Evening star., 1935-12-28
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
BY Frederic ]. Haskin.

BY Frederic ]. Haskin.
reader cdn get the anstDer to any
question OF fact by tDriting The Washing
ton Evening Star Information Bureau.
Frederic J. HdSkin, Director. Woshtno-
ION, ID. c. Please tnclose stamp for reply.
Q. Has the wall around the City
OF Jerusalem been restored?-E. ID.
A. The missing stones have been re.
placed, the rubbish and obstructions re-
moved, and 1t is possible to walk along
the top Of the wall to view the city.
@. Please compare the area of Soviet
Russia and the United States.-Y. r.
A. The area Of continental United
States is 3,026,789 square miles, as COM
pared with 8,144,228 in the U. S. s. r.
Asiatic Russia is contiguous with Euro
pean Russia and is not considered as a
colony since the largest and most i'm
portant of the republics making up the
Soviet Union, the r. s. F. s. r., contains
almost all the old Soviet territory, in
cluding most Of Siberia. However, for
purposes of comparison, European Russia
has an area Of 1,997,310 square miles.
@. When did Nine. Curie die?-M. HIP.
A. She died July 4, 1884.
O. What is the name now used for a
disease which was known as quinsy?
e. N.
A. Quinsy is an old name for abscessed
tonsils. The Inflammation may spread
IN surrounding tieSiieS
@. Are there electric bulbs for infra.
red?-J. P.
A. The National Bureau of Standards
says that ordinary incandescent lamps
are good emitters of infra-red. The
wave length of maximum energy from
such lamps lies between and micronS,
being an inverse function of the tenn
perature.
@. What is the length Of the polar
axis of the earth? The equatorial axis?
p. M
A. The results obtained from actual
measurements by means of triangulation
of the earth, adopted in 1924 by the
International Geodetic and GeophySical
Union, are II, I'll $40 feet for polar axis
and Al ,852, 1850 feet for equatorial axis.
@. Do fish drink water?-J. L. w.
A. Fish and other aquatic animals do
not drink water. Enough moisture is
taken into their systems in their food
and through their skins so that drinking
is not necessary.
@. Was there a settlement at West
Point before the United States Military
Academy was established there?-D. B.
A. 1t was a military post during the
Revolutionary War and was retained on
the advice of Washington.
@. Please tell what employment was
usual for immigrants to this country
from the various foreign countries-W. c.
A. AS a whole, Jewish immigrants were
workers in light industries, particularly
in the needle trades as custom tailorS
and garment makers, and retail and
wholesale merchants Some became
peddlers, dealers in secondhand clothes.
and money lenders. Many Russian
immigrants worked in the beet fields.
The Italians and the Polish have done
the hard and dangerous work in the
communicative Italians work at build
ing, street construction and farming.
Many of the Slavs work in steel mills.
The Poles work in mills and factories.
The early Scandinavian and German
immigrants became farmers. The Irish
were the principal laborers on the rail.
roads until the war broke out, when
their place was taken by the Italians.
@. Are there any Negroes in Congress
at present?-O. F. L.
A. There is one Negro Representative
at the present time. Arthur Mitchell of
the first congressional district of Illinois.
He succeeded Oscar De Priest of the
same district, who also was colored.
@. Does the title of wheat king usually
90 to a Canadian farmer?-R. M.
A. This award is made at the Inter-
national Grain and Hay Show. In the
last Is years, the title has gone to Canada
q times This year it was won by w.
Frelan Wilford of Stavely, Alberta.
@. Why are different figures given
for the length of the Suez Canal?-
o. H. S.
n. 4llC dCGud1 4CIASIA4 Va 0bCo
Canal is about 100 miles, a little more
or little less, depending upon the way
in which it is measured. Reference
books do not agree as to its exact length.
The discrepancy lies in the fact that
it may be measured from the southern
most end of Port Said Harbor to the
northeastern shore of Suez Bay at Port
Tewfik, or from the De LeSseps Statue
north of Port Said to the anchorage In
the middle of Suez Bay.
@. On what date does the Greek Ortho-
dox Church celebrate ChristmaS?-W. D.
A. On December 25. The Gregorian
calendar was adopted by the Greek
Church in 1928.
@. What is the proper method to treat
leather suit case for dryness?-W. E. 3.
A. A mixture of pure 20 degree G.
cold test meats foot oil and castor oil in
equal proportions is good dressing for
leather articles such as suit cases. Any
oil or grease applied to leather Will
darken the color to some extent. Only
a thin film of the dressing should be
applied at one time and care should be
taken not to put on so much dressing
that the leather will remain greasy to
the touch.
@. How large is the statue of Lincoln
ID l.