Caroline Islands
a group in the western Pacific, lying between the Marshall and Pelew islands, with an area of about 270 square miles, and a population of some 22,000; but the Pelew (q. v.) group is generally included in the Caroline Archipelago (area, 560 square miles; pop. 36,000), which thus stretches across 32° of lon. and 9° of lat. There are some 500 small atolls in the archipelago, but three-fourths of both area and population are included in the five volcanic islands of Babelthouap, Yap, CAROLUS DURAN belt of nearly 800 miles in length. As Austria-Hungary, forming a semicircular Rouk, Ponapé (Ascension), and Kusari Austria-Hungary, forming a semicircular and well watered, and many of the lowand well watered, and many of the lowlying lagoons, though less so, are well wooded and to some extent inhabited.
The climate is moist, but not unhealthy, people belong to the brown Polynesian stock, are strongly built, and are gentle, amiable, and intelligent; they are bold sailors, and carry on a brisk trade with the Ladrones to the N. where they have several settlements. Besides the usual products of the Polynesian islands, copra has been largely exported. The islands were discovered in 1527 by the Portuguese, and called Sequeira; in 1686 they were annexed and rechristened in honor of Charles II. by the Spaniards, who, however, shortly changed the name to New Philippines. After the failure of several missionary attempts in the 18th century, Spain took little active interest in the group, until August, 1885, when the German flag was hoisted on Yap.
The sharp dispute which followed was submitted to the Pope as arbitrator, who decided in favor of Spain, but reserved to Germany special trade privileges. In in which the governor, who had arrested one of the American Protestant missionaries, was killed by the natives; but the aries, was killed by the natives; but the ary, 1899, Germany purchased from Spain the Caroline and Pelew islands, which had been ceded to the United States in the treaty of peace. islands were captured by an Australian force on Sept. 14, 1914, and by the The Treaty of Versailles are administered by Japan as mandatory.
CHARLES. belt of nearly 800 miles in length. As a result of the peace treaty between the Entente Powers and Austria-Hungary, they belong now chiefly to the republics of Czecho-Slovakia and Poland, forming part of the new frontiers of these two states. The most southern portion, located in Bukowina, belongs to Rumania. The Carpathian chain may be divided into two great sections-the West Carranges stretching between. To the Carpathians, to the S. E., with lower ranges stretching between.
Western Carpathians belongs the remarkable group of the Tátra. The greatest height of the East Carpathians is Ruska-Poyana, 9,909 feet; of the West feet; many other peaks have an elevation of over 8,000 feet. The only important rivers which actually rise in the chain are the Vistula, the Dniester, and the in minerals, including gold, silver, quickin minerals, including gold, silver, quicksilver, copper, and iron. Salt occurs in beds, which have sometimes a thickness of 600 or 700 feet. On the plateaux corn and fruit are grown to the height of 1,500 feet. Higher up the mountain steeps are covered with forests of pine.
Numerous passes cross the range, and there is much remarkable scenery. Much of the most severe fighting during the World War between the Russian and Austro-German armies occurred in the Carpathian Mountains. See WORLD WAR.