Fairbanks 
 
 Topical Outline of 
 Geography
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 >•-? 
 
 SOUTHERN BRANUn, 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, 
 
 LIBRARY, 
 
 <U>S ANGELES, CALIF. 
 
 TOPICAL OUTLINE 
 
 OF 
 
 GEOGRAPHY 
 
 FAIRBANKS 
 
 PART V 
 
 AFRICA, AUSTRALIA AND THE 
 ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC
 
 TOPICAL OUTLINES 
 
 OF 
 
 GEOGRAPHY 
 
 Part 
 
 I- 
 
 -North America. 
 
 Part 
 
 II- 
 
 —South America. 
 
 Part 
 
 II] 
 
 — Europe. 
 
 Part 
 
 IV 
 
 — Asia. 
 
 Part 
 
 V- 
 
 -Africa, Australia 
 
 and 
 
 ISL 
 
 VXDS OF THE PACIFIC.
 
 TOPICAL OUTLINE 
 
 OF 
 
 GEOGRAPHY 
 
 PART V 
 
 AFRICA, AUSTRALIA AND THE 
 ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 
 
 Developed According to the Problem Method and 
 Including the Changes Brought About by the World War 
 
 BY 
 
 H. W. FAIRBANKS, Ph.D. 
 
 Author of "Stories of Our Mother Earth," Rocks and Minerals, Home 
 
 Geography, Practical Physiography, Conservation Reader , 
 
 Western United Stales, Geography of 
 
 California, etc. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 P. BLAKISTON'S SON & CO 
 
 1012 WALNUT STREET
 
 Copyright, 1921, by P. Blakiston's Son & Co. 
 
 THK MAI'LK l'KEHK YOKK 1'A
 
 G- 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 This small geography is one of a series in which the 
 natural regions of the different continents are topically 
 and progressively studied from the "problem" point of 
 view. The aim is to guide the pupil to true geographical 
 concepts — to a clear understanding of the relation exist- 
 ing between the people and their environment, rather 
 than to a mere memorizing of tiresome details, which, in 
 these texts, but serve as temporary stepping-stones to a 
 broad and abiding knowledge of the subject. 
 
 The boundaries of the different regions are depicted 
 by a simple physical map. Where, however, more 
 detail is desired the pupil is referred to an atlas or to 
 the maps in the larger books.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 Page 
 
 Africa 187 
 
 Africa, Problem of iqo 
 
 The Atlas or Mediterranean Region 197 
 
 Cape Colony 200 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 201 
 
 The Sahara Desert 201 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 205 
 
 Egypt 205 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 210 
 
 The Sudan '. 210 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 213 
 
 The Tableland of East Africa 213 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports . . 217 
 
 The Congo Poorest 217 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 220 
 
 The South African Tableland 221 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 224 
 
 The African Islands 224 
 
 Australia, Map Studies 225 
 
 Australia, Problem of 226 
 
 Australia, Special Problems 234 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 235 
 
 The Islands of the Pacific, Map Studies 236 
 
 The Islands of the Pacific, Problem 237 
 
 New Zealand 240 
 
 New Guinea 242 
 
 The Hawaiian Islands 244 
 
 The Fiji and Samoan Islands 245 
 
 Topics for Oral Discussion or Written Reports 246
 
 PART V 
 
 AFRICA, AUSTRALIA AND THE 
 ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 
 
 SECTION I. AFRICA 
 TOPIC 
 
 AFRICA :— THE SECOND IN SIZE OF THE CON- 
 TINENTS BUT NEXT TO AUSTRALIA THE 
 LEAST IMPORTANT, BECAUSE, LYING 
 MOSTLY IN THE TROPICS AND HAVING 
 A SURFACE POSSESSING LITTLE VARIETY, 
 IT OFFERS CONDITIONS GENERALLY SO 
 UNFAVORABLE TO PROGRESS THAT, WITH 
 SOME REMARKABLE EXCEPTIONS, ITS 
 NATIVE INHABITANTS ARE STILL IN THE 
 SAVAGE STATE. 
 
 What conditions have we already learned are in 
 general most favorable to the progress of any 
 people in civilization? 
 
 i. Security from attack by enemies. 
 
 2. Sufficient but not too much water. 
 
 3. A healthful climate. 
 
 4. The necessity of working to supply their wants. 
 
 5. Wild animals capable of domestication. 
 
 In what parts of the ancient world already studied did 
 people have surroundings favorable to their 
 progress? 
 1. The rich agricultural regions of Mesopotamia. 
 Turkestan, China, and India. 
 
 187
 
 1 88 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 2. The Mediterranean border region favoied the early 
 development of both agriculture and trade. 
 
 Are the conditions favorable to progress in modern 
 times the same as those of ancient times? 
 
 i. In ancient times men had not gained the control 
 over Nature that they have today. 
 
 2 Such countries as France, England and the 
 United States have developed a high culture more 
 because of the energy of their people than of their 
 surroundings. 
 
 3. Opportunities for mining, manufacturing and trade 
 have a more important influence upon progress now than 
 in ancient times. 
 
 Upon what is success in agriculture based? 
 
 1 . The nature of the surface and soil are important. 
 
 2. The temperature, amount of sunshine and water 
 must be suitable. 
 
 What have we previously discovered as to the influ- 
 ence of the tropics upon people? 
 
 1. Great heat is not unhealthful if the climate is dry. 
 
 2. Highlands in the tropics possess a very favorable 
 climate. 
 
 3. Hot moist tropical lowlands are favorable neither to 
 the white race nor to the dark skinned natives. 
 
 Where should we expect that the development of 
 people from a savage to a civilized life would be 
 delayed or not take place at all? 
 
 1. Where the struggle with cold is too great as in the 
 Arctic regions. 
 
 2. Where Nature supplies everything without exertion 
 on the part of inhabitants as in the tropical islands. 
 
 3. In desert regions where there is a little water but not 
 enough for the inhabitants to live comfortably as in 
 Arabia and Mongolia.
 
 AFRICA 189 
 
 Where should we expect to find no permanent 
 inhabitants? 
 
 1. In the Arctic region beyond the limit of food supplies. 
 
 2. In deserts where the rainfall affords forage for 
 animals only a part of the year. 
 
 3. Upon very high mountains and plateaus. 
 
 What have we farther learned as to the advantages 
 of those sub -tropical or temperate regions where 
 there is no rain at all or the summers are rainless, 
 provided there is water for irrigation? 
 
 1. Irrigation is much more certain to produce crops 
 than chance rains and thus encourages exertion. 
 
 2. A river flowing through a desert, provided it supplies 
 water during the growing season affords support for a 
 dense agricultural population. 
 
 3. Large springs form oasis which are among the most 
 productive and luxuriant spots in the world. 
 
 What have we discovered has been the influence of 
 different features of the earth's surface upon 
 communication? 
 
 1. A broken coast line favors trade and travel. 
 
 2. Navigable rivers and lakes make communication 
 easy between different parts of a continent as well as be- 
 tween the coast and the interior. 
 
 3. Marshes and jungles hinder communication. 
 
 4. Lofty mountain ranges form serious barriers 
 
 5. Waterless deserts are almost impassable. 
 
 In conclusion we should call to mind the effect upon 
 different peoples of easy or difficult communica- 
 tion. 
 
 1. Easy communication leads to trade especially if the 
 countries concerned produce different things. 
 
 2. Trade leads to the exchange of ideas and to the 
 progress of peoples.
 
 190 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 3. Regions difficult of access continue to be inhabited 
 by people in a backward condition if their surroundings 
 are unfavorable to progress. 
 
 4. Where life conditions are very favorable people will 
 make progress even though completely cut off from 
 intercourse with others. 
 
 PROBLEMS 
 
 HOW IS IT THAT THE PEOPLE OF THE GREATER 
 PART OF AFRICA REMAIN IN SUCH A BACK- 
 WARD AND SAVAGE CONDITION THAT 
 THEIR LAND IS KNOWN AS "THE DARK 
 CONTINENT" AND HAS ONLY RECENTLY 
 BEEN FULLY EXPLORED, NOTWITHSTAND- 
 ING THE FACT THAT IN THE NORTHERN 
 PART THERE EXISTS THE REMAINS OF 
 THE OLDEST KNOWN CIVILIZATION? 
 
 What features of Africa as shown upon a good phys- 
 ical map appear unfavorable to the progress of its 
 inhabitants? 
 
 1. The greater part lies in the tropics. 
 
 2. The surface appears to be a plateau possessing along 
 much of its border a higher mountain rim. 
 
 3. The shore line is remarkably regular with few bays. 
 
 4. The coast lowlands appear to be narrow. 
 
 5. The northern part lies in the trade wind belt, the 
 winds coming from desert Arabia. 
 
 6. The trade winds of the southern part blow off the 
 Indian Ocean but are partly cut off from the interioi by 
 the mountainous rim of the plateau. 
 
 7. The rivers flow rapidly in descending from the 
 plateau to the coast. 
 
 What features of Africa appear favorable to the prog- 
 ress of its inhabitants?
 
 AFRICA 191 
 
 i. Much of the plateau is high so that the heat cannot 
 be as great as we should ordinarily expect in the tropics. 
 
 2. A part of the Mediterranean border has the same 
 climate as the peninsulas of Southern Europe. 
 
 3. The extreme southern part has a Mediterranean 
 climate 
 
 4. The northern part is easily reached from Europe and 
 Asia. 
 
 5. A great river affords a highway from the Mediter- 
 ranean to the heart of the continent. 
 
 Why is it that within the tropical belt of Africa there 
 is found the largest desert as well as the largest 
 tropical forest in the world? 
 
 A. The Sahara. 
 
 1. The Atlas Mountains cut off the westerly storms so 
 that they carry no rain to the region known as the Sahara. 
 
 2. The trade winds that blow across the Sahara are dry 
 bringing no rain. 
 
 3. The monsoon winds from the Gulf of Guinea blow 
 across the Sahara but bring only a little rain because they 
 pass from a cool ocean to a hot land. 
 
 B. The Tropical Forest. 
 
 1. The belt of tropical calms and rains crosses the heart 
 of the continent. 
 
 2. Near the equator rains fall during every season of 
 the year. 
 
 3. Toward the borders of the tropical belt there are 
 two rainy and two dry seasons. 
 
 Why is it that in Africa the climatic belts of the north- 
 ern half are repeated in a reverse order in the 
 southern half? 
 
 1. Africa is divided almost equally by the equatorial 
 belt with its tropical forest. 
 
 2. The Sudan grass lands north of the forest are repeated 
 in the South African Belt.
 
 192 • PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 3. The Sahara Desert is repeated in the south by the 
 Kalahara Desert. 
 
 4. The Mediterranean belt of the Atlas Mountains is 
 found in the extreme southern end of Cape Colony. 
 Why is the yearly variation in temperature over the 
 
 most of Africa small? 
 
 1. The greater part of Africa lies in the tropics where 
 it is always warm. 
 
 2. The extreme north and south of Africa reach into 
 the temperate zone where the yearly range in temperature 
 is considerable. 
 
 Why is it that although the extreme ends of Africa ex- 
 tend into a climatic belt favorable to progress that 
 remains of ancient civilizations are found only in 
 the north? 
 
 1. The northern part is easily reached from Asia and 
 Europe by both water and land. 
 
 2. South Africa was once practically inaccessible by 
 land. 
 
 3. No sailors got as far as Cape of Good Hope until 
 Vasca de Gama in 1498. 
 
 What remarkable feature of Africa has had little 
 influence upon the natives but has been of much 
 aid to recent explorations? 
 
 1. The Eastern Rift Valley with its lakes — A valley 
 stretching from Palestine through the Red Sea southward 
 nearly to Lake Nyassa. 
 
 2. The Western Rift Valley containing lakes Nyassa, 
 Tanganyika and others. 
 
 Why should we expect to find the Congo Basin and ad- 
 joining coast lowlands inhabited by the lowest and 
 most degraded of the native negro population? 
 1. The coast lowlands are low, marshy and very 
 
 unhealthful.
 
 AFRICA 1 93 
 
 2. The dense forests and fevers of the Congo Basin are 
 unfavorable to human beings. 
 
 What else besides climate has aided in keeping the 
 natives of Central Africa in ignorance and 
 superstition? 
 i. The difficulty of crossing the Sahara Desert before 
 the intioduction of the camel by the Arabs. 
 
 2. The lack of any communication by sea. 
 By what routes did light first penetrate Central 
 Africa? 
 i . The valley of the Nile. 
 
 2. The route across the Red Sea to Abyssinia used by 
 the Arab traders. 
 
 What are the reasons that it has been difficult even 
 for Arab traders to penetrate the heart of Africa? 
 i . The coast has few good harbors. 
 
 2. The coast lowlands are marshy, hot and unheal thful. 
 
 3. The rivers are broken by many rapids and waterfalls. 
 
 4. During the dry season water is scarce upon the grass 
 lands or steppes: during the wet season the rivers overflow 
 the adjoining lowlands. 
 
 5. Pack animals are seldom used because of diseases 
 and poisonous insects. 
 
 6. Goods are usually carried upon the backs of the 
 natives. 
 
 What better means of transport are now being 
 introduced? 
 
 1. Railroads are being built from the coast into the 
 interior. 
 
 2. Steamers have been placed upon the lakes and rivers 
 and railroads built around some of the waterfalls. 
 
 3. A continuous boat and railroad route has now been 
 
 opened from the mouth of the Congo River across the 
 
 heart of Africa to the eastern coast. 
 13
 
 194 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 4. The Cape to Cairo Railroad is in process of building. 
 What can be said as to the importance of political 
 boundaries before the coming of Europeans? 
 
 1. The most civilized countries — those bordering upon 
 the Mediterranean have indefinite boundaries especially 
 on the side toward the Sahara. 
 
 2. The different groups of the black races occupied areas 
 without definite boundaries, each claiming what it was 
 able to hold in war. 
 
 What first directed the attention of modern Europe to 
 Africa? 
 
 1. South Africa, before the digging of the Suez Canal, 
 was a half-way station on the route to India. The Dutch 
 established a colony there, which was later taken over by 
 the English. 
 
 2. The North African States, inhabited by the descend- 
 ants of ancient empires, being poorly governed and in 
 constant turmoil, European nations established protec- 
 torates over them. 
 
 3. The Portuguese sought slaves for their colonies. 
 Why is it that the natives of Africa, with the exception 
 
 of the Abyssinians, have not preserved their 
 independence as have most of the natives of 
 Asia, but have passed under the rule of foreign 
 nations? 
 
 1. The natives range from the lowest savages in the 
 tropical parts to the civilized races along the Mediter- 
 ranean. They are not sufficiently organized to offer 
 serious resistance. 
 
 2. The European nations sought markets for their 
 manufactured products among these peoples. 
 
 3. Each of the European nations wished to control as 
 much as possible of the natural resources of undeveloped 
 Africa.
 
 AFRICA . 195 
 
 4. Some nations sought lands for colonizing their sur- 
 plus population and thereby adding to their power. 
 What is the present result of the efforts of Europeans 
 to partition Africa? 
 
 1. The French have acquired the largest area. It em- 
 braces Algeria, Tunis, Morocco, Madagascar, the Western 
 Sahara and Sudan, reaching in places to the Gulf of 
 Guinea. 
 
 2. The English control the next largest area. It in- 
 cludes Egypt, a part of East Africa. The Union of South 
 Africa which is expanding far into the interior. 
 
 3. The Belgians have a protectorate over greater part 
 of the Congo Basin. 
 
 4. The Portuguese obtained Mozambique — a region 
 lying opposite the island of Madagascar. 
 
 5. The former German possessions of East Africa, 
 Southwest Africa, Kamerun and Togo Land will remain 
 under control of the League of Nations. 
 
 What can we say as to the boundary lines since the 
 
 partitioning of Africa among the European 
 
 nations? 
 What should we expect would be the chief industries 
 
 in a continent inhabited until recently by a people 
 
 in a backward condition? 
 
 1. The Hottentots and Bushmen in Southwest Africa 
 depend entirely upon hunting for their living. 
 
 2. The natives of the Congo Forest and the steppe lands 
 live partly by hunting and partly by cultivating the soil 
 in a rude manner. 
 
 3. The mixed races of the dry steppes and desert bor- 
 ders make their living partly from their herds and partly 
 from the soil. 
 
 4. Those living in the Nile Valley and in the oases make 
 their living entirely by agriculture.
 
 196 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 5. The inhabitants of the Atlas region depend upon 
 both agriculture and upon the products of their herds. 
 Are we right in thinking of Africa before the entrance 
 
 of Europeans as a continent inhabited entirely by 
 
 people of the black race? 
 
 1. Different Semitic peoples, including Jews and Arabs, 
 form a large part of the population of North Africa and 
 Abyssinia. 
 
 2. The Hamites (the original or native white race of 
 Africa) include Berbers of the Atlas region, Tuaregs of 
 the Sahara, Fellahin of Egypt, Somalis, etc. 
 
 3 The Sudan region is known as "The Land of the 
 Blacks." 
 
 4. Central and much of South Africa is inhabited by 
 the Bantu, a negro race lighter colored than that of the 
 Sudan. 
 
 5. The Bushmen and Hottentots are found in Southwest 
 Africa. 
 
 Because of the condition of the continent early 
 African trade was confined to a very few com- 
 modities. 
 
 1. The Arabs were the chief traders, penetrating the 
 heart of the continent from across the Sahara Desert and 
 the Red Sea, and seeking slaves and ivory. 
 
 2. The Spanish and Portuguese sent expeditions into 
 the interior from the coasts seeking particularly slaves for 
 their plantations in the New World. 
 
 How can we account for the fact that the part of the 
 continent which contains the most backward 
 peoples contains the largest variety of great 
 animals? 
 1. The Sudan grass lands afford good pasturage and are 
 inhabited by the elephant, giraffe, buffalo, zebra, rhi- 
 noceros, antelope, etc.
 
 AFRICA 197 
 
 2. Because of the abundance of food afforded by the 
 herbivorous animals there are many great carnivores such 
 as the lion, leopard, panther, hyena, etc. 
 
 3. The marshes and sluggish streams afford a home for 
 the hippopotamus and crocodile. 
 
 4. The dense forests afford shelter for the great apes — 
 chimpanzee, gorilla and babboon. 
 
 AFRICA ACCORDING TO ITS NATURAL 
 REGIONS 
 
 Why is it best, taking up Africa now in detail, to study 
 it by natural regions rather than by countries? 
 
 1. The boundaries of the different countries and 
 possessions are in many cases still indefinite. 
 
 2. The study of Africa by natural regions is the easiest 
 way in which to get an understanding of the conditions 
 which govern the character and distribution of the 
 different peoples as well as the animals and plants. 
 
 THE ATLAS OR MEDITERRANEAN REGION 
 
 THE NORTHERN MOUNTAIN BORDER RISING 
 LIKE AN ISLAND BETWEEN THE PARCHED 
 SAHARA AND THE BLUE MEDITERRANEAN 
 WHICH FROM ITS CLIMATE AND PRODUC- 
 TIONS SEEMS TO BELONG TO SOUTHERN 
 EUROPE RATHER THAN TO AFRICA:— A 
 REGION WHICH SO COMPLETELY LOST 
 ITS ANCIENT CIVILIZATION THAT IT BE- 
 CAME FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS A NEST 
 OF PIRATES BUT IS NOW, UNDER THE 
 CONTROL OF FRANCE, GAINING A NEW 
 CIVILIZATION.
 
 198 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 What is the position of the Atlas Mountain region? 
 
 With what mountains of Europe do the Atlas Moun- 
 tains appear to be connected? 
 
 How can we account for the fact that while all the rest 
 of North Africa is naturally a desert the Atlas 
 region is well watered? 
 
 1. The Atlas region is far enough north so that it is 
 reached by the same winter rains as the peninsulas of 
 Southern Europe. 
 
 2. The Atlas Mountains are high, reaching from 
 6000 feet in the east to 15,000 in the Great Atlas of 
 Morocco. 
 
 How do the position and nature of the Atlas Moun- 
 tains affect the people who live in them and to 
 the south of them? 
 
 1. The mountains extend parallel to the coast interfer- 
 ing with travel toward the interior. 
 
 2. The mountains cut off the rains making the Sahara 
 more desert than it would otherwise be. 
 
 3. The Northern Atlas rises close to the shore of the 
 Mediterranean making the rainy slope narrow. 
 
 4. Between the Coast Atlas and the Great Atlas there 
 are broad valleys with shallow lakes and moderate 
 rainfall. 
 
 What products can we expect of this Mediterranean 
 region? 
 
 1 . The valleys and lower slopes produce great quantities 
 of semi-tropic fruits and all the common vegetables. 
 
 2. The interior plain-like valleys contain great fields 
 of wheat, barley and millet. 
 
 3. The drier steppes and mountain slopes are noted for 
 their sheep and goats. 
 
 How can we account for the fact that the people of 
 this region are a mixture of many races?
 
 AFRICA 199 
 
 i. The original people were the Berbers who still live in 
 picturesque villages upon the mountain slopes. 
 
 2. The ancient Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans made 
 settlements upon the coast 
 
 3. The Arabs conquered the region in the 7th century. 
 
 4. The Moors and many of the Jews expelled from 
 Spain settled in the Atlas region. 
 
 5 The Turks conquered the region in the 15th century. 
 6. The caravan trade with the heart of Africa to the 
 south of the Sahara brought many negroes. 
 Why are the countries of the North African Coast 
 
 known as "The Barbary States?" 
 Are all of the Barbary States included in the Atlas 
 region? 
 
 1. Morocco, Algeria and Tunis lie in the Atlas region. 
 
 2. Tripoli and Barka lie to the eastward where the 
 Sahara Desert reaches the coast. 
 
 What do we mean by the "Moors" and what had they 
 to do with the Barbary pirates? 
 
 1. The Moors are a mixture of Berber and Arab. They 
 form a line appearing race but have been spoiled by city 
 life. 
 
 2. Some of the Moors expelled from Spain became 
 pirates and carried on their work for several hundred 
 years until an American fleet subdued them. 
 
 Why are Morocco and Tripoli at present so far 
 behind Algeria and Tunis? 
 
 1. Tripoli, recently taken from Turkey by Italy, is 
 largely a desert. 
 
 2. Morocco although naturally rich has until its recent 
 acquisition by France been almost without a government. 
 What can we say of the methods of agriculture and the 
 
 productions of the Atlas region compared with 
 those of Southern Europe?
 
 200 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 i. The productions of the two regions are almost the 
 same. 
 
 2. Irrigation is necessary in both regions. 
 
 3. The high mountains possess similar forests of cork 
 oak, oak, cedar, pine, etc. 
 
 Why is Algeria called "The Winter Garden of 
 France?" 
 
 1. The coast region forms a delightful winter resort 
 much like Southern California. 
 
 2. Large quantities of winter fruits and vegetables are 
 shipped to France. 
 
 What can we say as to the outlook for the future pros- 
 perity of the Atlas region under the control of 
 France? 
 
 THE MEDITERRANEAN OF SOUTH AFRICA 
 
 THE SOUTHWEST COAST OF CAPE COLONY :- 
 A SMALL REGION HAVING ALL THE CHAR- 
 ACTERISTICS OF THE TRUE MEDITER- 
 RANEAN BUT SITUATED AT THE EXTREME 
 OPPOSITE END OF THE CONTINENT. 
 
 How does the latitude of the extreme southern point 
 of Africa compare with that of the Atlas region? 
 
 Why is the South African Mediterranean of little 
 extent? 
 
 1. South Africa ends in a point while North Africa is 
 broad. 
 
 2. The mountain scarpment of the South African High- 
 land rises close to the coast. 
 
 What early made South Africa, though far removed 
 from civilized settlements, become of great 
 importance?
 
 AFRICA 20 1 
 
 What three different peoples have had control of 
 
 Cape Town? 
 What are the commercial disadvantages of this 
 
 region as a source of semi-tropic fruits? 
 
 1. The distance to European markets is great. 
 
 2. Natal, lying to the east of Cape Colony, has a moist 
 warm climate and can supply semi-tropic fruits for the 
 inhabitants of the interior tableland easier than can the 
 Mediterranean border of which we are speaking. 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL RECITATION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 How the situation of the Atlas region favored the 
 development of its ancient civilization. 
 
 The climate of the Atlas region compared with that of 
 Southern Europe. 
 
 The disadvantages of Tripoli as compared with Tunis. 
 
 The advantages of Algiers as a winter resort. 
 
 Why ancient Carthage became so important a city. 
 
 Modern Tunis. 
 
 The Barbary pirates. 
 
 The Berbers. 
 
 The city of Fez in Morocco. 
 
 The market advantages of the North African Coast. 
 
 The story of the Moors. 
 
 How the North African Coast resembles California. 
 
 The advantages of French control of the Barbary States. 
 
 The story of Cape Colony. 
 
 THE SAHARA DESERT 
 
 THE SAHARA : THE GREATEST AND MOST 
 FORBIDDING OF THE WORLD'S DESERTS 
 WHOSE SCORCHING SUN AND LIMITLESS 
 EXPANSE OF SAND AND ROCK HAVE AIDED
 
 202 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 IN MAKING AFRICA "THE DARK CONTI- 
 NENT" :- A REGION WHICH IN SPITE OF 
 ITS DREADED CHARACTER CONTAINS 
 OASES OF WONDERFUL RICHNESS AS WELL 
 AS THE FAMED NILE VALLEY TO WHICH 
 CIVILIZATION OWES ITS BEGINNING. 
 
 THE SAHARA REGION AS A WHOLE 
 
 In how far can we consider the Sahara responsible 
 for the backward character of the negroes of 
 Central Africa? 
 
 i. If Central Africa had been easily reached by land the 
 more civilized peoples would long ago have penetrated the 
 region. 
 
 2. It was not until after the discovery of America that 
 navigators sailed along the coasts of Central Africa. 
 
 3. The Sahara stretches entirely across North Africa 
 being 800 to 1400 miles wide. 
 
 4. The Sahara barrier is more difficult to cross than 
 mountains or seas. 
 
 Is the whole of the desert commonly known as the 
 "Sahara?" 
 
 1. The portion lying west of the lower Nile Valley is 
 known as the Libyan Desert. 
 
 2. The part between the Nile Valley and the Red Sea 
 is known as the Nubian Desert. 
 
 Does the desert region we are studying stop at the 
 
 Red Sea? 
 Are we right in thinking of the whole Sahara as a level 
 
 expanse of sand and rock without water or 
 
 vegetation? 
 1. The Central Sahara possesses mountains which rise 
 to an elevation of 8000 feet and receive sufficient rain to 
 support scanty vegetation.
 
 AFRICA 203 
 
 2. Enough rain falls in the western part to keep alive 
 such plants as the gum acacia. 
 
 3. TheLibyan Desert is covered with drifting sand dunes. 
 
 4. The Nile Valley forms a ribbon of green from north 
 to south across the desert. 
 
 5. Springs give rise to oases some of which are miles 
 in extent. 
 
 How can we account for springs in a region where 
 there is so little rain? 
 
 1. The rains that fall upon the mountains sink in the 
 sands and some of the water comes to the surface upon 
 the lower slopes as springs. 
 
 2. Artesian wells afford water in some of the lower 
 basins of the desert. 
 
 What is the appearance of an oasis? 
 
 1. An oasis differs only from the desert around it in 
 having water. 
 
 2. Seen from a distance an oasis appears as a dense 
 forest of date palms. 
 
 How is it possible to carry on travel across the Sahara 
 Desert? 
 
 1. The camel makes possible desert trade and travel. 
 
 2. In parts of the desert the oases are near enough 
 together to enable the camel, and even horses to make the 
 journey between them. 
 
 How can the inhabitants dispose of the products of 
 so many date palms? 
 
 1. Dates form the chief food. Without the date palms 
 the oases would scarcely be habitable. 
 
 2. Large quantities are exported, the Sahara date being 
 sweeter than the Arabian. The Sahara date is grown 
 commercially in Southern California. 
 
 What other food than dates have the people of the 
 desert?
 
 204 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 i. Millet, wheat, beans, fruits and small vegetables are 
 also grown. 
 
 2. Camels' milk and curds form much of the food of the 
 nomadic peoples. 
 
 Why have the routes of trade and travel across the 
 Sahara been chiefly from north to south? 
 
 i. The market for the products of the Sudan and the 
 oases is found along the Mediterranean. 
 
 2. The Mediterranean countries are the source of the 
 various goods sought by the natives. 
 What are the chief caravan routes across the Sahara? 
 
 i. The Nile Valley offers a route to East Central 
 Africa. 
 
 2. Routes lead from Lake Chad and Timbuktu to Tunis 
 and Tripoli. 
 
 3. From Timbuktu routes lead to Algiers and Morocco. 
 What is the nature of the caravan and the length of 
 
 time required for the journey? 
 What products has uncivilized Central Africa to export? 
 
 1. Large numbers of black slaves were once wanted in 
 the Turkish Empire and America. 
 
 2. Gums, ebony, ivory, coconut and leather are 
 produced. 
 
 What effect is the coming of Europeans having upon 
 the caravan trade across the Sahara? 
 
 1. The northern end of the Cape to Cairo railroad has 
 been built as far south as Khartum in the Sudan. 
 
 2. Many exports from the Upper Niger Valley now go 
 by railroad to ports upon the Gulf of Guinea instead of 
 crossing the Sahara by caravan. 
 
 3. The French are building a railroad from Algiers 
 across the desert to Timbuktu. 
 
 Is it likely the Sahara Desert will ever become more 
 useful to men?
 
 AFRICA 205 
 
 i. About one part in forty of the surface is now culti- 
 vated. Artesian wells may enlarge this somewhat. 
 
 2 Many of the oases as well as the Nile Valley have a 
 delightful winter climate and are resorted to by those 
 wishing to escape the cold northern winters. 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL RECITATION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 A Sahara oasis. 
 
 The Tuareg people of the Central Sahaia. 
 A caravan journey from Timbuktu to Tripoli. 
 A sand storm in the Sahara. 
 A village in an oasis. 
 The date palms and their fruit. 
 The food of the desert people. 
 The Libyan Desert. 
 The Nubian Desert. 
 
 The different caravan routes across the Sahara. 
 Why the Sahara though very hot is more healthful than 
 the Congo Forest. 
 
 The causes for the existence of the Sahara Desert. 
 The ways in which the Sahara can be made useful to men. 
 
 EGYPT:— THE GIFT OF THE NILE AND THE 
 CRADLE OF CIVILIZATION :— A NARROW 
 RIBBON OF LAND WINDING NORTHWARD 
 ACROSS THE SAHARA, SO RICH, SO WELL 
 WATERED AND SO PROTECTED BY THE 
 DESERT THAT ITS FORTUNATE INHABI- 
 TANTS CAME TO OCCUPY THE FOREMOST 
 PLACE AMONG THE ANCIENTS AND LEFT 
 WONDERFUL MONUMENTS OF THEIR CIV- 
 ILIZATION MANY OF WHICH REMAIN TO 
 THE PRESENT DAY.
 
 206 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 What do we mean by the term "Egypt?" 
 
 i. The country of Egypt includes a large area in north- 
 east Africa but its boundaries are rather uncertain in 
 places. 
 
 2. The Land of Egypt includes the Nile delta and the 
 lower 700 miles of its valley. 
 Why is Egypt called the "Gift of the Nile?" 
 
 1. The Valley of the Nile lies between the Libyan and 
 Nubian Deserts. 
 
 2. If it were not for the Nile there would be one con- 
 tinuous desert. 
 
 3. The Nile moistens and fertilized the soil of its valley 
 during each yearly overflow. 
 
 What do we mean by Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt? 
 
 1. Lower Egypt is the name given to the delta which 
 spreads out below the city of Cairo. 
 
 2. Upper Egypt is the name given to the Nile Valley as 
 far as Assuan, the location of the first cataract. 
 
 Does the first cataract mark the limits of usefulness of 
 the Nile? 
 
 1 . Above Upper Egypt the Nile valley is usually narrow 
 and supports few people. 
 
 2. As a waterway the Nile is valuable through the Sudan 
 and nearly to its source although there are a number of 
 "cataracts." 
 
 Why is it that Lower Egypt contains the greater popu- 
 lation? 
 
 1. Below Cairo the Nile branches, spreading out over 
 a great area shaped like the Greek letter delta, hence the 
 name. 
 
 2. The delta lands are low, easily flooded and of so 
 great an extent that they naturally form the more im- 
 portant part of Egypt.
 
 AFRICA 207 
 
 In what other respect beside that of irrigating and 
 enriching the soil is the Nile of great importance 
 to the inhabitants of the valley? 
 
 1. The Nile offers an unbroken highway the whole 
 length of Egypt. 
 
 2. The north winds of the winter season blow the laden 
 boats up the river while it is easy to float down with the 
 current. 
 
 In what respect was it a disadvantage to the ancient 
 Egyptians that the Nile afforded so good a 
 highway? 
 
 1. The valley opened a passage for the uncivilized 
 peoples of the south to attack them. 
 
 2. The Nile opening to the Mediterranean exposed the 
 country to attack from the sea. 
 
 3. The delta could be reached from Asia by crossing 
 the Desert of Sinai. 
 
 How is it that the Nile made possible the wonderful 
 development of ancient Egypt? 
 
 1. The main river rises far to the southward in the region 
 of tropical rains. 
 
 2. The branch known as the Blue Nile rises in the Abys- 
 sinian Highlands where heavy rains of the southeast mon- 
 soon fall from July to September. 
 
 3. The lower Nile river begins to rise in June, reaching 
 its highest in November. 
 
 4. The muddy Hood waters spread over the valley and 
 delta depositing rich silt which fertilizes the soil. 
 
 5. The waters subsiding in early winter the crops are 
 put in and grow rapidly with the returning heat of 
 spring. 
 
 How is it that the Nile floods are more favorable to 
 agriculture than those of other rivers that flow 
 through deserts?
 
 208 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 i . The floods of such rivers as the Tigris-Euphrates and 
 Colorado are due to melting snows and come late for 
 spring planting unless the water is held back in reservoirs. 
 
 2. The Nile floods come much earlier and at just the 
 right time to enable the farmers to prepare the lands for 
 the spring crops. 
 
 3. The Nile usually floods its valley and delta without 
 assistance from the farmers. 
 
 What disadvantages did the ancient Egyptian farmers 
 labor under? 
 
 1. Sometimes the Nile floods did not rise high enough 
 to overflow the valley and then famine resulted. 
 
 2. Only one crop could be raised each year. 
 
 How has the English control of Egypt made farming 
 more profitable and crops certain? 
 
 1 . Reservoirs have been built to hold the surplus water 
 in reserve for dry years. 
 
 2. Three crops can now be raised each year with the 
 aid of artificial irrigation. 
 
 What other regions have we studied that compare 
 with the Nile Valley as regards security, fertility 
 and their ancient civilizations? 
 
 1 . The valley of the Tigris-Euphrates Rivers known as 
 Mesopotamia. 
 
 2. The plains of China forming the delta of the Hwang 
 Ho River. 
 
 3. The river oases in the deserts of Turkestan. 
 
 4. The plains of India. 
 
 How did their isolation in the desert aid the ancient 
 Egyptians? 
 
 1. They lived almost free from danger of attack by 
 enemies. 
 
 2. Their freedom from outside disturbances gave op- 
 portunity for the development of industries and civilization.
 
 AFRICA 209 
 
 What should we expect as regards the products of the 
 fertile land of Egypt? 
 
 1. Wheat once made Egypt the grainery of the sur- 
 rounding nations. Wheat is still raised together with 
 laige quantities of barley, millet and beans. 
 
 2. Cotton, sugar-cane, rice and tobacco have been intro- 
 duced in recent years. 
 
 3. Dates, oranges, lemons, figs, grapes, melons and vege- 
 tables are raised in large quantities. 
 
 How did Egypt finally lose its ancient culture but not 
 its productiveness as did Mesopotamia? 
 
 1 Warlike nations arose capable of crossing the 
 barriers and overrunning the country. Among these 
 were the Assyrians, Greeks, Romans and Moham- 
 medans. 
 
 2. Fortunately the Nile irrigated its valley without 
 help so that the Egyptian farmers continued to sow and 
 reap although their nation was destroyed. 
 What causes have determined the position of the chief 
 cities? 
 
 1. Alexandria, an ancient city, is the port of entry upon 
 the delta. 
 
 2. Cairo the chief city is on the Nile and forms the 
 gateway to Upper Egypt. 
 
 3. Port Said owes its importance to the Suez Canal. 
 Why may we look forward to a great future for the rich 
 
 land of Egypt? 
 
 1. The soil of Egypt is still as fertile as it was thousands 
 of years ago. 
 
 2. Modern Egypt has the additional advantage of com- 
 plete protection and a more certain and abundant water 
 supply. 
 
 3. Modern methods of agriculture will farther aid the 
 productiveness of the soil. 
 
 14
 
 2IO PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL RECITATION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 Why the earliest civilization of which we have any 
 record grew up in Egypt. 
 
 The monuments left by the ancient Egyptians. 
 
 How many of the ancient buildings came to be buried 
 for thousands of years. 
 
 The river Nile and its floods. 
 
 Comparison of the Nile with the Tigris-Euphrates 
 Rivers. 
 
 The causes of famines in Egypt. 
 
 The pyramids. 
 
 The advantages of reservoirs to the Egyptian farmers. 
 
 The present Egyptians-and their religions. 
 
 Comparison of the Nile Delta with other great deltas. 
 
 The river Nile as a highway. 
 
 The Nile Valley as a highway. 
 
 The story of the city of Alexandria. 
 
 The sights of the city of Cairo. 
 
 The benefits to Egypt of the present English control. 
 
 THE SUDAN 
 
 THE LAND OF THE BLACKS: -THAT BROAD 
 BELT OF COUNTRY STRETCHING ACROSS 
 AFRICA IN AN EAST AND WEST DIRECTION 
 BETWEEN THE SAHARA DESERT AND THE 
 CONGO FOREST:— A LAND INHABITED 
 BY THE DARKEST OF THE NEGRO RACES 
 AND POSSESSING, BECAUSE OF ITS MOD- 
 ERATE RAINFALL, EXTENSIVE GRASS 
 LANDS OR STEPPES UPON WHICH LIVE 
 A WONDERFUL VARIETY OF GREAT 
 ANIMALS.
 
 AFRICA 2 1 1 
 
 What do we understand by the Sudan region of 
 Africa? 
 
 i. A rolling tableland in the edge of the tropics with 
 seasonal rains, that is, a dry and a wet season. 
 
 2. The northern part of the Sudan is a true steppe which 
 blends into the Sahara Desert. 
 
 3. The central part is covered with rank grasses and 
 other forage and dotted with groups of trees. 
 
 4. With increasing rain toward the south the Sudan 
 grass lands shade into the Congo Forest. 
 
 5. During the wet season the Sudan is almost flooded, 
 during the dry season it is parched and barren. 
 
 Does the region ordinarily known as the Sudan con- 
 tain all of Africa having the same climate? 
 
 1. The South African Tableland is a similar region 
 similarly situated south of the equator. 
 
 2. The Lake Tableland of East Africa is similar to the 
 Sudan. It lies across the equator and connects the other 
 two tablelands. 
 
 Should we not expect a region such as the Sudan filled 
 with life to be well watered? 
 
 1. The Nile flows across the eastern end of the 
 Sudan. 
 
 2. Lake Chad occupies a basin without outlet in the 
 heart of the Sudan. 
 
 3. The Senegal River flows westerly and the Niger, 
 one of the great rivers of Africa, flows easterly and 
 southerly into the Gulf of Guinea. 
 
 4. Somali Land the ''Horn of Africa" King upon the 
 east coast has in general a steppe-like character. 
 
 Is there anything about the position of Somali Land 
 which explains the fact that its inhabitants are 
 not negroes? 
 
 How can we explain the fact that the negroes of the
 
 212 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 Sudan who are in most ways so backward in their 
 development keep herds and engage in agricul- 
 ture instead of depending upon hunting? 
 
 i. The influence of the Arab traders has penetrated 
 nearly all parts of Africa. 
 
 2. The negroes of the Northern Sudan are mixed with 
 the Hamite race of the oases. 
 
 3. The presence of many kinds of wild animals has led 
 to the domestication of some of them. 
 
 4. Other domestic animals have been introduced from 
 North Africa. 
 
 5. In much of the Sudan the climate is favorable to 
 gardening and fruit growing. 
 
 What are the native foods of the Negroes? (Yams, 
 
 bananas, melons, legumes, meat.) 
 How can we account for the great variety of wild 
 
 animals in the Sudan? 
 
 1. The grass-lands between the Sahara and the Congo 
 Forest afford rich forage for herbivorous animals. 
 
 2. The food supplied by the herbivorous animals led 
 to the great development of the carnivorous animals that 
 feed upon them. 
 
 In what way are conditions of life changing in the 
 Sudan? 
 
 1. The Sudan has been divided into different states each 
 controlled by one of the European nations. 
 
 2. Railways are being built and rivers made navigable 
 so that many of the ancient caravan routes are falling into 
 disuse. 
 
 What is the Sudan capable of supplying the outside 
 world? 
 
 1 . The Sudan is one of the richest undeveloped regions 
 of the world. 
 
 2. The exports of the past have been ivory, gums,
 
 AFRICA 2 1 3 
 
 indigo, Morocco leather and some rubber. Palm oil is 
 now the leading article exported. 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL DISCUSSION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 The negroes of the Sudan. 
 
 The great animals of the grass-lands. 
 
 The giant apes. 
 
 Why there is such a mixture of races in the Northern 
 Sudan. 
 
 The occupations of the Sudan Negroes. 
 
 Lake Chad. 
 
 Why the climate of the Sudan varies so greatly between 
 the north and the south. 
 
 The different products of the Sudan. 
 
 The countries of the Sudan. 
 
 The Mohammedan influence upon the people of the 
 Sudan. 
 
 W T hy the Sudan is called the "Land of the Blacks." 
 
 The city of Timbuktu. 
 
 The animals of the rivers. 
 
 The different seasons of the Sudan. 
 
 W T hy the Sudan must some time become an important 
 region. 
 
 THE LAKE TABLELAND OF EAST AFRICA 
 
 THE NATURAL HIGHWAY BETWEEN NORTH 
 AND SOUTH AFRICA REMARKABLE FOR 
 CONTAINING THE LARGEST LAKES AND 
 THE HIGHEST MOUNTAINS OF THE CON- 
 TINENT :- A REGION SIMILAR TO THE 
 SUDAN IN ITS PLANT AND ANIMAL LIFE 
 BUT CONTAINING QUITE DIFFERENT 
 RACES OF MEN.
 
 214 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 What is the position and extent of the Lake Table- 
 land? 
 
 What characters has the Tableland which enables us 
 to speak of it as a natural highway? 
 
 i. The rainfall is light in most parts so that grassy 
 steppes take the place of the dense forests usually found 
 in the tropics. 
 
 2. The tableland contains a series of valleys and 
 large lakes extending in a north and south direction, the 
 largest lake being the source of the Nile. 
 How can we explain the presence of the unusual num- 
 ber of lakes in this part of Africa? 
 
 i. Two great rifts along which the earth has sunken 
 traverse the tableland from north to south. 
 
 2. Waters have gathered in the more deeply sunken 
 portions of the rifts forming lakes. 
 
 How can we account for the lofty mountain peaks ris- 
 ing above the tableland? 
 
 i. Many volcanoes, some of them active, are found 
 near and are due to the rifts or fractures in the earth. 
 
 2. The extinct volcano of Kenia rises 17,000 feet: — 
 
 Kilimanjaro 19,500 feet. Many smaller volcanoes are 
 
 found to the eastward of the eastern rift. 
 
 Why is the northern part, known as the Abyssinian 
 
 Highlands, sometimes called "The African 
 
 Switzerland?" 
 
 1. The Abyssinian Highlands or Plateau rises abruptly 
 above the level of the Sudan region to a height of 7000 to 
 8000 feet. 
 
 2. From the top of the 1 oiling plateau rise mountain 
 peaks to 12.000 and 15.000 feet. 
 
 3. The plateau is the source of the Blue Nile and other 
 rivers that have cut deep gorges down its slopes. 
 
 Why is the rainfall so much less upon the Lake Table-
 
 AFRICA 215 
 
 land than upon the tropical lowlands bordering it 
 upon both the east and west? 
 
 1. Tropical rains are the result of currents of air rising 
 above the heated earth. 
 
 2. The tableland is so much cooler than either the Congo 
 Basin or the coast lowlands to the east that the upward 
 air currents are not as strong and the rainfall is less. 
 How does Africa compare with South America as 
 
 regard wet tropical lowlands and dry highlands? 
 How has the rainfall affected the distribution of the 
 vegetation upon the Lake Tableland? 
 
 1. The drier parts form grassy steppes. 
 
 2. Regions with more rain are "covered with thorny 
 bushes. 
 
 3. In the lower rift valleys about the lakes the rain is 
 still heavier and there are dense tropical forests. 
 
 What important influence does Lake Victoria have 
 
 upon the flow of the Nile? 
 What interesting zones of climate and vegetation do 
 
 we find upon the slopes of all these tropical 
 
 highlands? 
 
 1. Tropical forests extend up to 5000 feet. 
 
 2. The sub-tropical belt reaches from 5000 feet to 9000 
 feet. What must be the products? 
 
 3. The cool lands above 9000 feet are adapted to 
 grazing and raising cereals. 
 
 4. About the bases of Kenia and Kilimanjaro there is a 
 belt better watered than the grassy steppes and well 
 adapted to agriculture. 
 
 In what respects are the natives of the Lake Tableland 
 different from those of the Sudan? 
 1. The Abyssinian Highland is inhabited by a semi- 
 Christian white race belonging to the same group (Hamite) 
 as the Berbers.
 
 2l6 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 2. The Negros of the cential and southern part of the 
 tableland belong to the Bantu race which was originally 
 spread over the most of South Africa. 
 Upon what do the people of the tableland depend for a 
 living? 
 
 i. The Abyssinians are farmers and herdsmen. 
 
 2. The more advanced of the Negroes possess herds and 
 carry on farming where there is sufficient rain. 
 
 3. Where the rainfall is light the Negroes depend chiefly 
 upon their herds and upon hunting. 
 
 What is the nature of the farming carried on by the 
 Negroes? 
 
 1. The land cultivated by the Negroes is prepared by 
 hand and is confined to small patches of land near their 
 villages. 
 
 2. The products of the gardens are chiefly melons, 
 squashes, yams and millet. 
 
 Should not the products of the Lake Tableland be very 
 similar to those of the Sudan? 
 
 1. Slaves once formed the chief commodity exported, 
 the caravan routes reaching the coast at Zanzibar. 
 
 2. The products exported fiom the interior are gums, 
 ivory, hides and rubber, palm oil, copra and cloves from 
 the lower coastal slopes. 
 
 What are the difficulties connected with carrying on 
 trade upon the Lake Tableland? 
 
 1 . Except for the lakes and the Nile the waterways are 
 not adapted to navigation. 
 
 2. The rinderpest and the tsetse fly make the use of 
 animals almost impossible. 
 
 3. Goods are usually transported on the backs of 
 Negroes.
 
 AFRICA 217 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL RECITATION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 The climate of the Lake Tableland. 
 
 The Great Lakes. 
 
 The Rift valleys. 
 
 How the animals compare with those of the Sudan. 
 
 The people of Abyssinia. 
 
 The character of the Abyssinian Highlands. 
 
 The people of Somaliland. 
 
 The volcanoes of Kenia and Kilimanjaro. 
 
 The difficulties of travel. 
 
 The slave trade. 
 
 A negro village. 
 
 How German East Africa once blocked the Cape to 
 Cairo Railway. 
 
 Why the Lake Highland offers the best route for the 
 Cape to Cairo Railway. 
 
 The City of Zanzibar. 
 
 The wild animals of the Lake Tableland. 
 
 THE CONGO FOREST 
 
 THE CONGO FOREST:— THAT TROPICAL RE- 
 GION IN THE HEART OF AFRICA PEOPLED 
 ENTIRELY BY NEGROES :— THE LAST POR- 
 TION OF THE DARK CONTINENT TO BE 
 EXPLORED BECAUSE OF THE DENSITY OF 
 THE FOREST, THE UNHEALTHFULNESS 
 OF THE CLIMATE AND THE DIFFICULTY 
 OF TRAVEL. 
 
 What region do we mean when we speak of the 
 "Congo Forest?" 
 
 1. The basin of the Congo River.
 
 2l8 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 2, The Upper and Lower Guinea Coasts. 
 With what other tropical forests can we compare the 
 Congo Forest? 
 
 i. The forest of the Amazon basin. 
 
 2. The forests of the Malay Archipelago. 
 To what is due the vast extent of the Congo Forests? 
 
 i. The fact that the tropical belt passes through the 
 heart of the continent. 
 
 2. The extent of the lowlands along the Upper Guinea 
 coast and the low plateau-like basin of the Congo 
 River. 
 
 3. Tropical rains resulting from the ascending currents 
 of hot moist air. 
 
 What would be the nature of the climate of the Congo 
 Basin if its rainfall were dependent upon moisture 
 brought by the Ocean winds? 
 
 1. Mountainous highlands border the coast to both 
 eastward and westward. 
 
 2. The mountains upon the west coast rise in the Kam- 
 erun district to a height of 13,000 feet. 
 
 Why are the waterways of the Congo Forest so much 
 less used by the natives than are those of the 
 Amazon Forest? 
 
 1. The Amazon Basin is low and the rivers flow slowly 
 with few rapids and falls. 
 
 2. The Congo Basin is a low plateau and its streams 
 are frequently broken by rapids. 
 
 How is it that the Congo though having such a volume 
 of water that it colors the sea for a distance of 
 40 miles from the land was discovered by land 
 explorers? 
 
 1. The river as it approaches the sea divides into 
 innumerable channels. 
 
 2. 2 Co miles of rapids, impassable for boats, mark the
 
 AFRICA 219 
 
 descent of the river from the plateau-like basin to the 
 coastal plain. 
 
 3. Livingston discovered the headwaters of the river. 
 
 Stanley later found the river and followed it to the ocean. 
 
 To what group of negroes do the natives of the Congo 
 
 Forest belong and why are they less civilized 
 
 than those of the Sudan? 
 
 1. The Negroes of the Forest belong to the great Bantu 
 race. 
 
 2 The conditions of the dense forest are unfavorable. 
 
 3. The Negroes of the Sudan live in a more healthful 
 open region and have benefited from contact with the 
 peoples of North Africa 
 
 Upon what do the Negroes of the forest depend for 
 food? 
 
 1. The Negroes are farmers by nature raising yams, 
 plantains, pawpaws and pineapples. 
 
 2. No herds are kept except upon the borders of the 
 surrounding grass lands where there is forage. 
 
 What are the great animals that inhabit the more open 
 forest and grass lands? (Elephant, leopard, buf- 
 falo, wild cattle, zebra, antelope, hippopotamus.) 
 
 For what other animals is the Congo Region remark- 
 ably interesting? 
 There is an innumerable number of monkeys belonging 
 
 to almost every known variety. 
 
 Why are the cannibal tribes and Pigmies of Africa 
 confined to the forests? (There is a lack of ani- 
 mal food in the forest.) 
 
 Why is the Congo Region likely to become of very 
 great importance? 
 1 Rubber trees exist in the forest in numbers greater 
 
 than in any other region. 
 
 2. There is an inexhaustible supply of ebony, teak, and
 
 2 20 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 mahogany. Oil palms, wild coffee and cotton grow in 
 the more open parts. 
 
 3. Valuable deposits of iron, copper and other minerals 
 are known to exist. 
 How is the Congo Forest governed? Is it under the 
 
 control of the natives, or, like other parts of 
 
 Africa ruled by Europeans? 
 
 1. The Congo Free State, the boundaries of which coin- 
 cide with the Congo Basin is a protectorate of Belgium. 
 
 2. The most of the smaller states along the Guinea coast 
 are controlled by European Nations. 
 
 What is needed in order that the natives may be raised 
 out of their ignorant and degraded condition? 
 
 1. Kind, honest treatment and education along indus- 
 trial lines. 
 
 2. Improvement in their moral and physical condition. 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL DISCUSSION AND WRITTEN 
 REPORT 
 
 Comparison of the Congo Forest with the Amazon 
 Forest. 
 
 Comparison of the Congo Basin with the Amazon Basin. 
 
 Comparison of the inhabitants of the Congo Forest with 
 those of the Amazon. 
 
 The explorations of Stanley and Livingston. 
 
 Difficulties of travel in the Congo Forest. 
 
 The mouth of the Congo River. 
 
 How means of travel in the Congo have been improved. 
 
 The resources of the Congo Forest. 
 
 The countries of the Guinea Coast. 
 
 The origin of the country of Liberia. 
 
 The Tigmies. 
 
 The monkeys of the forest.
 
 AFRICA 221 
 
 THE SOUTH AFRICAN TABLELAND 
 
 THE SOUTH AFRICAN TABLELAND :— A REGION 
 EMBRACING NEARLY THE WHOLE OF THE 
 CONTINENT LYING SOUTH OF THE CONGO 
 FOREST AND THE LAKE TABLELAND, A 
 PART BEING KNOWN AS THE KALAHARI 
 DESERT AND A PART AS THE VELD : A 
 REGION MORE ADVANCED THAN THE 
 MOST OF AFRICA BECAUSE OF ITS TEM- 
 PERATE CLIMATE AND GREAT MINERAL 
 WEALTH. 
 
 What small part of South Africa already studied is not 
 
 included in the tableland? 
 To what regions north of the equator do parts of the 
 
 tableland correspond? 
 
 i. The Kalahari desert corresponds to the Sahara. 
 
 2. The Veld corresponds to the Sudan in vegetation 
 and animal life. 
 
 How is it that the tableland as a whole is not dry and 
 barren like the Sahara? 
 
 i . The Sahara lies in the trade wind belt but the winds 
 blow off the land. 
 
 2. The South African Tableland lies in the trade wind 
 belt, the winds blowing off the Indian Ocean. 
 Why if the winds blow off the ocean is much of the 
 tableland very dry? 
 
 i. The highest part (Dasuto Highlands reaching 1 1 ,ooo 
 feet) lies along the eastern margin preventing much of the 
 moisture from reaching the interior veld. 
 
 2. The moisture decreases toward the west until the 
 Kalahari Desert is reached. 
 
 How does the nature of the tableland make traveling 
 easier than in most other parts of Africa?
 
 22 2 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 i. The surface consists in large part of open rolling 
 plains with flat-topped peaks. 
 
 2. The two chief streams, Orange River and Zambezi, 
 have not cut deeply into the plateau but flow in broad 
 valleys. 
 
 How is it that the tableland is so healthful although 
 lying in the edge of the tropics? 
 
 i. The plateau varies from 4000 to 6000 feet high. 
 
 2. The rainfall is light. 
 What native inhabitants were found here and still 
 remain in large numbers? 
 
 1. The greater part forms the home of the Blacks of 
 the Bantu race (Kaffirs). 
 
 2. In the Kalahari Desert region the Bushmen and 
 Hottentots live. 
 
 What first led white people to occupy the dry table- 
 land? 
 
 1. The early Dutch settlers of Cape Town wished to 
 live independent of English control and so emigrated into 
 the interior. 
 
 2. The discovery of the Kimberly diamond mines now 
 the most noted in the world. 
 
 3. The discovery of the "Witwatersrand gold mines. 
 How do the Dutch farmers manage to make a living 
 
 upon the dry veld? 
 
 1. The grassy plains are well suited to the raising of 
 cattle and sheep. 
 
 2. Each farmer requires a great stretch of land to sup- 
 port his herds. 
 
 3. In the moister parts wheat and corn can be grown 
 without irrigation. 
 
 Is the tableland easy to reach from the coastal plain? 
 1. The outer rim is.higher than the interior except where 
 the rivers flow out.
 
 AFRICA 223 
 
 2. The tableland rises very steeply from the coastal 
 
 lowlands. 
 
 Should we not expect to find a great variety of produc- 
 tions between the coast and the high interior 
 veld? 
 
 1. The Mediterranean fruits thrive, as we have already 
 learned, in the region about Cape Town. 
 
 2. Tropical and sub-tropical fruits grow upon the east 
 coast and in the valley of the Zambezi River. 
 
 3. About Johannesburg the climate favors products of 
 the temperate belt. 
 
 4. Sheep, goats and ostriches are the chief products of 
 the seaward slopes of the tableland because of the lack of 
 water. 
 
 What ports are best adapted to the shipment of South 
 African products? 
 
 1. Cape Town is the oldest and most important port 
 but it has a poor harbor. 
 
 2. Delagoa Bay upon the east coast has the best natural 
 harbor of the continent. 
 
 How can the drawbacks to life in South Africa be 
 remedied? 
 
 1. The lack of water upon the veld has encouraged stock 
 raising which necessitates the homes being far apart and 
 with few modern conveniences. 
 
 2. The development of irrigation systems such as those 
 in the Western United States is necessary before the 
 country can support a large white population in comfort. 
 How does the situation, climate and character of the 
 
 people give the South African States an advantage 
 over most other countries of the continent? 
 
 1. The climate is suited to the white races. 
 
 2 The remote position tends to develop independence. 
 
 3. The immigrants are mostly of European descent.
 
 224 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL DISCUSSION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 The discovery and settlement of Cape Town. 
 
 The story of the Boers. 
 
 Farm life in the Transvaal. 
 
 The Bushmen. 
 
 The Hottentots. 
 
 Diamond mining. 
 
 Gold mining on the Rand. 
 
 The Kaffirs. 
 
 Disadvantages of farming on the veld. 
 
 The Zambezi River. 
 
 Delgoa Bay and the surrounding country. 
 
 THE AFRICAN ISLANDS 
 
 Where do we find the most islands, along those 
 continental shores that are regular or those that 
 are broken? 
 
 From the nature of the coast of Africa should we expect 
 it to possess many islands? 
 i. Compare coast of Africa with the coasts of South 
 
 America and Australia. 
 
 2. Judging from the depth of the ocean the Cape Verde 
 and Canary Islands belong to Africa, 
 
 3. Madagascar belongs to Africa although separated 
 by a broad deep channel. 
 
 Judging from its size and position ought not Mada- 
 gascar to be one of the most important islands of 
 the world? 
 
 1. Madagascar is the fourth island in size. 
 
 2. The island lies under the equator and is naturally 
 hot and moist.
 
 THE NATURAL REGION'S OF AUSTRALIA 
 
 Facing f. «4>
 
 AUSTRALIA 225 
 
 3. The mountains in the interior are high enough to 
 afford a climate in which Europeans can live. 
 
 4. The inhabitants are related to the Malays. They 
 came originally across the Indian Ocean from the Asiatic 
 Islands. 
 
 5 The island affords rubber and all other tropical 
 products in addition to minerals. 
 
 SECTION 2. AUSTRALIA 
 
 TOPIC 
 
 AUSTRALIA :— THE SMALLEST AND MOST RE- 
 MOTE OF THE CONTINENTS, SOMETIMES 
 CALLED THE "ODD ONE" BECAUSE OF ITS 
 UNUSUAL SURFACE FEATURES, ITS 
 STRANGE ANIMALS AND PLANTS, AND 
 FINALLY, BECAUSE OF ITS NATIVE 
 PEOPLES WHO ARE AMONG THE MOST 
 PRIMITIVE OF THE HUMAN RACE. 
 
 MAP STUDIES 
 
 In what part of the world lies the continent we are now 
 
 to study? 
 What do we mean by saying Australia is situated in the 
 
 water hemisphere? 
 What large islands form stepping stones to Asia? 
 What is the distance of Australia in round numbers 
 
 from the nearest point of Asia? What is that 
 
 point? 
 In what direction are Australia's nearest civilized 
 
 neighbors? 
 What continent does Australia resemble as regards 
 
 the character of its coast line?
 
 226 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 What large island north and small one south are 
 separated from Australia by shallow waters? 
 
 What continent does Australia resemble in the general 
 character of its surface? 
 
 Are there any mountains? If so where located? 
 
 Is the general surface of the continent high or low? 
 
 In what part is the chief lowland? 
 
 What bays on opposite sides of the continent does this 
 lowland connect? 
 
 Where is the only large river system? 
 
 What should we expect from the latitude would be the 
 range in temperature? 
 
 What does the absence of rivers over most of the 
 surface suggest as to the rainfall? 
 
 Judging from the latitude what rainfall belts should 
 Australia he in? 
 
 Judging from the latitude and wind belts should the 
 mountains along the eastern coast have any 
 influence upon the climate of the interior? 
 
 How does the distribution of the settlements corre- 
 spond with what we would think ought to be the 
 distribution of the rainfall? 
 
 From what direction is it likely the natives originally 
 came? 
 
 Find the Great Barrier Reef and tell what you can 
 about its influence upon navigation. 
 
 PROBLEMS 
 
 AUSTRALIA LIES FAR FROM THE CENTRES OF 
 THE WORLD'S ACTIVITIES; POSSESSES AN 
 UNFAVORABLE COAST LINE; A DESERT IN- 
 TERIOR; IS IN MOST PARTS LACKING IN 
 NATIVE PLANTS AFFORDING HUMAN FOOD, 
 AND IS WITHOUT ANIMALS SUCH AS ARE
 
 AUSTRALIA 227 
 
 USED FOR DOMESTIC PURPOSES ON THE 
 OTHER CONTINENTS. HOW IS IT POSSI- 
 BLE THAT SUCH A LAND SHOULD, SINCE 
 CAPT. COOK SAILED ALONG ITS SHORES 
 LESS THAN ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY 
 YEARS AGO, HAVE DEVELOPED INTO A 
 FLOURISHING ENGLISH COLONY OF MORE 
 THAN FIVE MILLION PEOPLE? 
 
 What is there so unusual about Australia that we 
 speak of it as the "Odd One" of the continents? 
 
 A. Surface. 
 
 1. Australia has fewer mountains than any other 
 continent. 
 
 2. The surface is on the whole the lowest of any of the 
 continents. 
 
 3. It is almost without navigable rivers. 
 
 B. Climate. 
 
 1. With the exception of a portion of India the tropic 
 heat is more uncomfortable than that of any other 
 continent. 
 
 2. A larger proportion of the surface is desert than is 
 found on any other continent. 
 
 C. Life. 
 
 1. The flora is beautiful and unlike any other land. Of 
 the ten thousand species of plants nearly all are found only 
 in Australia. 
 
 2. The animal types are different from those of any 
 other land except some of the neighboring islands. 
 
 3. The natives are the most primitive of any oi the 
 human rate. 
 
 What is there about the coast that is unfavorable to 
 settlement? 
 
 1. There are few deep indentations. 
 
 2. The largest bay lies in the tropics and the land- 
 about it are hot and unhealthy.
 
 2 28 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 3. A wall of cliffs forms the southern coast for nearly 
 1000 miles. 
 
 What is there about the climate that makes settlement 
 difficult? 
 
 1. The northern part lies within the hot, moist 
 tropics. 
 
 2. The greater part of the interior is either a desert or is 
 subject to frequent droughts. 
 
 Judging from its position should we not expect 
 Australia to be well watered? 
 
 1. During the Australian summer tropical rains fall 
 upon the northern coastal region. 
 
 2. During the winter the southeast trade winds bring 
 rain to the eastern coast. 
 
 3. During the winter the westerly winds bring rain to 
 the southern coast. 
 
 Since Australia lies in three rain belts how can we ex- 
 plain the fact that half the continent is an unin- 
 habitable desert? 
 
 1. The tropical rains, though heavy on the coast, 
 rapidly decrease toward the interior. 
 
 2. The most of the moisture brought by the southeast 
 trade winds is cut off by the Great Dividing Range lying 
 close to the eastern coast. 
 
 3. The westerly rain winds reach only the extreme 
 southern portion. 
 
 How does the nature of the surface of the interior 
 farther aid in making it dry and uninhabitable? 
 
 1. The interior, west of the Darling River basin, slopes 
 inward from all sides like a gigantic saucer. 
 
 2. Mountains extend east and west through the heart 
 of the desert but they are not high enough to increase the 
 rainfall. 
 
 3. The surface of the interior is for the greater part a 
 gravelly plain 600 to 1000 feet high.
 
 AUSTRALIA 2 20 
 
 How does the yearly drought of six to seven months in 
 tropical Australia affect the vegetation and the 
 supply of native foods? 
 
 i. The long drought is unfavorable to the growth of 
 tropical food plants. 
 
 2. It is only on the immediate coast that the rain is 
 sufficient to produce a jungle growth. 
 
 3. A short distance from the coast the forest becomes 
 open and park-like. 
 
 4. Inland from the open forest belt there is rain enough 
 to produce only savannas or grass-lands with scattered 
 scrubby tree growth (the Bush). 
 
 5. After passing through the savannas one enters upon 
 the desert. 
 
 How is it that the area of native food plants is mostly 
 confined to the east coast? 
 
 1. Owing to a partial mingling of the tropic and south- 
 east trade wind belts the dry period is not as long on the 
 east coast as in the north. 
 
 2. On the east coast are found wild rice, wild bananas, 
 wild figs, mangosteen and tobacco. 
 
 What sort of a climate should we expect of Southern 
 Australia lying as it does partially within the 
 sweep of the westerly winds? 
 
 1. The westerly winds reach the edge of the continent 
 in winter bringing rain, but the summers are dry. 
 
 2. This Mediterranean climate is suited to growing the 
 orange, lemon, tig, grape, etc. 
 
 How can we explain the peculiarities of the plant life 
 of Australia? 
 
 1. The extreme heat and dryness of summer causes the 
 leaves to either become small as in the case of the acacias 
 or to grow fully on edge as in the case of the eucalyptus. 
 
 2. Australia is so far from the other continents that 
 none of their plants have been able to reach it.
 
 23O PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 Why is it that the native animals are so different from 
 those of the other continents and of no value for 
 domestic purposes? 
 
 1. Water barriers have prevented the great mammals 
 fromlJVeaching Australia. 
 
 2. Ancient forms that have mostly died out on other 
 continents have lived to the present time in Australia 
 because they had few enemies. 
 
 3. The marsupials, of which the kangaroo is the largest, 
 and other animals that lay eggs like reptiles, are the most 
 interesting. 
 
 Should we not also look for peculiar bird life? 
 
 1. There is an extraordinary wealth of bird life due 
 partly to the absence of animals that feed upon them. 
 
 2. Since the birds have few enemies many of the larger 
 kinds have taken to a life upon the ground; some have 
 lost the use of their wings; others have lost their wings 
 altogether. 
 
 The natives belong to an ancient race that seems to 
 have stopped making any progress. 
 
 1. In habits and customs the native Australians are like 
 people who lived long ago in what we call The Stone Age. 
 
 2. These people are thought to belong to the Caucasian 
 race. Their nearest relatives live upon the Deccan 
 Plateau in India. 
 
 In how far is the land they live in the possible cause 
 of the backwardness of the native Australians? 
 
 1. Like the plants and other animals the Australians 
 have been isolated upon their continent for a very long 
 time. 
 
 2. The climatic conditions as well as the plants are in 
 most parts not favorable to the development of agriculture. 
 
 3. There are no native animals that the Australian could 
 tame for his use.
 
 AUSTRALIA 23 1 
 
 4. The climate is mild and there is little need of covering 
 
 or shelter. 
 
 Has the dependence upon hunting had the same effect 
 upon the Australians as it has upon the Bushmen 
 of South Africa and the natives of Terra del 
 Fuego? 
 
 1. To obtain food they must continually move from 
 place to place following the game. 
 
 2. The building of homes and the development of 
 agriculture was impossible. 
 
 3. The bow and arrow were not known and the boom- 
 erang took their place. 
 
 4. They cannot adapt themselves to civilization and 
 are dying off. 
 
 Why is it that the great desert of the central part can 
 never be settled up as are large areas of our 
 deserts? 
 
 1. The deserts of the United States either have high 
 mountains near them which supply some water, or they 
 have rivers flowing through them. 
 
 2. The Australian desert receives some flood water 
 from the coast lands about its margin but it is bordered 
 by no high mountains. 
 
 3. Some of the small basins contain salty lakes. 
 
 4. Wells sunk in the desert region reach water but it is 
 usually too salty for use in irrigation. 
 
 In what way is it unfavorable for Australian Settle- 
 ment that its tropical portion is low while its 
 higher lands, the Australian Alps, lie in the Tem- 
 perate Latitude? 
 1. Tropical highlands make healthful homes for white 
 people. Illustrate. 
 
 2. Lowlands in temperate latitudes are more advan- 
 tageous than highlands.
 
 232 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 How is it that the English have had so much difficulty 
 in exploring the interior since there are no High 
 Mountains in the way? 
 
 1. There are no navigable streams except the Murray- 
 Darling for a part of the year. 
 
 2. The Great Dividing Range, though not high, is very 
 rough with deep canyons. 
 
 3. The vast desert has no oases<, and all the water needed 
 in traversing it must be carried on camels imported for 
 the purpose. 
 
 What are the unfavorable conditions under which the 
 early settlements grew up? 
 
 1. Slow sailing vessels were the only means of com- 
 munication with the distant home-land. 
 
 2. There are great extremes in rainfall and the heat is 
 often very great. 
 
 3. There was little market for any produce except wool 
 until the development of the modern steamer. 
 
 What remarkable similarity is there between the early 
 development of Australia and California? 
 
 1. The discovery of gold in California in 1849 started 
 a great migration to that distant land from all parts of 
 the earth. 
 
 2. The discovery of gold in Australia in 1851 by a 
 returned California miner started a tide of migration to 
 that still more distant land. 
 
 3. The population of Xew South Wales and Queenstown 
 increased by hundreds of thousands in five years. 
 
 Why is it that most of the population and all the large 
 cities are on the coast? 
 
 i. Trade between the different colonies and with distant 
 lands is all by water. 
 
 2. The coast regions are the best watered and all, with 
 the exception of the north coast are healthful,
 
 AUSTRALIA 233 
 
 3. Successful farming is so dependent upon rainfall that 
 
 most of the people thus engaged live in the coast belt. 
 
 Since the larger part of Australia is either a true desert 
 
 or has a very light rainfall how is it that it exports 
 
 not only a great amount of wheat but immense 
 
 quantities of wool, leather, meat and butter? 
 
 1. A broad belt in which there is rain enough for wheat 
 borders the eastern and southeastern coasts, and reaches 
 into the Murray-Darling Valley. 
 
 2. Farther inland where the rainfall is less than 20 
 inches there is a belt known as the "bush" where chief 
 industry is cattle grazing. 
 
 3. Still farther toward the interior there is a vast area 
 where on ordinary years there is excellent forage for sheep. 
 How is it that West Australia, which is desert except 
 
 for a coastal fringe, has become so important in 
 recent years? 
 
 1. Rich deposits of gold have been found in the desert 
 hundreds of miles from permanent water. 
 
 2. A steel water pipe 33 inches in diameter carries water 
 351 miles to the mining cities of Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie. 
 
 3. A railroad about 2000 miles long now connects West 
 Australia with Port Augusta in South Australia. 
 
 What advantages does the island of Tasmania offer 
 compared with Australia? 
 t. The island lies all of the year in the westerly wind 
 belt. 
 
 2. The climate is neither very hot nor very cold. 
 
 3. The soil is fertile, producing grains, temperate fruits, 
 sheep. Gold and tin are mined. 
 
 In how far will Australians be able to overcome the 
 disadvantages of their continent? 
 r. Irrigation systems are being built in the .Murray- 
 Darling basin.
 
 234 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 2. Steamers now carry refrigerator meats and fruits to 
 distant countries. 
 
 3. The tropical portion can be made fruitful if the gov- 
 ernment will permit the coming of Asiatic laborers able 
 to stand the climate. 
 
 SPECIAL PROBLEMS 
 
 What is there about the climate and resources of 
 Australia which helps us to understand why the 
 Malays or Polynesians did not over run the 
 continent and drive out the more primitive 
 inhabitants? 
 
 How is it that Australia has no native animals useful 
 in domestication while all the other continents 
 contain many kinds? 
 
 Why do we consider agriculture and domestic animals 
 so necessary to a civilized life? 
 
 Would Australia have been a richer continent, capable 
 of supporting a greater population if the moun- 
 tains had been in the centre or western part 
 instead of close to the eastern coast? Compare 
 with South America. 
 
 Why is it that sea commerce plays a greater part in the 
 life of the Australians than in the life of the people 
 of any other continent? 
 
 How does Australia compare with Japan and England 
 in its dependence upon the ocean? 
 
 Why do we speak of the coast line as being unfavor- 
 able to the development of the continent 
 notwithstanding there are many little bays? 
 Compare with the Iberian Peninsula in this 
 regard. 
 
 Why have important settlements failed to grow up
 
 AUSTRALIA 235 
 
 on the northern coast although it has a heavy 
 rainfall? 
 
 Why have no cities grown up at the mouth or along 
 the banks of the Murray -Darling Rivers? 
 
 What is the reason for the fact that all the important 
 cities are situated upon the southeastern coast? 
 
 How is it that Australia ships apples and sometimes 
 meat to the United States which is itself an 
 exporter of these products? 
 
 What are the advantages and disadvantages for Aus- 
 tralian development of the law prohibiting the 
 coming of Chinese, Japanese, Malays, etc.? 
 
 How can we explain the fact that while parts of Aus- 
 tralia are suffering from unusual drought other 
 parts are experiencing disastrous floods? 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL DISCUSSION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 What Capt. Cook had to do with making Australia 
 known. 
 
 The extinct natives of Tasmania. 
 
 The character and habits of the native Australians. 
 
 Difficulties of making settlements in tropical Australia. 
 
 The difficulties of exploring the great desert. 
 
 The strange animals and plants. 
 
 The effect of great heat and lack of moisture on the 
 plants of Australia. 
 
 The desert mining camps of Western Austialia. 
 
 The Australian Alps. 
 
 Life on a sheep ranch. 
 
 Why the exports of Australia are mostly raw products. 
 
 The great barrier reel.
 
 236 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 SECTION 3. THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 
 
 TOPIC 
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC :— THOSE IS- 
 LANDS—THOUSANDS IN NUMBER AND 
 OFTEN OF EXTRAORDINARY BEAUTY- 
 SCATTERED SINGLY AND IN GROUPS OVER 
 HALF THE PACIFIC OCEAN; BEING IN 
 SOME CASES THE HIGHER PARTS OF A 
 SUNKEN LAND; IN OTHERS THE TOPS OF 
 SUB -MARINE VOLCANOES; AND IN STILL 
 OTHERS OF CORAL GROWTH :— ISLANDS 
 WHOSE INHABITANTS BELONG TO DIF- 
 FERENT RACES AND RANGE IN THEIR 
 CONDITION FROM FIERCE CANNIBALS TO 
 GENTLE HALF CIVILIZED PEOPLES. 
 
 MAP STUDIES 
 
 Where lies the boundary between the Asiatic islands 
 
 already studied and those included among the 
 
 Pacific Islands? 
 How are the islands distributed as regards the tropics? 
 Do the islands generally occur in groups or singly? 
 Why do we think that New Guinea, the Moluccas, 
 
 Caroline Islands and other small groups once 
 
 formed a part of a larger Australian continent? 
 What does the map show to be the character of the 
 
 surface of the larger islands? 
 What is the general name given to the east and west 
 
 line of islands lying north of Australia? What is 
 
 the meaning of the name? 
 Why are the groups of islands lying in the Pacific east 
 
 of the Philippine Islands called Micronesia? 
 What do we mean when we speak of Polynesia?
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 237 
 
 Which of the Pacific islands must have the coldest 
 
 climate? 
 What large island is traversed its whole length by a 
 
 range of lofty mountains? 
 What extremes of climate must this island possess 
 
 although it lies almost under the equator? 
 About what important islands does the map show that 
 
 the waters are shallow? 
 What important group of islands rises from the deepest 
 
 part of the Pacific? 
 How does New Guinea compare in size with Borneo, 
 
 Sumatra, Madagascar and Greenland? 
 
 PROBLEMS 
 
 HOW IS IT THAT PRIMITIVE PEOPLES WERE 
 ABLE LONG AGO TO REACH THE ISLANDS 
 OF THE PACIFIC WITH ONLY RUDE BOATS 
 THOUGH MANY OF THE ISLANDS ARE FAR 
 APART, AND THAT IN SPITE OF THE FACT 
 THAT NATURE HAD SUPPLIED UPON MOST 
 OF THEM AN ABUNDANCE OF FOOD THESE 
 PEOPLES REMAINED UP TO THE TIME OF 
 THEIR DISCOVERY IN A SAVAGE OR SEMI- 
 CIVILIZED CONDITION? 
 
 We have learned that the Australians were backward 
 partly because they had to depend almost wholly 
 upon hunting for a living. How can we explain 
 the backwardness of the Islanders who have an 
 abundance of food? 
 
 1. T11 both cases domestic animals were lacking. 
 
 2. The Australians had to struggle too hard to get food. 
 
 3. The islanders failed to make progress partly because 
 they did not have to exert themselves to get their food
 
 238 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 4. The islands aie in most cases so far apart that there 
 was little interchange of ideas, no tiading between them. 
 This condition is unfavorable to progress. 
 How can we account for the first settlement of the far 
 scattered islands of the Pacific? 
 
 1. The ancestors of the present islanders must have 
 lived upon the Asiatic coast and have been accustomed to 
 a sea-faring life. 
 
 2. The steady trade winds were favorable to voyages 
 of exploration in small boats. 
 
 3. Westerly storms have been known to blow Japanese 
 fishermen across the Pacific to the shores of North 
 America. 
 
 How do we find the different races distributed 
 throughout the islands? 
 
 1. The Malays are chiefly confined to the Malay Archi- 
 pelago (Asiatic islands). 
 
 2. The Papuans are found in Melanesia (Islands of the 
 Blacks) including New Guinea and near-by islands. 
 
 3. The Polynesians live upon the out-lying islands in- 
 cluding the Hawaiian, Fiji. Samoan, Marquesas, New 
 Zealand, Society and othei islands. 
 
 4. The Micronesians — mixtuie of Papuans and Poly- 
 nesians — are found upon the Caroline, Marshall and 
 associated islands. 
 
 How do the character and habits of the different island 
 races help us to understand their distribution? 
 
 1. The Polynesians are a bold race noted for their daring 
 upon the sea. They are tall, brown in color, have 
 straight black haii, often fierce fighters and cannibals. 
 Engage in boat building, agriculture, fibie weaving. 
 
 2. The Papuans are mostly savages. They hunt, fish 
 and carry on some agricultuie. Do not venture far upon 
 the* sea.
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 239 
 
 3. The coast Malays of the Asiatic Islands are expert 
 seamen but visited and mixed only with the nearer of the 
 islanders (Papuans). 
 What is the explanation of the fact that although most 
 
 of the Pacific islands lie within the tropics they are 
 
 ordinarily pleasant and healthful? 
 
 1. The smaller islands are perpetually cooled by the 
 trade winds. 
 
 2. The mountains where high enough offer a temperate 
 climate. 
 
 Why is it that the small islands often have a poor soil 
 and support a scanty vegetation? 
 
 1. Many of the small islands are of coral origin, rising 
 but a few feet above high tide. 
 
 2. The vegetation is chiefly confined to those plants the 
 seeds of which were brought by the ocean currents, such 
 as coconut and breadfruit trees. 
 
 How can we explain the origin of those wonderfully 
 beautiful coral islands known as atolls or lagoon 
 islands? 
 
 1. The coral insect cannot live where the water is more 
 than 120 feet deep. 
 
 2. Owing to the irregularities of the bottom, coral reefs 
 are sometimes circular and inclose an area of deep water 
 where the corals cannot live and work. 
 
 3. The reef may finally become dry land on which 
 coconut palms spring up. 
 
 4. The inclosed water or lagoon is deep and quiet 
 usually with one or more passages connecting with the 
 open ocean. 
 
 How is it that navigation is dangerous in these coral 
 seas? 
 1. Thousands of reefs, in some cases hundred- of miles 
 long and indicated by lines of breakers, are scattered 
 over these tropical seas.
 
 240 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 2. At certain seasons of the year there are dangerous 
 tropical huiricanes. 
 
 How came the Pacific Islands, so remote and generally 
 so small, rising from a sea infested with reefs and 
 inhabited by cannibals to become the goal of in- 
 numerable trading vessels during the last fifty 
 years? 
 i. The coconut palm serves the natives in innumerable 
 ways. Without it most of the islands would never have 
 become permanently inhabited. 
 
 2. The coconut palms supply coconuts and copra which 
 have important uses in civilized life. 
 
 NEW ZEALAND— THE PEARL OF THE SOUTH 
 
 SEAS 
 
 PROBLEM 
 
 HOW IS IT THAT THE ISLANDS KNOWN AS 
 NEW ZEALAND, THOUGH SITUATED IN A 
 REMOTE PART OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC, 
 HAVE BECOME, IN LESS THAN A CENTURY 
 FROM THE DATE OF THE FIRST SETTLE- 
 MENT, A PROSPEROUS ENGLISH COLONY 
 POSSESSING A HIGH DEGREE OF CUL- 
 TURE? 
 
 What difficulties were experienced by the early set- 
 tlers of New Zealand? 
 
 i . Communication by sailing vessel half way around the 
 world was uncertain. 
 
 2. The native Maoris, a bold and warlike race, in- 
 telligent but at the same time cannibals, offered great 
 resistance. 
 
 In what respects is the climate far more favorable to 
 settlement than is that of most of Australia?
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 24 1 
 
 i. Latitude gives the island all the advantages any 
 land could have. 
 
 2. North Island lies in the Mediterranean belt. 
 
 3. South Island lies in the belt of westerlies with a 
 climate much like that of England. 
 
 How has the nature of the surface taken in connection 
 with the direction of the prevailing winds affected 
 the development of the islands? 
 
 1. North Island has a rolling surface, from which rise 
 lofty volcanoes, and sufficient rain to cover it with 
 forests. 
 
 2. A range of lofty mountains extends along the west 
 side of South Island partly breaking the force of the 
 stormy westerlies. 
 
 3. The eastern slope of South Island is broad and 
 grassy. 
 
 What should we expect from the above conditions 
 would be the chief industries? 
 
 1. North Island affords timber, semi- tropic fruits. 
 
 2. South Island produces wheat, flax and temperate 
 fruits. 
 
 3. The upland meadows of South Island support great 
 numbers of cattle. 
 
 4. The drier lower plains covered with wiry grasses are 
 given over to sheep. 
 
 5. The mountains contain such minerals as gold, copper 
 and coal. 
 
 What wonderful natural scenery draws people from all 
 parts of the world? 
 
 1 . North Island is volcanic. It possesses boiling springs 
 and geysers similar to those of the Yellowstone Park. 
 
 2. The tropical vegetation of North Island is rich and 
 beautiful. It includes giant fern.-, coconut and sago 
 palm-, bananas, etc.
 
 242 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 3. The Southern Alps of South Island rise in Mt. 
 Cook to 12,349 feet. The lake and mountain scenery 
 together with the enormous glaciers rival the Swiss Alps. 
 What can we predict as to the future of New Zealand? 
 
 1. The islands must grow in importance as a tourist 
 resort. 
 
 2. Manufacturing must become important because of 
 an abundance of water power, coal and raw products. 
 
 3. The inhabitants should exhibit a high culture be- 
 cause of favorable life conditions. 
 
 NEW GUINEA— THE LARGEST OF THE TROP- 
 ICAL ISLANDS 
 
 How is it that the Island of New Guinea, three 
 times the size of New Zealand, mountainous 
 and well watered, has been only partly explored 
 and still remains in great part in possession of its 
 savage inhabitants? 
 
 1. The island lies in the heart of the tropics. 
 
 2. The lowlands are hot and moist and often 
 unhealthful. 
 
 3. Owing to the heavy rains and heat the vegetation is 
 so dense that exploration is difficult. 
 
 4. A mountain range, peaks of which reach 13,000 
 feet extends the length of the island. 
 
 5. Many of the native tribes of the interior are fierce 
 cannibals. 
 
 In what respects do the character and habits of the 
 Papuans indicate that they are only little more 
 advanced than the Australians? 
 
 1. They have no domestic animals but engage to some 
 extent in agriculture. 
 
 2. They live sometimes in pile dwellings similar to those 
 of the Malays and sometimes in trees.
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 243 
 
 3. They make pottery but do not know the use of 
 metals. 
 
 4. The hot moist climate and fairly abundant food 
 supply do not encourage exertion. 
 
 Since New Guinea was once connected with Australia 
 should we not expect to find the animal and bird 
 life very similar? 
 
 1. There is the same rich bird life as in Australia and 
 in addition the beautiful Bird of Paradise. 
 
 2. There are many of the marsupial animals of Australia 
 but not the kangaroo which is adapted to a more open 
 country. 
 
 3. The most dangerous animal is the crocodile. Like 
 Australia it has many poisonous snakes. 
 
 What can we say as to the likelihood of New Guinea 
 ever becoming the home of civilized people? 
 
 1. The Fly River has been ascended in a small boat 500 
 miles. This shows there must be a vast lowland capable of 
 cultivation. 
 
 2. The island is suited to the production of coconuts and 
 copra, rubber, pineapples, etc. 
 
 3. Gold and other minerals are known to occur on the 
 island. 
 
 The forest jungles can be cleared and the natives more 
 or less civilized but can white people ever live 
 there comfortably? 
 
 1. The mountains above 3000 feet have an agreeable, 
 healthful climate. 
 
 2. Parts of the lowlands exposed to the trade winds are 
 fairly healthful. 
 
 Is not the fact that three nations divided up New 
 Guinea an indication that it is considered to be of 
 great value? 
 1. The western part is held by the Dutch.
 
 244 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 2. The southeastern part is a British possession. 
 
 3. The northeastern part, formerly held by Germany is 
 now under the control of the Australian government. 
 
 THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS— THE CROSS ROADS 
 OF THE PACIFIC 
 
 Why do we speak of the Hawaiian Islands as occupy- 
 ing a cross roads position? 
 
 1. The islands form a station on the trade route be- 
 tween the United States and China, Japan and the 
 Philippines. 
 
 2. The islands lie on the route from Puget Sound and 
 San Francisco to Australia and New Zealand. 
 
 3. The route from China and Japan to the Panama 
 Canal passes the islands. 
 
 Why are the islands, though far from the Pacific Coast 
 of America, so important to the United States? 
 
 1. The islands are important as a naval and supply 
 station. 
 
 2. The islands are rich and highly productive. 
 
 How is it that the islands, though lying in the tropics, 
 are healthful and attractive as a summer and 
 winter resort? 
 
 1. The ocean currents and northeast trade winds make 
 the climate equable and cooler than any other tropical 
 lowland. 
 
 2. The islands possess a rich vegetation and attractive 
 volcanic scenery. 
 
 What is there so interesting about the story of the 
 Hawaiian Islands? 
 1. The islands are the unsubmerged top of a mighty 
 volcanic mass the bottom of which lies in the deepest 
 Pacific, while the highest point rises 13,000 feet above the 
 ocean's surface.
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 245 
 
 2. Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea aie the highest peaks. 
 
 The crater of Kilauea is at times a vast lake of seething 
 
 lava. 
 
 What tropical products do we receive in large quanti- 
 ties from these islands? (Cane sugar, pine- 
 apples, bananas.) 
 
 Can we expect the Hawaiian Islanders to do all the 
 work of raising these products? 
 
 1. The Hawaiians. like other tropical peoples, do not 
 love hard work. They are intelligent and fond of music 
 but are slowly disappearing. 
 
 2. The Japanese form the bulk of the field laborers. 
 
 3. Since the islands lie at a cross ioads there is a great 
 variety of other peoples to be found there. 
 
 THE FIJI AND SAMOAN ISLANDS— THE PARA- 
 DISE OF THE PACIFIC 
 
 Why do we choose the above groups of islands as 
 types of the many attractive islands of the 
 Pacific? 
 
 1. The islands lie near the main route from the United 
 States to New Zealand and Australia. 
 
 2. Since the islands are small the trade winds make them 
 comfortable and healthful. 
 
 3. The lofty volcanic mountains are picturesque. 
 
 4. Tropical vegetation is varied and fruits are abundant. 
 
 5. The islands have become noted through the writings 
 of Stevenson. 
 
 SPECIAL PROBLEMS 
 
 Why is it that those islands possessing high mountains 
 have a much greater variety of vegetation than the 
 low islands?
 
 246 PROGRESSIVE GEOGRAPHIES 
 
 How can we explain the presence of vast numbers of 
 coral reefs and low coral islands? 
 
 What are the advantages and disadvantages of the 
 reefs that surround many of the smaller islands? 
 
 Why is it that the natives of such pleasant islands did 
 not become civilized since we believe the Austra- 
 lians remained savages partly because of the 
 poverty of their land? 
 
 How can we explain the vegetation that springs up on 
 coral reefs as soon as they rise above the ocean 
 waves? 
 
 Why is it that New Zealand has advanced more 
 rapidly in culture than Argentine, the only other 
 important country in the same latitude in the S. 
 hemisphere? 
 
 If the Polynesians could reach the outer islands of the 
 Pacific why could they not reach America? 
 
 What is likely to remain the chief industry of the 
 smaller islands? 
 
 TOPICS FOR ORAL DISCUSSION OR WRITTEN 
 REPORTS 
 
 The coconut palm and its products. 
 The characteristics of the Maoris of New Zealand. 
 The extinct birds of New Zealand. 
 I he difficulty of exploring New Guinea. 
 The life of the Papuans of New Guinea and adjacent 
 islands. 
 
 The geysers and hot springs of New Zealand. 
 The scenery of the New Zealand Alps. 
 Samoa the home of Stevenson. 
 The Hawaiian Islanders. 
 The crater of Kilauea.
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC 247 
 
 The Island of Guam. 
 The boats of the Polynesians. 
 
 The differences between the Polynesians, the Melane- 
 sians and the Micronesians. 
 The Marquesas Islanders. 
 The voyages of Capt. Cook in the Pacific. 
 Hawaii at the cross roads. 
 Life on the Fijian Islands.
 
 NOTES
 
 NOTES
 
 NOTES
 
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