On that day Henry Hudson, the intrepid English navigator, anchored his vessel, the "Half-Moon," in the newly-discovered river, near the site of the present city of Yonkers. The dawn of the following day disclosed the residents of the village of Nappeckamak gathered upon the eastern shore, and viewing with wonder, but with a kindly interest, the strange revelation before them. We now know much, although far too little, of what has since transpired here ; but we know almost nothing of the events of the untold centuries that preceded that day.

The European discoverers of North America found the continent peopled with millions of human beings, of types analogous to those of the Old World, and with characteristics almost equally varied. In stature they covered a wide range, from the dwarf-like denizens of the far north to the vigorous inhabitants of other sections, whose height averaged, in the men, fully six feet. In activity and courage they excited the admiration of their discoverers. Their color was unique, and was imagined to resemble that of copper ; but further investigation showed that this color varied greatly. Some of the natives were found to be nearly as dark as negroes, while in other sections they were

almost as light as Caucasians. They spoke many hundred different languages, which showed striking analogies in their grammatical construction, with equally striking disparity in their vocabulary. The goal sought by these discoverers was India, and, imagining that they had found its outlying provinces, they called the inhabitants of the new land Indians.