Today -100: April 17, 1923: Of bilbos, death dancing, dead whales & ghostly accusers

Former Mississippi Gov. Theodore Bilbo is sent to jail for 30 days for contempt of court for failing to show up as a witness in the lawsuit against current Gov. Lee Russell brought by the secretary he impregnated and forced to get an abortion.  Which means Bilbo will have to make his announcement that he is running for governor again from the Lafayette County Jail. (Update: the 30-day sentence will be reduced to 10, with no fine.)

Pres. Harding allows former congresscritter Alice Robertson to be appointed as a welfare worker in the Veterans Bureau without having to take a civil service exam.

Tory newspapers in Britain complain about a “conspiracy” to force PM Bonar Law’s resignation by saying he’s about to resign because of ill health.

While Boston, Flint, Buffalo & other cities are shutting down dance marathons, Chicago’s health commissioner Herman Bundesen says “Chicago health authorities will not interfere with any one who wishes to dance himself to death.”

New dancing record: Magdalene Williams of Houston (again), 65 hours and 53 minutes.

Catholic Party members in Mussolini’s government resign after he demands they pledge to support him personally rather than their party congress, which recently passed resolutions implying the party only supported the Fascist government temporarily. The highest-ranking of the resignees was minister of public works.

I’ve misplaced the link and can’t be arsed to find it, but there’s a legal dispute over who owns a dead whale, so the federal district court in Mississippi orders the evidence, all 75 tons of it, brought to court.

In Pittsburgh, Peter Capella is on trial for the murder of Rudolf Capella (no relation! but he was a boarder in the Capella – no relation!) – family house). 16-year-old Rudolf clearly committed suicide 2 years ago, but his mother Magdalene testifies that 6 months later she had a dream in which Rudolf told her that Peter murdered him. (The NYT will not follow up this story).

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