Fairfax Harrison (March 13, 1869 – February 2, 1938) was an American
lawyer and businessman. He became a lawyer for the Southern Railway
Company in 1896, and by 1906 he was the company's vice-president of
finance. In 1913 he was elected president of Southern; under his
leadership, the company expanded to an 8,000-mile (13,000 km) network
across 13 states. Following the United States's entry into World War I,
the federal government took control of the railroads, running them
through the United States Railroad Administration, on which Harrison
served. After the war, Harrison worked to improve the railroad's public
relations, upgrade the locomotive stock by introducing more powerful
engines, increase the company's amount of railroad track and extend the
area serviced by the railway. Harrison struggled to keep the railroad
afloat during the Great Depression, but by 1936 Southern was once again
profitable. Harrison retired in 1937 and died three months later.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairfax_Harrison>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1741:
War of Jenkins' Ear: The British began an assault against
Spanish forts in the Caribbean in the Battle of Cartagena de Indias
(depicted).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cartagena_de_Indias>
1964:
Kitty Genovese was murdered in New York City, prompting
research into the bystander effect due to the false story that neighbors
witnessed the killing and did nothing to help her.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Kitty_Genovese>
1996:
A gunman killed sixteen children and a teacher at a primary
school in Dunblane, Scotland, before committing suicide.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunblane_massacre>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
peccant:
1. Of a person, etc.: that commits or has committed an offence or a sin;
blameworthy, culpable, offending, sinful, sinning.
2. Of an action or thing: causing offence or sin; offensive, sinful.
3. (pathology, historical, also figurative) Especially of humours of the
body: diseased, unhealthy; also, causing disease.
4. (obsolete) Offending a norm, a rule, etc.; defective, faulty, wrong.
5. (obsolete) An offender; also, a sinner.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/peccant>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
When I was young I never needed anyone And making love was just
for fun Those days are gone. All by myself Don't want to be all by
myself anymore.
--Eric Carmen
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Eric_Carmen>