1924-11-08 — Page 7

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1924. →

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THE NO SKELETONS OF COLUMBUS

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COLUMBUS

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He Can Hardly Have Used Both of Them, Yet Authenticity is Claimed for Each-One of Them is Preserved at Seville, But the Real One is Probably at Santo Domingo.

[By RENE BACHE.]

Perhaps the most remarkable thing | about Christopher Columbus was that he had two skeletons. One of them is preserved in the great cathedral at Seville, in Spain; the other nccupies a leaden coffin in the cathedral at Santo Domingo, on the laland of Haiti.

Both are offelally authenticated. There is, however, no doubt of the fact that Columbus was buried in 1542 at Santo Domingo,

When, in 1796, Spain ceded part of the tsland of Halti to France, it was thought expedlent to remove the incred bones of the famous navigator to Havana. They were, accordingly, takes from the vault which had been their resting place, in the cathedral of Santo Domingo, and transferred to a church in the Cahan capital. There they remained until twenty-five years ago, when after the Spanish War, they were -shipped to Seville-the discoverer's native country having then lost the last of its American possessions.

Bat were they really the bones of Coluribus!

Honors, At Serlile.

|

Apparently the Spaniards, in making the transfer to Havana, got hold of the wrong coffin.

Search of the old records confirmed this idea; for they stated that, in 1705,. various parts of some defunct wary carried to Havana and there interred with pinus care." It would seem that there was at the time much doubt a

The to the identity of the remains.

priests of the cathedral were unable to point but the exact spot where Columbus was buried; and the presum 'able fact in that the bones exhumed were those of one of the navigator's brothers. It is positively known that. two brothers, Bartholomew and Diego,. and his eldest son, also named Diogo, were entombed in the same church.

The leaden box, after inspection of its contents, was closed, officially soaled, and deposited in a vault in the part of the cathedral called the Sanctuary of the Queen of the Angels, where it now

reponts,

Denial Of Authenticity, Notwithstanding the seemingly con- clusive evidence, the Spaniards" have The Spaniards, at all events were refused to acknowledge the authenticity wholly assured on that point. To wel of the bones, thus brought to light come the arrival of the distinguished They argue that the word America. (in remaine, there was a great celebration

the inscription on the box) was "nót at Seville. The city ordered a medal commonly used, untilong after the:} struck, to memorialize the event, its death of Columbus, And they have Inscription reading, "Seville receives gone so far as to accuse the Archbishop, the roles of Columbus" With magni- of Santo Domingo of forging, the ficent ceremonies the cofa was evidence in other words of faking the deposited in the cathedral. A --box and its inscription-ing order to

Though the Spaniards were sure of attract American Lourists

the identity of the bones, something

had previously happened which rander

ed their authenticity more, than doubt

Happily, this scherne was not put into effect. The remains of the great dis- roverer, since their last removal, have lain undisturbed in the cathedral at Santo Domingo, and there, it is to be hoped, they will continue to repose for all time to come.

The First Voyage.

Early Life.

As regards Columbus, it is difficult to separate fact from fiction where many of his doings are concerned, Even his origin is disputed.

There is no question of the fuct, how- ever, that he was 'a son of Domingo Calon, who, as proved by court records, lived in Pontevedra in the forties, of the, fifteenth century, Colunibas was born there. In the year 1444 Domingo and his family were driven out of Spain by religious persecution, taking refuge in Genon, where the future discoverer of America Krew to manhood.

The name Colon is Spanish, not Italian. On the coffin that contains his ja the cathedral at Santo bones, Domingo, ine name-plate is engraved Cristobal Colon. The claim that he was an Italian born in Genon seems to have no basis in fact.

As will be remembered, Columbus put to sea August 8, 1492. with three

It has been further alleged that he vessels-the "Santa Maria," a decked was a Jew, Ilis mother was undoubt ship.of 100 tons, and two caravels, the edly a Jewess, and her name WAS "Pinta" and "Ninu," of fifty and forty Sukannah Nass. His father married tons respectively. The "Santa Maria," Susannah in Pontevedra, and the which was his flagship as Admiral of the eldest children were Cristobal and Western Ocean (a tiilo newly conferred | Bartolomeq. In Italy Cristobal assume upon him), was a tiny craft from a ed the Italian form of the name, modern viewpoint. As for the caravels, our battleships to-day carry on their decks gasoline "motor steuners" nearly as big.

On his second voyage he 'started out with a considerable fleet, numbering reventcon vessels, with a total personnel of 1,500 men and officers. The first expedition curried only eighty-eight

persons.

Colombo.

It was just as well that Domingo and his wife and children left Spain. Three years before the navigator started ox relatives of his, Andren Colon and the his first voyage, on July 18, 1489, near wife and mother-in-law of the latter were

Hebrew ritos, ceremonies and feast convicted of having "observed

days," and were publicly burned at Tarragona.

The King and Queen of Spain had promised a prize of 10,000 maravedis to the first man, on the first voyage; who Columbus was what we would call in saw Jand, It was not Columbus but a these days a mystic. He considered common sailor. Rudrigo de Triana, who himself an inspired envoy of Jehovah, caught the first glimpse of the New and his lifelong ambition was to dis- World at 2 o'clock in the morning of cover the isles of prophecy mentioned October, while on watch, and shouted, in Holy Writ. The hips of Tarshish,"

Tierra, tierra"

spoken of by Isaiah, as destined, to find

Columbus and turned a deaf ear.

Columbus-his originally robust con- stitution worn out by many hardships and weakened by diseases died at Valladolid May 20, 1506. So unim portant a person had he become that his death was not even mentioned in the current issues of the Cronicon de Valladolid, a mannscript newspaper It is alleged that, after the return to them he identified with the vessels or which reported the most trivial events. Spain. Triana claimed the reward, but his own first expedition.

His body was placed in the vaults of that Columbus insisted that he himself. In a recently-found MS. of his, 'bo the Valladolid. Seven years later by had seen a light on the coast the night wrote: "God guided my researches and order of King Ferdinand, it was re- before, and so exacted payment of the showed me that the discovery of the moved to Seville. Probably it was then prize to himself. As the story is told, Ision was possible." encased in the leaden box found in the the sailor, disgusted by the Injustice,

cathedral of Santo Domingo; and, if so, the above-mentioned fetters were not likely to be transferrod from the old coin to the new ono.

In

emigrated to Morocco and adjured christianity, becoming à Mohammedan. The Sargasse Bea.

"

Projected Memorial, ✨

It is felt that a suitable memoria!

Early in the course of the first and final resting place for the bones of in the monastery of Las Cuevas, just themselves becalmed for a while in the cathedral of that city in ornate and At Seville, the romains were interred voyago the ships of Columbus found Columbus should be provided at Santo Domingo, The monument in the outside of the city In 1512 they were midst of what looked like an ocean. carried to Santo Domingo and deposited meadow covering a vast area. It was dignified, but hardly suitable to the greatness of the discoverer and the vault to the right of the grant the Sargasso Sen, south of the Azure, magnitude of his achievements. alter. But, as already stated, the exact where, in an eddy of the great circulat

One project in contemplation, tem- location of the vault ceased to be known ing current of the North Atlantic, sen-

owing, of course, to the passing away weeds grow profusely, inhabited by porarily postponed by the World War, of many generations of custodians of strange neat-building fishes,

is to erect a massive tomb, its exterior the cathedral-and thus it came about It should be remembered that the patterned after Grant's tomb in New that, when the transfer to Havira was expedition was venturing on what York, and-its-interion freely copied undertaker, the wrong bones were seemed to be, an interminable, waste of from that of the Invalides at Park, exhumed, d

waters wholly unknown, which, in the where Napoleon lles, According to the Gifs Of The Sacred Dust. - ignorance of that day, were supposed to plan, a beacon tower 300 feet high is When the leadeh box was discovered, threaten navigators, with fearsome to be superposed upon the tomb, with in 1977, and placed or exhibition in the perita The weirdness of the Sargasso a powerful electric lantern on top. The Banctitary of the Queen of the Angels, Sea axelted the alarm of the super light, serving as an aid to navigation, a small quantity of the navigator's stitious sailors, who had mover before will appropriately crown the magni- sacred dust-the dust, that is to, say, seen or heard of anything like it; but ficent memorial

into which his bomba had partly that was as nothing to the terror theyThe project was endorsed at a recent crumbled was taken and divided into felt which, soon afterwards, the flag-meeting of representatives, of all the saver portions. The records show that ship' compass turn; more and more twenty-six republics of America, includ one of these portions was enclosed is a away from the pole star.

ing the United States. Popular sub crystal locket belonging to an American That was plainly supernatural. For scriptions for the purpose have been women, Mrs E.. A. Sargent. The what is it that isnt by that term Ti invited, and there is reason to expect socond portion was placed in disimilar. It refers to something that seems to that before long the discoverer of the Tombat forex daughter of Dau, Carlos be beyond the reach of human under New World will have a monumdat NduelThe third portion found standing. As soon as the thing comes corresponding in magnificence to this receptacle in a glass vial for G. W to be understood it ceares to be super value of his deeds. Stokes, of New York The fourth natural, and recognized as falling It will 16: remembered that the first Jamaica-by predicting an selipse. But placed in a coffin. Whether this was portion went to his Holiness, Pops Len within the domain of natural law. But voyage of Columbua was made with the in the meantime he was misrepresented done ar dot nobody knows, for x Jenson XII, and, the Afth portion to the nothing was known at that time about expectation of reaching Clangot home by adventurers returned from which will presently appear, but fottere Univerits of Fayla whers Columbus magnetic deflections, and Columbas be those worn by was a Bindent in his youth, What himself could not account for the (Japan), and that he carried a letter of America, ahos accused kirs of various purporting to A dozen year before the remains introduction from the King of Spain to crimes and alteram the capricions: Columbus are now preserved in became of the remaining two portions behaviour of the compass were shipped to Saville, certain recon- the Grill Key Cathiya heretat VAT r was withdraw, and care struction work undertaken at the ed to Spain believing that he had courtier named Bobadilla as went on cathedral of Santo Domingo accidentally actually reached the fringe of Asia. overseas to take over his authority and Bahi exponed a vault containing deaden box Extraordinary honours were borrowed with a hinged cover. In the box were upon Bira Declining mandulante de comanda, HJIS (CHEMPATIAL twenty clent large and thirteen, small was appolated Admiral of the Oca 11Fate Of Columbian's Foot fragments of bones, together with some dignity retained to this days by his Bebadilla, skipped, Columbus back to Egain fry frame. The fattam need, were dust-of-bduca and a lead maketybai elgest descendant, the Duke of Verandal

Preserved by the texrator, whi Weighing an ounce. On the outside was, in each succeeding gener SEBE, SAVAS

Site Rendwaed Avery "yebarkable me filent of ongraved, Illustrious Mapy Cristobal Colorg blicavere of Amoria Hirst Admiral

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