At the latest census, the Carolines islands could count 30,915 noses; Ulithi, 311.
Back, far back—some say the 13th century, but probably even further back, the Carolinians came in migrations from Indonesia, on the Asiatic continent. They came in small outrigger canoes which we might not trust on the Mississippi river, much less the Pacific…across hundreds of un-chartered and watery miles with only their innate sense of seamanship to guide them. In their feats of navigation, they would put to envy the ancient Greeks or the Phoenicians. Boats almost identical to those which they used in that remote day are to be seen in use at Ulithi today.
As a people, those belonging to Ulithi and the surrounding islands are classified under the broad racial term Micronesian, meaning "small island" people. They combine two racial developments, the Polynesian—such as the Hawaiian islanders, and the Melanesian—such as the people to be found in the Solomons, plus their own Malayan racial strain. Their Mongoloid or Asiatic stock is noticeable in some, through the eyelid fold which produces "oriental" or so-called "slant eyes." Their negroid admixtures were probably gained in associations with the Melanesians during migrations east. Some posess Chamorros strains—Spanish and Filipino blood. Two children are the descendents of a German father, and some—younger children born during the Japanese occupation—have very strong Asiatic characteristics.
Generally, their diverse racial background has brought forth a wide range of varying characteristics, the most commonly observed features being alternately fuzzy and coarse-textured wavy hair; broad, flat faces; small stat-
12
