The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-06-24
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.

dolce far niente ?"-S.
1t is Italian for sweet doing nothing"
that is. delightful idleness.
What is the source of the hyphenated
names so plentiful in ~England?-A. K.
Many Of them come from the husband
adding his wife's name to his own. This
custom appears in other European coun-
tries. too.
What is the record for a six-day go-as.
you-please race and by whom was ii made?
j. F. H
1t is s23 miles 1,s2O yards and was made
by George Littlewood, of England. at Madi.
son-square Garden in November, 1883.
Is there a metal that can be made to
melt in boiling water? If so what is itc
name?-G. A.
Several alloys of bismuth will do this.
One consists Of eight parts of bismuth,
five parts of lead and three parts of tin.
Is the lee shore the one of danger TO a
ship in a storm?-Landsman.
Yes; it is the shore under the lee of the
ship: that is, that toward which the wind
blows. The s~eafarer styles the shore from
whence the wind comes the weather shore.
Has there ever been official talk OF build
ing a ship canal across the peninsula or
Florida ?@T. L.
Four routes were surveyed-in 1924, 1856,
1856 and 1s7s-e-under the direction of the
secretary of war, and ore survey was made
by the city of Mobile. Not much else was
accomplished.
Please state the latest acquisition to the
field of literature in ~Indiana.-V. d.
The latest books of Importance produced
by new writer's are "Enoch Willoughby,"
by Prof. ]. A. Wickersham, of Terre Haute,
and knights in Fustian,' by Miss Caroline
v. Krout, OF Charlottesville.
How many citizens of the State of In
diana have been elected Vice President of
the United States? 2. In the event of the
death of a Vice President has Congress
ever elected any one to the vice presidency?
3. Was Jesse ID. Bright ever Vice Presi-
dent?-C. w. K.
Two-Schuyler Colfax and Thomas A.
Hendricks. .. No. g. No.
Please publish a recipe for making calci-
mine.-Reader.
Calcimine is made by mixing bolted gild-
er's whiting with sufficient glue to bind it;
lIC w Al diooOlNCQ Al a. aA0 whining
added. Coloring matter is added to suit. 1t
is difficult to give an exact recipe owing to
the varying quality of glue. The success
full making of calcimine is a matter Of skill
and experience.
Are there elsewhere in the world any
such remarkable geysers as those in yell
lowstone Parks. s.
The Yellowstone geysers are far more
numerous than those Of any other known
field, but there are a few remarkable gey-
sers in Iceland. The northern island of
New Zealand had a wonderful field, but ii
was destroyed by earthquakes In the sum-
mer Of 1886.
What amendment. If any, did the last
Congress pass to the present pension laws?
j. j. w.
Widows with $3.50 of revenue a year can
draw a pension under the act of the last
Congress, and veterans asking for pensions
under the law of 1890 will have a pension
based upon two or three causes of disabil-
ity. For years the applicant has been pen
stoned for a single disability.
When and where did the custom of wax
ing the dead originate? 2. a the word
'motorneer'' be used instead of motor
man?"-LL s.
The custom is Of unknown origin and age.
The name comes from an Anglo-Saxon
word meaning to keep vigil, but similar
customs are traced to the peoples of remote
antiquity. 2. Yes; recent dictionaries give
the word and it Is used in some sections
Of the country to the exclusion of motor
man"
Where can 1 find a life of Homer?-H.
D. d.
personally. Even the ancients did not
know where or when he lived. Herodotus
| thought he lived about $50 B. c., but others
placed the date $50 years earlier, still others
one hundred years later. Many cities
claimed him as their own. All the statues
of him-and some are considered very fine
are purely ideal.
VIII the United States soldiers stationed
at the Philippines, Cuba and other islands
vote for President in November, 1900?
Indiana soldiers will not, because such a
proceeding would be in conflict with the
provision Of the State Constitution which
requires that the voter shall cast his
ballot in his own precinct New York,
and, we believe, several other States have
the power to arrange for the voting of
absent soldiers.
Is the Fra Diavolo" OF opera an his
torical character? If so will you tell some
thing about him2@L. s.
The Fra Diavolo Of history was Michele
Pezza, a Calabrian goatherd. who was born
about the middle of the eighteenth century
He became successfully a stocking weaver.
soldier, monk and leader of a band Of
! scoundrelly robbers. While holding a
| coloners commission against the French he
was captured and hanged. The historic and
operate characters have little in common.
Is IL true that the common garden to-
mato was once considered poisonous? ?.
Is there any book that gives points on
growing the fruit?-D. S.
Yes; in the memory Of many now liv-
| ing the tomato, then called the love apple,
was looked on with extreme suspicion.
| This was due to the fact that the plant
belongs to the botanical family that in
cludes henbane, nightshade, belladonna
| and other virulent poisons. Within thirty
years the theory that cancers were large
ly due to eating tomatoes was held by
many. 2. There are many such books and
bulletins.