A Story of Conflict 



building Land, forming an island or a group of 

 islands, either of pebbles or sand or mud. In 

 the case of a great river such islands are often 

 very extensive. 



The flow of a small river is quickly stopped 

 by the sea, but such powerful streams as the 

 Ganges or the Nile pour onward for many many 

 miles, before they begin to mingle with the salt 

 water, their speed slackening gradually. Not 

 only do they form great deltas of islands, but 

 they carry vast supplies of material far into the 

 ocean. 



Recently an examination was made into the 

 waters of nineteen important rivers, to discover 

 what quantity of material was carried by each. 

 The result of this examination was somewhat 

 startling. 



We have seen already how many cubic miles 

 of water a river may give over yearly to the 

 great deep. It was found that, on an average, 

 these rivers may be reckoned to give over also, 

 with each cubic mile of water, more than seven 

 hundred and sixty thousand tons of material^ torn 

 from the land. These enormous collections, 

 together with vast quantities which the waves 

 have dug and wrenched from beaches and cliffs, 

 are dropped to Ocean's floor. 



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