THE 'BODY OF THE NATION/
"DUT tiie basin of (he Mississippi is fh* BODY or THE NATION. All
the other parts are but members, important in themselves, yet
more important in their relations to this* Exclusive of the Lake
basin and of 300,000 square miles in Texas and New Mexico, which
in many aspects form a part of it, this basin contains about 1,250,000
square miles. In extent it is the second great valley of the world,
being exceeded only by that of the Amazon, The valley of the
frozen Obi approaches it in extent; that of the La Plata comes next
in space, and probably in habitable capacity, having about f of its
area; then comes that of the Yenisei, with about \; the Lena,
Amoor, Hoang-ho, Yang-tse-luangf and Nile, f; the Granges, less
than |; the Indus, less than \; the Euphrates, |; the Rhine, ^. It
exceeds in extent the whole of Europe, exclusive of Russia, Norway,
and Sweden. It would contain Austria four time*, Germany or
Spain five twits, France six times, the British Islands or Italy ten
times. Conceptions formed from the river-basins of Western Europe
are rudely shocked when we consider the extent of the valley of the
Mississippi; nor are those formed from the sterile basins of the
great rivers of Siberia, the lofty plateaus of Central Asia, or the
mighty sweep of the swampy Amazon more adequate. Latitude,
elevation, and rainfall all combine to render every part of the
Mississippi Valley capable of supporting a dense population. As a
dwelling-place for civilised man it is by far the first upon owr globe.
EDITOB'S TABLE, Harper's Magazine, February % 1863.