There is always much to learn from quotes and their historical significance. Read on for a collection of quotes and general history from February 2nd – 8th.
February 2, 1925
“An epidemic of diphtheria is almost inevitable here STOP I am in urgent need of one million units of diphtheria antitoxin STOP Mail is only form of transportation STOP I have made application to Commissioner of Health of the Territories for antitoxin already STOP There are about 3000 white natives in the district.”
– Dr. Curtis Welch, radio telegram to the Public Health Service, Jan. 22, 1925
The 1925 serum run to Nome delivered 300,000 units of diphtheria antitoxin on February 2nd, saving the small town of Nome, Alaska from an epidemic. The Serum Run, also called the Great Race of Mercy, used a dog sled relay of 20 mushers and around 150 dogs to cover 674 miles (1,085 km) in 127.5 hours (5.5 days) through extreme subzero temperatures and near-blizzard conditions! The trip normally took 30 days but Nome’s doctor, Curtis Welch, calculated the serum would only last six days in the freezing conditions on the trail. Balto, the lead dog for the last 55-mile relay leg into Nome, initially received much of the publicity. However, it has since been recognized that Togo and his musher Leonhard Seppala covered an astonishing 260 miles, transporting the serum 91 miles through some of the toughest terrain.
February 3, 1959
But February made me shiver
– Don McLean, “American Pie”
With every paper I’d deliver
Bad news on the doorstep
I couldn’t take one more step
I can’t remember if I cried
When I read about his widowed bride
Something touched me deep inside
The day the music died
On February 3, 1959, American rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, “The Big Bopper” J. P. Richardson, and Ritchie Valens died in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, along with the pilot, Roger Peterson. They were playing on the “Winter Dance Party” tour across the Midwest at the time and poor planning and uncomfortable tour buses led Holly to charter the plane. The crash later became known as “The Day the Music Died” based on Don McLean’s reference to it in his 1971 song “American Pie”.
February 4, 1945
“There’s no question that Stalin broke the agreements made at Yalta completely about elections that were supposed to be held immediately in Poland, and Eastern Europe was plunged into slavery as a consequence.”
– Mark Shields
The Yalta Conference began on February 4, 1945, for U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin to discuss the reorganization of Germany and Europe which would occur after World War II ended. These three heads of state were often referred to as the “Big Three”. While the Soviet Union agreed to join the United Nations and enter the war against Japan, the main topic was the re-establishment of the European nations affected by the war. The Declaration of Liberated Europe made by the Big Three at Yalta promised: “the earliest possible establishment through free elections governments responsive to the will of the people.” Unfortunately, the Cold War soon divided the continent and free elections were never realized for many nations. This led the Yalta Conference and the agreements made there to become a subject of intense controversy.
February 5, 1918
“The day has passed when armies on the ground or navies on the sea can be the arbiter of a nation’s destiny in war. The main power of defense and the power of initiative against an enemy has passed to the air.”
– Brigadier General Billy Mitchell
Stephen W. Thompson became the first member of the United States military to shoot down an enemy aircraft on February 5, 1918. The U.S. 1st Aero Squadron had not yet begun combat operations during World War I, but Thompson was invited to fly as a gunner-bombardier on a French bombing raid. After they had dropped their bombs over Saarbrücken, Germany, they were attacked by Albatros D.III fighters. Thompson shot one of them down and was awarded the Croix de guerre with palm for the engagement.
February 6, 1922
“The way to disarm is to disarm.”
– Charles Evans Hughes, U.S. Secretary of State
The Washington Naval Conference concluded on February 6, 1922, as the first arms control conference in history. The resulting Washington Naval Treaty prevented an arms race by limiting naval construction. Also known as the Five-Power Treaty, it limited the total tonnage of capital ships (battleships and battlecruisers) and, separately, aircraft carriers to a 5:5:3:1.75:1.75 ratio between Britain, the United States, Japan, France, and Italy respectively. Limits were also placed on individual ships and firepower. Capital ships were limited to 35,000 tons standard displacement, aircraft carriers to 27,000 tons, and all other warships to 10,000 tons. Capital ships were allowed guns no larger than 16-inch calibre and all others a maximum of 8 inches. While the treaty largely had the desired effect, with many existing or planned capital ships scrapped and a pause to battleship construction, it created a pseudo arms race building 8-inch, 10,000-ton “treaty cruisers”.
February 7, 1783
“A good character, like a Gibraltar, will stand against the testimony of all the rascals in the universe, no matter how they assail it. It will stand, and it will stand firmer and grander the more it is assaulted.”
– Robert Green Ingersoll
On February 7, 1783, the Great Siege of Gibraltar finally came to an end, having begun on June 24, 1779. Attempting to capitalize on the American Revolutionary War, Spain and France aimed to capture Gibraltar from the British. However, numerous blunders throughout the siege led to a decisive British victory. Three times British fleets slipped past the blockade to deliver crucial supplies, a planned Spanish-led assault was thwarted by a British sortie, and a French-led “Grand Assault” was a disastrous failure. The British victory at Gibraltar was a big factor in the Peace of Paris with Britain refusing to relinquish the territory to Spain. At 3 years, 7 months, and 12 days, the Great Siege of Gibraltar is one of the longest sieges in history and the longest ever faced by the British Armed Forces.
February 8, 1904
“We regarded that Russian defeat by Japan as the defeat of the West by the East. We regarded the Japanese victory as our own victory.”
– Sun Yat-sen
The Russo-Japanese War began on February 8, 1904, with a surprise attack by the Japanese on the Russian fleet anchored at Port Arthur, Manchuria. The attack is often compared to the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, as it preceded a formal declaration of war. The attack greatly surprised Russian Tsar Nicholas II who had been uncompromising in pre-war negotiations. Both empires had ambitions in Manchuria and Korea but Russia believed Japan would yield to their superior military power. On the contrary, Japan achieved a near-complete victory, defeating Russia at every turn. Economically, however, Japan was struggling with the costs of the war, allowing U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt to mediate the Treaty of Portsmouth, for which he earned the Nobel Peace Prize. Unfortunately, many Japanese did not know of the economic factors involved and felt the U.S. had “cheated” Japan out of its rightful claims at the peace conference.
In case you missed last week’s quotes, see History January 26th – February 1st.
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