National Geographic December 1971

Return to Changing China
A reporter, and daughter of a former Canadian diplomat, revisits the land she knew as a teenager to examine the changes brought by communism.
The Zulus: Black Nation in a Land of Apartheid
Proud descendants of warriors who defeated British legions must now live on scattered reserves and bow to South Africa’s apartheid laws.
Shy Monster, the Octopus
The nimble mollusk, that can gather 25 crabs and eat them one by one. is endowed with intelligence superior to that of any other sea dweller with the exception of marine mammals.
St. Peter’s, Rome’s Church of Popes { St. Peter’s}
Largest church in Christendom, the great basilica in the Vatican rests on the traditional site of St. Peter’s grave.
First Glimpse of a Stone Age Tribe
Members of the tiny Tasaday tribe use stone and bamboo tools to survive in the forested highlands of Mindanao in the Philippines.
Questing for Gems
The curator of the Smithsonian Institution’s gem collection recounts a lifetime study of the minerals so valued for their beauty.