Evening star., 1932-08-11

When troublesome questions arise,
avail yourself of the service of this
department. It costs you nothing
you have only to send cents for post
age on the personal letter you will re-
ceive in reply. Any question on any
subject of fact Will be answered. Ad-
dress your letter of inquiry to The Eve
ming Star Information Bureau, Fred
eric j. Haskin, Director, Washington,
D. C..
O. What Is the woman's record for
the discus throw?-P. H. w.
A. A new world record was made
July Is. when Ruth OSburn Of Shelby
vile, Mo, made throw Of 1873 feet 3.
inch. 1t won her a place among the
American woman athletes who compete
in the Olympic games in Los Angeles.
@. When was j. r. McCarl made
| controller general of the United States,
how long Is his term and what is his
salary?-M W.
A. He became controller general
, July l. 1921. The term Is Is years and
his salary is $4,000 a year.
9. Are fish called skates good to
eat?-J. P.
A. The Bureau of Fisheries says that
oAdtCo are SOOu W cat. uc PdIL VI
the skate taken customarily for COM
mercial food purposes is the saddle,
which Is a portion Of the body of the
! fish Immediately behind the head and
between the wings.
O. How much property was lost In
the fire at Coney Island?-M. H.
A. 1t was a 100000 fire The
part which suffered contained sub
stantial structures, such as hotels,
apartment houses. shops and cottages,
as well as boardwalk and lighthouses.
@. How many grains of coffee are
there in a pounds. C. S.
A. The approximate number OF
grains to the pound Of roasted Java
and Mocha mixed (Which is an average
type) is 5000. A smaller grained va
riety OF coffee would have more, pos
sibly as many as 1000.
@. Can a person who has come to
this country on a visitors permit re-
main and take out citizenship papers?
r. M.
A. He cannot He must come under
the regular immigration quota from the
country of his origin.
Q. What nations are represented at
the Ottawa Trade Conference?-H. G.
A. The nations are those compris-
ing the chief parts of the British EN-
pire. They are the United Kingdom,
Canada, Australia, New Zealand, New
foundland, Union of South Africa, In
| dia, South Rhodesia and the Irish Free
| State. Each of these is a partially au-
tonomous nation capable of making its
own trade laws. The purpose of the
| conference Is to adjust tariffs and other
trade arrangements for mutual interest.
@. Was DR.. Raymond Ditmars. the
naturalist, ever a newspaper man?-
F. M. C.
A. He began his career as a court
reporter on the New York Times.
@. What is fusel oil?-L. K.
A Fusel oil Is an acrid oily liquid
of unpleasant odor accompanying as
an undesirable ingredient many raw or
insuff1ciently distilled alcoholic liquors,
such as potato whisky and corn whisky.
1t consists Of several higher alcohols
and fatty acids, but chiefly of amyl
alcohol.
O. Did Olive Schreiner ever write
under a pseudonym?-C. E. T.
A. The Story of an African Farm"
was published in 1888 by Chapman &
Hall over the pseudonym Of Ralph Iron.
Q. How can steel be magnetized7-
J. r. L.
A. The Bureau Of Standards says
that steel can be nagnetized either by
stroking it with permanent magnet
or. preferably, by subjecting 1t to the
influence Of a coil of wire carrying
current, within which it Is placed. The
effect of temperature upon magnetism
depends largely upon the condition of
the steel, but should not exceed about
$50 degrees Fahrenheit.
@. OF what descent are the people