The earth and its inhabitants The earth and its inhabitants .. earthitsinhabita00recl Year: 1890 CHAPTER YI. NEW GUINEA AND ADJACENT ISLANDS. (Papuasia.) HIS vast region owes the appellation of New Guinea, conferred on it by the Spanish explorer, Inigo Ortiz de Retis, in 1545, to the resemblance observed by him between its inhabitants and those of Guinea on the West African seaboard. Next to Australia it is the largest continental mass in the Pacific, and exceeds even Borneo in extent. From the north-west to the south-east extremity the distance in a straight line is nearly 1,500 miles, exclu
The earth and its inhabitants The earth and its inhabitants .. earthitsinhabita00recl Year: 1890 CHAPTER YI. NEW GUINEA AND ADJACENT ISLANDS. (Papuasia.) HIS vast region owes the appellation of New Guinea, conferred on it by the Spanish explorer, Inigo Ortiz de Retis, in 1545, to the resemblance observed by him between its inhabitants and those of Guinea on the West African seaboard. Next to Australia it is the largest continental mass in the Pacific, and exceeds even Borneo in extent. From the north-west to the south-east extremity the distance in a straight line is nearly 1,500 miles, exclusive of the groups and chains of islands by which the mainland is continued in both directions. At the broadest part it is over 400 miles from north to south, and the total area is estimated at 314,000 square miles, or 326,000 including the Aru Islands and other adjacent groups scattered like fragments round a shattered continent. New Guinea, which is thus half as large again as France, seems destined to take an important part in the future evolution of the oceanic lands, for it is abun- dantly watered and rich in various natural resources. Hitherto, however, it has remained almost entirely excluded from civilising influences. The fringing reefs, marshy coastlands, dense forests, and even its very vastness have protected it from white intruders, while the scattered indigenous populations, divided into endless hostile tribes, have nowhere merged in a compact nationality. Progress of Discovery. But although still unexplored to any great extent, Papuasia has already been partitioned amongst three European powers. Holland, which had laid claim to the whole island for over half a century, is henceforth recognised as mistress of the western section as far as 141^ east longitude, while the rest of the territory has been divided between England and Germany by the treaty of 1885. To England is assigned the south-eastern slope, facing Torres Strait ; to Germany the northern seaboard wash
Size: 1375px × 1454px
Photo credit: © Bookworm / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: archive, book, drawing, historical, history, illustration, image, page, picture, print, reference, vintage
