114 KANSAS CITY REVIEW OF SCIENCE. 
GEOGRAPHY. 
CALIFORNIA ON THE OLD MAPS. 
E. L. BERTHOUD. 
In the course o'i investigations relating to the early history of Louisiana, New- 
Mexico and California, under French and Spanish rule, and also as to the earliest 
discoveries of the west coast of America, begun by the renowned conq.ueror Cor- 
tez, who strove like many others in that century to wrest the secret of that short 
passage into the South Seas and far Cathay which would open the wealth of 
India to them, we have been puzzled to account for the fact that beginning in 
the latter half of the 17th century and until the middle of the i8th century Cali- 
fornia was almost invariably represented as an island, while as early as 1546, 
the presumable date of Sebastian Cabot's map of the world, until into the 17th 
century, this Peninsula was invariably shown as connected with the main land. 
Cortez himself first explored the Gulf of California, which was known afterward 
as the " Mar de Cortez." Following this expedition he sent Francisco de UUoa 
to explore this sea. Ulloa reached its north end, explored there a large river, 
ascertained the continuity of land on both sides of the Gulf; sailed out of the 
Gulf and explored the west coast of Lower California to the 28th N. Lat. Alar- 
^on afterward under orders from Mendoza, Viceroy of Mexico, explored the 
same Gulf and ascended the Great Colorado over 200 miles, and, like Ulloa, he 
found that the land was continuous. Now, how did the change from peninsula 
to island occur, in both cartography and in geography ? 
We will analyze some of the earlier maps, and also those as late as in the mid- 
dle of the last century giving still the erroneous idea of the insular character of 
California, ist. The map of Sebastian Cabot, chief pilot of Spain, of date of 
1540-46. This shows California as a peninsula extending on the Pacific coast to 
32° N. Lat. at Cabo de Lengaguo, while on the east coast of Lower California 
the sea extends to about 34° N. Lat. where two large streams enter the Gulf of 
California, the one on the west called Maha-beyo, while the eastern river is called 
Damates. The gulf between the two is called Ancon Chay de San Andres; on 
the map we here find a legend as follows : " Esta tierra fue descuhierata por El 
Marques ad Valle de Guaxa Don Hernando Cortez." Which translated meahs 
that "The country was discovered for the Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca, Don 
Hernando Cortez." Ulloa was probably the explorer wlio made the survey. 
2d. The map of J. M. Patavino, Bologna, A. D. 1597. This also repre- 
sents California as a peninsula, much wider from the Pacific to the Gulf than in 
