Q.

 How fast is the Soviet rocket expected to soar -- S. L.

A.

 The Soviet stratosphere committee has ordered the construction of a rocket that is expected to ascend at a speed of 2,200 feet per second.

Q.

 How many school savings banks has New York City? -- S. D.

A.

 New York City has 536 school banks with more than 700,00 depositors. In 1934 their deposits were $3,300,700.

Q.

 What did the new Mellon Church in Pittsburgh cost? -- W. H. A.

A.

 The East Liberty Presbyterian Church, gift of the late Richard B. Mellon and his wife, was built at a cost of $4,000,000 and required four years for its completion. The church is a memorial to the mothers of Mr. and Mrs. Mellon.

Q.

 How many States have adopted a State bird? -- F. B. S.

A.

 Forty-two States and the District of Columbia have adopted birds of some kind. Not all of the State birds have been nominated and confirmed by process of legislation, however.

Q.

Please give some information about the Normandie. -- F. L. M

A.

Q.

 When was "Casey at the Bat" written? -- D. M. C.

A.

 The poem was written by Ernest L. Thayer in 1888. Mr Thayer sent it to a San Francisco newspaper which published it under the initials, E. L. T. In May of that year Le Wolf Hopper, star of a musical comedy, "Prince Methusalem," introduced it in the second act of the show which was playing at Wallack's Theatre then at Broadway and Thirtieth Streets, New York City.

Q.

 When and by whom was the Bible divided into verses? -- P. McM.

A.

 For many years the division of the Bible into chapters and verses was attributed to a priest, Lanfranc, archbishop of Canterbury in the reign of William I of England, about 1085. This is now considered to be erroneous and the division is attributed to Cardinal Hugo De Sanct-Car, French, in 1236.

Q.

 Is rhubarb a fruit or a vegetable? -- P. B.

A.

 It is classified as a vegetable.

Q.

 Do all members of the cat family purr? -- C. C. H.

A.

 They do not. The cheetah and tiger do purr and the puma or cougar make a noise similar to a purr. The following members of the cat family do not purr; leopard, lion, lioness, ocelot, serval, and caracal.

Q.

 Is the Domestic Relations Court in New York City meeting with success? -- J. W.

A.

 It was set up for the express purpose of building character in children and parents and preserving the homes, if possible, of those for whom it is called to administer. Court trials are avoided whenever possible. The results attained so far have been most heartening.

Q.

 Did writers before Adam Smith predict or record the devaluation of the monetary unit lessening its gold content? -- J. M. C.

A.

 While Smith was the first to make a complete exposition of the matter, coinage has been debased progressively. Gold coin was debased as early as the reign of the Roman Emperor Aurelian and down through the ages. In every European country there was successive cheapening. The original pound sterling was an actual pound of silver. Elizabeth devalued. There is nothing novel in the present action in this country.

Q.

 What is the origin of "cherrio"? -- S. McC.

A.

 This word is a general greeting, toast, or valedictory expression. It was used by Shakespeare in the form of "cherry-o."

Q.

 Who designed Ashland, the home of Henry Clay, near Lexington, Ky.? -- F. M.

A.

 The design of the mansion is attributed to Latrobe, the great English architect. The estate of 600 acres was laid out by L'Enfant, who drew the plans for Washington, D. C.

Q.

 Have any white men been executed for crimes against Negroes? -- J. McC.

A.

 The Negro Year Book says that there have been several cases where white men were given the death sentence for murdering Negroes. In 1929 in Duval County in Florida the death sentence was imposed on Britt Pringle for brutally murdering an aged Negro. The Georgia Supreme Court on July 22, 1930, affirmed the sentence of a white man to die in the electric chair for the murder of two Negroes.

Q.

 Please give a comparison of the number of fatal accidents in railroad, air and motor trips. -- H. K.

A.

 Railroads, one fatality per 400,000,000 passenger miles; scheduled air transport, one fatality per 24,000,000 passenger miles; automobiles, one fatality in 11,000,000 passenger miles.

Q.

 Who said, "A kiss is a dot on the "i" in loving"? -- S. M.

A.

 The quotation is from Rostand's "Cyrano de Bergerac":   "A kiss, when all is said, what is it -- a rosy dot placed on the "i" in loving."

Q.

 Has the number of yachts decreased within the past few years? -- N. W.

A.

 The greatest number of pleasure vessels in the history of American yachting was registered with the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection in 1934. Since June, 1933, they have increased 1 per cent and the total is now 3,776 yachts.

Q.

 Please give a definition of a college widow. -- T. O'B.

A.

 A maiden of a college town bereaved of graduated sweethearts.

Q.

 What reward is now offered in Italy to persons who marry? -- K. B.

A.

 In order to stimulate the marriage rate, the Fascist party offered 500 lire ($41.55) to all Romans who married on a certain date recently. Two thousand two hundred and six couples accepted the terms.

Q.

 How old was Beethoven when he became deaf? -- S. C.

A.

 He was about 30. He composed most of his great symphonies after this time. He lived to be 56.

Q.

 When was the disastrous train wreck in France and how many were killed? -- W. C. B.

A.

 On December 23, 1933, at Lagny, France, the fast train to Strasbourg, an hour late, plunged through a thick fog at 65 miles an hour into the rear of the Nancy express. Both trains were carrying students and their relatives and friends from Paris to the country for the holidays. The dead numbered 200; wounded, 300.

Q.

 Do somnambulists speak and see? - J. C. K.

A.

 Somnambulists may: speak without acting, common in children and not usually considered somnambulistic; act without speaking, the most common type; act and speak, more exceptional; and speak and have the senses of touch, sight and hearing. The last class merges into hypnotism.

Q.

 Where is Hungary's Unknown Soldier buried? -- F. M.

A.

 The Unknown Soldier is buried in Pest under a heavy iron cross and surrounded by statues of the nation's rulers.