Where Vineland was we cannot tell. If the men really
found wild grapes, and not some kind of cranberry, Vineland
must have been in the region where grapes will grow. The
vine grows as far north as Prince Edward Island and Cape
Breton, and, of course, is found in plenty on the coasts
of Nova Scotia and New England. The chronicle says that
the winter days were longer in Vineland than in Greenland,
and names the exact length of the shortest day.
Unfortunately, however, the Norsemen had no accurate
system for measuring time; otherwise the length of the
shortest winter day would enable us to know at what exact
spot Leif's settlement was made.
Leif and his men stayed in Vineland all winter, and sailed
home to Greenland in the spring (1001 A.D.). As they
brought timber, much prized in the Greenland settlement,
their voyage caused a great deal of talk. Naturally others
wished to rival Leif. In the next few years several
voyages to Vineland are briefly chronicled in the sagas.
First of all, Thorwald, Leif's brother, borrowed his
ship, sailed away to Vineland with thirty men, and spent
two winters there. During his first summer in Vineland,
Thorwald sent some men in a boat westward along the coast.
Pages:
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83