3. From Egypt a knowledge of the arts of civilized life extended to other nations bordering on the Mediterranean sea. At this time, the art of navigation was little known. Commerce was carried on between distant cities principally by land. For thousands of years, mankind were ignorant of the extent, and even of the shape of the earth, and the oceant was considered as a mighty barrier which no one could pass. As the light of civilization spread abroad, and a spirit of commercial enterprise took the place of the wandering and sluggish habits of barbarous life, mankind began to navigate the great rivers and inland seas, till a profitable trade was carried on in ships between distant nations. The art of navigation, as we shall see by tracing its progress from its infancy down to its present state of perfection, has been attended with the most important results to

man.

4. The Phoenicians, or Tyrians, a people who dwelt on the east of the Mediterranean, were most early distinguished for commercial enterprise. It is supposed that they first constructed ships, and invented the art of navigation. They traded not only with the na tions inhabiting the coasts of the Mediterranean, but established a regular intercourse with India and Arabia, by way of the isthmus of Suez and the Red sea. From these countries they imported the most valuable commodities, and for a long time they engrossed that lucrative trade without a rival. The vast wealth which they acquired by this means, induced the Hebrews, in the days of David and Solomon, to engage in commercial affairs. They sent ships from Eziongeber, a port on the Red sea, to Ophir, [see 1 Kings, ix. 26,] and after an absence of three years, these returned laden with gold, ivory, ebony, &c.

5. The Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, the most learned nations of antiquity, seem to have paid no attention to navigation farther than it was connected with the means of conquest and military glory. The Carthagenians,§ on the other hand, surpassed all others of that period in commerce and naval power. They made the whole of the old world tributary to their city. Not content with exploring every ncok and corner of the Mediterranean, they visited the Atlantic coasts of Europe, the British isles, and, according to Pliny, a Roman historian, they circumnavigated Africa, and returned home by way of the Red sea. Had not Carthage early fallen by the power of the Romans, perhaps to them would have accrued the glory of discovering America, ages before it was known to the civilized world.

*Formerly the earth was supposed to be flat, and the heavenly bodies to move round it.

"The ocean," says an eminent Arabian geographer of that time, "encircles the ultimate bounds of the inhabited earth, and all beyond it is unknown. No one has been able to verify any thing concerning it, on account of its difficult and perilous navigation, its great obscurity, its profound depth, and frequent tempests through fear of its mighty fishes, and its haughty winds. Yet there are many islands in it, some of which are peopled, and others uninhabited. There is no mariner who dares to enter into its deep waters; or if they have done so, they have merely kept along its coasts, fearful of departing from them."

The invention of letters is attributed to the Phoenicians. Cadmus, the leader of a colony from Phoenicia, founded Thebes, and introduced letters into Greece, about 1519 B. C. The alphabet at that time consisted only of sixteen letters.

Carthage, a famous city of Africa, founded by a colony of Phoenicians or Tyrians, B. C. 869, and capital of a rich commercial republic of the same name. It was destroy ed by the Romans, B. C. 146.

6. The art of navigation gained nothing for centuries after the fall of Carthage. But from the subversion of the Roman empire, it seems to have been forgotten until the returning dawn of civilization which succeeded the gloomy period called the dark ages. The rude tribes which settled in Italy, having acquired some relish for the arts of civil life, engaged in commercial affairs with spirit and activity. From about the ninth to the fourteenth century, they were the only commercial people of Europe.t

7. Among these the Venetians took the lead. For a long time they engrossed the whole of the lucrative commerce of India, which they carried on by way of Egypt and the Red sea, or through the inland routes of Asia. The immense wealth which they acquired by this trade, and the high prices put upon the articles thus imported, excited the envy and the enterprise of the other nations of Europe. Many began anxiously to inquire, whether another route to India could not be found,-one less tedious, less expensive,-one that would afford a free and easy course to the nations of Europe, and enable them to procure at a cheaper rate the valuable productions that Southern Asia afforded.

8. About this time, the mariner's compasss was invented, and man was enabled to pass the boundary within which he had been so long confined. Soon after this, the art of printing was invented. These

Rome was taken, A.D. 476, by Odoacer, prince of the Heruli, and an end put to the Western Roman Empire. Its ruin, however, was the result of its great extent, connected with its moral corruption. Rome had become the seat of luxury, wickedness, and profligacy. It contained within itself the seeds of dissolution, and the Goths, Vandals, Huns, &c., who came to take vengeance on the empire, only hastened its downfall. It now passed for ever from the hands of its original masters, into the hands of the barbarians who had so long harassed it by their invasions. These tribes issued from their wilds, and like a mighty torrent, rolled on and swept away every thing be fore them. Their path was marked by blood and fire. Nothing was sacred. A night of moral and intellectual darkness overspread the world. For several ages, literature, science, taste, were words scarcely in use. Persons of the highest rank, and in the most eminent stations, could not read or write. This state of things, called the DARK AGES, continued from the extinction of the Western Empire to what is termed the revival of learning, about A. D. 1450.

By means of their extensive commercial intercourse with various parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, the Italians possessed more geographical knowledge and nautical skill, and had acquired more correct ideas of the true figure of the earth, than any other people of that age. This will account for the singular fact, that the discoverer of America, and those who soon after explored different parts of it, were natives of the commercial cities of Italy, viz. Columbus, Americus Vespucius, Cabot, and Ver

razzano.

If you will examine a map, you will perceive, that although the Venetians pursued the shortest route between India and Europe, yet it must have been laborious, slow, and expensive. For the goods were transported to the isthmus of Suez by water, there landed, and conveyed in carriages, or on camels, a distance of more than sixty miles, to the ports of the Mediterranean, where they were re-shipped and transported to Venice or other ports of Europe. Now you will perceive that a continued water passage of much greater length, might be effected with less difficulty and less expense.

The mariner's compass is an instrument used by sailors to point out their course at sea. It consists of a magnetic needle suspended freely on a pivot, containing a card marked with the thirty-two points of direction into which the horizon is divided, and which are thence called POINTS OF COMPASS. The needle always points to the north, except slight variations, and the direction which the ship is steering is therefore determined by a mere inspection of the card. When and by whom the compass was invented is uncertain; but it is supposed to have been in 1302, by Flavius Gioia, of Naples. It did not come into general use, however, till after the year 1400. This important instrument has had more influence on navigation than all the efforts of preceding ages. It has enabled man to quit his timid course along the shore, and steer boldly across the unknown deep. It has opened to him the dominion of the sea, and has put him in possession of the terrestrial globe, by enabling him to visit every part of it.

had a wonderful effect on society. Mankind now seemed to awake as from a dream. They began to think, to study the laws of nature, to found schools and colleges. A spirit of maritime discovery was awakened. Several nations began to turn their attention to navigation and commercial enterprise.

9. Among these, the Portuguese led the way; and to them is justly due the honor of setting on foot those enterprises of discovery and commerce, which have been attended with such happy results to the human race. Under the patronage of Prince Henry* they discovered the Azores, Madeira, and Cape Verd islands, and explored the shores of Africa to the coast of Guinea. The fame of these discoveries attracted the learned, the curious, and the adventurous, from various nations, to Lishon. Among others, Christopher Columbust arrived there about 1470.

10. During his residence in Portugal, he sailed in several of their expeditions to the coast of Guinea and the African Islands. He participated largely in the excitement which was felt by all concerned in maritime affairs. As it was the grand object of the Portuguese at this time to discover a passage to the Indies by water, Columbus, from his knowledge of the spherical figure of the earth, was persuaded, that instead of sailing round the southern extremity of Africa, a shorter and more easy route might be found by steering directly west, across the Atlantic ocean.

11. He supposed that the eastern coast of Asia was separated from

* Prince Henry, the navigator, son of John I. king of Portugal. He was born A. D. 1394. He early manifested a love for arms and military glory, particularly in the wars against the Moors; but this was surpassed, however, by his love of the sciences, especially mathematics, astronomy, and navigation. During his expeditions in Africa, his vessels visited parts of the ocean which the navigators of that age had regarded as inaccessible. But Prince Henry meditated the discovery of countries till then unknown. Familiar with the previous progress of geographical science, he neglected no opportu nity, during his campaigns in Africa, to obtain from the Moors a knowledge of the regions bordering on Egypt and Arabia, and to inquire into the probability of a passage to the treasures of India, by a voyage round the western coast of Africa. The Moors. or Arabians, alone, at this period, were acquainted with this portion of the earth From this source he received much information respecting the coast of Guinea and other maritime regions. Fully persuaded that Africa was circumnavigable,-that à ship by keeping along its shores might sail from Europe to India,-he offered generous rewards to all who would undertake voyages of discovery down the western coast of Africa. Although he died before he had accomplished the great object of his ambition, viz., A PASSAGE TO INDIA BY WATER, yet he lived long enough to behold, through his means, his native country in a grand career of prosperity. He died in 1463. Christopher Columbus was born in the city of Genoa, about 1435. His father, Dominico Columbo, a poor wool-comber, gave him as good an education as his limited means would allow. He early evinced a strong passion for geographical knowledge, and an irresistible inclination for the sea; and at fourteen years of age he began to navigate the Mediterranean. He commenced his sea-faring career with a relative named Columbo, a hardy old captain of the seas, bold and adventurous, and ready to fight in any cause. With this veteran cruiser, Columbus sailed several years, engaged in warlike enterprises against the Mahometans and Venetians. In one of his engagements with the Venetians, the vessel commanded by Columbus grappled with a large galley, and the crews fought in close combat. In the fury of the contest they threw hand grenades and other fiery missiles. The galley took fire, and both vessels soon became one flaming mass. The crews threw themselves into the sea. Columbus saved his life by swimming ashore. Portugal, at this time, attracted the attention of Europe by her maritime expeditions and discoveries. Columbus repaired to Lisbon about 1470. Here he married the daughter of Bartholomeo de Pallestrello, a distinguished navigator, who had participated in the discovery of some of the African islands, and had left many charts, journals, and nautical instruments. Columbus made use of these materials, and by profound study became persuaded that the shortest route to India would be found by sailing in a westerly direction.

the western shores of Europe and Africa by an ocean of moderate extent. Several facts tended to confirm this idea. Pieces of carved wood, reeds of an enormous size, and above all, a canoe with the dead bodies of two men, differing in complexion from any known race of people, had been driven by westerly winds upon the Azores or Western islands. These, and other facts of similar import, convinced him that land might be easily reached by sailing in a westerly direction. 12. Having established his theory, and matured the plan of a voyage, he now began to think of the means of carrying it into execution. Believing it too important an enterprise to be undertaken by an individual, he deemed it necessary to secure the patronage of some Sovereign power. For this purpose, in 1484, he made his views known to John II. king of Portugal; but instead of receiving assistance, he experienced ridicule, contempt, and ingratitude.*

13. Columbus soon after returned and laid his plans before the government of Genoa. But that republic was then in a state of decline, and embarrassed by ruinous wars; and in addition to this, its rulers were ignorant, and unable to form any idea of the principles upon which he founded his hopes of success. They looked upon his proposed voyage as the project of a visionary or lunatic.

gave

14. Columbus next applied to Ferdinand and Isabella, king and queen of Spain. They listened to his views with attention, and, him hopes of assistance. But he was kept several years in a state of suspense, struggling with the obstacles thrown in his way by ignorance and malice, before he was enabled to proceed on a voyage of discovery. At length, by orders of Isabella, a fleet, consisting of three small vessels and one hundred and twenty men, was fitted out and placed under his command.

15. By examining the map below, it will be seen how much of the earth's surface was known to the civilized world, at the time Columnbus sailed on his voyage of discovery. It is true, navigation had been greatly improved by the use of the mariner's compass, and many of the nations of Europe were beginning to enjoy the blessings of learning, of the arts, and of commerce; yet, nothing was known

*King John gave Columbus an attentive hearing, and being struck with the scheme, he referred it to a council of learned men. It was treated by them with contempt, as extravagant and visionary. Some of them proposed, however, a treacherous experi ment to test the truth of his theory, and if found correct, thus secure the glory of the discovery to the crown of Portugal. The king assented to this, and procuring from Columbus a plan of his intended voyage in writing, and the charts by which he intended to shape his course, he despatched a caravel, or small vessel, to pursue the designated route. The captain, however, was as deficient in courage as his employers were in dignity and justice. After sailing in a westerly direction for some days, and seeing nothing but a waste of wild tumbling waves before him, he returned to Lisbon, ridiculing and execrating the project as wild, irrational, and, above all, DANGEROUS! + By order of Ferdinand and Isabella, a council of the most learned men in Spain were assembled to examine the merits of Columbus's plans. They ridiculed his pro positions as wild and extravagant. "What vanity," said one, "to think at this late day he has discovered something which has escaped the notice of all before him!" How ridiculous are his plans!" said a second; for we all know, that if a ship should sail westward on a globe, she would necessarily go down on the opposite side, and if she did not slip off it would be impossible for her ever to return, for it would be like climbing up hill, which no ship could do with the strongest wind." "How absurd," said another, "to believe that there are people with their feet opposite to ours, who walk with their heels upwards and their heads hanging down; that there is a part of the world where all things are topsey-turvey; where the trees grow with their branches downwards, and where it hails, rains, and snows upwards !"

with any degree of certainty respecting the true shape of the earth. Even Columbus himself never dreamed of discovering a new continent, but simply of finding a new route to the eastern and southern shores of Asia.

16. All things being ready, on the 3d of August, 1492, Columbus set sail from the port of Palos, in Spain. Thus, after eighteen years of painful solicitation at different courts, amidst poverty, neglect, and ridicule, he was enabled to test the truth of his theory, and engage in an enterprise which has led to more important results than any ever before undertaken by man.

17. He steered directly for the Canary islands. Here he refitted his vessels,-furnished himself with water and fresh provisions. On the 6th of September, he steered directly west into an ocean on which no vessel had ever before sailed. No sooner were they out of sight of land, than the hearts of his crews were filled with anguish. They seemed to have taken leave of the world. Behind them was every thing dear to the heart of man,-country, family, friends; before them all was mystery, gloom, and peril. After sailing twenty-one days without the sight of land, their courage began to sink; but Columbus, by reminding them of the honors, the glory, the riches,