POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY. United States is traversed by the principal mountain chains, the Alleghanies in the east and the Rocky Mountains in the west. These divide the country into three distinct geographical regions, the Atlantic slope, the valley of the Mississippi, and the declivity from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific. The Atlantic slope, owing to its favourable position for trade and commerce, its fertile soil and navigable rivers, its mines of iron and coal, is the seat of the greatest manufacturing industries of the States. The valley of the Mississippi stretches from the western slope of the Alleghanies to the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains, and comprises fully half the area of the States. Agriculture is here the chief pursuit. In the north wheat and maize are the principal crops, and in the south, cotton, rice, tobacco, and sugar. Between the Rocky Mountains, the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Range, occur elevated plateaux and basins, one of which, the Great Basin of Utah, has an area of about 13,000 square miles, and contains the Great Salt Lake. From the Sierra Nevada and Coast Range, the Pacific slope averages 150 miles in width. The country abounds in wild and majestic scenery; vast forests of huge trees occur; gold, silver, and other metals abound; and the inhabitants are chiefly employed in mining, agriculture, and forestry. The States have a great diversity of climate. It may generally be characterised as moist and variable. In the south it par 709 Great Pacific Railroad, connecting San Francisco with New York, was opened in 1869. The Union consists of thirty-eight sovereign states, one federal district, and eight organized territories, besides the Indian territory and the territory of Alaska. The states are:-North Atlantic, or New England-Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut. Middle Atlantic-New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, (District of Columbia). South Atlantic-Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida. North Central-Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado. South CentralAlabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee. Pacific-California, Nevada, Oregon. The organized territories are New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington. Population (1880) of states, 49,547,233; of territories, 605,633; of Indian territory, 78,310; Indians, 177,628; Alaska territory, 30,146; total 50,438,950. The principal towns with their populations are- - New York, 1,206,590; Philadelphia, 846,984; Brooklyn, 566,689; Chicago, 503,304; Boston, 362,535. The executive power is vested in a President, elected for four years the legislative in a Congress, composed of a Senate and House of Representatives-the former consisting of 76 members, two for each state, elected by the legislative thereof for six years; the latter of 293 representatives, elected by popular vote, for two years, in the proportion of one representative for every 135,239 of the population. In 1881 the revenue amounted to £72,156,458; the expenditure, £52,142,577; public debt, £411,367,671. The army consists of 2,085 officers and 25,500 men; the navy of 140 vessels with 1022 guns, and 10,285 officers and men, The prevailing religious sects are Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Episcopalians, Lutherans, and Roman Catholics. No sect is endowed by the State. Education is universally diffused, and schools and colleges are numerous. In 1879 the State expended for public schools £15,638,806. PHILADELPHIA (from an old print). takes of a tropical nature, while in the north a severe winter lasts for four or five months in the year. On the coasts of the Pacific it is much milder than on those of the Atlantic under the same parallels. The mineral wealth of the country is very considerable. Coal and iron are widely distributed, and so are lead, copper, and tin. Gold is very abundant in California, and silver, mercury, and diamonds are also found. Salt is obtained from numerous springs in the state of New York and other parts. The great body of the people are employed in agriculture. The principal crops are oats, wheat, rye, maize, buckwheat, barley, potatoes, sugar, cotton, tobacco, rice, hemp, and flax. The rearing of cattle and the making of dairy produce are also largely carried on. The total value of exports in 1881 was £184,356,839, of which to United Kingdom £107,081,260; of imports £150,648,025, of which from United Kingdom £37,954,192. The coasting trade is very extensive, and a vast number of steamers and other craft are constantly plying the navigable rivers and lakes. In 1881 there were 93,671 miles of railway in operation; the MEXICO. Mexico occupies the south-western portion of North America, between lat. 16° and 33° N., and long. 87° and 117° W., and has on the north the United States; east, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea; south, Guatemala; and south-west and west the Pacific Ocean. Arca, 741,820 square miles; and population 9,656,668, of whom about 1,000,000 are whites and ,000,000 Indians, the rest being chiefly of mixed race. The surface of the country is extremely varied. It commences to rise at a few miles from the coasts, and the greater part of the interior consists of a series of plateaus from 4,000 to 8,000 feet above the sea, with mountain ranges of a volcanic nature, some of whose summits rise to the height of more than 17,000 feet. The soil is generally fertile, though a considerable portion of it is unfit for cultivation. The climate varies greatly according to the elevation, and is usually divided into hot, temperate, and cold. The low-lying coast-land presents all the characteristics of a tropical country, and indigo, cotton, the sugar-cane, bananas, and other tropical products are found. This region, however, is very unhealthy. From 2,000 to 5,000 feet above the sea the vegetation of the temperate zone prevails, and the cereals and fruits grown in Europe are produced. Above this a gradually cooler region is reached, and the summits of some of the highest mountains are continually covered with snow. Medicinal plants are very numerous, and mahogany, rosewood, ebony, and other valuable trees abound. The mineral wealth of the country is very great, including gold, silver, iron, copper, lead, tin, mercury. The principal exports are gold, silver, and other metals, drugs, sugar, flour, indigo, timber, tobacco, coffee, hides,-the total value being about £6,000,000. Agriculture and mining constitute the chief occupations of the people. There are 873 miles of railway in operation. Mexico is a confederate republic, consisting of twenty-seven states, one territory, and one federal district. The executive is vested in a President, elected for four years, and the legislative in a Congress consisting of a Senate of 56 members, or two for each state, elected for four years, and a Chamber of Deputies of 227 members elected for two years. Army about 20,000. Estimated revenue for 1882, £5,145,000; expenditure, £7,918,340; public debt, £28,990,757. Capital, Mexico, with 242,000 inhabitants. CENTRAL AMERICA. Central America is the southern portion of the continent of North America, extending from Mexico to the Isthmus of Panama, and lying between lat. 8° and 18° N., and long. 82° 30' and 93° 30′ W. It is about 900 miles in length from north-west to south-east, and from 70 to 300 in width, and has an area of 164,900 square miles. A range of no great elevation extends longitudinally through the country, dividing it into two unequal portions, the smaller being towards the Pacific. The course of this range is interrupted in several places, especially by two cross valleys, one of which contains the lake of Nicaragua, the other the plain of Comayagua. Some of the summits of the range rise to 12,000 and 13,000 feet, and many of them are volcanoes. The climate, like that of Mexico, varies with the elevation of the surface, and the vegetable productions belong both to the torrid and temperate zones. The forests are extensive, and comprise mahogany, logwood, and other valuable woods. Among the other prod are cotton, coffee, sugar, rice, maize, wes cochineal, indigo, cocoa, sarsaparilla tobar The chief employments of the people are a culture and cattle-rearing. There are mis gold, silver, copper, iron, zinc, lead: and other metals are found. The country is din into five independent states, which, with t areas and populations, are as follows:-GLmala, area 40,776 sq. m., population 1,500 San Salvador, area 7,335, population 554.00 Honduras, area 39,600, population 30 Nicaragua, area 58,170, population 250000 Costa Rica, area 26,040, population 200 Besides these there is the small colour British Honduras, with an area of 6,500 sq miles and a population of 27,452. ausfuhr und auét orss-foor wat ora drove out and rode o age Bis in sein spätestes Alter' biss in zine spay-test-es all-ter Till in his latest Friedrich der Große in Potsdam fr freed'-rich dare gross-e in pots-dam d Frederick the Great in Potsdam A und fuhr niemals. Er schien diefed t unt foor nee-mahls airr sheen de and drove never. He seemed this fr eine Schmach und eines Soldaten i-ne shmaach unt i'-nes col dah-tra a shame and of a soldier würdig zu halten. Nur in T ruer'-dich tsoo halt-en noer in dane worthy to hold. Only in the Wochen, in denen er Fich roch'-en in dayn'-en airr zich weeks in which he himself a Jahre während des Carnevale yahr-e rairr-end dess cahr-neyear(s) during the Berlin Caraira: aufhielt, fuhr er und bairr-leen' orf-heelt foor airr wat t Berlin immer im königlichen Pomp. S im'-mer im köh'-nich-lick-en pomp f always in In tra royal pomp. tarried, drove he and in for Invaliden aus der Garde. Daraus in'-cah-lee-den owss dare garr'-de dah'-rouss pensioners from the guard. Therefrom folgte, daß der König auch immer folch-te dass dare köh'-nich owch im'-mer followed that the king also always im langsamen Schritt fahren, mußte. im lang'-sah-men shritt fah'-ren moos'-te slow pace to drive was obliged. Seine Wege waren aber keine andern, y-ne ray-ge vah'-ren ah'-ber ky'-ne an'-dern His routes were however no others, als vom Schloße in die Oper wöchentalss fom shloss'-e in dee op'-per röch'-entthan from the palace into the opera weeklich zwei mal und während des ganzen lich tscy' mahl unt vairr-ent dess gants'-en ly twice (two times) and during the whole Aufenthalts ein oder zwei mal zum onf-ent-halts ine oh'-der tsvy mahl tsoom stay or two times to the Prinzen Heinrich und zu der Prinzessin prints-en hine'-rich unt tsoo dare prints-ess'-in Prince Henry and to the Prince Amalie. Dann ruhten die Läufer ah-mah'-li-ay dann rooh'-ten dee loy'-ferr Amelia. one Then rested the runners wieder ein Jahr lang. Hinter ihnen ree'-derr ine yahr lang hinn'-ter ee-nen again a year long. Behind them kam dann der achtspännige fónigkahm dann dare acht'-spen-niche köh'-nich. came then the eight-horse kingliche Wagen mit acht Fenstern rund li-che cah'-gen mit acht fenns'-tern roont ly carriage with eight windows round herum, die Pferde, mit altmodischen hair-oom' dee pfairr-de mit alt-moh-dish-en about, the horses, with old-fashioned Geschirren 10 und Federbüschen ge-shirr-en unt fay-der-büsh'-en onff dane harness and feather-plumes on the Köpfen; Kutscher und Vorreiter in der köpp'-fen kutt-sher unt fore'-ry-terr in dare heads; coachman and outriders in the damaligen dah'-mah-lich-en of that time königlichen köh'-nich-lich-en royal 12 auf den Livree, liv-ray' livery, blau, Kragen, Aufschläge," Taschen und blough krah-gen orff-shlay-ge tash'-en unt blue, collar, facings, pockets and 711 alle Näthe mit einem rothen Tuchstreifen al'-le nay'-te mit i-nem roh'-ten tooch'-stry-fen all seams with a red cloth stripe 13 beseßt, dieser aber wieder mit zwei be-zetst dee'-zer ah-ber vee-der mit tsvy edged, the latter however again with two schmalen goldenen Tressen eingefaßt,' shmah-len gol'-den-en tres-sen ine-ge-fasst golden stripes edged, was sehr gut aussah. In den vier vas zayr goot owss'-zah in dane fearr which very well looked. On the four Nebentritten der Kutsche standen narrow nay'-ben-trit'-ten dare koot-she stand'-en side-steps of the vier Pagen, roth mit Gold, seidenen fear pah-gen rote mit gollt zy'-den-en four pages, red with gold, Strümpfen und Federhüten, strümp'-fen unt fay-der-hüh-ten stockings and feathered hats, hinten hint-en behind Leer und lairr unt empty and 3ug langsam vorwärts, aber ftets tsooch lang'-sam fore'-vairts ah'-ber stayts procession slowly forwards, but always burch eine große Maße von Menschen, doorch i-ne gross-e mass-e fon mensh'-en through a great mass of people, die zu beiden Seiten eine Gaße bildeten; dee tsoo by-den zy-ten i'-ne gass'-e bil'-de-ten who on both sides a lane formed; Alles blickte nach dem Könige in al'-les blick-te nach dame köh'-nich-e in all looked at the king in beat back the Gauls and Carthaginians, had, by long war, been re duced to poverty, and driven to sell their farms and live as artisans and labourers in the cities. The rich men bought up these lands and cultivated them by means of slaves. The city of Rome be now-a-days, to amuse and bribe the electos of Rome. The fights were called gladiatoriai shows, and the men who fought were called gladiators. These gladiators were genera prisoners taken in war or kidnapped in the provinces, and sometimes they were crimina They were often trained for years. Not only men, but women and even children of every class, gazed in admiration at these fights, and Saw without a scruple their fellow-me "butchered to make a Roman holiday." These sights of blood and suffering brutalsed the people and made them cruel and bloodthirsty, while the presents of food destroyed their independence. With the great body d electors thus brutalized and pauperized, it is not to be wondered at that the magistrates they elected were magistracy brutal and corrupt. The bribes a candidate had to buy his popularity with were enough to ruin him, and he could only Effect on the retrieve b fortune by exacting bribes in turn ing those wh came under his power and w vince he was a despot, with little to fear from the senate at Rome, to whom alone be responsible, and from whom he could in a of need buy his acquittal. PERISTYLE OF THE QUESTOR'S HOUSE AT POMPEII. came crowded with a great poThe city. pulation of idle, lazy paupers. And yet these pauper citizens of Rome elected all the magistrates. The candidates for office were the rich, and they had to ingratiate themselves with the electors by presents and favours of all kinds. Doles of corn began to be distributed gratuitously among the people in ever increasing quantities. Then the people cried out for amusements as well, and candidates had to supply them with these at enormous cost. The chief of these amuseThe shows. ments were shows of wild animals and curious objects sent from the distant provinces in Asia and Africa. Then these animals were set to fight and kill each Gladiators. other in the great circuses; and soon men began to engage in combat with wild beasts, and finally men fought with men, and great battles, with hundreds of men on each side, used to take place, and human blood was shed as freely as that of pigeons and pheasants Another thing which had a great influence on Roman manners and ideas was the influenc of the nations whom they con-, Influence of the quered, and with whom they conquered were thus brought into close nationa contact. In this way Greek ideas exercised an immense influence. The Greeb were at this time far in advance of their Roman masters in litera- Greek ideas ture, art, and science. The Roman noble were not slow to perceive this, and, to ther credit, they tried hard to acquire as much as possible of Greek culture. The lang literature, and art of Greece became the fast and were studied enthusiastically. Reme full of Greek professors and philpen Perhaps the most important effect of this w that the nobles at first, and afterwards the ANCIENT HISTORY. whole people, began to lose faith in their old gods, while they felt but little enthusiasm for the new importations from abroad; and soon they began to think, as one of their poets put it, that "if there were gods at all they certainly did not trouble themselves about the affairs of men." The most illustrious champion of these new ideas and manners was Scipio Africanus, the 715 all through Italy. Where formerly there were labour. conqueror of Hannibal, and their Scipio and Cato. ablest and most bitter opponent was Cato the censor. Scipio managed to make himself unpopular in spite of his superb services to the state, and went into voluntary exile. Cato tried hard to keep up the old state of things, and never ceased endeavouring by word and act to check the luxury and corruption which he saw gradually stealing over the people. His office as censor enabled him to punish and degrade unworthy nobles, and he exercised his Gracchus. proposed to take for this purpose the public A, Decumanian gate; B, Prætorian gate; C and D, Principal side gates; E, F, Via Quintana traversing the Camp; I and II, Tents of the Legions. 1, The Prætorium; 2, The Quæstorium; 3. The Forum; 4 and 5, Tents of Roman Volunteers; 6 and 7, Tents of the Main Body and of Allies; 8, Foreign Auxiliaries; 9, Tents of the Twelve Military Tribunes. power unsparingly. He set a noble example of simplicity in his own mode of life. But all his efforts could not stem the current, and in his old age he so far gave in to it himself that he took to studying Greek. For a long time now the chief interest in Roman history lies in internal affairs, all im portant external enemies having Internal affairs, been put down. Henceforth for many years a bitter struggle, breaking out every now and then into bloody civil wars and fearful massacres, was to occupy all the energies of public men. The first of these troubles was occasioned by the attempted reTiberius forms of the Gracchi. Tiberius Gracchus, Gracchus was a plebeian, although on his mother's side he was the grandson of the great patrician Scipio Africanus. He had seen how badly Italy and the provinces were governed, and was greatly impressed with the deserted, miserable look of the country parts land, i.e. confiscated land which had been Death of Gracchus. |