Suicide or Murder

Meriwether Lewis by Charles Wilson Peale

October 11, 1809: Thirty-five year old Meriwether Lewis dies … of something. After returning from the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Lewis was rewarded with 1,600 acres of land. He intended to publish the Corps of Discovery journals, but was having editorial difficulties. In 1807, Thomas Jefferson made Lewis governor of the Louisiana Territory. His record as governor is mixed but much of what is seen as negative comes from letters written by Frederick Bates, the territorial secretary. Bates has been accused of undermining Lewis because he, himself, wanted the governorship.

Lewis had funded a mission to return a Mandan chief to his tribe. Because of a letter written by Bates, the promised reimbursement from the federal government was rescinded. Lewis’s creditors called in their notes and Lewis was forced to sell off most of his private property, including his land, to pay them. He was making a trip to Washington, D.C. to clear up matters with President Jefferson. He began his journey on September 3 and had intended to sail the entire way from St. Louis to Washington, via New Orleans. Instead he left the Mississippi River and went overland using an old pioneer road called Natchez Trace. The road held the known danger of highwaymen who robbed and sometimes killed.

On October 10, Lewis stopped about 70 miles southwest of Nashville, Tennessee at Grinder’s Stand. After dinner, he retired to a one-room cabin. At some point before dawn, gunshots were heard. Lewis was found in his cabin, having been shot several times. He bled to death shortly after sunrise. The story of his death was not well documented. There were those who felt he had committed suicide and other who deemed his death to be murder. Cited as reasons for suicide was his poverty. There were stories of his being addicted to opium (something Bates never mentioned as he was sending messages back East). Mrs. Grinder offered several different versions as to what had happened that night and they vary in many details.

The first time Lewis’s body was examined by a doctor was forty years after his death when the Tennessee State Commission was in charge of locating his body and building a monument over the site of his burial. Although his death was given as suicide, the doctors in 1848 believed he had been assassinated. There have been recent requests to have his body exhumed and a more modern forensic study done to see if it could be determined exactly how he came to be shot. The Department of the Interior granted permission in 2008 but it was rescinded when the Administration changed. Lewis’s debts were finally covered by the US government two years after his death. Bates eventually became the governor of Missouri.

The suicide does not play the game, does not observe the rules. He leaves the party too soon, and leaves the other guests painfully uncomfortable. – Joyce Carol Oates

Each victim of suicide gives his act a personal stamp which expresses his temperament, the special conditions in which he is involved, and which, consequently, cannot be explained by the social and general causes of the phenomenon. – Emile Durkheim

Murder is not perpetrated in a vacuum. It is a product of greed, avarice, hate, revenge, or perhaps fear. As a splashing stone sends ripples to the farthest edges of the pond, murder affects the lives of many people. – Erle Stanley Gardner

Every murderer is probably somebody’s old friend. You cannot mix up sentiment and reason. – Agatha Christie

Also on this day: Raising the Mary Rose – In 1982, the Mary Rose, a sixteenth century warship, was raised from the sea.
Free, But … – In 1865, Paul Bogle led a revolt in Jamaica.
Shop Til You Drop – In 1929, J.C. Penney opened store #1252.
Land Dispute – In 1767, the Mason-Dixon survey was completed.
New Map of New Netherlands – In 1614, Dutch explorers asked for a trade monopoly in the colonies.

 

 

Fort Severn No More

United States Naval Academy in 1853

October 10, 1845: The United States Naval Academy (USNA) opens. Secretary of the Navy George Bancroft founded the Naval School at Annapolis, Maryland on the grounds of the former US Army post Fort Severn. The school opened with 50 midshipmen and seven professors. The first course of study was five years in length with the first and last spent at the school and the middle three spent at sea. Supervision of the school was changed to the Bureau of Ordnance and Hydrography in 1850 . The course of study was changed to seven years. The middle three were still spent as sea, but the first two and last two were spent at the school. The next year, the four scholastic years were made consecutive and practice cruises were substituted for the three years at sea. The first class graduated on June 10, 1854.

The US Civil War was highly disruptive to the Academy. Maryland did not secede, but sympathies with the South were high throughout the state where rioting took place. The government planned to move the school, but the suddenness of war forestalled the move. The three upper classes were immediately detached to sea and the freshman were transported to Fort Adams in Newport, Rhode Island in April 1861. A temporary campus was set up there. About 24% of the officers of the US Navy resigned and joined the Confederate States Navy. This included 95 USNA graduates and 59 midshipmen. Other leaders of the school also left to join the opposition. Admiral Franklin Buchanan, the USNA’s first superintendent, left for the Confederate side. Robert E. Lee’s brother, Captain Sidney Smith Lee was the second commandant of the midshipmen and he also left to join his brother.

In the summer of 1865, with the war over, classes were moved back to Annapolis and Civil War hero Admiral David Dixon Porter became the superintendent. The place was a wreck due to the war and Porter had to reestablish facilities. He also had to find appropriate professors. Rather than using civilians, he choose to use naval officers who had served well during the conflict. Porter was the man who instituted the term Cadet for his students and he was also the person to introduce organized athletics to the school. At the time, they were intramural. Antoine Joseph Corbesier was brought over from Belgium as Swordmaster and began fencing at the school.

The student body is known as the Brigade of Midshipmen and they serve on active duty. They are classified as officers of the line, but their authority is limited by their training status. Rather than freshman, sophomores, juniors, and seniors, they are known as fourth class, third class, second class, and first class. A member of the fourth class is also known as a plebe and they are given a set of rules which are relaxed in later years. The campus or Yard covers almost 340 acres now as opposed to the nearly 10 acres in 1845. Today, there are about 4.600 midshipmen at the Academy where Walter Carter is Superintendent and Andrew Phillips is Dean.

The United States Navy is the envy of every other navy in the world. They don’t want to be like us – they want to be us. – Admiral Leighton Smith

Control of the seas means security. Control of the seas means peace. Control of the seas can mean victory. The United States must control the sea if it is to protect our security. – John F. Kennedy

A good Navy is not a provocation to war. It is the surest guarantee of peace. – Theodore Roosevelt

Sailors have the cleanest bodies and the filthiest minds. – Eleanor Roosevelt

Also on this day: Don’t Be Snookered – In 1865, a new type of billiard ball was patented.
Water – In 1913, Gamboa Dike was blown and the Panama Canal was opened for business.
TNT – In 1933, the first airline sabotage blows a plane out of the sky.
Mystery – In 19 AD, Germanicus Julius Caesar died mysteriously.
Good Bye – In 1973, the US Vice President resigned.

Fire at Sea

SS Volturno sinking

October 9, 1913: The SS Volturno catches fire. The ship was part of the Royal Line which entered the steamship transatlantic trade in 1910. The Canadian company was founded to build railways, but entered into other means of transportation before a merger in 1923. The Volturno was chartered to the Uranium Line at the time of the fire. She was built in 1906 and had the capability of transporting 24 first class and 1,000 third class passengers served by a crew of 93. Her steam engines drove two propellers with a top speed of 14 knots or 16 mph. She was travelling from Rotterdam, the Netherlands to New York City on this day.

The seas were rough when fire broke out about 6 AM. The front cargo area held highly flammable chemicals. Gale force winds may have contributed to the start of the fire and when the front cargo area was approached, it was found to be fully engulfed in flames. Shortly after 6 AM there was an explosion in the cargo area. The flames spread to the ship’s coal bunkers which cut off the supply of fuel needed to run the fire hose pumps. The crew tried to fight the fire for about two hours before realizing it was a losing battle. Captain Francis Inch then issued an order for an SOS to be sent out giving their position and their problem.

Eleven ships responded to the call for help and quickly converged on 49.12N 34.51W to help the floundering ship. While waiting for help to arrive, it seemed perilous to remain aboard the burning ship so women and children were placed into lifeboats and lowered into the heaving seas. The gale had not abated and the lifeboats either capsized or were smashed by the ship being tossed by the waves. No one survived. Carmania, part of the Cunard Line from the United Kingdom, was first to arrive. Captain James Barr took command of the situation from his much larger ship. The rescuing ships formed a “battle line” and throughout the night of October 10/11 he kept a spotlight on the burning ship and scanned the other ships to keep them from colliding.

The storm continued to rage and even when the rescuers sent more lifeboats to Volturno, the passengers were afraid to board them, having witnessed the deaths of the women and children. Shortly before dawn, another explosion rocked Volturno and things were getting desperate. The SS Narragansett, a tanker, sprayed oil on the water to help calm the seas. The storm also finally began to lessen. By 9 AM on October 11 521 passengers and crew had been successfully rescued. The 136 who died were from the early lifeboat launchings. The ship was still burning on October 17 when another tanker approached during the night. With daylight came the sight of the derelict ship. The seacocks were opened and the ship slowly sank before it could become an even greater hazard.

Life is a shipwreck but we must remember to sing in the lifeboats. – Voltaire

Time is a storm in which we are all lost. – William Carlos Williams

Happy the man who from the sea escapes the storm and finds harbor. – Euripides

The only safe ship in a storm is leadership. – Faye Wattleton

Also on this day: Vinland – In 1000, Lief Ericson arrived in North America.
Washington – In 1888, the Washington Monument was finally opened.
Bright Lights – In 1604, a supernova was discovered.
Free – In 1820, Guayaquil declared independence from Spain.
Hangul Alphabet – In 1446, the Korean alphabet was published.

What’s For Dinner?

Albert Roux*

October 8, 1935: Albert Roux is born in Charolles, France. His father was a charcuterie, a chef specializing in meats. As Albert finished school at age 14, he entered into the seminary to study to become a priest. He found the life did not suit him and left. He began to train as a chef. His godfather worked for Wallis, Duchess of Windsor and arranged for his then 18-year-old nephew to work for Nancy Astor, Viscountess. For most of his stay with the Astors, all was well. There was one incident when he was sending oeufes en cocotte to the Prime Minister dining there. Harold Macmillan’s eggs were jammed in the dumbwaiter which caused a bit of a problem.

He went on to the French embassy in London and cooked there until World War II interrupted. He was called up by the French Armed Forces and served in Algiers as a cook. After he left the military, he became the sous chef at the British Embassy in Paris. He left there to become the private chef of Major Peter Cazalet back in the UK, a position he held for eight years. In 1967, he and his younger brother opened Le Gavroche in London. It became the first British restaurant to win a Michelin star. It was also the first restaurant in Britain to earn a second star. And it was the first British restaurant to receive a third star, their highest rating. The restaurant was often visited by Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.

The Michelin guide was established in 1900 in France at a time when there were only 3,000 cars in the entire country. It was hoped that a guide to where to find fine dining and hotels as well as reliable mechanics and gas stations would boost the sales of cars – users of the Michelin tires. The first British edition came out in 1911. In 1936, the criteria for the coveted stars was finally listed. One star meant it was “a very good restaurant in its category” while two stars indicated “excellent cooking, worth a detour”. The third star was awarded for “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey”.

In 1984 the Roux brothers set up the Roux Scholarship which was used to help up and coming chefs get a start. Their more famous protégés (as well as Michelin star winners in their own rights) have included Gordon Ramsay, Marco Pierre White, Pierre Koffmann and Marcus Wareing. Today, Albert is 79 years old and still in the restaurant business. He runs several establishments around the world through his company, Chez Roux Limited. He no longer worries about Michelin stars but continues to create venues where diners can enjoy great food without having to incur a bank loan to pay for it. Albert and his brother were voted the most influential chefs in the UK in 2003.

I raise my stein to the builder who can remove ghettos without removing people as I hail the chef who can make omelets without breaking eggs. – Robert Moses

I’m just fortunate that now I have an audience of people on the show who don’t have to pretend they have smell-o-vision. We’re actually feeding these people. I’m putting my reputation on the line as an artist, as a chef. – Emeril Lagasse

In France cooking is a serious art form and a national sport. I think the French enjoy the complication of the art form and the cooking for cooking’s sake. – Julia Child

To cook as the French do one must respect the quality and flavour of the ingredients. Exaggeration is not admissible. Flavours are not all amalgamative. These qualities are not purchasable but may be cultivated. The haute cuisine has arrived at the enviable state of reacting instinctively to these known principles. – Alice B. Toklas

Also on this day: Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow – In 1871, the Great Chicago Fire began to burn.
Opium – In 1856, the Second Opium War began.
Signatures – In 1793, John Hancock died.
Fog – In 2001, fog was a factor in a horrific plane crash.
Perfect – In 1956, Don Larson pitched a perfect baseball game.

* “ChefAlbertRouxbyRichardVince” by Richard Vines (BLOOMBERG/ NEWSROOM:) – http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2010-11-16/veteran-chef-albert-roux-has-advice-for-protege-gordon-ramsay-get-cooking. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 via Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ChefAlbertRouxbyRichardVince.jpg#/media/File:ChefAlbertRouxbyRichardVince.jpg

Taking to the Skies

KLM poster from 1919

October 7, 1919: The flag carrier airlines of the Netherlands is founded. Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V. (Royal Dutch Airlines) is known as KLM. Albert Plesman sponsored the ELTA aviation exhibition in Amsterdam in 1919. The success of the exhibition led to several Dutchmen with substantial commercial interests spoke hoping for a Dutch airline. They nominated Plesman to head the new airline and in September, Queen Wilhelmina awarded the new venture it’s “Royal” or “Koninklijke” predicate. Plesman founded the new royal airline at The Hague on this day – one of the world’s first commercial airline companies and the only one still operating under its original name.

Jerry Shaw was the first KLM pilot and he flew from Croydon Airport, London to Amsterdam on May 17, 1920. He flew a leased De Haviland DH-16 with the registration G-EALU. Aboard the plane were two British journalists and a number of newspapers. The line continues to fly both passengers and cargo today. In that first year, KLM carried 440 passengers and 22 tons of freight. They took the winter off and returned to service in April 1921 with their own pilots flying their own planes rather than leased ones. KLM now owned some Fokker F.II and Fokker F.III planes. Biplanes were still in the majority, but the Fokker was a sleek, high-wing monoplane and sold well across Europe and in America.

In 1921, KLM became scheduled services and in October 1924 flew their first intercontinental flight. The final destination was in the Dutch East indies on the island of Java and was flown by a Fokker F. VII with Van Der Hoop piloting the plane. In September 1929, the trip became part of the regular schedule for KLM and remained so until World War II broke out in 1939. At the time, it was the world’s longest distance scheduled plane service. In 1930, KLM carried 15,143 passengers. The first experimental transatlantic KLM flight was between Amsterdam and Curacao in December 1934, again aboard a Fokker. When the Netherlands were invaded in World War II, they were able to fly their planes out of the German’s reach and flew passengers for BOAC during the War.

In September 1959, KLM joined the jet age with they purchased four-engine turboprop Lockheed Electras. Their airport was upgraded many times over the years and flying worldwide meant many agreements with other companies. On September 30, 2003, KLM merged with Air France and today both airlines run independently as subsidiaries of the owning company. KLM’s Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is their key hub. Today, they have 115 planes which fly to 138 destinations. Pieter Elbers is the current President and CEO. Their revenue in 2013 was €9.688 billion. They currently are ranked 5^th out of 60 major airlines by the JACDEC Airline Safety Ranking.

I never trust the airlines from those countries where the pilots believe in the afterlife. You are safer when they don’t. – Muriel Spark

Pilots take no special joy in walking: pilots like flying. Pilots generally take pride in a good landing, not in getting out of the vehicle. – Neil Armstrong

There is no great invention, from fire to flying, which has not been hailed as an insult to some god. – J. B. S. Haldane

The stride of passengers off an airplane is always jauntier than the stride on. – Tom Clancy

Also on this day: You Can Say That Again – In 1806, carbon paper was first patented.
Cornell University – In 1868, Cornell held opening day ceremonies.
Achille Lauro – In 1985, the ship was hijacked.
Beginning – In 3761 BC, the Jewish calendar started.
Touchdown – In 1916, the most lopsided game in college football history was played.

Read Any Good Books Lately?

American Library Association logo

October 6, 1876: The American Library Association (ALA) is formed. The non-profit organization was formed during the Centennial Exposition held in Philadelphia in 1876. During that time, there were 103 librarians who came for the “Convention of Librarians” which was held from October 4 through 6. The 90 men and 13 women met at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and at the end of the meeting, a register was passed around asking for signatures for those who wished to join as charter members of their new group – the ALA. The group was chartered in Philadelphia on this date and in Massachusetts in 1879. Today, the head office is located in Chicago. Original attendees came from as far west as Chicago and as far east as England. The aim for the new association was to enable librarians to do their work more easily and at less expense.

By the 1930s, younger members were bringing up topics which needed more attention. Among these were peace, segregation, library unions, and intellectual freedom. In response, in 1931 the Junior Members Round Table (JMRT) was formed to give them a voice. Forrest Spaulding was the director of the Des Moines (Iowa) Public Library and in 1938 he wrote the Library Bill of Rights. It was adopted by the ALA the next year and set the standard against censorship. It has been considered to be a defining moment for modern librarians and their quest for intellectual freedom and the right to read rather than government restrictions. The Rights were tested in 1940 after it was recommended that The Grapes of Wrath be banned. According to the New York Times, it was the best selling book of 1939.

Today, there are about 60,000 members of the ALA with the majority of them American. Anyone can join but its members are mostly librarians or libraries. International memberships are available and about 3.5% of the list are from other nations. Keith Michael Field has been the ALA executive director since 2002, leading the elected council and executive board. Their President is Courtney Young who is serving the current one year term. One of their most visible tasks today is their Office for Accreditation which formally reviews both American and Canadian academic institutions offering programs in library and information sciences.

The ALA’s purpose is to promote library service and librarianship. Members have the ability to join any of eleven membership divisions which deal with specialized topics. There are also seventeen round tables which are even more specific. They are committed to intellectual freedom and support privacy. Their political advocacies also lead to issues with copyright and protecting the use of public domain goods. The Library Copyright Alliance and the Association of Research Libraries and Association of College and Research Libraries bring a unified voice of over 300,000 informational professionals to protect the transference of information even in a digital age.

To provide leadership for the development, promotion and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship in order to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all. – ALA’s Mission Statement

There is not such a cradle of democracy upon the earth as the Free Public Library, this republic of letters, where neither rank, office, nor wealth receives the slightest consideration. – Andrew Carnegie

For the existence of a library, the fact of its existence, is, in itself and of itself, an assertion – a proposition nailed like Luther’s to the door of time. – Archibald MacLeish

Library Science is the key to all science, just as mathematics is its language – and civilization will rise or fall, depending on how well librarians do their jobs. – Robert A. Heinlein

Also on this day: Superstition – In 1945, the Cubs Curse began when a goat was kicked out of the stadium.
Bellerophone – In 1995, a new planet was discovered.
Martyrs – In 1849, the Hungarian Revolution’s martyrs were executed.
Flight 455 – In 1976, the flight ended in a fiery crash.
The Jazz Singer – In 1927, the movie debuted.

Land Grab

Chief Joseph in 1877

October 5, 1877: The Nez Perce War ends. Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt was born on March 3, 1840 to the leader of the Wal-lam-wat-kain band of Nez Perce, indigenous peoples of the Wallowa Valley in northeastern Oregon. In 1855, the US federal government coerced the Nez Perce to give up ancestral lands and move to the Umatilla Reservation along with the Walla Walla, Cayuse, and Umatilla tribes. All those being relocated were vehemently opposed to the move. The Nez Perce signed a Treaty which gave them the right to keep a large portion of their own lands in Idaho, Washington, and Oregon but at the cost of giving up 5.5 million acres of the their 13 million acre homeland. They would be permitted to hunt, fish, and pasture their horses on unoccupied regions of the ceded land.

Whites were not permitted on Nez Perce lands without permission but after gold was discovered in 1860, this was no longer enforced. In response to the Nez Perce indignation, the federal government again coerced the ceding of territory and left them with only 750,000 acres, or ten percent of their already reduced lands. Many of the Nez Perce did not accept the validity of the treaty and refused to be removed. Those who agreed with the treaty were mostly Christian Nez Perce while those who did not, were more traditional and lived in the Wallowa valley with Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt as their leader. We know him as Chief Joseph. Nez Perce were murdered after disputes with whites and the murders were never prosecuted. Tensions continued to rise between the two factions.

As the Nez Perce were ordered off their lands and refused to move, deadlines were set and ignored. Finally Joseph and White Bird, another Nez Perce leader, joined forces and Looking Glass’s group joined with them to form a group of about 250 Nez Perce warriors and 500 women and children. They also had more than 2000 head of livestock. They engaged in a brilliant fighting retreat and covered about 1,170 miles. Small numbers of Nez Perce were able to hold off much larger American forces. Between June and October, the Nez Perce had managed to hold off about 2,000 American troops. They had fought in 18 engagements which included four major battles and at least four contested skirmishes.

At 2.20 PM on this day, Chief Joseph formally surrendered. The whites described him as the principal chief of the Nez Perce and the strategist behind the engagements. He was even called “the Red Napoleon” which was deemed to be high praise. The men who fought against the government removal did not consider him to be their chief. Rather, his younger brother Ollokot, Poker Joe (a French/Indian), and Looking Glass were considered to be those who formed the leadership of the Nez Perce while Joseph was mainly responsible for guarding the camp. It was his words which were immortalized and his name that was remember. His speech was translated by Arthur Chapman and written down by Lieutenant CES Wood, a writer and poet stationed with the American troops.

I am tired of fighting. Our chiefs are killed. Looking Glass is dead.

Toohoolhoolzoote is dead. The old men are all dead. It is the young men who say, “Yes” or “No.” He who led the young men [Ollokot] is dead. It is cold, and we have no blankets. The little children are freezing to death.

My people, some of them, have run away to the hills, and have no blankets, no food. No one knows where they are – perhaps freezing to death. I want to have time to look for my children, and see how many of them I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the dead.

Hear me, my chiefs! I am tired. My heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands I will fight no more forever. – Chief Joseph’s surrender speech

Also on this day: “Send Us Work” – In 1936, the Jarrow March began.
PBS – In 1970, the Public Broadcasting Service began.
No Day – In 1582, the Gregorian calendar implied a time warp.
Black Friday – In 1945, Hollywood was rocked by rioting.
The Wake Island 98 – In 1943, 98 Americans were killed on Wake Island.

United States Open Championship

Horace Rawlins

October 4, 1895: The first United States Open Championship is held at Newport Country Club in Newport, Rhode Island. The modern game of golf originated in Scotland in the 1400s although there is a game called paganica which was played by the Romans. They had a bent stick and hit a stuffed leather ball. A similar type of game was played in China between the 8^th and 14^th centuries. That game had people with curved sticks hitting a ball into a hole in the ground. There were a number of other games of similar intent played on the continent, but the modern game came from Scotland. It was so popular King James II banned it in order to keep his knights off the courses and practicing their archery skills. James IV lifted the ban in 1504, as he was also a player.

The majors or the four most important games played by professionals each year, began with two British and two American games, the Open and Amateur Championships in Britain and the US Open and US Amateur. The Masters Tournament was introduced in 1934 and the popularity of professional golf increased throughout the 1940s and 50s. The four major tournaments became the Masters, the US Open, the Open Championship, and the PGA Championship. It is imprecise to give an exact year this shifted, but Arnold Palmer’s 1960 season is a possible start.

The first US Open, played on this day, was a 36-hole competition with just a single day of play. There were ten professionals and one amateur entered. The Open was won by 21-year-old Horace Rawlins of England. He had come to the US in January to take a position at the host club. His prize was $150 (out of a total prize fund of $335) and a $50 gold medal. His club was able to display the Open Championship Cup trophy after it was presented by the USGA. The Open was dominated by Brits until the 1911 competition when John McDermott became the first American to win the prize. He was also the youngest to ever win the open at the age of 19 years, 10 months, and 14 days.

The venue for the Championship changes each year. Most of the winners since 1911 have been Americans with only six other countries taking the top prize. The reason for this may be the pervasive nature of the game in the US. There were slightly more than 35,000 golf courses in the world in 2008 and half of them were in the US. The next highest country was the UK with 8%. The top ten countries in the world account for 83% of the courses with the rest of the world having just 17%. The 2015 US Open was played over four days in June at Chambers Bay located in the state of Washington. Jordan Spieth, a 21-year-old from Dallas, Texas won the Championship by a single stroke. His prize for winning was $1,800,000 of the total of $10 million purse.

Success in golf depends less on strength of body than upon strength of mind and character. – Arnold Palmer

I know I am getting better at golf because I am hitting fewer spectators. – Gerald R. Ford

Relax? How can anybody relax and play golf? You have to grip the club don’t you? – Ben Hogan

Golf is a day spent in a round of strenuous idleness. – William Wordsworth

Also on this day: Russian Surprise – In 1957, Sputnik I was launched.
Larger Than Life – In 1927, Gutzon Borglum began work on Mount Rushmore.
Thrust2 – In 1983, a new land speed record was set – over 1,000 km/h.
Smarten Up – In 1876, Texas A&M began holding classes.
The Orient Express – In 1883, the Orient Express lines increased.

Black Hawk Down

Black Hawk

October 3, 1838: Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak dies. His father, Pyesa, was the tribal medicine man for the Sauk people, an Algonquian language group of Native Americans who lived along the St. Lawrence River. They were driven out of their original territories by the Iroquois League and headed to modern day Michigan and settled around Saginaw Bay. They were neighbors with the Ojibwe and Ottawa people who called them Ozaagii which the French called Sac and the English called Sauk. Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak was born in 1767 and his name translates to “be a large black hawk” which is why we call him Black Hawk. He was born at Saukenuk, today Rock Island, Illinois. It was the summer lodging place of the tribe and during the winters, they moved across the Mississippi River to hunt and trap.

At age 15, Black Hawk went on his first raid and made his first kill. His success was limited until at age 19, he led 200 men in a successful raid against the Osage. He then joined his father in a raid against the Cherokee. His father was injured and as he died, he gave his medicine bundle to his son assuring Black Hawk an important role in the tribe. After suitable mourning, Black Hawk led more raiding or war parties against various enemies. His tribe did not have a civil leader or chiefs, but Black Hawk was a “war chief” (a more accurate designation would be war captain).

During the War of 1812, Black Hawk was a 45 year old leader who had about 200 men under his command. He supported the British in the hopes of driving back the settlers moving into lands he felt were unfairly obtained. The validity of the Treaty of St. Louis which Quashquame (the civil representative) signed had not been approved by the tribe and was therefore, according to their laws, invalid. The American settlers did not care. The Sauk and Fox tribes were moved west of the Mississippi regardless which meant Black Hawk’s birthplace was lost to the tribe. It was their sacred burial island as well as summer retreat.

Black Hawk led a war against the US which lasted from May to August 1832, which the Sauk lost. The doomed war led to defeat, but also to Black Hawk’s capture. He was held at St. Louis for eight months. He was then taken East to meet with President Andrew Jackson via a rather circuitous route which allowed him to see the vastly superior technology of the settlers. He was imprisoned for a few weeks and then returned along a different route. While in captivity, he dictated his life’s story to Antoine LeClaire. The autobiography was published in 1833 in Cincinnati, Ohio and became a best seller. He returned to Iowa and as he grew older attempted to reconcile with old enemies. He became ill in late September and died after a two week illness on this day. He was buried along the Des Moines River.

I found by that treaty, that all of the country east of the Mississippi, and south of Jefferson was ceded to the United States for one thousand dollars a year.

I could say much more respecting this treaty, but I will not at this time. It has been the origin of all our serious difficulties with the whites.

It has pleased the Great Spirit that I am here today— I have eaten with my white friends. The earth is our mother— we are now on it, with the Great spirit above us; it is good.

Rock River was a beautiful country. I liked my towns, my cornfields and the home of my people. I fought for it. It is now yours. Keep it as we did— it will produce you good crops. – all from Black Hawk

Also on this day: Captain Jack – In 1873, Captain Jack was executed.
Siegfried & Roy – In 2003, Roy Horn was critically injured by one of his tigers.
Treasure House – In 1955, Captain Kangaroo premiered.
Cease and Desist – In 1712, Rob Roy MacGregor had a warrant issued for his arrest.
State of Iraq – In 1932, Iraq was granted independence from Great Britain.

Maverick Myers

Michael J. Myers

October 2, 1980: The first time since the US Civil War, a member of Congress is expelled. Michael Joseph Myers was a politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Prior to entering politics, he was a longshoreman. He was first elected a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1971 and served until 1976 when he took his seat in the US House of Representatives. He was regarded as a “maverick” from the beginning of his time in office. Is first brush with the law came in 1979 when he beat up a security guard and a 19-year-old female cashier as they rode in an elevator. The two had complained about his loud music at a party. He punched and kicked them and eventually was convicted of disorderly conduct (after pleading no contest to the charges) and got a six month suspended sentence.

On August 22, 1979 Myers was videotaped accepting a $50,000 bribe from an undercover FBI agent. As part of the Abscam investigation, he was heard on tape saying, “Money talks and bullshit walks.” The FBI’s sting operation code named Abscam, a contraction of “Arab scam” was a two year investigation which initially targeted trafficking in stolen property and corruption of businessmen. It was later used to investigate public corruption. The FBI was helped by the Justice Department and a convicted con-man and videotaped various politicians taking bribes from a fraudulent Arabian company in return for political favors.

There were over 30 political figures investigated with six member of the House and one from the Senate of the US Congress convicted. Others in high offices outside the federal government were also involved. Melvin Weinberg, a convicted swindler exchanged his help for being kept out of prison. He and his girlfriend helped the FBI create a fake company called Abdul Enterprises. FBI agents posed a Arab sheikhs who were hoping to invest millions of dollars in the US. One of their early stings was waylaid when they were told that a good investment would be casinos in New Jersey and they could get the necessary licenses for a price. The investigation switched from crooked businessmen to crooked politicians.

Myers was introduced to the Abdul agents by Angelo Errichetti, mayor of Camden, New Jersey. Errichetti was the first politician to be caught in the Abscam net. Myers was the first Congressperson to be convicted. A vote was taken in the House as to whether or not to expel Myers and with a vote of 376 to 30 (with the rest abstaining, including other Representatives also caught up in the case), he was the first to be kicked out since 1861. Other politicians either lost their 1980 election bids or retired from their positions. Myers was convicted of bribery and conspiracy and was sentenced to three years in prison in 1981.

Wait a minute, what you are suggesting may be illegal. – Larry Pressler when offered a bribe

I do not consider myself a hero… what have we come to if turning down a bribe is ‘heroic’? – Larry Pressler

I’ve got larceny in my blood. I’d take it in a goddamn minute. – John Jenrette when an undercover FBI agent offered a bribe

I’m not interested, I’m sorry. At this point… – John Murtha when offered a bribe

Also on this day: HMS Beagle – In 1836, Charles Darwin returned to England.
Forgiveness – In 2006, Charles Carl Roberts murdered five young girls at an Amish schoolhouse.
Queen Mary vs Curacao – In 1942, the two British ships collided.
Aw, Nuts! – In 1950, Peanuts began.
Parsley Massacre – In 1937, Rafeal Trujillo called for mass murder.