OCR Text |
Show FAR LARGER THAN NIAGARA, i I Iguazu Falls Are Easily the Greatest In the World. Larger than Niagara is tho cataract of tho Iguaa'i falls, almost at tho Intersection In-tersection of tho threo frontiers of Paraguay, Brazil nnd tho Argentine republic. re-public. The river takes Its namo from a Spanish word meaning "great waters." About 12 miles from Its mouth tho bod drops suddenly down a rocky perpendicular per-pendicular cliff somo 213 feet high, hence thoro Is a waterfall of thnt great height. At this spot a delightful delight-ful llttlo Island, beautiful with vegetation, vege-tation, dlvldos tho river Into two nrms, so that tho total width Is about two miles and n half. Tho Brazilian arm of tho river forms a tremendous horse-shoo horse-shoo hero and plunges Into n great chasm with a deafening ronr, while tho Argentine sldo spreads out In a sort of amphitheater form and finishes with ono grand leap a little ovor 229 feet. Below tho Island tho two nrms unlto and flow on Into tho Parana river. Prom tho Brazilian bank the spectator, at a liolght of 280 feet, gazes out ovor two nnd a half miles of somo of tho wlldost and most fantastic water scenery scen-ery ho can over hope to see. Waters stream, soothe, leap, bound, froth and foam, "throwing tho sweat of ngony high In the air, and writhing, twisting, screaming and moaning, bear off to tho Paronn." Under the bluo vnult of tho sky this sea of foam, of ' pearls, of Iridescent dust bathos tho I great background In n shower of bonu-ty bonu-ty thnt all tho moro adds to tho riot of tropical hues already thoro. When 1 a high wind Is blowing tho roar of tho cataract can bo heard nearly 20 miles away. A rough estimate of tho horsepower horse-power represented by tho falls places it at 14,000.000. Pow sightseers ovor catch a gllmpso of tho great Iguazu falls becauso It lakes six days to mako the plcturesquo Journey of about 1,250 miles from Buenos Aires, amid tho fair fertllo plains of Santa Fo and tho savago luxuriance of tho virgin forest, passing through tho territory of the missions nnd the ruins of Jesuit churches nnd convents. |