“ The drainage basin of the Amazon is remarkably level, and the slope from the outlying bounding highlands is very gradual. The height of land almost to the very sources of the branch rivers does not exceed 1000 feet, and as falls or rapids east of the Andes are almost unknown, these rivers are navigable for the greater part of their lengths. The Amazon and its tributaries form the most remarkable and extensive system of inland water highways in the world. ”

“ The flora of the immediate vicinity of the river is that which flourishes in a watery soil, and which will survive the long-continued annual inundation which occurs in midsummer. There is no suspension of plant activity, and the leaves remain green throughout the year, and no month is without its bloom or fruit. Aquatic plants grow in great profusion and attain enormous size, a prominent example being the giant lily, Victoria regia. ”

“ Numerous alligators and turtles, and the great water mammal, the manatee, frequent the river and its branches. Of fishes there is a greater variety than in any other stream, and in fact a large proportion of the present known species are found in the Amazon. Insects exist in the forests in countless numbers. Neither the fauna nor the flora of the Amazon has been more than partly studied, and that mostly by visiting naturalists. ”