Evening star., 1937-06-12
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN,

A reader can get the dnsper to any
question OF fact by nritino The Epeninp
Star Information Bureau. Frederic J.
Hdskin, Director. Washington, D. c.
Please snclose stamp tor reply.
@. Is the authority Of the bus driver
fixed by law?-H. w.
A. While there may be ordinances In
some localities fixing the responsibility
Of bus drivers, in general practice they
have the same control over their vehicles
that conductor has on a train or
captain on ship. Even if there is an
inspector on bus he cannot give any
orders to the driver which relate to the
handling of the vehicle. The driver is
responsible for the safety of his pas
sengers and his judgment must be re-
spected in all matters.
Q. When Is the Marblehead yacht
race week?-A. L..
A. It runs from August to August II.
@. How much did the late John D.
Rockefeller give to education?-E. r. M.
A. Nearly third Of his gifts, total
OF $l72, ,562 307, was donated to educa.
ton.
@. Is Hitler musical?-F. r. NJ
A. He is very fond of music and plays
the piano we'll
Q. How did the authors Of the book
mine Old Men" divide their work?
H. j.
A. When questioned on this point
Robert Allen said that his partner,
Drew Pearson. wrote the first two chap
ters of the book. Allen began his part
of the volume in chapter three, and he
wrote the chapters on Brandeis, Hughes,
Roberts, Van Devanter and Cardozo.
When Allen was asked about the circu-
lation Of the book on the Supreme Court
he said that about $4,000 copies had
been sold, as compared to more than
100000 for Washington Merry-Go-
Round"
@. Was the Los Angeles taken out Of
service because 1t had An accident7
p. j. K.
A. The Los Angeles did not crash or
suffer serious damage. She was de.
commissioned because Of old age and
is now being kept at Lakehurst.
@. Who was Chateaubriand?-R.A A. r.
A. Francois-Rene, Vicomte de Cha
teaubrland was French author who
lived from 1853 to l848 His most famous
work Is the Genius Of Christianity"
Q. In whose handwriting is the Dec
laration Of Independence?-M. C. l..
A. Timothy Matlack actually wrote
the Declaration Of Independence on vel-
lum. This is the document which was
| signed by John Hancock and his fellow
members. The original draft Of the
Declaration Of Independence is in the
handwriting of Thomas Jefferson.
Q. How much does the material cost
| for Wassermann test?-L. S. H.
A. For a single test the cost of ma.
terial may run as high as 81; for 200
tests the cost will probably be about so
cents, and in large numbers it may run
| as low as 20 cents.
Q. Is the Haberdasher still published?
| w. w. F.
A. In 1881 the Haberdasher was ABB
| sorbed by the American Halter. Two
years ago this magazine was absorbed
| by Hat Life.
Q. Is the discolorauon of copper con.
| sidered beautifying7-H. j. D.
A. The National Bureau OF Standards
| says that corrosion Of copper usually re.
suits IN the formation of = green sur
face film or scale. For some architec-
tuEal uses this Is very desirable and con-
siderable study has been devoted to the
production Of such fllm in relatively
| ,ovi1v
required For other uses-eg., in the
kitchen-the green coloration is not de-
sirable. Copper corrosion can be pro.
tected by various surface coatings and
the tendency toward corrosion can be
lowered by certain alloying additions In
the copper.
Q. What is a glockenspiel?-E. w.
A. Originally it was a series of grad
uated narrow metal plates arranged on
frame so as to produce bell-like tones
when struck by mallet. The glocken-
| spiel is sometimes used in modern
| Orchestras for bell-like effects. It is
| found In the scores of The Magic
| Flute" by Mozart and in Die Walkure"
and Die Meistersinger," by Wagner.
Q. Was Rudyard Kipling related to
Stanley Baldwin?-V. S.
A. He was first cousin.
Q. Is oil used to calm the waves in
storm at sea?-J. D. W.
A. Oil Is poured on the water for the
purpose of quieting the seas. It stops
| all small wave motion and makes it
possible to lower and handle lifeboats ON
small vessels. There are times when
even going ships are exposed for
long periods to excessive sea waves; It
Is not an unusual thing for them to
spread Aim Of oil round about the ship
for the purpose of saving the vessel from
excessive strain.
Q. When were the first real roads laid
OUTS. r.
A. The earliest were probably laid in
Mesopotamia about 1900 BIC, One
route OF this ancient system - from
Baghdad to Isfahan-is still in use,
The Ever-Changing Sky!
1t was watched by primitive man with