Evening star., 1940-05-24
Hoskin's Answers
To Readers Questions.
BY Frederic J. Haskin.

~H ~ScUCfeS IuSHtHs
A reader can get the anstDer to anu
question OF fact by tDrtttng The Eve-
ming Star Information Bureau, Fred
eric J. Haskin, director, Washtn1ton,
d. c. Please t,lclose stamp for reply.
O. How docs Maggie define charm in
Barrie's play What Every Woman
Knows"?-F. A. 8.
A. IT'S sort Of bloom on q woman.
If you have it, you don't need to have
anything else. II you don't have 1t, it
doesn't much matter what else you
have"
Q. Who made the first movie With q
stofy?-R. K. H.
A. The late Alexander Black was orc
Of the earliest camera enthusiasts. I1e
conceived the idea Of arranginea series
OF posed photograph slides, to fern. -sth !,
oral narration, . story. The first Of
these, Miss jerry" was presented at his
studio on October ., 1894.
Q. How many hymns were composed
by Charles Wesley?-M e. K.
A. Charles Wesley was the author of
more than 5000 hymns. More than 500
hymns Of John and Charles Wesley are
IN common use today.
Q. Please give the derivation of the
word carnival.-I H. s.
A. 1t is from the Latin, carne vale.
which means farewell to flesh.
@. Has President Of the United
States ever been arrested?-J. j. M.
A. Ulysses S. Grant was the only Presi-
dent ever arrested during his term Of
office. He loved fast horses, always had
several in the White House stables. and
had taken the highest mark for horse
manship in his class at West Point. His
record in the high jumps has never been
equaled. One day he was driving a
spirited team in Washington, exceeded
the speed limit, and was arrested by a
colored policeman. The President put up
deposit OF $20 but never appeared al
the Police Court, and commended the
colored policeman for doing his duty.
@. Where is seabiscuit, the famous
race horse?-G. H.
A. Seabiscuit quit the turf on March
IL, 1910, and is now on the Charles S,
Howard Ranch near Ukiah, Calf, where
he will perpetuate his strain. J..
@. How did TERRA del Fuego derive its
name?-M. B. c..
A. During his entire stay in the Straits,
Magellan never caught glimpse of any
OF the Fuegan natives. The only sign Of
life was the smoke from many camp
fires, so he named the land TERRA del
Fuego, or the land of fire.
@. When was the Liberty Bell cracked?
e. J. H.
A. The Liberty Bell cracked as it tolled
during the funeral procession OF Chief
Justice Marshall on July 8, 1885.
O. Where was table damask first
| manufactured?-H. B. W.
A. China was no doubt the first coun-
try to make the fabric we call damask
India, Persia, and Syria, then Byzantine
Greece. followed at long intervals. About,
the 18th century Damascus so far OUT
stripped all other places in the beauty
of the fabric manufactured there that
the name came to denote all such =
fabrics.
@. What do the initials NJ Q. l. B. N.
| stand for on a railroad freight biI?->
| H. K. S.
A. The letters are an abbreviation
| of mot otherwise indexed by name"
| Q. Please give the number Of people
employed by the Veterans Administra-
tion.-J. c. N.
| A. The total number of employees OF
the Veterans Administration. including
field and central Office employees as Of
April 80, 1910, was 414l5.
@. Has there been more than one
vessel in the United States Navy named
Jouett?-C. j. S.
A. The new Jouett is Destroyer No.
| 1896. She was placed in commission in
1889 and assigned to the battle force on
| the Pacific Coast. She is a vessel of
| 1850 tons displacement. The old Jouett
was Destroyer No. Al; authorized. in 1910.
and scrapped in 1884.
Q. How many words were there in
DR.. Samuel Johnsons Dictionary7-P g.
A. The dictionary contained ap.
proximately $4,000 words.
Q. Has any one climbed to the top
Of Mount Everest?-W. r. R.
A. The summit of Mount Everest has
never been reached by climbers Sew
eral attempts have been made, but each
has had to be abandoned before the
top Of the mountain could be attained.
@. What Is the name Of the South
American fish that attacks swimmersP
e. D.
A. 1t is the piranha which averages
less than foot in length but is noted
for its bloodthirstiness. These fish attack
every form Of life that ventures into their
vicinity.
@. How many rooms are available in
New York City to visitors to the New
York Worlds Fair2-C. T.
A. Altogether there are 250,000 hotel
rooms available in New York In addi-
ton there are 100000 rooms in private
homes, residence clubs, apartment build
ings and rooming houses.
@. How old is the organization P. E.
O.?-W. G. H.