The National tribune., 1908-09-03
ANSWERS To-
CORRESPONDENTS.

eclipse of the sun that was visible il
the United Statesiin 1868 or 1863?
The eclipse tobwhich you refer oc.
Cured on Aug. 7s 1863, and was visible
in the United States from Iowa tC
! North Carolina. The conspicuous sci.
entihc results obtained were pertaining
to the corona, which was at that time
described as "one of the grandest spec.
tacles of which. it is possible to con-
ceive. Further, surrounding the dark
body of the moon was crown of ligh
with rays shooting, out in five great
suns diameter. or nearly million OF
miles. No painting can represent II
and no pen can describe it"
]. H. N, Vermont, asks: 1. OF what
nationality is George B. Cortelyou? @
How near of kin must person be to a
soldier to be eligible for pension as a
| dependent relative?"
| 1. George Bruce Cortelyou was born
in the city of New York on July 26,
1852, and is therefore an American.
His name shows that he is descended
from Dutch ancestry. .. A dependent
relative" is held to be, first. mother,
then father. and next a sister or
brother under sixteen years of age.
J. G. c., New York City, asks: Will
you kindly inform me of historical
facts concerning the 14th U. S., and the
present location of the regiment?
This regiment was organized by d.
rection of the President on May 4, 1861,
which was confirmed by the act of July
20, 1861. 1t was reorganized on Sept.
81, 1866, under the act of July %, 1866,
and again reorganiZed on July %, 1869,
under the act of March 3, 1869, by con-
solidation with the 45th regiment of in
fantry. 1t is now in service at various
points in the Philippines, and is COM
manded by Cox John c. Dent.
C. W. F., Council Bluffs, Iowa, writes:
have in my possession commission
given by william L. Marcy, Governor of
New York, to my father, w. w. Foster,
as Captain in the 35th regiment Of ar
til1ery of said State, with rank from
Sept. z, 1898. To whom shall / write
to get his military history, with that of
my grandfather and great-grandfather ?
If you will write to Victor H. Paltsits,
State Historian Of New York, at Albany,
giving him the names of your ancestors.
he will gladly furnish you with the in
formation you desire, If 1t be obtainable
from the records.
D. f. s., Fargo, n. D., asks: Where
would I find the genealogy devoted to
the Siegfried family? / think they set
tied in eastern Pennsylvania.
We know of no volume devoted to the
genealogy of the Siegfried family, but
If you will write to Lieut.. II. NJ. NJ.
Richards, Secretary of the Pennsylva-
MIA German Society, Lebanon, Pa, he
may be able to put you in touch with
some one having records Of that family.
w. j. F., Shortbend, Mo-, asks: Did
Gen. Harrison afterwards PresidenD
receive any medal for heroism at Tippe-
Qnrfxu xufl
what became of lit?
No official medal was given to Gen.
Harrison for his victory over the In
dams at Tippecanoe, but Congress or
dered that gold medal be struck for
his victory of the Thames. The dies of
this medal are still preserved in the U.
S. Mint n'fPhiladelphia, and bronze
copies can be purchased there for $50
each. During the Presidential campaign
many private medals were struck show
ing log cabins and referring to him as
"the hero Of Tippecanoe."
E. E. s.. Milan, Pa, asks: 1. What
is the meaning of the term 16 to / ? 2.
How are the finances of the Government
run?
i. The term 16 to refers to the ratio
In value between gold and silver, which
for many years varied from 15, 1917
and 16 of silver to one of gold; that is,
one ounce of gold was worth 16 ounces
of silver. The commercial ratio of sill
yer to gold was 14.81 in 100, 1858 in
1S00,t 1917 in 1874, 1915 in 1902 and
1854 in 1906. 2. The income of the
United States is collected by the Treas
ury Department, and comes chiefly from
the customs on imports and the internal
revenue taxes. The disbursements are
authorized by Congress. and are paid by
check on the Treasury Department. For
the fiscal year 1867 the total income
of the United States Government was
s665, 5,306,134, of which $333,230,126
came from customs, S270,309,388 was
internal revenue, $11, 1,553,178 from sales
of public lands, and the remainder, $780,
213,442, from miscellaneous sources
The total expenditures for the same year
were $57S,360,592.