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NEW SOUTH WALES, a state of the Australian Commonwealth. The name
was given by Captain Cook, in his exploratory voyage in 1770, to the
southern portion of the eastern coast of Australia, from some imagined
resemblance of its coast-line to that of South Wales. The name was afterwards
extended to the eastern half of Australia, but now designates a much
more restricted area. New South Wales is bounded by the Pacific Ocean
on the E., by Queensland on the N., by South Australia on the W. and
by Victoria on the S. It lies between 28 and 38 S. lat., and 141 and
154 E. long. The coast-line, which is about 700 m. in length, extends
from Cape Howe , at the south-eastern corner of Australia to Point Danger
in 28 7 S. The colony is approximately rectangular in form, with an
average depth from the coast of 650 m. and an average width from north
to south of 500 m. The superficial area is estimated at 310,700 sq.
m., or about one-tenth of the whole of Australia.
INSET SHOWS THE ENVIRONS OF SYDNEY
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