the Norsemen in those days were called drakkars, which were propelled
both by oar and sail; at the ends rose wooden apartments called kastals.
All the parts out of water were fashioned after the manner of monsters
or drakkars (dragons, _Drachen_). The prow of the ship represented the
terrible head, the sides, a continuation of the body, and the rear, the
tail of the monster bent upward; they bore a single sail covered with
warlike paintings, and to the mast were also frequently hoisted the
coats of arms of various chiefs. It was in ships of this character that
these bold seamen braved the perils of the ocean, and it was in similar
ships that William, the Conqueror, came to England; and yet even these
vessels, frail as they were, were superior, both in seaworthiness and
size, to the ships of Columbus.

The costumes of the Norsemen consisted of trousers, belt, shirt, and
often a coat of mail, and over the shoulders they sometimes wore a cloak
with a fringe or border at the sides. They carried swords with most
elaborately carved and embossed hilts and scabbards of gilt bronze and
silver.

To depict the first landing of Lief Erickson amid these surroundings was
the object of the painter. How well he has succeeded, a mere inspection
of this canvas will at once reveal. The heroic figure of Lief, himself,
dreamily and yet with wonderment, looking out upon the newly discovered
shore, while with uplifted sword his men are apparently consecrating
the new world with a solemn vow of loyalty, some standing on a small
boat which is being pushed towards the shore, while others stand
knee-deep in the shoal water--the form of the ship or drakkar in the
background, the costumes, swords and all the other accessories--constitute
a striking and fascinating group. It portrays vividly the solemnity of
the occasion when the first white men were about to set foot on the
American continent.

The discovery of Vinland and its subsequent colonization by Thorfinn are
referred to in the beautiful verses of Bayard Taylor, written on the
occasion of his visit to Iceland to attend its millennial celebration,
in August, 1874.

"We come, the children of thy Vinland,
The youngest of the world's high peers,
O land of steel, and song, and saga,
To greet thy glorious thousand years.

"Across that sea the son of Erik
Dared with his venturous dragon's prow;
From shores where Thorfinn set thy banner
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