The voyage of Verrazzano : $b a chapter in the early history of maritime discovery in AmericaMurphy, Henry Cruse
History
The voyage of Verrazzano : $b a chapter in the early history of maritime discovery in America
Murphy, Henry Cruse
America -- Discovery and exploration -- French; Verrazzano, Giovanni da, 1485-1528
Of an equally absurd and preposterous character is the statement
made in reference to the condition in which the plants and
vegetation were found. The grape particularly is mentioned in a
manner which proves, beyond question, that the writer could not have
been in the country. The dates which are given for the exploration
are positive; and are conclusive in this respect. The Dauphiny is
represented as having left Madeira on the 17th of January, and
arrived on the coast on the 7th of March, that is, the 17th of that
month, new style. [Footnote: See ante, page 4, note.] They left the
harbor of the great bay, where they had remained for fifteen days on
the 6th of May, which makes their arrival there to have been on the
21st of April, or first of May, N. S. They were thus during the
months of March and April, engaged in coasting from the landfall to
the great bay in latitude 41 Degrees 40', during which period the
observations relating to the intermediate country, consequently,
must have been made. They left the coast, finally, in latitude 50
Degrees N., for the purpose of returning to France, in time to reach
there and have the letter written announcing their arrival at Dieppe
on the 8th of July, and therefore it must have been some time in
June, at the latest; so that very little if any portion of the
summer season was passed upon the coast of America.
In describing the country which they reached at the end of the fifty
leagues north of the landfall, that is, near the boundary between
North Carolina and Virginia, where they discovered the old woman and
girl concealed in the GRASS and found the land generally, "abounding
in forests filled with various kinds of trees but not of such
FRAGRANCE" as those where they first landed, the writer gives a
particular description of the condition in which they found the
vines and flowers.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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