Nast was America’s most influential political cartoonist from the Civil War to about the turn of the last century. Nast, a staunch Republican, used the jackass to portray what he thought were the Democrats: hardheaded, and downright stubborn. Surely the Democrats didn’t like it, but the symbol stuck, and they made the best of it. They kept the symbol, but called it a donkey, not an ass.

In 1874 and a few weeks before the election, Nast drew a cartoon of a rogue elephant for Harper’s Magazine. The rogue elephant represented the Republican voters, who he felt were being panicked by the Democrats. Apparently, some Democrats were spreading fears of the then running Republican president Ulysses S. Grant, who had been thinking of running for a 3^rd term. At the time, the system of a two term presidency, set by George Washington, and a tradition in Washington since, was a code that no one should violate. If you did violate it, you were stigmatized and considered ,or condemned as someone seeking an undemocratic grab of imperial power. I find it amusing that Theodore Roosevelt, a Democrat, was the first and only one to violate that code in the 30’s & 40’s. Nast’s rogue elephant was a rebuke at Harper’s Magazine’s editor James Gorden Benett who in a series of articles had criticized Grant’s thoughts of running for a 3^rd term.

Well, the Republicans kept the elephant as their symbol, after all, they liked to be thought of as tough, hoofed mammals having very thick skin, so the the elephant stuck. For the record, Nast is also responsible for shaping our image of Santa Claus. He created the face of the Santa Claus we’ve all come to know and love. And if you can believe it, Van Gogh was influenced by this cartoonist. It is said that Van Gogh had a collection of Nast illustrations in a bound volume which he referred to from time to time.

The issues of the late 1800’s have long gone, but the donkey and elephant are still here, and remain our political reference point whenever we see them.

References: The Greatest Stories Never Told, harpweek.com

It was the Democrats who fought to keep blacks in slavery and passed the discriminatory Black Codes and Jim Crow laws. The Democrats started the Ku Klux Klan to lynch and terrorize blacks. The Democrats fought to prevent the passage of every civil rights law beginning with the civil rights laws of the 1860s, and continuing with the civil rights laws of the 1950s and 1960s.

Now looking at this fact, do you really think MLK would have had anything to do with the Democratic party? I really don’t think so. It’s a no brainer. I think today, many want to believe he was, but all facts point to the contrary. You don’t have to take my word for it. After I read Rice’s article I am thoroughly convinced that MLK was a Republican. Not only for religious reasons, but also because the Republican party stood for the very same principles he stood and  fought for.

Sources: Frances Rice’s Article, MLK was a Conservative-Republican

Ooh, just the thought of that makes me cringe! Horace Wells takes his wife out on a date on December 10, 1844. Horace was a dentist who more than likely had been using the crude methods of the day when he removed teeth. The show he and his wife were going to see was going to be performed by a “Professor” Gardner Quincy Colton. Part of the act was having volunteers from the audience inhale laughing gas. And we all know what happens when you inhale laughing gas. You basically act drunk, have uncontrollable laughter, and say and do stupid things. This amused the audience. On this night, one of the participants ran into the audience chasing an imaginary enemy. When he returned to his seat, he realized he had a lacerated leg, but didn’t start to feel pain until the effects of the gas wore off.

Horace immediately thought how this laughing gas could be used in dentistry. He asked the Professor to come to his practice so they could perform a tooth extraction using nitrous oxide (laughing gas). Horace had a patient who had a troublesome tooth and used him as the guinea pig. The professor administered enough gas to render the poor soul unconscious. One of Horace’s assistants removed the tooth successfully without any pain to the patient. After this success the professor and Horace become partners and collaborate to perform pain-free operations on several patients. They used a crude method to administer the gas, but it worked, and it appeared complication-free.

After about a dozen operations Horace’s assistant, William Morton urges him to go public with it. Reluctantly he agrees to give a lecture and demonstration at Massachusetts General Hospital. But unfortunately, it was a major flop. When the gas was administered to the patient, they had removed the gasbag too soon. The patient was in a twilight sleep, but not completely unconscious when his tooth was extracted. The patient testified that he felt pain, although not as bad as when he wasn’t given any anesthetic. He couldn’t repeat the demonstration as there were no other patients present. The doctors brushed him off, and considered the demonstration a “humbug affair.” They booed him out the lecture hall. Embarrassed and defeated he returned home and sold his practice. He became even more morose when he finds out his assistant, Morton had developed an ether-based anesthesia and was using it in hospitals with great success.

He lived in France for a while, but couldn’t revived his career. He moved back to the states and started to experiment with chloroform which made him increasingly unhinged. He attacks two prostitutes with sulfuric acid and is sent to prison, where he commits suicide. He cut a large artery in his leg, after inhaling chloroform to stop the pain. He used his anesthesia research to help him commit his own painless death.

The 1920’s or the Jazz age has always fascinated me. So much happened, so quickly to change the world. One of the things that happened was the birth of the Flapper. The Flapper embraced all things new and modern. Out with the Victorian rules, and in with the modern, young, and the carefree. WW I birthed the flapper and the flapper ways. Many came back from the war disillusioned. When they returned from the war the old world order crammed their style.

The flapper cuts her hair short, the hem lines come up, they use make up, they experiment with sex, alcohol, drugs, and they danced the night away. It was a rebellion of sorts and once the flapper came out, there was no turning back.

One of the interesting things the Flapper did was to encourage the flat-chested look in women. Understand that Victorian women were robust, they were aging by this point, and the clothing and look of the flapper was out their reach.Everyone in the 1920’s wanted to have that slender flat-chested, tanned body and face of a 15-year-old. Women rushed to the beauty salons, health clubs, anybody that could help them achieve “the look.” You can imagine how hard it was for the aging Victorian women who were used to wearing the boring matronly dresses. Leaders of fashion had to change and change quick because the Flapper was all the rage.

Now if you were naturally flat-chested, you did ok, but what if you weren’t? Bras at the time were more like bodices or camisoles, they offered no support. This wasn’t going to work for the top heavy gals. The top heavy girls resorted to bandaging their breasts flat. Others would purchase a bra made at the time called Symington Side Lacer, basically a bra that laced at both sides and when pulled would flatten the chest. Women looking like boys was a fashion statement. My how things have changed huh?

Many believe that the women’s movement and the sexual revolution started back in the 60’s, I disagree, it started in the 20’s. The Flapper gave up the restricting clothing way before the liberated women burned their bras. The Women’s suffrage movement was in full swing, and women gave up a lot of the inhibitions imposed on them by society. I can’t say that all was for the good. Some good came out of this, and some bad too. But I suppose it comes with the territory.

The Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne decides he and his wife Sopie will visit one of the empire’s territories, Bosnia. Things are not stable in Bosnia, in fact, things are hot, and the Archduke is not popular. And among those who despised the Archduke was a 19-year-old named Gavilo Princip, a Slavic Nationalist. In Princip’s mind killing the Archduke meant freedom for the people of Bosnia, Serbia joined forces with Bosnia to rid themselves of what they thought was an oppressor of the people.

June 28^th comes, and the Archduke and his wife are in a motorcade in Bosnia. The plot is to kill him as he drives through Sarajevo. One of the would-be assassins throws a bomb at the Archduke’s car. The Archduke narrowly escapes. The story goes that the Archduke insisted on visiting an aid at a hospital, who had been hurt in the blast.  His driver completely unfamiliar with the roads makes a wrong turn and decides to ask for directions of a young man on the road. The young man on the road must’ve looked defeated, lifeless, as he, unbeknownst to the driver, was one of the conspirators involved in the foiled plot. You can imagine his surprise when he realizes, he’s got a second chance to kill the Archduke! And so he drew his pistol and killed the Archduke and his wife. And the course of events started from that point on. It was as if this part of the world was boiling for a very long time and the shot sparked a flame which started an explosion which has reverberated up on until the present day.

References: Rick Beyer, The Greatest Stories Never Told , (2003),

“Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, 1914,” EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (1998)

In 1612 Pocahontas was taken captive by the Englishmen. She asked about John Smith and was told he had died. She was told this lie by John Rolfe who unbeknownst to her wanted her for himself. And in 1614 John Rolfe married her, she learned English, and was given the Christian name of Rebecca. In 1616 she accompanied her husband to England and it is here she finds out that John Smith is in fact alive, is married and has several children. Her husband John lied to her.  John Smith went to see Rebecca and according to a note in his journal, it was a quick visit, and Rebecca was not well. He said: “After a modest salutation, without any word, she turned about, obscured her face as not seeming well contented and in that humor…we all left her…”

The day she, her son and husband were going to return to America, at the age of 21, Rebecca lapsed into a coma and died. But what killed her? Was it a broken heart? Did her husband speak the truth when he said Rebecca developed a fever the same day of her departure? Or was she murdered by a husband who became consumed with jealously? We will never know. The answer lies in an unmarked grave in St. George Church cemetery, located some twenty miles east of London.

In 1625 the fortress town of New Amsterdam on Manhattan Island was founded by Wilem Verhulst, director of the Dutch West India Company. This making Manhattan Island the first permanent European settlement in what we now know as part of New York City, or as I call it, the heart of New York City. In 1626 Verhulst’s successor bought the Island from the Lenape for 60 guilders worth of goods. The value of these goods equaled $24.00, which in today’s currency works out to about $500-$700 dollars!

Now, bear in mind, the Lenape people had no concept of  land ownership. As far as they were concerned land could not be owned by anyone. Land, in their mind was like water, and air, there for all to partake in, freely. They saw the goods as a gesture of appreciation to them for sharing the land with the Europeans. They lived in peace for a little while. When the Lenape people later wanted the land back, the settlers built a wall to keep them out. That wall later became what we know as Wall Street where the New York Stock Exchange stands today. Think about that when you visit Wall Street next time.

Soon the girls exhibited odd behavior at home. They’d kicked and screamed, had fainting spells, spoke to apparitions, and complained of being bitten, and strangled by unseen hands. The more attention their families gave them, the more bizarre the outbursts. Just like a teenager… Soon the families and church became concerned and the only explanation they had for this was…it’s the devil’s work, and it must be stopped. After being questioned by their families and the church elders, the girls claimed that “witches” were the cause. The church leaders went on the hunt for the witches. They identified who they thought was a witch, most of which were elderly women. The poor women didn’t stand a chance…they all were tried (if you want to call it a trial) and hanged. In all, 20 women were hanged. These hunts and hangings went on for 2 years. The frenzy in these hunts was so bad that soon dogs were being accused of witchcraft. Two poor dogs were found guilty of witchcraft and were hanged.

How did this travesty happen? What motivated these young girls to do such a thing? The answer may lie in drugs. Some historians believe that the problem was Ergotism. Ergot is a fungus which grows in moldy grain and contains a mind-altering drug. Ergotism outbreaks, which affected entire regions, were common in Europe during the middle ages. But little was known of Ergot’s hallucinogenic effects in 17^th century America. Today, ergot is used in drugs that help those with migraine headaches. If ergot is taken in its pure state, it becomes a powerful hallucinogenic. It is known to also cause disorientation, and even death.

The theory is that Tituba knew about the powerful drug in ergot, and introduced the young girls to the drug. Since Tituba knew a lot about sorcery, and voo-doo, it is speculated that she also knew of toxins, their sources, and effects. Historians believe that the girls were introduced to the grain and that they continued to consume it in greater quantities on their own. This can very well explain their bizarre behavior. Can we say that Tituba was also responsible for the 20 innocent women who were hanged? I believe that Tituba was playing with fire when she dabbled with the dark world and the drug world as well.  I don’t think she ever expected what happened. But 20 innocent women paid the price nonetheless.

What was written in these diaries have enough material for a good book on Todd’s mental state during the Lincoln Administration. But let’s talk about her spending. It is disclosed in the diaries that Mary had expensive taste and didn’t spare any expense to get what she wanted.  The first lady basically engaged in outright “misappropriation of public funds.” Among the items she bought, the diary mentions, 300 pairs of expensive kid gloves, dresses in the amount of $2000 each, some she never even wore! And when she left the White House she took everything that was not nailed down. Bear in mind she is doing this while an expensive war is being fought, and the soldiers fighting it were getting paid a mere $13.00 a month. Had the nation known she was doing this, they would’ve taken to the streets. I can see how they wanted to protect the image of the First Lady.

Before we pass judgment on poor Mary, we must understand she was mad. In these same diaries there is talk of her violent temper, public outbursts, and horrible treatment of her husband. There is mention of her physically and verbally abusing her husband. Her mental instability was no secret however, all of DC knew it.  Her bizarre behavior had no limits, if you crossed her, she’d let you know. Early Lincoln biographers took great care of protecting Mary’s image. Some historians say that these early biographers felt that a lot of the information they gathered about the Lincolns was “considered improper for publication” at the time. Things like Mary throwing coffee at Lincoln’s face in public, throwing potatoes at him, and smacking him in the face with a piece of firewood.

Mary Todd Lincoln wasn’t liked in DC by many because of her mental instability. Lincoln however, remained with his wife. But I can’t say he did it because he “loved” her. I think he felt responsible for her condition and so took care of her. A rumor at the time spread all around that Mary became mad because of a sexually transmitted disease she got from her husband early on in their marriage. Although this is a rumor, it may be true. This was very common in those days.

Source: That’s not in my American History Book-
Thomas Ayres

How did it become the South’s anthem? On the inauguration of Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate States, “Dixie” was played, and he must’ve liked the tune so much because it became the marching song for the Confederate army. This tune spread like wildfire across the south and soon everyone was whistling “Dixie.”

The damned Yankee, Emmett, was aghast because he was a staunch Union supporter. He is quoted as saying, “If I’d known to what use they were going to put my song, I’ll be damned if I’d have written it!” Hum…a damned Yankee he truly was.

I think Lincoln may have had a beef with this because the day after Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox, a band outside the White House was asked to play the famous “Dixie.” And Lincoln is quoted as saying, “I have always thought Dixie one of the best tunes I ever heard.” He continues, “Our adversaries over the way attempted to appropriate it, but we have fairly captured it.”  The song continued its popularity for quite a while, in fact, at age 80 Emmett made a farewell tour and sang the song to standing ovations all across the country.

Source, The Greatest Stories Never Told