The Almanac

Today is Wednesday, Sept. 7, the 250th of 2005 with 115 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Mercury, Mars and Saturn. The evening stars are Neptune, Jupiter, Uranus, Venus and Pluto.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Virgo. They include England's Queen Elizabeth I in 1533; American primitive painter Anna "Grandma" Moses in 1860; financier J. Pierpont Morgan Jr. in 1867; heart surgeon Michael DeBakey in 1908 (age 97); film director Elia Kazan in 1909; physicist and rocket developer James Van Allen in 1914 (age 91); actor Peter Lawford in 1923; Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, in 1924 (age 81); rock 'n' roll pioneer Buddy Holly in 1936; actors John Philip Law ("The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming") in 1937 (age 68), Richard Roundtree in 1942 (age 63), Susan Blakey in 1950 (age 55), Julie Kavner in 1951 (age 54) and Corbin Bernsen in 1954 (age 51); and musician Michael Feinstein in 1956 (age 49).

On this date in history:

In 1822, Brazil declared independence from Portugal.

In 1892, James Corbett knocked out John L. Sullivan in the 21st round of a prizefight at New Orleans, the first major fight under the Marquess of Queensberry Rules.

In 1901, the Boxer Rebellion in China ended with the Boxer Protocol.

In 1926, Hollywood studios closed for the day in honor of the funeral of Rudolph Valentino, the silent movie superstar who had died after ulcer surgery.

In 1940, Nazi Germany launched the London blitz, a bombing that Adolf Hitler believed would soften Britain for invasion. The invasion never materialized.

In 1977, President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian dictator Omar Torrijos signed a treaty agreeing to transfer control of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama at the end of the 20th century.

In 1986, Desmond Tutu was installed as the Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, becoming first black titular head of South Africa's fourth-largest Christian church.

In 1992, black soldiers in the South African homeland of Ciskei killed 23 people and wounded nearly 200 when they fired on thousands of African National Congress supporters.

Also in 1992, 12 people were killed when a twin-engine plane carrying skydivers crashed in a soybean field in Hinckley, Ill.

And in 1992, Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent quit, five days after the game's owners resoundingly voted to ask him to resign.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore announced a broad program to streamline the government.

Also in 1993, South Africa's ruling National Party agreed to share power with a multi-party council that would be established within two months.

In 1996, "Dr. Death" Jack Kevorkian assisted in a 40th suicide in Michigan.

In 1999, Viacom, the world's largest cable network company, announced plans to buy CBS.

And, in 2002 sports, Serena Williams defeated her sister Venus, 6-4, 6-3, to win the women's U.S. Open tennis tournament.

In 2003, President George W. Bush asked Congress for $87 billion to pay for the occupation and reconstruction of Iraq.

In 2003 sports, Andy Roddick won the U.S. Open men's singles title and Justine Henin-Hardenne of Belgium took the women's crown.

In 2004, the U.S. military death toll in Iraq passed the 1,000 mark.

Also in 2004, September's third hurricane, named Ivan, struck Grenada with150 mph sustained winds, killing about 40 people, and headed toward the United States.

A thought for the day: American lawyer and statesman Daniel Webster said, "Knowledge is the only fountain both of the love and the principles of human liberty."