He won the Democratic nomination in
July 1976. He chose SenatorWalter F.
Mondale as his vice presidential running
mate. During the campaign, Carter
called for efficiency and honesty in government.
In November 1976 he won a
narrow victory against the Republican
president, Gerald R. Ford.
Carter took office during a severe winter
and a terrible shortage of oil. He proposed
an energy program to help the
crisis, but Congress rejected it. Carter
also tried to cut back government spending
and to encourage the nation’s poor
economy. Many citizens could not find
jobs, however, and prices kept rising.
In 1978 Carter persuaded the leaders of
Egypt and Israel to sign a historic peace
agreement. On January 1, 1979, Carter
opened full diplomatic relations between
the United States and China. A serious
crisis overshadowed those successes,
however. On November 4, 1979, Iranian
students invaded the U.S. Embassy
in Iran and took more than 50 people
hostage. Most of the hostages were not
freed until January 1981.
The bad economy and the hostage crisis
caused voters to question Carter’s skills
as president. Carter lost the 1980 election
to the Republican candidate,
Ronald Reagan.
Retirement
Carter’s public image improved after he
left the WhiteHouse.He and his wife
founded the Carter Center in Atlanta,
Georgia, to promote peace and human
rights.He traveled widely to help settle
international conflicts.He helped build
homes for the poor with the organization
Habitat forHumanity.He also wrote
several books on politics and religion.
#More to explore
Ford, Gerald R. • Human Rights
• Nobel Prize • Reagan, Ronald
• United States
Carthage
The ancient city of Carthage was
founded by the Phoenicians on the
north coast of Africa in about 800 BC.
Until it was overthrown by Rome in 146
BC, Carthage was the trading center of
the western Mediterranean Sea. Today
Carthage is a suburb of Tunis, the capital
of Tunisia.
A gold coin from Carthage dating from the
300s or 400s BC shows the goddess Persephone.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Carthage 47
1534, the king of France asked him to
lead an expedition to North America.
In the spring of 1534 Cartier sailed
across the Atlantic Ocean to what is now
Canada. There he and his crew explored
the land around the Gulf of Saint
Lawrence and encountered Native
Americans. When he sailed back to
France, he took with him two Native
Americans.
A second voyage came in May 1535.
This time, Cartier sailed deeper into the
Gulf of Saint Lawrence and into the
Saint Lawrence River. The two Native
Americans he had taken before had
learned French, and they served as
guides. About 260 miles (420 kilometers)
inland, Cartier reached the Native
American village of Stadacona. Today,
the city of Quebec stands near that
place.
Cartier and his men were among the
first Europeans to winter in what is now
Canada. The bitter cold surprised them,
and some of the men died. After returning
to France he reported tales told by
the native people of treasures farther
inland.
Cartier once again crossed the Atlantic
in 1541. He explored further and found
what he thought were gold and diamonds.
When he returned to France in
1542, he was told that they were just the
common minerals pyrite (fool’s gold)
and quartz. After his third voyage
Cartier never returned to North
America. He died near Saint-Malo, his
birthplace, on September 1, 1557.
#More to explore
Canada • Saint Lawrence River and
Seaway
Cartoon
Cartoons are drawings that make a
point, tell a joke, or tell a story. Cartoons
can be about almost anything.
Many cartoons are about the things that
everyday people say and do. Others are
about the news, government leaders, or
historical events. Many cartoons try to
make people laugh.
Types of Cartoons
Comic strips are a popular type of cartoon.
A comic strip usually has four or
more drawings in a row that tell a connected
story. Comic strips feature a cast
Cartoonist Charles Schulz works
on a “Peanuts” comic strip. He
drew this popular cartoon for
about 50 years.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Cartoon 49
of characters, such as the children in the
comic strip “Peanuts.”
Other types of cartoons include political
cartoons, gag panels, and animated cartoons.
Political cartoons show what is
wrong with the government or make fun
of it. They are usually single drawings,
but there are some political comic strips.
Gag panels are single drawings that
make fun of everyday life. Animated
cartoons are cartoons filmed as movies
or television shows.
Cartoons may be found in newspapers,
magazines, and books. Comic books and
graphic novels are books filled with
many comic strips or cartoons.
History
People have been using pictures to tell
stories since prehistoric times. Prehistoric
artists drew pictures of animals on
the walls of caves. In ancient Egypt,
Greece, and Rome, artists painted pictures
on vases and walls. These pictures
recorded historical events, the lives of
important people, and legends.
From the 1500s to the 1700s people got
the news through short printed works
that had many pictures. Many of these
pictures were early forms of political
cartoons. Political cartoons became
