Evening star., 1932-11-18
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

Chimes" and close with Garry Me
Back 10 Ole virginny."
@. What is marble made FROM
M. l. D.
A. Marble is crystalline granular
limestone or dolomite, generally sus-
ceptible Of a high polish. 1t ID used
principally as an ornament for monu-
ments, statuary and building stone.
@. What is Yogo?-D. p.
A. 1t is a new Winter wheat which
is being given . limited trial In Mon
tana.
@. How many Federal employees are
connected with the Veterans Admins
tration?-C. II. L.
A. The total number Of Federal en-
ployes connected with the Veteran
Administration throughout the United
States is 36,879. The total pay roll
is $50, ,727 ,856.
@. Did Wagner follow the legends
Of the Nibelungenlied closely IN his
ring operas7--W s.
A. Wagner kept the essence Of the
legends. but his operas vary great,
from the text Of the legends. The teT
Of his hbrettoS is his own.
@. Where are most Of the fine
meersehaum pipes made?-M. L. p.
A. Meerschaum is obtained in vari-
Gus places, but the best quality comes
from Asia Minor. Ali the pits are ex-
hausted but ESQ, which are worked by
some 900 miners who live there. The
mineral is mined In blocks-it IS then
cleaned, the operation consisting Of
scraping and cutting the blocks With
a sharp instrument or knife. The
blocks are then clasSed as to sire and
quality. 1t is then sent to the pipe
manufacturers. Most Of It Is sent 10
Vienna.
@. What is the annual expense of
operating the rural mail carrier serv-
ice?-R. A. H.
A. The Post ONCE Department says
that the cost of the rural mail service
in 1892 was $10e,4 900.
O. Who invented the arc Hshtf-
A. The production Of the electric arc
Is attributed to Sir Humphrey Davy.
well known English chemist, about 1909.
He demonstrated before the Royal So
ciety In London. Thomas Wright, also
an Englishman, was the first to patent
an arc lamp, IN 1S45.
@. What was the "shot that was
heard around the world"?-L d.
A. The battle of Concord and Lax
ington, which was the opening battle OF
the American Revolutionary War, April
10, TITS, is so characterized In q poem
by Emerson.
@. Please explain the so-caIled ~de-
preston plant" in which water, salt,
bluing and mercurochrome are poured
IN a oiara 0f soft r0ai making n beau-
tiful growth on the coal in few days
H w. w.
A. The probable explanation Is that
the solution is absorbed by the more or
less porous piece of coal and when 1t
starts to dry, the salt forms crystalline
deposit on the surface Of the coal. This
deposit continues to grow as more and
more of the solution is drawn to the
surface by capillary action. The bluing
and mercurochrome are left behind
when the water evaporates, and they
color the salt.
@. How long have cartoons been used
| in papers?-A. c.
! A. Benjamin Franklin was the first
to print a cartoon in his Pennsylvania
| Gazette. There were rumorS Of war
with the French and on May Q, 1754,
Franklin published an advice" for Mai
Washington that the fort in the forks Of
the Monongehela had been surrendered
to the French. To this he added car
toon representing snake cut into eight
parts, the head representing New Eng
land and the seven other parts New
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Mary
land, Virginia, North Carolina and
South Carolina. This cartoon was wide
! " copied by other newspapers at the
time