Treason: An Act of Moral Turpitude

On September 21, 1780, General Benedict Arnold betrayed his country when he gave the British information that could allow them to capture the American fort at West Point on the Hudson River in New York. [1]

The short story is that "he hungered for money to support the lifestyle he enjoyed with his young wife, the beautiful Peggy Shippen." [1] 

Peggy Shippen and Daughter (Sir Thomas Lawrence)

Here are the highlights of the life of a man of turpitude.

1741, born;  the great grandson of a three-time governor of Rhode Island

He received a fair education but was not studious, and his youth was marked by the same waywardness which characterized his whole career. [2]

1756 (age 15), runs away from home to join in the French and Indian Wars

1762, parents die; moves to New Haven, opens drug store and bookstore

1767, marries Margaret Mansfield; has three sons

1775, as captain of Connecticut militia, proposes expedition to Crown Point and Ticonderoga, must share command with Ethan Allen from Massachusetts; gets knickers in knot

June 1775, Mrs. Arnold dies

July 1775, "He went home to Connecticut in disgust." [3]

Late 1775, passed over for promotion

1775-1778, promoted, leads wildly successful campaigns, screws up

May 30, 1778, signs new oath of allegiance to fight for independence

? Proposes to Betsy DeBlois

? Meets Peggy Shippen, 18 year old daughter of a Loyalist; breaks engagement with Betsy; introduced to Peggy's friend, Major André

April 1779, marries "the beautiful Peggy Shippen"

May 1779, begins talks with British Commander, Sir Henry Clinton

Fall 1779, asks Clinton for too much money, Clinton refuses; breaks off talks with Clinton

December 1779, court marshaled for various screw ups; all but two charges dropped

January 1780, guilty of using military resources for private gain; rebuked by George Washington

? Asks for command of West Point; granted

September 21, 1780, meets with André-- now an aid to Clinton-- gives him layout and information of vulnerabilities of West Point. 

September 23, 1780, André captured (later hanged); fleas to a British ship

-- 1801, fights against Patriots, lives miserable, unhappy life in England

He gradually sank into melancholia, and died in London June 14, 1801. [2]

References
1 William J. Bennett and John T.E.. Cribb. The American Patriot's Almanac. Thomas Nelson, Nashville. 2008.

2 The Encyclopædia Britannica: A New Survey of Universal Knowledge. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., Chicago, London, Toronto. 1955. 

3 The Encyclopedia Americana: Complete in Thirty Volumes. American Corporation, New York, Chicago. 1952.  

Don't Know Much About History

April 8, 

1513: Ponce de Leon landed in Florida near the present site of St. Augustine. 

1812: Louisiana admitted to the Union.

April 9,

1691: La Salle reached the Mississippi.

1870: Nikoli Lenin, founder of the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics, born.

1912: Children's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor established.

April 10,

1790: U.S. patent system established.

1847: Joseph Pulitzer born in Hungary.

1866: American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals chartered. 

[Lucky's still alive & kickin' by the way.]

April 11,

1862: Charles Evans Hughes, Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court (1930-1941), born.

April 12,

1776: Halifax Resolution of Independence adopted in North Carolina. "The example of North Carolina was influential in bringing about the adoption of the Declaration of Independence."

1777: Henry Clay, "brilliant and beloved statesman, orator, and political leader," born.

Dates, information and quotes from Anniversaries and Holidays: A Calendar of Days and How to Observe Them by Mary Emogene Hazeltine published by American Library Association (Chicago) in 1944.

Drink up!

It's World Water Day!!

Funny. My Calendar of Days and How to Observe Them makes no mention of World Water day. Hum. 

I do see that the British Stamp Act became law today in 1765. That's worth noting. 

Also, ten years later some dude with two first names for a name said, "Give me liberty or give me death." That's pretty strong language.

But no mention of Water Day.

Wonder whatt's up with that?

Watt's Up?

As I was busy doing other things the last few days, I'd forgotten to look at my calendar.* Now that night has fallen here on the Farm, and I've turned on a light by which to read, I thought I'd see what I'd missed.

February 8

Boy Scouts of America formally incorporated 1910

February 9

William Henry Harrison born 1773; "Soldier and ninth President of the United States. ... He died after only one month in office and was succeeded by Vice-President Tyler."

Nebraska admitted to the Union 1867 (37th state)

U.S. Weather Service established 1870. Originally under the Signal Corps of the Army, it was transferred to the Department of Agriculture in 1890 and "officially became" the United States Weather Bureau. 

February 10

Birth of some folks of whom I'd never heard.

February 11

Thomas Alva Edison born 1847 (died 1931):

American wizard inventor and electrical investigator; creator of the phonograph, the incandescent lamp (1879), and the motion picture projector (1887); pioneer in the field of electrical power distribution.

~~
Of note: 

1) The U.S. Weather Service was created by an act of Congress nine years before Edison invented the incandescent light bulb.

2)  The U.S. Weather Service is now The National Weather Service, an agency of The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a part of The United States Department of Commerce. It has an annual budget of $5,500,000,000.

3)  An Act of Congress shattered the 100 Watt bulb, and-- according to that infallible source, Wikipedia-- effective 1/2013, the 75 Watt bulb, too. Who knew?

~~
* All uncited date facts from the crappy old book referenced here.

Happy Birthday, Babe!

One of the crappy old books I picked up at the Palmer House last week was Anniversaries and Holidays: A Calendar of Days and How to Observe Them by Mary Emogene Hazeltine published by American Library Association (Chicago) in 1944. What a fun book! In addition to the calendar, Part II provides, among many other things, "Origin and History of Holidays and Holiday Customs," and "Time and the Calendar." Fun stuff.

I've taken to skimming today's entries-- not so much to learn who was born when, but to recall who is worth remembering to today.

Today,

February 7,

let's recall

Charles Dickens 1812-June 9, 1870. Great English novelist and social critic.

Sir James Augustus Henry Murray 1837-July 26, 1915. Distinguished editor of the scholarly Oxford English dictionary, completed in 1933 after 50 years of work.

Sinclair Lewis 1885- . American novelist, satirist of contemporary life. [He declined the Pulitzer.]

George Herman (Babe) Ruth 1894- . Baseball's greatest batsman; home-run king of the New York Yankees.

Thanks to Miss M., we've had a great deal of Dickens lately and are expecting more.

O.E.D. Can't live without it here at the Farm.

Lewis. One of those names I know. Pretty sure I have Babbitt somewhere on a shelf. But that's all I got. (Hey! What did you expect? I'm a vegetable farmer, not an English major.)

Happy Birthday, Babe!