It is further claimed that soon after the French built a fort on Castle Island near Albany and there carried on a trade in furs with the Indians. Some historians discredit this French claim, which, however, seems sustained though it never resulted in advantage to the French. A map made by Vaz Dornado at Lisbon in 1571 gives the Hudson river in almost its entire course from the mountains to the bay. A copy of this map made in 1580, which went to Munich, was probably seen by Dr. Plancius, Hudson’s friend and adviser. _Johannes de Laet_, a director of the West India company and a copatroon of Rensselaerwick with Kilian Van Rensselaer, admits in his book that the object of the West India Company was _war on Spain, and he congratulates the country upon its success_. Jean Wagenaar, a Dutch historian, a historiographer, the secretary of the city of Amsterdam, held in the highest esteem, who had free access to the archives and whose statements are not to be discredited, says the company “_sent out a skipper to discover a passage to China by the Northwest not by the Northeast_.” _A resolution of the States of Holland, quoted by this same authority, proves that previous to Hudson’s voyage, the Dutch knew that they would find terra firma north of the Spanish possessions and contiguous to them._ _Resolved, “That by carrying the war over to America, the Spaniards be attacked there where their weakest point is, but whence they draw the most of their resources.”_ As much has appeared in this article concerning the sincerity of the motives actuating the parties to the contract of January 8, 1609, and as doubts and adverse criticisms had been expressed and no authority given therefor—they seemed conjectures—perhaps not unreasonable, plausible but requiring confirmation—_proof_ to be entitled to credit. Not, however, until the latter half of the nineteenth century was any documentary evidence on that subject obtainable and published, though efforts had been made before. The Hon. Henry Cruse Murphy, born in Brooklyn in 1810, prepared in the High School for Columbia College, where he graduated with honor in 1830, studied law, was admitted to practice in 1833, married in 1834, mayor of Brooklyn, member of two State constitutional conventions, five times elected to the Senate of the State of New York, a gentleman of culture and refinement, author and founder of the Brooklyn Eagle, whom, in 1857, President Buchanan appointed Minister to The Hague, exceptionally well qualified to represent the United States. His pleasing manners enabled him to obtain most valuable information about the war between Spain and the Netherlands, and also about the early settlement of North America. He first gives to the public an exact copy of that contract of January, 1609, where there could be no doubt that the navigator’s name was _Henry_, not Hendrick.