218 



AFRICA 



of the abundant rainfall is partly lost. Varying with 

 the altitude, its climate ranges from dry and .hot 

 conditions of the Sudan and the Red Sea to the cool- 

 ness of northern lands. In addition to this, an unequal 

 distribution of rainfall and an extreme diversity oi 

 the drainage due to variations of the relief and of ex- 

 posure, and the nature of the ground combine in render- 



FIG. 85. Coffee Plantation British East Africa. 



ing the plant cover strikingly varied ; indeed the 

 landscape of Abyssinia may be regarded as a summary 

 of most of the vegetations of Africa. The most charac- 

 teristic and extensive formation is the meagre treeless 

 steppe of the wind-swept plateaus, which is, however, 

 interrupted on the arid rocky sides of the gorges by 

 patches of thorny brush or thin sprinklings of acacias 

 and low leafless trees. Prosperous park landscapes 



