The Mysteries of History (February 23 Edition)
Practice Makes Perfect and Hygiene Saves the Day, This Land Is Your Land, and Polio
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” — Spanish-American philosopher George Santayana, 1905
1778 — A German Mercenary Helps America Win the Revolutionary War
public domain image from wikimedia commons
Typically, it seems, the Americans and the Germans are on opposite sides in war (the two World Wars come to mind, for example). But during the American Colonists’ War for Independence, aka The Revolutionary War, a German officer best known as Baron von Steuben, a man also known as Friedrich von Steuben, yet who also bore the unwieldy full name and title of Friedrich Wilhelm Rudolf Gerhard August, Freiherr von Steuben, came to America for a better opportunity (after an accomplished military career in Prussia, he had been working for an indebted royal in a Prussian palace).
The French Minister of War had recommended Herr von Steuben to Benjamin Franklin to assist America in its war with Britain. Franklin passed on the recommendation to officials in Washington, D.C., and on this date in 1778 von Steuben arrived in America.
Baron von Steuben’s contributions to the Continental Army included drilling the American soldiers on how to quickly fire and reload their muskets, a drill he had them repeat over and over until it became second nature, much improving their effectiveness in battle (doubtless drastically increasing the value of the antecedent and decreasing the value of the consequent in the vital kill:be killed ratio).
Perhaps as importantly, von Steuben vastly improved hygienic conditions for the soldiers by insisting that latrines be dug at military camps, and that the latrines be posted on the opposite side of the camp as the kitchens and that the latrines be erected at the top of a downward-angling slope. These changes surely reduced sickness and death among the American troops significantly, too, not to mention the boost of morale that such modifications would bring about.
Baron von Steuben did not speak English. His orders were conveyed by his first writing them in French; they were then translated from French into English by Alexander Hamilton and a lesser-known American officer, Nathanael Greene.
Questions: Do you think America would have won the war against Britain without the help of the French and this particular German, von Steuben? What was more important: firing and reloading faster, or instilling basic hygiene in the military camps? What position or rank or title did von Steuben have during the war? How did the rest of his life turn out after the war?
1940 — Woody Guthrie Writes “This Land Is Your Land”
public domain images from wikimedia commons
Who is not familiar with the song This Land Is Your Land, which was written on this date in 1940 by Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (1912-1967)? The folk standard has been covered by a slew of artists, from Bob Dylan to Pete Seeger and other folk artists and groups, as well as The Seekers, Glen Campbell, Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, and even Lady Gaga.
Songwriters who name Guthrie as a major influence include the aforementioned Seeger, Dylan, and Springsteen as well as Johnny Cash, John Mellencamp, Steve Earle, Joe Strummer (The Clash, et al), Billy Bragg, Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir (both of the Grateful Dead), and others.
Other examples of Guthrie’s songs include, among others, Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos) [about “illegal aliens” being flown back to Mexico]; Do Re Mi (of which John Steinbeck joked that if Guthrie had written it earlier, it would have spared him the time and effort he invested in writing Grapes of Wrath); Old Man Trump (which is about Donald Trump’s father Fred); Philadelphia Lawyer; Roll On, Columbia, Roll On; So Long, It’s Been Good to Know Yuh; and Union Maid (written when it was pointed out to him that his union songs were always about men).
John Steinbeck (he and Guthrie knew each other well, and admired each other’s work), said this of Woody:
Harsh voiced and nasal, his guitar hanging like a tire iron on a rusty rim, there is nothing sweet about Woody, and there is nothing sweet about the songs he sings. But there is something more important for those who will listen. There is the will of the people to endure and fight against oppression. I think we call this the American spirit.
Guthrie explained why he wrote and performed the songs he did this way:
I hate a song that makes you think that you are not any good. I hate a song that makes you think that you are just born to lose. Bound to lose. No good to nobody. No good for nothing. Because you are too old or too young or too fat or too slim too ugly or too this or too that. Songs that run you down or poke fun at you on account of your bad luck or hard traveling. I am out to fight those songs to my very last breath of air and my last drop of blood. I am out to sing songs that will prove to you that this is your world and that if it's hit you pretty hard and knocked you for a dozen loops, no matter what color, what size you are, how you are built, I am out to sing the songs that make you take pride in yourself and in your work.
On a personal note, I consider the pantheon of great American songwriters to proceed linearly from Stephen Foster to Woody Guthrie to Hank Williams to Bob Dylan to Bruce Springsteen and Jackson Browne. Who’s next?
Questions: What life events informed Guthrie’s philosophy? Why did Steinbeck imply that Guthrie’s song “Do Re Mi” had such an important message? Have you seen the movie “Bound for Glory”? What’s the connection between it and the movie version of Steinbeck’s “Grapes of Wrath”?
1954 — Polio Vaccine Saves Untold Number of Children
public domain images from wikimedia commons
On this date in 1954, the tide began to turn in the war against the debilitating and sometimes deadly disease Polio (poliomyelitis) when a group of children in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania received the vaccine that Jonas Salk and others had worked on. The children’s health improved quickly and dramatically. By the end of the century, the worldwide Polio infection rate had been reduced 99%.
Salk’s formula was effective at killing the Polio virus without adversely affecting the patient (who were usually children, but sometimes adults, also).
Albert Sabin later came up with a Polio vaccine which could be produced at less cost and be taken orally (rather than intravenously).
Until very recently, when Polio began making a bit of a comeback, the use of these vaccines had caused Polio cases to be virtually eliminated worldwide. The places still affected by the disease are typically the world’s poverty-stricken and marginalized communities.
Questions: Do you think Polio will continue its “comeback”? If so, why?
