monize all our discordant emotions, rather than to
crowd our heads with useless ideas and fancies,
which neither please us for any length of time,
nor benefit us in any degree whatever,
.but rather
tends to give us a misapprehension of active life.
THE MITTEN.
Sigh no more Will, sigh no more ;
Vain thy suit, why not give o'er?
Oft you've sought this band of mine,
Often vowed it must be thine,
If lis thus ordained, so be it;
But, sweet Wm.—l don't see it !
Love, they say, sometimes grows cold
Ere the honey-moon is old ;
Wedlock wearies fondest hearts,
With possession love departs,
And its dear delusions scatter;
Wm. dear—that'. what's the matter?
Can I leave, and not repine,
All you ask me to resign ?
How can 1, e'en as your bride,
Hear to quit my mother's side,
flow forsake my father's house?
Ah I sweet Will—nix-kommerous !
Sigh no more then, sigh no more ;
Deeply I thy pain deplore,
Fain would I thy sorrow soothe,
willingly thy pathway smooth,
Hato to leave you in the lurch ;
Wm. clear—coMe off the perch
WHERE COLUMBUS FIRST TOUCHED
THE NEW WORLD.
This is a disputed question among historians,
and while it is of very little consequence to the
world, considerable interest is attached to it at the
present time; so much so that an expedition was
made to the Bahamas in 1819 to discover if any
facts could be learned fiom the confirmation and
relation of the islands that would aid in establish
ing the point. The entries made in the journal
or log book of Columbus constitutes the basis of all
conjectures on the subject. Although he named the
first island that he touched San Salvador, his de
scription of it does not agree with the island now
known as San Salvador, and does agree with a more
THE FREE LANCE.
C. M. CAUGHEY
eastern and smaller island known by the name of
Watling Island. In June 1889, the Chicago Her
ald sent Walter Wellman and Charles Lederer to
the Bahamas to fix the spot with exactness. Hav
ing landed at NaSsau, all possible assistance was
obtained through the courtesies of the Governor
of the islands, after visiting several probable pla
ces, Watling Island was found to correspond with
the description of Columbus, of the first island in
the following particulars :—A large lagoon lies in
the middle, a spacious harbor with a narrow en
trance lies near, the island is almost surrounded
with reefs and has a north and south coast, it is
quite level and presents a point to the east where
landing is easy. All the other islands mentioned
in the log books lie with reference to Watling Isl
and as Columbus had thein located with reference
to his San Salvador. Therefore this eastern point
of Watling Island was fixed as the exact spot when
a momentous event in the history of America oc
curred on the 12th of Oct., 1492. It was named
Herald Point by the expedition and on it was
raised a rude sort of monument of stones. The.
main shaft contained pieces of stones from various
buildings in Chicago. The base was strengthened
at the four corners by eight buttresses built out
about six feet. The monument was faced with a
marble tablet with this inscription, "On this spot
Christopher Columbus first set foot upon the soil
of the New World, erected by the Chicago Herald
June 15, '89." The structure is about 120 ft.
high and is capped with a block , of granite. At
ten o'clock p. in. of Oct. I t, 1492, Columbus was
seated on his deck gazing over the great sea when
he saw a light, he called others to witness it and
no one slept that night, when morning dawned a
wooded island was:seen about two leagues distant,
with crowds of natives, running along the beach
at sunrise Columbus was rowed to the shores. He
was first to step upon the beach. They all knelt
down kissing the ground with tears and thanks to
God.. Then rising and drawing his sword Colum
bus took possession, in the name the Crown of Cas
tile, and named the island San Salvador.