sea, while the average distance from the sea in Central Europe is under 400 miles; but the Altai Mountains, in the centre of Asia, are about 1,600 miles from each of the three great oceans which enclose that continent on the north, east, and south.

INLETS: Each of the three great Oceans which wash the shores of Asia have several considerable inlets, but those belonging to the Indian and the Pacific Oceans are much more numerous than those connected with the Arctic.

The ARCTIC OCEAN, on the north side of Asia, has two considerable gulfs, the Gulf of Obi and the Gulf of Yenisei.

The PACIFIC OCEAN, which washes the eastern shores of Asia, has the following arms:-the Gulf of Anadyr, Bering Sea, the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan, the Yellow Sea, the Eastern Sea, and the China Sea. These are not inland seas, in the strict meaning of the term, but they are divided from the open ocean by chains of islands and projecting peninsulas. They are, therefore, in great measure land-enclosed, though connected with the ocean by numerous channels. The northern part of the Sea of Japan is called the Gulf of Tartary. The INDIAN OCEAN, on the south of Asia, divides into the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea; the former is on the east side of the peninsula of India Proper, the latter on its western side. The Red Sea1 and the Persian Gulf, which are two inland seas, are likewise arms of the Indian Ocean. The Red Sea divides on the north into the Gulfs of Suez and Akaba, between which is the Sinai Peninsula.

The western shores of Asia are washed in part by the MEDITERRANEAN, BLACK, and CASPIAN SEAS. The Gulfs of Alexandretta, or Iskenderûn, and Adalia are arms of the Mediterranean, and the Kara Bughas Gulf and Dead Bay are inlets of the Caspian Sea.

STRAITS: The most important straits of Asia are five in number, namely, the Strait of Bab el Mandeb,' forming the entrance to the Red Sea; the Strait of Ormuz, leading into the Persian Gulf; the Strait of Malacca, between the China Sea and the Indian Ocean; the Strait of Sunda, between the islands of Sumatra and Java; and Bering Strait, between Asia and North America.

Besides these, there are the Dardanelles (between the Egean Sea and the Sea of Marmara), and the Strait of Constantinople (between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea), which are European as well as Asiatic. The broader channel which extends between the Strait of Bab el Mandeb and the Indian Ocean is called the Gulf of Aden, and the similar channel which leads into the Strait of Ormus called the Gulf of Oman.

CAPES: The principal headlands are the North-East Cape3 or Cape Chelyuskin, on the north; East Cape and Cape Lopatka, on the east; Cape Romania, Cape Comorin, and Ras al Had, on the south; and Cape Carmel and Cape Baba, on the west.

1. Red Sea. Generally said to be derived from the coral reefs which abound in it. This is erroneous, as the corals are mostly white. But within the reefs patches of deep-red water are frequently seen, whence the name. These patches are due to the presence of vast numbers of microscopic animalcule.

2. Babel Mandeb, "gate of tears;" so called from the numerous shipwrecks in the early and middle ages.

3. The North-East Cape of Asia is sometimes called North Cape, or Cape Severo. The Russian name (Chelyuskin) is now generally used by geographers.