HELI.U[,AND THE MODERN LABRADOR. 3I 



■sailed four days, they saw land the fourth time." To- 

 wards evening they reached the very promontory not far 

 north of Cape Farewell where Heriulf, the father of 

 Biarne, dwelt. 



The high,' mountainous land, covered with ice, was 

 probably Labrador near Cape Harrison, or along the 

 coast to the northward, and a Norseman's vessel, with a 

 strong, fair wind, could probably sail from that part of the 

 Labrador coast to near Cape Farewell, a distance of a 

 little over 600 miles, in four days, allowing that a Vik- 

 ing's ship of about 60 tons could sail from eight to ten 

 miles an hour under a spanking breeze. Certainly they 

 could not have made the distance from any part of New- 

 foundland, which is about 900 miles, in four days. 



From the account of the expedition of Leif Eriksen : 



" All being now ready, they set sail, and the first land 

 10 which they came was that last seen by Biarne. ,1, 



" They made direct for land, cast anchor, and put out 

 in a boat. Having landed, they found no herbage. All 

 above weie frozen heights ; and the whole space between 

 these and the sea was occupied by bare fiat rocks ; whence 

 they judged this to be a barren land. Then said Leif, 

 ■' We will not do as Biarne did, who never set foot on 

 shore : I will give a name to this land, and will call it 

 "Helluland" [that is, land of broad stones].'" Here 

 again we have a much better description of Labrador 

 than of northeastern Newfoundland. From there Leif 

 sailed to what he called Markland, or " Land of Woods," 

 which may have been southern Newfoundland, or east- 

 ern Nova Scotia, or Cape Breton, as it is but two days' 

 sail from the Gut of Canso to Cape Cod ; and the Vin- 

 land of Leif was undoubtedly the shore lying east and 

 south of Cape Cod. 



