June 1, 2010

340 years ago
1670

Diplomacy
Kings Charles II of England and Louis XIV of France signed the Secret Treaty of Dover. It required that King Charles II would convert to the Roman Catholic Church at some future date and that he would assist Louis XIV with 60 warships and 4,000 soldiers to help in France's war of conquest against the Dutch Republic. In exchange, Charles II would secretly receive a yearly pension of £230,000, as well as an extra sum of money when he informed the English people of his conversion, and France would send 6,000 French troops if there was ever a rebellion against Charles in England.

130 years ago
1880

Born on this date
Helmuth Wilberg. German military officer. General der Flieger (General of the Air Force) Wilberg was one of the highest-ranking officers in the Luftwaffe. He was killed in a plane crash near Dresden at the age of 61 on November 20, 1941, while on his way to the funeral of Generaloberst Ernst Udet.

120 years ago
1890

Born on this date
Frank Morgan. U.S. actor. Mr. Morgan, born Francis Phillip Wuppermann, was a character actor on stage and in movies from 1916 until his death from a heart attack at the age of 59 on September 18, 1949. He was best known for playing the title role in The Wizard of Oz (1939).

Technology
The United States Census Bureau began using Herman Hollerith's tabulating machine to count census returns.

100 years ago
1910

Born on this date
Gyula Kállai. Hungarian politician. Mr. Kállai joined the Hungarian Communist Party in 1931, and advanced through the ranks, holding various positions, including Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the People's Republic of Hungary (1965-1967); Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary (1967–1971); and President of National Council of the Patriotic People's Front (1957-1989). He died on March 12, 1996 at the age of 85.

Exploration
Robert Falcon Scott's second South Pole expedition left Cardiff.

90 years ago
1920

Baseball
The St. Louis Cardinals of the National League announced that they would begin playing all their home games at Sportsman's Park, occupying the facility when the Browns of the American League were on the road. The Cardinals' previous home, League Park, was in deteriorating condition.

Austin McHenry led off the 15th inning with a double, advanced to third on a bunt, and scored on a throwing error on an attempted pickoff at first base by Elmer Ponder to break a 4-4 tie as the St. Louis Cardinals edged the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh.

Hi Myers doubled home 2 runs with 2 out in the bottom of the 9th inning to give the Brooklyn Robins a 10-9 win over the New York Giants before 6,000 fans at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. The Giants scored 4 runs in the top of the 8th to take a 9-6 lead, but the Robins scored 2 in the bottom of the 8th. Brooklyn first baseman Clarence Mitchell and New York shortstop Art Fletcher each batted 4 for 5, with 4 runs batted in.

The New York Yankees defeated the Washington Nationals 14-7 before 12,000 fans at the Polo Grounds in New York for their 9th straight win. Babe Ruth (1-0) started his first game as a pitcher for the Yankees, and moved to right field after 4 innings. Roger Peckinpaugh hit an inside-the-park home run, and Ping Bodie hit one out of the park for the Yankees, and drove in 5 runs.

Harry Heilmann batted 5 for 5 with a double, 2 runs, and a run batted in for the Detroit Tigers as they edged the Cleveland Indians 11-10 at Dunn Field in Cleveland, outhitting the Indians 17-16. Joe Evans had 3 doubles for the Indians.

80 years ago
1930

Transportation
The Deccan Queen is introduced as the first intercity train between Bombay VT (Now Mumbai CST) and Poona (Pune) to run on electric locomotives.

Baseball
The Boston Red Sox beat the New York Yankees 7-4 at Yankee Stadium to end a 14-game losing streak. Dusty Cooke had 4 hits for the Yankees, including a home run, and Babe Ruth also homered. The Red Sox made a triple play to help their cause.

Hack Wilson hit his 15th and 16th home runs of the season, added a double and single, and batted in 5 runs as the Chicago Cubs whipped the Pittsburgh Pirates 16-4 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

Johnny Frederick and Babe Herman hit back-to-back home runs twice as the Brooklyn Robins beat the Philadelphia Phillies 10-2 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. Dolf Luque pitched an 11-hit complete game victory.

Bill Walker (6-3) pitched a 6-hitter and hit a 2-run home run to help the New York Giants defeat the Boston Braves 9-4 in the first game of a doubleheader at Braves Field. The Giants scored 12 runs in the 3rd inning en route to a 16-3 win in the second game, which was called after 7 innings because of a curfew. Boston left fielder Wally Berger homered in both games.

Clyde Sukeforth singled home Joe Stripp with the bases loaded and 1 out in the bottom of the 9th inning to give the Cincinnati Reds a 5-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in the first game of a doubleheader at Redland Field. Cincinnati first baseman Harry Heilmann batted 3 for 3 with a base on balls, home run, and 2 runs. He recorded identical statistics in the second game, which the Reds won 7-1 in a game that was called after 7 innings in order to allow the Cardinals to catch a train.

70 years ago
1940

War
Because of heavy losses to German aircraft, the British Admiralty ordered that all embarkations from Dunkirk, France must take place after dark. German forces carried the war to southern France with bombing raids in the Rhone River Valley. German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler ordered the release of Dutch prisoners of war.

Diplomacy
Chinese Communist leader Chou En-lai returned to Chungking from Moscow.

Defense
U.S. Army General George Marshall suggested that, because of defense developments, U.S. troops may have to be stationed outside the country.

Law
The New Zealand parliament passed a law granting the government full power over all persons and property for the duration of World War II.

Politics and government
The Communist Party U.S.A.'s platform condemned U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's foreign policy as imperialistic.

Technology
Paul Schlack received a patent on a process that made wool mothproof by treatment with alkalyne oxide and imine.

Labour
At its annual meeting in New York, the U.S. National Lawyers Guild adopted a resolution opposing any change or amendment to the National Labor Relations Act.

60 years ago
1950

War
The Japanese Foreign Ministry formally requested a separate peace treaty with the Western Allies.

Europeana
Poland established three new provinces--Koszalin, Zielonogora, and Opole--in border territory taken from Germany.

Defense
U.S. President Harry Truman sent Congress a request for $1.22 billion in second-year military aid to governments resisting "Communist imperialism."

Politics and government
Peruvian President Manuel Odria, who had seized power 19 months earlier, resigned to run for President in the July 2 election.

Seven liberal Republican U.S. Senators, led by Margaret Chase Smith (Maine), denounced Sen. Joseph McCarthy's (Wisconsin) tactics in a "Declaration of Conscience," attacking "character assassinations, trial by accusation," and "political smears."

Energy
Argentina disclosed the formation of a National Atomic Energy Commission to safeguard uranium deposits and plan an atomic war defense.

Transportation
The Irish Republic nationalized its railroad, trucking, and canal shipping systems.

Environment
Mauna Loa, the world's most active volcano, erupted, sending streams of lava pouring 25 miles across the island of Hawaii to the Pacific Ocean.

Economics and finance
The South Korean government began a program of land redistribution and sale of formerly Japanese-owned industries to landholders.

Labour
The Congress of Industrial Organizations Communications Workers of America announced a wage settlement with eight Bell System telephone companies, ending a dispute that threatened a nationwide strike.

Disasters
The Chinchaga River fire, a forest fire in northern British Columbia and Alberta, ignited; by September, it would become the largest single fire on record in North America.

Baseball
The first grand slam of Marty Marion’s 11-year major league career gave the St. Louis Cardinals a 5-2 win over the Brooklyn Dodgers before 32,180 fans at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis to move into a tie with the Dodgers for first place in the National League. St. Louis catcher Joe Garagiola, who was hitting .347, suffered a shoulder separation when he tripped over Brooklyn’s Jackie Robinson on a play at first base, and was out for the next three months.

Sid Gordon hit a grand slam in the 1st inning to help the Boston Braves rout the Pittsburgh Pirates 14-2 before 5,468 fans at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh.

The New York Giants scored 4 runs in the top of the 9th inning to overcome a 7-4 deficit and defeat the Cincinnati Reds 8-7 in the first game of a doubleheader before 7,727 fans at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. The Reds had runners on first and second bases with 2 out in the bottom of the 9th, but Peanuts Lowrey grounded out to end the game. The Reds scored 3 runs in the 4th inning as they won the second game 5-2.

The Philadelphia Phillies scored 5 runs in the 2nd inning en route to an 8-4 win over the Chicago Cubs before 9,812 fans at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

Hank Bauer scored when center fielder Dave Philley made an error after a single by Jerry Coleman with 1 out in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the New York Yankees a 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox before 17,554 fans at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees trailed 5-2, but scored a run in the 8th and 2 in the 9th.

With 2 out and nobody on base in the top of the 12th inning, Don Lenhardt, Hank Arft, and Bill Sommers hit consecutive singles, with Mr. Lenhardt scoring to break a 4-4 tie as the St. Louis Browns edged the Washington Nationals 5-4 before 9,295 fans at Griffith Stadium in Washington.

50 years ago
1960

Died on this date
Lester Patrick, 76. Canadian hockey player, coach, and executive. Mr. Patrick, nicknamed "The Silver Fox" in middle age, was a native of Drummondville, Quebec who played rover and defence for several teams in a career spanning 1903-26. He helped the Montreal Wanderers to Stanley Cup championships in 1906 and '07. Mr. Patrick and his brother Frank moved to British Columbia in 1911 and founded the professional Pacific Coast Hockey Association, competing for the Stanley Cup, and devising new rules, many of which still exist. Lester Patrick played in the PCHA from 1911-22, mostly with the Victoria Aristocrats and Cougars. He moved to the National Hockey League as the first coach and general manager of the New York Rangers in 1926, leading them through the 1938-39 season, compiling a regular season record of 281-216-107 and leading them to Stanley Cup championships in 1928 and 1933. Mr. Patrick was most famous for coming out of retirement as a player during the second game of the 1928 Stanley Cup finals, replacing injured Lorne Chabot in goal with 8 minutes remaining in the 2nd period of a 0-0 game against the Montreal Maroons. He allowed just 1 goal--with just over a minute remaining in regulation time--and stopped 18 of 19 shots as the Rangers won 2-1 in overtime. Mr. Patrick remained the Rangers' general manager through the 1945-46 season, leading them to another Stanley Cup championship in 1940. He remained as general manager of Madison Square Garden until 1950, and eventually moved back to Victoria, where he died of a heart attack while suffering from cancer. Mr. Patrick was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1947; the championship trophy of the Western Hockey League was renamed the Lester Patrick Cup in 1960, and the Lester Patrick Trophy for outstanding contributions to hockey in the United States was first presented in 1966.

Harry Dean, 45. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Dean posted a 0-0 record with an earned run average of 4.50 in 2 games with the Washington Nationals in 1941. He was 44-33 with a 3.26 ERA in 100 games in 3 seasons in the minor leagues (1939-1941), beginning his professional career with a 21-4 record and 2.33 ERA with the Sanford Lookouts of the Class D Florida State League. Mr. Dean died 20 days after his 45th birthday.

Transportation
Trans-Canada Air Lines began DC-8 jetliner service from Montreal to London, reducing transatlantic flight time from 11 hours to 6. It was the first use of jet aircraft for non-military purposes.

Baseball
Mickey Mantle’s solo home run with 1 out in the 1st inning was the only hit off Hal Brown (4-1) as the Baltimore Orioles beat the New York Yankees 4-1 before 23,762 fans at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore to move into first place in the American League.

Frank Baumann (2-2) pitched a 4-hitter for the Chicago White Sox as they shut out the Detroit Tigers 6-0 before 20,772 fans at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. The White Sox put the game away with 4 runs in the 9th on home runs by Earl Torgeson and Gene Freese.

Bob Friend (6-2) pitched a 3-hitter and batted 1 for 2 with a sacrifice and a run for the Pittsburgh Pirates as they shut out the Cincinnati Reds 5-0 before 26,791 fans at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh.

With 2 out and nobody on base in the bottom of the 9th inning, Bob Schmidt singled and Sam Jones doubled him home to give the San Francisco Giants a 2-1 win over the Chicago Cubs before 10,751 fans at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Mr. Jones (6-4) pitched a 5-hitter to win the pitchers' duel over Dick Ellsworth (2-2), who allowed 4 hits in a complete game.

40 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): Spirit in the Sky--Norman Greenbaum (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Japan (Oricon Singles Chart): Keiko no Yume wa--Yoru Hiraku (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Un Rayo De Sol--Los Diablos

On the radio
The Challenge of Space, on Springbok Radio
Tonight’s episode: Assignment for George

Died on this date
George Watkins, 69. U.S. baseball player. Mr. Watkins was an outfielder with the St. Louis Cardinals (1930-1933); New York Giants (1934); Philadelphia Phillies (1935-1936); and Brooklyn Dodgers (1936), batting .288 with 73 home runs and 420 runs batted in in 894 games. He hit .373 in his rookie year, which remains the National League record for highest batting average by a rookie. Mr. Watkins helped the Cardinals win the National League pennant in 1930 and the World Series in 1931, batting .231 with 2 homers and 3 RBIs in 9 World Series games, and becoming, in 1930, the first NL player to hit a home run in his first World Series plate appearance. He played 702 games in 6 seasons in the minor leagues (1925-1929, 1937), batting .313 with 83 home runs, beginning and ending his career with the Houston Buffaloes of the Texas League. Mr. Watkins drank himself to death, three days before his 70th birthday.

Space
The U.S.S.R. launched Soyuz 9, with a crew of Commander Andriyan Nikolayev and Flight Engineer Vitaly Sevastianov aboard. Liftoff took place at night.



Protest
British Prime Minister Harold Wilson, campaigning in north London, was hit by an egg thrown by a young Conservative Party supporter who was upset at the British government’s cancellation of the South African Springboks' cricket tour.

It was reported that seven Soviet scientists, in two unrelated incidents, had protested the detention of Russian biologist Z.A. Medvedev and dissident political leader General Pyotr G. Grigorenko. Sources said that the protests represented a rising wave of discontent with government repression of liberal intellectuals.

Defense
The Pentagon disclosed that the bulk of a Soviet flotilla was cruising in the Gulf of Mexico after a visit to Cuba, having earlier come within 50 miles of the Louisiana coast.

Disasters
All 13 aboard were killed in a crash of a Czechoslovakian jetliner at the Tripoli, Libya airport.

Baseball
Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn held a private meeting with Houston Astros’ pitcher Jim Bouton, where he reprimanded the pitcher for writing his new book Ball Four (1970).

30 years ago
1980

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Stomp!--The Brothers Johnson

#1 single in Switzerland: Boat on the River--Styx (6th week at #1)

Austria's Top 10 (Ö3)
1 Sun of Jamaica--Goombay Dance Band (5th week at #1)
2 Der Nippel--Mike Krüger
3 Boat on the River--Styx
4 It's a Real Good Feeling--Peter Kent
5 Take that Look Off Your Face--Marti Webb
6 Atomic--Blondie
7 Give Me More--The Teens
8 Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)--Pink Floyd
9 Tired of Toein' the Line--Rocky Burnette
10 Hungaria--Fritz

Singles entering the chart were Take that Look Off Your Face; Hungaria; What's Another Year by Johnny Logan (#13); An American Dream by the Dirt Band (#16); and Stella stai by Umberto Tozzi (#19).

Died on this date
Arthur Nielsen, 82. U.S. engineer. Mr. Nielsen was an electrical engineer who founded the ACNielsen marketing research company in 1923. He inaugurated a National Radio Index for broadcasters and advertisers in 1942, followed by a television ratings service in 1950.

On television today
Cable News Network began broadcasting.

Protest
Cuban refugees at the Fort Chaffee, Arkansas processing centre rioted out of frustration and anger over delays in processing. 200 Cubans burst through the front gate at the fort, but were forced back inside by police officers and soldiers who used tear gas and clubs to subdue them. Once back inside, the refugees went on a rampage, setting fire to some barracks. 35 Cubans were arrested for instigating the riot. U.S. officials said that 94,710 Cubans had recently arrived in the United States and 48% of them had been resettled. However, relatively few of the refugees in camps had been resettled because they had no relatives in the country.

Terrorism
Two synthetic petroleum plants and one of South Africa’s largest oil refineries were bombed in the most successful guerrilla action to date against the country’s white minority government. One of the oil-from-coal plants and the refinery were located at Sasolburg, 55 miles southwest of Johannesburg. The other plant was at Secunda, 75 miles southeast of Johannesburg. More than $7 million worth of damage resulted from the blasts and subsequent fires. Officials said that production at the three plants was not affected, since most of the damage was to storage tanks. The African National Congress, which was banned in South Africa, claimed responsibility.

Religion
Pope John Paul II continued his visit to France by conducting an outdoor mass in gusts of driving rain for a crowd of about 500,000 at Paris's Le Bourget airport.

25 years ago
1985

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 Everything She Wants--Wham!
2 Everybody Wants to Rule the World--Tears for Fears
3 Axel F--Harold Faltermeyer
4 Don't You (Forget About Me)--Simple Minds
5 We are the World--USA for Africa
6 Smooth Operator--Sade
7 Suddenly--Billy Ocean
8 One Night in Bangkok--Murray Head
9 Crazy for You--Madonna
10 In My House--Mary Jane Girls

Protest
More than 300 people were arrested in England when police attempted to prevent a throng of hippies from reaching Stonehenge to challenge a ban on summer festivals.

20 years ago
1990

Diplomacy
U.S.S.R. President Mikhail Gorbachev met U.S. Congressional leaders for breakfast at the Soviet embassy in Washington, and then met with U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle. Afterward, Mr. Gorbachev and U.S. President George Bush signed more than a dozen documents at the White House. One agreement, spelling out broad details to be worked out in a treaty, would reduce long-range nuclear weapons arsenals, setting a limit of 1,600 strategic delivery vehicles per side, with a total of 6,000 warheads per side for these long-range vehicles. Another agreement called for an immediate end to chemical weapons production by both countries. A third agreement involved Mr. Bush signing the trade treaty that Mr. Gorbachev wanted, even though the U.S.S.R. had not met the condition previously stated, that of liberalizing emigration laws. Mr. Bush apparently put aside concerns over Lithuania in signing the treaty, which, if approved by Congress, would be a step toward granting most favoured nation status to the Soviet Union.

Raisa Gorbachev and Barbara Bush addressed the graduating class of Wellesley College in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Mrs. Gorbachev spoke on the role of women in Soviet society, and Mrs. Bush emphasized the importance of family and friends even for career women.

Politics and government
Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney appointed John Grace as federal Information Commissioner, replacing Inger Hansen. Mr. Grace was replaced as Privacy Commissioner by former CTV newsman Bruce Phillips.

Academia
Pauline Jewett was appointed Chancellor of Carleton University, replacing Gordon Robertson.

Economics and finance
The United States Labor Department reported that unemployment edged downward by 0.1% in May, to 5.3%.

10 years ago
2000

Terrorism
Police in Luxembourg posing as journalists shot and critically wounded a hostage-taker holding a child and a grenade, freeing 25 children and three teachers who had been held captive during a 30-hour standoff.

Diplomacy
U.S. President Bill Clinton began a three-day visit to Berlin.

Hockey
NHL
Stanley Cup
Finals
Dallas 2 @ New Jersey 1 (Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)

Brett Hull's second goal of the game, with 4:16 remaining in regulation time, broke a 1-1 tie at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford.

Baseball
Trailing 8-2 in the 6th inning, the Kansas City Royals scored 9 runs, and held on for a 13-11 win over the Boston Red Sox before 32,661 fans at Fenway Park in Boston. The Red Sox made 4 errors, and the Royals scored 5 unearned runs.

Japanese righthander Tomokazu Ohka of the Pawtucket Red Sox needed only 76 pitches to throw the first 9-inning perfect game in the International League since Dick Marlowe of Buffalo in 1952. The Red Sox defeated the Charlotte Knights 2-0.