History of the Day: 9/16

Today is the 392 birthday of Public Schooling! You can bring cupcakes to celebrate, but make sure they're store bought and you check in at the office.

In 1701 the "Old Pretender," James Francis Edward Stuart, claimed the thrones of England and Scotland. And as he was not content to settle for one throne, he also demanded two surnumbers, styling himself James II and VIII. This is chiefly important because it led to the great corpus of Scottish music (much of which deals with the Jacobite Rebellions) and one verse of God Save the Queen/King:

Lord, grant that Marshal Wade,
May by thy mighty aid,
Victory bring.
May he sedition hush and like a torrent rush,
Rebellious Scots to crush,
God save the King.

In 1835, the HMS Beagle, with Darwin onboard, reached the Galapagos Islands. In his recollections of the journey, Darwin recalls that:

The captain said he had one question to ask me, which he should be very much obliged if I would answer with all truth. I trembled to think how deeply scientific it would be: it was, "Whether the ladies of Buenos Ayres were not the handsomest in the world." I replied, like a renegade, "Charmingly so." He added, "I have one other question: Do ladies in any other part of the world wear such large combs?" I solemnly assured him that they did not. They were absolutely delighted. The captain exclaimed, "Look there! a man who has seen half the world says it is the case; we always thought so, but now we know it." My excellent judgment in combs and beauty procured me a most hospitable reception; the captain forced me to take his bed, and he would sleep on his recado.

In one of the earliest incidents of terrorism in the US (you know, if you don't include the Sons of Liberty ... and smallpox blankets) a bomb in a horse wagon was set off in fron of the J.P. Morgan building on Wall Street in 1920. 38 were killed and 400 injured in the attack which was believed to have been perpetrated by Italian anarchists in response to the conviction of Sacco and Vanzetti. This further fueled the Palmer Raids being carried out by the Attorney General under Woodrow Wilson who had earlier warned about:

Hyphenated Americans who have poured the poison of disloyalty into the very arteries of our national life. Such creatures of passion, disloyalty and anarchy must be crushed out.

Let's see ... terrorist act in a NY financial district which leads to investigation by the Feds sometimes skirting aspects of the 4th Amendment ... it reminds me of something ... eh, it'll come to me.

Happy 94th birthday to the Grandfather of "Punk'd," "Candid Camera's" Alan Funt.

And happy 81st birthday to Peter Falk, better known as Columbo! Remember when he would fumble around his pockets while looking for a pen or paper or cigar? That's me looking for a dry erase marker while teaching.

Happy 80th birthday to Lady Gwen Thompson, a self-proclaimed "hereditary witch" who published the Wiccan Rede. Although there is an extended version, in its most basic form it says:

An it harm none, do what you will.

Which is something like St. Augustine's:

Love, and do what you will.

Farinelli, the most famous of the castrato, died on this day in 1782. In case you are wondering, a castrato is every bit as horrific as it sounds. Back in the glory days of Italian opera, women weren't allowed to perform. But there were so many fantastic, soprano arias. What is a music-loving maestro to do? Why, castrate some pre-pubescent boys to sing female roles, of course! Which just goes to show that there's no limit of idiocy a man can accomplish when he sets his mind to it.

Now, step into the way-back machine and travel to the days of the mandatory sociology class you had to take for your education degree. Remember Jean Piaget and Cognitive Development? Yeah ... you're getting that sick feeling too, right? Well, he died 28 years ago today. I'm not saying to celebrate, but I'm not saying not to!

Finally, today is Mexican Independence Day! I mean, the real one, not Cinco de Mayo. That's the day when Mexico kicked out the last of the European powers. Of course, that's the day we would count. But Mexicans count the day that Fr. Hidalgo stood on his porch and shouted:

Long live Our Lady of Guadalupe, death to bad government, and death to the Spaniards!

Our Lady of Guadalupe was particularly important to Mexican Catholics because, instead of appearing to a Spaniard and speaking Spanish, she appeared to a native/Aztec farmer and spoke Nahuatl. You can see how she would be a potent symbol for them. To this day, on the night of September 15, the President of Mexico re-enacts the event by ringing the bells of the National Palace in Mexico City.