﻿l68 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 59 



(21) Hvitramanna-land is a mythical land similar to the Wine-island of the 

 Irish, modified in accordance with Christian ideas, especially, perhaps, those of 

 the white garments of the baptized — as in the " Navigatio Brandani " in refer- 

 ence to the Isle of Anchorites or the " Strong Men's Isle" (= Starkramanna- 

 land) — and of the white hermits. 



Dr. Nansen cannot know that it was a mythic land. I do not know 

 that it was not. It may be the American coast below Wineland, for 

 example New Jersey or the Carolinas. 



(22) Finally, among the most different people on earth, from the ancient 

 Greeks to the Icelanders, Chinese, and Japanese, we meet with similar myths 

 about countries out in the ocean and voyages to them, which, whether they be 

 connected with one another or not, show the common tendency of humanity 

 to adopt ideas and tales of this kind. 



We meet such stories everywhere and no doubt many of them are 

 based on real adventures often wildly distorted. The Zeno tale is in 

 point. It developed into something portentous and inexplicable ; 

 and is still in dispute ; but most likely they made voyages and encount- 

 ered adventures, which were a kernel of truth for their repeatedly 

 distorted story. But one ought not to call it a myth, although it 

 contains a short myth as an episode ; nor can any light be extracted 

 from it in that way. The voyage stories of different countries have 

 not yet rendered much aid in the Wineland investigation; but it is 

 greatly to be desired that the veil should be lifted from the origin of 

 the names Antillia, Brazil, and others which men call mythical to 

 cover uncertain knowledge. 



Some of the above conclusions by Dr. Nansen make in favor 

 of the position taken in the present book ; others can hardly be said 

 to weigh either way. Only a minority of the remainder have seemed 

 to need moderately extended treatment, partly because Dr. Nansen 

 is in so many respects in accord with what I had already written and 

 as to others he could be best convinced by showing him the places, 

 flora, fauna, and conditions. It was inevitable that he should make 

 some errors in dealing with foreign and unfamiliar things and very 

 plainly he had never thought of the progressive changes in coast 

 outline during 900 years, nor the difference in nature and distribution 

 between the large wild grapes out of which the early colonists made 

 good wine and the small wild grapes which are tart and more like 

 berries. When Dr. Storm so naturally went astray it is not surprising 

 that Dr. Nansen should do likewise. There are doubtful inferences 

 and conjectures even in von Humboldt. Like many others Dr. 

 Nansen has failed to distinguish adequately between the mountainous 

 northern home of Thorfmn's party on the bay connected with Straum- 



