Page:Maury's New Elements of Geography, 1907.djvu/31

Rh '''5. Australia.'''—From Africa let us take a steamship and go east across the Indian ocean. We come to Australia, the smallest of the continents. It is partly in the South Temperate zone and partly in the Torrid.

When it was discovered only black savages lived there, but now most of its people are English. The plants and animals of Australia are unlike those of any other continent. The leaves of some of the trees are turned edgewise. Many trees shed their bark instead of their leaves. Australia produces a great amount of wool, wheat, and gold.



6. South America.—Sailing now across the Pacific ocean, we come to the western continents. Let us first visit South America, It lies chiefly in the Torrid zone, and is very hot and very moist. Here we find one of the largest rivers and the longest mountain range in the world.

South America is the nearest continent to us, but its people are very different from us. They speak languages unlike ours, and are not nearly so busy as we are. No continent has more beautiful flowers, birds, and insects.



7. North America.—Having visited the other continents, we return to North America, and find that, after all, there is no place like home. Our continent is mainly in the North Temperate zone. Its lands are fertile; it produces nearly everything that we need for food or clothing.

It was once the hunting ground of the red man, but more than four hundred years ago the white man came from Europe and took it for himself. The red man now owns little of the land that belonged to his fathers.

8. Atlantic Ocean.—On the Atlantic there are more ships than on any other ocean, because Europe and North America, which lie on either side of it, carry on more trade than the other continents. Ships, carrying passengers and goods, are constantly crossing this ocean.

In the Atlantic there is a great stream of warm water that comes out of the Gulf of Mexico. It is the Gulf stream. It flows northeastward, and, broadening out, joins the other Atlantic waters and drifts over to the shores of Europe.

9. The Pacific Ocean was found calm and peaceful by the first European that sailed on it, and this is the reason why he called it Pacific or peaceful. It is the largest of all the oceans, and contains more islands than any other.

There is in the Pacific ocean a current of water similar to the Gulf stream. It is called the Japan current.

10. The Indian Ocean is sometimes visited by violent tempests called typhoons; and if we sail upon it we may be terrified by a waterspout.

Waterspouts are huge columns of water and vapour extending from the sea towards the clouds. They are formed by a whirlwind, larger but much like the small whirlwinds that we see forming columns of dust in the street and roads.

11. The Arctic and Antarctic Oceans' are seldom visited by ships. Icebergs or mountains of ice float in them.

On page 94 we may learn something about the great streams of ice called glaciers. In the Arctic and Antarctic, regions the glaciers flow down into the ocean. Great fragments are broken off and are carried away by the ocean currents. These are icebergs, or ice mountains.

For Recitation.—Can you tell anything Interesting about Europe? What can you tell about Asia? What can you say about Africa? What can you say of Australia? What have you learned about South America? Tell me something about North America. What have you learned about the different oceans?