Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-12-03
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

ing more than half of first choice of the
total votes cast is elected. Otherwise
the lowest candidate is dropped and
first and second choice are added to-
gether. If the total of this is more
than half, that candidate Is elected In
the case of tie, priority in choice
elects.
c. What is the national language of
Swltzerland?~-W. S.
A. The principal languages OF Swift
zerland are German, spoken by II per
cent of the people; French, by 81 per
cent, and Italian, by per cent. Other
languages are Romanshe and Ladin.
BY the federal constitution of 1848 and
1874 German, French and Italian are
recognized as national languages, so
that debates in the federal parliament
may be carried on in any OF the three,
while federal laws and DEGREES appear
also in the three languages. The old
dialects of Romanshe and Ladin do not
have any political recognition by the
confederation.
@. Is it true that the English House
of Commons votes the pay for the
House Of LCrds?-M. J..
A. The statement that the House of
Commons votes the pay for the House
of Lords is not correct. The members
Of the House of Lords do not receive
salaries.
@. For wnom was the author Mazo
de la Roche named?-D. w. F.
A. At the time of the publication OF
"Jalna" the author, Miss de Ia Roche,
explained her unusual first name as
follows: "MaZo IS a Spanish masculine
name I was named after friend OF
my fathers. My father promised my
mother if she would let him name the
first she should be allowed to name the
others. There were no others"
O. Has Denmark completely dis
armed during the past few years?-
A. j. r.
A. Denmark has not disarmed. The
army of Denmark is in the form OF
| national militia, every able-bodied male
being liable for service. Even clergy
men must serve. About 1900 recruits
| train annually. The effective strength
is 10000, with $4,000 available on mo-
Utilization. The navy is for coast defense
only.
@. What degree of intelligence is
implied by the expression, "A very
bright child"?-K. E. T.
A. Prof Lightner Wilmer, psychol-
ogist and educator, defines a very bright
child as one who has such high
measure Of competency that he is able
to learn more than the prescribed cur
riculum within the prescribed time UNI
der the prescribed conditions.
@. Was the Southern dialect the
same in the colonial period as 1t Is
now?-W. G. F.
A. Dean Addison Hibbard of the Uni
versity of North Carolina, says that 1t
is impossible to give a dogmatic reply
to this question. First Of all, there are
many different dialects in the South
today There are, for instance, such
obviously different groups as the noun
tain dialect, the dialect of the coastal
islands along the Atlantic seaboard, and
again such modified forms as appear in
Louisiana and the Gulf Coast. In the
colonial period he thinks the situation
was somewhat similar-that is, there
were various dialects in the various
parts of the South depending on the
nature of the settlers in the partic-
ular region under consideration.
@. Does buttermilk contain enough
alcohol to exceed the limit set by the
Volstead act?-C. r. L.
A. Dr. Harvey Wiley says: at Is not
necessary that buttermilk should con-
tain any alcohol at all. Fermentation
of milk to produce buttermilk Is a
purely Tactic acid fermentation. My
own belief is that buttermilk contains
no alcohol at ALL However. If it does
contain a trace, it certainly could not
possibly exceed the limit of one-half OF
l per cent as fixed by the Volstead act"
O. When should bayberries be gath
cred? How much wax is secured from
a bushel of berries?-W. I.
| A. The small dry drupes or nuts are
gathered when they are ripe and are
covered with greenish-white wax,
which is collected by boiling them and
skimming 1t off, This is afterward
melted and refined. A bushel Of ber-
ries will yield 4 or pounds. The
wax is used chiefly for candles which
burn slowly, with little smoke, and emit
an agreeable, balsamic odor. but do not
give a strong light. Scented soap is
also made from the wax.