1898] A GEOGRAPHICAL COMMEMORATION 379 



Asiatic shore of the Pacific, thus being, it is supposed, the first 

 European to sail down the straits afterwards named after Bering, 

 and to prove not merely the possibility of a north-east passage, but 

 the more important fact of the separation of Eurasia from America. 

 For many years the exploit of Deschnev was unknown to the 

 Russian authorities. Thus in an atlas of Siberia by Eemesov, 

 completed in 1701, a cape east of the new Siberian Islands is 

 found to have written over it the words " Okamvassbaere Cape," an 

 inscription that was probably added by one of the Dutch councillors 

 of Peter the Great, on the arrival of the map at Moscow. Now 

 we learn that not only is a statue to be erected to Deschnev at 

 Chabarowsk on the Amur, but that the name of the East Cape is 

 to be changed into Cape Deschnev. The latter proposal will pro- 

 bably meet with less cordial acceptance than the former. 



Vasco da Gama^ 



It was Bartolomeu Dias who first doubled the Cape of Good 

 Hope, but it was Vasco da Gama who first made use of the 

 knowledge thus gained to sail from Portugal round Africa to India. 

 This was just 400 years ago. Dom Emanuel was then King of 

 Portugal ; he was twenty-eight years old, burning with ambition and 

 with the desire of extending his power by geographical discoveries, 

 as had his predecessors. He conceived the great idea of conquering 

 India, and, in the face of opposite advice from his Council, he set 

 about it. 



Four ships, the largest of 120 tons, the smallest of less than 

 100, were fitted out under the superintendence of Bartolomeu Dias, 

 and set sail from Lisbon in the beginning of July 1497. The 

 commander-in-chief was Vasco da Gama, whose flagship was the 

 ' San Gabriel.' His elder brother, Paolo da Gama, commanded the 

 ' San Eafael ' ; on the ' Berrio ' was Nicolas Coelho, while the fourth 

 ship carried provisions. 



Vasco da Gama was not an ideal explorer, and at St Helena 

 Bay, between 32° 30' and 30° S., where the first landing was made, 

 he came to blows with the natives, an occurrence of which his hot 

 and violent temper caused frequent repetitions. The Cape of Good 

 Hope was passed without difficulty, but on the 13th of December 

 the expedition met with a severe gale, during which mutiny broke 

 out among the crew, who wished to force the commanders of the 

 ships to return. Vasco da Gama, however, suppressed this with 

 great firmness, declaring that nothing would induce him to return 



1 



For much of our information we are indebted to the interesting account of Portu- 

 guese discovery contained in Baron Nordenskiold's magnificent work, "Periphis," 

 Stockholm, 1897. 



