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Today in History: April 23

1895 Russia, France, and Germany force Japan to return the Liaodong peninsula to China.

1896 Motion pictures premiere in New York City.

1914 The Federals defeat Kansas City 9-1 in the first major league game to be played in Chicago's Weeghman Park, later renamed Wrigley Field.

1924 The U.S. Senate passes the Soldiers' Bonus Bill.

1945 The Soviet Army fights its way into Berlin.

1969 Sirhan Sirhan is sentenced to death for killing Senator Robert Kennedy.

1971 The Soviet Union launches Soyuz 10, becoming the first mission to the Salyut 1 space station.


Born on April 23

1897 Lucius D. Clay, U.S. military governor of occupied Berlin.

1928 Shirley Temple Black, child actress, later U.S. ambassador.

1932 Jim Fixx, runner and writer who popularized running as a form of exercise in the 1970s.


JOTD

A team of archaeologists were working in Jerusalem when they found a slab of rock with five figures carved on it.

In order the figures were:
1) A Woman. 2) A Donkey. 3) A Shovel. 4) A Fish. 5) A Star of David.
After months of studying the rock and figures on it, the leader took the rock and went on a lecture tour. He said the carvings were several thousands of years old but even so they revealed a lot about the people of that time.
1) The woman being placed first in the line of figures indicated that women were held in very high esteem. It was most likely a family oriented culture.
2) The donkey indicated they had domesticated animals. They probably used the donkey to till the fields.
3) The shovel shows they were highly intelligent as they knew how to make tools.
4) The fish shows they knew how to augment the crops they raised by also reaping from the sea.
5) The Star of David of course indicates they were a very religious group of people.
A little old man in the front row finally got the attention of the speaker. When acknowledged he said "I'm sorry to harm your conclusions, but you were reading it left to right. In Hebrew we read from right to left. That way it reads:
"Holy mackerel dig the arse on that woman!"