Evening star., 1935-07-20
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
By Frederic ]. Haskin.


question OF fact By iOriting The Washtno-
ton EUeninc Star Information Bureau,
Frederic J. HGskin, Director, Washing
ton, D. c. Please tncloSe stamp for reply
@. Who was Sidney Lanier's mother3
IN. L.
A. The poets mother was Mary An
derson who belonged to a prominent
Virginia family and had decided talent
for music and poetry.
@. What will kill the weeds which are
SO persistent on tennis court?-R. w.
A. They can be killed and at the
same time the surface can be kept
slightly damp by the use Of calcium
chloride.
@. How much money did Trader
Horn leaVe?-T. C.
A. His net estate was $2,570, gross
estate, $3.50. His will, signed with his
real name, Alfred Aloysius Smith, de-
viSed his estate to his daughter.
O. Is the new Florida divorce law In
effect?-R. C. E.
A. 1t is. Under this law a residence
may be established in 80 days.
@. How wide is the flood area in the
Mississippi Valley?-E. F.
A. The flood plain of the Mississippi
River varies greatly in width. North of
Cape Girardeau, Mo, the lands which
are subject to overflow are compare
lively narrow, from 3 to miles wide.
The broad anuvial valley south Of that
point is some so miles wide, although it
is almost never inundated to this width.
In the lower Mississippi Valley protect
ing leVees exist and are planned to pro-
vide width of from 10 to 25 miles. In
the immediate vicinity of Vicksburg,
Miss, the river is not subject to over
flow on the Mississippi side because of
the high bluff $50 feet above sea level on
which Vicksburg is built.
Q. Is there such a thing as a wingleSs
bird?-W. M.
A. The kiwi, or apteryx, a native OF
New Zealand, cannot fly. Its Greek
name, apteryx, signifies that it has no
wings. There are stumps which can only
be seen when its feathers are pushed
aside. This bird is almost extinct in the
Antipodes and the New Zealand govern
lllCIlI lldO CObdU14olICu klHl 1NdIlOILo
to protect its remaining numbers. The
London Zoo now has a specimen Of the
kiwi.
O. Who is Lord TweedSmuir?-K r. T.
A. This is the title recently taken
by John Buchan, upon whom a barony
has been conferred in connection with
his appointment as governor general
designate of Canada.
@. Where in New York City Is the
Martyrs Monument?-K. G.
A. 1t is in Trinity Churchyard and
commentaries the American soldiers
who died in the British prison ships
in the Revolutionary War.
@. What does the expression, neither
fish, flesh, nor good red herring, mean?
M. C.
A. 1t means suitable for no class of
people; fit for no particular use. Not
fish, food for the monk; not flesh, food
for people generally; not red herring,
food for the poor.
G. When is the Foster Festival in
Kentucky?-E. ].
A. Every Fourth of July festival is
held at Federal Hill, BardStown, KY, to
honor Stephen Foster. Some of the
guests wear costumes of the period and
young man resembling Foster is Sc
lected to play the best known of the
composers songs. 1t was when Foster
was 26 that he visited Federal Hill, home
of Judge Rowan, and composed MY
Old Kentucky Home"
@. What kind of horse is q barb?
e. B.
A. It belongs to the barbary breed, IN
troduced by the Moors into Spain, and
of great speed, endurance and docility
This breed is said to be a variety of
the Arabian, and most of the pro-
genitors of the present thoroughbred
were of the same strain.
@. What are atouts?-L. w. G.
A. They are the % emblematic cards,
numbered from to 81 and including
one nnumbered card, used in the an
cient game of taTTochino, or tarotS.
About is also the regular modern French
word for trump at auction or contract
bridge.
@. What is the best way to smoke
cigarette to get its full favor?-M. NJ. T.
A. A simple rule for getting the most
pleasure from smoking a cigarette Is to
light at low temperature, smoke slowly.
hold the lighted end up when not Smok
ing, and stop before two-thirds Of the
cigarette is consumed.
@. What is meant by the expression
felo de sep. R.
A. In criminal law this is the technical
description of a self lf-murderer or suicide.
AS defined by Blackstone, "a felo de Sc,
therefore, is he that deliberately puts
an end to his own existence, or commits
any unlawful act, the consequence of
which is his own death"
@. How large an aquamarine has been
found?-B. E. j.
A. Probably the largest and finest is
one which was found in Brazil in 1910.
The gem was a greenish-blue, weighed
243 pounds, and measured 19 inches in
length by 16 inches in diameter. Uncut,
it brought $25,000.
@. What was the amount of the first
medical fee paid to DR.. William Osler?
ID. H.
A. Fifty cents. The young physician,
destined to be the celebrated Sir
william OSler, earned the fee by re-
moving dust from patients eye.