218 NATURAL BEAUTY 



describing the Beauty of the Earth we shall be 

 describing something that we really know about it 

 — something of the real nature of the Earth. 



For this reason I maintain that Geography 

 should be taken to include a description of the 

 Natural Beauty of the Earth's features. The de- 

 scription of the Earth is not full and complete, and 

 is lacking in its most important particular, when it 

 excludes a description of Natural Beauty, and only 

 includes scientific details about the size and shape 

 of the earth ; its configuration ; the composition of 

 the crust ; the depth, area, and volume of the ocean ; 

 the temperature, degree of moisture and pressure 

 of the atmosphere ; the height of the mountains ; 

 the length, breadth, volume, course, and catchment 

 area of its rivers ; the mineral and vegetable products 

 of various regions ; the political areas into which it 

 is divided ; the relation of the political and commer- 

 cial activities of the population to the physical 

 character of the features and to the climate. I, of 

 course, acknowledge the importance of all this 

 geographical knowledge. To the historian and the 

 statesman it is essential that he should know the part 

 which a certain mountain range or river or desert 

 has played in human history. A soldier must know 

 with extreme accuracy the configuration of the 

 country over which his army is operating. An 

 engineer must know the exact level and contour of 

 a region over which he has to lay a railway or con- 

 struct a canal. A merchant must know whether a 

 countrj' produces cotton, tea", and sugar ; or wheat, 

 wool, and meat. For all these and others, each for 

 his own particular purpose, we want the kind of 



