A Graceful Compliment

"Among the charming women who, in 1784, adorned the Court of Charlotte of Mecklenburg Strelitz (or, more properly to speak, the English capital for scarcely could that queen be said to have any court), might well be accounted Lady Payne, afterward Lady Lavington. Her person and manners were full of winning grace. At her house, in Grafton Street, the politicians of her day frequently met; and Erskine having once dined there, found himself so indisposed as to be obliged to retire after dinner to another apartment. Lady Payne, who was incessant in her attentions to him, inquired when he returned to the company, how he found himself. Erskine took out a bit of paper and wrote on it:

'Tis true I am ill, but I cannot complain,
For he never knew Pleasure who never knew Payne.'"

~The American Magazine (1883)

First Photograph

This is the first permanent photograph ever taken. Discovered in 2002, this photograph was taken by Nicéphore Niépce in 1825. It depicts an engraving of a young boy leading a horse into a stable. It sold at auction for 450,000 euros.

The Peccavi Pun

In the 19th century General Charles Napier of the British Army arrived at the province of Sindh, then a part of India but now part of Pakistan. Since this was a time of great and rapid British expansion in India, British leaders feared that they were over extending themselves and would thus be unable to effectively manage a territory as far north as Sindh. Napier was thus given direct orders to not capture Sindh. Napier, however, quickly noticed that there was very little resistance in the territory and so he decided to take it anyway, which he did with little trouble. After the capture, he is said to have reported the conquest by sending back a one-word message - "Peccavi" - which is Latin for "I have sinned." Peccavi here meant both "I have Sindh" and "I have sinned", since he took the province but at the same time disobeyed superior orders.

Emperor Norton I

There have been many great characters in history. The following is a brief account on one of my favorites.

Joshua Abraham Norton (c. 1819 – January 8, 1880), the self-proclaimed His Imperial Majesty Emperor Norton I, was a celebrated citizen of San Francisco, California, who in 1859 proclaimed himself "Emperor of these United States" and "Protector of Mexico." Born in London, Norton spent most of his early life in South Africa; he emigrated to San Francisco in 1849 after receiving a bequest of $40,000 from his father's estate. Norton initially made a living as a businessman, but he lost his fortune investing in Peruvian rice.

After losing a lawsuit in which he tried to void his rice contract, Norton left San Francisco. He returned a few years later, apparently mentally unbalanced, claiming to be the emperor of the United States. Although he had no political power, and his influence extended only so far as he was humored by those around him, he was treated deferentially in San Francisco, and currency issued in his name was honored in the establishments he frequented.

Though he was considered insane, or at least highly eccentric, the citizens of San Francisco celebrated his regal presence and his proclamations, most famously, his "order" that the United States Congress be dissolved by force (which Congress and the U.S. Army ignored) and his numerous decrees calling for a bridge and a tunnel to be built across San Francisco Bay. On January 8, 1880, Norton collapsed at a street corner, and died before he could be given medical treatment. The following day, nearly 30,000 people packed the streets of San Francisco to pay homage to Norton. The San Francisco Chronicle published his obituary on its front page under the headline "Le Roi est Mort" ("The King is Dead"). In a tone tinged with sadness, the article respectfully reported the following:

"On the reeking pavement, in the darkness of a moonless night under the dripping rain, and surrounded by a hastily gathered crowd of wondering strangers, Norton I, by the grace of God, Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, departed this life. Other sovereigns have died with no more of kindly care--other sovereigns have died as they have lived with all the pomp of earthly majesty, but death having touched them, Norton I rises up the exact peer of the haughtiest King or Kaiser that ever wore a crown. Perhaps he will rise more than the peer of most of them. He had a better claim to kindly consideration than that his lot 'forbade to wade through slaughter to a throne and shut the gates of mercy on mankind.' Through his harmless proclamations can always be traced an innate gentleness of heat, a desire to effect uses and a courtesy, the possession of which would materially improve the bitterful living princes whose names will naturally suggest themselves."

This information is taken from Emperor Norton's wikipedia page. For more information please go here, here, and here. His complete obituary is here.

Topsy

Topsy the elephant, who performed with the Forepaugh Circus, had killed three men in three years (the last being a drunk trainer who mistreated her). Her owners, seeing her as a threat, decided that she had to be executed. After discussing several means of execution Thomas Edison suggested electrocuting her with alternating current. On January 4, 1903 Topsy was given copper-lined sandals, was covered in electrodes, and then received the current from a 6,600 volt AC source. She died in a matter of seconds. Edison captured the whole event on film and later released it under the title "Electrocuting an Elephant." On July 20, 2003 a memorial was erected for Topsy at the Coney island museum.



Here is Topsy's wikipedia page. Here is more information on the event.

Pythagoras's Student

"One story claims that a young student by the name of Hippasus was idly toying with the number √2, attempting to find the equivalent fraction. Eventually he came to realize that no such fraction existed, i.e. that √2 is an irrational number. Hippasus must have been overjoyed by his discovery, but his master was not. Pythagoras had defined the universe in terms of rational numbers, and the existence of irrational numbers brought his ideal into question. The consequence of Hippasus’ insight should have been a period of discussion and contemplation during which Pythagoras ought to have come to terms with this new source of numbers. However, Pythagoras was unwilling to accept that he was wrong, but at the same time he was unable to destroy Hippasus’ argument by the power of logic. To his eternal shame he sentenced Hippasus to death by drowning."

~ Simon Singh, from Fermat's Last Theorem (1998)

Mighty Mary

On September 12, 1916 Mary the circus elephant killed her assistant trainer Red Eldridge after he apparently poked her behind the ear with a hook as she was about to eat a watermelon rind. The locals immediately demanded her death and newspapers falsified reports that she had killed before. After receiving boycott threats, Charlie Sparks, owner of the circus Mary performed at, decided that the only reasonable way to prevent his business from failing was to publicly execute Mary. On September 13, 1916 Mary was taken to the Clinchfield Railroad yard in Erwin, Tennessee where she was to be hung from an industrial crane. The first attempt failed resulting in Mary receiving a broken hip among other grave injuries. After a thicker chain was placed around her neck she was hung again and after a few minutes Mighty Mary died. This incident remains the only known elephant hanging in history.



For more info go to Mighty Mary's wikipedia entry. For a more detailed account go here.

Futile Search

Diogenes of Sinope was once seen in a marketplace holding a lantern, apparently looking for something. Curious onlookers asked him what he was doing, to which he replied, "I am looking for an honest man."