July 31: ON THIS DAY in 1914, European war seems inevitable

July 31, 2019 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1914, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “A general European war seems inevitable. The Kaiser today issued a proclamation declaring Germany under martial law. The Hamburg-American and Lloyd lines have suspended the sailings of all their transatlantic steamers. The Imperator, due to sail from Germany tomorrow, will be kept in port. The Vaterland, due to sail from New York tomorrow, will be kept here. Germany fears their seizure by England. There is a run on the Bank of England, due to the failure of English banks to make payments in full in gold. The Kaiser has sent Prince Henry of Prussia on a confidential mission to the Czar, in a last hope of averting war. The New York Stock Exchange was closed today. All exchanges in the world are closed today. Secretary [William] McAdoo promises to aid New York and other sections with funds as needed.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1920, the Eagle reported, “Boston, Mass. — [Charles] Ponzi, the international exchange wizard, expects within a short time to open a huge bank and to pay 50 percent of the profits to depositors. While the federal authorities are going over his books — so far without discovering any trace of irregularity or illegality — he is making his plans for extending his immensely profitable business. The reports of his tremendous profits have brought him an offer of $10,000,000 from a New York concern, Ponzi says, for the secret by means of which he managed to accumulate somewhere between $9,000,000 and $16,000,000 in the operations of a few months. The finance king has not yet decided whether to accept or reject the $10,000,000 offer. He went to his office today with accountants who are checking over the tremendous volume of his transactions, and remained willing to discuss any or all the features of his business, except the secret which made his money for him. ‘There is not an atom of doubt about it,’ he declared, in response to inquiries concerning establishing a bank.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1940, the Eagle reported, “Otto Wetzel completes 50 years of service in the law library in the Brooklyn Supreme Court today and, Otto said, nothing unusual will happen. He will be on the job same as always and will regard Aug. 1, 1940 merely as a date. The quiet, unassuming librarian, who looks much younger than 68, came to work in the library on Aug. 1, 1890, after tiring of his job in George Lockett’s grocery store at Myrtle and Carlton Aves. He started as ‘page’ at $5 a week and has worked since then in the same rooms on the second floor of the courthouse alongside the rotunda. He was made assistant librarian in 1907 when Alfred J. Hook was made librarian upon the death of Stephen C. Betts and shortly afterward was made librarian. In his half century of service he has seen the library grow from 15,000 volumes to 75,000 … ‘I still am hopeful of seeing our precious books in a much-needed new courthouse,’ he commented.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Eagle reported, “Contract forms for the first construction work on the controversial $15,500,000 Owls Head sewage disposal plant have been prepared and bids will be advertised as soon as the go-ahead signal comes from City Hall … Although the projected plant is still under attack by indignant Bay Ridge citizens groups, with a threat of restraining court action, the Department of Public Works has been pushing the preliminary construction steps and is now prepared to accept bids for a $1,330,000 contract for construction of a bulkhead, landfill and outfall. The outfall will consist of an extended 10-inch pipe which will take the treated sewage out into the bay and deposit it into water of more than 40-foot depth … At present, raw sewage from five different sewer outlets is being carried by tidal currents across Gravesend Bay down to the end of Sea Gate, polluting all the water en route. The Health Department already has placed bans on swimming in the area.”