History Unwrapped – December 2005

December 30, 2005 – Long Speech Saves Teddy

Teddy Roosevelt was the ultimate long-winded speaker. On at least one occasion it saved his life--his manuscript of the speech was so thick that it stopped an assassin’s bullet! On October 14, 1912, Theodore Roosevelt, the United States Progressive Party’s (“Bullmoose Party”) presidential candidate, was shot by anarchist William Schrenk when Roosevelt was leaving the Milwaukee hotel where he had eaten dinner after arriving in the city. As Roosevelt clutched his chest, he instructed his Secret Service agents not to hurt Schrenk and informed them that he wanted a look at the would-be assassin. He then continued by automobile to the auditorium where he was scheduled to deliver a speech. Roosevelt collapsed after an hour and was rushed to the hospital. The papers of the speech that Roosevelt carried in his breast pocked had been thick enough to slow down the penetration of the bullet and saved his life. Woodrow Wilson and William Howard Taft, Democrat and Republican presidential candidates respectively, suspended their campaigns until Roosevelt was released from the hospital. But not even the sympathy vote could garner enough votes to help send Teddy Roosevelt to the White House again.

December 29, 2005 – “Bizarro Games” of 1904

The third summer Olympic Games ever were held in St. Louis, Missouri in 1904 and will remain the most bizarre on record. The organizers included certain events that would permit “primitive” tribes, such as Pygmies and Patagonians, to compete separately. The “primitives” entered events that included mud fighting, greased-pole climbing, rock throwing, and spear throwing. The “primitive” events were held on dates that were referred to as the “Anthropology Days.” Indigenous men from throughout the world, who were participants in the Fair exhibits, competed in the various events of “Anthropology Days.” The games lasted from July 1 to November 23, with one event held each day. The World’s Fair was held in St. Louis at this time and the Olympic Games were stretched out to last as long as the Fair. The marathon was probably the most bizarre event of the Games. The first to arrive at the finish line, was just running back to retrieve his clothes after dropping out of the race at nine miles. When the officials thought he had come in first, he played along until the mistake was discovered after the medal ceremony. The next athlete to cross the finish line had been given several doses of strychnine sulfate and brandy by his trainers. He had to be supported when he crossed the finish line and could have died had it not been for treatment from doctors. The man who came in ninth had run more than a kilometer off track while being chased by a dog. The Games were such a fiasco that they were reheld two years later in Athens in an attempt to get the Games back on a more dignified footing.

December 28, 2005 – Missing Link Becomes the Greatest Scientific Fraud

During the early 20th century, the scientific community was eagerly searching for evidence that would prove the evolutionary relationship between man and ape. In 1912, Charles Dawson “discovered” an artifact that created excitement among evolutionists. His discovery was part of a skull that had the jawbone of an ape with a high forehead of a man. This was the missing link they had been searching for that clearly showed the connection between man and ape. But after decades of debate, scientists concluded that the discovery was nothing more than a huge hoax. Piltdown Man, the name given to the discovery, was definitely not the evidence many were looking for—the jawbone was actually from an orangutan and the skull was that of a medieval human. The two pieces had been buried together at the Piltdown site near Piltdown, England. Dawson died before the fraud was discovered, but it was concluded that he had been motivated by the desire for fame and recognition. The hoax set the evolutionary theory back for years while researchers worked ineffectively to integrate a fake skull into the fossil record. “The first to plead his case seems right, until another comes and examines him” (Proverbs 18:17).

The expression “Let Them Eat Cake” has often been attributed to Marie Antoinette, the frivolous French queen and wife of Louis XVI in the days leading up to the French Revolution. She is supposed to have spoken these insensitive words when hearing that the peasants had no bread to eat. No evidence has been found that proves the queen ever spoke these words or anything similar. Many stories about Marie Antoinette’s excesses were exaggerated. In the unsettled times prior to the French Revolution, she and Louis were placed in harm’s way by elements of their personalities and by the shifting winds of political and social ideology. When the mob descended on the palace at Versailles in 1789 and moved the royal family to a palace outside Paris, the king and queen’s roles changed from rulers to prisoners. Prior to their imprisonment, Antoinette had tried to get help from other rulers and had even attempted to flee Paris. When Austria and Prussia declared war on France, she was accused of passing military secrets to the enemy. The tumultuous times did not seek truth; truth became what one wanted to believe regardless of evidence. Unfortunately for Louis and Antoinette, it also meant their execution. Louis XVI went to the guillotine first. Then the couples’ children were taken from Antoinette, and her best friend was killed and her severed head placed atop a pole and paraded in front of the Queen. Antoinette was executed without proof of her accused crimes at the age of 37. Absolute monarchy was exchanged for democracy (mob rule) and many more thousands of innocents would lose their lives.

Beethoven called George Frederic Handel the greatest composer who ever lived. Handel was born in Germany in 1685, the same year as Johann Sebastian Bach was born only 50 miles away. His father had hoped he would study law, but Handel chose music. At 17, he was appointed organist of the Calvinist Cathedral and a year later left for Hamburg where he played the violin and harpsichord in the opera house. Handel accepted an invitation to Italy where his operas were performed. He also wrote music for the church and the royal court. Like the musician Bach, Handel suffered with cataracts in his old age and underwent crude surgery without anesthesia. Bach would die from infection brought on by the use of un-sterile instruments. If Handel received any improvement in his sight as a result of this surgery, it was minimal at best. After undergoing two more operations, Handel was left totally blind. His Messiah is one of his most recognized works. In the mid 1700s, Handel was at a low point in his career and in poor health. After wandering the streets one night, he returned to his room where an envelope was waiting for him. The man who wrote the text to his operas had delivered the envelope. The pages were full of scripture. Handel tried to sleep, but the words kept returning to him. Finally, he set to work, often going without sleep or food, and in 24 days, his magnificent work was completed. In London, King George II was so moved during the “Hallelujah Chorus” that he rose to his feet—a custom that continues. Handel exclaimed of his composition, “I do believe I have seen all of Heaven before me, and the great God Himself.”

Football star and Olympic legend, James Francis Thorpe, was called the greatest athlete in the world by the king of Sweden. There is no doubt Jim Thorpe did what no other athlete in history has done: The American Indian won gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon at the 1912 Olympic Games in Sweden and played both professional football and professional baseball. His feats on the football field put him on the 1911 and 1912 All-American football teams. In 1920 he became the first president of the American Professional Football Association (later to become the NFL). While a student at Carlisle Indian Industrial School, Thorpe played semiprofessional baseball one summer. At the time, the Olympics had no specific rules about mixing professional and amateur sports. But the two gold medals Thorpe won in the pentathlon and decathlon in 1912 were stripped from him. After tirelessly battling the International Olympic Committee, daughter Grace Thorpe finally got the medals returned in 1982. After playing professional baseball, Thorpe became an alcoholic and destitute. He lived long enough to see Burt Lancaster portray him in a movie of his life. In 1999, a senate resolution recognized him as “athlete of the century.” He is the only American athlete to excel at both the amateur and professional level in three major sports: track and field, baseball, and football. Jim Thorpe easily deserves the title of “Athlete of the Century.”

One would assume that the town named Jim Thorpe originated from the town hero, Jim Thorpe. Not so. The townspeople of Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania were desperate to revitalize their town with tourism dollars and in 1954, changed the town’s name to Jim Thorpe to honor the Olympic hero. Jim Thorpe had no connection to the town during his lifetime. In 1953, the year Thorpe died, Mauch Chunk, no longer a coalmining center and shipping port, launched a plan to attract business, funded by every household contributing a nickel a week. Thorpe’s body lay in a mausoleum in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The governor had vetoed a bill that would have set aside money for a monument for the athlete. His discouraged widow, while on a visit to Philadelphia to meet with the commissioner of the National Football League, Bert Bell, saw a television telecast about Mauch Chunk and its nickel-a-week revitalization fund. She made an agreement with the town, that if it changed its name to Jim Thorpe and erected a memorial to her husband, she would help get the Pro Football Hall of Fame built there (Thorpe had been the first president of the American Professional Football Association), along with the Jim Thorpe Memorial Heart and Cancer Hospital. A deal was struck. Mauch Chunk changed its name and Thorpe got his memorial. But Bert Bell died before he could carry out his end of the bargain, and the Football Hall of Fame went to Canton, Ohio, where Thorpe had played professional football. Thorpe’s mausoleum remained in old Mauch Chunk where it can still be seen today.

One of the wealthiest men of Chicago when he died in 1943, Henry Parsons Crowell, founder of Quaker Oats, gave away nearly 70 percent of his earnings for more than 40 years. Born into a wealthy family in 1855 and endowed with a large inheritance after the death of his father, Crowell had the opportunity to live well and do little. He chose to work hard, never compromising, even when doing so would bring him more prosperity. His shrewd business sense and marketing genius brought him to the highest levels in business as the founder of the Quaker Oats Company and other major enterprises. Crowell viewed all things as a stewardship from God. Businessmen over the years came to know Jesus Christ personally because of the influence of Henry Parsons Crowell. In whatever he did, Crowell sought to honor God whether it was through business or his 40 years as chairman of the Board of Moody Bible Institute. The Henry Parsons Crowell and Susan Coleman Crowell Trust carefully states that the purpose of the Trust is to fund the teaching and active extension of the doctrines of evangelical Christianity. Today, more than 75 years later, that directive still guides the Trustees as they disperse funds from the Trust to organizations whose missions are in line with Mr. Crowell’s vision. His vision and mission have blessed hundreds of ministries every year all around the world.

From an inner-city kid to a renowned neurosurgeon, Dr. Benjamin Carson, nicknamed “Gentle Ben” by his colleagues, is a legend. In 1987, Dr. Carson gained worldwide recognition for his part in the first successful separation of Siamese twins joined at the back of the head. Carson was raised in inner-city Detroit by a mother with a third-grade education. He lacked motivation, had terrible grades, and a pathological temper that threatened to put him in jail. Sonya Carson envisioned more for her son than a life stuck in the ghetto. She convinced her son that he could make something of himself. To help both of her sons reach their intellectual potential, Sonya Carson turned off the television at home and required each of her sons to read at least two books a week and write a report on each for her to read. Trust in a divine power and a relentless belief in his own capabilities thrust Ben Carson to the top of his class and helped him capture a full scholarship to Yale. He graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School and at age 33, became the director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, a position he has held since 1984. He is also Professor of Neurosurgery, Plastic Surgery, Oncology, and Pediatrics and is Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Craniofacial Center. Dr. Carson has written over 90 neurosurgical publications and has been awarded 24 honorary degrees and is the author of three best selling books. This remarkable surgeon, who performs “miracles” using his God-given abilities, is a model to all the youth of today. Dr. Carson remains a humble God-fearing doctor who lives to help others.

William Macready, the British actor, had been barraged by the audience with eggs, rotten potatoes, and chairs at his portrayal of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” at the Astor Place Opera House in New York. The outraged gentry promised protection if the star would only continue his engagement. The mayor had even called out the National Guard. The performance on May 10, 1849 was an even greater disaster. When the police attempted to remove the hecklers inside the theater, the mob of 15,000 outside began to hurl stones. The order was given to fire. Twenty-two people lay dead, nine more later died of injuries, and fifty others were seriously wounded. In spite of the mayhem outside the theater, Macready finished the show, but he left the building in disguise and fled to Boston. American actor, Edwin Forrest, was thought to have been behind the chaos on Astor Place. Forrest blamed Macready for his own bad reviews when he had performed “King Lear” in London four years earlier. The American actor filled U.S. newspapers with reports of his shabby treatment by the British and went out of his way to schedule performances in competition with Macready’s American tour. The public took sides in the rivalry which resulted in the Astor Place tragedy.

Dr. James Naismith was an ordained Presbyterian minister, a medical doctor, an educator and leader who led an exemplary life. During a rugby game when he was a senior in seminary at McGill University, one of his teammates uttered a profanity, then immediately apologized to Naismith explaining that “I forgot you were there.” These words impacted Naismith’s life. The idea of helping men develop character through athletics and ministry took hold. Naismith was the physical education teacher at Springfield College in Massachusetts for five years. The college was the Y.M.C.A. training school at the time. He received an “order’ from his superior to invent a game that could be played indoors during the winter. In 1891, Naismith came up with basketball, incorporating some aspects of lacrosse and soccer into the new sport. At first, players dribbled a soccer ball up and down the court. Points were scored when the ball landed in a peach basket. In 1893, iron hoops and hammock-style nets were introduced, but it wasn’t until another decade passed before open-ended nets were used, eliminating having to manually retrieve the ball from the basket each time a goal was scored. Dr. Naismith did not receive fame or fortune from the game that he invented. That was never his intention as he set about to engage young college men with excess energy in an indoor game within a small space during the long cold winter.

Henry Ford usually comes to mind when we think of the first automobile. But years before Henry Ford sold his first car, an Italian, Guido da Vigevano, designed a windmill type “car” with gears and wheels in 1335. Even Leonardo Da Vinci got into the act by designing a clockwork-driven tricycle with tiller steering and a differential mechanism between the rear wheels. A Catholic priest was said to have built a steam powered vehicle for a Chinese emperor in 1678. The first recorded vehicle to move under its own power was in 1769. Its replica is displayed at a conservatory in Paris. The vehicle weighed 8,000 pounds and traveled two miles per hour tops. It was great for hauling cannons around town, especially since it had a tendency to tip over frontward, and the heavy cannon kept the vehicle balanced. Siegfried Marcus of Mecklenburg, Germany, built a car in 1868, which was exhibited at the Vienna Exhibition in 1873. One of his four cars can still be driven under its own power. Steam cars were built in America prior to the Civil War, but they were like small train locomotives. From the 1870s until 1900, every American town had a mad scientist working on some sort of steam powered car. The first gasoline powered car in America was built in 1893 by Charles and Frank Duryea. They installed a 4 HP, single cylinder gasoline engine onto a secondhand horse drawn buggy. In 1896, Henry Ford sold his first car, which was called a Quadracycle, for $200. Ford’s Model T would not become available until 1908, making Ford the father of 20th century American industry.

Pocahontas is the nickname given to Matoaka the lively daughter of Powhatan, Indian ruler or emperor of the land named Virginia by the English settlers. Pocahontas became her father’s favorite. The story of Pocahontas saving Captain John Smith’s life is true according to Smith, who later wrote of his adventures. Smith could be somewhat braggy and tended to exaggerate. The incident may have been more of an Indian ritual than anything else. Pocahontas kept the colonists from starving that first winter (1607-08) by keeping them supplied with plenty of food. Several years later, Pocahontas was kidnapped and held for ransom. Powhatan was asked to return English prisoners in exchange for his daughter. Not all of the demands were met, and Pocahontas

continued to live among the settlers. She began her education in the Christian faith at the Henrico settlement, and it was there that she met John Rolfe in 1613. John Rolfe was a very religious man who agonized many weeks over his decision to marry a heathen Indian. Pocahontas converted to Christianity, “for the good of the plantation, the honor of our country, for the glory of God, for mine own salvation…” and married Rolfe. They sailed to London in 1616 with their young son Thomas where Pocahontas was presented to the best of London society, including the royal family, and reunited with Capt. Smith. Seven months later on the return voyage to America, Pocahontas became deathly ill and died at the age of 22.

Phineas Taylor (P.T.) Barnum was born in Connecticut in 1810 and displayed a flair for showmanship at an early age. Barnum has been called the Shakespeare of advertising. He certainly earned it many times over. Quite the huckster, 25-year-old P.T. Barnum earned $1,500 week exhibiting a woman who claimed to be 161 years old and the nurse of George Washington!. It wasn’t until Barnum was 60 that his P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Circus made its debut, the largest circus in American history at the time. It grossed $400,000 the first year. Joining forces with James A. Bailey, the circus became known as The Barnum and Bailey Greatest Show on Earth. A new word was introduced with Barnum’s acquisition of Jumbo, the elephant, one of his biggest successes. He also introduced the world to Tom Thumb, the original Siamese twins Chang and Eng, and Jenny Lind the Singing Nightingale

P.T. Barnum was affected by the preachers he encountered in his youth and as an adult, became active in the Universalist Church. After suffering a stroke at the age of 80 that would cause his death within months, Barnum continued to recite prayers from his church’s devotional each morning. His wife wrote later that he would retire each night uttering the words “Thy will be done.” Barnum asked the New York Evening Sun to publish his obituary on its front page so that he could see it in print. The newspaper obliged.

Christians who are not part of liturgical church traditions may not understand the “Twelve Days of Christmas.” The twelve days refer to the twelve days from Christmas until the beginning of Epiphany (January 6). The twelve days include December 25th through January 5th. In the Western church, Epiphany is traditionally celebrated as the time the three Wise Men arrived bearing gifts for the young Jesus. Nativity scenes often exhibit the Wise Men along with the shepherds at the manger. This is incorrect, as the Magi arrived at a later time when Jesus and his parents were living in a home (Matt. 2:11).

The popular song “The Twelve Days of Christmas” is viewed by many as just fun nonsense lyrics for children. But others suggest that it is full of hidden religious instruction dating to the 16th century when religious persecution was prevalent. It was used to teach children the catechism. The “true love” in the song is supposed to be God Himself. Each of the twelve days represents some aspect of the Christian faith. Whether or not “The Twelve Days of Christmas” was written simply for children’s enjoyment or for religious instruction, we can still enjoy the song’s delightful lyrics and melody.

A child named Nicholas was born in A.D. 280 in Lycia, Asia Minor, which is present-day Turkey. His wealthy parents raised him to be a devout Christian, and even as a child, Nicholas avoided worldly pursuits, spending time studying the scriptures. His parents died in an epidemic while he was still young. Nicholas used his inheritance to assist the needy and sick. He dedicated his life to serving God.

One story or legend is told about Nicholas coming to the rescue of a man with three daughters. The bankrupt nobleman hoped to marry off his daughters before the creditors took them away. But the father did not have money for the girls’ dowries. No one would consider marrying his daughters without a dowry. Nicholas tossed a bag of gold for each girl through an open window. The bags are said to have landed in stockings or shoes left by the fire to dry. Nicholas saved the nobleman’s daughters from the ruthless creditors, and our custom of hanging stockings or putting out shoes to wait for a visit from Saint Nicholas began.

When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States government made it illegal for any Hawaiian citizen to possess more than $200 in cash. “New Money” was printed in 1942 using brown ink for the seals and serial numbers and bearing a small overprint of the word “Hawaii” along both sides of the front and a very large overprint of “Hawaii” on the back of each bill. This was the only legal tender permitted in the territory of Hawaii. Two hundred million dollars of the old currency had to be destroyed. It was hauled to a sugar mill and burned. The new currency was called “Emergency Issue.” Any serviceman or citizen entering Hawaii had to convert to the new money and then reconvert upon leaving the islands. In case of a complete invasion by Japan, the currency could be quickly declared worthless before the money could be seized and used by the Japanese. The invasion never took place, and the circulation of Emergency Issue was stopped by October 1944.

In 1662, the Royal Society of London was chartered “for the improving of natural knowledge” and “its members should be directed to the glory of God.” Robert Boyle, known as the father of chemistry and a strong Christian, was one of the founders. The much-respected Society has been home to many outstanding creation scientists such as Isaac Newton, Michael Faraday, and Lord Kelvin. Robert Boyle supported missionaries and financed the translation of scripture into other languages. He left money in his will to establish the Boyle Lectures, which were annual presentations in support of creation and Christianity. In Boyle’s words, the lectures were “for proving the Christian religion against notorious infidels.” Newton, one of the greatest scientists of all time, believed in the Creator and in the inspiration of scripture. His theological writings outnumber his scientific papers. Physicist and chemist Faraday donated a portion of his income to his church’s congregation. He also spent time visiting and tending the sick. Faraday was a humble man who avoided being the center of attention. Scot-Irish physicist and mathematician Lord Kelvin entered the University of Glasgow at age ten. He discovered some of the most important laws of physics and chemistry, but none of this mattered to him as much as his Christian faith. He would rather be praying and studying the Bible with his fellow church members than be at an awards ceremony. The work of these men is a testimony to their faith in the Creator who blessed them with their gifted intellect.

Surprisingly, a number of our former presidents were greatly in debt. When George Washington was elected to his first term as president, he owed 500 pounds. He was so much in debt that it would have caused him great embarrassment and could have prevented Washington from assuming office. He was able to borrow the 500 pounds and assumed leadership of his country. Thomas Jefferson was known for spending more money than he made. He owned nearly as much land as Washington, but he was always short of cash. In 1826, Jefferson owed $107,000, a huge sum for that time. After his death, his beloved Monticello was sold at auction to retire his debts. He had given his daughter the deed to her home, but he had failed to pay for the property, and she ended up being evicted. James Madison, another Virginian, was infected with the same overspending characteristic. He received a crop loan from the Bank of the United States at one point and was consistently getting into financial messes. Dolly, his widow, had to fight off creditors and was often in poverty. When James Monroe’s term of office ended, he left the White House with mounds of debt. He owed individuals and banks with no hope of retiring the debt. Andrew Jackson and his wife were forced to live in a log cabin during a period when they mismanaged their finances. Unlike today’s presidents, our early leaders had no financial packages along with book deals and speaking fees.

Anna Mary Robertson Moses (1860-1961) and her husband Thomas farmed and raised five children. They lived in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia then settled near Anna’s birthplace in Eagle Bridge, New York. After her husband died, Anna continued to farm with the help of her youngest son until her age forced her to retire. When using a needle to embroider became too painful due to arthritis, Anna turned to painting in her seventies. At first, she copied postcards, but then gradually recreated scenes from her childhood. Her first painting was created on a piece of canvas with house paint! Most of her work was painted on masonite board, and her early paintings were given away. When she was nearly eighty, one of her paintings was noticed in a drugstore window by an art collector who purchased Anna’s first paintings. Her one-woman show brought national recognition when her paintings were exhibited in a gallery in New York City. People were drawn to Anna’s folk art of colorful and simple scenes of rural life. She was affectionately called “Grandma Moses” and was presented the Women’s National Press Club Award by President Harry S. Truman. She produced nearly 2000 paintings and continued painting until the year she died at the age of 101, creating 25 new paintings that same year.

Alphonso J. “Al” Jennings was a dismal failure in his brief career as a train robber, but he turned the experience into an advantage. In 1895, Jennings left the law practice in Oklahoma, he shared with his two brothers, after one was killed and the other brother was wounded during a shootout with a rival attorney. Jennings joined a gang of outlaws who robbed trains. During one train robbery, the gang attempted to blow up the two safes but ended up blowing up the box car instead! Another robbery attempt failed when the man in charge of the mail car refused to open it, and the conductor chased them away. Soon the outlaws were caught and sentenced.

Jennings practiced law once again after leaving prison and ran for county attorney on the slogan: “When I was a train robber I was a good train robber, and if you choose me, I will be a good prosecuting attorney.” After running for governor and losing that race also, Jennings moved to California. He became the very first cowboy figure in western movies and produced his own films, and a movie was made based on his life. Jennings became quite a literary figure success story when as a reformed outlaw, he spoke and wrote of his days of crime.