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Your attention please.

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At this time, please adjust the volume and tone controls so the narration is clear and

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easily understood.

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Focus the projector and adjust the frame line on this strip.

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Thank you.

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Lying to the east of the Greater Antilles of Jamaica, Cuba, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico

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is the easternmost territorial outpost of the United States.

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The Virgin Islands.

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They were purchased from Denmark in 1917 at a cost of 25 million dollars and have often

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been called our most expensive piece of real estate.

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Before the United States flag was raised here, the islands knew the authority of Spanish,

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British, French, Dutch, and Danish rule.

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The islanders elect members for their own legislative assembly.

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However, their governor, who is under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior,

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is appointed by our president.

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Narrow streets are named after those in Denmark, and thick walled buildings have wooden doors

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that can be closed against tropical storms.

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The city of Charlotte Amali on St. Thomas Island retains the influence of its former

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Danish owners.

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Fort Christian, built in 1671, is the oldest building on the island.

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It is now occupied by the local police department, but the jail is seldom used.

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Charlotte Amali is the busy center of inter-island commercial activity.

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Thai jewelry, Swiss watches, and Irish linen are available at reasonable prices in this

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duty-free port.

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Other works of art include carved ivories from India, and silver, ceramics, and glassware

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from the Scandinavian countries.

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The economy has depended mainly on tourism, but now some light industry is developing.

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Visitors are usually greeted with the haunting calypso rhythm of a native Virgin Islands

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steel band.

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Mace, alto, and tenor pans are produced by cutting 55-gallon oil drums into various lengths.

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Each raised area produces a different tone.

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This music is basically composed of rhythmic patterns of African dances, which the slaves

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brought to the countries of their forced adoption.

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The words now used are commentaries on current events and local life.

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At the beautiful modern hotels on St. Thomas, guests may enjoy the lovely gardens where

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palms, royal poinsettia trees, hibiscus, bougainvillea, and the colorful leaf of the croton vie for

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attention.

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Here, where it is always summer, blossoms cascade in waves along the many stairways,

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for much of Charlotte Amale is built on a hillside.

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This castle, built in 1666 by a Danish governor, is now part of a hotel.

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A legend claims that a buccaneer named Bluebeard concealed the skeletons of his six wives on

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these grounds.

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If we can't solve the mystery of the six wives, we can at least relax and enjoy the view from

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the veranda.

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Many of the hotel swimming pools are filled with salt water, as freshwater is scarce.

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There are no springs or wells on the island, so municipal catchment reservoirs of concrete

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have been built to catch rainwater.

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Water conservation is practiced throughout the year.

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Nature has been most lavish in distributing her physical beauty.

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Everywhere there are turquoise bays where swimming is a year-round pleasure.

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There are few animals or reptiles on the islands, but on the north coast of St. Thomas

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is the home of the land crab.

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If you're patient and quiet, they will slowly emerge.

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Some of the largest measure eight inches in diameter.

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Tropical fish are caught every morning and sold locally.

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They have such colorful names as square tail, white angel, bonita, sea robin, parrot fish,

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grouper, and amberjack.

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The centipede breed of cattle is a cross between African and English stock.

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They require little water and are highly resistant to disease and tropical heat.

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St. Croix, largest of the three islands, was also named by Columbus in 1493

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for the cross of stars he saw in the southern sky.

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Alexander Hamilton, first secretary of the treasury, worked as a bookkeeper at the age of 12

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in this hardware store in Christianstead.

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The only two cities, Christianstead and Frederikstead, are connected by Center Line Road,

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which runs the entire 23-mile length of the island.

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At one time, much of St. Croix was covered with fields of sugar cane.

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The French deserted the island in the 17th century after burning the cane fields

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and some palatial estates.

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Vegetation is slowly smothering what remains of those stately plantation homes.

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Dozens of mill towers still remain from those days when power from the wind was used

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to grind and press the sugar cane.

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Many homes are made from these old towers, and when new homes are constructed,

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an old ruin may be incorporated to keep the past alive.

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Saturday is a busy day at the markets. The native Virgin Islander is Negro.

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They are gentle, dignified, and speak island English, a puzzling speech born of many influences.

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It is a descendant of the sing-song calypso talk of the British landowners

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and men who came to manage their plantations.

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Words of Spanish, Dutch, French, and Portuguese are blended with 17th century English,

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making this a fascinating language to hear.

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To relax and enjoy the beauty of the Virgin Islands, the trade winds, and the blue Caribbean

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is an experience long to remember.

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We can be proud that these colorful and romantic islands are part of the United States

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and the queens of the Caribbean.

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