MISCELLANIES. Page Page Anecdotes, revolutionary....... ACADEMY, the first in the valley of Va........ 454 Dodridge, Rev. J., work of. Allen's Cave.... 497 Dunmore's palace 198 328 Ann, Mad, notice of 173 Early settlers, customs of in Nw. Va...... 198 372 173 Eastern shore described... 404 Austin, Stephen, birthplace of.. 515 Emory and Henry College.... 498 254 543 366 preacher confined at Fairfax.......... 239 Baptists, history and persecutions of... 379 Fairfax, Lord... 235 275 college of..... 300 360 Foreman, Capt., defeat of.. 424 Fort Donnally, attack on.. .... 185 ..... Henry, siege of..... Nelson, abandoned Rice, attack of.... Savannah.... Seybert, massacre at........ at Point Pleasant...... 200 348 Garden, the Devil's...... 248 Gates, Gen...... .... 270 German settlers, customs of "Campbellites," Gen. Wm... 503 Gigantic race, relics of a ....... Carrington, Judge Paul................................................... 220 Caudy's Castle....... Catholic Colleges.........................312 542 Certificates, revolutionary.. ...................................... 240 City, ancient, relics of an- Clarke, Gen. Geo. Rogers.. 352 Harrison, President.......... 368 484 287 441 * 350 64 179 469 248 444 193 292 Greenbrier, early settlements in.... 285 442 160 142 Graham, Rev. W., anecdotes of. 455 397 376 218 • 435 Insane and idiotic persons, number of in Va... 179 Declaration of Independence at Richmond.... 313 James City, battles in....... 287 Jefferson, President..... ... 319 ....... 335 237 ....241 543 Waddel, James, the blind preacher......... 417 residence of at Mt. Vernon...... 257 modesty of.. ........ Weedon, Gen............. William and Mary College.. 308 Woodford, Gen. Wm........ ............... farm...................... 482 Zane, Elizabeth. heroism of.................. 411 Weddings of early settlers ... 198 217 255 256 Wetzel, Lewis 413 480 Wirt, William.. 171 324 436 215 206 352 OUTLINE HISTORY OF VIRGINIA. CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION, PROGRESS OF COMMERCE, ROANOKE SETTLEMENTS. Discovery of America.—England.-Want of Commerce in early times.—Voyages of the Cabots.-Progress of English discovery-Frobisher-Gilbert-Raleigh.-Failure of the Roanoke settlements. THE claims of the Icelanders, the Welsh, and even the Norwegians, to the discovery of America, seem in modern times to be universally set aside in favor of a native of a milder clime. Indeed, the evidence by which their respective claims were sought to be established was so vague, contradictory, and unsatisfactory,† and their discoveries, if proved, so entirely accidental, and useless to mankind, that it is not at all astonishing that all the merit should be given to that individual whose brilliant genius first demonstrated a priori the existence of a continent in the western waters, and whose adventurous daring‡ led him to risk his life in the search of a world, of the existence of which he was only informed by his science, with little aid of any human experience; or that posterity should give to COLUMBUS the undivided glory of an exploit for which he received only the ignominy of his contemporaries, and to Italy the honor due the birthplace of so distinguished a son, from whose brilliant achievements she has received little else. In 1460, the Portuguese discovered the Cape de Verd islands, and afterwards extended their discoveries farther south. This near prospect of an easier and more direct route to India, had already begun to excite the jealousy of the Venetians, who then nearly monopolized the trade of India, and to elevate the hopes of the Portuguese, who expected to enjoy a portion of the wealth and luxury which the Venetians derived from that trade; when the minds of both, and indeed of all Europe, were turned in another * Winterbotham's America, vol. I. p. 1 and 2, and Hinton's United States. + Bancroft's Hist. U. States, vol. I. p. 6, and notes. "L'Italie reparut, avec les divins tresors que les Grecs fugitifs rapportèrent dans son sein; le ciel lui révéla ses lois; l'audace de ses enfants découvrit un nouvel kémisphère."-De Staël-Corinne. direction by the occurrence of an event in the history of maritime discovery, compared with which all others sunk into insignifi cance. This event was the discovery of America, by Christopher Columbus. The education of this daring mariner, his disOct. 11, 1492. appointments and dangers, his difficulties and his brilliant success, or the melancholy story of his sad reverses, and the example afforded in him of the ingratitude of kings, it is not the purpose of the writer to narrate. He refrains from recounting so temptingly interesting a narrative, because it would lead him too far from his purpose, which is only to narrate succinctly the progress of navigation and discovery to the time of the first colony settled in Virginia,-and because the same story has been so well told by Robertson, Irving, and others, that it ought to be familiar to all. Notwithstanding the advances in navigation which have been enumerated, the art of ship-building was still in such a rude and imperfect state, that the vessels in which Columbus embarked on an unknown sea, a modern mariner, with all the advantages of modern science, would scarcely venture in, to cross the Atlantic. The largest was a vessel of no considerable burden,* and the two others scarcely superior in burden to large boats, and the united crews of the three only amounted to ninety men, including officers, and a few gentlemen, adventurers from Isabella's court. But notwithstanding these inadequate means for the prosecution of maritime discovery, the ardor of enterprise was so much excited by the brilliant achievements of Columbus, the greedy thirst for gain, and hope of finding some country abounding in gold, together with the eager desire which still prevailed of discovering some passage through the great continent of America, which might lead to India, that in twenty-six years from the first discovery of land by Columbus, the Spaniards had visited all of the islands of the West Indies—they had sailed on the eastern coast of America from the Rio de la Plata to the western extremity of the Mexican Gulf-they had discovered the great Southern Ocean, and had acquired considerable knowledge of the coast of Florida. It is also said that these voyages in search of a nearer passage to the East Indies, had extended much farther north, but not however until that country had been discovered by the seamen of another nation, of whose exploits in the field of maritime adventure we shall presently speak. The great interior was still unknown, the whole western and the extreme southeastern coasts were still undiscovered, and the long line of coast from Florida to Labrador had only been seen, and touched upon in a few places. England did not at an early period make those advances in navigation, to which the eminent advantages of her insular situation * Robertson-Hist. America, 49. |