Introdtbctory Address. 7 



circumnavigated. Magellan demonstrated the rotundity of the 

 earth by sailing westward until he reached his starting point. 

 Everywhere — all over the civilized world — the spirit of adven- 

 ture was ai'oused. Navigators from England, Holland, France 

 and Spain rapidly extended the boundaries of geographical 

 knowledge, while explorers penetrated into the interior of the 

 new lands discovered. The mighty impetus given by Columbus 

 set the whole world in motion and it has gone on moving ever 

 since with accelerated velocity. 



The great progress that has been made can hardly be realized 

 without comparing the famous Borgia map, constructed about 

 one hundred years before the discovery of America, with the 

 modern maps of the same countries ; or Hubbard's map of New 

 England made two hundred years ago, with the corresponding 

 map of to-day. The improvements in map-making originated 

 with Mercator, who, in 1550 constructed his cylindrical projec- 

 tion of the sphere. But it has been only during the last hundred 

 years that great progress has been made. Much yet remains to 

 be done before geographic art can fully accomplish its mission. 



The present century forms a new era in the progress of geog- 

 raphy — the era of organized research. In 1830, the Royal 

 Geographical Society of England was founded, and it already 

 forms a landmark in the history of discovery. The Paris Society 

 preceded it in point of time, and the other countries of Europe 

 soon followed the example. Through these organizations, stu- 

 dents and explorers have been encouraged and assisted, and in- 

 formation systematically collected and arranged. The wide 

 diffusion of geographical knowledge through the medium of 

 these societies and the publicity of the discussions and criticism 

 that followed, operated to direct the current of exploration into 

 the most useful channels. Before organized effort, darkness gave 

 way at every step. Each observer added fresh knowledge to the 

 existing store, without unnecessary duplication of research. The 

 reports of discoveries were discussed and criticized by the socie- 

 ties, and the conti'ibutions of all were co-ordinated into one great 

 whole. 



America refuses to be left in the rear. Already her explorers 

 are in every land and on every sea. Already she has contributed 

 her quota of martyrs in the frozen north, and has led the way 

 into the torrid regions of Africa. The people of Europe, 

 through Columbus, opened up a new world for us ; and we. 



