Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1853-03-02

cific, is more than four thousand miles
long. ~ -.,s...E.,.. t...r..t.-, l,;.
This con6guration exercises powerful
influence upon the climate of South Anne
rica, especially as it regards its hiteogra-
ply. The great rivers of that country,
the mighty Amazon and the majestic La
Plata, are resultants of this cou6guration.
In consequence of having the sea-front
which rests upon the short leg in the
northern hemisphere and looking to the
northeast, and in consequence of having
the sea- front which rests upon the long
leg in the southern hemisphere to look
southeast /; the northeast and the south
east tradewinds. as they came across the
Atlantic, filed with moisture. go full
charged into the interior, dropping it
in showers as they go, until they reach
the wy-capped SUBMITS of the Andes.
when the last drop that very low tempe
rature can wiring from them is deposited
to melt and feed the sources of the
Amazon and the La Plata, with their trl
butaries. s#-
The northeast trade-winds begin to
blow abont the tropic of Cancer, and CO.
ming from the quarter they do, they blow
obliquely across the Atlantic. They eva
porate from the sea as they go; and. i'm
piGging at right-angles upon the South
American shoreline that extends from
Cape st. Rogue to Cabo La Vela, they
carry into the interior the vapor that forms
the clouds that give the rain which sup
plies the Magdalena, the Oronoco, and
the northern tributaries of the Amazon.
The volume of water discharged by
these rivers into the sea is expressive of
the quantity which these northeast trade
! winds take up frnm the sea and carrying
i'll the clouds percipitate upon the water
shed that is drained by these streams
They are but pipes and cutters which Ma
ture has under the caves of the great wa
ter shed that has the Andes for ridge
pole, the Caribbean Sea aed North Allan
tic tor clstern.
The trade-wind region of the North
Atlantic affords the water-surface where
the evaporation is carried on that sup
plies with rain, dews, and moisture, New
Granada, Venezuela, the three Guzanas,
and the Atlantic slopes OF Ecuador
| On the other hand, the southeast winds
commence to blow about the parallel OF
80 deg or 32 deg. south. They come,
too, obliquely across the Atlantic, and
strike perpendicular(y upon the South
American coast-line which extends from
Cape st. Rogue toward Cape Horn
They pass into the interior with their
whole load of moisture. every drop of
which is wrung from them before they
cross the Andes. The quantity of mois-
ture which is taken up from the sea and
rained down upon this wonderful fruitful
country, may be seen in what the La Pla-
ia and the Amazon discharge back into
the sea.
Now, there IS no tropical country in
the world whiGh has to the windward,
and SO exactly TO the wiudward of it, such
an extent of ocean in the trade wind re-
gion. Consequently there is no inter
tropical country in the world that it is so
finely watered as is this great Amazon
country of South America.
Along the Atlantic coast of the United
States, along the coast of China and the
east Of New Holland, the land trends
along with the direction the trade winds
of those regions. TheIe winds, with their
M Disture, travel along parallel with the
land do not blow Perendicularly upon
| IL, uOI push GASI W pOlSt - III dCIoSS IL III
TO the interior, as they ID in South Ame-
RIGA. The consequence il, none of these
inter-tropicai countries can boastof streams
and water-courses like those of SouLh
| America.
The shore-line Of eastern Africa is ar
ranged like that of the South American
watershed but it has not iea enough to
windward to supply the vapo to feed
springs enough to make larg( rivers.
The southeast trade windi, when the
monsoons of the Indian ocean will permit
them to blow, strike perpendiarlarfy up
on the east coast OF South Africa as they
do upon that of oouUn America In the
! American case. they blow perA tually-
in the African case, for not half the year
They, therefore, cannot give Aica halt
as much rain as South America \ celves
: At Cape Guardafai the right thgIe oi
the African coast line is formed. S 1t is
at Cape st. Rogue for Amerlea Iut the
winds which cross this line betweeA Cape
St. Rogue and the lsthmus have traersed
the Atlantic ocean and Caribbean ea-
hence they reach the land dripping with
moisture whereas, in Africa, Ebe naUh-
east trades, which cross the cpast line
from Cape Guardafa to the ISL hmu4 ol
Suez. have sucked up vapors fI0m be
Red sea only-therefore the quality NoI
moisture which these winds carty inc
the interior of Africa is not by anymea1s
so great as that which those of the Atlari
tic carry over into South America. TIL,
difference is as great as the ditferefe o
the evaporating surface exposed I'd th'
northeast trade-winds by the AtiEnti
on the one hand, and the Red sea onth'
other.
The too systems of trade winds-he
northeast and the south7east-meet in 4'
.. -, -l.,,.s 4