Physical  Features.  Physically  this  territory  is
all  part  of  the  great  Central  Plateau  of  Africa,  and  few
parts  are  less  than  a  mile  above  sea-level.  As  the
country  lies  almost  entirely  within  the  tropics,  this
is  an  advantage,  as  it  reduces  the  mean  tempera-
ture and  makes  the  climate  more  healthy,  so  that
Europeans  can  live  comfortably  in  most  parts.  The
general  level  of  the  country  is  broken  here  and  there
by  higher  ridges,  the  most  important  being  that  which
includes  the  Matoppo  Hills,  and  crosses  Southern
Rhodesia  from  Buluwayo  to  Salisbury.  This  is  some-
what similar  to  the  Witwatersrand  in  the  Transvaal
and  is  rich  in  gold,  at  present  the  most  valuable  pro-
duct of  the  colony.  The  rivers  are  not  of  great  use
for  navigation,  their  courses  being  frequently  inter-
rupted by  rapids,  although  certain  stretches,  especially


BRITISH   CENTRAL   AFRICA  199

of  the  Zambesi  above  the  celebrated  Victoria  Falls,
are  useful  for  internal  communication.  Lake  Nyasa
is  a  fine  waterway,  upon  which  regular  services  of
steamboats  have  been  established.  Its  outlet,  the
Shire,  is  only  broken  by  one  stretch  of  rapids,  and
forms  a  valuable  line  of  communication  to  the  Zam-
besi delta  and  thence  by  the  Chinde  distributary  to
the  sea.  Steamers  can  ascend  the  Shire  to  Port
Herald.  The  lake  lies  in  a  great  depression  or  Rift
Valley,  the  eastern  shores  rising  steeply  about  10,000
ft.  above  it  and  the  western  about  5000  ft.  to  the
plateau.
