Page:The National Geographic Magazine Vol 16 1905.djvu/133

Rh land to Louisiana. Hundreds of other French words mark the pathway of La Salle, Father Hennepin, and their followers; Wisconsin, Eau Claire, Fond du Lac, La Crosse, Des Moines, Des Plaines, Vincennes, Prairie du Chien, Pierre, Versailles, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans.

The geographical names in the two neighboring States of Mississippi and Louisiana tell differences in the early history of the two states. Not a county, island, lake, river, or city in Mississippi has a "saint" in its name, while 9 counties (or parishes) in Louisiana and 40 towns, rivers, or lakes do homage to the saints in their names.

The French occupation of Louisiana obliterated most of the Indian words. The most conspicuous reminder of the French settlers is seen in the "bayous." This is the French word for small stream ; one scarcely hears of a creek in Louisiana. They are all bayous. In Maryland they are "runs."

In Kentucky and Tennessee the vocabulary of the priest is strikingly absent; neither state has a county or stream named after a saint, but the vocabulary of the hunter and trapper is found everywhere; for example, in Tennessee we find the streams telling of the hunter in such names as Buffalo, Duck, Elk, Forked Deer, and Little Pigeon.

Montana and Idaho geography tells unmistakably of the invasion of the un-schooled miner. He sought the mountains with their treasures of ore. Almost every peak and range of these states bears a name which reveals at once that it was given by men who thought or cared little for the names which history or literature might suggest. Such men would naturally select Bear's Paw, Big Horn, Snake Head, Saw Tooth, Bitter Root, and Seven Devils.

Indian names are seldom met with in these mountain states. In fact, if one scans a list of the geographical words in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Colorado he will scarcely suspect that Indian tribes ever lived within their borders.

The early settlers of Nebraska, Kansas, Dakota, Wisconsin, and Iowa were of a very cosmopolitan character, of varied nationalities, creeds, and ideals. They came from the Eastern States and from foreign countries, and to their settlements gave names that tell of the places in the East, or across the sea, whence these pioneers came.

Though Texas was formerly a part of Mexico and was subjected to Spanish influences, yet one fact at least reveals how slight was the real hold of Mexico upon Texas—the relative infrequency of names with the prefix san or santa. Like the French in the St Lawrence and Mississippi Valleys, the Spaniards in the regions which they explored were inclined to leave a spattering of saints' names. Where Spanish influence really dominated there the san and santa is frequent, and there rivers are "rios" and mountains are "sierras." While such words are often found in Texas—as, for example, San Antonia, San Diego, and Rio Grande—yet these names are relatively infrequent, but naturally increasing as you approach the Mexican border.

The stronger hold of the Spanish upon California is seen in its 10 counties and 15 important streams with names beginning with san or santa. Nearly all of the large cities and over 150 towns of California tell of the Spanish settlement — San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Diego, Alameda, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, and many more. Indian names are seldom found.

In the early fifties two important events were taking place on opposite sides of the earth—in Europe the Crimean war, in America the rush for the gold fields of California. In 1854-'55 came the famous siege of Sebastopol in the Crimea. Half way around the world, in the land of new-found gold,