WATER LILY 



6216 



WATERLOO 



the volume of water is large a fall of this sort 

 is called a cataract, as the cataract of Niagara; 

 if the volume is small the fall may be called 

 a cascade. Ordinarily the term cataract is ap- 

 plied to a series of rapids or falls caused by 

 the flow of the stream over a rapidly-sloping 

 rocky bed, such as the cataracts of the Nile 

 and the Orinoco. A cataract which has a fall 

 of but a few feet is termed rapids. Some of 

 the most noted rapids in America are those at 

 Sault Sainte Marie at the outlet of Lake Su- 

 perior, and the rapids in the Saint Lawrence 

 River. The most noted cataracts are Niagara, 

 Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River in Africa, 

 the falls of the Iguassu in South America and 

 the Great Falls of Labrador. 



Small waterfalls or cascades are often of great 

 height. Such are the Yosemite Falls in Cali- 

 fornia, 2,600 feet high; Monte Rosa, 2,400 feet, 

 and the Staubbach of the Alps, 900 feet. Of 

 lesser height but celebrated for their beauty are 

 Montmorenci Falls, near Quebec, numerous 

 cascades in the Rocky and Selkirk mountains, 

 and the Upper and Lower falls in Yellowstone 

 National Park. 



Falls usually occur in mountainous countries, 

 but sometimes they are caused by the descent 

 of streams to a flood plain. The line along 

 which several rivers flowing into the same body 

 of water descends to this lower river is called 

 the fall line. The fall line of the rivers south 

 of Chesapeake Bay which flow into the At- 

 lantic Ocean is marked by the location of manu- 

 facturing cities, of which Richmond, Raleigh, 

 Augusta and Columbia are good examples. 



WATER LILY, or POND LILY, the most 

 gorgeous of water plants, is found throughout 

 the north, south temperate and tropical zones. 

 From the mud of clear, shallow water this 

 plant sends long, stout stems; and up in the 

 bright, uninterrupted sunshine, which it needs 

 and loves, it appeals with its cool, green leaves 

 and cup-shaped, showy-white, yellow, blue or 

 red flowers. To most people the white blossom 

 only is known. The leaves are round or oval, 

 and are from two inches to over a foot in 

 diameter; they float on the water like little 

 flatboats for the frogs and water bugs. The 

 flowers may be as small as one-twelfth of an 

 inch or as large as a foot across. Some water 

 lilies are hardy day bloomers; others are ten- 

 der night bloomers, but each kind opens and 

 closes its flowers at one particular time each 

 day or night. 



WATERLOO, wawterloo', a town in the 

 province of Ontario, three miles northwest of 



Kitchener, on the Canadian Pacific and the 

 Grand Trunk railways. It is a manufacturing 

 town, its products being principally furniture, 

 boots and shoes, trunks, bags, bricks and tiles. 

 Population, 1911, 4,359. 



And near to the river's trembling edge 



There grew broad flag-flowers, purple, prankt 



with white ; 



And starry river buds among the sedge ; 

 And floating water lilies, broad and bright. 



SHELLEY: The Question. 



WATERLOO, BATTLE OF, the battle that 

 marked the close of the Napoleonic drama and 

 resulted in the retirement of Napoleon from 

 European politics and banishment to the rocky 

 islet of Saint Helena. It was fought on June 



MOUND OF THE LION 



A British memorial at Waterloo, one of the 

 numerous monuments on the battle field. 



18, 1815, near Waterloo, a Belgian village lying 

 about ten miles southeast of Brussels. 



The British commander, Wellington, had 

 fallen back towards Waterloo after two pre- 

 liminary engagements on the 16th. The Prus- 

 sians under Bliicher had been defeated at Ligny, 

 and Wellington's efforts to effect a junction 



