Evening star., 1939-04-20
Answers
To Questions
BIZ Frederic J. HQSkt1,.

By Frederic J. Hasktn.
A reader can get the ans,Der to any
question OF fact by ,Drtttng The Epe.
ming Star Information Bureau, Fred
eric J. Hask,n, Director. Washington,
D. c. Please inclose stamp for reply.
Q. Has q monument ever been erected
to hen?-M. r. D.
A. There Is q monument to q hen In
Little Compton, r. l., which was erected
in 1925 by the Rhode Island Red Club
OF America to commemorate the origin
Of that breed Of fowl.
@. Are most motion picture features
produced from plays, novels or original
screen stories?-E. L. G.
A. OF the 545 feature-length pictures
produced in 1898, 316 were from original
screen stories, 30 from stage plays, and
40 from novels. The rest were taken
from biographies, short stories and
newspaper features.
@. Is there any breed Of dog that
does not bark?-H. c. r.
A. The Basenji dog of Central Africa
does not bark, but arches his back when
angry like a cat.
Q. What Is shag tobacco?-M. M H.
"A. Shag is flne-cut pipe tobacco
which is processed by cobbing tobacco
over hot plate after it is cut.
@. How long does the Government
keep veterans checks after they are
cashed?-F. P. B.
A. After World War veterans check
has been signed and cashed it is cleared
by the Treasurer of the United States
and sent to the General Accounting
ONCE where it is held for eight fiscal
years, after which period it is destroyed,
If in the meantime no claim of any kind
has been made.
@. Will there be special Georgia
Day at the New York Worlds Fair?-
C. H. S.
A. Georgia Day will be observed on
June IA.
@. What is meant by black frost?-
c. H. M.
A. A black frost is one in which plants
freeze without the formation of white
frost on the leaves.
@. Please give the frequency Of the
wireless time signals broadcast daily
from Arlington. Va.-A. S. C.
A. The frequencies of the Arlington
time signals are 113 and 1,425 kilocycles
They may be heard on ordinary short
wave sets.
@. Is there such word as paraph?
If so, what does it mean?-E. S. H..
A. A paraph is a flourish at the end
OF signature used in the Middle Ages
as a kind of rude safeguard against
forgery. The verb paraph means to 1
sign with initials or to add paraph.
@. Please give some information about
the transport ship Madawaska.-R v. A.
A. The Madawaska was formerly the
German vessel KONG Wilhelm II. She
was one of the German vessels taken py
the United States at the time of the
World War and made II trips from the
United States to Europe. After the
World War the vessel was rechristened
the Grant and is still in Army trans
port service.
Q. What is the name of the bricklayer
who is an author?-K. G. K
A. Pietro di Donate, author of Christ
in Concrete" is a bricklayer.
Q. How many chinchillas are there IN
the United States? What is the fur
worth?-S. A. j.
A. There are approximately 500 pairs
OF chinchillas on fur farms in the United
States. A live chinchilla is worth At
least $4,000, while coat entirely made
OF this fur is valued at $4,000.
q. When was Gen. John j. Pershinz
made a brigadier general?-M. T. B.
A. Gen. John j. Pershing was ap.
pointed brigadier general on September
20, 1906. .
@. Please give the origin of the super
stitution about lighting three cigarettes
with one match-T. D.
A. The superstition that 1t is bad luck
to take three lights from one match
originated in the Russian Orthodox
Church, where it was customary to light
three candles with one taper at funerals
This led to the practice being associated
with death.
@. Where is Stephen Decatur, the
naval hero, buried?-C. o. B.
A. Stephen Decatur was first buried
on the estate of Joel Barlow near WASH
lngton, D. c. In 1886 his body was
moved to st. Peters churchyard, Phila-
delphia, Pa.
O. Please give directions for making h
black automobile top dressing.-G. r..
A. A very good recipe for a dressing
Tor leather tops is: One part liquid as
phaltum to two parts castor oil, to
which add one-half ounce ivory black
to each pint Of the mixture. Apply with
soft brush.
q. OF what material is the new rood
screen which was recently dedicated at
the Washington Cathedral?-A. C.
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