--From Haswell's little work for engineers and
mechanics the following figures are taken, showing the lengths of the
largest rivers on the various continents:
Name: Miles.
EUROPE.
Volga, Russia: 2,500
Danube: 1,800
Rhine: 840
Vistula: 700
ASIA.
Yeneisy and Selenga: 3,580
Kiang: 3,290
Hoang Ho: 3,040
Amoor: 2,500
Euphrates: 1,900
Ganges: 1,850
Tigris: 1,160
AFRICA.
Nile: 3,240
Niger: 2,400
Gambia: 1,000
SOUTH AMERICA.
Amazon and Beni: 4,000
Platte: 2,700
Rio Madeira: 2,300
Rio Negro: 1,650
Orinoco: 1,600
Uruguay: 1,100
Magdalena: 900
NORTH AMERICA.
Mississippi and Missouri: 4,300
Mackenzie: 2,800
Rio Bravo: 2,300
Arkansas: 2,070
Red River: 1,520
Ohio and Alleghany: 1,480
St. Lawrence: 1,450
The figures as to the length of the Nile are estimated. The Amazon,
with its tributaries (including the Rio Negro and Madeira), drains
an area of 2,330,000 square miles; the Mississippi and Missouri,
1,726,000 square miles; the Yeneisy (or Yenisei, as it is often
written) drains about 1,000,000 square miles; the Volga, about
500,000. In this group of great rivers the St. Lawrence is the most
remarkable. It constitutes by far the largest body of fresh water in
the world. Including the lakes and streams, which it comprises in its
widest acceptation, the St.
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