Home Geography for Primary Grades by C. C. Long, Ph.D. - HTML preview

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A MAP

A drawing made to show a room, or a house; or the school-yard, or even a vilage, is caled a plan.

Drawings which represent land and water are caled

maps. You may learn from maps where the countries,

and mountains, and rivers, and cities are that you have

seen. It also shows how far places are from one another.

Here is a map showing mountains and rivers. The many

short lines facing each other represent mountains. To

show the very high part of the mountains, the lines are

drawn close to each other, making that part of the map

look dark. The line winding about, like the stream itself,

represents a river. The line, as you see, is made thicker

and thicker toward its mouth. From this you may know

that the river itself becomes broader and broader as it flows toward the sea.

But you must not think that the crooked line on the map is a river, or the lines which face each other are mountains. If you do, you wil learn very little of geography. When you look at these lines, you must think of the real things which they stand for--the lofty mountains, with their covering of forests, and with long, narrow valeys between them; the winding, gently flowing river, bearing boats upon its waters.

LESSON XXV.

FORMS OF LAND AND WATER.

You al know what a pond is. Is there a pond near where you live? Did you ever fish in it?

Did you ever walk round it?

When a stream, on its way to the ocean, flows into a basin or holow in the land, the water spreads out and fils it. A holow in the land filed with water is caled a lake, or, if it be quite smal, a pond.

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What is a lake made of? What is round it? Suppose some one who never saw a lake were to

ask you what a lake is, what would you say?

What do we find in lakes? Would you not like to sail on a lake?

In the holows among mountains are great numbers of beautiful lakes. In their clear waters

may be seen the mountains, the forests, and the sky, as in a looking-glass. At night the moon and stars may be seen below you as plainly as above.

Here is a picture of a pretty lake in a valey.

You see a river flowing from the hils

beyond. Into what is it flowing? The river

that lets the water into the lake is caled an

inlet.

You see another river that lets the water out

of the lake. This river we cal the outlet of

the lake.

Make a lake on your molding-board, or in

the sand near your home. Represent its inlet

and outlet.

Out in the lake is a little piece of land round which the waters play. We could

not go to this land without crossing the water; the water is on al sides of it.

Such a little piece of land is caled an island.

Did you ever read the story of Robinson Crusoe? You wil remember that he went up a hil in

search of water. When he got to the top of the hil, he saw that he was on an island. How did he know?

Have you ever seen an island? What island was it? Could you sail round it? What was on

every side of it? What grew on it? What is an island?

If there is a brook or lake near your home, how can you make an island?

Opposite is a picture of a river and a lake. Make a map of the same river and lake on your slate. Notice how the coast or shore of the lake bends in and out.

Write the following:

A lake is water surrounded by land.

The land near the water of a lake is caled its shore.

An island is a little piece of land surrounded by water.

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LESSON XXVI.

MORE ABOUT FORMS OF LAND AND WATER.

MAP O F A PENINSULA.

In the picture we see a narrow strip of land

which extends far out into the water. You wil

PICTURE O F A PENINSULA.

notice that the land has water al round; except

at one place.

What is the name for land that has water on al sides but one? What is a peninsula? An island, as we have learned, is a piece of land with water al round it. Now, sometimes we see a piece of land that has water nearly al round it. This form of land is caled a peninsula. The word peninsula means almost an island.

How would you change this peninsula to an island? What is the difference between a

peninsula and an island?

The narrow neck which joins the peninsula to other land--just as the neck joins the head to the body-is caled an isthmus, which means neck.

Here is

another

picture

which I

wish

you to

look at.

You see

where

PICTURE O F A BAY.

the

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MAP O F A BAY.

shore bends like a bow; and the water runs a

little way into the land.

Can you think of anything else that is bent like this? Yes-a bay-window.

Now, when I tel yon that bay means the same as bow, you can almost guess the name for

this bend in the land. It is caled a bay. You wil easily remember that little word.

A wide opening or bend in the land, into which the water flows, is usualy caled a bay.

Sometimes, when the opening in the bend is long and narrow, it is caled a gulf.

On the

next

page is

shown a

narrow

strip of

water

joining

two

larger

bodies

PICTURE O F A STRAIT.

of

water.

The name given to this narrow passage is

MAP O F A STRAIT.

strait, a word meaning narrow.

As an isthmus connects two bodies of land, so a strait connects two bodies of water.

After a rain make little lakes, rivers, bays, etc. Perhaps you may find some already made.

See whether you can find in the magazines and books at home pictures of gulfs, bays,

peninsulas, etc.

Write the following: A peninsula is land almost surrounded by water.

An isthmus is a neck of land joining two larger bodies of land.

A gulf or bay is a portion of some large body of water extending into the land.

A strait is a narrow passage of water that joins two larger bodies of water.

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LESSON XXVII.

A TRIP TO THE HIGHLANDS.

Uncle Tom had been teling Fred and me about many strange places he had seen. Last of al,

he told us about some high mountains he had climbed. We wanted to climb one very much.

So father said he would go with us up a high hil not far from the city.

Mother did not need to cal us in the morning, for we woke up very early. The sky in the east was bright, and we knew that soon we should see the sun. We wanted to start at once, but

mother said it would be better to have breakfast first.

We put on thick shoes that the stones would not easily cut. Father gave each of us a stout stick to help us climb. Fred had a knapsack, in which mother put some bread, cold meat,

crackers, and a cup to drink from. In one corner we put some towels.

We were soon outside the city, walking along the road. We passed a vilage, and went

through fields and woods. By and by we could see the land before us rising higher and higher.

We saw no longer such beautiful farms and gardens as we had passed.

In a little while we reached the foot of the hil

and began to ascend. As we went up the

slope, we came to steep, rugged places that

were hard to climb, where we needed our

sticks. The trees were smaler, and there were

many bushes. There were large rocks, too, in

the sides of the hil. At the foot, the weather

was quite warm, but it grew cooler and cooler

the higher we went.

"On the summit at last!" cried Fred, as we

reached the top.

AS WE WENT UP THE SLO PE.

From where we stood, we could see the city

with its little straight streets, that look so

wide when we walk on them. We could

see the house-tops, too, and the church

steeples. Then father showed us the

vilage we passed; and the woods we

went through. But the trees looked like

bushes, and some men at the foot of the

hil looked no larger than the baby.

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Down the mountain, a little way, we

found a spring where the water was

clear and cool. Here we sat down on a

rock, and ate the lunch we had brought.

While we rested, we watched the little

ril that flowed from the spring--

"Blue in the shadow,

Silver in the sun."

Down the hil, it was larger, and we saw

WE CO ULD SEE THE CITY WITH ITS LITTLE

other rils flowing into it. When it

STRAIGHT STREETS.

reached the valey, it was much larger;

and farther down, father said, boats could sail on it.

Before us, in the valey, lay a large sheet

of stil water.

"Oh, how pretty!" exclaimed I.

"Yes, that is a lake," said father. "How

beautiful it looks as the sunlight plays on

its smooth surface! It reflects in its clear

water the sky and the trees around it."

"I can see an island in the lake," said

Fred. "Vessels are sailing al round it."

"Are al islands smal, like that?" he

asked.

"Oh, no!" said father. "Some islands are

hundreds of miles round, and have many

IN THE VALLEY LAY A LARGE SHEET O F STILL

people living upon them."

WATER.

Fred then pointed to a piece of land extending out into the water, and asked whether that, too, was an island.

"No," replied father, "that is a peninsula. It is land almost surrounded by water. And the narrow neck which joins the peninsula to the mainland is caled an isthmus.

"You see the bend in the land, with the water from the lake running in?" asked father.

"Yes," said Fred.

"That is caled a bay. Around every ocean, which is a much larger body of water, there are many such bays.

"The narrow strip of water, which a boat is just entering, is caled a strait. The strait separates www.gutenberg.org/files/12228/12228-h/12228-h.htm

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the island from the mainland."

Stretching far away to the east was flat, level land, which father caled a plain. Scattered here and there were many farmhouses and quiet vilages. Little bright, sparkling streams wound

their way like silver threads through the green grass of the meadows. It was a lovely scene indeed!

The sun was already low in the west as we made ready to return. As it set--

A wonderful glory of color,

A splendor of shifting light--

Orange and scarlet and purple

Flamed in the sky so bright.

LESSON XXVIII.

SPRING.

Drops of rain and bits of

Violets, in blue and

sunshine

purple,

Faling here and

By the twinkling water

gleaming there,

clear;

Tiny blades of grass

Fair spring beauties, frail

appearing.

and dainty,

Tel of springtime

Tel the story, spring is

bright and fair.

here.

Budding leaves are

Cherry, peach, and

gently swaying,

apple blossoms

Merry glad notes

Scattering fragrance far

sweetly ring;

and wide;

Robins, bluebirds, gayly

Buttercups and pure

singing,

white snowdrops

Tel of happy, pleasant

Tel of gracious, sweet

spring.

springtide.

---Lillian Cox.

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LESSON XXIX.

USEFUL VEGETABLES.

In the heart of a seed buried deep, so

deep, A dear little plant lay fast asleep.

"Wake!" said the sunshine, "and creep to

the light."

"Wake!" said the voice of the raindrops

bright.

The little plant heard, and it rose to see

What the wonderful outside world might

be.

What vegetables grow in your

neighborhood?

Of which do we use the roots as food?

Of which the leaves? Of which the seeds?

Of which the stems or stalks?

Which is the most useful garden

vegetable? There is no common garden

vegetable so highly thought of as the

potato. How are potatoes planted?

Answer the questions in writing so as to

A SPRO UT.

make a little composition about

vegetables.