Douglas daily dispatch., 1927-08-14

swamps and jungles. A few merchants
who even tooay, as they were IN the
days of the Phoenicians, are the plo-
neer explorers of distant and little
known areas, are about the only peo-
pie who have visited the interior OF
the Chaco lured Ihcre because 1t is
the home of the quebracho tree, an
important source Of tannin.
The Oriente, constituting the eastern
portion of Ecuador, is inhospitable in
its climate and choked with jungleS,
and few are the white men who have
braved contact with its savage, head
hunting natives to tell the world the
natural resources or even the physical
features of this uncharted hinterland.
Portions Of western and southwest
ern, China, Tibet and northern India
are just becoming known through
Kingdom Ward, an explorer of the Ma
tional Geographic Society.
Mongolia and the Cobb desert still
have their secrets, though yearly new
discoveries are made in this area.
Not far north of the DESERT Siberia
perhaps retains the secrets of more
virgin land than any other part of
the world Nearly the entire northern
part of the country is uceNartcd. Only
q few weeks ago a mountain towering
1000 fet was reported to have been
discovered near Irkutsk. one CT ST.
beria's largest settlements.
Little known Off Trails
Ozark" Africa is still dark in spots.
There are great portions of the Sa-
hara desert about which practically
is known, notably the Hank
region, extending from latitude % de-
gress to 26 degrees, near longitude 5
degrees west.
The area west of Kufra Oasis, al
though explored by Hassanein Bey, an
in 1921, still remains blank
on the maps. There are several places
in the Belgian Congo, Angola, Mozam-
bique and even in Rhodesia-in fact,
in all of central Africa where the
white man has seldom been off the
beaten trail.
1t might be well to qualify the term
In it's broad sense it has
been used to cover those areas about
which SO little is known that most OF
their topography, natural features,
plant and animal life are conjectured.
There are portions of country where
the botanists and biologists can revel
to their hearts content. where the
geologist can rub his hands in g1ee,
and where the seeker of silent places
will remain unmoleSted for days,
months and even years.
The northern and northwestern dis
tricts of Australia are comparatively
although notable journeys
have been made across the deserts
during the last 80 years. Only in the
areas served by the railroads is the
country well known and the topog-
raphy fixed.
New Guinea is perhaps the, worlds
widest spot Thousands of miles of
its interior have never been explored.
Peopled by head hunters of the most
savage type, and pygmies, and other
tribes of chronological interest, the is
and probably offers regions for ex-
ploring as interesting as may be found
anywhere. An expedition recently re-
turned from the island with valuable
scientific data and thrilling stories of
adventure. Borneo, famous as the
haunts of the ''Wild Man From Bor-
neo,'' also has an interior which offers
many virgin fields for explorers. The
Celebes is another wild island among
those thousands of islands off the
southeastern coast of Asia and in the
South Seas.
There is one great continent which