Friday, December 29, 2023

Today -100: December 29, 1923: Of pardons, names, and microphones


Chicago bootlegger Philip Grossman, the guy Calvin Coolidge pardoned who turned out not to be in prison but a fugitive, admits having paid thousands to a Republican politician for that pardon. His commutation may now not come through. Update: okay, I’ve now checked Wikipedia. The district court will send him back to prison, saying the president doesn’t have the power to pardon in contempt of court cases (the contempt consisting of selling booze when a court had told him not to), because that would violate separation of powers. The Supreme Court in 1925 will rule that presidents do have that power.

The New York Nursery and Child’s Hospital picks the names that will be foisted on foundlings in 1924. These are chosen “at random,” but assigned by sex. Annnnd race, although I don’t see anything especially racial in the names chosen. For example, white Protestant boys (are there no Catholics or Jews? do they get surrendered somewhere else?) will get names like Frederick Olmstead, Alexander Halliday, and Stephen Oliver. White Protestant girls will be Elizabeth Kemberley, Anne Draper, Margaret Dryden, etc. While black boys will be William Clinton, George Getty, Ralph Phime, etc. 

Dr Phillips Thomas has invented a microphone that can record insect noises too high for the human ear, so we can find out what they're saying about us.

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