The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1896-07-30
OUR UsRxpLoRED GLOBE.
There are 10000, 200 square Mile. Of
she Earth We, 10 lse Explored.

There are 10000, 200 square miles OF
the Earth Ne, 20 use Expiored.
We are apt to think that We modsrns
have very little to do in the way OF ex-
ploring the globe, and that the recent ex-
plorations in Africa have quite put the
finishing touch TO geographical knowl-
edge, so that he Who wishes TO set foot on
virgin soil must sigh. like Alexander,
for another world. Those who entertain
such opinions, says Literary Digest. may
calm themselves with the thought that
no less portion OF the earth's surface
than 10000, 900 square miles is yet Ct
subject for investigation, and on part
Of this the foot oil civilized man has not
yet trod. We translate from Cosmos
(Paris, Juas 81 an article that brings this
fact out very clearly. II runs as follows:
AT the London geographical congress
Mr.. Logan Lobby gave a very interesting
study Of the present state of exploration
Of the globe. 1t appears that modern geo.
graphers have an imrense amount Of
labor before them to make us acquainted
With oil parts Of the earth. This concur
sion will astonish some people, for there
is general impressions that almost all
regions Of the earth are well explored.
Mr.. Lobley reminds us that 10 the
first place, toward the middle Of the 10th
century, all seas had been traversed by
navigators, and that, II the maps OF the
continents we're not vet very exact, at
least their relative positions aud their
general confguration were known. Aus
tralia itself appears on French map Of
1912 under the name Of Great Java. Ia
the course OF the 60 years included in the
last decade Of the 18th century. and the
first half OF the 10th, pIeiad Of naviga-
tors had advanced geographic knowledge
in degree that has never been reached
in any other period so short. Sebastian
d'Elano had made his first voyage around
the world; vasco ds Cana mad doubled
the Cape of Good Hope; Christopher
Columbus had added the two Americans
TO the map; the voyages of Cabot, OF Ma
gellan, had completed this wonderful list
OF new discoveries.
To-day, outside OF the polar regions,
We must confess that all the seas have
been explored, but this il far from, being
the case with the land. An immense ex-
tent Is entirely unknown to US; another,
still more considerable, has been only
imperfectly explored; travellers have
traversed II, commerce has exploited some
Of III products. but good maps OF it do
not exist. Finally. only the least part is
we'll known; geodesy has covered il with
a network OF lriangles, and the maps of
it are complete. even from the topograph-
ical standpoint.
After the Arctic and Antarctic regions,
which have remained inaccessible up to
the present time, Africa is the part Of the
world less known to US, notwithstanding
the admirable explorations made in this
century. which are daily clearing up the
map. The earliest explorers, however,
could not dream OF serious eff, rts, and
many years will pass before the country
will be thoroughly explored.
AFTER Africa, Australia offers the vast
est field to the investigation Of explorers
We must remember that even its seaeoast
was not fully explored tin 1843. Since
that time, at the price Of great suffering,
il has been crossed from north to south,
but no traveller has yet traversed 1t from
east TO west.
in the two Americans, except the ex.
IRENE northern and southern parts, the
continent is known; nevertheless, the
whole central region OF South America,
though in great part explored for com
mercial purposes tfor mines, wood,
caoutchonc. etc. is not exactly mapped.
ITO sum up, the yet unexplored parts
oil the globe cover an area OF about 5o,-
100000 square kilometers {abont 20 ,0O0,-
900 square miles,, approximately divided
thus: