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Description
Almost half of Australia lies within the tropics, but being surrounded by great oceans, the continent has a mild climate throughout the year. Snow normally falls only in the high mountains in the winter. Since the seasons are reverse of those in the United States, this occurs in the winter months of June, July, and August. Australia is said to be the most level surface and regular outline of all the continents. There is an entire absence of towering mountains. The highest peak is only about seventy-three hundred feet above sea level. The mountains parallel the east coast, with, by far, the greater part of the continent a vast, irregular, and undulating plateau. Australia can be regarded as falling into four well-defined regions: 1) the Great plateau in the west extends over about half of the continent; 2) the Eastern highlands follow along the whole of the eastern coastline, rarely exceeding a distance of a hundred miles inland; 3) The central basin is a lowland area much of which was once a sea-bed; and 4) the Coastal Plains, which form a rim surrounding most of the continent.
Despite rich coastal lands and an immense grazing area in which the interior, much of this interior is unsuited for agriculture. It is a great arid region of desert and semi-desert which is sparsely settled and will never support a dense population. The heaviest rainfall is in the tropical regions of the north, and there is adequate moisture along with the south coast and southern part of the highlands. Elsewhere there is insufficient rain. But for the presence of innumerable artesian wells scattered over wide areas, much more of the country would be without water. It is these wells that make stock-raising possible, but because of its mineral content, the water is seldom used for agriculture or human use.
The major rivers of Australia are of two types-those which flow toward the coast and are similar to such rivers in other parts of the world; and the inland rivers which gradually lose their water as they flow away from the coastal regions. The headwaters of most of these inland rivers are in the Eastern Highlands. The Murray River with its tributaries is the main river system and flows into the ocean on the south coast. The Gilbert, Norman, and Flinders are the principal streams flowing into the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north. On the west, the Murchison, Gascoyne, and Ashburton, and Fitzroy empty into the Indian Ocean.
The rivers which flow inland vary greatly in volume during the year. For long periods they are mere strings of waterholes, but during floods, their waters spread out over the flat country for many miles. Most of their waters evaporate or soak into the ground before they flow very far. In the center of the continent the rivers flow into Lake Eyre when there is sufficient water in them, but when there is sufficient water in them, but generally they are merely beds of dry sand. The lakes that appear to be scattered so liberally over the land are also a disappointment as they are little more than shallow basins that carry water in them, but generally, they are merely beds of dry sand.
C.S. Hammond & Co.

Description
Almost half of Australia lies within the tropics, but being surrounded by great oceans, the continent has a mild climate throughout the year. Snow normally falls only in the high mountains in the winter. Since the seasons are reverse of those in the United States, this occurs in the winter months of June, July, and August. Australia is said to be the most level surface and regular outline of all the continents. There is an entire absence of towering mountains. The highest peak is only about seventy-three hundred feet above sea level. The mountains parallel the east coast, with, by far, the greater part of the continent a vast, irregular, and undulating plateau. Australia can be regarded as falling into four well-defined regions: 1) the Great plateau in the west extends over about half of the continent; 2) the Eastern highlands follow along the whole of the eastern coastline, rarely exceeding a distance of a hundred miles inland; 3) The central basin is a lowland area much of which was once a sea-bed; and 4) the Coastal Plains, which form a rim surrounding most of the continent.
Despite rich coastal lands and an immense grazing area in which the interior, much of this interior is unsuited for agriculture. It is a great arid region of desert and semi-desert which is sparsely settled and will never support a dense population. The heaviest rainfall is in the tropical regions of the north, and there is adequate moisture along with the south coast and southern part of the highlands. Elsewhere there is insufficient rain. But for the presence of innumerable artesian wells scattered over wide areas, much more of the country would be without water. It is these wells that make stock-raising possible, but because of its mineral content, the water is seldom used for agriculture or human use.
The major rivers of Australia are of two types-those which flow toward the coast and are similar to such rivers in other parts of the world; and the inland rivers which gradually lose their water as they flow away from the coastal regions. The headwaters of most of these inland rivers are in the Eastern Highlands. The Murray River with its tributaries is the main river system and flows into the ocean on the south coast. The Gilbert, Norman, and Flinders are the principal streams flowing into the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north. On the west, the Murchison, Gascoyne, and Ashburton, and Fitzroy empty into the Indian Ocean.
The rivers which flow inland vary greatly in volume during the year. For long periods they are mere strings of waterholes, but during floods, their waters spread out over the flat country for many miles. Most of their waters evaporate or soak into the ground before they flow very far. In the center of the continent the rivers flow into Lake Eyre when there is sufficient water in them, but when there is sufficient water in them, but generally they are merely beds of dry sand. The lakes that appear to be scattered so liberally over the land are also a disappointment as they are little more than shallow basins that carry water in them, but generally, they are merely beds of dry sand.
C.S. Hammond & Co.