Wednesday, March 3, 1909. Roosevelt's last day in office.

It was Theodore Roosevelt's last full day in office.

Roosevelt was stepping down after having only ran once. By custom, although not by law, he was allowed to serve two full terms.  He's very soon come to regret not doing so.

On this day, he accomplished a number of things, not seemingly taking a last day of rest.  One of the things he did was to sign a bill creating the Mount Olympus National Monument in the State of Washington.

Another thing was to issue Executive Order 969 which stated:

In accordance with the power vested in me by section 1619, Revised Statutes of the United States, the following duties are assigned to the United States Marine Corps:

(1) To garrison the different navy-yards and naval stations, both within and beyond the continental limits of the United States.

(2) To furnish the first line of the mobile defense of naval bases and naval stations beyond the continental limits of the United States.

(3) To man such naval defenses, and to aid in manning, if necessary, such other defenses, as may be erected for the defense of naval bases and naval stations beyond the continental limits of the United States.

(4) To garrison the Isthmian Canal Zone, Panama.

(5) To furnish such garrisons and expeditionary forces for duties beyond the seas as may be necessary in time of peace.

Theodore Roosevelt.

The White House

This doesn't seem that radical, but it was actually a limiting order and was intended to be.  It made the Marines, which were just beginning to expand their role, more like conventional Marines in other nations.  The order would not remain in place.

On Naval matters:

Today In Wyoming's History: March 3: 1909  Order placed for the USS Wyoming, BB-32, to be built.

The Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 was ratified by the Senate.

The Food and Drug Administration approved using sodium benzoate as a food preservative, even though a ban had been recommended the prior July.

Gatun Dam Lock site.

Culebra Cut, Rio Grande in foreground.

Sunday, February 28, 1909. National Woman's Day.

National Woman's Day was celebrated in New York, having been organized by activist Theresa Malkiel of the Socialist Party of America.  It was the precursor to International Women's Day.

Theresa Serber Malkiel was a Jewish Russian immigrant who had come to the US from Imperial Russia at age 17 with her family, after which she went to work in the garment industry.  She was involved in labor union and Socialist politics fairly early on, and was an opponent of US entry into World War One.  She was also an opponent of Socialists practicing racial segregation in the South, which they did.  She passed away in 1949 in Yonkers at age 75.

International Women's Day is celebrated on March 8.

President Roosevelt had lunch with the Austrian Ambassador at the Austrian Embassy, breaking a 120-year-old tradition of American Presidents not trodding on foreign soil while in office.

Peary's expedition to the North Pole set off from Ellesmere Island.  It was Peary's Eighth Arctic Expedition.

The expeditions became famous, of course, for their heroic efforts, if extreme efforts in the Arctic were heroic.  Peary and his African American aid Matthew Henson did face extreme conditions and privations, but as became known largely after their deaths, they took some comfort with alternative native paramours, Peary's being only 14 years old at the time of its initiation.  These unions outside of marriage produced children, predictably, who were left with their native mothers, which in Henson's case were his only offspring.

If this seems pretty judgmental, well it is.  Peary's taking a 14-year-old for sex is appalling.  Abandoning the children to fatherless lives was as well.  The native women involved doubtless didn't know what they were getting into, at least at first, and in the case of a 14-year-old, probably not at all.

Wednesday, February 24, 1909. A general European war?

Serbia brought Europe to the edge of war when it announced it opposed Austria Hungary's annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, taking the position they should be part of Greater Serbia.

Serbia would back down in March.

The United States ratified the Ship Canal Treaty with Columbia.

The Aerodrome: Tuesday, February 23, 1909. The first Canadian built aircraft, the Aerial Experiment Association Sliver Dart, takes flight

The Aerodrome: Tuesday, February 23, 1909. The first Canadian bui...:  

Tuesday, February 23, 1909. The first Canadian built aircraft, the Aerial Experiment Association Sliver Dart, takes flight.

Monday, February 22, 1909. The Great White Fleet puts in.

The USS Connecticut, flagship of the Great White Fleet, finished it's around the world voyage, putting in at Hampton Roads, Virginia.

The major exercise in American muscle flexing under President Theodore Roosevelt was timed for completion on Washington's birthday.

The fleet had departed Hampton Roads on December 16, 1907.

Friday, February 19, 1909. Mental Health and Crime.

The first National Committee for Mental Hygiene convened.  Today called Mental Health America, improvement of mental health care and prevention of mental illness remains its mission.

Policeman Edward Lowry was shot and killed by Greek immigrant John Masouriden, a prisoner he was escorting, South Omaha, Nebraska.  This would result in an attack on Omaha's Greek neighborhood two days later, fueled by an inflammatory headline.

Thursday, February 18, 1909. The first North American Conservation Conference.

President Theodore Roosevelt convened the first North American Conservation Conference at the White House.  

The conference was between delegates of the US, Canada, and Mexico.

Oddly enough, Wallace Stegner was born on this day as well, in Lake Mills, Iowa.

Wednesday, February 17, 1909. Two leaders pass.

Geronimo (Goyaałé), Bedonkohe Apache leader who been a major contestant against European Americans and Mexicans in the 19th Century, died of pneumonia at age 79.

Death also came for Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia, 61, former Military Governor of St. Petersburg and uncle of Tsar Nicholas II.

Today In Wyoming's History: February 15, 1909

Today In Wyoming's History: February 15: 1909  Park County formed.

Friday, February 5, 1909. Plastic's and crimes.

At a meeting of the American Chemical Society at the Chemists' Club, Dr. Leo Baekeland announced his synthesis of a new chemical, obybenzyl-methylenglycolanhydride, which he called Bakelite, the first plastic.  It became a huge commercial success.

Clark County, Nevada, where Las Vegas is located, was created from the southern half of Lincoln County.  The legislative act was today, but it took effect on July 1.

The German embassy in Chile was destroyed by fire, and a body thought to be that of Ambassador Wilhelm Beckert was found therein.  Following the discovery of a large amount of money being embezzled and that the corpse was not Beckert's, a manhunt ensued, and he was caught in Chillán,

The deceased was Exequiel Tapia, a Chilean porter employed at the legation. 

Germany waived judicial immunity and turned Beckert over to Chile, who executed him on July 5.

Monday, February 2, 1909. Modero sends his book.

Francisco I. Madero challenged Porfirio Diaz, Mexico's president since 1884, to allow a real presidential election by sending his best selling 1908 book La sucesión presidencial to the dictator.

Wednesday, January 20, 1909. Pontiac

 

January 20, 1909 – GM buys into Oakland Motor Car Company, later becomes Pontiac

Saturday, January 16, 1909. The Magnetic South Pole.

Edgeworth David, Douglas Mawson and Alistair Mackay became the first people to reach the South Magnetic Pole, after calculating where it would be in 24 hours and allowing it to drift to them.

Wednesday, January 13, 1909. A 100 Mile Ride.

President Theodore Roosevelt, having actually just been censured but determined to demonstrate his prowess in his remaining months in office, set off on a 100-mile horseback ride, accompanied by his military aid Captain Archibald Butt, Navy Surgeon General Presley M. Rixey, and Surgeon C. D. Grayson.

He left at 3:40 a.m., just about the same time in the morning I started typing this, from Warrenton, Virginia and returned to the White House, having completed the ride, at 8:40 that evening.  Asked for a quote from a reporter, he stated, "It was bully."

More on that event:

Roosevelt’s Ride

Carrie Nation was arrested at Newcastle upon Tyne for vandalizing a British pub. Nation, on a visit to the United Kingdom, was later released on bail.

Marinus van der Lubbe, charged with the burning of the Reichstag in 1933, was born in Leiden, Netherlands.

Monday, January 11, 1909. The Boundary Waters Treaty, Electoral College chooses Taft.

The Boundary Waters Treat regulating use of waters shared by the United States and Canada was signed by U.S. Secretary of State Elihu Root and British Ambassador to the United States James Bryce, at Root's home.

It provided:

Treaty relating to Boundary Waters and Questions arising along the Boundary between Canada and the United States, signed at Washington, January 11, 1909

His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, and the United States of America, being equally desirous to prevent disputes regarding the use of boundary waters and to settle all questions which are now pending between the United States and the Dominion of Canada involving the rights, obligations, or interests of either in relation to the other or to the inhabitants of the other, along their common frontier, and to make provision for the adjustment and settlement of all such questions as may hereafter arise, have resolved to conclude a treaty in furtherance of these ends, and for that purpose have appointed as their respective plenipotentiaries:

His Britannic Majesty, the Right Honourable James Bryce, O.M., his Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at Washington; and

The President of the United States of America, Elihu Root, Secretary of State of the United States;

Who, after having communicated to one another their full powers, found in good and due form, have agreed upon the following articles:

Preliminary Article

For the purposes of this treaty boundary waters are defined as the waters from main shore to main shore of the lakes and rivers and connecting waterways, or the portions thereof, along which the international boundary between the United States and the Dominion of Canada passes, including all bays, arms, and inlets thereof, but not including tributary waters which in their natural channels would flow into such lakes, rivers, and waterways, or waters flowing from such lakes, rivers, and waterways, or the waters of rivers flowing across the boundary.

Article I

The High Contracting Parties agree that the navigation of all navigable boundary waters shall forever continue free and open for the purposes of commerce to the inhabitants and to the ships, vessels, and boats of both countries equally, subject, however, to any laws and regulations of either country, within its own territory, not inconsistent with such privilege of free navigation and applying equally and without discrimination to the inhabitants, ships, vessels, and boats of both countries.

It is further agreed that so long as this treaty shall remain in force, this same right of navigation shall extend to the waters of Lake Michigan and to all canals connecting boundary waters, and now existing or which may hereafter be constructed on either side of the line. Either of the High Contracting Parties may adopt rules and regulations governing the use of such canals within its own territory and may charge tolls for the use thereof, but all such rules and regulations and all tolls charged shall apply alike to the subjects or citizens of the High Contracting Parties and the ships, vessels, and boats of both of the High Contracting Parties, and they shall be placed on terms of equality in the use thereof.

Article II

Each of the High Contracting Parties reserves to itself or to the several State Governments on the one side and the Dominion or Provincial Governments on the other as the case may be, subject to any treaty provisions now existing with respect thereto, the exclusive jurisdiction and control over the use and diversion, whether temporary or permanent, of all waters on its own side of the line which in their natural channels would flow across the boundary or into boundary waters; but it is agreed that any interference with or diversion from their natural channel of such waters on either side of the boundary, resulting in any injury on the other side of the boundary, shall give rise to the same rights and entitle the injured parties to the same legal remedies as if such injury took place in the country where such diversion or interference occurs; but this provision shall not apply to cases already existing or to cases expressly covered by special agreement between the parties hereto.

It is understood, however, that neither of the High Contracting Parties intends by the foregoing provision to surrender any right, which it may have, to object to any interference with or diversions of waters on the other side of the boundary the effect of which would be productive of material injury to the navigation interests on its own side of the boundary.

Article III

It is agreed that, in addition to the uses, obstructions, and diversions heretofore permitted or hereafter provided for by special agreement between the Parties hereto, no further or other uses or obstructions or diversions, whether temporary or permanent, of boundary waters on either side of the line, affecting the natural level or flow of boundary waters on the other side of the line, shall be made except by authority of the United States or the Dominion of Canada within their respective jurisdictions and with the approval, as hereinafter provided, of a joint commission, to be known as the International Joint Commission.

The foregoing provisions are not intended to limit or interfere with the existing rights of the Government of the United States on the one side and the Government of the Dominion of Canada on the other, to undertake and carry on governmental works in boundary waters for the deepening of channels, the construction of breakwaters, the improvement of harbors, and other governmental works for the benefit of commerce and navigation, provided that such works are wholly on its own side of the line and do not materially affect the level or flow of the boundary waters on the other, nor are such provisions intended to interfere with the ordinary use of such waters for domestic and sanitary purposes.

Article IV

The High Contracting Parties agree that, except in cases provided for by special agreement between them, they will not permit the construction or maintenance on their respective sides of the boundary of any remedial or protective works or any dams or other obstructions in waters flowing from boundary waters or in waters at a lower level than the boundary in rivers flowing across the boundary, the effect of which is to raise the natural level of waters on the other side of the boundary unless the construction or maintenance thereof is approved by the aforesaid International Joint Commission.

It is further agreed that the waters herein defined as boundary waters and waters flowing across the boundary shall not be polluted on either side to the injury of health or property on the other.

Article V

The High Contracting Parties agree that it is expedient to limit the diversion of waters from the Niagara River so that the level of Lake Erie and the flow of the stream shall not be appreciably affected. It is the desire of both Parties to accomplish this object with the least possible injury to investments which have already been made in the construction of power plants on the United States side of the river under grants of authority from the State of New York, and on the Canadian side of the river under licenses authorized by the Dominion of Canada and the Province of Ontario.

So long as this treaty shall remain in force, no diversion of the waters of the Niagara River above the Falls from the natural course and stream thereof shall be permitted except for the purposes and to the extent hereinafter provided.

Footnote*The United States may authorize and permit the diversion within the State of New York of the waters of the said river above the Falls of Niagara, for power purposes, not exceeding in the aggregate a daily diversion at the rate of twenty thousand cubic feet of water per second.

Footnote*The United Kingdom, by the Dominion of Canada, or the Province of Ontario, may authorize and permit the diversion within the Province of Ontario of the waters of said river above the Falls of Niagara, for power purposes, not exceeding in the aggregate a daily diversion at the rate of thirty-six thousand cubic feet of water per second.

Footnote*The prohibitions of this article shall not apply to the diversion of water for sanitary or domestic purposes, or for the service of canals for the purposes of navigation.

Return to footnote*[NOTE: Article I of the treaty between Canada and the United States concerning the diversion of the Niagara River, which came into force on October 10, 1950, provides as follows: “This Treaty shall terminate the third, fourth, and fifth paragraphs of Article V of the treaty between Great Britain and the United States of America relating to boundary waters and questions arising between Canada and the United States of America dated January 11, 1909, and the provisions embodied in the notes exchanged between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America at Washington on May 20, 1941, October 27, 1941, November 27, 1941, and December 23, 1948 regarding temporary diversions of water of the Niagara River for power purposes.”]

Article VI

The High Contracting Parties agree that the St. Mary and Milk Rivers and their tributaries (in the State of Montana and the Provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan) are to be treated as one stream for the purposes of irrigation and power, and the waters thereof shall be apportioned equally between the two countries, but in making such equal apportionment more than half may be taken from one river and less than half from the other by either country so as to afford a more beneficial use to each. It is further agreed that in the division of such waters during the irrigation season, between the 1st of April and 31st of October, inclusive, annually, the United States is entitled to a prior appropriation of 500 cubic feet per second of the waters of the Milk River, or so much of such amount as constitutes three-fourths of its natural flow, and that Canada is entitled to a prior appropriation of 500 cubic feet per second of the flow of St. Mary River, or so much of such amount as constitutes three-fourths of its natural flow.

The channel of the Milk River in Canada may be used at the convenience of the United States for the conveyance, while passing through Canadian territory, of waters diverted from the St. Mary River. The provisions of Article II of this treaty shall apply to any injury resulting to property in Canada from the conveyance of such waters through the Milk River.

The measurement and apportionment of the water to be used by each country shall from time to time be made jointly by the properly constituted reclamation officers of the United States and the properly constituted irrigation officers of His Majesty under the direction of the International Joint Commission.

Article VII

The High Contracting Parties agree to establish and maintain an International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada composed of six commissioners, three on the part of the United States appointed by the President thereof, and three on the part of the United Kingdom appointed by His Majesty on the recommendation of the Governor in Council of the Dominion of Canada.

Article VIII

This International Joint Commission shall have jurisdiction over and shall pass upon all cases involving the use or obstruction or diversion of the waters with respect to which under Articles III and IV of this treaty the approval of this Commission is required, and in passing upon such cases the Commission shall be governed by the following rules or principles which are adopted by the High Contracting Parties for this purpose:

The High Contracting Parties shall have, each on its own side of the boundary, equal and similar rights in the use of the waters hereinbefore defined as boundary waters.

The following order of precedence shall be observed among the various uses enumerated hereinafter for these waters, and no use shall be permitted which tends materially to conflict with or restrain any other use which is given preference over it in this order of precedence:

(1)  Uses for domestic and sanitary purposes;

(2)  Uses for navigation, including the service of canals for the purposes of navigation;

(3)  Uses for power and for irrigation purposes.

The foregoing provisions shall not apply to or disturb any existing uses of boundary waters on either side of the boundary.

The requirement for an equal division may in the discretion of the Commission be suspended in cases of temporary diversions along boundary waters at points where such equal division can not be made advantageously on account of local conditions, and where such diversion does not diminish elsewhere the amount available for use on the other side.

The Commission in its discretion may make its approval in any case conditional upon the construction of remedial or protective works to compensate so far as possible for the particular use or diversion proposed, and in such cases may require that suitable and adequate provision, approved by the Commission, be made for the protection and indemnity against injury of any interests on either side of the boundary.

In cases involving the elevation of the natural level of waters on either side of the line as a result of the construction or maintenance on the other side of remedial or protective works or dams or other obstructions in boundary waters or in waters flowing therefrom or in waters below the boundary in rivers flowing across the boundary, the Commission shall require, as a condition of its approval thereof, that suitable and adequate provision, approved by it, be made for the protection and indemnity of all interests on the other side of the line which may be injured thereby.

The majority of the Commissioners shall have power to render a decision. In case the Commission is evenly divided upon any question or matter presented to it for decision, separate reports shall be made by the Commissioners on each side to their own Government. The High Contracting Parties shall thereupon endeavor to agree upon an adjustment of the question or matter of difference, and if an agreement is reached between them, it shall be reduced to writing in the form of a protocol and shall be communicated to the Commissioners, who shall take such further proceedings as may be necessary to carry out such agreement.

Article IX

The High Contracting Parties further agree that any other questions or matters of difference arising between them involving the rights, obligations, or interests of either in relation to the other or to the inhabitants of the other, along the common frontier between the United States and the Dominion of Canada, shall be referred from time to time to the International Joint Commission for examination and report, whenever either the Government of the United States or the Government of the Dominion of Canada shall request that such questions or matters of difference be so referred.

The International Joint Commission is authorized in each case so referred to examine into and report upon the facts and circumstances of the particular questions and matters referred, together with such conclusions and recommendations as may be appropriate, subject, however, to any restrictions or exceptions which may be imposed with respect thereto by the terms of the reference.

Such reports of the Commission shall not be regarded as decisions of the questions or matters so submitted either on the facts or the law, and shall in no way have the character of an arbitral award.

The Commission shall make a joint report to both Governments in all cases in which all or a majority of the Commissioners agree, and in case of disagreement the minority may make a joint report to both Governments, or separate reports to their respective Governments.

In case the Commission is evenly divided upon any question or matter referred to it for report, separate reports shall be made by the Commissioners on each side to their own Government.

Article X

Any questions or matters of difference arising between the High Contracting Parties involving the rights, obligations, or interests of the United States or of the Dominion of Canada either in relation to each other or to their respective inhabitants, may be referred for decision to the International Joint Commission by the consent of the two Parties, it being understood that on the part of the United States any such action will be by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and on the part of His Majesty’s Government with the consent of the Governor General in Council. In each case so referred, the said Commission is authorized to examine into and report upon the facts and circumstances of the particular questions and matters referred, together with such conclusions and recommendations as may be appropriate, subject, however, to any restrictions or exceptions which may be imposed with respect thereto by the terms of the reference.

A majority of the said Commission shall have power to render a decision or finding upon any of the questions or matters so referred.

If the said Commission is equally divided or otherwise unable to render a decision or finding as to any questions or matters so referred, it shall be the duty of the Commissioners to make a joint report to both Governments, or separate reports to their respective Governments, showing the different conclusions arrived at with regard to the matters or questions so referred, which questions or matters shall thereupon be referred for decision by the High Contracting Parties to an umpire chosen in accordance with the procedure prescribed in the fourth, fifth, and sixth paragraphs of Article XLV of The Hague Convention for the pacific settlement of international disputes, dated October 18, 1907. Such umpire shall have power to render a final decision with respect to those matters and questions so referred on which the Commission failed to agree.

Article XI

A duplicate original of all decisions rendered and joint reports made by the Commission shall be transmitted to and filed with the Secretary of State of the United States and the Governor General of the Dominion of Canada, and to them shall be addressed all communications of the Commission.

Article XII

The International Joint Commission shall meet and organize at Washington promptly after the members thereof are appointed, and when organized the Commission may fix such times and places for its meetings as may be necessary, subject at all times to special call or direction by the two Governments. Each Commissioner, upon the first joint meeting of the Commission after his appointment, shall, before proceeding with the work of the Commission, make and subscribe a solemn declaration in writing that he will faithfully and impartially perform the duties imposed upon him under this treaty, and such declaration shall be entered on the records of the proceedings of the Commission.

The United States and Canadian sections of the Commission may each appoint a secretary, and these shall act as joint secretaries of the Commission at its joint sessions, and the Commission may employ engineers and clerical assistants from time to time as it may deem advisable. The salaries and personal expenses of the Commission and of the secretaries shall be paid by their respective Governments, and all reasonable and necessary joint expenses of the Commission, incurred by it, shall be paid in equal moieties by the High Contracting Parties.

The Commission shall have power to administer oaths to witnesses, and to take evidence on oath whenever deemed necessary in any proceeding, or inquiry, or matter within its jurisdiction under this treaty, and all parties interested therein shall be given convenient opportunity to be heard, and the High Contracting Parties agree to adopt such legislation as may be appropriate and necessary to give the Commission the powers above mentioned on each side of the boundary, and to provide for the issue of subpoenas and for compelling the attendance of witnesses in proceedings before the Commission. The Commission may adopt such rules of procedure as shall be in accordance with justice and equity, and may make such examination in person and through agents or employees as may be deemed advisable.

Article XIII

In all cases where special agreements between the High Contracting Parties hereto are referred to in the foregoing articles, such agreements are understood and intended to include not only direct agreements between the High Contracting Parties, but also any mutual arrangement between the United States and the Dominion of Canada expressed by concurrent or reciprocal legislation on the part of Congress and the Parliament of the Dominion.

Article XIV

The present treaty shall be ratified by His Britannic Majesty and by the President of the United States of America, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate thereof. The ratifications shall be exchanged at Washington as soon as possible and the treaty shall take effect on the date of the exchange of its ratifications. It shall remain in force for five years, dating from the day of exchange of ratifications, and thereafter until terminated by twelve months’ written notice given by either High Contracting Party to the other.

In faith whereof the respective plenipotentiaries have signed this treaty in duplicate and have hereunto affixed their seals.

Done at Washington, the 11th day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and nine.

[Here follow the signatures of James Bryce and Elihu Root.]

The above treaty was approved by the United States’ Senate on the 3rd March 1909, with the following Resolutions:

Resolved, — That the Senate advise and consent to the ratification of the treaty between the United States and Great Britain, providing for the settlement of international differences between the United States and Canada, signed on the 11th day of January 1909.

Resolved further (as a part of this ratification), — That the United States approves this treaty with the understanding that nothing in this treaty shall be construed as affecting, or changing, any existing territorial, or riparian rights in the water, or rights of the owners of lands under water, on either side of the international boundary at the rapids of the St. Mary’s River at Sault Ste. Marie, in the use of the waters flowing over such lands, subject to the requirements of navigation in boundary waters and of navigation canals, and without prejudice to the existing right of the United States and Canada, each to use the waters of the St. Mary’s River, within its own territory; and further, that nothing in this treaty shall be construed to interfere with the drainage of wet, swamp, and overflowed lands into streams flowing into boundary waters, and that this interpretation will be mentioned in the ratification of this treaty as conveying the true meaning of the treaty, and will in effect, form part of the treaty.

Protocol of Exchange

On proceeding to the exchange of the ratifications of the treaty signed at Washington on January 11, 1909, between Great Britain and the United States, relating to boundary waters and questions arising along the boundary between the United States and the Dominion of Canada, the undersigned plenipotentiaries, duly authorized thereto by their respective Governments, hereby declare that nothing in this treaty shall be construed as affecting, or changing, any existing territorial, or riparian rights in the water, or rights of the owners of lands under water, on either side of the international boundary at the rapids of St. Mary’s River at Sault Ste. Marie, in the use of the waters flowing over such lands, subject to the requirements of navigation in boundary waters and of navigation canals, and without prejudice to the existing right of the United States and Canada, each to use the waters of the St. Mary’s River, within its own territory; and further, that nothing in this treaty shall be construed to interfere with the drainage of wet, swamp, and overflowed lands into streams flowing into boundary waters, and also that this declaration shall be deemed to have equal force and effect as the treaty itself and to form an integral part thereto.

The exchange of ratifications then took place in the usual form.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, they have signed the present Protocol of Exchange and have affixed their seals thereto.

DONE at Washington this 5th day of May, one thousand nine hundred and ten.

[Here follow the signatures of James Bryce and Philander C. Knox.]

The Electoral Collage officially elected William Howard Taft as President of the United States.

Shoot, both nearly make a person nostalgic for 1909.

Friday, January 9, 1909. Censuring Roosevelt.

The House of Representatives effectively censured outgoing President Theodore Roosevelt by adopting a committee report critical of him.  On the same day, the Senate voted to have the Judiciary Committee investigate him for wrongdoing during the Panic of 1907.

It didn't help that in his annual message to Congress, he'd states that there were "criminals in the legislative branch".

Sometimes it just helps to know that Congress has being doing dumb stuff pretty much the entire time it's existed.

The Aerodrome: Thursday, January 7, 1909. Those early licenses.

The Aerodrome: Thursday, January 7, 1909. Those early licenses.: 

Thursday, January 7, 1909. Those early licenses.

The first pilot's licenses were issued in France on this day in 1909. The issuing entity was the Aero-Club de France and the recipients were Orville Wright, Wilbur Wright, Albert Santos-Dumont, Louis Blériot, Robert Esnault-Pelterie, Léon Delagrange, Henri Farman and Captain Ferdinand Ferber.

John Evershed discovered, on the same day, that gas radiates over the surface of sunspots, from the inner border to the outer edge.

Wednesday, March 6, 1901. Funston departs on a special mission.

Basing the mission on an intelligence report, Col. Frederick Funston, one of the most interesting military figures of his era, left with 88 men from Manila Bay on board the USS Vicksburg to seek out Emilio Aguinaldo.

Kaiser Wilhelm II was badly injured when assaulted by Diedrich Weiland in Bremen.

Last edition:

Monday, March 4, 1901. McKinley's second inaugural.

Labels: 1900s, 1901, Economics, Philippine Insurrection, Spanish American War, Taxes, the spoken word, William McKinley

Monday, March 4, 1901. McKinley's second inaugural.

William McKinley was inaugurated for his second term as President.  His address:

My Fellow-Citizens: 

When we assembled here on the 4th of March, 1897, there was great anxiety with regard to our currency and credit. None exists now. Then our Treasury receipts were inadequate to meet the current obligations of the Government. Now they are sufficient for all public needs, and we have a surplus instead of a deficit. Then I felt constrained to convene the Congress in extraordinary session to devise revenues to pay the ordinary expenses of the Government. Now I have the satisfaction to announce that the Congress just closed has reduced taxation in the sum of $41,000,000. Then there was deep solicitude because of the long depression in our manufacturing, mining, agricultural ,and mercantile industries and the consequent distress of our laboring population. Now every avenue of production is crowded with activity, labor is well employed, and American products find good markets at home and abroad. 

Our diversified productions, however, are increasing in such unprecedented volume as to admonish us of the necessity of still further enlarging our foreign markets by broader commercial relations. For this purpose reciprocal trade arrangements with other nations should in liberal spirit be carefully cultivated and promoted. 

The national verdict of 1896 has for the most part been executed. Whatever remains unfulfilled is a continuing obligation resting with undiminished force upon the Executive and the Congress. But fortunate as our condition is, its permanence can only be assured by sound business methods and strict economy in national administration and legislation. We should not permit our great prosperity to lead us to reckless ventures in business or profligacy in public expenditures. While the Congress determines the objects and the sum of appropriations, the officials of the executive departments are responsible for honest and faithful disbursement, and it should be their constant care to avoid waste and extravagance. 

Honesty, capacity, and industry are nowhere more indispensable than in public employment. These should be fundamental requisites to original appointment and the surest guaranties against removal. 

Four years ago we stood on the brink of war without the people knowing it and without any preparation or effort at preparation for the impending peril. I did all that in honor could be done to avert the war, but without avail. It became inevitable; and the Congress at its first regular session, without party division, provided money in anticipation of the crisis and in preparation to meet it. It came. The result was signally favorable to American arms and in the highest degree honorable to the Government. It imposed upon us obligations from which we cannot escape and from which it would be dishonorable to seek escape. We are now at peace with the world, and it is my fervent prayer that if differences arise between us and other powers they may be settled by peaceful arbitration and that hereafter we may be spared the horrors of war. 

Intrusted by the people for a second time with the office of President, I enter upon its administration appreciating the great responsibilities which attach to this renewed honor and commission, promising unreserveddevotion on my part to their faithful discharge and reverently invokingfor my guidance the direction and favor of Almighty God. I should shrinkfrom the duties this day assumed if I did not feel that in their performanceI should have the co-operation of the wise and patriotic men of all parties.It encourages me for the great task which I now undertake to believe thatthose who voluntarily committed to me the trust imposed upon the ChiefExecutive of the Republic will give to me generous support in my dutiesto "preserve, protect, and defend, the Constitution of the United States"and to "care that the laws be faithfully executed." The national purposeis indicated through a national election. It is the constitutional methodof ascertaining the public will. When once it is registered it is a lawto us all, and faithful observance should follow its decrees. 

Strong hearts and helpful hands are needed, and, fortunately, we havethem in every part of our beloved country. We are reunited. Sectionalismhas disappeared. Division on public questions can no longer be traced bythe war maps of 1861. These old differences less and less disturb the judgment.Existing problems demand the thought and quicken the conscience of thecountry, and the responsibility for their presence, as well as for theirrighteous settlement, rests upon us all--no more upon me than upon you.There are some national questions in the solution of which patriotism shouldexclude partisanship. Magnifying their difficulties will not take themoff our hands nor facilitate their adjustment. Distrust of the capacity,integrity, and high purposes of the American people will not be an inspiringtheme for future political contests. Dark pictures and gloomy forebodingsare worse than useless. These only becloud, they do not help to point theway of safety and honor. "Hope maketh not ashamed." The prophets of evilwere not the builders of the Republic, nor in its crises since have theysaved or served it. The faith of the fathers was a mighty force in itscreation, and the faith of their descendants has wrought its progress andfurnished its defenders. They are obstructionists who despair, and whowould destroy confidence in the ability of our people to solve wisely andfor civilization the mighty problems resting upon them. The American people,intrenched in freedom at home, take their love for it with them whereverthey go, and they reject as mistaken and unworthy the doctrine that welose our own liberties by securing the enduring foundations of libertyto others. Our institutions will not deteriorate by extension, and oursense of justice will not abate under tropic suns in distant seas. As heretofore,so hereafter will the nation demonstrate its fitness to administer anynew estate which events devolve upon it, and in the fear of God will "takeoccasion by the hand and make the bounds of freedom wider yet." If thereare those among us who would make our way more difficult, we must not bedisheartened, but the more earnestly dedicate ourselves to the task uponwhich we have rightly entered. The path of progress is seldom smooth. Newthings are often found hard to do. Our fathers found them so. We find themso. They are inconvenient. They cost us something. But are we not madebetter for the effort and sacrifice, and are not those we serve liftedup and blessed? 

We will be consoled, to, with the fact that opposition has confrontedevery onward movement of the Republic from its opening hour until now,but without success. The Republic has marched on and on, and its step hasexalted freedom and humanity. We are undergoing the same ordeal as didour predecessors nearly a century ago. We are following the course theyblazed. They triumphed. Will their successors falter and plead organicimpotency in the nation? Surely after 125 years of achievement for mankindwe will not now surrender our equality with other powers on matters fundamentaland essential to nationality. With no such purpose was the nation created.In no such spirit has it developed its full and independent sovereignty.We adhere to the principle of equality among ourselves, and by no act ofours will we assign to ourselves a subordinate rank in the family of nations. 

My fellow-citizens, the public events of the past four years have goneinto history. They are too near to justify recital. Some of them were unforeseen;many of them momentous and far-reaching in their consequences to ourselvesand our relations with the rest of the world. The part which the UnitedStates bore so honorably in the thrilling scenes in China, while new toAmerican life, has been in harmony with its true spirit and best traditions,and in dealing with the results its policy will be that of moderation andfairness. 

We face at this moment a most important question that of the futurerelations of the United States and Cuba. With our near neighbors we mustremain close friends. The declaration of the purposes of this Governmentin the resolution of April 20, 1898, must be made good. Ever since theevacuation of the island by the army of Spain, the Executive, with allpracticable speed, has been assisting its people in the successive stepsnecessary to the establishment of a free and independent government preparedto assume and perform the obligations of international law which now restupon the United States under the treaty of Paris. The convention electedby the people to frame a constitution is approaching the completion ofits labors. The transfer of American control to the new government is ofsuch great importance, involving an obligation resulting from our interventionand the treaty of peace, that I am glad to be advised by the recent actof Congress of the policy which the legislative branch of the Governmentdeems essential to the best interests of Cuba and the United States. Theprinciples which led to our intervention require that the fundamental lawupon which the new government rests should be adapted to secure a governmentcapable of performing the duties and discharging the functions of a separatenation, of observing its international obligations of protecting life andproperty, insuring order, safety, and liberty, and conforming to the establishedand historical policy of the United States in its relation to Cuba. 

The peace which we are pledged to leave to the Cuban people must carry with it the guaranties of permanence. We became sponsors for the pacification of the island, and we remain accountable to the Cubans, no less than to our own country and people, for the reconstruction of Cuba as a free commonwealth on abiding foundations of right, justice, liberty, and assured order. Our enfranchisement of the people will not be completed until free Cuba shall "be a reality, not a name; a perfect entity, not a hasty experiment bearing within itself the elements of failure." 

While the treaty of peace with Spain was ratified on the 6th of February,1899, and ratifications were exchanged nearly two years ago, the Congress has indicated no form of government for the Philippine Islands. It has, however, provided an army to enable the Executive to suppress insurrection ,restore peace, give security to the inhabitants, and establish the authority of the United States throughout the archipelago. It has authorized the organization of native troops as auxiliary to the regular force. It has been advised from time to time of the acts of the military and naval officers in the islands, of my action in appointing civil commissions, of the instructions with which they were charged, of their duties and powers, of their recommendations, and of their several acts under executive commission, together with the very complete general information they have submitted. These reports fully set forth the conditions, past and present, in the islands, and the instructions clearly show the principles which will guide the Executive until the Congress shall, as it is required to do by the treaty, determine "the civil rights and political status of the native inhabitants." The Congress having added the sanction of its authority to the powers already possessed and exercised by the Executive under the Constitution, thereby leaving with the Executive the responsibility for the government of the Philippines, I shall continue the efforts already begun until order shall be restored throughout the islands, and as fast as conditions permit will establish local governments, in the formation of which the full co-operation of the people has been already invited, and when established will encourage the people to administer them. The settled purpose, long ago proclaimed, to afford the inhabitants of the islands self- government as fast as they were ready for it will be pursued with earnestness and fidelity. Already something has been accomplished in this direction. The Government's representatives, civil and military, are doing faithful and noble work in their mission of emancipation and merit the approval and support of their countrymen. The most liberal terms of amnesty have already been communicated to the insurgents, and the way is still open for those who have raised their arms against the Government for honorable submission to its authority. Our countrymen should not be deceived. We are not waging war against the inhabitants of the Philippine Islands. A portion of them are making war against the United States. By far the greater part of the inhabitants recognize American sovereignty and welcome it as a guaranty of order and of security for life, property, liberty, freedom of conscience, and the pursuit of happiness. To them full protection will be given. They shall not be abandoned. We will not leave the destiny of the loyal millions the islands to the disloyal thousands who are in rebellion against the United States. Order under civil institutions will come as soon as those who now break the peace shall keep it. Force will not be needed or used when those who make war against us shall make it no more. May it end without further bloodshed, and there be ushered in the reign of peace to be made permanent by a government of liberty under law!

Last edition

Sunday, March 3, 1901. Standards

Labels: 1900s, 1901, 56th Congress, Colonialism, It was because of the Spanish American War, National Bureau of Standards, Philippines

Sunday, March 3, 1901. Standards.

The US established the Insular Government of the Philippine Islands 

The National Bureau of Standards was established.

The 56th Congress adjourned.

Last edition:

Saturday, March 2, 1901. The Platt Amendment Signed.

Labels: 1900s, 1901, China (Shenyang), Chinese Army, Imperial Russian Army, Qing Dynasty, Transportation, William McKinley

Saturday, March 2, 1901. The Platt Amendment Signed.

President McKinley signed the Platt Amendment which provided for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Cuba but which gave the U.S. oversight of Cuban foreign affairs.

The Electric Vehicle Company, founded in 1897, was liquidated.  It had been the nation's largest operator of taxi cabs.

The Chinese defeated the Russians at Mukden, known today as Shenyang.

Last edition:

Thursday, February 28, 1901. Wars proving easier to start, than stop.

Labels: 1900s, 1901, Army, Army Nurse Corps, Boer War, Chickasaw people, Choctaw people, Native Americans, Personalities, The Boer Republics, The Professions, United Kingdom, Women

Thursday, February 28, 1901. Wars proving easier to start, than stop.

Negotiations took place at Middleburg between Lord Kitchener and Boer General Louis Botha.

They would fail.

The Army established the Army Nurse Corps.

The all female Army branch reflected a growing societal emphasis on professionalism as well as the growing role of women in society.

The United States Congress rejected the proposed agreement that had been signed by the United States Department of the Interior with the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations, and negotiations had to begin again.

Chemist Linus Pauling was born in Portland Oregon.

Last edition:

Tuesday, February 26, 1901. Boxer executions.

Labels: 1900s, 1901, Boxer Rebellion, China, Imperial Japanese Army, India, Qing Dynasty

Tuesday, February 26, 1901. Boxer executions.

Boxer leaders Chi-hsui and Hsu-cheng-yu were publicly beheaded in Beijing in front of a crowd of about 10,000. 

Japanese Col. Goro Shiba, the Japanese legation's military attaché, treated the two condemned men to champagne before turning them over to the Chinese Board of Punishments.  Chi-hsui told him "I do not know what I have done to make me deserving of death, but if beheading me will make the foreign troops evacuate Peking and my Emperor return, I am satisfied to die. I will die a patriot."

Reports from Bombay held that 400 people had died from the plague in two days.

Last edition:

Monday, February 25, 1901. U.S. Steel.

Labels: 1900s, 1901, Industry, J. P. Morgan

Monday, February 25, 1901. U.S. Steel.

U.S. Steel was incorporated by J. P. Morgan.

Last edition:

Friday, February 22, 1901. Interrupted Boers.

Labels: 1900s, 1901, Boer Armies, Boer War, British Army