complaining faction. James J. McGarvey, youngest member of the Porter county bar and a deputy prosecuting attorney, has carried the colors of the plaintiffs before Judge Crumpacker. Site of First Settlement. Westchester township is the historic ground of Porter county. Here the first settlement was made and here civilized man and savage joined hands and trod together the paths of peace. In 1822 a solitary white man was watched closely by Indian eyes as he wended his weary way through the wilderness around Lake Michigan. He walked without fear, for the Indians knew him as a friend. Safety and warm .welcome were ahead, while long miles lay behind him toward his white friends. During the War of 1812 this man was taken prisoner by both the American and British forces, but failed to enlist In either aqny. In his wanderings he sought safety, and opportunity to trade, with friendly Indians. As the Indians gradually dwindled away with the advent of the white men Joseph Bailly. the French Canadian trader, followed. He halted in 1822 on the north bank of the Calumet in what Is now Porter county. Upon a beautiful bluff he erected the first cabin in the region. Bailly bartered with the Indians and his business increased and his buildings multiplied. Weds Indian Girl. Meantime Bailly had woed and won an Ottawa maid and brought his bride to dwell at the post on the banks of the Calumet. Here they reared a family of four daughters. Eleanor, the oldest for several years .was mother superior of St. Mary’s In Terre Haute. The second daughter married Colonel Whistler, a resident of the county, and the third wed a Chicago

SECRET CLOSET OF STORY FAME MAY BE DISCLOSED

. -t House Where Herman Melville Wrote -Moby Dick" May Be Restored. Pittsfield. Mass.—“ Arrowhead” the old mansion in which Herman Melville lived 13 years and where he wrofe his famed whaling story, “Moby Dick,” may yield the truth about Its secret closet The old house on Holmes road, now near dilapidation, has passed from the hands of the author’s kindred. The new owners and their plans have not been dixclosed, but there Is a possibility y»at the old structure may be restored and preserved, it Is said. It is in the mammoth old chimney of the house that the secret closet may be found. The chimney is 12 feet square at Its base and dominates the bouse. Melville himself mentions the mysterious closet in his “I and My Chim-

banker by the name of Howe. Hortense, the youngest, became the bride of Joseph Wicker, the first merchant of Deep river in Lake county. Besides the daughters a son was born to the Baillys in 1817 and died ten years later. When Bailly buried his only son. a lad of ten years, in 1827, he erected a huge oak cross, 30 feet in height, to his memory. ’ The cross rose high above the surrounding forest, inasmuch as it rested on a knoll. For years travelers and mail carriers used this cross as a guide. On the cross was the following inscription: “Today, my turn; tomorrow, yours;” and'' also “Jesus Christ crucified, have mercy upon us.” The father himself passed away in 1835. after being for almost ten years the only white settler in what is now Westyhester township. Baillytown cemetery holds the remains of itt founder, his son, his granddaughter, Frances Howe, and members of an extinct tribe of Indians. Arthur J. Bowser, for many years a resident of Chesterton, Ind., who is at present making his home here, tells many interesting tales of Baillytown. now robed In tradition. Bowser, sixty-four, spent 47 years of his life as a newspaper man. An elm and an oak tree still standing at Baillytown were planted together by Bailly and his Indian bride. If the trees entwined and lived, the Indian maid predicted their marriage would endure. Mr. Bowser compiled other data of interest during the many years he resided near Baillytown. Even though the Danielsons purchased the three-acre strip, including the cemetery, from Emma C. Huston, daughter pf Mrs. Howe, and her husband. James L. Huston, now residents of Los Angeles, the Irate citizens conthat they haven’t the right' to desecrate the graves. Potash Search in U. S. Yields Good Results Washington.—First tests by experts of the Commerce and Interior departments to determine the extent of potash deposits in the United States show encouraging results, in the face of certain handicaps, though the beds encountered “are probably not rich enough to have present commercial value.” the Interior department announced. The tests were undertaken under the SIOO,OOO appropriation to investigate domestic potash-bearing lands with a view to making this country less dependent on foreign potash and the first core drilling operation took place on public land in Eddy county. New Mexico. About 50 beds or groups of beds containing 2 per cent or more of potash were found between depths of S3fi to 1.770 feet, it was said. The hole was 1,847 feet. Fourteen beds ranged In thickness from 1 inch to 6 feet 2 inches, and in potash content from 3.10 to 16.47 per cent. Cruel anti Unusual New York. —The Long Island railroad announces that male puffers who object to women puffing In its smoking cars-will get no sympathy from the road. a.

•———————————————— ney.” He speaks of the chimney and himself as “two gray-haired old smokers," both “old settlers.” He termet! the chimney the bully of the establishment It was built of brick and stone and was placed in the very center of the house. On all four sides are hearths. Built Into it are numerous small closets and cupboards. Melville colors the suggestion of a hidden closet and possibly hidden treasure with a reference to a possix bly tn the Indian trade once making his abode within its walls. \ On the stones and panels of the chimney he had tl.ese words inscribed;: “It Is resolved between me and my\ chimney that 1 and my chimney will’ never surrender.** In writing of the closet, Melville; said: "At the second landing, midway up the chimney, is a mysterious door, en-

Judge Upholds Girls’ Right to Kiss Youth London. —“It Is quite natural for a girl of sixteen to reward a boy with a kiss after a bicycle ride, if she thinks fit,” Judge F. E. Bradley of Lytham has ruled. “There is nothing unseemly or disgraceful in that.” i A mother and daughter had summoned a next door neighbor for assault. It was stated that several boys and girls were in the street. One of the boys had his arm around the daughter and was kissing her after a bicycle ride. The neighbor, a man, passing by Stopped to remark that the kiss was disgraceful. Then the trouble started. The neighbor wa§ fined.

Finds Women Are 11l More Often Than Men Washington.—Whether women are sick as much as men is a question on Which much light has been shed by studies recently made by Dr. Edgat Sydenstricker, statistician at th< United States public health service. Records of the illnesses of all the citizens of the small city of Hagerstown, Md„ have been carefully kept for a period of more than two years. Comparison of the morbidity rates ol these records show that the ratio ol the illness of females of all ages to that of the males is 1.3 to 1. Boys under five are ill oftener than girls. From adolescence on, however, women are more susceptible to disease than men. In some respects women have greater resistance than men. for tn the general group of Infectious diseases the female rate was 92 per cent of that for males. Doctor Sydenstricker declared. The women’s rate for sickness due to external causes, such as accidents, was only 61 per cent, but for the respiratory infections, like colds. Influenza and pneumonia, it was 30 per cent higher. Historic Clock Still Runs After 312 Years Peoria. Hl. —Three hundred, and twelve years old and still running, a clock owned by James R. Harrison, Peoria, is claimed to be the oldest In the state In actual use. It was over from England before the War of 1812 and witnessed that war and the Civil war in the state of Virginia. During the latter struggle, it helped make history by being the hiding place of an eighteen-year-old Union sympathizer in a house surrounded by Confederates. As the Confe<lerates entered the house from both front and rear doors, the youth squeezed into the bottom ' of the old clock and escaped detection. However, as he made his escape from the clock he overturned it and nearly ruined its usefulness. Several parts were broken and the clock sat j Idle for several years. Later it was fixed up and has been running since. Saved by Fast Clock Two hundred Buenos Aires workmen owe their lives to the fact that a clock was five minutes fast. They filed out of the drug manufacturing I establishment where they were working five minutes before they were supposed to. The last man had hardly got out when a terrific explosion wrecked the building almost completely. . tering Into a mysterious closet; and here I keep mysterious cordials, of a choice, mysterious flavor, made by the constant maturing and subtle ripening of the chimney’s gentle heat, distilled through that mass of masonry. Better for wines is it than voyages to the Indies; my chimney itself a tropic.” j Local historians say the house was built in 1780 by Capt David Bush, who made a famous Inn of It for* years. Moly+Hojicquired the mansion and beganj HvingSlhere in 1851. William B. Morewood. who married a niece of the author, last \occupied the old house. for sale several months ago. Costly Fish Portland, Maine. —To one minnow, as long as a man’s little Anger, $lO. Such was the bill presented by the municipal court to Joseph G. Beaute, summer vacationist, and paid. He fished without a license. / There are about 160 hairs to the square inch on a man’s face.