Lex Anteinternet: Bells of Balangiga to depart

Bells of Balangiga to depart

Gen. Jacob Smith inspects the ruins of Balangiga a few weeks after the battle there.

The Bells of Balangiga, war trophies from the Spanish American War, are going back to the Philippines, according to a government press release.

The bells have long been a matter of contention between the United States and the Philippines.  The 9th Infantry, which took the bells, maintained that it was ambushed in the locality, where it was garrisoned, and the bells symbolized its defense of itself from a surprise treacherous attack.  The Philippines have asserted the battle represented an uprising of the indigenous population against occupation and that the conclusion of the battle featured the killing of villagers without justification.  Both versions of the event may be correct in that it was a surprise attack on a unit stationed in the town and, by that point in the war, 1901, it had begun to take on a gruesome character at times.

Whatever the case may be, the bells, from three Catholic Churches, have long been sought to be returned.  Two of the bells are at F. E. Warren Air Force Base, which which the 9th Infantry had later been stationed at when it was Ft. D. A. Russell, and a third has been kept in Alaska.  It would appear that they're now going to go back to the churches from which they came in the Philippines, almost certainly accompanied by at least some vocal protestations from Wyoming's representation in Congress, I suspect.  As the current Wyoming connection with the 9th Infantry, let alone the Philippine Insurrection, is pretty think, it's unlikely that the average Wyomingite, however, will care much.  Indeed, while it caused its own controversy, a former head of a veteran's position in the state came out for returning the bells the last time this controversy rolled around a few years ago.

Some Gave All: Cheyenne, Ft. Laramie, Deadwood Trail, 1868-1887

Cheyenne, Ft. Laramie, Deadwood Trail, 1868-1887

This post is somewhat off topic here, but this is a marker for the Cheyenne, Ft. Laramie, Deadwood Trail.  The marker is on the old state  highway, but is visible in terms of its location from the present
Interstate Highway.  It's north of Cheyenne.

December 6

1866   Colonel Henry B. Carrington and Captain William J. Fetterman surrounded by Sioux and Cheyenne warriors and engaged them briefly, before being able to return to Ft. Phil Kearny.

1869  A bill on territorial suffrage was amended before passage to grant the franchise at age 21, as opposed to 18.

1886 Joyce Kilmer, American poet, author of Trees, born. He was killed while serving in the US Army in World War One, in 1918.

 I THINK that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

1904  President Roosevelt, in his annual address to Congress, issued the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, stating:

All that this country desires is to see the neighboring countries stable, orderly, and prosperous. Any country whose people conduct themselves well can count upon our hearty friendship. If a nation shows that it knows how to act with reasonable efficiency and decency in social and political matters, if it keeps order and pays its obligations, it need fear no interference from the United States. Chronic wrongdoing, or an impotence which results in a general loosening of the ties of civilized society, may in America, as elsewhere, ultimately require intervention by some civilized nation, and in the Western Hemisphere the adherence of the United States to the Monroe Doctrine may force the United States, however reluctantly, in flagrant cases of such wrongdoing or impotence, to the exercise of an international police power.

1916  Wyoming v. Colorado, dealing with apportionment of water from the Laramie River, argued in front of the United States Supreme Court.  It would be re argued twice and decided in 1922.

1916  Cheyenne State Leader for December 6, 1916: Wyoming Guardsmen in New Mexico had turkey for Thanksgiving 

Yes, there was other news than the turkey in New Mexico, but the Leader was following the Guard in New Mexico, which no doubt a lot of Wyomingites were very interested in.

1918  December 6, 1918. Crossing the Rhine, Crossing the Atlantic, Crossing the English Channel, Villa back, U.S. ponders getting even with Mexico, Caspar Collins a tank, German Crown Prince Nervous, Billings girl suggests Black Crows wrong.

American soldiers crossing the Rhine by Ferry, December 6, 1918.

American soldier in France registering as he board a ship back to the United States.  Note the soldier on the left wearing the heavy mackinaw.

African American troops in England gather to board ships back to the United States.  December 6, 1918.  Some of these soldiers appear to be wearing trench coats which would indicate that they are officers (there were black units with black officers in World War One), or that they have received British issue.  The woman with the basket is helping hand out wheat and chocolate Red Cross candy bars.

American soldiers from units assigned to the British Expeditionary Force on post war leave in England.  December 6, 1918.

 Newpaper reaaders in Casper learned that the late Lt. Caspar Collins might have a tank named after him, although the message that naming a tank after a soldier who became separated from his support in combat could have been questioned.

 A "Pretty Young Woman" in Billings and Northern Wyoming suggest that yes, you do need money even if "you look like that".

Laramie readers learned that there was a move afoot to boycott Mexican oil to teach "Germanized" Mexico a lesson.

1919  December 6, 1919. Rumors of War.

Germany had failed to comply with all of the provisions of the Versailles Treaty by this date, and as a result, a protocol was issued addressing it, and the German government asked to sign it.  To this date, they had not.

Here's what the protocol stated:

At the moment of proceeding to the first deposit of ratifications of the Treaty of Peace, it is placed on record that the following obligations, which Germany had undertaken to execute by the Armistice Conventions and supplementary Agreements, have not been executed or have not been completely fulfilled:  

(1) Armistice Convention of November 11,1918/5 Clause VII; obligation to deliver 5,000 locomotives and 150,000 wagons. 42 locomotives and 4,460 wagons are still to be delivered;
(2) Armistice Convention of November 11, 1918, Clause XII; obligation to withdraw the German troops in Russian territory within the frontiers of Germany, as soon as the' Allies shall think the moment suitable. The withdrawal of these troops has not been effected, despite the reiterated instructions of August 27, September 27 and October 10, 1919;
(3) Armistice Convention of November 11,1918, Clause XIV; obligation to cease at once all requisitions, seizures or coercive measures in Russian territory. The German troops have continued to have recourse to such measures;
(4) Armistice Convention of November 11, 1918, Clause XIX; obligation to return immediately all documents, specie, stocks, shares, paper money, together with plant for the issue thereof, affecting public or private interests in the invaded countries. The complete lists of specie and securities carried off, collected or confiscated by the Germans in the invaded countries have not been supplied;
(5) Armistice Convention of November 11, 1918, Clause XXII; obligation to surrender all German submarines. Destruction of the German submarine U.C. 48 off Ferrol by order of her German commander, and destruction in the North Sea of certain submarines proceeding to England for surrender;
(6) Armistice Convention of November 11, 1918, Clause XXIII; obligation to maintain in Allied ports the German ~arships designated by the Allied and Associated Powers, these ships being intended to be ultimately handedover. Clause XXXI; obligation not to destroy any ship before delivery. Destruction of the said ships at Scapa Flow on June 21, 1919;
(7) Protocol of December 17, 1918, Annex to the Armistice Convention of December 13, 1918; obligation to restore the works of art and artistic documents carried off in France and Belgium. All the works of art removed into the unoccupied parts of Germany have not been restored;
(8) Armistice Convention of January 16, 1919/6 Clause III and Protocol 392/1 Additional Clause III of July 25, 1919; obligation to hand over agricultural machinery in the place of the supplementary railway material provided for in Tables 1 and 2 annexed to the Protocol of Spa of December 17, 1918. The following machines had not been delivered on the stipulated date of October 1, 1919. 40 "Heucke" steam plough outfits; all the cultivators for the outfits; all the spades; 1,500 shovels; 1,130 T.F. 23/26 ploughs; 1,765 T.F. 18/21 ploughs; 1,512 T.F. 23/26 ploughs; 629 T.F. 0 m. 20 Brabant ploughs; 1,205 T.F.o m. 26 Brabant ploughs; 4,282 harrows of 2 k. 500; 2,157 steel cultivators; 966 2 m. 50 manure distributors; 1,608 3 m. 50 manure distributors;
(9) Armistice Convention of January 16, 1919, Clause VI; obligation to restore the industrial material carried off from French and Belgian territory. All this material has not been restored;
(10) Convention of January 16,1919, Clause VIII; obligation to place the German merchant fleet under the control of the Allied and Associated Powers. A certain number of ships whose delivery had been demanded under this clause have not yet been handed over;
(11) Protocols of the Conferences of Brussels of March 13 and 14, 1919; obligation not to export war material of all kinds. Exportation of aeronautical material to Sweden, Holland and Denmark.  

A certain number of the above provisions which have not been executed or have not been executed in full have been renewed by the Treaty of June 28, 1919, whose coming into force will ipso facto render the sanctions there provided applicable. This applies particularly to the various measures to be taken on account of reparation.
Further, the question of the evacuation of the Baltic provinces has been the subject of an exchange of notes and of decisions which are being carried out. The Allied and Associated Powers expressly confirming the contents of their notes, Germany by the present Protocol undertakes to continue to execute them faithfully and strictly.
Finally, as the Allied and Associated Powers could not allow to p'ass without penalty the other failures to execute the Armistice Conventions and violations so serious as the destruction of the German fleet at Scapa Flow, the destruction of U.C. 48 off Ferrol and the destruction in the North Sea of certain submarines on their way to England for surrender, Germany undertakes:
(1) A. To hand over as reparation for the destruction of the German fleet at Scapa Flow: .
(a) Within 60 days from the date of the signature of the present Protocol and in the conditions laid down in the second paragraph of Article 185 of the Treaty of Peace the five following light cruisers:  

Konigsberg,
Pillau,
Graudenz,
Regensburg,
Strassburg.  

(b) Within 90 days from the date of the signature of the present Protocol, and in good condition and ready for service in every respect, such a number of floating docks, floating cranes, tugs and dredgers, equivalent to a total displacement of 400,000 tons, as the Principal Allied and Associated Powers may require. As regards the docks, the lifting power will be considered as the displacement. In the number of docks referred to above there will be about 75 per cent. of docks over 10,000 tons. The whole of this material will be handed over on the spot;  

B. To deliver within 10 days from the signature of the present Protocol a complete list of all floating docks, floating cranes, tugs and dredgers which are German property. This list, which will be delivered to the Naval Inter Allied Commission of Control referred to in Article 209 of the Treaty of Peace, will specify the material which on November 11, 1918, belonged to the German Government or in which the German Government had at that date an important interest; 

C. The officers and men who formed the crews of the warships sunk at Scapa Flow and who are at present detained by the Principal Allied and Associated Powers will, with the exception of those whose surrender is provided for by Article 228 of the Treaty of Peace, be repatriated at latest when Germany has carried out the provisions of Paragraphs A. and B. above;  

D. The destroyer B. 98 will be considered as one of the 42 destroyers whose delivery is provided for by Article 185 of the Treaty of Peace;  

(2) To hand over within 10 days from the signature of the present Protocol the engines and motors of the submarines U. 137 and U. 138 as compensation for the destruction of U.C. 48;  

(3) To pay to the Allied and Associated Governments before January 31, 1920, the value of the aeronautical material exported, in accordance with the decision which will be given and the valuation which will be made and notified by the Aeronautical Inter-Allied Commission of Control referred to in Article 210 of the Treaty of Peace. In the event of Germany not fulfilling these obligations within the periods laid down above, the Allied and Associated Powers reserve the right to take all military or other measures of coercion which they may consider appropriate.

There Versailles Treaty was complicated to start with, and things clearly hadn't been going smoothly in Germany.  The question now was what to do about it, and the threatened solution was military.

This of course followed the ongoing difficulties with Mexico.  The U.S., for its part, hadn't signed the Versailles Treaty, but it still had troops on occupation duty in the country.

Rumors of war were definitely not going away.  It would be enough to make a person want to curl up with a good book and forget the news of the day.

1929  Fort D.A. Russell renamed Fort F.E Warren after the late Wyoming Senator F. E. Warren.

1941  Wyoming Senator Harry Schwartz stated that war with Japan was unlikely.  Given the state of relations between the United States and Japan, which were strained to the limit, and in which the Federal government regarded war as likely to break out at any time, Schwartz's opinion seems more than a little optimistic, although he certainly wasn't the only one to hold it.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1941  President Roosevelt sent a telegram to Emperor Hirohito reading:

Almost a century ago the President of the United States addressed to the Emperor of Japan a message extending an offer of friendship of the people of the United States to the people of Japan. That offer was accepted, and in the long period of unbroken peace and friendship which has followed, our respective nations, through the virtues of their peoples and the wisdom of their rulers have prospered and have substantially helped humanity.

Only in situations of extraordinary importance to our two countries need I address to Your Majesty messages on matters of state. I feel I should now so address you because of the deep and far-reaching emergency which appears to be in formation.

Developments are occurring in the Pacific area which threaten to deprive each of our nations and all humanity of the beneficial influence of the long peace between our two countries. These developments contain tragic possibilities.

The people of the United States, believing in peace and in the right of nations to live and let lives have eagerly watched the conversations between our two Governments during these past months. We have hoped for a termination of the present conflict between Japan and China. We have hoped that a peace of the Pacific could be consummated in such a way that nationalities of many diverse peoples could exist side by side without fear of invasion; that unbearable burdens of armaments could be lifted for them all; and that all peoples would resume commerce without discrimination against or in favor of any nation.

I am certain that it will be clear to Your Majesty, as it is to me, that in seeking these great objectives both Japan and the United States should agree to eliminate any form of military threat. This seemed essential to the attainment of the high objectives.
More than a year ago Your Majesty's Government concluded an agreement with the Vichy Government by which five or six thousand Japanese troops were permitted to enter into Northern French Indochina for the protection of Japanese troops which were operating against China further north. And this Spring and Summer the Vichy Government permitted further Japanese military forces to enter into Southern French Indochina for the common defense of French Indochina. I think I am correct in saying that no attack has been made upon Indochina, nor that any has been contemplated.

During the past few weeks it has become clear to the world that Japanese military, naval and air forces have been sent to Southern Indo-China in such large numbers as to create a reasonable doubt on the part of other nations that this continuing concentration in Indochina is not defensive in its character.

Because these continuing concentrations in Indo-China have reached such large proportions and because they extend now to the southeast and the southwest corners of that Peninsula, it is only reasonable that the people of the Philippines, of the hundreds of Islands of the East Indies, of Malaya and of Thailand itself are asking themselves whether these forces of Japan are preparing or intending to make attack in one or more of these many directions.

I am sure that Your Majesty will understand that the fear of all these peoples is a legitimate fear in as much as it involves their peace and their national existence. I am sure that Your Majesty will understand why the people of the United States in such large numbers look askance at the establishment of military, naval and air bases manned and equipped so greatly as to constitute armed forces capable of measures of offense.

It is clear that a continuance of such a situation is unthinkable. None of the peoples whom have spoken of above can sit either indefinitely or permanently on a keg of dynamite.

There is absolutely no thought on the part of the United States of invading Indo-China if every Japanese soldier or sailor were to be withdrawn therefrom.

I think that we can obtain the same assurance from the Governments of the East Indies, the Governments of Malaya and. the Government of Thailand. I would even undertake to ask for the same assurance on the part of the Government of China. Thus a withdrawal of the Japanese forces from Indo-China would result in the assurance of peace throughout the whole of the South Pacific area.

I address myself to Your Majesty at this moment in the fervent hope that Your Majesty may, as I am doing, give thought in this definite emergency to ways of dispelling the dark clouds. I am confident that both of us, for the sake of the peoples not only of our own great countries but for the sake of humanity in neighboring territories, have a sacred duty to restore traditional amity and prevent further death and destruction in the world.

1973 Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as vice president.

December 3

1762   France ceded to Spain all lands west of the Mississippi.

1866  Nelson Story and his hands arrive in the Gallitin Valley thereby completing the first cattle drive from Texas to Montana.  The drive in its final stages was completed against order from the Army, after he passed Ft. Phil Kearney, due to Indian hostilities.  His men engaged in fights with the Indians along the way. The result of his efforts was the establishment of a successful Montana ranch a good four years prior to another drive of this type.

1867  The first soldier to be interred at the Ft. D. A. Russell Cemetery was.

1877  Former Wyoming Territorial Governor John Campbell appointed American Consul at Basel, Switzerland.

1888  Ella Watson applied for the WT brand.  Her application was rejected.

1890  School was canceled in Rawlins due to insufficient water for the school's boiler.   Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1899  A fire at Ft. Washakie destroyed three buildings.  Ft. Washakie was still an Army utilized installation at that time, as well as being the seat of government for the Wind River Reservation, which it still is.

1901  US President Theodore Roosevelt delivers a speech to the House of Representatives asking the Congress to curb the power of trusts "within reasonable limits".

1916   The Cheyenne State Leader for December 3, 1916. Carranza sets to take on Villa and Teachers take on booze.
 

On Sunday December 3, readers in Cheyenne were perhaps a bit relieved to find that Carranza's forces seemed to be rallying, perhaps meaning that National Guardsmen at the border wouldn't be finding Villistas crossing back over into the United States.

At the same time, teachers came out in favor of Prohibition.

That doesn't really surprise me, and indeed strikes me as natural.  I'm not a teetotaler but its rather obvious that alcohol creates a flood of societal problems, quite a few of which teachers have to deal with daily.

Along those lines, it amazes me that in our current era we've not only come to regard the concerns that lead to Prohibition as being quaint and naive, but we're out trying to legalize ever intoxicant we can.  Related back to the concerns of the teachers in 1916, just this past week a 19 year old died in this town of, it appears, complications due to the ingestion of an illegal drug.  It would seem that the intoxicants that  are legal now are quite enough really.

1918  December 3, 1918: Americans in Germany, Wilson to Europe, Women out the workplace door.

Col Charles Howland and staff, Germany, December 3, 1918.  Note the Chaplain, far left.

12th Division at Camp Devens, Massachusetts, December 3, 1918.  Part of the National Army, it wold be demobilized by the end of January 1919.

The news of the day was pretty typical for the immediate post war.  One item to note, however. Strikers employed by a railway in Ohio were demanding that the railway fire its women employees.  Chances are that the women were wartime hires and the men wanted them to go, now that the war was over, and their conscripted colleges would be returning.  The railway apparently had ignored a prior promise to let them go.

And Wilson's troubles with some members of Congress were becoming more and more evident.

1919  December 3, 1919. The Carlisle News Hits the Press. 

Banner headlines appeared in the local press on this day in 1919.

It was a sad end, as we related yesterday.

And already it was noted his wound was not fatal.

And so this phase of the story concluded.

1924  Oil strike near Lovell.

1944 It was reported that a serviceman from Tensleep had asked for his mother to send coffee.  Attribution, Wyoming State Archives.

1979  A Western airlines  737 bound for Sheridan landed by mistake at Buffalo.

2014  Colorado's Governor Hickenlooper apologized to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes for Colorado's actions leading to the November 29, 1864 Sand Creek Massacre.

November 22

1542  New laws passed in Spain giving protection against the enslavement of Indians in America.

1813  One of the two dates of death given for John Colter.  Colter was a member of the Corps of Discovery.  Following his early discharge in 1806 in North Dakota, before the expedition had fully returned, he joined a party of trappers as a guide and famously was the first American to describe thermal activity in the Yellowstone country.  He fought in Nathan Boone's Rangers in the War of 1812, and spent the final years of his life as a farmer in Missouri.

1858  Denver, Colorado is founded as Denver City.  It was named for Kansas Territorial Governor James W. Denver and was in the Territory of Kansas at the time.

1877  Governor Thayer approved a memorandum to Congress protesting against a proposed division of the Wyoming Territory.

As evident from the various discussions of territorial boundaries found on this site, the boundaries and governmental entities applicable to what is now the State of Wyoming were remarkably fluid up until at least the 1870s.

1889  A fire damaged the state Capitol.  Attribution: Wyoming State Historical Society.

1892  Burlington Northern rails reach Sheridan.

1963  President John F. Kennedy assassinated in Dallas, TX.

Friday, November 22, 1963. The assassination of John F. Kennedy.

Today In Wyoming's History: November 22: 1963  President John F. Kennedy assassinated in Dallas, TX.

President Kennedy was a very popular President in a very difficult time.  A lot of my comments about his presidency here have not been terribly charitable, but he was a hero to many, and some of his calls here have unfairly not been noted.  For instance, he exercised restraint during the Cuban Missile Crisis, which almost resulted in a Third World War, and he likewise kept the separation of Berlin from escalating into the same, even though his comments caused that crisis to come about.

In spite of repeated speculation about it, it's clear that the assassination was carried out as a lone, bizarre act by Lee Harvey Oswald.  Indeed, the lone actor aspect of that has fueled the conspiracy theories surrounding the event, as people basically don't want to accept that a lone actor can have such a massive and unforeseen impact.

I was alive at the time, but of course I don't remember this as I was only a few months old.  In my father's effects, I'd note, was a Kennedy Mass Card that he'd kept. No doubt, Masses were said around the country for the first Catholic President.

Often unnoticed about this event, Oswald probably had made an earlier attempt on the life of former Army Gen. Edwin Walker, who ironically was a radical right wing opponent of Kennedy's.  That attempt had occured in April. And Oswald killed Texas law enforcement officer J. D. Tippit shortly after killing Kennedy.  Oswald's initial arrest was for his murder of Tippit.

It's fair to speculate on how different history might have been had Kennedy lived.  Kennedy's actions had taken the US up to the brink of war with the Soviet Union twice, but in both instances, when the crisis occured, he steered the country out of it, and indeed his thinking was often better in those instances than his advisers. Under Kennedy the US had become increasingly involved in the Vietnam War, but there's at least some reason to believe that he was approaching the point of backing off in Vietnam, and it seems unlikely that the US would have engaged in the war full scale as it did under Lyndon Johnson.  If that's correct, the corrosive effect the war had on US society, felt until this day, might have been avoided.

All of which is not to engage in the hagiography often engaged in considering Kennedy.  To the general public, the James Dean Effect seems to apply to Kennedy, as he died relatively young.  Catholics nearly worshiped him as one of their own.  In reality, Kennedy had a really icky personal life and was hardly a living saint.  His hawkishness in a time of real global strife, moreover, produced at least one tragic result, and nearly caused others.

1982  President Reagan informed Congress of his intent to deploy MX missles to hardened silos under the command of F. E. Warren AFB.

2010  Gov. Matt Mead announced that Greg Phillips would take over as Wyoming's Attorney General under his administration.

2012  Today was Thanksgiving Day for 2012.

October 7

1759  Comanches ( branch of the Shoshone tribe), Yaceales, and Tawakonis, defeated a Spanish force under Diego Ortiz Parilla on the Red River in Texas.  As previously noted, part of Wyoming was in the Spanish, and then Mexican, colonial administration that became Texas.  Attribution:  On This Day.

1857  Ft. Bridger torched by Mormon forces during the Mormon War.  Attribution:  On This Day.

1885  Those arrested for the Rock Springs riots were released.

1916   The Wyoming Tribune for October 7, 1916: Boston takes game one of the world series

Note, this is the 3:30 pm edition of the Tribune.

1917   The Cheyenne State Leader for Sunday, October 9, 1917.
 

Cheyenne turned its focus to central Wyoming oil.  The issue speaks for itself, and foreshadowed the future at that.

1917   Poster Saturday: 1917 World Series
 

Game Two of the 1917 World Series was played on this day in 1917:  The result was: the New York Giants 2 and the Chicago White Sox 7.  That put the Sox up two as they'd won the day prior 2 to 1.

1918

Countdown on the Great War: October 7, 1918.

1.  The Regency Council of Poland, a temporary council appointed by the Central Powers in support of their claim to create an independent Polish monarchy post war, declared Poland independent of Germany.  Handwriting on the wall?

2.  The Red Army captured Samara, a city on the Volga that in modern times has had a significant role in the Soviet then the Russian space program.

3.  Brigadier General Edward Sigerfoos became the only American general to be killed in action during World War One, although his promotion by a Congress unaware of his death was actually on October 10.  He had just assumed command of a brigade in the 28th Division an hour prior when he was mortally wounded on September 29.

4.  The same day Gen. Doyan of the Marine Corps, stationed to a training role in the United Stated, died of the Spanish Flu.

5. The flu was hitting the front pages of the Wyoming papers:

It was reported in Cheyenne that 285 cases of the Spanish Flu had been reported in Wyoming.

And in Casper "health authorities" were considering closing the schools.

1919  (Posted for 1919 Air Derby):  October 7, 1919. The White Sox Rally?

The Sox suddenly were back in the game on this October 7, 1919 game of the World Series.

Dicky Kerr was pitching again, the Sox's did well in a ten inning game.

On this same day, news hit the state of the impending start of a bit air race scheduled for this very week.  The race was sponsored by the Army Air Corps and was scheduled to commence on October 8.

In other news, the Germans, whom had been kept at first in the Baltic states by the Allies, but who had become very involved in the conflicts there, were being invited to leave.  And a terrible flood hit a small town in Colorado.

Cardinal Mercier continued his tour of Belgium, raising funds for the restoration of the Library at Leuven.  On this day, he spoke at Columbia.

In Czechoslovakia, the parliament was in session.

1935  United Airlines Trip 4 crashed outside of Cheyenne killing all 12 persons on board.

1941  Bandleader and Army Air Corps officer Glenn Miller donated 50 records to Ft. F. E. Warren.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1949   Ft. Francis E. Warren renamed Francis E. Warren Air Force Base with the USAF now having been established as a separate service.  Attribution:  On This Day.

1998  Matthew Shepard was found beaten, burned and tied to a wooden fence outside of Laramie.  He died several days later.  His murder by two young Laramie men became the most infamous murder in Wyoming since the 1970s.

2015  

 Rainy Day in Cheyenne.

Yesterday Governor Mead announced that he intends to trim $200,000,000 from next year's budget.  That's $200,000,000 from a $9,300,000,000 budget, so while its a decline, it's still not a decline that even takes a billion out of the budget.  It's also, it should be noted, a budget that reflects revenue from more than one source.  I.e., not just coal and oil.

But those coal and oil revenues are dropping, and the budgetary chickens are starting to come home to roost.

What will be trimmed hasn't really been announced yet, although there's some concern that the University of Wyoming will be among the state institutions hit. And it unfortunately comes at a time when a judiciary study shows that several Wyoming judicial districts could really use additional judges.

Even now I find some people in denial about the slow down having an impact, and I will say that in some cities around the state it seems construction is still going on like mad.  But certain signals are hard to ignore.

July 21

1860  Fenimore Chatterton, born in Oswego County, New York. He was a businessman, politician and lawyer who had relocated to Sheridan and then was elected Wyoming's Secretary of State in 1898, after having served in two terms of the legislature.  The death of Governor DeForest Richards made Chatterton governor in 1903, but he was not reelected in 1905.  He resumed the practice of law thereafter.

1867 Ft. D. A. Russell established outside of Cheyenne on  Crow Creek.  It survives as an active duty military post today, now as Warren Air Force Base.

Veterinary Hospital at F. E. Warren.

1885  Owen Wister was in Medicine Bow again, this time spending the night in the corner of a store.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1890  H. G. Welch demonstrated that strawberries could be raised on the Laramie Plains, which are generally at least 7,000 feet in elevation. Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1941  President Roosevelt asks Congress to extend the draft period from one year to 30 months and to make similar increases in the terms of service for the National Guard.

So much for the lyrics of one of the then popular songs:

GOODBYE DEAR, I'LL BE BACK IN A YEAR

Goodbye Dear, I'll be back in a year
'Cause I'm in the army now
They took my number right out of the hat
And there's nothing a guy can do about that

But when you get back you'll be all tanned and brown
Say, couldn't we buy that cottage right outside of town

Goodbye Dear, I'll be back in a year
Don't forget that I love you

Don't fear, Dear, I'll be here in a year
'Cause I'm true to the Army now
Ah, what a soldier, you wait and see
Why, I'll be a big gun in the artillery

Now honey, be sure and keep cozy and warm
Gee, you look cute in that new uniform:
Oh, goodbye Dear, I'll be back in a year
Don't forget that I love you

Goodbye Dear, well I'm here for a year
I'm in the Army now
But don't you worry, the General and I
Are the greatest of pals

Now, Ronnie, don't you lie
Well, he fixed it up so I could have breakfast in bed
Well, why are you peeling potatoes instead?
Oh, he's just kidding me
Good bye dear, I'll be back in a year
Don't forget that I

Don't forget that I
BOTH: Don't forget that I love you

Another versions (multiple versions in one year were common at the time):

Goodbye Dear, I'll be back in a year
'Cause I'm in the army now
They took my number out of the hat
And there's nothing a guy can do about that

But when I get back, I'll be all tanned and brown
And we'll buy that cottage just outside of town
So, goodbye Dear, I'll be back in a year
Don't forget that I love you

Goodbye Dear, I'll be back in a year
'Cause I'm in the army now
Don't I look handsome dressed up like this
Stop your cryin' and give your soldier a kiss

They may send me out to the old Philippines
But, Sweetheart, you'll still be the girl of my dreams
So, goodbye Dear, I'll be back in a year
Don't forget that I love you

1942  Big Horn County's Fair cancelled.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1952 John Barrasso born in Reading Pennsylvania.  He was appointed to the U.S. Senate after the death of Craig Thomas in 2007 and has been serving in that office since that date.

1974  The Campbell County Rockpile Museum opened.  Attribution:  On This Day.

1987  The most powerful tornado in Wyoming's history,  the Teton–Yellowstone tornado,an F4, touched down in Yellowstone National Park and left a path of destruction 1 to 2 miles wide, and 24 miles long while leveling 15,000 acres of mature pine forest.

2010  The State Code adopted by the Legislature.

Wyoming, like most states has a set of state symbols.  I think I've listed them all over time, including now this one, the most recent to be adopted.

I've generally abstained from commenting on the symbols, even though a few of them strike me as a bit odd. For example, we have a State Insect, which I don't know that we need.  But so be it.

Here, however, I can't help but comment.

The State Code I guess, is okay enough.  Here's the statute that sets it out:

 8-3-123. State code.

(a) The code of the west, as derived from the book Cowboy Ethics by James P. Owen, and summarized as follows  is the official state code of Wyoming. The code includes:

(i) Live each day with courage;

(ii) Take pride in your work;

(iii) Always finish what you start;

(iv) Do what has to be done;

(v) Be tough, but fair;

(vi) When you make a promise, keep it; 

(vii) Ride for the brand; 

(viii) Talk less, say more; 

(ix) Remember that some things are not for sale; 

(x) Know where to draw the line.

There's nothing in here in particular that I disagree with, although that "ride for the brand" item doesn't really reflect a lot of Wyoming's history very accurately.  The central conflict in the state from the 1876 to 1900 time frame really centered around individuals who started out riding for one brand, and then acquired their own brand and quit riding for the Brand No. 1.  Indeed, it might justifiably be argued that Individuals, rather than Ride For The Brand, is the true mark of a Wyomingite.

My greater problem, or perhaps irritation, with the State Code is, I suppose, similar to my comments regarding "state" authors, in that in supposedly finding a "code" that identifies us, we had to copy it from a Wall Street figure and not a Wyomingite.  The code comes from a book that Owens wrote in which he identified what he though were "Cowboy Ethics" and argued that this simple Code of the West could teach the nation something.  I'm not arguing that it couldn't, but I tend to doubt that a Wall Street figures is really capable of capturing the ethics of a class and group so very foreign to his own.

Again, as noted, having been around a lot of cowboys and rural workers, one thing I think is totally missing is that they all tend to have a high degree of independence and its not unusual at all to find actual working cowboys who switch employers a lot.  Perhaps they "ride for the brand", but often only briefly.  The "talk less, say more" item is a nice toss to a certain Gary Cooper view of the cowboy (and Gary Cooper was raised on a Montana ranch) but truth be told, being an isolated group, quite a few cowhands like to talk quite a bit, if given the opportunity to.  One Wyoming politician, the former Senator Simpson, is widely celebrated in Wyoming for his gift of gab at that, which has occasionally gotten him into trouble.  But the general list is not a bad one.  I only think it a bit sad that in order to define what our ethics are, we had to borrow them from a Wall Street figure who wrote what he thinks ours our.  It would seem that we could have defined them ourselves.

2022.  Wyoming Attorney General Bridget hill informed the Governor that nothing precluded Wyoming's "trigger law" prohibiting most abortions from going into effect following the Dobbs decision.

July 1

Today is Canada Day

It may seem odd to note this, but Wyoming has a strong connection with Canada.  Some of the state's early significant figures were Canadians, such as Tom Beau Soleil (Tom Sun).  The city of Casper was placed by merchants, one of whom was a Canadian.  Prior to statehood, Canadian metis travelled as far south as Wyoming's Powder River Basin, and during the early ranching days Wyoming cowboys ranged into Alberta for work.

1861  The first stagecoaches to use the Northern (Central) Route via Forts Kearny, Laramie and Bridger began to use that route, which was no doubt rather dangerous at the time.  Attribution:  On This Day.

1862  The US outlawed polygamy by way of the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act which also granted large tracts of public land to the states with the directive to sell for the support of institutions teaching the mechanical and agricultural arts. It also obligated state male university students to military training. The education initiative resulted in 68 land-grant colleges.  This act lead directly to the University of Wyoming (the land grant part, obviously).

The polygamy part of this was fairly obviously aimed at Mormon communities, principally in Utah but also in neighboring states.

1898  The pivitol battle of the Spanish American War, the Battle of El Canay and San Juan Heights, sees the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry,lead at that time by its former second in command, Theodore Roosevelt, the 17th U.S. Infantry, 10th U.S. Infantry, 21st U.S. Infantry, 13th U.S. Infantry, and the 10th U.S. Cavalry,  prevail.  While Wyoming's 2nd Volunteer Cavalry remained in the United States, this epic event does have some association with Wyoming, as some of the participants did.  It also saw the completion of Theodore Roosevelt's rise to hero status, something that was particularly the case in the West.  Also, there were a number of Wyoming citizens in the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry, and one Wyoming native in the 10th U.S. Cavalry and another in the 17th U.S. Infantry whose performance in action that day was quite notable.  The 10th U.S. Cavalry, it should be noted, was a segregated (ie., black) unit, whose officers were white, but whose enlisted men were black.

1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry

Medal of Honor Citations from this event associated with Wyoming:

BAKER, EDWARD L., JR.  Sergeant Major, 10th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Santiago, Cuba, 1 July 1898. Birth: Laramie County, Wyo. Date of issue: 3 July 1902. Citation: Left cover and, under fire, rescued a wounded comrade from drowning.

Baker is a very unusual example of a black soldier in the segregated Army as he was promoted to the rank of Captain following the Spanish American War and retired at that rank in 1902.  He was in a command position, at that rank, in the 49th Infantry.

ROBERTS, CHARLES D.Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, 17th U.S. Infantry. Place and date: At El Caney, Cuba, 1 July 1898. Entered service at: Fort D. A. Russell, Wyo. Birth: Fort D. A. Russell, Wyo. Date of issue: 21 June 1899. Citation: Gallantly assisted in the rescue of the wounded from in front of the lines under heavy fire of the enemy.

1916   Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower, married on this date in 1916 in Denver.
 

The Eisenhower's at his duty station in San Antonio, 1916.

On this date, in 1916, Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower wed in Denver Colorado, her hometown.  She was 19 years old, and he was 25. The wedding took place at her parents home and was presided over by a Presbyterian minister.  The couple met in San Antonio where she was attending finishing school, and where the family also wintered.  Her father was a meat packing executive for Doud & Montgomery and had retired at age 36.  Dwight Eisenhower was, of course, a serving office in the U.S. Army.  An excellent training officer, Eisenhower was not assigned a role that lead in his entering Mexico during the Punitive Expedition, and indeed he remained in the United States in a training role during World War One.

1919.  Wyoming's state prohibition act went into effect. I can't help but note that Prohibition went into effect immediately prior to the big 4th of July Holiday.

And of course, Wartime Prohibition ironically went into effect on the same day, although exactly what it prohibited remained unclear.

The Wyoming State Tribune took the occasion to have a really unusual front page, framed by a cartoon, the only example of that I've ever seen.

Casper noted John Barleycorn's passing for all time (the papers had persistently been, we'd note, on the "right side of history" on this one, i.e., for Prohibition and its inevitable triumph, but also noted the big July 4th celebration it was planning, which would stretch over three days.

The Cheyenne State Tribune was still featuring the Dempsey fight and advertising its upcoming Frontier Days.

The always sober Laramie Boomerang didn't even note the arrival of state prohibition.

1920  A parachutist died due to a parachute failure, above the Casper airport.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1931   The USS Wyoming BM-10 was redesignated as AG-17. Attribution:  On This Day.

1955 The LST-1077 renamed the USS Park County.

1963   The 90th Missile Wing was activated at Warren Air Force Base.Attribution:  On This Day.

2014   A special legislative committee of the Wyoming of the Wyoming Legislature has released its draft report finding that Education Secretary Hill is culpable of misconduct in her office which rise to the level of making her liable to impeachment. She will have fifteen days to comment on the draft, after which the final report will be issued.

As Hill is leaving off and has only six months left on her term, it would seem unlikely that the Legislature will convene in a special session to consider a bill of impeachment.  Hill is presently a Republican candidate for the governor's office where she is running against incumbent Republican governor Matt Mead.