Evening star., 1936-02-11
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
BY Frederic J. Haskin.

BY Frederic J. Haskin.
reader con get the dns-Der 10 any
question Of Jdct by iUritino The Evening
Star Information Bureau, Frederic J,
Hdskin. director, Washington, d. c.
Please inclose stamp for reply.
@. How long has Eugene Talmadge
been Governor Of Georgia?-D. M.
A. He has been Governor since jan
uary, 1888.
@. Please name five lighthouses hav-
ing very high candlepower-L. l..
A. Navesink. New Jersey, 5000 600
candlepower; Cape st. Vincent, Portugal,
$4,000, 900 candlepower; Heligoland, Ger
many, 100000 candlepower; Cape
Grisnez, France, 100000 candlepower;
Belle Isle, France, 25,OO0,00o candle
power.
@. What authorities pass on the re-
liability of drugs placed upon the mar
ket?-M. S. S.
A. There are two authorities which
pass upon the reliability of drugs to be
placed on the market: The United States
Food and Drug Administration, which
has jurisdiction over only products en-
terlng interstate commerce whose labels
state that they cure disease, and the
American Medical Association, 535 North
Dearborn street, Chicago. Ill, the latter
being non-Government organization.
@. Can observations in a balloon
which aScendS into the stratosphere
prove that the earth is round?-K. S.
A. Photographs taken during the
recent stratosphere flight of the Ma
tional Geographic Society-Army Air
Corps balloon, Explorer II, at an alti-
tude of 1885 feet above the earths
surface showing the lateral curvature
Of the earth includes a stretch of the
horizon 220 miles in length. This rep
resentS more than degrees of circle,
nearly 1-100th of the total circumfer-
ence of the earth. The curve of the
horizon was easily noticeable when the
picture was projected on screen. When
the edge of ruler is laid along the
horizon line the curvature is even more
plainly visible.
O. When are colts entered in futurity
raceS?-L. w. c.
A. The dam is entered before the foal
is born, or the foal is entered when q
few months old. The race is not run
until the foals are 2-year -olds. The
three important futurity races in the
United States are: The Futuyity. West
chester Racing Association; Che Pimlico
Futurity, Pimlico, Md; the Breeders
Futurity, Lexington, KY.
@. Is "Gulliver's Travels" merely a
story for children?-M. P.
A. Reuben Halleck says: THE world
is always ready to listen to any one
who has good story to tell. - Chill
dren read 'Gullivers Travels for the
story, but there is much more than the
story in the work In its pages the
historian finds illusions that throw
much light on the history of the age"
@. Please give information on Hud-
sons Bav blankets, also about the four
points-just what it means. received
blanket for Christmas with the four
small black bars on one edge-H. T.
A. The term four point. in referring
to a blanket, means weight. A point
is a Canad',n unit Of weight slightly
more than a pound. A Hudson's Bay
blanket is a very heavy all-woolen
blanket used by trappers and traders
like an arnv blanket, except that II
is even heavier 1t may be gray, tan
or patterned but a favorite color Is
red Other trapper point blankets come
in white with colored striped borders.
@. OF what were the skates of Media
eval children made?-B. T. M.
A. They were made of beef bones.
@. What do the Latin notices on the
back of the new 81 bills mean?-S. K.
A. The notices are part Of the re-
verse Of the Great Seal Of the United
States 1t shows an unfinished pyramid,
above which is an eye in a blue tri-
angle all proper The lowest course of
the pyramid bears the Roman numerals
MDCCLXXVI. Beneath the pyramid,
on a golden scroll is the motto. "NovuS
Ordo Seclorum" IA new era in the ages.
and above is the motto, "Annuit CoeptiS"
CHe prospers our beginning. The pyra-
mid signifies strength and duration; the
eye over it and the motto allude to the
many interpositions of Providence In
favor of the American cause. The date
underneath is the date of the Declara-
UlOIl Va AAINSPSAANASN oAAA SAAS "SASS
under 1t signify the beginning Of the
new American era, which commences
from that date.
Q. Who wrote the play, "The Devil"
which was produced by Savage about
IS or 80 years ago?-P. L. H.
A. The original play, Der Teufel," was
written by Franz Molnar Oliver Her
ford made the adaptation for American
production by Savage in 1908.
O. Please explain the water system
used in ancient Rome-H. P.
A. The details of the water system OF
ancient Rome were of high standard.
The aqueducts supplied about 100000
cubic meters of water per day, or about
l20 gallons per head of population. There
was no main pipe from reservoir, but
water flowed from the source partly
along conduits and partly over aque-
ducts to a water tower, which was
divided into four compartments, one
main compartment and three subsidiary
ones. One of these smaller compart-
ments supplied the public baths. another
the private houses and third received
the overflow from the others and sup
piled the public fountains. In sup
plying the houses the water was hrst
led into a minor water tower near the
house, thence to q cistern and from
there to each house. Pipes Of clay or
lead were used and the water was drawn
r.~~~ y1fIv running nr