CHAPTER Til. 



(C. WILGEESS ANDERSON, E.G.S., F.K.G.S.) 



GENERAL PHYSICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL FEATURES 

 OF BRITISH GUIANA. 



Situation and Extent. — The region called Guiana, or Guyana, 

 stretches along the northern coast of South America from the mouth of 

 the Orinoco River to that of the Amazon River, and inwards to Brazil. 



The only European possessions in South America are three in 

 number, and are situated on the central portion of this territory, 

 which is divided into the colonies of the British, Dutch, and French 

 Guiana. 



Of these colonies, the most westerly is that of British Guiana, 

 which extends from the eastern limits of Venezuela, westward to Dutch 

 Guiana, and north of Brazil to the coast on the Atlantic Ocean, its 

 extreme limits touching the parallels of 0" 41' and 8° 33' 22" north 

 latitude, and the meridians of 56^ 20^' and 61 '^ 23' 24-7" west 

 longitude. 



British Guiana has a seaboard of about 270 miles trending in 

 a south-easterly direction, with a mean depth of about 500 miles, and 

 is equal in extent to the combined size of England, Scotland and 

 Wales, the area being about 90,000 square miles, most of which is 

 densely covered with exuberant primeval forest, but in some parts 

 there are broad open flats and undulating grassy plains, or savannahs, 

 and mountainous grass-clad country. 



Physical Features. The Alluvial Belt. — The colony may be divided 

 broadly into two low-lying belts near the coast and a hilly and moun- 

 tainous hinterland, which constitutes by far the largest area. 



The coast lands are flat and for the most part swampy, being 

 depressed slightly below the level of ordinary spring tides, so that 

 sea-walls and other defences have had to be constructed to protect the 

 settled parts of the coast lands from being flooded by high tides. They 

 form part of an alluvial belt which rises gradually from the sea-level 

 and extends inland for a distance varying from 10 to 40 miles, 

 and which is composed of variously coloured clays with intermediate 

 laj'ers of sand and peat, the latter being locallj'- known as pegass. 



The margins of this formation along the sea and rivers are covered 

 with a dense growth, consisting principally of mangrove (B/iizophora 

 ■mangle) and of courida [Avicenna, nitida), which form natural sea 

 defences, the former being found along tlie M'estern and the latter 

 along the eastern ])arts. Behind this grf)wth are flat grassy savannalis 



