Evening star., 1939-09-19
Answers
To Questions
BIZ Frederic J. HdSktn.

A reader can get the dns,Der to any
question OF TACT by 1orittng The Epe.
ming Star Information Bureau, Fred.
eric J. Haskin, director, Washington,
D. c. Please inclose stamp for reply.
@. How much did the Civil War cost2--
E. M. H.
A. In the Civil War, according to
ELson, the expense to the Government
reached an average Of nearly 100000
day, and there was public debt in
August, 1865, of $2,845 ,000, 900. These
figures take no account of the separate
expenditures of the States and cities,
amounting to nearly $500, 900 900, nor OF
the expense to the South, nor of the in
calculable destruction of property. To
this must be added the interest on the
public debt and the pensions paid to the
soldiers, to the widows and the orphans.
The total cost of the war no doubt
exceeded $4,000 100000.
O. Where is the largest collection of
birds in the World?-E. w. NJ
A. 1t is said to be that in the Whitney
wing of the American Museum of Nat
ural History in New York City, which
comprises approximately 100000 speci-
mems.
@. When was "Black Beauty" by Anna
SeWell, first published?-M D.
A. BLACK Beauty" came out in 1877.
BY 1890 10000 copies of the book had
been sold.
O. Please give the history of the hymn
Onward, Christian Soldiers."- w. r.
A. A great school festival was to be
held in a Yorkshire village on Whit.
monday, 1865, and the pupils of the Hor-
bury Bridge School were invited to
attend. AS the place of celebration was
some distance away, the curate of the
school, the Rev. Sabine Barring Gould,
composed the hymn to be sung as the
children marched to the festival. The
spirited music for it was composed by
Sir Arthur Sullivan.
O. How did the circus originate?-
D. M B.
A. The circus originated among the
Romans and first consisted merely Of
horse and chariot races; the name means
ring or circle from the circuit made by
the riders. Later wrestling and other
athletic contests were added and large
sums of money were spent to bring wild
animals from various parts of the
country to be killed in the arena.
@. What will prevent weeds from grow
ing between bricks?-L. H.
A. Mix one gallon of hot water with
one pint of creosote. Sprinkle this over
the areas to be cleansed with water
ing can that has fine spray. This will
kill all weeds within "a hours. Be care
| full that none of this mixture falls on
border plants. An application of this in
| the spring and fall will keep paths and
| driveways free from weeds.
@. Is the armor worn by Columbus in
existence?-G. G. r.
A. 1t is preserved in the Royal Arsenal
| at Madrid, Spain.
@. What was the first Communistic
society in the United States?-B. G. Y.
A. The first Communistic society in the
| United States was undoubtedly the mon
astic group in the colony of Ephrata, 8
miles from Lancaster, Pa, in 1888. 1t
| was established by Johann Conrad
Beissel.
@. Does boy in the Reserve Officers
Training Corps receive pay?-W. A. P.
A. A boy in the r. o. T. c. in college
| in his junior and senior years receives
| Is cents day while in school. While
| in camp he receives 10 cents day. In
| addition his uniforms are supplied. When
called to active duty as second leu-
tenant in the Army he receives the pay
of regular commissioned officer of the
| Army, that is $125 month and allow
| ances.
@. What languages are most widely
| spoken?-S. K.
A. The five languages spoken by the
| largest number of people are: English,
| 275, 100000; Russian, 10000, 900; Japan
esq., 90,000,000 Spanish, 80,000000; Ger
| man, 100000. This list excludes lam
| guages like Chinese and Hindustani
which, with various dialects, are spoken
by greater numbers of people than
those mentioned.
@. When was the first automobile in
surance policy issued?-L. j. H.
A. In 1898 the Travellers Insurance Co.
of Hartford, Conn, issued the pioneer
automobile liability policy.
@. What caused the death of Button
Gwinnett?-K. M. N.
A. He was mortally wounded in duel
| with Gen. Lachlan Mcintosh and died
at his home on ST. GATHERINGS Island
on May 10, 1777
| @. Is there an island named Borabora?
R. w.
A. Borabora is an island in the west
ern group of the Society Islands, French
Oceania, northwest of Tahiti
@. What is round robin?-G. M. c.
A. A round robin is written petition,
memorial, protest, or the like, the sig
| natures to which are made in circle
so as not to indicate who signed first.
@. How long is the Lincoln bed in the
White House?-E. E.
A. This walnut bed is feet long.
@. What is the deepest we'll in which
water is found?-G. F. N.
A. The deepest hole in the ground from
which water is known to have flowed
under it's own pressure was that drilled
for an oil well of the Gulf Production
Co., located in section 1877, block F,
Upton County, Tex. Water flowed