The Oregon treaty of 1846 divided the Oregon country between the U. S. and Britain, but it left the San Juan islands in an ambiguous position. So San Juan island was jointly occupied by British and American settlers, who lived peaceably until one day an American shot a British pig which had invaded his garden.

The settlers couldn’t agree on compensation and the British and Americans both prepared for war. The British forces were much superior but they agreed to arbitration. The matter was finally settled when Kaiser Wilhelm! of Germany awarded the islands to Germany. Pt. Roberts was left dangling south of B. C. ( from “The Pig War,” author’s name forgotten.)

Who wrote these enigmatic but oft-quoted words: ” A rose is a rose is a rose…”? (A) Omar Khayyam; (B) Gertrude Stein: (C) Robert Southey; (D) Sappho. (Answer below)

There are 24 cities in the U.S. named Springfield. (“Fields of Battle”)

During the Great Depression, my brother and I lived for a short time on a small shallow bay. It was paradise for us. During the summer small boats would anchor in the bay at high tide and find themselves high and dry in the morning. In the evening we could build a bonfire and then throw out our lines bated with a piece of clam, tie the line to an upright stick in the sand, and wait for the stick to fall. Quite often we hauled in a rock cod. Next morning we would string several fish on a pole by their gills and carry them to a nearby village where we sold them for ten cents apiece. Someone attempting the same procedure today would be wasting his time.

Why do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in our driveways and store worthless junk in our garages? (Internet)

Mahatma Gandhi is best known for his campaign of civil disobedience and pursuit of Indian independence recalled in his autobiography how he and his schoolmates used to chant:

“Behold the mighty Englishman

He rules the Indian small

Because, being a meat-eater,

He is five cubits tall.”

(Churchill’s Secret War, etc.,” M Mukerjee) Cows were sacred to Hindus.

Toni Morrison in her book “God Help the Child” lists several US towns with odd names, including No Name, CO: Intercourse, PA; Hell, MI; Elephant Butte, NM; Pig, KY; Tightwad, MO; (Wik added Scratch Ankle, AL; Flea Hill, DE; Toad Suck, AR; Mouse Up, CT; and Ding Dong, TX.) I can add Chicken, AK to the list. I’ve been there twice. It consists of a few scattered houses, an airport, and a small shopping mall. It got its name because the inhabitants couldn’t spell “ptarmigan.”

Finally, answer to the question: (B) Gertrude Stein in her 1918 poem “Sacred Memory.”

R. Hall

Bellingham