Evening star., 1932-08-12
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

Stop a minute and think about this
fact You can ask our Information
Bureau any question of fact and get
the answer back in a personal letter.
1t is a great educational idea intro
duced into the lives of the most intel
ligent people in the world-American
newspaper readers. 1t Is part of that
best purpose of newspaper-service.
There is no charge except cents in
coin or stamps for return postage. Get
the habit of asking questions. Address
your letter to The Evening Star Infor-
nation Bureau, Frederic J. HaSkin, Di-
rector, Washington, d. C.
Q. Who holds the gliding record
noW?-I. NJ.
A. Jack OMeara broke all records in
his 75-mile flight at Elmira, N. Y.
@. What is the Glastonbury Thorn?
e M
A. 1t is the hawthorn tree which
sprang from the spot on Wearyall Hill,
at Glastonbury, in England, where Jo-
seph of Arimathea set his pilgrims
staff while on his mission to convert
Britain As the result of its holy orr
gin, this hawthorn bloomed miracul-
ously at Christmas, the natural bios
soming season of the hawthorn being
in May and June. During the Crom-
wellian civil war the thorn tree was
destroyed by a fanatical Puritan, but
CRAFTS from it were saved, replanted
and persist in their miraculous Christ
mas blooming in defiance of botanical
laws stone now marks the spot of
the original tree.
@. Please describe the flag of Al
ghanistan-E. v. M.
A. The flag of AfghaniStan is black
banner on which appears the Afghanis-
tan seal, which consists of white oc-
tagonal-shaped figure upon which Is
superimposed a black circle within
which again is a white mosque.
O. Why is Lake Erie so called?-
A. Y.
A. The Eries were numerous tribe
of Indians who occupied the shores OF
the Lake, which takes its name from
them. The name in Indian means
| wildcat"
@. Who invented the railroad
ticket?-A. L. H.
A. In 1886 Thomas Edmondson OF
Lancaster, England, was stationmaster
and booking clerk at the little station
| of Milton, on the then Newcastle &
! Carlisle Railway. Feeling the need fol
a systematic check on the issuance oi
| tickets, he first wrote with pen ano
| ink upon pieces of cardboard the
names of the issuing and collecting
stations, the number of the ticket anc
| fare for the journey. He next evolved
a case in which the various descrip-
tions of tickets could be safely kept
and at the same time conveniently is
sued. This resulted in the Edmondsor
| ticket case, which remained in use
J without improvement, until the inven-
ton of an American ticket case II
1874.
@. What was the first monthly mag.
azine to sell for 10 cents?-W. NJ.
A. Munsey's Magazine was the first
monthly of its class to sell for 10 cents
O. Describe the Roman Senate
A. M.
A. Romulus was the first to or
/ ganize a Senate in Rome. He selecte'
| 100 patricians for his advisers. 9Th
| literal meaning Of senatus is a council
Of old men, so called because it wa
an assembly composed of the head
| of families.) Under the Republic o
Rome the Senate was composed of 80
patricians, plebeianS and high officials
julius Caesar raised the number o
the Senators to 900. Augustus reduces
| it to 600. Ultimately nearly all tn
Senators were elected by vote of tn
people. Senators held Office for life
unless removed because of dishonor
but the Office was not hereditary.
@. When and by whom was Welles
| ley College founded?-W. M.
A. Wellesley was founded by Henr
Fowle Durant, a Boston lawyer, witt
the announced purpose "of giving t
young women opportunities for edu
cation equivalent to those usually pro
vided in colleges for young men," TIL