SYSTEM IN THE SURFACE FORMS OF THE CONTINENTS. 31 



(1) America. — The two Americas are alike in lying between the Atlan- 

 tic and the Pacific. North America, in accordance with the law, has on the 

 Pacific side — the side of the great ocean — the Eocky Mountains, on the 

 Atlantic side the low Appalachians, and between the two there is the great 

 plain of the interior. This is seen in the annexed section (Fig. 16) from 



16. 



west to east : on the west, the Rocky Mountains, with the double crest, at h ; 

 the Sierra Kange at a ; between a and h the Great Basin ; at d the Appa- 

 lachians ; c the Mississippi ; and between d and h a section of the Mississippi 

 river system. 



The Appalachians, on the east, reach an extreme height of but 6700 feet, 

 and are in general under 2500 feet. 



To the north of North America lies the small Arctic Ocean, much encum- 

 bered with land ; and without any distinct mountain-chain facing the ocean. 



South America, like North America, has its great western range of moun- 

 tains, and its smaller eastern range (Fig. 17); and the Brazilian line (b) is 



17. 



^h 



Vf a IE 



closely parallel to that of the Appalachians. The Andes (a) face the very 

 broad South Pacific, and have more than twice the average height of the 

 Eocky Mountains ; moreover, they rise more abruptly from the ocean, with 

 narrow shore plains. 



Unlike North America, South America has a broad ocean on the north, 

 — the North Atlantic in its longest diameter ; and along this northern coast 

 a mountain chain extends through Venezuela and Guiana. 



(2) Europe and Asia. — The land covered by Europe and Asia is a single 

 area of land, only partially double in its nature (page 22). Unlike either of 

 the Americas, it lies east-and-west, with an extensive ocean facing Asia on 

 the south ; and its great feature lines are in a large degree east-and-west. 

 The small Arctic Ocean is on the north ; the larger North Atlantic on the 

 west ; the still larger North Pacific on the east ; Africa and the broad Indian 

 Ocean, singularly free from islands, are on the south. The boundary is 

 a complex one, and the land between the Atlantic and Pacific is over 6000 

 miles broad. 



