on the south, as an elevated plateau most of which reaches an altitude of 4,000-6,000 feet. The divide between the two main rivers is a region of upturned hard rocks, known as the Witwatersrand, which trends nearly east and west. This range is one of the principal gold bearing regions of the republic. The rainfall of the region averages about thirty inches, and the climate is mild. Yet the soil is only moderately fertile. The country is very rich in iron and coal as well as gold, and the economic future seems to be very promising. There are five districts that yield gold at the rate of $100,000 annually. within twenty miles of Johannesburg there that will yield 3,500 million dollars of gold. By comparison it is interesting to note that the United States in 1895 produced $4,900,000 more gold than the Transvaal. Estimates show that are workable mines The Boer colonists who oppose the advance of the English into power are described as follows: "Like the English they are stubborn, self-reliant, fond of the chase, and admirably adapted to cope with the difficulties incident to colonization in a country occupied by savage beasts and still more savage men. The Boer ideal seems to be life on a large estate, with plenty of sport and the occupation of not too exigent stockbreeding and farming. So far their tastes do not differ greatly from those of many Englishmen, but they are for the most part ignorant of the refinements of life so dear to advanced Anglo-Saxons, and perhaps on this account they are almost devoid of the commercial instincts through which such tastes might be gratified. They are, it is said, usually able to read print, but for the most part their reading is confined to the Bible. They are highly religious, and the Bible appeals to them as to few other peoples, because the scenery and material conditions of the Book are so similar to those by which they are surrounded. The very animals are the same. Their religion is somber and puritanical. It is that of the Old Testament, with little sweetness or mercy in it. Under normal conditions the Boers are generously hospitable and they are brave. It is true that Englishmen have sometimes reviled them as cowardly, but their whole history, and particularly the battles of Boomplaata and Majuba Hill, show the contrary. The accusation seems to be due in part to the fact that like all continental Europeans they are greatly averse to fisticuffs, and partly The Journal of School Geography A MONTHLY JOURNAL DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF THE EDITOR: RICHARD E. DODGE, Professor of Geography, Teachers College, 120th St., West, New York City. VOLUME I.-1897. LANCASTER, PA. 1897. INDEX. Abyssinia, Egypt and, (note), 249. Aconcagua, (note), 88. Adams, Cyrus C., Some Things about Africa, 7. Afghanistan, The Nomads of, (note), 216. Africa, Vol. I: North Africa; Vol. II: South Africa, (review), 159; Slavery in, (note), 187; Some Things About, C. C. Adams, 7; Where White Men may Live and Work, Districts in Tropical, (note), 187. Alaska, (note), 28. Alberta, The Climate of, (note), 85. Alpine Villages, The Highest, (note), 285. Alps, The Canadian, Charles E. Fay, 161; The End of the, (note), 285. Andes, Crossing the, (note), 188. Angola, (note), 155. Antarctic Regions, The, (note), 89. Appalachian Barrier, Influence of the, Upon Colonial History, Ellen C. Semple, 33. Aras, Kura and, (note), 57. Argentina, Chile and, (note), 151. Arizona, (note), 313. Ashanti and Kumassi, The Gold Coast, (note), 314; Notes on, (note), 251. Asia, (review), 286; Central, (note), 56. Australasia, Victoria, (note), 58. Australia, Climate of, (note), 283. Australian Desert, The Great, (note), 209. Atlas of the World, Rand-McNally Indexed Standard, (review), 224. Azores, Discovery of a Fishing Bank near the, (note), 154. Bell River, Canada, (note), 215. Bolivia, Northern, (note), 89. Boundaries, Geographical, (note), 58. Boundary, The New York and Massachusetts, (note), 220. Brigham, Albert P., Lakes; A Study for Teachers, 65. Budapest, Population of, (note), 96. California, (note), 122. Canadian Rockies, General Features of, W. D. Wilcox, 293. Central Asia, The Value of Water in, (note), 216. Ceylon, (note), 246. Chile and Argentina, (note), 151; The Climatic Control of Occupation in, R. DeC. Ward, 289. Cities, Location of, Geographic Causes Determining the, E. C. Semple, 225. |