OCR Text |
Show 'DNIESTER RIVER , IMPORTANT POINT Washington. D. C, June. 20. 'The Dniester, where it flows through central cen-tral and eastern Gallcia, has again become a military frontier of first Interest, tho most important feature of the northeastern Galiciau fields for which the Austro-Germans and Russians are bitterly contending, '' says a statement on war Koogrnphy just issued by the National (ieo-graphic (ieo-graphic society. "The Dniester rises on tho northern slope of the Carpathian Carpa-thian mountains, about fifty miles due south of Pryemysl. and flows to the north to Sambor, where It turns in an arc toward the southeast, finally fin-ally reaching tho Black sea at Odes-sa Odes-sa "The river Is about 865 miles Ions, 860 miles of its course being in Austrian Aus-trian territory' and the last 515 miles lying in Russia. It drains an area of approximately 20,670 square miles Until it reaches the plain lulling toward the Black soa, the, Dniester run6 through an elevated country', and Its flow Is rapid, its mean rate having boon calculated at 1 7-11 miles per hour. Projecting rocks feature many sections of the river's bed. making navigation difficult diffi-cult in Its upper reaches. Steam navigation is confined to the lower course "The Dniester Is one of the most 1 I Irregular rivers in the world. It winds and turns with tho most unexpected un-expected abruptness and inconstancy throughout its way, being especially capricious in matters of direction In the Russian part of Its course It passes about twelve miles southeast of Przemysl and approaches to within with-in about fifteen miles of Lemherg. whence it flows for tho rest of its way through Oallcla roughly parallel with the Lemberg-Czernowitz rail-was rail-was The railway crosses the Dniester Dnies-ter Just north of Stanislau. "In many strcaches the channel of the river Is confined, averaging in width between 600 and 750 feet, thouch in BOine places it widens out to as much as 1400 feet. Along its way In Galicia where the Russian and Austro-Germans are fighting, the river riv-er is narrow and shallow. While the spring floods of the Dniester often cause the waters to rise to such a degree as to submerge much of the surrounding countrv, sometimes rals inc the level of the water twenty feet, these floods occur in the latter lat-ter part of Februarv and In Tnreh and have now subsided The Onies ter, however, is still high, and its current, strong even during shallow water, must prove an obstacle to the river's passage The rapids and shallows have greatly retarded its employment aB a traffic route. The governments have expended large amounts In the endeavor en-deavor to open the waterway, but its greatly - irying depth an the costliness costli-ness of sufficient improvement have operated to minimize the streams commercial importance. It passes through regions rich in products best carried by water transportation, such bulk products as the grains and timber tim-ber of Galiela and the agricultural products of Bessarabia. In dry years, the water is so low as to permit of only two or three weeks of navigation, naviga-tion, while in others freight craft are able to ply without interruption. "Innumerable tributaries flow to the Dniester but none probably, of any Importance, with the possible ex-ceptlon ex-ceptlon of the Sereth in Galicia. The river mouth and the lower part of the river are rloh In fish supplies, carp, pike salmon, sturgeon and eels Ste caught. The banks of the stream along the Austro-German and Russian Rus-sian line are sharply defined In places difficult, but not approaching the steeper formation of the cliff." no |