Evening star., 1936-03-18
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
BY Frederic ]. Haskin.

BY Frederic ]. Haskin.
A reader cdn get the answer to anY
question of tdct by fDriting The Euening
Star Information Bureau, Frederic J.
Hasktr, Director, Washington, d. C..
Please tnclose stamp for reply.
@. How much money Is bet on horse
racing7-B. 8.
A. Two billion dollars was wagered on
the outcome Of horse raeing in the
United States during 1885.
@. What type of criminals are sem
fenced to Alcatraz?-T. r.
A. No one is sentenced to Alcatraz.
| The prisoners are sent from other Fed.
| eral penitentiaries. They are the ones
who are too troublesome or dangerous
In the prisons from which they come.
@. How many lessons does 1t take TO
learn to handle oneself on a pair Of
| skis?-L. D.
A. Ten lessons usually suffice.
@. What was the cause Of the first
| censorship Of flms?-E. L.
A. In 1896 the censorship of films was
instigated over Dolorita's passion dance
| in Atlantic City.
@. Please give information concerning
the Sd Corps Area School at Fort Mon
roe, Va.-E. w. H.
A. 1t is West Point preparatory
school for enlisted men.
@. What part Of the United States
Capitol was built hrst?-F. N.
A. The Senate and House wings were,
Of course, added last. OF the central
| portion the first section, known as the
north wing, was built first, then the
| south wing, then the connecting ro-
tunda. The first dome, made of wood,
was built between 1918 and 1929.
@. What does the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corp. do?-D. OH.
A. It's chief function is to insure the
deposits Of all banks which are entitled
to the benefits Of insurance under the
law. Incidental to this function, the
corporation may act as receiver for
closed banks and may operate for a
limited time new national banks which
may be chartered to make available to
depositors in closed banks the insured
amount of their deposits. In the dis
cretion of the board of directors these
new national banks may be capitalized
l. by the sale of stock to interested per-
sons, preferably the stockholders in the
closed banks, and when so capitalized
they may be authorized to continue in
business. otherwise they will cease to
exist after two years.
@. How much interest Is paid on in.
stallnent buying?-R. w.
A. More than billion dollars Is paid
annually in the United States for inter-
est in connection with installment buy
ing.
@. Please give biography Of Sir Her
bert Beerbohm- -Tree.-E. H.
A. The famous actor was born at Lon
don in 1858. He visited the United
States several times and was successful
both as actor and lecturer. His best
parts were in John-a Dreams "Trilby"
Henry ~" etc. He became manager
Of the Haymarket Theater in 1887, and
Of Her Majestys Theater in 1897. He
died in 1917.
@. What is the source Of the quotation
beginning life is a leaf Of paper white
whereon each one Of us may write?
E. r.
A. 1t is from poem called Life" by
James Russell Lowell.
@. Please explain the origin Of the
word mascot. M. r.
A. The word was brought into prom
inence by Audran's comic opera, La
Mascotte," in 1880. The derivation is
| somewhat uncertain, though it has a
very close analogy to the Provencal
maSco, a sorceress or witch. It has also
been traced to the French term, me
| masQue," said of child born with
membrane or caul over its face, which
was regarded by the ancients as being
extremely lucky.
| @. How many Penitentes are there in
| the West?-E. F.
A. There are approximately 5000
members of the order in the Southwest.
@. What is the Flying Squad of Scot
land Yard?-F. B.
A. The name is applied to certain
inspectors who are detailed for emer-
| gency duty outside of Greater London
| and who may be called upon to under
take project anywhere at home or
| abroad.
@. Why did King Edward VIII use
the name Baron Renfrew?-J. D. L.
| A. Before he became King his full
title was H. r. H. Edward, Prince Of
Wales and Earl of Chester, Duke Of
| Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl Of
| Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord Of the
| Isles and Great Stewart of Scotland.
| It will thus be seen that he was merely
using one of his legal titles in this par
| ticular incognito.
@. Did the guillotine originate in
France?-L. B.
A. A similar device was known in the
thirteenth century in Italy. In the If
| teenth century it was used in Scotland,
where the last execution of this kind
took place in 1885, II years before the
device was introduced to France during
the revolution.
@. What formula is used for dividing
a string on a fretted musical instru-
ment for different lengths Of scales?-
w. S. I.
| A. The strings on fretted instruments
are divided thus: The first fret is 1-18
| of the distance between the nut and
the bridge, the second fret is 1-1S the
remaining distance, each succeeding fret
is 1-18 the remaining distance. Every
1 L.. H. 81 u