UNITED STATES OF NORTH AMERICA.
NATURAL FEATURES OF THE COUNTRY.
Age of the American Continent-Its Extent-Seas and Lakes-Mountains-Rivers --Climate-Mineral and Vegetable Kingdoms-Prairies-Agriculture.
THE history of civilized nations as known to us embraces a period of from three to four thousand years; and yet, until three hundred and fifty years ago, one half of our globe remained undiscovered. So slowly were the difficulties of long sea-voyages overcome, so slowly increased the interest in geographical discoveries, so recently did men arrive at an intelligent consciousness of the necessarily spherical conformation of the earth. Even the important discoveries of the Northmen in the tenth century, excited so little curiosity, desire of information, or thirst of gain, that they sank into total oblivion.* Hence, Columbus remains the theoretical and practical discoverer of America: an effort of intellect, courage, and perseverance, such as the world never witnessed before, and which never can be repeated in a like manner.
Some philosophers have maintained that America is of later origin than the old continent of the earth. It is not clear to the unlearned (nor is it, as I understand, to those really versed in such inquiries), what is meant by this. The formation of the spherical figure of the earth (if any other figure ever existed) must have been begun and continued uniformly through its whole extent; the hand of God and his handmaid Nature did not first finish Europe, and then pass over the Atlantic ocean, in order to bring to light and embellish America also. Why should the Alps be older than the Cordilleras, and the valley of the Mississippi younger than Holland and the lowlands at the mouth of
* Rafn, Mémoire sur la découverte de l'Amérique, 1843.