American Whigs

the first political party of America, came int: existence in the struggles preceding the Revolution. They resisted the "arbitrary measures of King George III. and declared their independence of him. They opposed the Tories, the supporters of the crown in America, and after the Revolution confiscated the property of banished Tories, Am eric us Vesptucius, Latinized from Amerigo Vespucci (1452- 1512), was born at Florence. He engaged in trade in the employ of the house of Medici, and became known as an expert astronomer, calculator and map-maker. He made four voyages to America, two in the Spanish, and two in the Portuguese service. The first voyage in 1497- 98 was until recently confounded with the second voyage made in 1499-1500 along the northern coast of South America, In 1501-02 he visited the Brazilian coast, and in 1503-04 sailed in the same direction.. He was pilot-major of Spain from 1508 till his death at Seville. To the region of his Brazilian discoveries he gave the name of A/und us Novus. This was considered to be a Quarta Pars, a “‘ fourth part,’’ addcd to the previously known world of the old maps; and a teacher of geography, Waldeesmiiller, in the town of St. Dié, in Lorraine, proposed in 1507 the name America for the Quarta Fars. His little treatise, Co mographie Introductio, spread the suggestion, and the name America came gradually to be transferred from Brazil to the entire Continent. 37