Front matter
"-^9^'
*bv"
•^^0^
Preface
OF all studies, that of History is one of the most interesting and important. It satisfies a natural and laudable curiosity as to what has taken place in the world, and makes some amends for the shortness of life by enabling us to live over, in thought, the days and scenes of the past, and to know, as by a second experience, the life and labors of those who have gone before us. So strong and universal is the desire to know about the times that are gone, as to their persons, events, and progressive changes, that it may almost be called an instinct of the soul. And, as Cicero says, " Not to know what has taken place in former times is to be always a child, for if no use is made of the labors of by-gons ages, the world must always remain in the infancy of knowledge."
This is eminently true of the history of our own country, the origin and' growth of which have well-nigh the interest of personal experience. As we ponder its pages, we share the life and witness the progress of those who have passed away, while at the same time we are exempt from the dangers and self-denials to which they were subject, and through which they so patiently and faithfully struggled in carrying out the far-reaching plans of Providence, and laying broad and deep the foundations of our National Life.
IV PREFACE.
To give a connected and clear History of the United States, from the days of the Northmen to the present time, is the object of this work. The aim has been to give an account of the origin and growth of Our Country^ adapted especially to its families and youth; not, on the one hand, so full of minute details as to be tedious, nor, on the other, so brief as to be defective, but one that shall give, according to the best authorities, a full and proportionate narrative of the great events of our history, abounding as it does in the most stirring and instructive incidents. The work makes no claim to originality, for history is a matter of record, where one is, of course, dependent on the statements of previous annalists and writers, and v/here the chief merit is to so condense and arrange, as to be not only correct, but entertaining in matter, and attractive by illustration.
In such a work we may trace the first voyagers on their way over the ocean, the struggles and hardships of the early colonists, their various conflicts with the Indians, the gradual extension and growth of their settlements, the oppressions of the mother country which led to the war for independence, with its struggles and final triumph, the growing prosperity of the States, the war of 1812 and that with Mexico, and the fearful war of secession, leading to the overthrow of slavery, and to the renewed union of the States as one great and -prosperous Nation. Years too, of peace, prosperity and progress, far more in number than those of struggle and conflict, may well fill us with thankfulness as we ponder the blessings they liave brought, while the story of our statesmen, scholars, inventors, and explorers, and that of our progress in agriculture, commerce, education and religion are seen to be such as justly to place our country in the front rank of the great Nations of the World.
As the maps of a country make plain its geography, so engravings of its scenery, passing events and its distinguished characters, give vividness and interest to its written history, and aid the memory in retaining the knowledge imparted by it. The great number of such illustrations given in this volume cannot but aid in making the work both interesting and instructive to all.
Detroit, 1892. T. E.
CHAPTER II. 137 The War of the Revolution
CHAPTER I.
New York, .
.
. 64
. 32
New Jersey,
...
• 74
Massachusetts,
Pennsylvania,
.
• 76
Connecticut,
• 49
Delaware, .
.
. 81
Rhode Island,
Maryland,
.
. 85
New Hampshire,
. 56
North Carolina,
.
• 87
Maine,
South Carolina,
.
. 89
Vermont, .
■ . 63
PERIC
LIFE IN TH
Georgia,
)D III.
E COLONIES.
• 9^
CHAPTER I.
The Other Colonies,
IIS
The New England
Colonies,
CHAPTER II.
.
. 106
French and Indian
Wars,
. 127
VI
CONTENTS.
PERIOD V.
THE CONSTITUTIONAL PERIOD.
CHAPTER I.
The New States, .
CHAPTER 11.
The Territories,
Chapter III
Administrations before the Civi Washington, 1789 to 1797, .
Adams, 1797 to 1801, Jefferson, iSoi to 1809, Madison, 1 809 to 18 17, .
Monroe, 1817 to 1825, John Quincy Adams, 1825 to Jackson, 1829 to 1837, Van Buren, 1837 to 1841, Harrison and Tyler, 1841 to Pollc, 1845 to 1849, Taylor and Fillmore, 1S49 ^o Pierce, 1833 to 1857, Buchanan, 1857 to 1861, .
164-207
207-227
• 237 241
• 249 1829, 251
1845,
CHAPTER IV. The Civil War and Emancipation
The Causes of the War, . . 278
Lincoln's Administration, . . 280
3'
Campaigns of 1863, .
Campaigns of 1864, The Final Campaign, 1865, Review of Campaigns,
Chapter V
Administrations after the Civil War- Reconstruction and Peace: Johnson, 1865 to 1869, .
Grant, 1869 to 1877, .
Hayes, 1877 to 188 1, Garfield and Arthur, 1881 to 188 Cleveland, 18S5 to 1889, .
Cleveland, 1893 to 1897, McKuiley, 1897 to 190 1, .
Roosevelt, 1901 to 1905,
CHAPTER VI. The Spanish-American War and other ^Military Expeditions
Territory, . . . . .
Government, ....
Literature,
Inventions, Discoveries, Improvements, . ...
Chapter VII. 313 320
370 387 391 399
GREAT HISTORICAL PAPERS.
Franklin's Plan of Union, . . 433
The Declaration of Independence, . 435
The Confederation of 1778, . 438
Constitution of the United States, 440
Amendments to the Constitution, . 452 The Farewell Address of George
Washington, .... 457
Proclamation of Emancipation, . 467
Inhabitants Before Our Historical Period,
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Page First Sight of Land, . Frontispiece
Vessel of the Northmen, . . .15 The Dragon Ship, ... 16
Ruins of a Norse Building, . . 17
Old Tower at Newport, . . . 18
The Dighton Rock, . . . .19 Christopher Columbus, ... 20 Vessels of Columbus, . . .22
Balboa's Discovery of the Pacific, . 23 The Eclipse of the Moon, . . 24
Gate at the Entrance of St. Augustine, 25 Street Scene in St. Augustine, . 26 The Sun at Midnight in the Arctic
Regions, 27
The Aurora Seen in Greenland, . 29 The Natural Bridge, Virginia, . . 30
Page
The James River near Richmond, 32
View on the Potomac, , . -33
Tower Rocks, Virginia, ... 34
Baptism of Pocahontas, . , -36
Introduction of Slavery, . . 37
View on the James River, . . 39
Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts, . 43
The Mayflower in Mid-Ocean, . . 44
Silver Cascade, White Mountains, 46
Old South Church, Boston, . . 47
Turner's Falls, Massachusetts, . 48
Night Attack on Early Settlers, . 50
Yale College, Connecticut, . . 52
Woodland Scene in Rhode Island, . 55
Squam Lake, New Hampshire, . 57
St. John's River, . . . -58 vin
OUR COUNTRY.
Page
Bar Harbor, Maine, ... 59 Off the Coast of Maine, . . .60
View in Acadia, . . . . 61 Scene in Maine, . . . .62
Trout Stream in Vermont, . . 63
Sabbath-day Point, Lake George, . 65 Sketch of Niagara Falls by Father
Hennepin in 1698, ... 66
Niagara Falls, American Side, . . 67
The Falls of Niagara, ... 69
Opening of the Erie Canal, . . 70
Trenton Falls, New York, . . 71
First Passenger Railway, 1831, . . 72
Rapids of the St. Lawrence River, 72 Catskill Mountain Scene, . . -73
Arrest of Carteret, ... 74
Chateaugay Chasm, New York, . . 75
Penn's House, Philadelphia, . . 'j'j
View on the Susquehanna River, . 78 First Settlement on the Delaware
River, 79
Pennsylvania Forest Scenery, . . 80
Scene on the Delaware Bay, . . 82
Fight with the Maryland Pinnace, . 84 The " Golden Lion " Firing on the
Maryland Boats, ... 85
A Cottage by the Sea, ... 86
A Vista in North Carolina, . . 87
View of a Cotton Chute, . . 89 Scene in South Carolina, . . '91
A Planter's House in Georgia, . 92
Scene in a Georgia Meadow, . . 94
On the New England Coast, . 96
Shore of Cape Ann 97
Evening at Sea 97
Church-Goers in the Early Colonies, . 98
A Pioneer Home in Winter, . . loi
Pace
Natural Bridge, Rockwall County,
Texas, 102
The Departure of the Mayflower, 105
View on the James River, Virginia, 107 A Virginia Summer Scene, . . 109 Group of Trees, . . . .111
Summer on the Rappahannock, . 112 Upper Au Sable Lake, . . .114 A River Scene, . . . .116 A Cotton Field, . . . .118
The Cascades, . . . .119
The Alleghany Mountains, . .121 A Coast Scene, . . . .122 Roger's Slide, Lake George, . .123 A Dutch Household, . . .124 Early Settlers Ascending the Hudson, 125
Quebec, 128
Washington's Attack on the French, 130 Wolfe's Cove, . . . .132
Night Attack on Colonial Schooner, 133 Attack on the Fort at Presque Isle, 134 Meeting of Washington and Rochambeau, ......
Eventide,
Building in Boston Where the Tea
Plot was Hatched, Building in Philadelphia Where the First Congresses were held.
The Brook,
The Monument on ]5unkcr Mill, .
Statue of Jefferson, ....
The Prison Ship " Jersey,"
Scene on the Hudson River, Attack on Chew's House, .
Surrender of Burgoyne, Washington Reproving Lee at Monmouth, 153
136 138
141 142 144
148 150 152
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Page Arnold at New London, . . 155 Washington's Headquarters at Newburgh, 156
Exploit of Arnold, . . .157
Attack by the British on the Block
House at Tom's River, . .158 The House Where Cornwallis Surrendered, . . . .160 Washington Surrendering his Commission, 162
Attack on the Rioters, . . .163 Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, . .165 Look-out Mountain, Tennessee, . 166 Red-mill Falls, near Elyria, Ohio, . 167 A Mississippi River Boat, . . 168 Loading a Cotton Steamer, . .169 View on the Mississippi, . . 172
A Nook, Fox Lake, Illinois, . -173 Scene on the Mississippi River below
Cathedral Spires on the Merramec, 175 Hot Springs, Arkansas, . . .176 Detroit River Scenes, . . . 177 Scenes on the St. Mary River, . . 178 Government Canal and Locks, Sault
Ste. Marie, Michigan, . . 179 Amelia Island, Florida, . . . 181 Sam Houston, . . . .183
A Nook on Spirit Lake, Iowa, . .185 On the Brule River, Wisconsin, . 187 Big Trees of California, . . .188 Yosemite Valley, . . . .189 Three Brothers, Yosemite Valley, 190 Mirror Lake and Mount Watkins, 191 The Falls of St. Anthony, . . 192
Lake of the Woods, . . . 193
Portland, Oregon, and Willamette
River, 194
Page A Kansas Harvest Scene, . . 196
Basaltic Pinnacles, Colorado River, 199 The Cascades, .... 200 Mount Stephens, Yellowstone Park, 203 View in Grand Caiion, . . 204
Rocky Mountain Scene, . . 205
Flowers and Butterflies, . . 206 Hoisting the Stars-and-Stripes over
the Rockies, .... 208 White Cliffs, Utah, ... 209 Colored Cliffs Near Kanab, Utah, 210 Marble Canon of the Colorado, . 211 Cliff Dwellings, Arizona, . . 212 Distant View of Moqui, with Sheep-pens in the Foreground, . . 213
Sitka, Alaska 215
Scenes in the Inland Passage, . 216
Washington (Two Views), . . 218 Washingtonin 1810 — The Old Capitol, 219 The Capitol— East View, . . 221
The Bartholdi Fountain, Statues^
General Scott and others, . 222 The Naval, and Other Statues, . 223 Statues — General Rawlins and ,
others 224
Washington Monument, . . 225 The White House From Pennsylvania
avenue, 226
Mount Vernon from the Potomac
River 227
Washington's Reception at Trenton, 228 George Washington, . . . 230
Franklin's Grave at Philadelphia, 231
View of Washington's House, Mt.
Washington's Bedchamber, . . 233 John Adams, .... 234
X
OUR COUNTRY.
Martha Washington's Bedchamber, Washington's Grave, RIt. \'crnon, Thomas Jefferson, ....
Duel Between Burr and Hamilton, Tlie Officers of the Chesapeake Offer^
ing Their Swords, James Madison, .■ . . .
Perry's Victory on Lake Eric, The Burning of Washington, Capture of the Cyane and Levant, James Monroe, ....
A Scene in the Early Settlement of
Ohio
John Q. Adams, ....
Early Days on the Delaware and
Hudson Canal Railroad, .
Andrew Jackson,
A Negro Village
Scene in Florida near Rock Ledge,
Scene on St. Clair River, Michigan,
Martin Van Buren,
William H. Harrison,
John Tyler,
Salt Lake City,
James K. Polk, .
The City of Mexico,
The City of Vera Cruz,
A Woodland Scene,
Zachary Taylor, .
Millard Fillmore,
Franklin's Expedition in the Polar Regions, ....
Franklin Pierce
Mount Hood
James Buchanan, ....
Harper's Ferry, Virginia,
A Skirmisher, ....
Page
235 236
237 239
240 241
245 247 249
250 252
270 271 272
273 274
Pace General Robert E. Lee's Old Home,
Arlington, .... 276 Defense of Fort Sumter, . . 277
A Railroad Battery, . . . 279 Early Home of Abraham Lincoln, 280 Abraham Lincoln, .... 281 Federal Iron-clad River Gun-boat. 282 The Swamp Angel, . . . 283 On the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, 285 Destruction of Fort Ocrakoke, . 286 Battle of Bull Run, . .. . 287 Fort Pensacola, .... 288 Capture of New Orleans, . . 289 Bailey's Dam on the Red River, . 291 U. S. Military Telegraph Wagon, 292 Fort Pillow, ..... 293 The " Destroyer," . . . 294
Battle of Malvern Hill, . . . 296 Antietam Bridge .... 297 Sinking of the Alabama, . . 298
Fight Between the Monitor and Mer-
rimac, ..... 299 The "Nashville" Destroying the
" Merchantman," . . .301 Battle of Chancellorsville, . . 303 View From Gettysburg — West, . 304 Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg, . 305 Gettysburg From Little Round-Top
Gun-boats Passing Before Vicksburg, 307 Longstreet's Arrival at Bragg's Headquarters, .... 308 Federal Lines at Chattanooga, . 309 Moist Weather at the Front, . 310 Attack on Charleston, . . •311 Fairfax Court House, . . 312 E.xplosion of Mine Before Petersburg, 314
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
XI
Page General Sherman's Scouts, . • S'S Death of General Polk, . . 316
Savannah, 317
Opening of the Fight Between the
Kearsarge and Alabama, . 319 End of the Oyster War, . . . 320 The Peace Commissioners, . 321
Raising the Flag over Fort Sumter, 322 Destruction of the Nashville, . 323
Sunset Over Atlanta, . . . 324
On Picket, 325
Retreat of Lee's Army, . . 326 Surrender of General Lee, . . 327 The House Where General Lee Surrendered, .... 328 The Capture of Booth, . . . 329 Lincoln's Grave, .... 330 Review of the Union Troops at
Washington, . . . .331 The Lincoln Monument, . . 332 Residence of Andrew Johnson, . 335 Andrew Johnson, . . . 336
Ruins of Richmond After the War, 337 Picking Up the Atlantic Cable, . 339 Ulysses S. Grant, . . . 340
Birthplace of U. S. Grant, . . 341 The Joint High Commission, . 342 Storming of the Corean Forts, . 343 The Burning of Chicago, . . 344 " I Declare the Centennial Exhibition
Attack by Modocs on the Peace Commissioners, .... 346 Custer's Last Fight, . . . 347
Rutherford B. Hayes, . . 349
Interior of Garfield Memorial
Tomb, 350
Page James A. Garfield, . . . 351 Put-in-Bay Harbor, Ohio, . . 352
Chester A. Arthur, . . . 353 General View of the Brooklyn Bridge, 354 Arrival of the French Transport Isere, 355 Statue of Liberty, .... 356 The Farthest Point North, Reached
by Lieutenant Lockwood, . 357 Caldwell, the Birthplace of Cleveland, 358
Grover Cleveland, .
Decoration Day, ....
Earthquake at Charleston, S. C,
The Funeral Train of General Grant
Passing West Point,
Benjamin Harrison,
William McKinley, .
A Harvest Scene in Michigan
A Western Prairie, .
Improving Leadville, 1877 •
Columbia, . , . . .
Our Army in Cuba,
Leadville in 1887,
Gulf Coast near Galveston, .
Filipino Warfare,
China and the Boxers .
Pennsylvania Scenery,
Theodore Roosevelt,
The Indian of the West,
Kentucky Scene. ....
Scene in the Rockies,
Ferns and Leaves,
A Modern Steamer, . ,
Fort Mackinac, ....
Wild Flowers, ....
Lake Michigan Scene, .
Wild Flowers of the Pacific Coast,
XII
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Mountain Flowers,
Mississippi Scene,
The Hunter's Retreat, Wisconsin,
An Early Steamboat,
Robinson's Folly, Mackinac Island,
Plummer's Lookout, .
Sugar Loaf Rock, .
Arch Rock, ....
Yosemite Valley, ....
Grand Canon, Colorado River,
Steeple Rocks, Yellowstone, .
The Grotto, ....
Boiling Springs Yellowstone Park,
Boiling Sulphur Springs. Yellowstoii Park
Great Falls of the Yellowstone Rive
Old Faithful Geyser,
Lime Tower near Hot Springs,
The Yellowstone, . . . ,
The Grotto Geyser,
Lower Falls, Yellowstone Park,
Signing the Declaration of Independence, . . . . .
The Golden Gate, ....
Observatory Mound,
Page.
. 410
• 414 416
• 417 418
• 419 420
. 421
• 423 424
• 427 428
• 429 430
• 431 432
• 439 468
, 469
Page Animal Mounds in Wisconsin, 470
Works near Paint Creek, Ohio, . 471
Newark Works, Licking County, Ohio. 472 Twined Fabric Impressed on a Piece
of Pottery Found in a Mound, 473
A Hill-fort in Butler County, Ohio . 474 Works at Marietta, Ohio, . . 475 Serpent Mound in Adams County,
Ohio 476
Conical Mound, Marrietta, Ohio, . 477 Rocky Mountain Home of the Indians 478
Indians' First Sight of White Men, . 4S0 Indian Chief Inciting the Council to
War 481
An Indian Brave, .... 482 Attack on the Pequot Fort, . . 483
A Medicine I\Ian, . • . .484 Indian Burial Ground, . . . 485 Scene in an Indian Encampment, 486
Copy of an Original Treaty with the
Indians in 1769, . , . . 488 Early Colonists Besieging an Inilian
Wigwam 4S9
The Calumet or Pipe of Peace and
Other Pipes of the Indians, . . 491
Our Country.
PERIOD I.
EARLY DISCOVERIES AND EXPLORATIONS.
CHAPTER I. The Northmen or Vikings
THE history of our country is full of interest, both to the old and young. Long before its discovery by Europeans, it was inhabited by the " Mound Builders," a prehistoric people whose monuments are now found in various parts of the land, and who, some suppose, were the remote ancestors of the modern Indians, while others think they were an entirely different people, conquered, and possibly in part exterminated, and in part merged in the tribes of the conquerors, and so disappearing as a people. Squier, Davis, and others take the former view ; but the traditions of at least two large Indian tribes give the latter, saying that the modern Indians conquered and drove out a people before them ; that that people conquered and drove out a race before themselves, and that the last mentioned people conquered and drove out those known as the " Mound Builders." Long before America was known to Europeans it was occupied by the Indians, whose numerous tribes were found in every part of the land, and the descendants of whom are still in the country, partly on reservations allotted by the government for their occupation, and partly in regions where they have long wandered or dwelt. Of the origin of the " Mound Builders," or of the Indians, comparatively little is known, but more full notices of them may be found at the end of this work.
Nearly four hundred years before Christ, the inhabitants of the Eastern world had believed that there were undiscovered lands far to the West. Plato, who said his information came through Solon, from an old Egyptian priest, had told the well-known story, or fable, of Atlantis, describing its climate and scenery, its mountains, rivers, animals and inhabitants, and speaking of the Island as almost a paradise. And about a hundred years later Aristotle had taught that the earth was a sphere, and that the waters on the west side of Europe washed tlie eastern shores of Asia. And Seneca the teacher of tlie Emperor Nero, who Hvcd in the first century and died A. D. 65, as his words arc translated by Archbishop Whately, said : "There shall come a time, in later ages, when the ocean shall relax its chains, and a vast continent shall appear, and a pilot sliall find new worlds, and Thule (which was thought to be the end of the world) shall no more be the earth's boundary." This idea, kept alive through the middle ages, gave the impression which was widely spread, that by sailing westward, countries beyond the sea would some time be discovered.
It is said that as early as A. D. 800, Japanese junks, driven by severe storms, had landed on the western coast of our great continent, and Modoc, a Welch prince, is said to have reached the coast of Virginia as early as A. D. 1 170, though no permanent settlement was the result. And tradition had long asserted that nearly five hundred years before the time of Columbus, the Northmen had landed and made settlements on our eastern coast. These Northmen or Vikings had nothing, as the term "Viking" might seem to imply, of a kingly or royal character. They were not Vi-khigs. but Vik-iiigs, simply the dwellers on the Viks or bays of the Scandinavian coasts, from which they went forth as bold and persevering buccaneers of the sea, much like tlie Algerian corsairs of a later day, except that, unlike the Algerians, they were not merely pirates and conquerors, but were also colonists, founding settlements in the lands they subdued and robbed. They were of the same race as those who, as Saxons, had, at an early day, overrun and subdued England, and afterward, as Normans, had conquered France, and still later, crossing over from France, had again conquered England, and mingling with the English and Saxons, laid the foundation of the Anglo-Saxon people.
For a long time the Vikings were the terror of Europe, entering the ports and landing on what are now the British Isles, raiding up the rivers of France, and through the Mediterranean sea, reaching and plundering Africa, which they called "Saracen's land," and sending back the wealth of their booty to Norway, where, to this day, Greek and Arabic coins and chains of gold are found, as may be seen in the museums of Christiana and Copenhagen.
Of the history and movements of these Vikings, Mr. Keary, in his "Vikings in Western Christendom," has given full and most interesting accounts. As early as the year 789, as he quotes from the English Chronicle, "These Vikings sought the land of English folk," three ships bearing the first of these buccaneers, that, so far as is known, had not since the sixth century, made incursions on any Christian shore. These fierce freebooters had long and strongly built vessels, manned by from twenty to forty oarsmen on each side, and each having a mast thirty or forty feet high, set in a block of wood so large that, it is said, no block of equal size could now be found in Norway. These masts had no standing rigging, but with their square sails, were probably taken down when not in use, the dependence, in the absence of favoring wind, then being on the oars. In these powerful vessels they swept down from their old homes in the Scandinavian regions to the milder and richer South, and across the North sea to England, Scotland, and Ireland, conquering and robbing wherever they went, and making many settlements under leaders who took the name of Kings. The ninth century saw their rise to greatness, and it saw also their decline; but during this hundred years they were the terror not only of France and the continent, but of the British Islands and every part of the coast.
EARLY DISCOVERIES AND EXPLORATIONS.
;fe m
4^
The model and structure of these vessels are now as well-known as if they were just built and launched from our ship-yards. They are depicted on the celebrated Bayeux tapestry, and cuts of them are still seen on the rocks of Norway, and their remains are now and then found in different parts of that country. One of them, represented in the cut, which is taken from an engraving in possession of Mr. R. B. Anderson, of Wisconsin, was dug up at Sandefjord, about half a mile from the sea. It had evidently
been used as the burial place of its owner, and a full account of it has been given in a volume by Mr. N. Nicolayson, published at Christiana in 1882. It was about seventy-seven feet long, over sixteen feet wide at its greatest width, and between five and six feet in depth, drawing less than five feet of water. It was not like the "dug-outs " or bark canoes fc'i^ ; of the savage or half civilized tribes, but was " neatly built
and well preserved, constructed on what a sailor would call beautiful lines, and eminently fitted for sea service." It was clinker built, that is each of its thick oaken boards overlapped the one below it, like shingles on a house-top, just as our best NvVillJiiffll iilwii i K.- boats are built to-day, and all were bound together with strong iron rivets well made and clinched. The vessel had no decks, but seats were arranged for from forty to sixty rowers, and there were corresponding holes for the oars which were some twenty feet long. In the vessel was a tent-like chamber in which were found human bones, the bones of a dog, the bones and feathers of a peacock, some \i*fevi/IIPIi!liBilMfl S fish-hooks, and several bronze and lead ornaments for belts, and harness, and about the vessel were the bones of several horses and dogs, which, it is supposed, had been sacrificed at the burial of the owner. Vessels much larger than this were called Dragons, and other sizes were known as Serpents and Cranes, each ship so built, or having some part or figure such as to represent the name it bore. 4'lfllHi'lf'l S The Vikings who went forth in these vessels fought with
stones, arrows and spears, and had grappling irons, with which to fasten to other vessels for boarding and close fighting. At a council in Norway some were clad in iron, some wore leather cloaks and had halberds over their shoulders and steel caps on their heads, and their leaders wore rich and costly garments. One of their leaders, or kings, as they were called, who, landed in Ireland to carry away cattle and other booty, is mentioned as having an iron helmet on his head, a red shield inlaid with gold, a sword the handle of which was of ivory, a short spear, and a red silk cloak over his coat, on which was embroidered with yellow silk, the figure of a lion.
Ireland suffered more from the Vikings than England itself, for it was in the fullness of their strength and when their eagerness for plunder was still unsatisfied that
S
S v i6
OUR COUNTRY.
they came down on the Irish coasts. Ireland, at that time, was rich in monasteries, abbeys, and convents, which offered most tempting inducements as well as opportunities for their attacks, for in the fifth and sixth centuries that country abounded in religious establishments in which was gathered a large part of the wealth of the people. The jeweled mass-books, the richly adorned vestments of the priests, and the gold and silver sacrificial vessels, both invited and rewarded those daring robbers of the sea. Up to the year 807 their attacks had been mostly confined to the outlaying islands lona and Man and to the Northumbrian coast, but in that year they came down upon the mainland, and by the year 825 had plundered most of the churches and religious establishments of the country.
By the middle of the century they had established three Norse or Viking settlements in Dublin, Watcrford, and Limerick, under rulers whom they called kings. Great as were the losses and sufferings from their conquests some advantages resulted from their occupation of the country. They taught the people great improvements in ship, or rather boat-building; the first native coinage was introduced by the Norse king of Dublin, and the Irish were practically instructed in the uses and benefits of navigation, for both commerce and war. The capital of ancient times had been in the middle kingdom, but the Norsemen brought it down to the coast, and when they broke
up the monasteries, and scattered the monks and clerks who were the scholars of the times, the latter went forth in great numbers to the continent, to be instructors there, and in place of the religious houses from which they had been expelled, trading stations grew up, especially along the coasts, starting the germs of a new civilization and prosperity.
The attack of the Northmen on England was later than on Ireland, and though for a time THE i;.._ ., aiip. successful, they were in the end defeated and
checked by King Alfred and his west Saxons in the great battle of Edington, and compelled to conform to the terms of the treaty of Wedmore, and from this time on their power in the country was broken, and their success as freebooters of the land as well as of the sea, steadily declined. It was toward the end of this century that they found their way to the New World.
In coming to America the Northmen were not intending or thinking of discoveries. They did not go forth like Columbus in the faith that a new world was to be found in the West. They were, rather, accidental discoverers, making "what might almost be called coasting voyages from Norway to Scotland, from Scotland to Iceland, and at last to North America, each passage extending but a few hundred miles," and, so, unexpectedly to themselves, reaching the new world.
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You’ve reached the end of Our country, historic and picturesque : a complete story of its development and progress from the first discovery by the Northmen to the present time. Embellished by many hundred fine engravings, illustrative of war and historic incidents, and the grandeur of American scenery. Also, like-like portraits of men who built the nation, reproduced from oil paintings now owned by the government at Washington.