. A complete geography. high-lands the loftiest are theAlps, whose highest peak,Mt. Blanc (15,781 feet), isin France. Had the moun-tains stretched along thewestern coast, the historyof France would have beenvery different. As it is,the prevailing westerliesare allowed to distributetheir rain somewhat evenlyover the country, supplyingall sections with an abun-dance of moisture for agri-culture. The position of the high-lands is of great importancefor commerce as well asfor farming. Fully three-fourths of France is acompai-atively level plainsloping westward from thelow central plateau, whichris
. A complete geography. high-lands the loftiest are theAlps, whose highest peak,Mt. Blanc (15,781 feet), isin France. Had the moun-tains stretched along thewestern coast, the historyof France would have beenvery different. As it is,the prevailing westerliesare allowed to distributetheir rain somewhat evenlyover the country, supplyingall sections with an abun-dance of moisture for agri-culture. The position of the high-lands is of great importancefor commerce as well asfor farming. Fully three-fourths of France is acompai-atively level plainsloping westward from thelow central plateau, whichrises steeply as the western wall of the long Rhone valley. All butone of the large rivers rise in this plateau, and flow gently down itsslope to the Atlantic. Thus navigation is possible far into thecountry. Locate and name the three largest rivers. How does theRhone differ from the other two ? As might be expected, the summers are warmer than in England,since France lies almost entirely south of that country and is less. Fig. 401. A view in central southern France (Monts dAu-vergne on the map). This is a region of extinctvolcanoes (Fig. 403), and the church is built upona steep lava hill. 382 EUROPE under the influence of the ocean. The southeastern section, thoughas far north as Boston, has a semi-tropical climate (Fig. 402),owing to the presence of the warm Mediterranean waters and tothe protection from cold north winds afforded by the Alps (pp. 343and 344). Agriculture. — France is primarily a farming country, and nearlyhalf the people devote their energies to agriculture, including graz-ing. The same grains are. raised as in England. What are they ?(p. 352). Wheat is the most important, and more of this grain is
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