882 



ASIA. 



respect to climate, Asia may be divided into 5 regions. 1. Central Asia, lying between the 

 Altaian and Himala mountains, although situated between 28^ and 50^ N. lat., experiences the 

 rigors of the most northern regions, and enjoys but a short summer. 2. Southern Asia, com- 

 prising the tw"o Indies, sheltered by a huge mountainous rampart from the icy winds of the 

 north, has no winter ; the summers are long and warm, and the seasons are distinguished into 

 the wet and the dry. 3. Northern Asia, embracing all the extensive region north of the Altai, is 

 exposed to all the rigors of a polar climate. 4. Eastern Asia, exposed at once to the cooling 

 influences of the interior highlands, and of the Pacific Ocean, is cold and moist. 5. Western 

 Asia, lying between the Indus and Mediterranean and the Caspian and Red seas, enjoys a 

 milder climate and a much more serene air. 



12. Vegetable Productions. Asia, from its vast extent and unequal surface, comprehends 

 the vegetable products of all climates, from the creeping lichen, which flourishes on the borders 



of perpetual snow, to the splendid varieties of tropical vegetation. 

 The agricultural staples are in the warmer regions rice, of which 

 Asia yields 27 varieties, maize, millet, and many varieties of a 

 coarser grain, called dourra, as well as other species of legumes 

 unknown in Europe. In the more temperate regions, the differ- 

 ent cereal grains are produced, and barley and oats are raised as 

 far north as GO degrees, and on the elevated plains of more south- 

 ern regions. Beyond this, and in the higher plains, vegetation 

 comprises only dwarf trees, berry-bearing shrubs, and lichens. 

 The tea plant is indigenous to China, and coflee to Arabia. The 

 sugar-cane is produced in India, and the poppy plant furnishes 

 great quantities of opium for exportation. The cotton shrub, and 

 the mulberry tree grow throughout the southern regions, and various 

 aromatic plants and gum-trees enrich this part of the continent, 

 yielding mace, cassia, camphor, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmegs, 

 the fragrant balm of Mecca, frankincense, and myrrh. Asia also 

 furnishes many medicinal plants and dye-stufls. 



In the south, the forests abound with valuable trees, furnishing 

 various durable, ornamental, and dye woods. The 

 teak tree of the Indies surpasses all others in hard- 

 ness and durability. The palms yield a rich and 

 nutritious juice, and all the common fruit-trees of 

 Europe, many of which were borrowed from Asia, 

 are found in different regions. Asia Minor and 

 the banks of the Euphrates abound in the myrtle, 

 laurel, mastic, tamarind, cypress, and other trees. 

 The oriental planes are numerous in Persia, and 

 the oak and cedar grow to a great size in the S> 

 rian mountains. In the colder regions, are the 

 oak, ash, elm, &c., the dwarf birch, mountain 

 willow, and the dark, evergreen pines and firs. 

 Further details will be found under the principal 

 heads, as Hindostan, China, Siberia, &c. 



13. Minerals. Asia yields all the useful and precious metals, but the wealth of the Asiatic 

 mines has not been fully explored. Hindostan and Asiatic Russia produce diamonds ; gold 

 and silver are found in China, Japan, the Indies, and Russia ; tin, in China and Further India : 

 quicksilver in China, Japan, and Ceylon ; and lead, copper, iron, coal, and salt abound. 



Tea Plant. 



Cedar of Lebanon. 



