Excerpt from First Steps in Geography Aim. - 'the aim is to show man's relations to nature. These relations are traced through such broad topics as surface features, climate, products, industries, trade, states, cities, etc. Commerce. - History follows routes of trade. For this reason commerce takes a leading place in this book. Products and industries leading to commerce are given many special maps and lessons. This is clearly shown on pages 55 to 65, where cities are treated in their industrial relations. United States. - Every pupil should know the leading facts about his own country. A large part of this book is devoted to the United States. Pictures. - The pictures supplement the text and are true to nature. Nearly all were engraved from photographs. Maps - Special attention is called to the number and variety of maps, as well as to their accuracy. For example, under North America see the shaded relief map on page 40; colored relief map and zone map on page 41; political map on page 43; plant and animal maps on pages 45 and 46. The great relief map of the United States on pages 140 to 141 is photographed from a raised model. The Philippine maps on pages 117 to 121 will be of great help in following current events. Helps. - The Helps after each lesson are to guide pupils towards the leading facts, as well as to help the busy teachers. Pupils should answer questions not in the words of the book but in their own language. Teachers will be pleased to note that only in rare cases is it necessary to turn a leaf to find answers to questions. Spelling - In spelling and usage of geographic names the maps and text follow the rulings of the United States Board on Geographic Names. This book adopts the best modern usage and allows the capital letter in specific names, such as Rhine and Andes, but not in common class names, such as river and mountains, - thus, Rhine river, Andes mountains. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.