Show August 1 1968 j I The flowers withered on their stems The leaves hung limp and wan Within the trees a wistful breeze Whispered and was gone Anne Mary Lawler THERE ARE a number of interesting in- in interesting interesting in in- dates in the month of i August Perhaps the most nostalgic nostalgic nostalgic nos nos- is Aug 14 the day Pres Truman announced the surrender surrender surrender der of Japan ending world war II in 1945 Hitler committed suicide in inthe inthe inthe the face of Germanys Germany's defeat and his imminent capture in Berlin by the Russians on the thelast thelast thelast last day of April Germany surrendered surrendered surrendered sur sur- rendered on May 8 ending the war in Europe BUT THE Japanese struggled on even though Pres Truman and the retiring Prime Minister of Great Britain W V Winston i ins n s t ton o n Churchill gave Tokyo a virtual ultimatum at Potsdam on July 26 warning that unless they surrendered the nation faced prompt and utter destruction The mas massive s i ve US U.S. fleet steamed into Tokyo Bay and sunk the r remainder of the Japanese Japanese Japanese Jap Jap- anese fleet Army and navy bombers struck hard at many targets The Japanese fought a m until munt until l the first atom bomb fell I 1 on Aug 5 on Hiroshima IN A FEW days another was and further warnings were issued These new weapons and the horror of their destructive potential proved decisive Japan surrendered almost certainly thereby avoiding hundreds of of thousands of casualties which I would have been suffered in an I invasion of Japan itself On the in ten 1935 years earlier social security was established established es es- established es- es in the United States amid cries from the opposition that it would ruin rum the nation Columbus sailed from Palos alos Spain on Aug 3 1492 in his voyage voyage voyage voy voy- age to the New World AND DAVID Crockett was born Aug 17 1786 in Hawkins C County Tenn A political assassination in 1935 took the life of Huey Long of Louisiana then the virtual virtual virtual vir vir- dictator of that state who wh was born barn Aug 30 1893 in WinE Winfield Win- Win Wint field E eld La I t i I II I AND FINALLY the worst t i earthquake known east of the Mississippi occurred Aug 31 II 1886 It was most disastrous at Charleston S. S C C. C but was felt fell from Jacksonville Fla north to Canada and west to Iowa Thelast The Thelast Thelast last quake in the east was in 1811 |