Evening star., 1938-07-14
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC y.rHASKIN.

BY FREDERIC J. ,HASxIN.
A reader cax get the ansver to any
question Of Jact by writing The Epe.
ming Star Information Bureau, frederic
J. Hasasn, director. Washington, D. c.
Please tncloss stamp for reply.
q. What State has the most miles Of
railroad?-S. J. H.
A. Texas leads with 1851 miles Of
railroad.
Q. How many persons obtain dogs
from the Seeing Eye?-H. w. g.
A. At the end Of 1887 q total Of over
$50 blind persons had received dog
guides. In the year ending September
30, 1887. IS were furnished with dogs.
@. How does Washington, D. G., rank
among United States cities in poptlla-
tion?-F. C.
A. with es7,ooo people, washington is
now 18th, having passed Milwaukee and
Buffalo since 1890.
Q. What Is the origin Of the word
gopher?-J. H.
A. The name comes from the French
word, gaufre, meaning honeycomb. and
was given to the animal because 1t
honeycombs the ground by burrowing
in 1t.
@. Who discovered Lake Michigan?
j. L.
A. Jean Nicolet is credited with being
the first white man to navigate Lake
Michigan. Sent West by Champlain on
q voyage Of exploration, he threaded
his way in a birch canoe from Georgian
Bay through the Straits Of Mackinac
and thus discovered Lake Michigan in
the summer Of 1884.
@. Who said: There is no open door
for the moneyless manu.. T.
A. 1t is from the first stanza of THE
Moneyless Man," by Henry T. Stanton.
@. Who was the first woman in the
United States to conduct an opera?-
]. G. H.
A. The Etude says Emma Steiner,
composer, and the first American woman
conductor of OPERA died in New York
in 1929. She began her public career
as assistant musical director to Rice
and Golfers "Iolanthe" company, and
led, during q period of 30 years, over
5000 performances of light and grand
opera. In addition. she led in New York,
on December 8, 1894, the famous Anton
Seidl Orchestra of 80 musicians in a
program Of her own compositions. It
is said Of her that Heinrich Conried, for
whom she had served as musical director
before he became manager of the
Metropolitan Opera House in 1908, de-
would gladly have ap-
pointed her conductor at the Metro
politan If only he had dared.
G. Where is Tin Can Island?-F. J. p
A. Niuafoo is q small island Of the
Tonga group, but detached from the rest
of the archipelago and lying near the
center Of the ocean triangle formed by
Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji In IS degrees
south latitude and ITS degrees west
longitude. The island is well known
to stamp collectors by the name, Tin
Can Island. because of the fact that
there Is no anchorage on the island and
mail has to be delivered in tin cans
offshore. The island Is a volcano with.
large lake in the center.
Mexico?-W. H. R. ..
A. The national beverage Of the Mexi-
cans Is pulque, made from the Juice Of
the agave. Pulque shops are as common
in Mexico as soda fountains In the
United States.
@. Who was the famous theatrical
producer on the Lusitania who quoted
from Peter Pan" as the ship was
sinking?-W. r. g. @rt~
A. Charles Froham is said to have
stood calmly on the deck Of the vessel
repeating lines from the mermaid lagoon
scene of Peter Pan"
g. What bird sews its nests. W. g.
A. The tailor-bird Of Asia uses her
bill as . needle and with bits Of fiber
or grass sews leaves into q kind Of sack.
This Is then filled with wool, hbers
and hair to make . nest.
G. When was the first outside loop
made in an airplane?-S. M. p.
A. On May "a, 1927, 1t. James A.
Doolittle at McCook Field, Dayton, Ohio.
performed the hrst successful outside
loop. No effort had been made to per-
form this feat since 1912, when two
aviators lost their lives in . similar
attempt. The plane used by Doofittle
was q PB-1 Curtiss pursuit plane with
the regulation Curtiss D-12 engine Of
40 horsepower. Flying at an altitude
Of 5000 feet he turned the nose Of
his plane downward, describing q huge
circle 1000 feet in diameter and returned
to his original height. At the lowest
point Of the circle he was directly under
the plane flying at a speed of $50 miles
an hour. After he climbed back the
speed Of the ship was retarded. to ap-
proximately $50 miles an hour. the speed
he was making when he entered the
loop.
@. How many copies Of "Snow White"
have been sold since the movie came
out?J. w. r. L,
A. The sale of "Snow White" in the
various authorized Whitman editions
has reached 100000 copies.
Q. What college awards degrees to
men who fail to graduate with their
class, but become successful in later
years?-T. L. D.
A. Trinity College at Hartford, Conn.
observes the custom of conferring de.
grees Of former non-graduate students
who have become successful after 20
years.
Can You Pass the ,..'.s