September 17: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

September 17, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1862, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “We have received from the publisher, Carlton, 413 Broadway, New York, four volumes of Victor Hugo’s great work ‘Les Miserables.’ No book published in our day has excited greater interest. Its author intends to rest his claim to immortality upon it. It not unfrequently happens that an author is disposed to judge of his productions by the labor he has bestowed upon them. Milton was alone in the opinion that his ‘Paradise Regained’ was the greater of his two epics, and it is not improbable that the ‘Hunchback of Notre Dame’ will secure the favor of lovers of fictions when the more elaborate ‘Les Miserables’ will only be praised and neglected.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1920, the Eagle reported, “The most extensive investigation ever launched in this country, put into motion a few minutes after the terrific explosion at Wall and Nassau Sts. had killed 35 persons and injured more than 200 others at noon yesterday, found at noon today that the cause is as much of a mystery as it was one second after it happened, though authorities are now practically unanimous in the belief that the tragedy was the result of an anarchist bomb … The horse-drawn wagon, blown to fragments, is the focal point of the investigators’ attention. The wagon was standing at a point almost opposite the entrance to the United States Assay Office and across the street from the J.P. Morgan building … That the catastrophe was the work of a purposeful anarchist was accepted by the Board of Estimate and Apportionment and an offer of $10,000 reward was made for the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible. Attorney General [A. Mitchell] Palmer and Francis P. Garvan, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Government’s anti-radical campaign, left Washington today for New York to direct the investigation into the explosion.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1923, the Eagle reported, “The Yankees cannot lose the American League race. They may be tied for first place if Cleveland wins every game and they lose every one. But one more victory clinches their title to first place and a chance at the World’s Series. They won a doubleheader yesterday from the Indians, 4 to 2 and 3 to 2, before 60,331 cash customers — one of the largest crowds that ever cheered the home team to victory. Babe Ruth made his 37th homer of the season, and tied Cy Williams for the clouting lead. The Giants subdued the Cubs in Chicago, winning 10 to 6, despite a shower of pop bottles from the stands and bleachers. Barney Friberg of the Chicago team was the only man injured. He was struck on the shoulder by a bottle. The teams were even at the end of the sixth, but the Giants opened up in the lucky frame and put across four in a row.” (Editor’s note: On Oct. 15, 1923, the Yankees won the first of their 27 championships by defeating the N.Y. Giants in the sixth game of the World Series.)

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ON THIS DAY IN 1951, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — President Truman described Soviet Russia today as the most dreadful tyranny the world has ever known. He said modern weapons, communications and propaganda methods make the power of the Kremlin ‘more effective, more violent and more far-reaching’ than any of the tyrants of the past. ‘The evils which Communism brought back into the world — the evils of political persecution and unrestrained state power — have grown and flourished and become much more terrible than they ever were before,’ he said. Mr. Truman spoke at the Library of Congress at ceremonies in which the originals of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were sealed in new cases which will protect the precious documents against further ravages of time.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1954, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — America’s delegates were sworn in today for next week’s meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, where an early fight is expected over Red China membership. Acting Secretary of State Walter Bedell Smith presided at the formal swearing-in ceremonies. It was the first time all members of an American delegation to the UN have gathered for the ceremony at the same time. Reports from London said Britain has agreed to a U.S. proposal that the question of admitting Red China to the United Nations should be postponed for the rest of this year. Russia is expected to make a determined bid at the opening session next Tuesday in New York to oust the Chinese Nationalists and seat the Chinese Reds. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, now in Europe, will head the American fight against the Chinese Communist membership issue. The secretary will be on hand in New York the first few days of the assembly following a weekend at his Duck Island, Lake Ontario, retreat to write his UN speech. Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. will head the delegation when Mr. Dulles leaves the assembly sessions.”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include former U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter, who was born in 1939; Basketball Hall of Famer Phil Jackson, who was born in 1945; TV horror hostess Cassandra Peterson, who was born in 1951; comedian Rita Rudner, who was born in 1953; former N.Y. Mets closer John Franco, who was born in Brooklyn in 1960; “Friday Night Lights” star Kyle Chandler, who was born in 1965; rapper and producer Doug E. Fresh, who was born in 1966; “New York Undercover” star Malik Yoba, who was born in 1967; “MADtv” star Bobby Lee, who was born in 1971; former N.Y. Knicks forward Rasheed Wallace, who was born in 1974; Washington Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin, who was born in 1985; and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who was born in 1995.

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LAW OF THE LAND: Today is Constitution Day. On Sept. 17, 1787, delegations from 12 states met at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia and voted unanimously to approve the proposed document. Thirty-nine of the 42 delegates present signed it and the convention adjourned after drafting a letter of transmittal to the Congress. The proposed constitution stipulated that it would take effect when ratified by nine states.

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IT’S WITCHCRAFT: “Bewitched” premiered on this day in 1964. The ABC sitcom centered around playful blonde-haired witch Samantha Stephens (Elizabeth Montgomery). Although she promises not to use witchcraft in her daily life, she finds herself twitching her nose in many situations. Co-stars included Dick York and Agnes Moorehead. The last episode aired in 1972.

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

Quotable:

“Men who have a pierced ear are better prepared for marriage — they’ve experienced pain and bought jewelry.”

— comedian Rita Rudner, who was born on this day in 1953