When rivers flow down steep or perpendicular banks, they form falls or cataracts, as the falls of Niagara, the falls of the Passaic, and others. 39. What is a Canal?

A. A wide ditch or channel, filled with water, through which boats convey travellers and goods from one place to another.

40. Where are Canals most numerous?

A. In the United States, Great Britain, and Holland. 41. Which is the largest Canal in the world?

A. The Imperial Canal, in China.

42. Which are the most important Canals in the United States? A. The Erie Canal in New York; the Pennsylvania Canal, in Pennsylvania; the Ohio Canal, in Ohio; and the Illinois Canal, in Illinois.

4

NATURAL DIVISIONS OF LAND.

43. What are the principal divisions of the land surface of the earth? A. The Eastern and Western Continents, and Oceanica. 44. What does the Eastern continent comprise?

A. Europe, Asia, and Africa.

45. What does the Western continent comprise ?

A. North and South America.

46. What does Oceanica comprise ?

A. The islands of the Pacific Ocean.

A. The Eastern and Western Hemispheres. hemisphere signifies half a globe.

The word

The map of the world, No. 1., in the Atlas, shows the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.

48. Into what divisions is the earth divided by the Equator? A. Into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

49. What does the Northern Hemisphere comprise ?

A. That part of the earth between the Equator and the North Pole.

50. What does the Southern Hemisphere comprise?

A. That part of the Earth between the Equator and the South Pole.

The map of the world, No. 2., in the Atlas, shows the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

51 What are the natural divisions of the land surface of the earth ? A. Continents, Islands, Peninsulas, Isthmuses, Capes, and Mountains.

52. Why are these called natural divisions?

A. To distinguish them from political divisions, such as Empires, Kingdoms, and Republics.

53 What is a Continent?

A. A great body of land, containing many countries. America is a continent.

54. What is a Peninsula?

A. A tract of land, nearly surrounded by water. Africa and South America are peninsulas.

55 What is an Isthmus?

A. A narrow neck of land, which joins two parts of a continent, or a peninsula to a continent; as the Isthmus of Darien, and the Isthmus of Suez.

56. What are Islands?

A. Tracts of land, entirely surrounded by water, as the British Islands, or Newfoundland.

57. What is a Cape?

A. A point of land extending into the sea, as the Cape of Good Hope, and Cape Horn.

58 What is a Promontory?

A. A high point of land, extending into the sea, the extreme end of which is sometimes called a cape, sometimes a point, and sometimes a headland

A. A tract of land which rises considerably above the general surface.

60. How high are the highest mountains in the world?

A. They are about five and a half miles high; others are two, three, and four miles high.

61. What is a chain or range of Mountains?

A. A number of mountains connected together, frequently extending hundreds of miles in length.

Plains. Range of Mountains. Mountains. Valley. Hills. Volcano. City on Fire. 62. What is a Volcano?

A. A mountain which casts out fire, smoke, and melted lava, from its interior.

63. What are some of the most celebrated Volcanoes of the Eastern Continent?

A. Etna, Vesuvius, and Stromboli.

64. What of the Western Continent?

A. Popocatapetl, Cosiguina, and Cotopaxi.

65. How many Volcanoes are there in the world?

A. Upwards of 400, of which 173 are in America.

Cities and towns are sometimes set on fire by the burning lava which flows down the sides of volcanoes; others have been destroyed by floods of water; and some by vast showers of hot ashes.

Some mountains are so steep and rugged, that it is difficult to ascend to the top of them. The picture represents a party of men going up Mont Blanc, the highest mountain of the Alps, in Sardinia. They were more than two days in ascending to the top, and were almost frozen with cold. The summits of the highest mountains, even those in the hottest parts of the earth, are always covered with ice and snow. 66. What is a Hill?

A. A tract of land higher than the general level, but of less elevation than a mountain.

67. What is a Valley?

A. A tract of country situated between mountains or hills. 68. What is a Plain?

A. A portion of country nearly flat or level.

69. Are all plains alike in appearance?

A. No; some are covered with grass, some with trees, and some only with sand.