December 28: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

December 28, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1871, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The Tribune and Herald are raising again their cry for the consolidation of Brooklyn and New York. The only argument on which this plea can be defended is that New York needs in her government the kind of men Brooklyn already has entrusted with the management of her own affairs. Our municipal matters are run at least three hundred per cent cheaper than those of New York, allowing for all the disproportion of population. We speak deliberately and knowingly on this point. Just at present is a very opportune time to show some difference between New York and Brooklyn on the important matter of punishing election frauds. Every indictment so far found in Brooklyn has resulted in conviction. All the frauds charged in this whole city were a bagatelle to those committed in [William] Tweed’s single district. In Brooklyn, rumored fraud has resulted in swift convictions. In New York, demonstrated fraud has not been followed even by a single indictment. We convict equally the scoundrels of either party … Our own superb self-government and New York’s conceded misgovernment, are ample argument against a union of the dead metropolitan body and the healthful life of Brooklyn.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1897, the Eagle reported, “The wind-up of affairs in the boroughs so soon to become Greater New York is proceeding with less friction and with less scandal than might have been expected. Very naturally, the various boroughs are anxious to finish their business with their citizens in as orderly and liberal a manner as possible. The administrative work of the several governments is honorably coming to an end. Nor are the financial officials subjecting themselves to criticism … The old governments are going out in good form. The new government will come in with the good wishes of the masses of the people.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1943, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — The army is prepared to operate the railroads with soldiers in event of a strike and impose penalties against strikers under the Smith-Connally labor act and other laws, Secretary of War [Henry L.] Stimson and Lt. Gen. Brehon B. Somervell declared today. These statements were made at a news conference while three rail unions were standing, technically at least, on a strike call for Dec. 30. It was generally believed, however, that the three holdout unions would rescind the strike call, as 17 other rail unions already have done. Meanwhile, a general steel strike appeared to have been averted as workers responded to government and union orders that they end a weekend stoppage and go back to the mills. Somervell’s announcement that the Smith-Connally act would be invoked if necessary was supported by the Justice Department and cleared up confusion which had existed as to whether it was applicable to the railroads.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1954, an Eagle editorial said, “If Red China had not demonstrated in impressive ways its character of an aggressive nation, the most recent threats of Premier Chou En-Lai against Formosa [Taiwan] might be dismissed as chauvinistic sabre-rattling. In appraising the significance of the Red Premier’s menacing moods, however, it is necessary to recall Korea, Indo-China and the operations against the Nationalist-held islands in the Formosan Strait. Chou En-Lai’s declaration before the consultative conference in Peiping that the ‘Chinese people will never halt’ until the red flag flies over Formosa must be accepted as a statement of official purpose. He speaks with authority and his regime’s record of aggression supports the view that attack upon Chiang Kai-Shek’s island bastion is on the Reds’ planning board. His warning to the United States is not a matter of little consequence to the Eisenhower Administration. Although we have altered our Formosan policy from one of encouragement of harassment of the mainland of China by Chiang’s forces to one of restraint of these tactics, we are still committed to the island’s defense.”

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Denzel Washington
Andy Kropa/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Oscar-winning actress Maggie Smith, who was born in 1934; musician Edgar Winter, who was born in 1946; “It’s Raining Men” singer Martha Wash, who was born in 1953; “CBS Mornings” co-host Gayle King, who was born in 1954; Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington, who was born in 1954; Hockey Hall of Famer Ray Bourque, who was born in 1960; former N.Y. Mets outfielder Benny Agbayani, who was born in 1971; former NFL placekicker Adam Vinatieri, who was born in 1972; talk show host Seth Meyers, who was born in 1973; “Ordinary People” singer John Legend, who was born in 1978; former tennis player James Blake, who was born in 1979; “American Sniper” star Sienna Miller, who was born in 1981; and “7th Heaven” star Mackenzie Rosman, who was born in 1989.

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STAN THE MAN: Stan Lee was born 100 years ago today. The Manhattan native elevated and transformed the comic book genre with his dynamic copy, imbuing characters with humanity and tackling real-life social issues. As a Marvel Comics staff writer, he co-created the Fantastic Four with artist Jack Kirby, then co-launched beloved superheroes like Spider-Man, the Hulk, Black Panther and the X-Men before becoming Marvel’s editorial director and publisher. As chairman emeritus, Lee shepherded the film franchises “Iron Man,” “X-Men,” “Thor” and “The Avengers,” in which he made Hitchcock-like cameos. He died in 2018.

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HAND ON HEART: On this day in 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and urged its frequent recitation in America’s schools. The pledge was composed in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister. At the time, Bellamy was chairman of a committee of state school superintendents of education, and several schools adopted his pledge as part of the Columbus Day quadricentennial celebration that year. In 1954 the Knights of Columbus persuaded Congress to add the words “under God” to the pledge.

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Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.

Quotable:

“I don’t have inspiration. I only have ideas. Ideas and deadlines.”

— Marvel Comics publisher Stan Lee, who was born on this day in 1922