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COLUMBUS

Behind him lay the gray Azores,
Behind the Gates of Hercules;
Before him not the ghost of shores;
Before him only shoreless seas.

The good mate said: "Now must we pray,
For lo! the very stars are gone.

Brave Admiral, speak; what shall I say?”
"Why, say, 'Sail on! sail on! and on!""

"My men grow mutinous day by day;

My men grow ghastly wan and weak." The stout mate thought of home; a spray Of salt wave washed his swarthy cheek. "What shall I say, brave Admiral, say, If we sight naught but seas at dawn?" "Why, you shall say at break of day,

'Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!'"

They sailed and sailed, as winds might blow,
Until at last the blanched mate said:
"Why, now not even God would know
Should I and all my men fall dead.
These very winds forget their way,

For God from these dread seas is gone.
Now speak, brave Admiral, speak and say"
He said: "Sail on! sail on! and on!"

They sailed. They sailed. Then spake the mate: "This mad sea shows his teeth to-night.

He curls his lip, he lies in wait

With lifted teeth, as if to bite!

Brave Admiral, say but one good word:

What shall we do when hope is gone?"

The words leapt like a leaping sword
"Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!"

Then, pale and worn, he kept his deck,

And peered through darkness. Ah, that night
Of all dark nights! And then a speck-
A light! a light! a light! a light!
It grew, a starlit flag unfurled!

It grew to be Time's burst of dawn.
He gained a world; he gave that world
Its grandest lesson: "On! sail on!"

-JOAQUIN MILLER

LESSON III

FURTHER DISCOVERIES

NOTE TO TEACHER.

Trace on a map the voyages of the various discoverers. Locate the places discovered by them.

Many explorers besides Columbus made their way to the new land while searching for a short route to India. Among them was Americus Vespucius, an Italian in the service of Spain.

Vespucius sailed along the coast of South America. It was in his honor that the name America was given to the new land.1

In 1497, John Cabot, an Italian in the service of England, reached the northern part of North America.

The first Spaniard to set foot on the soil of what is now the United States, was Ponce de Leon.

He came in search of a "Fountain of Youth," where, it was said, the old would become young again.

1See Lesson II in the chapter on Geography.

On Easter Sunday, in 1513, he landed at a spot near which St. Augustine now stands.

He called the land Florida from the Spanish word for Easter. De Leon's search was fruitless, for he did not find the "Fountain of Youth."

In the same year Balboa, a Spanish planter, discovered the ocean now called the Pacific.

Six years later, in 1519, Magellan, a Portuguese sailor, left Spain in the hope of finding a shorter route to Asia. He spent a year searching the coast of South America for a passage to the other side.

At last he pushed through the strait named for him. He sailed out upon the wide ocean which had been discovered by Balboa.

The water was so calm and peaceful that he named it the Pacific.

He set out to cross the Pacific. It was wider than he supposed, but he succeeded in reaching the Philippine Islands.

Here he was killed in a fight with the natives.

One of his ships found its way back to Spain by sailing around the Cape of Good Hope.

Thus the first voyage around the world was completed. Now for the first time it was known that Columbus had discovered a new world, a world which lay in the great ocean between western Europe and eastern Asia.

As soon as the knowledge that a new continent had been discovered reached the various nations of Europe, they were anxious to claim it.

Spain, England, France, and Holland all sent out

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explorers to take possession of the land, each for his own king.

In the next lessons we shall read of the most important of these explorations. For the claims of Europe to the New World were based upon them.

Questions and Topics for Discussion

In whose honor was America named? How did this happen?
When did John Cabot reach America?

What country did he represent?

Who was the first Spaniard to set foot on the soil of the United States?

Where did he land?

What did he call the land that he discovered?

What did Balboa discover?

Where did Magellan sail? What ocean did he name?

What happened to Magellan?

Tell about the first voyage around the world.

What were the nations of Europe now anxious to do?

LESSON IV

SPANISH EXPLORATIONS

NOTE TO TEACHER.

- Locate on the map the parts of the country reached by the various explorers. Trace their journeys as far as possible. Do this in each succeeding lesson.

In the beginning Spain seemed to have the best claim to the newly discovered land. It was from Spain that Columbus had set sail. This claim was strengthened by the discovery of Florida by Ponce de Leon.

In 1539 De Soto started out from Spain with a large company in search of the riches which were said to be found in the new land.

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