Five different Washingtons

There are at least five different Washingtons and each has its supporters who earnestly believe that theirs is the only true Washington.

The first is Washington-the-Capital, an official city of great monuments and memorials, of vast bureaucracies housed in buildings of neoclassical or modern Congressional Grotesque de­sign. Over 43 per cent of the land of the District is occupied by the Federal Government. This is the Washington of the Federal reservation.

The second is Old Washington, the sleepy Southern town of ceiling fans, sleeping porches, devoted Negro servants and old families who were actually born here. Old Washington is dying off now.

The third is Washington-the-Town-of-Terror, "The Crime Capital of the World", a horror of racial mixing producing vio­lence too terrible to speak of.

The fourth Washington is University-Washington, the north­west section of pleasant homes on tree-lined streets, where almost everyone is white, well-educated, and has a high income.

The fifth Washington is Negro Washington, largely low-income and low-education, though the city has a relatively large number of professional and middle-to-upper-income Negro fami­lies. But the majority of the Negro population lives in badly over­crowded row houses, its children go to decrepit schools, sepa­rated from and largely unseen by the other Washingtons.

Vocabulary

Hancock, John (1737 –1793) – государственный деятель США, первым подписавший Декларацию независимости

a moot question – спорный вопрос

to flock – стекаться

drawbridge – подъемный мост

moat – ров (с водой)

mess kit – вещевой мешок

trustee – опекун

Georgetown – фешенебельный жилой район Вашингтона, в котором живут многие члены правительства

composite – смесь

predominantly – в основном

row houses – одноквартирные дома, составляющие ряды домов

decrepit – дряхлый, ветхий

UNIT 7

GREAT BRITAIN.

THE LAND (PHYSICAL BACKGROUND) (I)

GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION. TERRITORY

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the UK for short) is situated on a group of islands lying off the north-west coast of Europe. The total area of the country is 94217 sq. miles (244021 sq. km) of which nearly 99 % is land and the remainder inland water. The UK is a small country. It is twice smaller than France or Spain. The UK's territory is 2 % of the inhabited territory of the world, claiming the 75th place among other countries.

The northernmost point of the UK is in latitude 60° North and the southernmost part of Britain is in latitude 50° North. The prime meridian of 0° (or the zero longitude line) passes through the old Observatory of Greenwich in London. The time in every country in the world is calculated from this line.

Of all the islands comprising the territory of the UK, Great Britain is the largest, being the biggest island in Europe and the 7th largest in the world. It is 300 miles (483 km) across at its widest, 60 km at its narrowest and 600 miles (966 km) long at its longest.

The second largest island is Ireland, which lies to the west of Great Britain and is separated from it by the North Channel and the Irish Sea. The total area of 6 counties, making Northern Ireland, covers 5452 sq. miles (14120 sq. km). Among the smaller coastal islands forming administrative counties of the UK are the Isle of White, situated off the southern coast of England, the Isles of Scilly — off the extreme south-west and Anglesey — off north of Wales.

Western Scotland is fringed by numerous islands — the Hebrides. To the north and far north of Scotland are the important groups of the Orkneys and the Shetlands. All these islands have administrative ties with the mainland. But two islands the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea and the Channel Islands in the English Channel, lying south of England and forming an archipelago, have a large measure of administrative autonomy and strictly are not part of the UK but are dependencies of the Crown.

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