. The earth and its inhabitants ... confluence of the copious Telembi, from the Ecuador frontier, themajestic stream rolls seawards in long meanderings through the alluvial plainsstudded with marshes and now abandoned fluvial beds. Its delta, like that of the 160 SOUTH AMERICA—THE ANDES REGIONS. San Juan, projects far beyond the normal shore-line, but is too shallow to admitany but light craft. The lower reaches, however, bet-ween the delta and theCordilleras, might be utilised for navigation if this almost uninhabited regionstood in need of any such facilities. The discharge of all the Colomb
. The earth and its inhabitants ... confluence of the copious Telembi, from the Ecuador frontier, themajestic stream rolls seawards in long meanderings through the alluvial plainsstudded with marshes and now abandoned fluvial beds. Its delta, like that of the 160 SOUTH AMERICA—THE ANDES REGIONS. San Juan, projects far beyond the normal shore-line, but is too shallow to admitany but light craft. The lower reaches, however, bet-ween the delta and theCordilleras, might be utilised for navigation if this almost uninhabited regionstood in need of any such facilities. The discharge of all the Colombian rivers flowing to the Pacific and to theCaribbean Sea is estimated by Yergara at 320,000 and 460,000 cubic feet persecond respectively, while the enormous quantity of 910,000 cubic feet is sent tothe Atlantic, partly through the Orinoco, partly through the Amazons. Theannual rainfall being estimated at 73 inches, or 2,500,000 cubic feet for the whole Fig. 61.—TuatTEEEES Plateau and Valley of the 1 : 500, 12 Miles. territory, it would appear that about one-third is lost hj evaporation, or absorbedby the roots of the plants. The Colombian present there are scarcely any lakes in Colombia, unless such shallowriverine depressions as the Zapatosa lagoon are to be regarded as such. Butalthough the lacustrine basins were emptied at an unknown geological epoch, thetraces that they have left on the plateaux show that some of them were of vastextent. There can be no doubt that the elevated plain of Bogota was formerlycovered by the glacial waters descending from the Suma Paz highlands, but wasgradually drained by the erosions of the Funza (Bogota) emissary. The Chibcha(Muysca) Indians appear to have had traditions of this geological fact, for they THE COLOMBIAN LAKES. 161 relate how the god Bochica had cleft the mountain in twain with his golden wandto let the waters escape over the Tequendama Falls, The most recent outflowfrom the plateau appears to h
Size: 1795px × 1392px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectgeography, bookyear18
