The universal geography : earth and its inhabitants

CLIMATE OP 80UTU AFRICA. 97remarkable contrast iu their resjiective temperatures. The Antarctic pohircurrent setting from the south passes west of Capetown, and after entering theAtlantic, continues to skirt the west coast be3'ond the Congo and Ogowayestuaries. On the opposite side the ilozambique current, coming from the IndianOcean, flows by the shores of Natal and Kafirlaud, penetrates into the southerninlets of Cape Colony, and at last rounds the extreme continental headlands,whence its local name of the Agulhas Current. In summer, when the coldAntarctic stream is directed by the regular south winds more swiftly towards thenorth, its temperature is found to be from 50'' to 52° F. But in False Bay,immediately east of the Cape, the water brought by the current from the IndianOcean is often as high as 66°, rising in the neighbourhood ofGape Agulhas evento 78° or 80° F. In consequence of this great contrast in the character of theneighbouring marine waters, Capetown and Simon's Town, although separatedonly by a narrow intervening promontory, have different climates. The latterlies nearer to the South Pole, but nevertheless enjoys a warmer atmosphere by atleast three degrees.The regular winds which prevail on the South African seaboard succeed eachother in such a way as to diminish the contrasts between the seasons.Hence theaverage yearly variations from winter to summer are far less intense in CapeColony than in the regions j^ossessing a corresponding climate in the northernhemisphere. The cold south-east trade winds prevail chiefl}' in summer, therebytempering its excessive heats. The returning breezes—that is to say, the northwesterlyaerial currents—set in, on the contrary, during the winter months, whenthe whole system of trade winds has been attracted northwards in the wake of thesun. All these normal currents, however, are frequently deflected towards thetablelands of the interior by the continental centres of heat. Thus on the easternseaboard the trade wind veers at times quite round to the west, whereas in thenorth it sets southwards and in the Atlantic takes an easterly direction. In thehot season, when the winds blow from the north after traversing the desert inlandplateaux, the atmosphere seems like the blast of a fiery furnace, and at such timesthe heat is most oppressive, especially in the upland regions farthest removedfrom the moderating influence of the surrounding oceanic waters. In general aswe advance from the coast towards the interior, the climate acquires a more continentalor extreme chai'acter, becoming not only colder in winter, which might beexplained by the greater altitude of the laud, but also much warmer in summer.** Temperatui-es of various South Africiin towns: