London, and the amount of business done through it.
J. BROWN.
_Answer._—The Bankers’ Clearing House, London, is the medium through
which bankers collect the checks and bills in their hands against
other banks. Instead of presenting these checks and bills at each
bank to which they are addressed, and receiving cash and notes in
payment, clearing bankers settle the whole amount delivered during
the day at this establishment in Postoffice Court, Lombard street, by
receiving or paying the difference in the totals for or against them
by a single check on the Bank of England. Every bank in London and
the country is represented by clearing bankers, and as their agents
send through the Clearing House all drafts payable in the city and in
the country, the amount passing through this establishment every year
is enormous. The total amount for the year ending April 30, 1882, was
£6,382,654,000, or nearly $32,000,000,000. The total clearings of the
Bankers’ Clearing House, Chicago, in the year ending Dec. 31, 1882,
amounted to $2,366,526,185. This represented only the transactions of
banks doing business in Chicago. It is estimated that the new rule
as to settlement applied during the past year has reduced the total
clearings nearly 25 per cent below what they would have been under
the old rule. London is the center of exchange for the world, and the
volume of its bank clearings must necessarily be enormously greater
than that of any other city. The totals of bills, checks, and drafts
passed through the London Clearing House, between 1869 and 1881
inclusive, foot up £68,010,643,000, or over three hundred and forty
billion dollars. The rise and fall in trade not only in England, but
in large degree the world over is mirrored in the annual records of
these clearings for the period mentioned. Whereas in 1869 the total
clearings were but 3,626,396,000 pounds sterling, they increased
each year until 1873, when they amounted to £6,070,948,000. Then,
in consequence of the widespread commercial depression the total
trade transactions fell off, and the London bank clearings fell to
£5,936,772,000 in 1874, £5,685,793,000 in 1875, and £4,963,480,000
in 1876, the lowest point touched. Not until 1880 did the clearings
rise to nearly six billions again. In 1881, for the first time, did
they reach and pass the total in 1873, indicating general business
prosperity throughout the world.
CHICAGO AND MILWAUKEE COMPARED.
SHOSHONE AGENCY, W. T.
How does Milwaukee compare with Chicago in the amount of grain
handled in one year?
WM. H. ROME.
_Answer._—The following are the statistics of receipts and shipments
at Milwaukee for 1882:
Receipts, bu. | Shipments, bu.
|
Wheat 7,816,471 | Wheat 1,788,479
Oats 2,581,808 | Oats 1,600,916
Barley 4,653,192 | Barley 2,927,273
Rye 491,006 | Rye 440,369
Corn 2,037,680 | Corn 1,454,144
Flour (brls) 3,340,854 | Flour, (brls) 4,248,050
—————————— | ——————————
Total in bu 32,613,994 | Total in bu 27,327,405
The statistics of Chicago during the same period are:
Receipts, bu. | Shipments, bu.
|
Wheat 22,326,680 | Wheat 19,905,319
Oats 26,975,137 | Oats 23,975,177
Barley 2,066,636 | Barley 4,130,069
Rye 2,052,214 | Rye 1,928,874
Corn 49,224,522 | Corn 49,264,167
Flour (brls) 4,378,864 | Flour (brls) 3,995,532
—————————— | ——————————
Total in bu 122,350,074 | Total in bu 117,182,590
AMERICAN AND ENGLISH SHIP-BUILDING.
VAN WERT, Ohio.
How does American ship-building compare with the ship-building of
Great Britain?
J. W. NICODEMUS.
_Answer._—During the year 1880 there were constructed in the United
States for ocean traffic 412 sailing vessels, having a tonnage
of 53,610, and 166 steam vessels, having a tonnage of 40,617. In
addition to this, for the service of the lakes and rivers, were
constructed forty-eight sailing vessels, with a tonnage of 5,447 and
182 steamers, with a tonnage of 38,237. In the same period Great
Britain constructed 353 sailing vessels, with a tonnage of 57,534,
and 474 steamers, with a tonnage of 346,361. The total number of
American vessels plying the ocean was, at that time, 17,932, with a
tonnage of 2,803,923, while Great Britain boasted of 25,185 vessels
and a tonnage of 6,574,513. Including the shipping upon the inland
lakes and rivers, the total shipping of the United States was 21,547
vessels, having a tonnage of 3,577,816. The reason for this enormous
difference between the two countries is due partly to the greater
cost of labor and material in the United States; partly to many more
ways of employing capital profitably in the United States than
there are in other countries; partly to the subsidies paid by the
British Government to encourage the establishment and maintenance of
British ocean lines of transportation; partly to the vastness of the
British Empire and the exemption of British vessels and British goods
carried in their vessels from heavy port dues and duties in trading
to British ports; and partly from the American law forbidding the
granting of the American flag to vessels built in other countries,
even when owned by American citizens, and forbidding the restoration
of our flag to American-built vessels after they have once gone under
other colors, whatever the cause. American-built vessels compare in
all other respects, except cost, favorably with the same classes of
British vessels, and in many particulars American builders have done
much to improve all classes of sea-going craft.
CELEBRATED PAINTINGS.
RAVANNA, Mo.
What and where are some of the most celebrated paintings?
A READER.
_Answer._—By general agreement among art critics, Michael Angelo and
Raphael stand at the head of the line of master painters. Conspicuous
among the great paintings of the former are “The Last Judgment,” “The
Conversion of St. Paul,” and “The Crucifixion of St. Peter;” and
among those of the latter, “The Dispute Concerning the Sacrament,”
the “Madonna di Foligno,” and the “Madonna del Pesce, or Virgin of
the Fish.” The “Last Judgment” is a large fresco painting, sixty
feet high by thirty feet wide, occupying the wall opposite the
entrance of the Sistine Chapel, in the Vatican Palace at Rome. Over
300 figures are represented in “the most violent attitudes and most
admired disorder.” “The Conversion of St. Paul” is another large
fresco painting in the Vatican. “The Crucifixion of Peter,” also
in the Vatican, is one of the last from the hands of Angelo. “The
Dispute Concerning the Sacrament” is a fresco representing, above,
a convocation of the saints around the Almighty, the Savior, and
the Virgin, enveloped in heavenly glory, while beneath the ceremony
of the consecration of the sacrament is depicted. This is found in
the Camera della Segnatura of the Vatican, Rome. “The Madonna di
Foligno,” in the Vatican gallery, derives its name from the city
of Foligno, which is represented in the back-ground. The “Madonna
del Pesce,” now in the gallery at Madrid, Spain, represents the
Virgin and Child enthroned, with St. Jerome on one side and on the
other an archangel with the young Tobit, who carries a fish, from
which circumstance the name is derived. “The Madonna di San Sisto”
is considered by many critics the best of Raphael’s works. It is
located in the gallery of Dresden, Germany, and represents the
Madonna standing upon the clouds surrounded with glory, holding in
her arms the eternal Son. Saint Sixtus and Saint Barbara kneel at the
sides. It was originally painted on wood, but has been transferred
to canvas. The painting of “The Last Supper,” by Leonardo da Vinci,
is recognized as one of the masterpieces. It was originally painted
by order of the Duke of Milan on the walls of the refectory in the
Dominican Convent of the Madonna delle Grazie. The picture is now in
a state of decay, but several very fine copies have been made; one
of them, at the Royal Academy, London, is considered almost, if not
quite, as good as the original. Rubens’ paintings of the “Descent
from the Cross” and “Elevation of the Cross,” at Antwerp, rank high
as masterpieces. The “Adoration of the Trinity,” by Albert Durer, at
Vienna, and his two pictures containing life-size figures of Peter
and John, Mark and Paul, presented to the Council of Nuremberg,
Germany, are also very famous. All of the above and many others, the
productions of painters barely less noted, are classed as works of
the great masters; and artists and amateurs are constantly going on
pilgrimages to the temples and art galleries which are so favored as
to enshrine them.
THE SCOTTISH POET, WM. KNOX.
HALSTEAD, Kan.
Please give a short biographical sketch of William Knox.
LINNIE REED.
_Answer._—William Knox, a Scottish poet, familiar to the readers of
“Scott’s Diary,” was born at Roxburgh in 1789. Very little has been
recorded concerning his life, which terminated at the comparatively
early age of 36. He was very industrious, and in addition to his
published volumes contributed to the _Literary Gazette_ and to
various other magazines. In 1818 he published a collection of poems
under the title of “The Lonely Heath,” and in the succeeding year
wrote “Mariomne,” “A Visit to Dublin,” “Songs of Israel,” and “The
Harp of Zion.”
THE PLANETS IN FEBRUARY.
WYANETT, Ill.
In or near what constellations are the planets at present?
C. A. H.
_Answer._—During the month of February, 1883, Mercury will be a
morning star after the 10th, and will be found in Capricornus until
near the end of the month, when it will enter Aquarius. Venus will
also be a morning star while in Sagittarius. Mars can be observed
near the sun in Capricornus; Jupiter nearly stationary between Taurus
and Gemini, and Saturn nearly stationary between Aries and Taurus.
JOHN PHŒNIX.
ABINGDON, Ill.
Will you please give a short sketch of “John Phœnix,” the humorous
California writer of twenty years ago.
C. SNYDER.
_Answer._—This noted humorist was an officer in the regular army.
His real name was George Henry Derby. He was born in Massachusetts;
was appointed to the military academy from that State, and graduated
a second lieutenant of ordnance in 1846; same year was transferred
to the Topographical Engineer Corps, a branch of the army since
abolished. Lieutenant Derby was brevetted for gallantry at Cerro
Gordo, Mexico, being wounded in the action. He was the author, over
the nom de plume of John Phœnix, of “Phœnixiana” (’56), and the
“Squibob Papers.” Many of his most popular productions were written
while he was on the staff of the commanding general of the Military
Department of the Pacific, engaged on the improvement of the harbor
of San Diego, Cal., which accounts for his being referred to as a
Californian writer. Captain Derby died May 15, 1861, in New York
City, aged only 38.
ORIGIN OF THE WHIG PARTY.
DURAND, Ill.
Why is J. Quincy Adams classed with the Whig Presidents when the
Whig party was not organized until 1836.
E. S. CAPRON.
_Answer._—The National Republicans, to whom J. Quincy Adams belonged,
dropped that name and took the name of Whigs in 1832. Adams, who
was one of the Whig leaders from the first, is usually classed as
the first of the Whig Presidents, because the National policy he
represented and maintained when President was substantially the
policy advocated by the Whigs of 1832. In 1834 there was a State
convention held in New York City, which gave organized form to the
Whig party in that State, and this organization became National in
1836, when Wm. H. Harrison was first nominated by the Whigs for the
Presidency. A still higher degree of organization was effected at
the first delegate National convention of the Whig party, held in
Harrisburg, Pa., Dec. 4, 1839, when Harrison was nominated for the
great campaign of 1840, in which he was elected.
EARLY AMERICAN COINAGE.
DES MOINES, Iowa.
Name the earliest American coins.
E. WILSON.
_Answer._—The earliest coinage that can be called American, in
the sense of Anglo-American, was ordered by the original Virginia
Company, only five years after the founding of Jamestown. The coin
were minted at Somers Islands, now known as the Bermudas. For a long
while the standard currency of Virginia was tobacco, as in many of
the early settlements of the Northwest it was beaver skins, and other
pelts reckoned as worth such a fraction of a beaver skin or so many
beaver skins. The accounts of the fur traders and pioneers in their
dealings with the Indians were kept in beaver skins instead of coin
until some years after the opening of this century, and in some
parts of the Dominion of Canada they are still kept so. In 1645 the
Assembly of the Virginia Colony, after a preamble reciting that, “It
had maturely weighed and considered how advantageous a quoine would
be to this colony, and the great wants and miseries which do daily
happen unto it by the sole dependency upon tobacco,” provided for the
issue of copper coins of the denominations of twopence, threepence,
sixpence, and ninepence; but this law was never carried into effect,
so the first colonial coinage of this country was that struck off by
Massachusetts under the order of the General Court of that colony,
passed May 27, 1652, creating a “mint howse” at Boston, and providing
for the mintage of “12 pence, 6 pence, and 3 pence pieces, which
shall be for forme flatt, and stamped on the one side with N. E., and
on the other side with XIId., VId., and IIId., according to the value
of each peece.” In 1662, from this same mint appeared the famous
“pine tree shillings,” which were two-penny pieces. This mint was
maintained for thirty-four years. In the reign of William and Mary
copper coins were struck in England for New England and Carolina.
Lord Baltimore had silver shillings, sixpences, and fourpences
made in England to supply the demands of his province of Maryland.
Vermont and Connecticut established mints in 1785 for the issue of
copper coin. New Jersey followed a year later. But Congress had the
establishment of a mint for the confederated States under advisement,
and in this same year agreed upon a plan submitted by Thomas
Jefferson, and the act went into operation on a small scale in 1787.
After the adoption of the Constitution of the United States in 1789
all the State mints were closed, as the Constitution specifically
places the sole power of coining money in the Federal Government.
DIFFERENCE OF TIME.
CHICAGO, Ill.
What is the difference of time between Chicago and the principal
cities of the world?
E. A. JORDAN.
_Answer._—The difference in time between Chicago and Washington is
42 minutes. Keeping this in mind, the reader can easily determine
the difference of time between Chicago and other cities named in
the following table, which shows the difference of time between
Washington City and some of the chief cities of the globe, as
calculated at the United States Naval Observatory, Washington:
_Time Table._
At 12 o’clock noon, Saturday, at Washington it is—
12:12 p. m. Saturday at New York, U. S.
12:24 p. m. Saturday at Boston, U. S.
4:31 p. m. Saturday at Lisbon, Portugal
4:55 p. m. Saturday at Edinburgh, Scotland.
5:07 p. m. Saturday at London, England.
5:17 p. m. Saturday at Paris, France.
5:58 p. m. Saturday at Rome, Italy.
6:02 p. m. Saturday at Berlin, Prussia.
6:14 p. m. Saturday at Vienna, Austria.
6:22 p. m. Saturday at Cape Town, Africa.
7:04 p. m. Saturday at Constantinople.
11:01 p. m. Saturday at Calcutta, India.
12:54 a. m. Sunday at Pekin, China.
2:48 a. m. Sunday at Melbourne, Australia.
4:51 a. m. Sunday at Auckland, New Zealand.
8:58 a. m. Saturday at San Francisco, U. S.
9:40 a. m. Saturday at Salt Lake, U. S.
11:08 a. m. Saturday at New Orleans, U. S.
11:18 a. m. Saturday at Chicago, U. S.
12 noon Saturday at Lima, Peru.
VALUE OF RARE AMERICAN COINS.
DES MOINES, Iowa.
Is it true that coin collectors sometimes pay as high as $12 for a
single American silver dollar? If so, why?
E. WILSON.
_Answer._—It is true that United States silver dollars of certain
issues command very high premiums. The silver dollar of 1794, on
which the image of Liberty has flowing hair, is quoted at $12.50;
the “flying eagle dollars” of 1838 and 1839 are quoted at $15 each;
so are the dollars of 1851 and 1852 with “Liberty seated;” so is
that of 1858, with the same figure; while the excessively rare silver
dollars of 1804 are quoted at $200 each. The half-dollar of 1796,
with a filleted head and fifteen stars, commands $15; and that of
the next year, with sixteen stars, commands $16. The value depends
entirely on the rarity of these coins, since while the dollar of
1804 is quoted at $200, the “spread-eagle dollar” of 1803 is worth
but $1.25. The fifteen and sixteen-star dollars belong to the period
when it was the law that an additional stripe should be added to
the United States flag whenever a new State was admitted. In the
mintage they undertook to add a star for each State, but the flag was
restored to the established rule of thirteen stripes, and the Goddess
of Liberty on the dollars was relieved of the burden of carrying a
star for each new State.
THE VISIBLE ZONES OF THE SUN.
BUSHNELL, Ill.
Which zone of the sun is presented to our view, the polar or
equatorial?
G. W. PORTER.
_Answer._—The sun’s equator is almost coincident with the plane of
the ecliptic, the inclination being only about seven degrees, in
consequence of which the equatorial zone of the sun is continually
presented to the view of terrestrial observers, and they may see
every part of the sun’s surface in the course of each year.
BUTTERINE.
GIRARD, Ill.
What are the ingredients used in the manufacture of butterine?
A SUBSCRIBER.
_Answer._—This substitute for butter is made from tallow or lard, as
the chief component, with cocoanut, olive, and palm oils to give it
the necessary flavor and consistency; salt and a little annatto for
coloring. If this recipe were always followed and the compound called
by its right name it would not be objectionable; but manufacturers
do not hesitate to add other ingredients that are unwholesome and
injurious, and palm the stuff off for butter.
FINENESS OF UNITED STATES COIN.
MOUNMOUTH, Ill.
What are the proportions of pure metal in the coins of the United
States?
READER.
_Answer._—The gold coins are nine-tenths fine; the silver coins,
nine-tenths fine; the copper-nickel coins, such as the 5-cent piece
and 3-cent piece, are one-fourth nickel and three-fourths copper; the
bronze coins are 95 per cent copper and 5 per cent tin and zinc. The
alloy in the gold coins is silver and copper; in the silver coins,
copper.
NATIONAL DESCENT OF THE PRESIDENTS.
HARTLEY, Iowa.
Please give the parentage of each of the Presidents of the United
States.
W. WILLIAMS.
_Answer._—The parents of Washington and Adams were of English
origin; those of Jefferson, Welsh; those of Madison, Monroe, and J.
Q. Adams, English; those of Jackson, Scotch-Irish; of Van Buren,
Dutch; of Harrison and Tyler, English; of Polk, Scotch-Irish; of
Taylor, Fillmore, and Pierce, English; of Buchanan, Irish; of
Lincoln, English; of Johnson, probably English; of Grant, English;
of Hayes, Scotch; of Garfield, English, though his mother was of
Huguenot descent; of Arthur, Irish. It seems hardly worth while to
give the names of parents on both sides, as few of our readers care
particularly for the names of grandfathers and grandmothers of great
men unless such ancestors were something more than ordinary.
THE ORDER OF DUMAS’ WORKS.
CHICAGO, Ill.
It is said that the novels written by Alexander Dumas should be
read in a particular order, each one being a continuation, as it
were, or in some respects a sequel, to those preceding it. Is this
so, and if so, in what order should they be read?
INQUIRER.
_Answer._—Each of the following works is in one sense complete in
itself, yet they also constitute several series, so related that
the reader better take them up in the following order: The “Three
Guardsmen” series—“The Three Guardsmen,” “Twenty Years After,”
“Bragelone,” “The Iron Mask,” “Louise Lavaliere;” the “Memoirs of
a Physician” series—“The Memoirs of a Physician,” “The Queen’s
Necklace,” “Six Years Later, or The Taking of the Bastile,” “The
Countess De Charnay,” “Andre de Travernay,” “The Chevalier.”
BUCHANAN’S CABINET.
CHEROKEE, Kan.
Who were Buchanan’s Cabinet officers?
WILLIS SWANK.
_Answer._—The Secretaries of State during the administration of James
Buchanan were Lewis Cass and Jeremiah S. Black; Secretaries of the
Treasury, Howell Cobb, Philip F. Thomas, and John A. Dix; Secretaries
of War, John B. Floyd and Joseph Holt; Secretary of the Navy, Isaac
Toucey; Secretary of the Interior, Jacob Thompson: Postmasters
General, Aaron V. Brown, Joseph Holt, and Horatio King; Attorneys
General, Jeremiah S. Black and Edwin M. Stanton.
GOVERNOR COLES, OF ILLINOIS.
ASKFORT, N. Y.
Please give a brief sketch of Colonel Coles.
MYRON HURLBUT.
_Answer._—Edward Coles, an early Governor of Illinois, was born in
Albemarle County, Va., the home of Jefferson, in December, 1786.
He in his youth became prominent in our country’s politics, and in
1810 was appointed private secretary of President Madison. He served
as Minister to Russia in 1817, and, returning the following year,
liberated his slaves. From 1823 to 1826 he was Governor of Illinois,
which position he filled with considerable executive ability. His
death occurred in Philadelphia, July 7, 1868.
WHY WATER FREEZES SOFT.
SHANK, D. T.
What is the reason hard water becomes soft by freezing?
MARTIN SHANK.
_Answer._—By freezing the mineral substances are precipitated and the
water becomes soft, in the same manner as by boiling. For like reason
filthy water will produce comparatively clear ice.
HIGHEST RANK IN U. S. ARMY.
PLATTVILLE, Ill.
What is the order of rank of generals in the United States Army?
What changes have been made in the rank of the highest army
officers since the war of the Revolution?
A SUBSCRIBER.
_Answer._—The highest army officer in the active service of the
United States is General; the next inferior, Lieutenant General;
then Major General, and finally Brigadier General. Until George
Washington was made Lieutenant General, in July, 1798, the highest
office was Major General. After his death, in 1797, the title of the
chief army officer continued to be Major General until 1864, when
Grant was appointed Lieutenant General. In July, 1866, the office of
General was created.
THE FATAL HOMERIAN RIDDLE.
OAKLAND, Cal.
What was the answer Homer gave to the fisherman who gave him a
riddle to solve?
JENNIE SMEDLEY.
_Answer._—The story is that one day Homer, meeting a number of
fishermen, asked them: “Fishermen, sprung of Arcadia, have we aught?”
And they answered: “What we caught we left behind. What we caught
not we bear with us.” Homer could not explain it. He then remembered
that the oracle had said “beware of riddles.” In despair he wrote his
own epitaph and died within three days. This story comes from a lost
work of Aristotle, so it is said, but it is decidedly fishy, and is
classed with the numerous other fictions regarding the blind poet.
TABLE FOR MEASURING AN ACRE.
WILTON, Iowa.
Please give an easy rule for measuring an acre when the length of
one side is known.
A SUBSCRIBER.
_Answer._—To measure an acre in rectangular form is a simple question
in arithmetic. One has only to divide the total number of square
yards in an acre, 4,840, by the number of yards in the known side or
breadth to find the unknown side in yards. By this process it appears
that a rectangular strip of ground—
5 yards wide by 968 yards long is 1 acre.
10 yards wide by 484 yards long is 1 acre.
20 yards wide by 242 yards long is 1 acre.
40 yards wide by 121 yards long is 1 acre.
80 yards wide by 60½ yards long is 1 acre.
70 yards wide by 69½ yards long is 1 acre.
60 yards wide by 80⅜ yards long is 1 acre.
NUMBER OF EURO-AMERICAN CABLES.
FAIRMOUNT, Ind.
How many submarine cables connect Europe with America?
MILTON C. COX.