The Jones County news., 1921-09-08

Herd of Liar
prepared by the National Geographic
Society, Washington, D. CO
Peru, which has been celebrating
the hundredth anniversary of its in
dependence from Spain, In the pres
ence Of commissioners officially repre-
senting the United States and other
nations, Is far enough out of the
beaten path of most North Americans
to be but vaguely known 70 them. II
is often thought of. no doubt, as a
little republic clinging TO the sides Of
the lofty Andes lest It slip and be
lost In the Pacific. But in area and
interest Peru is by no means neg
ligible; and II 1t has failed to take
an important place in world affairs,
either commercially Or political, il may
well be that that. fsfct is due, not TO
lack Of size and resoBt@es and poten-
tial wealth and power. but rather to
lmmaturify. gt
Peru has every eHnwte under
heaven. together with Many of the
products and conditions that 90 with
them. 1t has the sand dunes fof The
Sahara; the fertile. sun-bathed irri-
gated valleys of California the dry
grazing lands OF Australia Re pro
ductive mountain valleys and uplands
of Kashmir; the bleak plateaus of
Tibet; the snowy peaks Of. Swtzer-
land; and the tropical jungles Of Cen
tral Africa and Brazil And off its
shores, tropical in latitude but mild IN
temperature the waters, so cold that
often they are uncomfortable for bath
ing. are alive with the sea life of titt
near-antarctic.
Much of Peru Is occupied by th'
towering Andes, with few passes les
than 1900 feet high, and with numer
Gus peaks exceeding 21,0O0 feet
These great rnanparfs ARE chiefly re
sponsible for the diversity of Peru
climatic conditions. They precipitat
the moisture Of the Atlantic wind
and 50 create the tropical jungles tha
stretch from their bases toward tn
interior of the continent; thrust slope
and pateaus up into the cool region
of the upper air; and cut off the Pa
cific cQast section from the moisture
laden winds, making much Of 1t
desert.
Coast Strip Has Rivers but No Rar
Although the strip of Peru betwee
the Pacific and the western foothill
of the Andes is devoid of rain an
largely desert, many streams from tn
mountains break across this region t
the sea, and the relatively narrow VA
leys. irrigated from their waters, cor
stitute DIE most fertile land of tn
country.
Most of the desert land between th
parallel rivers is not so from lack
fertility but because of the absenc
Of ife-giving water This is mos
unusual region lying within the trGpis
and adjoining the sea, where norma
ly vegetable growth would be a5un'
ant. If it could be viewed from
distance of a thousand miles throue
telescope it would probably appei
much as the supposed canals OF MAJ
have been described as appearing
some observers-dark, roughly parall
lines of vegetation on drab yerdur
less background Some Of the bens
I lands have been reclaimed for consi
cradle distances from the rivers, ar
projects have been considered to II
pobnd f1,eswaters that rush down fro
the neitlig Andean SHOWS and briI
under cultivation practically the who
coast region.
Peru has an area Of about 1000
snnare miles and is therefore on
slightly smaller than Mexico and W
over "a quarter The size Of the Unit
States, exclusive Of Alaska. If Pc
could he laid down on the surface
the United States so that its seuther
most pont conceded with the sout
ernmast projection of Texas its mort
eastern corner. would lie near Peor
TIL. and its northwestern extremi
near Cheyenne. Wyo. The rough
angle would cover practically all
Texas. Oklahoma and Kansas. half
Nebraska, parts Of Illinois. Nilsson
Colorado. Iowa and South Dako
and fragments of New Mexico, a
wyoming.
Where the incas FIourshcd.
lust as the United States was $
tied from the Atlantic coast and
veloped first its coastal strip. ieavl
as an unknown region for generatle
the country TO the west beyond
mountains and deserts, so Peru !
developed in the reverse directi'
The European conquerors of its II
empire entered the country from
Pacific coast, and it IS along this 81
THE SEA FIREFLY