CHILDREN OF
SOUTH AMERICA
CHAPTER I
A PEEP AT THE CONTINENT
South America is a tremendous continent in the Western Hemisphere, and occupies one-eighth of the land surface of the world.
By looking at this chart you will get some little idea as to the size of it, by comparing it with other countries. South America, you will therefore see, is twice the size of Europe, three times the size of China, four times the size of India, and sixty times the size of our British Isles.
From Panama, at the extreme north, to the furthest southern point of Tierra-del-Fuego (“the Land of Fire”), it is about 4700 miles in length, and it is 3000 miles from east to west.
South America (leaving out the three northern Guianas) is divided up into eleven countries, or rather republics, each republic being under its own president.
The names of the republics are:—
| Brazil | Venezuela |
| Argentina | Chili |
| Peru | Colombia |
| Bolivia | Paraguay |
| Ecuador | Uruguay and Panama |