66. CESTIUS, the Syrian prefect, in his fatal retreat, was defeated by
the Jews at the pass of Bethhoron. Nero received this disastrous news at
Achaia, and called in Vespasian.
451. Fourth œcumenical council assembled at Chalcedon, where the
heretic Eutyches was finally condemned.
622. MAHOMET made his public entry into Medina. He was mounted on a she
camel, and an umbrella shaded his reverend shoulders.
1200. JOHN, king of England, and his _new_ queen, Isabella, were
inaugurated. The devil was to be released at that year's close, said the
_lipticians_ on the canon.
1202. The Venetian crusade sailed, under Boniface, of Montferrat.
1635. JOHN WINTHROP, son of the governor of Massachusetts, arrived from
England with a commission from the patentees as "governor of the river
Connecticut, and places thereto adjoining," bringing men, ordnance,
ammunition, and £2000 sterling for the erection of a fort.
1636. JOHN EVERARD, better known by his bibliographical name, Johannes
Secundus, a Dutch _Latin_ poet, died. His works have gone through many
editions, and the _Kisses of Johannes Secundus_ have been translated
into various languages. He also distinguished himself by his skill in
painting, sculpture, and engraving.
1684. GERAUD DE CORDEMOI died; a French academician, and a great
partisan of Descartes' systems.
1729. RICHARD BLACKMORE, an English physician, died. He was an
indefatigable writer, and has left a great number of works, theological,
poetical, and medical.
1744. JOHN BALCHEN, a celebrated English admiral, perished at sea, in
the Victory man-of-war, 110 guns, and 1100 seamen, all of whom were
lost.
1754. HENRY FIELDING, an eminent English novelist, died, aged 48.
1755. The remains of Braddock's army, in 33 transports, passed the city
of New York on their way to winter quarters at Albany.
1767. BURCHARD CHRISTOPHER DE MUNICH died; a German who learned the art
of war under Eugene and Marlborough, and distinguished himself in the
service of Peter I of Russia.
1774. Congress resolved to support Massachusetts, if the acts of
parliament were attempted to be carried into execution by force. The
general court of Massachusetts met at Salem on the same day, although
general Gage had ordered them not to assemble, resolved themselves into
a provincial congress, and chose John Hancock president.
1785. L'EVESQUE DE BURIGNY, a French author, died, aged 94. He wrote a
work on the authority of the pope, a learned history of pagan
philosophy, and several other works, historical and biographical.
1785. _The Lounger_ appeared at Edinburgh, conducted principally by
Henry Mackenzie.
1791. A jury at Sudberry, England, not being able to agree, oppressed by
hunger, broke open the doors and went home.
1792. PIETRO ANTONIO CREVENNA, an Italian bibliographer, died. He
collected a choice library, which he sold by auction in 1790. The
learned catalogues of his books, prepared by himself and others, have
given to the works which belonged to him, great value, in the eyes of
amateurs, and the catalogues themselves have bibliographical authority.
1793. JOHN HANCOCK, the master spirit of the American revolution, died.
He was president of the congress which issued the declaration of
independence, and his name stands out in bold relief on that document.
1793. Lyons, in France, surrendered to the republicans, and a most
terrible massacre of the inhabitants ensued. The convention decreed that
the walls should be razed, and Lyons called La ville affranchie.
1795. ANDREW KIPPIS, a very celebrated English biographer, died. His
connection with the publication of the _Biographia Britannica_, will
carry down his name with distinguished reputation to posterity.
1809. JAMES ELPHINSTONE, a Scottish grammarian, died. He undertook the
reformation of English orthography by spelling words as they are
pronounced.
1820. HENRY CHRISTOPHE, king of Hayti, shot. He was a slave, and served
in the American war. His activity in the revolution of the slaves in the
island of St. Domingo, led to his elevation.
1822. Eruption of mount Galongoon, in the island of Java. It commenced
at 2 o'clock in the afternoon of a fine day, by a loud explosion, which
was followed by a thick cloud, that wrapped the whole country in
darkness, while immense columns of mud, boiling hot, and mixed with
burning brimstone, were projected from the mountain like a water spout,
with such prodigious violence, that large quantities fell at the
distance of 40 miles. The destruction was at its height at 4 o'clock,
and had ceased at 5, having in the short space of three hours, laid a
fruitful and thickly peopled country under a crust of boiling mud, in
some places to the depth of sixty feet. Five millions coffee trees were
destroyed, 87 canals, numerous rice fields, 114 villages, and upwards of
4000 inhabitants. The scene presented a bluish, half-liquid waste, where
bodies of men, women and children, partly boiled and partly burned, were
strewed about in every variety of death. It was followed by a rain storm
of four days' duration, which inundated the country, when another
eruption took place, more violent than the first.
1822. The first boats passed from the west and the north, through the
Erie and Champlain canals, into the tide waters of the Hudson at Albany,
amidst the acclamations of thousands of spectators.
1831. Great earthquake in South America. The town of Arica was utterly
ruined, and the shock was felt along the coast, including seven degrees
of latitude, shaking to its centre the immense breadth of the main
Cordillera. It was attended by a violent vertical movement of the earth,
during about 70 seconds, which threw down or shattered the houses, and
in some cases pieces were detached from the middle of walls, leaving the
rest of the edifice uninjured.
1832. OTHO proclaimed and installed king of restored Greece, at the
palace of Preysing, in Bavaria.
1837. CHARLES FOURIER, founder of the system of social and industrial
reform which bears his name, died at Paris.
1841. JOHANN HEINRICH DANNECKER, the Nestor of German sculptors, died at
Stuttgardt, aged 82.
1848. The populace of Vienna, which had been in a state of
insubordination two days, became calm, and the emperor was invited to
return.
1851. The Hudson river rail road was opened throughout, from New York to
Albany.
1853. THOMAS CHILDS, one of the bravest and most distinguished officers
in the United States army, died at Tampa bay.
1854. GIDEON TOMLINSON, a Connecticut statesman, died, aged 74.
1854. The steam boat E. K. Collins, from Sault St. Marie to Cleveland,
took fire on the lake and was burned, by which 23 persons lost their
lives.
1855. SAMUEL DICKINSON HUBBARD, sometime post master general of the
United States, died at Middletown, Ct., aged 55.
1855. The grand jury in New York city returned indictments against
several city officers, for corruption and malversation in office.