294 J. G. BOUEESfOT 



me of Greenland, and here we shall take to the land." They did so, and came to the land in the evening, under a 

 ness [a cape], where they found a heat. On this ness dwelt Biarne's father, Heriulf ; and from that it is called 

 Heriulfness. Biarne went to his father's, gave up sea-faring, and after his father's death continued to dwell there 

 when at home. 



Leif's voyage is recorded in the "Flato Manuscript," and is given in " Antiquitates Americante," pp- 26-40. I 

 give Dr. De Costa's excellent translation, p. 92 : 



(A. D. 984.) It is next to be told that Biarne Heriulfson came over from Greenland to Norway, on a visit to 

 Earl Eric, who received him well. Biarne tells of this expedition of his, in wliicli he had discovered unl<nown 

 land ; and people thought he had not been very curious to get knowledge, as he could not give any account of 

 those countries, and he was somewhat blamed on this account. (A. D. 986.) Bairne was made a court man of the 

 earl, and the summer after he went over to Greenland; and afterward there was much talk about discovering 

 unknown lands. Leif, a son of Eric Red of Brattalilid, went over to Biarne Heriulfson, and bought the ship from 

 liim, and manned the vessel, so that in all there wore thirty-five men on board. Lsif begged his father Eric to go 

 as commander of the expedition. Inat he excused himself, saying lie was getting old and not so able as formerly to 

 undergo the hardsliipof a sea voyage. Leif insisted that lie among all their relations was the most likely to have 

 good luck on such an expedilion, and Eric consented, and rode home with Leif, when they had got all ready for 

 sea; but as they were getting near tlie ship tlie horse on whicli Eric was riding stumbled, and he fell from his 

 horse and liurt his foot. "' It is destined," said Eric, " that I should never discover more lands than tliis of Green- 

 land, on which we live; and now we must not run liastily into tliis adventure." Eric accordingly returned home 

 to Brattaldid, but Leif, with his comrades, in all thirty-iive men, rigged out their vessel. There was a man from 

 the south country called Tyrker with the expedition. (A. I). 1000.) They put the ship in order, and went to sea 

 wlien tliey were ready. They first came to the land which Biarne had last (first) discovered, sailed up to it, cast 

 anchor, put out a boat and went on shore ; but there was no grass to be seen. There were large snowy mountains 

 up the country, but all the way from the sea to tliese snowy ridges the land was one field of snow, and it appeared 

 to them a country of no advantages. Leif said : " It shall not be said of us, as it was of Biarne, that we did not 

 come upon the land ; for I will give the country a name, and call it Helluland, [land of flat stones]." Then they 

 went on board again and put to sea, and found another land. They sailed in toward it, put out a boat and landed. 

 The country was flat and overgrown with wood, and the strand far around consisted of white sand, and low toward 

 the sea. Then Leif said, " We shall fiive this land a name according to its kind," and called it Markland, [Wood- 

 land.] Then tliey liaster.ed on board, and put to sea again, with the wind from the northeast, and were out for 

 two days and made land. They sailed toward it, and came to an island which lay on the north side of the land, 

 w here they disembarked to wait for good weatlior. There was dew upon the grass, and, having accidentally gotten 

 some of the dew upon their hands and put it in their mouths, they thought they had never tasted anything so 

 sweet as it was. Then they went on board and sailed into a sound that was between the island and a ness that 

 went out northward from the land, and sailed westward past the ness. Tliere was very shallow water in ebb tide, 

 so that their shi]) lay dry, and there was a long way between their sliip and the water. They were so desirous to 

 get to the land tliatthey would not wait till their ship floated, but ran to the land, to a place where a river comes 

 out of a lake. As soon "as their ship was afloat they took the boats, rowed to the ship, towed her up the river and 

 from thence into the lake, where they cast anchor, carried their lieds out of the ship, and set up their tents. They 

 resolved to put things in order for wintering there, and they erected a large house. They did not want for salmon, 

 both in the river and in the lake, and they thought the salmon larger than any they had ever seen before. Tlie 

 country appeared to them of so good a kind that it would not be necessary to gather fodder for the cattle in winter. 

 There was no frost in the winter, and the grass was much withered. Day and night were more equal than in 

 Greenland and Iceland ; for on the shortest day the sun was in the sky between Eyktarstad and the Dagmalastad. 

 Now, when they were ready with their house-building (A. D. lOUl), Leif said to his fellow-travellers: " Now I will 

 divide the crew into two divisions and explore the country. Half shall stay at home and do the work, and the 

 other half shall searcli the land ; but so that they do not go farther than they can come back in the evening, and 

 that they do not wander from each other." Tliis tliey continued to do for some time. Leif changed about, some- 

 times witli them and sometimes witli those at home. Leif was a stout and strong man and of manly appearance, 

 and was, liesides, a prudent and sagacious man in all respects. 



It happened one evening that a man of the party was missing, and it was the south countryman Tyrker. Leif 

 was very sorry for this, liecause Tyrker had long been in his father's hou.se, and he loved Tyrker in liis childhood. 

 Leif blamed his comrades very much, and proposed to go with twelve men on an expedition to lind him ; hut 

 they bad only gone a short way from the station when Tyrker came to meet them, and he was joyfully received. 

 Leif soon perceived that his foster father was (piite merry. Tyrker had a high forehead, sharp eyes, with a small 

 face, and was little in size and ugly ; but was very dexterous in all feats. Leif said to him, "Why art tliou so 

 late, my foster father? and why didst tliou leavethy comrades?" He spoke at first long in German, rolled his 

 eyes and knit his brows; but they could not make out what lie was saying. After a while and some delay, lie 

 said in Norse, "I did not go much" farther than they ; and yet I have something altogether new to relate, for I 

 found vines and grapes.'' "'' Is tliat true, my foster father?" said Leif " Yes, true it is," answered he, " for I wa,s 

 horn where there was no scarcity of grapes." They slept all niglit, and the next morniug Leif said to his men: 

 "Now we shall have two occupations to attend to, and day about; namely, to gather grapes or cut vines, and to 

 fell wood in the forest to lade our vessel." This advice was followed. It is related that their stern boat was filled 

 with grajies, and tlien a cargo of wood was hewn for the vessel. Towards sjjring they made ready and sailed 

 away, and Leif gave the country a name from its products, and called it Vinland. They now sailed into the open 

 sea, and bad a fair wind until they came in sight of Greenland and the lands below the ice mountains. Then a 

 man put in a word and said to Leif, " Why do you steer so close to the wind?" Leif replied, "I mind my helm 

 and tend to other t'lings, too; do you notice anything?" They said that they saw nothing remarkable. " I do 

 not know," said Leif, " whether I see a ship or a rock." Then lliey looked .ind saw that it was a rock. But he 

 saw .so much better tlian they that he disrovered men upon the rock. " Now I will," said Leif, " that we hold to 

 the wind, that we may comeup to them if they should need help; and if they should not be friendly inclined, it 

 is in our power to do as we ple.ise and not theirs." Now they sailed under tlie rock, lowered their sails, cast 

 anchor, and put out another small boat which they had with them. Then Tyrker asked who their loader was. 

 He said his name was Thorer, and said he was a Nortliman. " But what is your name?" said he. l^eif told his 

 name. " Are you the son of Eric the Red of Brattaldid?" he asked. Leif said that was so. "Now I will," said 



