a A em TERT TIT STE 
THE PRINCIPAL RIVERS IN THE WORLD, THEIR LENGTH IN 
MILES, WITH THE AREA OF COUNTRY DRAINED BY THEM. 
RIVERS OF NORTH AMERICA. 
Length. Area of coun- 
Names. Miles. try drained. 
8q. miles. 
Mississtepi Proper,* U. S., from its } 2.900 
source to the Gulf of Mexico......... J ~? 
Missouri* River, from its source to 
confluence with the Mississippi...... } EU ee io1s 
Missounri-Mississippi, from its source | 
to the Gulfof Mexico.......cccccsseose J real) 
Sr. Lawrence, Canada......... «2,000... 600,000 
Rio GiaANDE DEL Norte, U. S... . 1,800 
RYSETONSTONE 1) .Uc S.cccecesovetecese 
Mackenzig, British America.............. 1,500... 300,000 
Netson and Winnepse, Brit. America, 1,400... 250,000 
MUSOU VIR AE Ul etOavees cscs csccccsscccsces Sere Ugau 
ARKANSAS, U.&....... eh eoccten eesenlsoU 0 ese 200,000 
Oreoon, or Cotumsia, U. S. coos 1,200 
River Puarre, U. &...... 1,200 
Kansas River, U.S. 1,200 
TENNESSEE, U. S...... ves 15200'.... 42,000 
Orrawa, Canada.... bs UPAN) 
Ore, Weta Raestan cases tascne sty cess «. 1,000... 200,000 
CANADIAN (branch of the Arkansas).... 1,000 
Rio Cotorapo, California.. 800 
WWASHITA SU ccc. cress sccocescoes - 800 
Neosuo, U. &..... - 800 
Brazos, Texas. - 650 
ALABAMA, U.&..... 600... 40,000 
'CuMBERLAND, U. S$... 600... 18,000 
| Wisconsiy, U. S.... . 600 
Des Moines, U. &.... . 600 
Wuire River, U.S.. 600 
WYAAGASH MU sei cctsecccsscciesscseisccecssveveses 000 
APALACHICOLA (including the CHarra- 
PIOOUHIM) Ue cissscocsicecccbecssecosesceses 000 
Sr. Perer’s, or Minnesora, U.S&......... 500 
OSAGH aU Ssisccesces Ri aaenees Bleecccsasee 500 
SusqueHanna, U.S.. 350... 30,000 
Potomac, U.S&...... 880... 13,500 
Savanna, U.S.. ae 400 
WVOGKe Us stccevessses 450 
Rio Gina, U.S. 400 
Iuurnors, U.S 400... 24,000 
James, U.S... 370... 10,500 
WOWASSUS Sicveecee 350 
Penosscort, U. §.. 350 
Nueces, U.S... -. 350 
DARIN RU ct sie coescocoee - 7 300 
SacrAMENTO, California.. -- 3050 
San Joaquin, st ae ee tll) 
CONNECTICUT, U.S. .eceee vee 325 
Hupson, U. S........ 300 
DeLawarg, U.S... 300... 12,000 
Kaskaskia, U. &...... 300 
Kennebec, U. &..... 250 
RIVERS OF SOUTH AMERICA. 
PAEAZON rect cer ers teistsiccassesos'sscocesns soncece. 3)000:.6..2,930,000 
R10 DE LA PLATA .......---recreceseee coeeeee 2,150 ... 1,242,000 
; Mapeira (chief branch of the Amazon), 1,800 
| TOCANTINS... mers S ZO 
ARAGUAY - 950 } s25000 
IRTOUNEGRO sccoccesscscceces 1,400 . 
San Francisco, Brazil.. core aby ed 
WORINOCOheceeteos cvcceees RWecenccrol cece: «1,150... 300,000 
Purus (branch of the e. 1,250 
X1NGU, Gs pees bey 45) ) 
JAPURA, Ch 1,200 
TAPAJOS, oo . 1,000 
Putumayo, “ 1,000 
JURUA, iG oe Eb!) 
JUTAY, G - 800 
MAGDALENA, New Grenada ...ceecccoorree 850 
RIVERS OF EUROPE, 
VoueA, Russia in Europe ......ec0scceseeee 2,500 vee 640,000 
DanuBe, Austria and Turkey.. oo 1,725 ... 310,000 
IDNIGPER, RUSSIR.c.ccs00s ccococees ee 1,240... 200,000 
Don, ROME cce stvestieceres cere: soe 11107... 205,000 
Raine, Germany and Holland.... - 650... 70,000 
ID WAINASCLUUISSIA sconce sscorsece ccvceses - 1,000... 125,000 
VistuLA, Poland and Prussia. - 650... 70,000 
Loire, France ......... 620... 48,000 
Eve, Prussia... - 580... 50,000 
RuHOoNE, France . - 540 
Duna, Russia....... 490 
Dniester, Russia ...... Betcee 3 480 
Tacus, Spain and Portugal... 520... 28,760 
Meusgs, Prussia and Holland. 520 
EVINES LTANOO ccsporvcuccacsesssen) 480 ... 26,200 
ONE RP ENUAB A contscsstercecees ove 460... 43,926 
Douro, Spain and Portugal. 455... 35,000 
Esro, Spain. » 410 
eOwaltalyeenscesec cts 380... 27,000 
THAMES, England.... 200 ... 5,000 
SHANNON, Ireland........ 220 
Severn, England....... 210 
BUTE IOR LURLVievesscithassticcecccssocccees csecssess 2LO 
RIVERS OF ASIA. 
YANG-TSE-KIANG, or K1ANKU, China..... 3,320... 750,000 
YENISEL, Asiatic Russia.........scccesseesse 3)230 vee 1,040,000 
Osx, ss re .. 2,670 ... 1,250,000 
Lena, “ Cie + 2,770 ... 800,000 
Amour, Mantchooria.... - 2,740... 853,000 
HoanG-no, China..... +. 2,300... 710,000 
Inpus, Hindostan, - 2,200 ... 410,000 
CamBopiA, Anam.... Bacasevestesecss 15000 
* See Descriptions of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. 
RIVERS 
OF THE WORLD. 
Length. Area of coun- 
Miles. try drained. 
416,000 
Names. 
GANGES, Hindostan .........00+ cesses sesceeee 
Burrampooter, Hindostan..... 
Evupurates, Asiatic Tartary.... 
230,000 
Sinon, or Oxus, Tartary...... 1,3 
SIRR, Or JAXARTES....ee00e - 1,200 
WU Adintnctesececclcesteccssisascecceccsss 1,050 
May-xIAn@, or Campopia, China . 1,700 
AMO0, Tartary........0s00 es 1,610 
S1-K1ano, China.... 1,050 
DV NAM SOM DOTAMistscsscsctcareccsancelocovses st, 000 
RIVERS OF AFRICA. 
Nie, Egypt, &c., computed at........e0 3,600 ... 1,425,000 
Niger, Soudan, fe «- 8,000... 800,000 
ZAIRE, OF CONGO ....e00s «- 1,400 
SENEGAL, Senegambia. 1,140 
GAMBIA, se 800 
ORANGE, Cape Colony..... . 1,050 
ZAMBESE, Mozambique, Gc. .......0eseeeee 950 
THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND ITS GREAT TRIBUTARIES. 
Tut MISSISSIPPI RIVER, with its chief tributary, the 
Missouri, forms not only the longest, but one of the most 
important rivers in the world. It is (including all its 
tributary streams,) entirely within the boundaries of the 
United States. 
This great river was discovered as early as 1672, yet its 
true source was not fully determined until its exploration 
by Mr. Schoolcraft, in 1832; it was then found to take its 
rise in the small lake Jtasca, which is situated in 47° 10’ 
N. Lat., and 94° 54’ W. Long. from Greenwich. 
This lake forms a beautiful sheet of transparent water, 
about eight miles in length; its shape is irregular, and it 
is situated among hills covered with pine forests, and fed 
by springs. It is 3160 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, and 
elevated about 1680 feet above the ocean. 
This river drains an extent of territory which, for fer- 
tility and vastness, is unequalled upon the globe. The 
territory, termed the “ Mississippi valley,” extends from 
the sources of the Mississippi in the north, to the Gulf of 
Mexico in the south, and from the Alleghany Mountains 
on the east, to the Rocky Mountains on the west. Or, to 
give its outline more definitely, we will take a position on 
the Gulf of Mexico, where it empties its accumulated 
waters, and run a line northwestward to the Rocky Moun- 
tains, from whence issue the sources of the Arkansas, 
Platte, and other smaller streams; from this point, along 
the Rocky Mountains, to the sources of the Yellowstone 
and Missouri Rivers; around the northern sources of the 
latter river to the head-waters of Red River, a branch of 
the Assiniboine; around the sources of the Mississippi 
proper, to the head-waters of the Wisconsin and- Illinois 
Rivers; between the confluents of the lakes, and those of 
the Ohio, to the extreme source of the Alleghany River; 
along the dividing-line between the sources of streams 
flowing into the Ohio River, and those flowing towards the 
Atlantic; between the confluents of the Tennessee,- and 
those streams emptying into Mobile Bay; between the 
sources discharged into the Mississippi, and those into the 
Tombighbee and Pearl Rivers; to the mouth of the Missis- 
sippi, and from its mouth to the outlet of the Atchafalaya. 
The whole presenting an outline of more than 6,000 miles, 
or an area of about 1,237,311 square milés, divided as 
follows: — 3 
Sq. miles. 
Valley of the Missouri..............00 seve 510,000 
oo “Lower Mississippi. 330,000 
ad SSE OUOescacinsccccorerest a» 210,000 
G3 “Upper Mississippi............. 187,210 
Total, 1,237,311 
The Mississippi River is navigable for steamboats, with 
but partial interruption, as far north as the Falls of St. 
Anthony, a distance of 2037 miles, and, at seasons, as far 
as Sauk Rapids, about 100 miles fartler; its course, how-- 
ever, is extremely crooked, and not unfrequently a bend 
occurs from 20 to 30 miles round, where the distance across 
is not more than a mile or two. In some instances, how- 
ever, these distances have been shortened, by what is 
termed “cut-offs,” which are made by opening a narrow 
channel across the neck of a bend, when, on admitting the 
water, the current, running with such velocity, soon forms 
a channel both wide and deep enough for the largest 
steamboats to go through. The navigation is frequently 
rendered dangerous, owing to the mighty volume of water 
washing away from some projecting point large masses of 
earth, with its huge trees, which are carried down the 
stream. Others, again, are often imbedded in the mud, 
with their tops rising above the water, and not unusually 
causing the destruction of many a fine craft. These are 
called, in the phrase of the country, “snags” and “sawyers.” 
The whirls, or eddies, caused by the striking peculiarities 
of the river in the uniformity of its meanders, are termed 
“points” and ‘‘bends,” which have the precision, in many 
instances, as’ though they had been struck by the sweep 
of a compass. These are so regular, that the flat-boatmen 
frequently calculate distances by them: instead of the 
number of miles, they estimate their progress by the num- 
ber of bends they have passed. 
A short distance from its source, the Mississippi becomes 
a tolerable-sized-stream ; below the Falls of St. Anthony, 
it is half a mile wide, and below the Des Moines Rapids 
it assumes a medial width and character to the mouth of 
the Missouri. About fifteen miles below the mouth of the 
St. Croix River, the Mississippi expands into a beautiful 
sheet of water, called Lake Pepin, which is twenty-four 
miles long, and from two to four miles broad. The islands, 
which are numerous; and many of them large, have, during 
the summer season, an aspect of great beauty, possessing 
a grandeur of vegetation which contributes much to the 
magnificence of the river. The numerous sand-bars are 
the resort, during the season, of innumerable swans,.geese, 
and water-fowl. The Upper Mississippi is a beautiful 
river, more so than the Ohio: its current is more gentle, 
its water clearer, and it is a third wider. In general, it is 
a mile wide, yet for some distance before commingling its 
waters with the Missouri it has a much greater width. At 
the junction of the two streams it is a mile and a half wide. 
The united stream, flowing from thence to the mouth of 
the Ohio, has an average width of little more than three- 
quarters of a mile.. On its uniting with the Missouri, it 
loses its distinctive character: it is no longer the gentle, 
placid stream, with smooth shores and clean sand-bars, but 
has a furious and boiling current, a turbid and dangerous 
mass of waters, with jagged and dilapidated shores. Its 
character of calm magnificence, that so delighted the eye 
above, is seen no more. 
The Mississippi River differs in peculiarity of character 
from that of any other river upon the globe; its entire 
course being directly from north to south, consequently it 
embraces a great variety of climates and productions, which 
it otherwise could not do, if its course was in an opposite 
direction. 
One would naturally suppose, from the extent of country 
drained by this river, that the spring floods would be very 
great; but it must be remembered that, the course of the 
river being from north to south, and, as the return of the 
warm season advances in a contrary direction, its icy fetters 
are gradually removed, the surplus waters, therefore, being 
allowed time to pass off through its natural channel into 
the Gulf of Mexico. During times of great freshets, how- 
ever, the banks are frequently washed away, thereby’ 
causing great destruction of life and property. ‘This is 
termed a crevasse. 
The lower part of Louisiana has been formed by deposits 
from the sea, and, lying very low, is at all times subject to 
inundation. 
For a distance of three hundred miles along the river 
bank, the country back from the stream is, in many places, 
lower than high-water mark; and, for a distance of 130 
miles or more, an artificial bank or mound, called a levee, 
has been constructed, to confine the river to its natural 
channel. This embankment is composed of clay or green 
turf, strengthened with cypress logs, and varies from 5 to 
15 feet in height, and from 10 to 30 feet in width. When 
the river is full, the prospect of rich fields, teeming with 
luxuriant crops, and studded with villas and villages full 
of life and animation, lying below the level of the river, is a 
novel, and, to the stranger, a startling sight. 
Below the mouth of the Ohio the islands in the Missis- 
sippi have all been numbered; but at present the numbers 
are very irregular, owing to the circumstance of many being 
washed away by the force of the moving waters, and new 
ones continually forming. 
This “ growing up” of the islands of the Mississippi, is 
one of the most striking characteristics of this mighty river, 
and one that would not present itself to the eye of a 
voyager passing along the stream, unless the islands that 
were growing up were pointed out, and the philosophy of 
the phenomenon explained to him, which is as follows: — 
““Where the current strikes diagonally off from a point 
above the head of an island, the eddying waters produce a 
sand-bar under the point at the mouth of the ‘chute,’ or 
channel round the island. Upon this bar collects the allu- 
vial soil of the river, from which spring the young cotton- 
woods, which, being of very rapid growth, soon shoot up 
into tall trees, and completely shut out the channel from 
the view of the river. The ‘chutes’ behind the islands 
then form lakes. Upon the waters of these lakes congre- 
gate all kinds of aquatic fowl — swans, geese, ducks, peli- 
cans, and the like.” j : 
South of the thirty-third degree of latitude may be seen 
the first view of the Spanish Moss, hanging in gloomy gran- 
deur from the boughs of the cypress trees. Here, also, is 
the Palmetto, with its broad, fan-like leaf, the lofty cotton- 
wood, the sea-grass, the impenetrable cane-brake, and all 
the concomitants of a southern forest. Alligators are also 
not unfrequently seen, reposing upon a log, and basking in 
the noonday sun, in descending the Mississippi from about 
this latitude. ° 
The MISSOURI RIVER enters the Mississippi a little 
below Lat. 39° north. Owing to its carrying a greater 
volume of water than the latter river, and besides imparting 
its own general character to it, some writers have thought 
its name should have been given the stream from its junc- 
tion to the Gulf of Mexico. 
This, the greatest tributary of the Mississippi River, rises 
in the Rocky Mountains, a short distance from the head- 
waters of the Columbia, and nearly in the same parallel of 
latitude as the Mississippi River. It is formed by three 
streams, which unite not far from the base of the principal 
range of the mountains; these are denominated Jefferson, 
Madison, and Gallatin, and are in 45° 10’ N. Lat., and 
110° W. Long. After this union, the river continues a con- 
siderable distanve to be still a foaming mountain-torrent; 
it then spreads into a broad, and comparatively gentle 
stream, with numerous islands. The river then becomes 
almost a continued cataract for about 17 miles, during which 
its perpendicular descent is about 362 feet. Its course con- 
tinues rapid for some distance farther. Y 
The YELLOWSTONE, ‘one of the principal tributaries 
of the Missouri, rises in the same range of mountains with 
the main stream. It enters from the south by a mouth 
850 yards wide, and is a broad and deep river, having a 
course of about. 1600 miles. The PLATTE, another of its 
great tributaries, rises in the same range of mountains 
with the parent stream, and, measured by its meanders, is 
supposed to have a course of about 2000 miles before it 
joins that river,’ At its mouth it is nearly a mile wide, 
but is very shallow, and is not boatable except at its highest 
floods. The KANSAS is a very large tributary, having a 
course of about 1200 miles, and is boatable for most of the 
distance. The OSAGE is a large and important branch of 
the Missouri; it is boatable for 660 miles, and interlocks 
with the waters of the Arkansas. The GASCONADE, boat- 
able for 66 miles, is important from having on its banks 
extensive pine forests, from which the great supply of plank 
and timber of that kind is brought to St. Louis. 
Above the River Platte, the open and prairie.character 
of the country begins to develop, extending quite into the 
banks of the river, and stretching from it indefinitely, in 
naked grass plains, where the traveller may wander for 
days without seeing either wood or water? Beyond the 
as Council Bluffs,” which are situated about 600 miles up 
the Missouri, commences a country of great interest and 
grandeur, denominated the Upper Missouri. It is com- 
posed of vast and almost boundless grass plains, through 
which run the Platte, the Yellowstone, and the other rivers 
of this ocean of grass. Buffaloes, elk, antelopes, and moun- 
tain sheep abound. Lewis and Clark, and other respectable 
travellers, relate having found here large and singular 
petrifactions, both animal and vegetable. On the top of a 
hill they found the petrified skeleton of a huge fish, 45 feet 
in length. The herds of the gregarious animals, particu- 
larly the buffalo, are innumerable. Such is the general 
character of the country until we approach the spurs of the 
Rocky Mountains. 
The OHIO RIVER enters the Mississippi at about 37° | 
of N. Latitude. It is formed by the junction of the Alle- 
ghany and Monongahela, the former being navigable for 
keel-boats as far ag Olean, in the State of New York, a 
distance of about 250 miles; the latter is navigable for- 
steamboats to Brownsville, 60 miles, and by keel-boats 
upwards of 175 miles. At Pittsburg commences the Ohio, 
and, after running a course of about 1000 miles, unites its 
waters with those of the Mississippi. No other river of 
the same length has such a uniform, smooth, and placid 
current. Its average width is about 2400 feet, and the 
descent, in its whole course, is about 400 feet. At Pittsburg 
it is elevated about 1150 feet above the ocean. It has no 
fall, except a rocky rapid of 224 feet descent at Louisville, 
around which is a canal 24 miles long, with locks suffi- 
ciently capacious to admit large steamboats, though not of 
the largest class. During half the year this river has a 
depth of water allowing of navigation by steamboats of the 
first class through its whole course. It is, however, subject 
to extreme elevations and depressions. The average range 
between high and low water is probably 50 feet. Its 
lowest stage is in September, and its highest in March. It 
has been known to rise 12 feet in a night. Various esti- 
mates have been made of the rapidity of its current, but, 
owing to its continually varying, it would be difficult to 
assign any very exact estimate. It has been found, how- 
ever, according to the different stages of the water, to vary 
between one and three miles: in its lowest, however, which 
is in the autumn, a floating substance would probably not 
advance a mile an honr. 
Between Pittsburg and its mouth it is diversified by 
many considerable islands, some of which are of exquisite 
beauty, besides a number of tow-heads and sand-bars, which 
in low stages of the water greatly impede the navigation. 
The passages between some of the islands and the sand- 
bars at their head, are among the difficulties of the naviga- 
tion of the Ohio. 
ARKANSAS RIVER enters the Mississippi on its west 
side, south of Lat. 34°, after flowing a course of about 2000 
miles; it is one of the largest tributaries of that mighty 
stream. It rises in the Rocky Mountains, from which it 
pours a broad and deep stream upon the arid and sandy 
plains below. The sand and the dry surrounding atmo- 
sphere absorb the water to such a degree, that, in any 
season, it may be forded many hundreds of miles below the 
mountains. Some of its tributaries are so impregnated 
with salt, as to render even the waters of the main stream 
unpotable. The alluvial earth along the banks contains 
so much salt, that cattle are said sometimes to be killed 
by eating it. To the distance of about 400 miles from its 
mouth it has many lakes and bayous. In the spring floods 
steamboats can ascend it nearly to the mountains. 
The RED RIVER, which joins the Mississippi in about 
31° N. Lat., is one of its principal western tributaries. It 
takes its rise in New Mexico, near Santa Fé, and flows a 
course. of about 1500 miles, during which it receives a 
number of other streams that water an extensive region 
of country. Much of the land is of great fertility; and 
cotton, the sugar-cane, corn, tobacco, and many other use- 
_ful productions can be raised upon it. -Perhaps the greatest 
drawback to the early settlement of this noble river, is the 
existence of a vast obstruction to the navigation, called the 
Raft, which extends a distance of about 70 miles along the 
river. This great obstruction was, in a measure, removed 
by order of the Federal Government, “during the years 
1834-5; but, owing to the enormous deposits of this river, 
another has since been formed, the lower portion of the 
raft extending to within thirty miles of Shreveport, La. 
During periods of high water, boats of light draught are 
enabled to avoid the raft by passing through the channels | 
formed during these times. This raft consists of an im- 
mense mass of timber and fallen trees, brought down from 
the upper sources of the river, and which found a lodgment 
here. It causes a great expansion of the river, to the 
width of about twenty-five miles, which spreads at the 
raft into a number of narrow channels. Weeds and small 
trees have taken root upon the surface of this timber, and 
grow above the waters. Above the raft the river is broad 
and deep, and is navigate b, steamboats, at seasons, for 
1000 miles; keel-boats, h. wev +r, can usually pass over it. 
on 
ESTIMATED EXTENT, IN MILES, OF STEAM NAV- 
IGATION ON THE RIVERS OF THE MISSISSIPPI 
VALLEY, BY A GOVERNMENT TOPOGRAPHICAL 
ENGINEER. 
MISSISSIPPI AND BRANCHES, AS FOLLOWS : — Mississippi 
proper, 2000. St. Croix, 80. St. Peter’s, 120. Chippe- 
way,70. Black, 60. Wisconsin, 180. Rock, 250. Iowa, 
110. Cedar, 60. Des Moines, 250. Illinois, 245. Mara- 
mec, 60. Kaskaskia, 150. Big Muddy, 5. Obion, 60. 
Forked Deer, 195. Big Hatchee, 75. St. Francis, 300. 
White, 500. Big Black, 60. Spring, 50. Arkansas, at 
high water, 850; at other seasons, 600. Canadian, 60. 
Neosho, 60. Yazoo, 300. Tallahatchee, 300. Yalabusha, 
130. Big Sunflower; 80. Little Sunflower, 70. Big Black, 
150. Bayou de Glaze, 90. Bayou Carré, 140. Bayou 
Rouge, 40. Bayou la Fourche, 60. Bayou Plaquemine, 
12. Bayou Teche, 96. Grand River, 12. Bayou Sorrele, 
12. Bayou Chien, 5.—Total, 7097 miles. 
Onto AND Brancues.—Ohio proper, 1000 miles. Alle- 
ghany, 200. Monongahela, 60. Muskingum, 70. a- 
nawha, 65. Big Sandy, 50. Sciota, 50. Salt River, 35. 
Green, 150. Barren, 30. Wabash, 400. Cumberland, 
400. Tennessee, 720.—Total, 3292 miles. 
MissourI AND BrancuEs.—Missouri proper, 1800. Yel- 
lowstone, 300. Platte, 40. Kansas, 150. Osage, 275. 
Grand, 90.—Total, 2655 miles. : 
Rep River, anD Brancues, Bayous, &.— Red River 
proper, 1500 miles, Washita, 375. Saline, 100. Little 
Missouri, 50. Bayou D’Arbonne, 60. Bayou Bartholo- 
mew, 150. Bayou Boeuf, 150. Bayou Macon, 175. Bayou 
Louis, 30. Tensas River, 150. Lake Bistenaw, 60. Lake 
Caddo, 75. Sulphur Fork, 100. _Little River, 65. Kia- 
michi, 40. Boggy, 40. Bayou Pierre, 150. Atchafalaya, 
360.—Total, 3630 miles. - 
oT 
