296 FORESTRY IN THE CROWN COLONIES. 



N. NYASALAND. 

 (See sketch map on page 203.) 

 1. General Notes. 



The Nyasaland Protectorate is a strip of country about 520 

 miles long and from 50 to 100 miles broad, lying approximately 

 between the 10th and 17th degrees south latitude and 33rd and 

 36th degrees east longitude. It has an area of about 43,608 square 

 miles and a population of 1,1 38,000 people, giving 26 to the square 

 mile. 



Topography. — A large pro])ortion of the Protectorate is moun- 

 tainous and hilly country, which rises rapidly from 160 feet at the 

 southern end to a general altitude varying from 2,000 to 4,000 feet. 

 There are several mountain ranges which reach a maximum 

 height of 9,843 feet. Lake Nyasa runs along the eastern boundary 

 of the Protectorate. From it issues the River Shire and runs in 

 a southerly direction. 



Nyasaland is composed chiefly of metamorphic gneisses and 

 schists. Graphite is of fairly frequent occurrence. Iron ores 

 also occur. Crystalline limestone is found in a few places. There 

 are also mica and talc schists. Through the gneisses and schists 

 igneous rocks have intruded. Small outcrops of coal have been 

 found. 



Climate. — Nyasaland has two well defined seasons, the rainy 

 season from November to April, and the dry season from 

 May to October. The mean annual rainfall differs from 30 

 to 107 inches. In the mountainous country bordering Lake 

 Nyasa the rainfall varies from 65 to 95 inches, but throughout 

 the greater part of the country, especially that which lies 

 between 2,000 and 4,000 feet, the rainfall varies between 30 and 

 50 inches. 



The temperature in the Shire valley and on the southern shore 

 of Lake Nyasa frequently rises to between 100 and 115 degrees 

 in the shade during October and the early part of November, 

 though the mean maximum for these tracts is about 88 degrees 

 and the mean minimum 62. Throughout the highlands and 

 elevated plains generally, the temperature during the hottest 

 part of the year rarely exceeds 95 degrees. 



