Evening star., 1925-04-22
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN

Q. Is a man who was in the meI~
chant marine and who now has tu-
berculosis eligible to Government I'm.
surance?--E. +. w.
A. Members of the merchant nlaA
rine are not considered a part OF the
military or naval forces of the United
States according to the United States
insurance act and the World Wa1
veteran act.
O.. Is there a tribe Of the Ancient
Rechabites in existence now?-L. NJ.
"A. The ancient Rechabites are noS
in existence today. There is. howa
ever, an Independent Order of Recha<
bites, the title of a total abstinence
beneficial society founded in England
In 1885, branch of which was orr
ganized in the United States in 1S42a
Q. What is the origin Of the name
Glencoe?-E. G.. II.
"A. Glencoe is a glen in the north
or Scotland, so named from the River
Coe, which rises in the hills at it's
eastern end and flows through 1t. Ii
is famous historically as the scena
| OF the massacre of February, 1892.
Q. Who said Resistance to ty.
| ranny is obedience to God"?-W. N. H,
A This statement was found
among Jefferson's papers after his
death.
Q. When was the French and In
dian War officially over?-W. C. II,
A. 1t closed with the treaty of
Paris, February 10, 1863.
Q. Could a mirror be used instead
of motion picture screen?-G. e.
A. II the screen of motion picture
| was replaced by mirror it would be
possible to see the picture in the mir
| ror.
| Q. Is the tomb recently uncovered
by the Boston-Harvard expedition near
the pyramid of Cheops older than that
of Tut-ankh-amen?-H. d.
A. Scientists regard this tomb as
probably 1000 years older than the
| one discovered by Lord Carnarvon.
Q. How did Andalusia acquire its
name?-P. D. T.
A. The popular story of how this
| Spanish province acquired it's name
/ is told by Eleanor Elsner in one Of her
| travel books. Early explorers enter.
ing the province met a peasant indo-
lently driving mule over pass; they
| begged him to tell them the name Of
this sunny and pleasant land, pre-
! sumably in a language or dialect Of
1 which he understood never a word
| He looked them over. silent and smil-
ing in the usual Spanish fashion, then,
turning to his mule, called out, 'Anda,
/ Lucia, which simply meant Go on,
Lucia; but the strangers took IL TO be
/ the name Of the country, which they
registered on their rough charts as
Andalusia."
| Q. Why is a girl kissed when caught
under the mistletoe?-R. c. o.
| A. Authorities differ somewhat con-
corning the origin of the custom OF
| kissing under the mistletoe. Walsh is
| OF the opinion that IL IS an innocent
| survival from the Saturnalia of the
ancients when riot and license ran
| loose. Other authorities claim that
1t is survival of the ancient Druids
| of Britain The n1istletoe is believed
! to have been given to the goddess OF
| love TO keep, and every one who passed
| under 1t received a kiss 10 show it was
the emblem of love. The Druids cut
! the sacred mistletoe and hung il over
the doorways TO propitiate the wood
| land spirits. According to myth, only
| happiness could enter under the mis-
tletoe, hence the tradition of the kiss.
the WORLDS. V.
A. 1t is believed that the Vatican,
| covering an area of 1215 acres, is the
! largest building in the world. Other
| extensive buildings are the Palace of
the Louvre IN Paris, and the Palace of
Versailles.
Q. When the moon is eclipsed how
| wide is the shadow of the earth at
the moon and how far beyond does it
| extend?-V.- F. C.
| A. II the earth is at mean dis
| tance from the sun and the moon at
mean distance from the earth the
| diameter of the shadow of the earth
| at the moon is about 5,725 miles and
| the distance II extends beyond the
moon about $4,000 miles
| Q. How much ballast is required
/ for mile of railroad?-R. r. H
/ A, Where the subgrade is well
] drained and solid about S25 cars of
gravel to the mile is the usual esti-
| mate.
| (Are YoU erer hdmpered for tCdat
| of information? Do you 1conder and
blunder, through ntiSinf formation? This.
| column IcdS Instituted to serUe q peTu
apparent need of our readers, aud its
popularity IS dtteSted by its poSsibtK-
| ties. Address inquiries to The Star
| Information Bureau, Frederic j. Has
kin, director, TtUentg-ffrst and C
| streets northeast. I9tcloSe q 2-ceHt
| stamp for a direct repIy)