New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1908-04-25

which controls the food of waters by the great
AssOuan.
The estimated length of the Amazon. from its
source In the Andes 10 1t debouches in
mouth forty miles wide into the Atlantic. Is 4'ov'
miles The story is told of wrecked NeSSei WHICH
was drifting. with her crew on board suffering IN
tense torment for lack of fresh water. which en-
tered the mouth OF the Amazon and the sufferers
could have had fresh water simply by putting a
bucket the side. but did not Know "here
they were they got in sight Of the land This
mighty river up which the tide goes 4Uo miles, Is
known in the upper part of its course near the
Andes as the Maranon. then IN the middle course
from Tabatinga to the mouth of its chief afhuent
Rio Negro. the SolimOes. while for the rest
of its is AmazOnas or Amazon
thousand miles from the sea it is four miles in
width. Vast and often impossible forests line
Of its banks. A description OF a trip through
the region given by captain Mayne Reid in
his boys book "Afoat in the Forest.
Neither the Mississippi the Missouri under
its own name can rank with the Amazon in length.
that is due the early explorers II they had
followed the main stream from their point OF
junction might nave been given TO the
Mississippi Missouri system. which in length, ag-
gregates over POO miles from the Gulf of Mexico
the Rocky Mountains The region drained by
the two is estimated AT I250'E1 square miles. while
that of Amazon calculated TO be fully
2.5Co COO square miles. The Mississippi the river
flowing from Elk Lake now Lake Itasca. in North
Minnesota the Cult i called. is about $40
miles in length although the direct distance from
only l.lSi miles. the tOrtuous
channel more than doubling the distance. About
200 miles from its mouth. st. Louis. il receives
the waters Of the Missouri. the larger stream. :
IT has discharge of 12oOo cubic feet OF water
second while the main stream of the Mississippi
has 10000 feet second. The waters do not miuge
at there being decided difference in color.
and this may he perceived for twenty miles
below the junction. The character of the
river thepCefOrth entirely changed. flowing
through ii level alluvfal bed many points great
the floods and prevent the destruction that inun-
tons would cause fertile plantations From
junction with the MissIssippi the length the
Missouri Lake Madison. Its source. Is S,O47 miles
The length of the Nile. one OF the most famous
rivers IN the history OF the earth. hanks
was of the earliest civilizations is estimated 10
be about four thousand miles Its source is in the
equatorial! regions Of Africa and mouth in the
Mediterranean. For many centuries the sources Of
the Nile were unknown, hut the work Of daring ex-
plorers has solved the mystery. and il has been
found that its origin is in great lakes under the
equator, the largest being Victoria Nyanza. which
Stanley discovered. A great number Of strea ms
tributary to IL before II reaches Egypt fifteen
hundred miles from its mouth. but after that IL
has more affuents. only second in length 10
the Nile OF the Africa the Niger but il
drains only half much territory. the Niles drain
being fourteen hundred thousand square
miles. The Niger. also known as the Quorra rises
in the heart Africa. flows northeast then
southeast and enters the Gulf of Guinea Its I'm
portance is greatly surpassed by the Congo. which
is estimated TO be thirty-three hundred miles long
while the Niger is thrty-fve hundred The Congo
is the Amazon 81 Central Africa and is rapidly
becoming OF much commercial importance by the
+ development Of the Congo Free State. Its history
Will always be connected with the explorations of
Livingstone and Stanley. Its is I'm the high
tablelands in the heart tropical lake region
near Lake Tansanyika. and its flows into the At
| lantic.
OF like length OF thirty-three hundred niles is
the Yang the largest river Asia IL rises in
Eastern Tibet and flows across China To the Yellow
Sea. The size OF II be conceived from the fact
that the largest vessels ascend Han Kow
seven hundred miles from its mouth. and smaller
vessels navigate IL nearly To its Next in
length but utterly unimportant commercially. is
the Mackenzie, which traVerses the northern part
of the great Northwest Territory Canada and
flows into the Arctic Ocean. Its length is about
twenty-four hundred miles. one tWenty-three hum
dred miles long is La Plata. southern South
America which has drainage area ~ million
two hundred and nifty thousand square miles 1, .
/ formed by the junction Of the Farana and the
Uruguay and flows into the Atlantic
On opposite sides of British North America rise