America, embraces the half-century extending from the
first voyage of Columbus to the explorations of De Soto and
Coronado; the critical chapters and the notes take account
of a great mass of literature relating to the subject.

For the special student, Alexander von Humboldt, Kri-
tische Untersuchungen über die historische Entwickelung der
goegraphischen Kenntnisse von der neuen Welt, etc. ( Ideler
translation from French to German, 3 vols., 1852), is still
very valuable. The German translation is preferable to
the French original, as it is provided with a complete index.
K. Kretschmer, Die Entdeckung Amerikas ( I vol., with
atlas, 1892), in a work of critical scholarship which registers
the present state of knowledge of the history of geography.
Pre-eminent among the recent general works relating to the
discoveries for critical scholarship and wide research is H. Harrise
, Discovery of North America: a Critical, Document-
ary, and Historic Investigation, with an Essay on the Early
Cartography of the New World ( 1892).

An earlier study of somewhat similar scope and still val-
uable is J. G. Kohl, A History of the Discovery of the East
Coast of North America, in vol. I. of the Documentary His-
tory of the State of Maine ( 1869).

Among the general works, Oskar Peachel, Geschichte des
Zeitalters der Entdeckungen ( 2d ed., 1877), is particularly
serviceable to the student. The narrative is clear and
accurate and the foot-notes are a running guide to the
primary sources. Sophus Ruge, Geschichtse des Zeitalters
der Entdeckungen ( 1881), is an authoritative general ac-
count based on the sources and richly illustrated with por-
traits and maps. P. Gaffarel, Histoire de la Déscouverte de
l'Amérique, depuis les Origines jusqu'à la mort de Christophe
Colomb ( 2 Vols., 1892), devotes his second volume to the
career of Columbus and to the discoveries up to his death.
It is a work of sound scholarship. S. Günther, Das Zeitalter
der Entdeckungen ( 1901), is a very lucid short account, which
admirably summarizes the present state of knowledge.
The same is to be said of Carlo Errera, L'Epoca delle Grandi
Scoperte Geografiche ( 1902), which has the additional merit

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