THE SECOND IN SIZE.

Dunstan Times, Issue 2154, 28 October 1902, Page 7

THE SECOND IN SIZE.

Baffle Land Row Takes Rank Next to Greenland. Aa totoni Worth of Bvfira Strait That Hm Boon imcroMlng la Mn on tho Maps—Hm #*■*> Groat Ink**. Excluding Australia, Baffin Land, situated near tho east coast ol the American continent, a short distance north of Hudson strait, is the second island of the world in point oi sijee and still little is known about it. It has long been represented On the maps as composed of a number ol islands. It is still shown in this way on a number of maps now in use. One by one these supposed islands, Cumberland island. Fox Land, Meta Incognita, Sussex island end others have been found to be a part of the main island; thus Baffin Land has been gradually increasing in size on the maps until to-day it is known to be inferior only to Greenland in size. The latest edition of the best map -of tho polar regions published in any American atlas, however, still shows Cockburn island, which is about as large as Iceland, as separated from Baffin Land by a wide channel, though a number of foreign maps show that it is a part of Baffin Land. Dr. Robert Bell, the new director ©f the geological survey of Canada, who mapped a long stretch of the west coast in 1897, has just published in the Geographical Journal a report of his explorations. He says that it is “the third largest island in the world, being only exceeded by Australia and Greenland.” A* Australia is now ranked by nearly all geographers as the smallest oi the continents, Baffin Land will undoubtedly take its place among the islands aa the second in area. All the best maps of Baffin Land now show a great lake region In the central part of the southern portion of the island. These lakes He between mountain ranges. Dr. Bell says that the two greatest bodies ol water are larger than any of the lakes in the whole peninsula of Labrador and that they may almost be compared to Lake Ontario in extent. He visited the southernmost, Lake Amadjuak, which may be 120 miles in length by 40 in breadth in the middle. According to Eskimo accounts. Lake Amadjuak discharges northward into Isike Mettilling by a short river, without rapids, the natives passing from one lake to another in their kyaks. Lake Mettilling is perhaps 140 miles long and 60 miles wide and Hi water* reach the sea through ft large and rapid river, 90 or 00 mils* long, that has a deeosat of about five feet to the mile, ' The conspicuous honor of being the largest island to the world has been held by quite a number of island# at various stages of geographical knowledge. School children were taught for many years that Australia was the largest island. Then Australia came properly to be regarded as one of the continental masses and Borneo took its place os Hie largest island. Less than 30 years ago it was discovered Gulnea-osa* larger than Borneo and so island took second pleeo. Peary practically outlined the northern coast of Greenland, early in the last decade, geographers began to think that they had overlooked an important section of the earth’s surface end so they placed Greenland at the head of the list of islands. At last Baffin Land loom® up as an island 1,005 statute miles in length, with a breadth varying from 200 to 500 miles, the average being 305 miles. Its area is therefore about 300,000 square miles. In other words, the Island is larger than the state of Texas by about 40,000 square miles or about ten times as largo as either Scotland or Ireland. Though it takes its place as second in the list of islands, Baffin Land appears to be of no great value, since it is composed, as far as we know, of barren rocks, partly covered with ice. The 12 largest islands in the world in order of size are: Greenland, Baffin Land, New Guinea, Borneo, Madagascar. Sumatra, Nippon (the largest island of Japan), Great Britain, Celebes, New Zealand (South island), Java and Cuba. When Hub Wit Felled. Two cows and a farmer were ambling down Boylston street one night this week. One cow, apparently of,an ugly disposition, was on the end of a leading line and the other, a demure and smaller creature, followed. The cows were bound for the Brighton slaugh-ter-houses. When the fArmer, who was a tall, lank specimen, approached a group of loungers a callow youth shouted: “Say, mister, ain’t you afraid that cow without a rope will run away: “She ain’t got her car fare. If she had she would. Q’lang there!” The muscles of the farmer’s face never changed. He did not miss a step or turn his head, and the laugh that went up from the throng drowned for a minute some passages which the hurdy-gurdy was playing from “William Tell.”-—Boston Journal. , Work of an Unknowa Architect. One would think that the identity of the architect of such a superbly designed building as Cologne cathedral could not possibly be lost in the world. But it is. The cathedral took centuries to build and many architects have modeled parts of it according to their own ideas. In the main, however, the original grand idea—an idea which simply astounds every modern architect, but the origin of which was absolutely unkn owti —was carried out, and the result is the most beautiftfl cathedral in the world.—Architect, t