The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1915-07-27

n that 1t was about five times as
much as the electric force Of Niagara.
l learned later hat the force was re-
duced to an enormous extent at the
time Of low water. 1t is the same
with the falls of Iguazu.
The volume has not been carefully
measured, and the engineers tell me
that until that has been done no prop
er value can be placed upon their
electrical possibilities.
The capitalists of Argentina have
plans for the industrial development
Of the falls, and at some time in the
future a great electric plant will be
constructed to utilize them. A little
further up the River Parana are the
seven falls Of La Guayra, over which
thirteen million cubic feet of water
are said to flow every second. These
will probably be used by the railway
that is now building to cross Para
quay, the track both in Paraguay and
Brazil being electrified for the pur-
pose. This road is under construc-
ton.
Another line is to be built from Po-
sadas across Argentina to Iguazu. and
the government is planning to pur-
chase the land about the falls and
create a great national park. A hotel
will be built nearby and a town found
ed there. There will be a military
post where the Iguazu and the Para
ma join, n also experimental farms
n forest reserves. These, with the
new railroads. will make Iguazu as
great a tourist center as Niagara is
now.
But let me give you some figures to
illustrate the comparative sizes Of the
Falls Of the Zambesi, the Niagara, and
the Parana. The Iguazu cataract be-
longs to the Parana for the falls are
right where the Iguazu river flows in
to that might stream The Zambesi
river is one of the great streams of
the world. 1t has 1000 miles Of navi-
gable waterways. and in Africa, it
ranks next to the Nile. the Niger and
the KOngO. It rises in the highlands
of h central part of the continent
and drops 1000 feet before it reaches
the falls. AT hat point it drops 1000
feet within twenty miles, and it has
one jump of 400 feet into the canyon
of which l ave spoken.
The Niagara river is only thirty
three miles long, but it carries all the
water of the great lakes The falls
really have their source 500 feet above
the sea, in Lake Superior, which, mex
to Victoria in Africa, is the larges1
fresh-water lake in the world. Thu
waters drop twenty feet in flowing ou'
" "Ah odPCAioI IAIOuSi tiiS NS
Mary river into Lake Huron, anl
there is another drop of from $50 tt
1853 feet at Niagara. Where the wa.
ters Of Lake Erie flow into the Mia.
CARA rive it is as quiet as a mil
pond. The descent for some distance
is not more than a foot to the mile
The waters move slowly until they ar,
within a mile of the falls, when the,
rouse themselves for the jump Of 16'
feet into the great abyss below. Afte
that the river flows for seven mile
through a r%avine, the banks Of which
! are 200 or 800 feet high. A littl
, later it passes Lewiston and then goe
peacefully on into Lake Ontario.
: The Parana river has a greater f1oy
n than the ZambeSi. Its basin is NOR
s than twice as large, and it's volume
: three times as great. These figure:
however, are for the whole Paran
system, of which the Iguazu is only
part. Indeed, the Parana is about tn
third largest river Of the world, bein
a exceeded only by the Amazon and tn
g kongo. It's volume is eighty per Ger
h bigger than that of the Mississippi
q and if you would take all the Wate
a that flows through the Rhine, Danut
and Elba M add to them the Volg:
IS the Seine and a number Of other Ell
8 ropean streams they would not +
equal to the Parana at low level. TT
volume of the Rio de la Plata, whic
is the outlet of the Parana system,
It said to be three times that of the S
Lawrence, the down-spout of OF
great lakes, of which the Niagara ii
err is a part. The Alto Parana,
which the IguaZu forms a part, riS
90 in the highlands of Brazil. 1t cove
the whole central part of hat repu'
Is lie and it's sources are not far fro
Rio de Janeiro.
n. The Iguazu rises in the mountair
Sc which border the Atlantic coast al
I'd flows three or four hundred mil
westward across Brazil before
VS. empties into the Alto Parano. The dr.,
of at 1guaZu in one place is PIG feet
II. ffty-eight more feet than the highe
is point in the Niagara Falls. The wild
he of Niagara, including Goat Island,
he less than three-fourths of a mile. T
whole arc of the circle at lguaZu.
" which the falls are hrokep nv MO