Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1878-03-27
The Beautiful Blue Danube.

The Danube, from its source to its
mouth, In an air line, is 900 miles, but
the stream is SO tortuous that its actual
length is l ,S20 miles, and it traverses
nearly % degrees of latitude and 51Iaa
degrees Of longitude. The Danube and
its tributaries drain an area of 300, 200
square miles.
At Belgrade, the capital of Servia, it
receives the waters of the Save, and then
pursues an easterly course, constituting
the boundary between Austria and Ser
via, until it reaches the Transylvania or
Eastern Carpathians, at the extreme
western end of Roumania.
Its course through this range is eighty
miles and the pass offers a great obstacle
to navigation. The river is narrowed
| to less than half its breadth above, and
in seven different places there are rapids
and whirlpOOls, of which those in the
sO-ealled Iron Gate, below old Orsova,
are the most violent.
At this point, opposite the small village
of Ticheviztha, the stream is narrowed
from the width of mile to about $50
yards, and with depth, as far as can be
ascertained from the violence of the cur
rent, of from 500 to l 900 fathoms. The
mountains on either side are very lofty,
nearly 5000 feet high, those on the
Austrian side being 1000 feet higher
than those on the opposite bank. The
mountains rise nearly sheer for about
5000 feet above the stream, and where
not perpendicular rather overhang the
water. When the river is low, the
sharp, craggy points Of subaqueous
rocks begin to show themselves above
the stream, and between these the pas
sage is most narrow, winding and shall
low, and In fact can only be passed by
steamers built especially for the purpose
of light draught of water, four padd =
wheels and immense power, and, even
these steamers make use of a channel
cut through the ledge.
Having passed the Carpathians, the
Danube takes southerly course, form
ing the boundary between Roumania
and Servia for short distance, and then
becoming throughout the rest of its
course the boundary between RoumaDia
and the Turkish province Bulgaria.
Below Widin il takes turn to the east,
which it pursues until it reaches
point thirty two miles from the Black
Sea. Then it takes a sudden turn to
the north, flowing in that direction for
one hundred miles, to the junction with
the Sereth, near Galatz. Then it turns
again TO the east, receiving the waters
of the Pruth, which marks part of the
frontier.
After flowing east about forty miles,
in the vicinity of Ismail and Taltches it
is divided into several branches. These
wind sluggishly through the low and
dreary alluvial country known as the
Delta of the Danube, and empty the
waters of the great river into the Black
Sea by three principal channels-the
hilia, Sulina, and St. George-and four
lesser ones. The most nOrtherly of
these-the kilia-is the boundary at
this point between Bulgaria and Rou
and is twenty-five miles distant
from the Russian boundary line.
The rapidity of its current in its |
upper course, its tOrtuoHs windings, |
the shaliowness of the water in the |
portion which flows through Hungary, |
and in the outlets into the Black Sea, |
and the reefs, rapids and whirlpools |
which mark its course at many point,
have rendered the navigation of the
Danube so difficult that its commercial |
Use has not been fully developed.