



Produced by Marius Masi, Greg Bergquist and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
file was produced from images generously made available
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Transcriber's note:

The following typographical errors have been corrected:

    Page 48: "... Brouillan, governor of Placentia, who assumed entire
      command, interfered with Iberville's contemplated movements, and
      declared that his own troops, the Canadians, should not accompany
      him on the opening campaign." 'Brouillan' amended from
      'Brouillian'.

    Page 157: "The difficulties of communicating with the Chopunish
      were very great, and if errors occurred it was not astonishing."
      'Chopunish' amended from 'Chopunnish'.

    Page 180: "... well armed and prepared as braves to sell their
      lives dearly; that they should go on, and if the Pawnees opposed,
      the great American father would send other warriors to avenge the
      dead." 'Pawnees' amended from 'Pawness'.

    Page 202: "Most unfortunately, on the chart transmitted to Ross by
      Wilkes, he entered, without distinguishing marks, land between
      longitudes 160 deg. E. and 165 deg. E., near the sixty-sixth parallel..."
      'parallel' amended from 'paralled'.

    Page 289: "The consensus of opinion in the Lady Franklin expedition
      pointed to Cape Joseph Goode, 80 deg. 14' N.,..." 'consensus' amended
      from 'concensus'.




[Illustration: A. W. Greely]


  _MEN OF ACHIEVEMENT_

  EXPLORERS AND TRAVELLERS


  BY

  GENERAL A. W. GREELY, U.S.A.

  GOLD MEDALLIST OF ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY AND SOCIETE DE
  GEOGRAPHIE, PARIS

  [Illustration]

  NEW YORK

  CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS

  1894




  COPYRIGHT, 1893, BY

  CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS

  TROW DIRECTORY
  PRINTING AND BOOKBINDING COMPANY
  NEW YORK




PREFACE


The compiler of a series of sketches of American Explorers and
Travellers experiences at the very outset a serious embarrassment from
the superabundant wealth of original material at his command. The
history of America for two hundred years after the voyage of Joliet has
been the history of courageous, persistent, and successful exploration,
wherein the track of the explorer, instantly serving as a trail for the
pioneer, has speedily broadened into the wagon-road of invading
immigrants.

Explorations and journeys of such an extent as in other and older lands
would have excited praise and merited reward have been so frequent in
this continent as to pass almost unnoticed. Hence the scope of this
modest volume is necessarily confined to explorations of great
importance or peculiar interest, and when made by men of American birth
who are no longer living.

In deference to the author's advisers, two exceptions have been made--Du
Chaillu and Stanley, Americans by adoption--otherwise African
exploration, so wondrously successful in this generation and so fruitful
in its results, would have been unrepresented. Again, the unparalleled
growth and progress of our American republic owes no small debt to the
wealth of physical vigor and strong intellectuality contributed by its
sturdy emigrants. These men, American in idea, purpose, and action,
whose manhood outgrew the slow evolution of freedom in their natal
country, merit recognition. What thousands of other naturalized citizens
have industrially wrought of the wonderful and great in this country,
these selected representatives have equalled in African exploration.

A chronological arrangement appeared best suited to these sketches,
which from Joliet to Fremont exhibit the initiation, growth, and
development of geographic discovery in the interior and western portions
of the United States. Since the sketches rest very largely on original
narratives some current errors at least have been avoided.

Generalization and criticism have been made always with reference to
later exploration, which necessarily enhances or diminishes the
importance of any original work.




CONTENTS

                                                                  PAGE
     I. LOUIS JOLIET, Re-discoverer of the Mississippi,              9

    II. PETER LE MOYNE, SIEUR D'IBERVILLE, Founder of Louisiana,    41

   III. JONATHAN CARVER, the Explorer of Minnesota,                 71

    IV. CAPTAIN ROBERT GRAY, the Discoverer of the Columbia River,  88

     V. CAPTAIN MERIWETHER LEWIS AND LIEUT. WILLIAM CLARK, First
          Trans-Continental Explorers of the United States,        105

    VI. ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE, Explorer of the Sources of the
          Mississippi and Arkansas Rivers,                         163

   VII. CHARLES WILKES, the Discoverer of the Antarctic Continent, 194

  VIII. JOHN CHARLES FREMONT, the Pathfinder,                      212

    IX. ELISHA KENT KANE, Arctic Explorer,                         240

     X. ISAAC ISRAEL HAYES, and the Open Polar Sea,                272

    XI. CHARLES FRANCIS HALL, and the