Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1921-09-16

Cattle and G,
prepared By tie Nations oeographis
Society. Washington. d. CO.
A Christian nation when our ances-
tors were houndering In paganism,
now as for centuries an African en-
pire-one Of the three or four remain
ing empires Of the world-and the
only bit Of land on the great conti-
nent Of Africa, with the exception. Of
the little republic Of Liberia. which
has not been made q possession or q
protectorate of . European power
such Il Abyssinia, little heard Of In
the worlds affairA but possessing q
history and a promise Of future
economic importance which make 1t
deserve . different fate.
The country owes Its independence
In large part both directly and indi-
rectly to its geographical environment
Set upon q great plateau, it Il q nat
ural fortress; and while the natives Of
most other sections Of tropical Africa
dwell In enervating jungies or inhos-
pitable deserts, the people Of Abys-
sinia, thanks to their. altitude, fertile
soil and temperate conditions In gen.
eral, have an invigorating climate and
q land literally Of milk and honey"
A situation near Arabia and Palestine,
too, has drawn Arabian and Jewish
blood to Abyssinia and, has given the
people Of the country q racial advan-,
tage which the African tribes Of pure
negro blood. have not had.
But while geographical situation has
In many ways been an advantage to
Abyssinia. It has brought its disad-
vantages also. Without access to the
sea for centuries, the Abyssinians, held
to their inland tahlelandD without
contact with the outside world, failed
to make the most Of their possession
Of q lofty religion and IN early start
toward civilization, and have re-
NAMED q semibarbaric people. It II
perhaps remarkable that. isolated a.
they were. they maintained their Chris
tianity in any recognizable form. Oh
servers marvel ut the fact that the
principal tenets and observances Of
the faith are practically pure rather
than at the growth beside them Of
certain superstitions and laxities.
Cut on From ssa and Nile.
Al the situation now stands. Abys-
sinia Il entirely cut OF from the sea
and the Nile BY the colonies Of Euro
pean powers; Italian Erftrea, French
Somaliland and British Somaliland on
the north; Italian Somaliland on the
east; British East Africa on the south
and the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan on the
west. But this II a mere holding Of
the gates by new keepers; since the
rise Of Nohammedan power In the
Near East the country has been cut
OF about equally as effectively BY
various Mohammedan tribes. Those
people Of Arabian blood were able to
take possesslou Of the low desert
lands. but on their invigorating high
lands the Abyssinians were, with rare
exceptions. masters.
Abyssinia IL more than twice the
size Of the German republic and Of
about the area Of California. Oregon
and Nevada together. The country
lieS In the same latitude as Venezuela
and the southern islands of the Philip
pines, well In the tropics; but because
Of its general high elevation 1t has.
Ike Mexico, q much cooler and more
healthful climate than its proximity
to the equator would indicate.
These highlands are from 5000 to
5000 feet above the sea- Their roll
Ing prairies are well watered and have
q good growth Of grass. The climate
on these uplands Ii superb. and II one
desires cooler surroundings there are
mountain chains rising from the pla-
teau in almost all sections Of the coun-
try. Some Of these mountains reach
Z height Of 1900 feet and are topped
BY perpetual snow. Irrigation could
be practiced In Abyssinia to great ad-
vantage, but the utilization Of the
abundant water supply In that way
seems never to have entered the minds
of the natives.
Canyons and Deep vailsyG !.
The great amount Of water which
runs down from the Abyssinian noun.
tains has carved gigantic gorgea
through the tablelands, some ol
which, in depth at least, rival the
Grand canyon Of, the Colorado. The
gorge Of the Blue Nile which flows fol
more than half its length through
Abysslnla Is from 5000 to 1000 feet
deep In places. The material washed
= from this remote chasm has played an
important part. incidentally, In the
history Of the world. Ground into siIi
/, and deposited through the centuries
and. millenniums In the lower valley
Of tie Nile, It produced there garden
spst and naads posAbls ~ U0wth q
scnxssa ROM cis5Ea1ls.