Polish School Children, Zakopane, Galicia, Austria-hungary
Zakopane (zå-k-pä´ n) is a village of 5,000 inhabitants in Galicia (gå-lsh´ -å). It is a summer resort for the natives. It is locally noted because of its schools for lace making and wood carving. Perhaps the children you see here have been to one of these special schools. Or it may be that they are attending the elementary school, or folk school. This they attend from the age of 6 to 12 or 14. They have higher schools of two kinds. One prepares the pupils to go to college; the other gives them an education in the crafts. Galicia is a part of the empire of Austria-Hungary. It is that section lying north of the Carpathian (kär-p´ th-n) Mountains north of Hungary and south of Poland. A bit of Germany borders it on the northwest. The province is called a crown land. It is governed by the Emperor of Austria-Hungary and the national congress at Vienna, to which it sends 78 representatives. At one time Galicia belonged to the kingdom of Poland. About ½ of its people are Poles, and ½ are Ruthenians (r-th´ n-nz). Galicia is about the size of the state of Indiana. Its southern portion is broken up by the high Carpathian peaks, some of which rise 6,700 feet above sea level. Since the country slopes to the north its winters are severe and long. One-fourth of its surface is forested, and this section is one of the wildest parts of Europe. Farming is the chief occupation of the people, but it is carried on in an old-fashioned way. Potatoes, beans, peas, corn, tobacco, hops, and flax are grown. Salt and petroleum are mined. The largest rock salt mine in the world is near Cracow (kr´ k). During the Great European War Galicia was the center of the struggle between the Russian and the Austrian armies. Lemberg is the capital. Keystone ID: 15609 Note: All titles, descriptions, and location coordinates are from the original Keystone Slide documentation as supplied by the Keystone View Company. No text has been edited or changed.