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THE ISLAND WORLD

ivory; and still more, for the incomparable-splendor and beauty of their purple dye.

But the invention and dissemination of these highly useful arts, form but a part of what the people of Europe owe to the Phoenicians.

It is not possible to say in what degree the religion of the Greeks was borrowed from theirs, but that it was to a pretty large extent, seems abundantly certain. Hercules, under the name of Melcarthus was the tutelar deity of Tyre, and his expeditions along the shores of the Mediterranean, and to the straits connecting it with the ocean, seem to be merely a poetical representation of the progress of the Phoenician navigators, who introduced arts and civilization, and established the worship of Hercules wherever they went.

The Greeks were, however, indebted to the Phœnicians, not merely for the rudiments of civilization, but for the great instrument of its future progress—the gift of letters. No fact in ancient history is better established than that a knowledge of alphabetic writing was first carried to Greece by Phoenician adventurers, and it may be safely affirmed that this was the greatest boon any people ever received at the hands of another.

Before quitting this subject, we may briefly advert to the statement of Herodotus with respect to the circumnavigation of Africa by Phoenician sailors. The venerable father of history states that a fleet fitted out by Necho, King of Egypt, but manned and commanded by Phoenicians, took its departure from a port on the Red Sea, at an epoch which is believed to correspond with the year 604, before the Christian era; and that keeping always to the right, they doubled

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the southern promontory of Africa, and returned after a voyage of three years to Egypt, by the Pillars of Hercules. (Herod. lib, 4, p. 42.) Herodotus further mentions that they related that in sailing around Africa, they had the sun on the right hand, or to the north-a circumstance which he frankly acknowledges seemed incredible to him, but which, as every one is now aware, must have been the case, if the if the voyage was actually performed.

Many learned and able writers, and particularly Gosselin (Reherches sur la Geographic Systematique et Positive des Anciens, vol. 1, p. 204-217), have treated this account as fabulous. But the objections of Gosselin have been successfully answered in an elaborate note by Larcher (Herodote, vol. 3, pp. 458464, ed. 1802); and Major Rennel has sufficiently demonstrated the practicability of the voyage. (Geography of Herodotus, p. 682.)

Without entering upon this discussion, we may observe that not one of those who question the authenticity of the account given by Herodotus, presume to doubt that the Phoenicians braved the boisterous seas on the coasts of Spain, Gaul and Britain, and that they had partially, at least, explored the Indian Ocean. But the ships and seamen that did this much, might, undoubtedly, under favorable circumstances, double the Cape of Good Hope. The relation of Herodotus has, besides, such an appearance of good faith, and the circumstance which he doubts, of the navigators having seen the sun on the right, affords so strong a confirmation of its truth, that there really seems no reasonable ground for doubting that the Phoenicians preceded by 2,000 years Vasco de Gama in his perilous enterprise.

(McCulloch, Dict. Com. and Commer. Nav., vol. 2.)

THE COMPASS.

It has not been my purpose to trace navigation from its early dawn to the present time, in more than a general way, as thorough research and investigation into this interesting subject would require a separate volume. History of both ancient and modern times is so replete with the commercial ventures of countries, with accounts of voyages, discoveries and traffic, both by sea and land, that little doubt is left of the early knowledge and use of the compass, the invention and perfection of which is generally ascribed to a more modern period.

The knowledge of the cardinal points, as well as the use, probably in a rude way, of that important little instrument, the compass, we can trace back among the Chinese for nearly 3,000 years B. C. The knowledge of the true north, with its curious attraction and influence on the magnetic needle, turning and holding it at nearly right angles with the points of the rising and setting of the sun, was not only familiar and commented upon, but was put in practical use by the ancients of the higher order of intelligence, like the Chinese, Phoenicians, Egyptians, Grecians and Japanese.

The almost exact position retained in the heavens by the North Star, with the universe apparently sweeping in vast circles around it, must at first have been used as a guiding-point, while it would have been natural to take the opposite point for the other course. The other two points, east and west, were no doubt taken from the rising and setting of the sun, thus giving in a perfectly natural way the cardinal points of the compass.

PROPERTIES OF THE MAGNETIC NEEDLE.

It has been supposed that many of the ventures performed by the ancients at sea were only made during the day, the mariners anchoring during the night, never venturing far from land, or a depth of water too great for anchorage. This theory, I do not think, will bear very close inspection, as stormy weather and a lee shore would have rendered any great voyages impossible. The knowledge and practice of the ancients in mining and working the metals must have been considerable, as many of the writings. of the fathers of literature will testify. The properties of magnetic iron ore, the load-stone of ancient and modern times, its faculty of not only attracting iron and steel, but of imparting its polar peculiarities to these metals, must have formed a long and curious study, and ages may have passed before some genius first tried and tested, or discovered its unvarying tendency, when so placed as to be little retarded in its movements, of turning and placing itself at right angles with the rising and setting of the sun, and pointing to the north. These first experiments must have been made after the ore had been brought to a metallic form and the metal shaped in the form of a needle, much in use in the olden time for their knitting, embroideries, tapestries and lace-work, for which the ancients of the higher order were so justly celebrated.

BY WHOM INVENTED.

Yet it is the common opinion, in our modern day, that the compass and its uses was the invention of Flavio Gioja, a citizen of the once famous republic of

Amalphi, very near the beginning of 1300 A. D. Many who wrote long years previous to this period, give abundant evidences of its knowledge and uses. Thus the great Spanish antiquary, Antonio de Capomany, and the famous Raymond Lully, in writings published as early as 1272 A. D., go to show the exact uses made of the compass in navigation. In one place Lully says: "as the needle when touched by the magnet naturally turns to the north;" and again, in another portion of his writings, he says: "As the nautical needle direct mariners in their navigation;" leaving us with the impression, as they were writing of periods many years anterior to 1200 A. D., that the little compass was in common use among mariners and "those who go down to the sea in ships."

In addition to the evident theoretical knowledge, of a portion at least, of the world's geography had by the Egyptian Ptolemies, they possessed maps and charts of all the regions known at that time.

The voyages performed by Hanno, Hippeas and Pythias, many years previous to the Christian era, were not accomplished without considerable knowledge of geography and navigation.

There is distinct mention made, in Chinese history, of the compass points, not only at the time mentioned above (2634 B. C.), but on down to 121 A. D., and again in 265 and 419 A. D. The best authorities state, that the compass was introduced into Europe in 1184 A. D., while some writers ascribe its discovery to Gioja, at the commencement of 1300 A. D. Dr. Gilbert states, that it was introduced into Italy, by Marco Polo, in 1295. There is also evidence of its use in France in 1150, in Syria about the same time, and in Norway previous to 1266.