Evening star., 1940-02-17
Answers
To Questions
By Frederic J. Haskin.


A reader can get the ansiDer to any
question Of fact BY trrtting The Eve.
ming Star Information Bureau, Fred.
eric j. Hdsktn, director, Washington,
D. c. Please tnclose stamp for reply.
@. Was Eddie Rickenbacker the IA
nous aviator, at one time Gen. Per-
shing's chauffeur?-r T. B.
A. Capt Rickenbacker was staff driver
on Gen. Pershing's stan from June 0,
1917, until about July 81, 1917.
@. Why is the play in which Tallulah
Bankhead Is starring called ''The Little
Foxes"?-B. 8. w.
A. The title is derived from the Song
Of Solomon: take us the foxes, the little
foxes that spoil the vines; for our vines
have tender grapes"
@. Please give the total amount Of
cigarette taxes In the United states?--
r. 8.
A. In 1889 cigarette taxes in the
United States amounted to more than
$500 10000
Q. Did any college president sign the
Declaration of Independence?-H T. H.
A. John Witherspoon president Of the
College Of New Jersey, now Princeton
University, signed both the Declaration
of Independence and the Articles Of
Confederation.
@. What is the meaning of Lethe?-
H. r. s.
A. In ancient mythology the Lethe
was one of the five rivers of Hades It's
waters made those who drank of them
unmindful of the past. Departed spirits,
before entering the Elysian Fields, drank
to forget their earthly cares; those who
were to return to the upper world in new
bodies drank that they might have no
recollection of Elysian joys. The word,
which is derived from the Greek for
forgetfulness is used fguratively to de-
note oblivion or forgetfulness.
@. Please give the names of some Of
Paul Lawrence Dunbar's poems that have
been set to music.-W M. C.
A. Little Brown Baby" How Shall
Woo Thee" LII Gal" "Over the
Hills" when GIFTS Home" "An African
Love Song" Beyond the Years" "Invi-
tation to Love-" Loves Forgetfulness"
and Returned"
@. Does the Government furnish radio
scripts suitable for schools and colleges2
H. s. B.
A. The Script Exchange of the United
States Office of Education lends scripts
for non-commercial use and makes
available recordings at low cost.
G. What is the number of the White
House?-A. L.
A. The street address of the White
House is 1000 Pennsylvania avenue NV,
Washington, D. G.
@. Who was the first author in the
United States to write book without
punctuation?-G. 8.
A. Timothy Dexter, famous eccentric,
In 1902 published "A Pickle for the
Knowing Ones" which ignores all SPELL
Ing rules and omits punctuation. In the
second edition he added page of stops
20 that his readers could pepper and
salt 1t as they please"
@. Is the prune native to California?
! -H. T. NJ
A. Louis Pellier, Frenchman who had
gone to California in search Of gold, sent
to France for seeds and cuttings of
delicious plum called the "Prune d'Agens. !"
| These he grated with certain varieties
of the wild plum in the California hills.
His experiments were highly successful.
In 1929 California paid tribute to this
founder Of great industry by erecting
monument to Pellier In San Jose on the
18th anniversary of the American prune
@. Who directed Greta Garbo in her
! first picture?-T. c. H.
A. G. w. Pabst directed her first pic
ture, Street of Sorrow" in 1925.
Q. What is the two-thirds rule In
political convention?--E. G. R.
A. This was the rule which required
662s per cent Of the delegates voting to
make nomination. It was repealed at
the 1886 Democratic National Convention
Q. Is there really place called Sleepy
Hollow as described in Washington Irv-
ing's legend?-R. P. s.
A. Sleepy Hollow, valley near Tarry-
town, N. Y, is the locale of the Legend
of Sleepy Hollow" Irving Is buried in
the graveyard of the old Dutch church
there.
@. Please explain the word tabby in
connection with dress goods-R. T. S.
A. In the early Middle Ages, tabby de-
noted a thick, rich taffeta silk with q
watered or moire surface. 1t also signi-
fed silk and cotton fabrics of figured
and variegated patterns such as came
from Atabi, quarter of Baghdad. To
tabby was to produce watered surface
by calendering. Modern usage restricts
the word to one of the textile weaves,
that is, the plain, calico, or tabby weave.
@. When did Secretary Hull say:
peace must be our passion"?-D. D.
A. Secretary Hull used the expression,
Peace must be our passion" in Rio de
Janeiro on November "A, 1888, on his way
to the 7th International Conference of
American States at Montevideo. He
reiterated this statement at Rio de ia
metro on November 10, 1886, OIL his way
to the Maintenance of Peace Conference
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