text:
Talk:Ern Malley hoax

A Long Shadow?
Exactly what is nuetral about the phrasing:

"...cast a long shadow over Australian cultural life."

Surely this is no less biased than claiming that the Ern Malley affair, "pulled back the curtain of darkness that modernism had cast on Australian cultural life." This is a biasing metaphor with no place in an article of this sort. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.5.32.196 (talk) 18:45, 19 August 2010 (UTC)

Chutzpah?
I doubt Ern would have known what "chutzpah" means! And come to that, he wasn't even under graduate...ah well, campcase, imagine if we were all seinfeld watching highschool teachers with no sense of humour..speak strine please.

Stop coming the raw prawn, acting the dog etc. And sign ya name, piker. Campcase 19:16, 8 February 2007 (UTC)

Ah, that's better, I was getting worried. This is no chat room, so I end with saying this. Anyone who is interested in Ern Malley needs a sense of humour...and a decent chip on their shoulder! My name is Christopher Chubb, sometimes I go by the name of Peter.

Peers
It would be of interset to elaborate upon Malley's position and friendships amoung his contemporaries, such as Christopher Chubb. mangonorth

Style
This is not a very encyclopedical artical, not in style, form... It's well-written, but perhaps not in a style appropriate for WP. I think at the very least the lede should say who Malley really was, even if the "story" style of the article is kept. This has been done twice, and then reverted twice by the original author, to whom I ask - Why should the reality of Ern Malley be saved for the middle of the article (other than so we aren't "boring pedants")? Zafiroblue05 03:46, 18 November 2005 (UTC)

I was just about to come on here and say the same thing. Most of the article is commentary--which is inappropriate and contrary to wikipedia standards. I deleted the entirety of the section The Last Laugh as it was nothing BUT commentary. But really the whol article needs a rewrite. Whoever wrote it needs to read the tutorials before doing any more editing. --Brentt 02:55, 21 December 2005 (UTC)

Brentt: I came to this page to read up on Ern Malley because of a passing reference to him in a newspaper article. Wikipedia was temporarily down so I read the Google cached version, which still included 'The Last Laugh'. Now, while I agree that that's an inappropriate section title, nevertheless I think there was quite a lot of interesting and relevant stuff there that didn't warrant deletion. Editing, yes, but I wonder if your reading of the section (and consequent wholesale deletion of it) wasn't coloured somewhat by the ridiculous, NPOV section heading? Quite a lot of that section was, it seems to me (and despite the section heading), fairly neutral (and interesting) biographical stuff - about how the Ern Malley incident subsequently affected the lives of those involved.

Zafiroblue05: I agree - as it stands, the leader is misleading. That this article concerns a hoax should definitely be flagged up right from the start. Whoever originally structured this article was trying to tell a good story rather than write a good encyclopedia entry, I think. --Tremolo 04:45, 4 January 2006 (UTC)

"Philistine Australia"
the philistine Australia of 1943. How is this NPOV? RickK 05:36, 27 Nov 2003 (UTC)

It is the commonly held view of Australia at that time. Anyway, I am not a slave to NPOV, and no serious historian should be. History is about interpretation, not just lists of facts. To quote Australis's most famous historian: "Look at the title page, young man. It's Manning Clark's History of Australia. If you don't like it, write your own." Adam 05:42, 27 Nov 2003 (UTC)

 * Hmmm. I think in the context of this piece "philistine Australia of 1943" is acceptable shorthand.  It's certainly a very widely-held view that Australia was very much a cultural desert at the time.  I used the phrase "dreary conservatism" to describe 1950's Melbourne.  However, I should add that a (moderately) right-wing friend of mine thought that some of the Australian-oriented topics on Wikipedia showed a bit of lefty bias.  It's something we should keep in mind, IMO.  --Robert Merkel 10:27, 27 Nov 2003 (UTC)

I agree that is a problem with many WP contributions. But I don't think there's anything lefty about describing 1940s Australia as philistine - it's a rather elistist-conservative view in some ways. Adam 11:39, 27 Nov 2003 (UTC)

Harris publishing "indecent matter"
Can anyone help me? I read that Max Harris did jail time on a charge on "publishing indecent matter" as editor of the poems. This article doesn't mention it. Is it real? Auric The Rad 19:23, Jul 19, 2004 (UTC)

 * It's a while since I read up on this story, but my recollection is that he was fined, not jailed. I will check when I get home to my references (I am currently in Thailand). Adam 05:39, 20 Jul 2004 (UTC)

 * Harris was convicted, after a three-day trial, and fined five pounds. The poem in question (one of the Malley poems) was about a young couple in a park after dark. A policeman gave evidence that in his considerable experience young couples only go to a park after dark for one reason, and that this made the poem indecent, immoral, and obscene. Wocky 07:49, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

Alternative Prospective
Has anyone considered the possibility that the fake authors were actually lying when they said they wrote the poem in one day? Perhaps they wanted to humiliate the critics, and were willing to attempt quality poetry to do so. Superm401 | Talk 03:59, May 26, 2005 (UTC)

Michael Heyward, in "The Ern Malley Affair" goes to some lengths to counter the claim that the poems could not possibly have been written in one day - which did come up at the time. McAuley had already written most of the opening poem Durer:Innsbruck (quoted in the article) and the two poets claimed they tinkered with it a little but left it largely unchanged. This, they said, got the creative ball rolling, and the rest of Ern's output came quickly. Ethel's letters, they claimed, were much harder to get right.

Heyward establishes that McAuley in particular had a flair for satiric improvisation and that Stewart was highly regarded in poetic circles for his knowledge of other poets' works and styles. Moreoever, there was a tradition of off-the-cuff parody and (frequently ribald) versification within the Sydney poetry scene, where both McAuley and Stewart got their start.

Campcase 22:56, 6 November 2005 (UTC)

Hoax
The fact that this is a hoax, and an historical controversy, should be stated in the first paragraph. As it currently stands, the article is somewhat confusing and misleading - those who do not allready have knowledge of the incident would not fully understand this artilce - Matthew238 00:25, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

Original author's comment
What a lot of boring farts you all are. However I agree that I would not now write the article in this way. I will make some edits. Adam 10:28, 4 January 2006 (UTC)

Malley a "fraud"?
There is nothing wrong with article at all which tells the whole story of a quintessential piece of Australian ratbaggery and pompous pricking very well. Looking at the poems now (and I have not glanced at them in 20 years) I can see that whatever McCauley and Stewart said, these could NOT have been composed by the selection of random pieces of text. Analogies and conceits are pursued stanza after stanza, poem after poem. For example:

I have pursued rhyme, image, and metre,

Known all the clefts in which the foot may stick,

Stumbled often, stammered,

But in time the fading voice grows wise

And seizing the co-ordinates of all-existence

Traces the inevitable graph Here, Malley looks with stoicism at his own impending death, and the unfinished canon of his poems. There is even the pun on “foot”. If anything, far from being abstruse and incomprehensible, the material here might appear rather commonplace today. Certainly, there are any number of “deconstructionist” texts far more obscurantist than anything in these 16 poems. It could well be that the two hoaxers exaggerated the randomness of their poetry writing to achieve the maximum with their humiliating prank. Or, as is suggested here, they were irresistibly guided by their own poetic concerns as they pieced Malley’s truncated world together. Either way, a theory of mine would be bolstered. To create poetry of this kind requires education, and a poetic sensibility, but not a great deal of technical skill. The same can be said of much abstract art. The result is that, yes, I believe that many of us could indeed write poems “as good at these”, but that does not mean the poems are a fraud. The poems are real and interesting and “poetic”. The reality of how they were constructed might reveal that poetry is nearer to our own lives than we might suppose, but that it is not the singular piece of bravura excellence that Harris had talked it up to be. Myles325a 03:51, 1 April 2007 (UTC)

Confusing
The way this is written is confusing. Where does the story of the made up personage end and real events begin? Was Harris a real person or is this part of the hoax? When was this hoax commited. There are a lot of things int his article that are quite unclear. Effort needs to be made to clarify. --Lendorien (talk) 18:46, 24 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Great that you want to improve this, though it is already the best article I have read on this topic. Where the hoax begins and ends is up to the individual, but he is one of Australia's best known poets. Malley has been cited as genius and used as a cudgel. It is possible to add to this complex topic, but I would be very cautious. It would not be possible to simplify the explanation, except by adopting one of the many POVs, perhaps this is a major reason for his increasing notability. cygnis insignis 19:28, 24 October 2008 (UTC)
 * It was more that the section was poorly composed and unclear about what was part of the hoax story and what were real events. --Lendorien (talk) 19:44, 24 October 2008 (UTC)
 * It now takes the position that it is a complete hoax, some critics take the view that his poetry is on par with other published material. Anyway ... I assume you consulted a number of reliable sources before making changes to the article, please slip those into a tag and add them to the ref section. cygnis insignis 20:19, 24 October 2008 (UTC)

Mechanical men posting themselves that Built you a gibbet in the vile morass Which now you must dangle on, alas. - Malley
 * No offense, but I have not changed this article significantly, rather just edited the intro and clarified the background story. While Malley may be considered influentual, he WAS a hoax. The information int he article already even said as much. All I did was clarify the progression of things and made it clearer. I havent' changed any facts. This article has no intext sourcing as it is. --Lendorien (talk) 14:00, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Cleanup
I made some edits to this article. I expanded the intro to add a few more details and a date. I clarified the background section to make the sequence of events a bit clearer. I've renamed and reorganized section headings in a more traditional way as well.

Article still needs: --Lendorien (talk) 19:44, 24 October 2008 (UTC)
 * Tone edits to fix the conversational essay tone it currently has. There's a lot of subjective statements that need to be removed.
 * It needs sourcing. There's a lot of unsourced statements in this article including quotes and unverified suggestions of notability that have nothing to back them up. Who says this hoax is important? Source them.
 * Some reorganization of this article may be in order. The why for why the hoax was done is almost at the middle bottom of the article.
 * Expansion of why Ern Malley has a legacy would be nice. What's there now isn't very detailed.
 * If you're the one who put the 20 odd citation requests in the article, you made it an even worse, even more incoherent mess, while leaving in ACTUAL problems that need correction. I would revert your edits, but after the censorship I encountered in the past, my input will be limited to commenting on the stupidity of edits like yours.  And I took ALL of your moronic citation requests out.  Fuck you if you don't like it, stop asking for multiple citations for THE SAME RUNNING QUOTE.

Courtesy
Anyone who rants, rages, and threatens in their obscenity-filled edit summaries will be blocked, regardless of the merit of their edits. DS (talk) 23:34, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Hoax?
How can it be a hoax, if McAuley and Stewart wrote original poetry. It is simply a joke, or fabrication of theirs to say that the material was written by another. Why is there no credit for the beauty, originality of the works, whoever the creator? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.236.111.217 (talk • contribs) 11:26, 27 June 2009

use banners
Way to many little "citations needed", use banners instead. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.190.86.13 (talk) 21:43, 22 November 2011 (UTC)

last laugh
what is this "got the better of" business

why does harris get to "win" in the end, this is an encyclopedia article for christsakes. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.6.160.43 (talk) 03:21, 31 August 2012 (UTC)
 * Could you be more specific? I can't find the phrases you quote in the article. -- Michael Bednarek (talk) 12:49, 31 August 2012 (UTC)
 * The last laugh is always the best laugh, so they say. Max Harris went on to have a long and fruitful career, as did McAuley and Stewart.--Shirt58 (talk) 13:41, 31 August 2012 (UTC)

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words about ern malley from Harold Stewart article
i have removed the following words from the above article as it provided too much detail there:
 * A cure for Graves' disease does not exist but with palliative treatment the symptoms can be ameliorated. Mostly electing to ignore the warning signs of his faltering health, Ern returned to Sydney after a failed romance tested his resolve, but then, just weeks later, died in the care of his sister, leaving his unpublished manuscript for posterity.

The age of his death was contrived to draw parallels with John Keats, a principal poet of the English Romantics, who had died at the same age. More tangential clues awaited discovery, some obscure like the reference to Keats, others more obvious as when Ern writes in 'Sybilline': "It is necessary to understand / That a poet may not exist," though none were sufficiently provocative to prick the ear of suspicion, which was largely due to the credibility of Ethel. By grounding the story with a sense of humility she plays a pivotal role in securing the bond of trust.. Her letters display disarming candour: "It would be a kindness if you would let me know whether you think there is anything in them. I am not a literary person myself and I do not feel that I understand what he wrote, but I feel that I ought to do something about them." A couple of poems were enclosed with her first letter. The language of 'Durer: Innsbruck 1495' stunned Harris, resonating with his modern sensibilities. Even though the other poems might not have been as accomplished, Harris made his mind up with the first flush of enthusiasm and read 'Durer' over and over again, convinced that with the right promotion Ern could shine as the next big star in the modern firmament, which, in turn, would assist the promotion of modernism. The neat self-serving circularity of the plan was too delicious to resist.

While McAuley has been widely acknowledged as the main author of the meretricious poems, Ethel Malley, an ordinary suburban housewife, was primarily the product of Stewart's imagination, though McAuley and his wife Norma made some minor editorial contributions. Ethel has the warm familiarity of a congenial neighbour living in the type of lower-middle class suburb that Stewart experienced as a child but had since gladly left behind. Yet, in the letters, there is also a glimpse of a darker, more judgmental side to her personality; of a suburban philistine insulated from events in the wider world and dismissive of her brother's impulsive choices, such as his decision to quit his job in Sydney and relocate to Melbourne. Heyward notes: "Ern Malley mocked the romantic myth of the proletarian artist but Ethel anticipated by a decade that formidable icon of the Australian suburban sensibility, Edna Everage."

Harris was charged with publishing obscene material though could have avoided an appearance before the Adelaide Magistrates' Court if he had known about Stewart's skill for inventing poetic masks, yet this would have cruelly denied future generations the brilliant comedy of that vaudevillian farce. Paul Kane in Australian Poetry, p. 142, describes the trial as "an incipient Monty Python skit." Detective Vogelsang was the chief witness for the prosecution and thought that 'Night Piece' was obscene. Under oath he declared: "Apparently someone is shining a torch in the dark, visiting through the park gates. To my mind they were going there for some disapproved motive . . . I have found that people who go into parks at night go there for immoral purposes." He also found the word "incestuous" indecent in 'Perspective Lovesong' but admitted he did not know the meaning of the word. Paul Kane in Australian Poetry, p.142, describes the trial as "an incipient Monty Python skit." Detective Vogelsang was the chief witness for the prosecution and thought that 'Night Piece' was obscene. Under oath he declared: "Apparently someone is shining a torch in the dark, visiting through the park gates. To my mind they were going there for some disapproved motive . . . I have found that people who go into parks at night go there for immoral purposes." He also found the word "incestuous" indecent in 'Perspective Lovesong' but admitted he did not know the meaning of the word. The use of the words "immoral purposes" in the context of parks at night suggests that Vogelsang is referring to homosexual activity. A major patron of Max Harris, especially in the early days in Adelaide during the first few editions of 'Angry Penguins,' was Charles Jury. Wealthy, single and homosexual, Jury had retired from the chair of English Literature at Adelaide University and lived in the city opposite a park similar to one described in 'Night Piece.' Sasha Soldatow, in The UTS Review, 1996, Vol 2/ No.1, May, in a review of Michael Heyward's The Ern Malley Affair, points out the relationship between Jury and Harris and describes Heyward's use of  word "fruity" as homophobic. Soldatow also describes Heyward's characterisation of Jury and his relationship between Harris as "homophobic." Max Harris in Ern Malley Collected Poems describes Jury as a skilful and scholarly influence. Harris describes Jury's use of Greek mythology as a means of expressing a noble idealisation of homosexual love. Patrick Buckridge in 'Clearing A Space For Australian Literature 1940–1965,' in The Oxford Literary History of Australia (Melbourne, Oxford University Press, 1988), p.174, writes that the court appearance and conviction of Harris "were a key moment in the translation of popular philistinism into repressive state power."

The unsettled life of Ern Malley, made painfully public in Ethel Malley's correspondence where she describes a young poet battling the machinations of a materialistic modern world in the poverty of war-time rationing, desperate for the soft touch of love, for a moment that would clarify purpose with a salvatory meaning, displays an uncanny parallel to Stewart's own early life. Ironically, he went on to write poetry which represents such an enlightened moment in much the same unappreciated circumstances suffered by Ern Malley. For Stewart, the Malleys were not only a mask to hide behind, but also a mirror which reflected his own precarious life as a young aspiring poet.

Stewart was partly inspired in the creation of an imaginary poet after attending some lectures given by the Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges in Melbourne in 1938, though, more importantly, he had been busy inventing several other poetic identities in his earlier years, including Skald and Dulchie Renshaw. Skald was used to hide the fact that he preferred same-sex relationships. Michael Ackland in Damaged Men explores the effect this had on Stewart's life, which, if Ackland's hypothesis is right, was considerable.

Harris eventually overcame the humiliation of Ern Malley and even managed to capitalise on the celebrity gained from the hoax in his business life, but the resentment directed toward Stewart and McAuley simmered long after the last Japanese soldier had surrendered in the Pacific. Serious reservations persisted about the lack of support his poetry received from Australian critics and in a letter to Heyward he outlines his feelings about the lack of critical attention. "How would you feel if a life time's serious work in poetry and prose, based on scholarship and experience of a profound Tradition, were almost totally ignored, while an afternoon's jeu d'esprit by two bored young soldier poets amusing themselves by satirising the fashionable literary kitsch of the period is inflated into an event of national cultural importance?"

His defensive tone highlights the distant relationship he had with his home country and confirms the disregard he harboured for those Australian critics who ignored the later part of his career.

some of it may be useful for this article? Coolabahapple (talk) 04:23, 18 March 2018 (UTC)

title: Talk:Ern Malley hoax


text:
William H. Crawford

William Harris Crawford (February 24, 1772 – September 15, 1834) was an American politician and judge during the early 19th century. He served as US Secretary of War and US Secretary of the Treasury before he ran for US president in the 1824 election.

Born in Virginia, Crawford moved to Georgia with his parents at a young age, and he grew up to become one of the state’s most popular politicians. After studying law, Crawford won election to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1803. He aligned with the Democratic-Republican Party and US Senator James Jackson. In 1807, the Georgia legislature elected Crawford to the US Senate. After the death of US Vice President George Clinton, Crawford's position as president pro tempore of the US Senate made him first in the presidential line of succession from April 1812 to March 1813. In 1813, US President James Madison appointed Crawford as the minister to France, and Crawford held that post for the remainder of the War of 1812. After the war, Madison appointed him to the position of Secretary of War. In October 1816, Madison chose Crawford for the position of Secretary of the Treasury, and Crawford would remain in that office for the remainder of Madison's presidency and for the duration of James Monroe's presidency.

Although Crawford suffered a severe stroke in 1823, he sought to succeed Monroe at the 1824 election. Because of his roots in Virginia, Crawford received the support of the Virginia dynasty, but ongoing concerns about his health along with a changing political landscape made it impossible for him to become the fourth consecutive Virginia native to hold the office of president. The Democratic-Republican Party splintered into factions, as several others also sought the presidency. No candidate won a majority of the electoral vote and so the US House of Representatives chose the president in a contingent election. Under the terms of the US Constitution, the House selected from the three candidates who received the most electoral votes, which left Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, and Crawford in the running. The House selected Adams, who asked Crawford to remain as Treasury Secretary. Declining Adams's offer, Crawford returned to Georgia and accepted an appointment to the state superior court.

Crawford considered running in the 1832 presidential election for the presidency or the vice presidency but ultimately chose not to when fellow southerner Andrew Jackson sought a second term.

Early life
Crawford was born on February 24, 1772, in the portion of Amherst County, Virginia, that later became Nelson County, the son of Joel Crawford and Fanny Harris, but at least one source has given his birthplace as Tusculum, a house whose site remains in Amherst County. He moved with his family to Edgefield County, South Carolina, in 1779 and to Columbia County, Georgia, in 1783. Crawford was educated at private schools in Georgia and at Richmond Academy in Augusta. After his father's death, Crawford became the family's main financial provider, and he worked on the Crawford family farm and taught school. He later studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1799 and began to practice in Lexington. Also in 1799, Crawford was appointed by the state legislature to prepare a digest of Georgia's statutes.

State politics
He influenced Georgia politics for decades. In 1803, Crawford was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic-Republican Party, and he served until 1807. He allied himself with Senator James Jackson. Their enemies were the Clarkites, led by John Clark. In 1802, he shot and killed Peter Lawrence Van Alen, a Clark ally, in a duel. Four years later, on December 16, 1806, Crawford faced Clark himself in a duel, and Crawford's left wrist was shattered by a shot from Clark, but he eventually recovered.

U.S. Senate
In 1807, Crawford joined the 10th Congress as the junior U.S. senator from Georgia when the Georgia legislature elected him to replace George Jones, who had held the office for a few months after the death of Abraham Baldwin.

Crawford was elected President pro tempore of the Senate in March 1812 and, following the April 20, 1812, death of Vice President George Clinton, served as the permanent Presiding Officer of the Senate until March 4, 1813.

In 1811, Crawford declined to serve as Secretary of War in the Madison administration. In the Senate, he voted for several acts leading up to the War of 1812 and supported the entry into the war, but he was ready for peace: "Let it then be the wisdom of this nation to remain at peace, as long as peace is within its option."

Throughout his service in the Senate, Crawford was described as a member of the older more traditional wing of the Democratic-Republican Party, and he often focused on issues such as states' rights, which he supported.

Minister to France
In 1813, President James Madison appointed Crawford as the US minister to France during the waning years of Napoleon's First French Empire. Crawford served until 1815, shortly after the end of the Napoleonic Wars.

Cabinet
Upon Crawford's return, Madison appointed him as Secretary of War on 1 August 1815. Crawford served more than a year in that post. He sought but narrowly failed to win the Democratic-Republican nomination for the 1816 presidential race. Madison appointed him Treasury Secretary on 22 October 1816. He remained in that post for the rest of Madison's term and both terms of President James Monroe, until 6 March 1825. While Treasury Secretary he initiated the Reform Bill of 1817.

1824 election
The Congressional Caucus nominated Crawford for the 1824 election. However, Crawford had suffered a stroke in 1823 as a result of a lobelia prescription given to him by his physician. The Democratic-Republican Party was now split, and one of the splinter groups nominated Crawford. Despite improved health and the support of former Presidents Madison and Thomas Jefferson, he finished third in the electoral vote, behind Senator and General Andrew Jackson, hero of the Battle of New Orleans, and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams. In the subsequent contingent election, the House elected Adams President.

Later life
Refusing Adams's request for him to remain at the Treasury, Crawford then returned to Georgia, where he was appointed as a state superior court judge. Crawford remained an active judge until his death, a decade later.

Crawford was nominated for vice president by the Georgia legislature in 1828 but withdrew after support from other states was not forthcoming. Crawford also considered running for vice president in 1832 but decided against it, in favor of Martin Van Buren. Crawford also considered running for president again in 1832 but dropped the idea when Jackson decided to seek a second term.

Crawford is buried at the site of his home, about half a mile west of the current Crawford city limit.

Societies
During the 1820s, Crawford was a member of the prestigious society Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences, which had among its members former Presidents Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams.

Crawford also served as a Vice President in the American Colonization Society from its formation in 1817 to his death.

Family
Crawford was a descendant of John Crawford (1600–1676), who had come to Virginia in 1643, but participated and died in Bacon's Rebellion. John's son David Crawford I (1625–1698), was the father of David Crawford II (1662–1762), and the grandfather of David Crawford III (1697–1766). David Crawford III married Ann Anderson in 1727 and had 13 children, including Joel Crawford (1736–1788).

His cousin, George W. Crawford, served as Secretary of War under President Zachary Taylor.

Legacy
In 1875, Crawford appeared on the 50 cents bill.

The following places are named in his honor:

Cities and towns

 * Crawford, Georgia
 * Crawfordville, Georgia
 * Crawfordsville, Indiana

Counties

 * Crawford County, Arkansas
 * Crawford County, Georgia
 * Crawford County, Illinois
 * Crawford County, Indiana
 * Crawford County, Iowa
 * Crawford County, Michigan
 * Crawford County, Missouri
 * Crawford County, Wisconsin

Squares

 * Crawford Square, Savannah, Georgia

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: William H. Crawford


text:
James G. Birney

James Gillespie Birney (February 4, 1792 – November 18, 1857) was an American abolitionist, politician, and attorney born in Danville, Kentucky. He changed from being a planter and slave owner to abolitionism, publishing the abolitionist weekly The Philanthropist. He twice served as the presidential nominee for the anti-slavery Liberty Party.

Birney pursued a legal career in Danville after graduating from the College of New Jersey (later Princeton) and studying under Alexander J. Dallas. He volunteered for the campaigns of Henry Clay, served on the town council, and became a Freemason. In 1816, he won election to the Kentucky House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic-Republican Party. In 1818, he established a cotton plantation in Madison County, Alabama, and he won election to the Alabama House of Representatives the following year. Birney eventually sold the plantation and established a legal practice in Huntsville, Alabama, becoming one of the most successful lawyers in the region.

During the 1820s, Birney became increasingly troubled by the issue of slavery. He became a member of the American Colonization Society, which advocated for the migration of African Americans to the continent of Africa. After serving in various roles for the organization, Birney began calling for the immediate abolition of slavery. In 1835, he moved to Cincinnati, founding The Philanthropist the following year. He also became a member of the American Anti-Slavery Society, but resigned from that group due to his opposition to connecting the anti-slavery struggle to the movement for equal rights for women, although Birney endorsed the cause of women's suffrage. Birney accepted the Liberty Party's nomination in 1840 and received 0.3% of the popular vote. He accepted the Liberty Party nomination again in 1844 and received 2.3% of the popular vote, finishing behind James K. Polk and Clay. Birney moved to Michigan in 1841 and helped establish the town of Bay City, Michigan.

Youth

Born to an affluent Irish Episcopalian slaveholder of the same name in Danville, Kentucky, James G. Birney lost his mother, Martha Reed, when he was three. He and his sister were raised by their widowed aunt, who had come over from Ireland at the request of his father to look after the two. He was influenced by his aunt's opposition to slavery; she refused to own slaves. By 1795, his father's two sisters and their families had migrated from Ireland, settling on farms near his home. Most of his mother's relatives had also migrated nearby, settling in other areas of Mercer County, Kentucky. Growing up, he saw the issue of slavery from a variety of perspectives. Though his father fought to prevent their state of Kentucky from joining the Union as a slave state, when the effort failed, he decided that until the legislature abolished slavery from the state as a whole, a person could own slaves as long as he treated them humanely. Other members of Birney's family felt a personal moral responsibility and refused to own slaves. For his own part, Birney agreed with his father and received his first slave, Michael, a boy his own age, at age six. However, for much of his youth and education, he was under the influence of teachers and friends with strong anti-slavery views. For example, he attended several sermons given by a Baptist abolitionist by the name of David Barrow in his youth, which he later recalled with fondness.

Schooling
When Birney turned eleven he was sent to Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, where "one of Birney’s teachers, Robert Hamilton Bishop, was one of the state's earliest outspoken opponents of slavery." He returned home two years later to enter a school run by a Presbyterian man that had just opened in Danville, where he excelled in his studies, mostly based in the sciences. In 1808, at age sixteen, he entered the College of New Jersey (later, Princeton University). He studied political philosophy, logic, and moral philosophy, and became known as a proficient debater. Among his classmates, he became particularly good friends with George M. Dallas. He studied under the president of the school (Samuel Stanhope Smith), both a logician and an author who was somewhat anti-slavery. He was also exposed to the anti-slavery thinking of John McLean. Birney graduated from Princeton on September 26, 1810.

When he returned to Danville following graduation, he worked for the campaign of Henry Clay for one month. After this, he began to study law in Philadelphia, at the office of Alexander J. Dallas, the father of his Princeton friend and classmate. Enjoying considerable financial means, he had a horse carriage for transportation and was always well-dressed. He also made friends with members of the local Quaker community. He remained in Philadelphia with Dallas for the next three years, until he passed the Philadelphia bar examination and was admitted to the bar association, giving him the right to practice law.

Law practice
In May 1814 Birney returned to his hometown and took up the practice of law there, becoming the acting attorney for the local bank. He handled both civil and criminal lawsuits in Danville and other outlying cities of Kentucky. The economy of Kentucky was rather poor at this time, as the War of 1812 had caused a schism in trade within the state. Having trouble making ends meet, Birney made his living at this time primarily as a claims adjuster.

Following in the footsteps of his father, Birney became a Freemason upon his return to Danville and a member of Danville's town council, making him a member of the town's social elite. He also fell in love with Agatha McDowell and married her on February 1, 1816, at a Presbyterian church; they had 11 children, of whom 6 survived to adulthood. Among the wedding gifts the young couple received were slaves from his father and father-in-law. As Birney had yet to fully develop his abolitionist views, he accepted them kindly. It should be said that later in life Birney was known to say on many occasions that he does not recall ever believing that slavery was right.

Kentucky politics

In 1815, he again worked for the successful campaign of Henry Clay, who was running for U.S. Congress. He also campaigned for George Madison, who was running for Kentucky governor and won (Madison died months later). George Madison was also the maternal uncle of his wife, Agatha McDowell. His political sentiments at the time were with the Democratic-Republican Party. In 1816, Birney won a seat in the Kentucky Legislature representing Mercer County, becoming a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives at age twenty-four. In 1817, the Kentucky Senate drafted a resolution that proposed opening a dialogue between the newly installed governor of Kentucky, Gabriel Slaughter, and the governors of Ohio and Indiana for the purpose of passing laws in those states calling for the capture and return of runaway slaves from Kentucky.

Birney staunchly opposed this resolution and it was defeated, though a new resolution was soon after drafted and passed, despite Birney's opposition yet again. As he saw very little future for himself in Kentucky politics, Birney decided to move to Alabama with the hope of starting a political career.

Alabama

In February 1818, he moved his family to Madison County, Alabama, where he purchased a cotton plantation and slaves, most of whom came with him from Kentucky. In 1819, Birney became a member of the Alabama House of Representatives representing Madison County. While there, he helped draft an act that would afford slaves tried by jury paid legal counsel, barring the master and prosecutorial witness or their relatives from being members of the jury. This, along with his opposition to the nomination of Andrew Jackson for U.S. president, hampered many of his future political ambitions in Alabama. He opposed Jackson primarily on the grounds that he was foul-tempered, having executed two men personally.

In 1823, after experiencing many troubles with his cotton plantation, Birney moved to Huntsville, Alabama, to practice law again. His financial troubles were due in part to his habit of horse race gambling, which he gave up eventually after many losses. Most of his slaves stayed on at the plantation, though he did bring with him to Huntsville his servant Michael, as well as Michael's wife and three children.

At this time there were a number of other practicing lawyers in that area, including one John McKinley. His name preceded him, and he was admitted to the Alabama bar association. McKinley, along with several other prominent members of society, successfully campaigned for Birney to become the solicitor of Alabama's Fifth District in 1823. By the end of the year he decided to close his plantation, and sold the slaves at the plantation to a friend of his that was known for his good temperament and kind treatment of slaves. Following the sale of the plantation and slaves, he achieved financial stability, bought a generous plot of land and constructed a large brick house in Huntsville. As was true upon his first return to Danville years back, he once again became a member of the social elite in this new town. In addition to his duties as a public prosecutor, his private law office proved quite lucrative.

By 1825, he was the wealthiest lawyer in northern Alabama, partnering up with Arthur F. Hopkins. The next year, he resigned as solicitor general to pursue his own career with more tenacity. Over the next several years, he worked, often defending blacks, was appointed a trustee of a private school and joined the Presbyterian Church. In 1828, he became an elector on the John Quincy Adams and Richard Rush ticket. He strongly supported Adams for his conservatism, viewing the politics of Andrew Jackson and John C. Calhoun as a threat to the Union. To Birney's great disappointment, Jackson won. However, he found other ways to champion his beliefs. In 1829, his fellow citizens elected him mayor of Huntsville, Alabama, where he distinguished himself as a reformist, campaigning for free public education and temperance.

American Colonization Society
Birney's religious fervor also encouraged him to reevaluate his views on slavery. Increasingly alienated by the politics of the Jackson administration, he discovered the American Colonization Society in 1826. In 1829, he was introduced to Josiah Polk of the ACS by Henry Clay and became an early supporter of the society. He was intrigued by the possibility of solving the supposed problem constituted by free blacks by starting a colony for them in Liberia, Africa. In January 1830 he helped begin a chapter in Huntsville, Alabama, and subscribed to its literature.

He was then sent on a trip to the East Coast for the University of Alabama in search of professors for the college, following the receipt of a generous endowment for the school. From August through October 1830 he visited Philadelphia, New Brunswick, New York, New Haven, Boston, Ohio, and Kentucky. He returned home with numerous recommendations, and was thanked for his services. While in these areas, with the exception of Kentucky, he was greatly encouraged by the presence of free states in the Union. This same year, he had some sort of falling out with Henry Clay and also ceased further campaigning for the Democratic-Republican Party.

In 1831, Birney began considering moving to Illinois, as he was troubled with the idea of his children growing up in a slave state. He mentioned a move to Illinois frequently, stating he would free his remaining slave Michael, Michael's wife, and three children there. However, this never came to pass. In 1832, the American Colonization Society offered him a position as an agent to travel around the South promoting their cause and he accepted. He met with some success, including organizing the departure of settlers to Liberia and writing essays in defense of colonization. However, in failing to convert his audience to colonization, he began to doubt its effectiveness and the acceptability of slavery. By 1832, he had decided to return to Danville, Kentucky.

Gradual emancipation
A year before returning to Danville, Birney wrote letters to slaveholders in Kentucky who had previously expressed their support for emancipation, suggesting they soon hold a convention on the matter. On December 6, 1832, the gathering was held, with only nine slave owners in attendance. Most of these pledged not to emancipate their current slaves, but to emancipate their slave's offspring at age twenty-one. This small group also aimed to bring in non-slaveholders to promote this idea of "gradual emancipation".

Abolitionist
Birney's repudiation of the American Colonization Society and its projects was enormously influential; Gerrit Smith called it "celebrated". He was the society's employee, one of its agents. "No man has a better knowledge of colonization and its practical effects at the South."

In 1833, he read a paper signed by several Christian organizations that repudiated the tenets of the American Colonization Society and, instead, called for the immediate abolition of slavery. Almost the entirety of the following number of the society's magazine, African Repository, was devoted to an answer or "review" of him. This, along with life experience and education, brought Birney to the realization that slavery must be abolished once and for all. Inspired by correspondence and discussions with Theodore Weld, the organizer of the Lane Seminary debates, he freed his remaining slaves and declared himself an abolitionist in 1834.

Abolitionist newspaper
Birney decided to make Cincinnati his base, and made contacts with friends and fellow members of the abolitionist movement there. He worked to gain support in publishing an anti-slavery newspaper. At this time, there were four newspapers in the city, and all but the Cincinnati Daily Gazette released "critically- [sic]roundabout" editorials the next day that assailed the faults of abolitionism in general. One paper, The Daily Post (not to be confused with the Cincinnati Post), even called for lynching those who set out to author anti-slavery literature in their city.

The Gazette, which was owned by editor Charles Hammond, came to be an ally of sorts to Birney and his paper. While Hammond himself did not support equal rights for negroes, he did support the idea of a free press and freedom of speech. He also strongly resented the attempts of the South to legalize slaveholding in the North.

Birney's original plan was to publish his abolitionist newspaper in Danville. In August 1835, a meeting of "4 or 500 persons, has met at Danville, K., to warn James G. Birney against publication of his Abolition paper. A Committee of 5 was selected to wait on [meet with] Birney, and serve him with a copy of their Resolutions. He must be a daft man to persevere! It will be at his own peril. He will rue the consequences, as sure as he persists." In September we find that he "has abandoned the project of publishing an Abolition paper in Danville, Ky., and has removed to Cincinnati. A very good idea."

When Birney began publication of his abolitionist weekly, The Philanthropist, in Cincinnati, he and the paper were from the first the subject of controversy, with the majority of local newspapers and others doing everything they could to make him feel unwelcome. The Louisville Journal wrote a scathing editorial that all but directly threatened his paper.(quoted at left).

On July 14, 1836, a mob destroyed Birney's press. On July 30 the press was attacked again; the printing press was broken into pieces and the largest piece dragged through the streets and dumped in the river. The mob attempted to tar and feather Birney but could not find him. They went on to destroy houses of Blacks; the whole constitutes the Cincinnati riots of 1836.

However, writing for his newspaper helped him develop ideas for fighting slavery legislatively. He used them as he worked with Salmon P. Chase to protect slaves who escaped to Ohio. In 1837, he was fined $50 for harboring a slave. That same year, the American Anti-Slavery Society recruited him as an officer and corresponding secretary, and he moved his family to New York.

Liberty Party
With the American Anti-Slavery Society's schism in 1840, he resigned his position over disagreements on the role of women's rights to the anti-slavery campaign. Also in that year, the Liberty Party, a newly formed political party whose only aim was abolition, nominated Birney for president. Accurately predicting he would not win, he instead went as a delegate to the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London. The convention named him a vice-president and spread his writings throughout the United Kingdom. When he came back, the Liberty Party made use of his legal expertise in their efforts to defend blacks and fugitive slaves. They chose him as their candidate again in the 1844 presidential election with a campaign designed to draw votes away from the Whig Party candidate Henry Clay. In the New York election, Birney achieved 15,812 votes after Clay lost to the Democrat James K. Polk by only 5,106 votes; if Clay had won this state he would have achieved a majority in the Electoral College and won the election.

Michigan
In 1841, Birney moved to Saginaw, Michigan, with his new wife and family. He lived at the Webster House in Saginaw for a few months until his home in Bay City, Michigan, was ready. Birney was in the land development business in Bay City. He was a trustee of the reorganized Saginaw Bay Company and was deeply involved in the planning of Bay City, Michigan, where Birney Park is named after him. Birney and the other developers supported churches in their community and set aside money for their construction. In addition to running for the presidency in 1840 and 1844, Birney received 3023 votes for Governor of Michigan in 1845. Birney remained in Michigan until 1855, when his health drove him to move to the East Coast.

While in Bay City, Birney led a life of farming and agricultural pursuits in addition to his legal work, land development, and national anti-slavery involvement. He commented on the lack of help available in the city and was found working on his own fence.

His son, James Birney, came to Bay City, then called Lower Saginaw, to take care of his father's business interests in the city. James remained in Bay City and followed his father's tradition of public service. He is buried in Pine Ridge Cemetery on the East side of town.

Paralysis
In August 1845, Birney suffered from bouts of paralysis following a horseback riding accident, which recurred intermittently for the remainder of his life. His speech became affected as his condition worsened, until he was eventually left to communication through gestures and writing (the latter made difficult by severe tremors). He ended his public career and his direct involvement in the abolitionist movement as a result, though he kept himself informed of new developments and campaigned for causes including the abolition of the military during the Mexican-American War and a decrease in immigration, arguing that European immigrants diluted the influence of America's free people of color.

He died in New Jersey in 1857 in the Raritan Bay Union, a communal settlement, surrounded by abolitionist friends Theodore Weld, his wife Angelina Grimké Weld, and her sister Sarah Grimké, convinced that war would be necessary to end slavery. He was buried at the Williamsburg Cemetery in Groveland, New York, the home of his second wife's family.

Honors
In 1889, an all-black school in the Hillsdale neighborhood of Washington, D.C., was named the Birney School in his honor. It later became an elementary school and in 1962 it was renamed Nichols Avenue Elementary School.

Family
Birney married Agatha McDowell in 1816. Agatha was the daughter of U.S. district judge for Kentucky William McDowell and Margaret Madison, a distant relatative of James Madison. James and Agatha's marriage produced eleven children, only six of whom survived early childhood: James, William, Dion, David Bell, George, and Florence. Agatha died in October 1838.

On 25 March 1841, Birney married Elizabeth Potts Fitzhugh (sister of Henry Fitzhugh and of Ann Carroll Fitzhugh, wife of Gerrit Smith). Their two children were Ann Hughes Birney (1844–1846) and Fitzhugh Birney (1842–1864).

Birney's oldest son James served as the 13th Lieutenant Governor of Michigan under Governor Austin Blair and as the U.S. Minister to the Netherlands.

Four of Birney's sons fought in the American Civil War. David was a Union Army major-general who died of disease in October 1864. William was a U.S. inspector-general of U.S. Colored Troops who later became a U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. Dion was a U.S. lieutenant who died during the Peninsula campaign in 1862. Fitzhugh was a U.S. major at the time of his death by pneumonia in June 1864.

Archival material
Birney's archive is at the Clements Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.

title: James G. Birney


text:
Talk:Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

Citation help
Oh, and I found a webpage that gives reference to a section that needs a citation: http://www.army.mil/article/101170/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by Omnisxiii2 (talk • contribs) 04:14, 2 December 2013 (UTC)

Ridership counts in 2022?
I found this report of ridership confusing: "In 2022, the system had a ridership of 216,329,500, or about 757,000 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2023 ...." Do these rider counts pertain to 2Q23 or to full year 2022? Bookerj (talk) 14:50, 30 November 2023 (UTC)

 * Also found the per-day arithmetic confusing. How many weekdays are included in this calculation? A full year (without holidays) has 260 weekdays (+/- 1).  The T has reduced service levels and ridership on holidays, so we might count 250 weekdays of service. But even using 260 days, 216.3 M runs about 832,000 per weekday, about 10% higher than reported. Looks like the calculation used 286 days as the weekday count.  If the numbers came from the T, they might reflect a more complicated approach, figuring in some of the weekends/holidays in their weekday counts. Bookerj (talk) 15:12, 30 November 2023 (UTC)


text:
Ekron

Ekron (Philistine: 𐤏𐤒𐤓𐤍 *ʿAqārān, עֶקְרוֹן, عقرون), in the Hellenistic period known as Accaron (Ακκαρων)  was a Philistine city, one of the five cities of the Philistine Pentapolis, located in present-day Israel.

In 1957, Ekron was first identified with the mound of Tel Miqne (Hebrew) or Khirbet el-Muqanna (Arabic), near the depopulated Arab village of 'Aqir, on the basis of the large size of the Iron Age archaeological remains; the judgement was strengthened by the discovery in 1996 of the Ekron inscription. The tell lies 35 km west of Jerusalem, and 18 km north of Tel es-Safi, the almost certain site of the Philistine city of Gath, on the grounds of Kibbutz Revadim on the eastern edge of the Israeli coastal plain.

In the Bible
In the Hebrew Bible, Ekron is mentioned initially in :
 * This is the land that still remains: all the regions of the Philistines and all those of the Geshurites from Shihor, which is east of Egypt, northward to the boundary of Ekron.

counts it the border city of the Philistines and seat of one of the five Philistine city lords, and mentions Ekron's satellite towns and villages. The city was reassigned afterwards to the tribe of Dan, but came again into the full possession of the Philistines. It was the last place to which the Philistines carried the Ark of the Covenant before they sent it back to Israel ( and ), and the city lords returned here once they had seen that the Ark reached the Israelites in Beth Shemesh.

There was a noted sanctuary of Baal at Ekron. The Baal who was worshipped was called Baal Zebub, which some scholars connect with Beelzebub, known from :
 * [King] Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber at Samaria and was injured. So he sent messengers whom he instructed: "Go inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury." (JPS translation)

The prophet Elijah repeatedly condemned Ahaziah for turning to Baal-zebub for assurance:
 * Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.

Ekron's destruction is prophesied in :
 * Ekron shall be rooted up.

Location
Jerome wrote that Ekron was to the east of Azotus and Iamnia (consistent with the modern interpretation), however he also mentioned that some equated the city with Straton's Tower at Caesarea Maritima. This may be a reference to Rabbi Abbahu's identification of Ekron with Caesarea in Megillah.

Robinson first identified the Arab village of Aqir as the site of Ekron in 1838, and this was accepted until it was contested by Macalister in 1913, who suggested Khirbet Dikerin, and Albright in 1922, who suggested Qatra.

The identification of Ekron as Tel Miqneh was suggested by Naveh and Kallai in 1957–1958, a theory now widely accepted in light of the Ekron Royal Dedicatory Inscription found during the 1996 excavations.

History
The site of Tel Miqne was lightly occupied beginning in the Chalcolithic period and up to the Early Bronze Age.

Middle Bronze IIB
After a 400-year gap when only the upper tel was occupied, the city underwent a major expansion c.1600 BCE, under the Canaanites.

In Stratum XI (MB IIB) both the Upper City and Lower City was occupied. Later, the occupation would retreat to the Upper City.

Late Bronze-Iron Age I
The Canaanite city had shrunk in the years before its main public building burned in the 13th century BCE, during the Bronze Age collapse, a period of general devastation associated with the Sea Peoples. It was re-established by Philistines at the beginning of the Iron Age, c.12th century BCE. During the Iron Age, Ekron was a border city on the frontier contested between Philistia and the kingdom of Judah.

Iron Age IIC
Records of the Neo-Assyrian Empire also refer to Ekron, as Amqarrūna. The siege of Ekron in 712 BCE is depicted on one of Sargon II's wall reliefs in his palace at Khorsabad, which names the city. Ekron revolted against Sennacherib and expelled Padi, his governor, who was sent to Hezekiah, King of Judah, for safe-keeping in Jerusalem. Sennacherib marched against Ekron and the Ekronites called upon the aid of the king of Mutsri from northwest Arabia. Sennacherib turned aside to defeat this army, which he did at Eltekeh, and then returned and took the city by storm, put to death the leaders of the revolt and carried their adherents into captivity. This campaign led to the famous attack of Sennacherib on Hezekiah and Jerusalem, in which Sennacherib compelled Hezekiah to restore Padi, who was reinstated as governor at Ekron. The Philistine city of Ekron is specifically named in the Aramaic stele (Oriental Institute Prism) detailing Sennacherib's exploits in the land of Judah: "The cities of his (i.e. Hezekiah's), which I had despoiled, I cut off from his land and to Mitinti, king of Ashdod, [and to] Padi, king of Ekron, [and to] Silli-bel, king of Gaza, I gave. And (thus) I diminished his land."

Ashdod and Ekron survived to become powerful city-states dominated by the Assyrians in the 7th century BCE. The city was later destroyed by the Neo-Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II in 604 BCE, and although it is mentioned, as "Accaron", as late as 1 Maccabees 10:89 (2nd century BCE), it was never resettled on a large scale.

An olive oil production center dating from the seventh century BCE discovered at Ekron has over one hundred large olive oil presses, and is the most complete olive oil production center from ancient times to be discovered. The discovery indicates that olive oil production was highly developed in the Levant and that it was a major producer of olive oil for its residents as well as for other parts of the Ancient Near East, such as Egypt and especially Mesopotamia.

Archaeology
The Tel Miqne excavations were conducted for 14 seasons between 1981 and 1996, sponsored by the Albright Institute of Archaeological Research and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, under the direction of Trude Dothan and Seymour Gitin. The primary research focus was an interdisciplinary investigation of the interactions between the Philistines, Israelites, Phoenicians, Assyrians, and Egyptians during the Late Bronze Age II, Iron Age I and II.

Chronological development
The ceramic evidence indicates a presence at the site in the Chalcolithic period and Early Bronze Age. A continuous stratigraphic profile, however, was found only in the upper city on the Northeast Acropolis (Field I), beginning in Stratum XI of the MB IIB and extending through the end of Stratum I of the Iron IIC. In the lower city (Fields II, III, IV, V, X), a 400-year occupational gap followed Stratum XI of the 17th–first half of the 16th century BCE until its resettlement in Stratum VII at the beginning of the Iron I, ca. 1175 BCE. Another occupational gap of ca. 270 years followed the end of Iron I Stratum IV, ca. 975 BCE, in the lower city (Fields II, III, IV, V, X), until it was again resettled in Stratum I of the 7th century BCE. The cities at Ekron were well planned in both the Iron I and Iron II, with four distinct zones of occupation: fortifications, industrial, domestic, and elite. The final Iron II occupation in the 7th/6th centuries BCE was represented by a single architectural unit in Field III in the lower city. A presence in the Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic periods was attested in Fields IV Upper and V.

Middle Bronze Age
The tel was apparently shaped by fortifications that encompassed both the upper and lower cities in the Middle Bronze Age. Monumental platforms, part of the fortification ramparts, were excavated in Fields III and X. MB II ceramic evidence was found throughout the tel, as were fragmentary architectural remains and three infant jar burials excavated in Field IV Lower.

Late Bronze Age
The unfortified Strata X–VIII settlement was found only in the upper city in Field I on the Northeast Acropolis. It yielded Cypriot and Mycenaean imported pottery and Anatolian Grey burnished ware, attesting to international maritime trade. Egyptian influences are also evident, inter alia, in the burial containing a 19th Dynasty seal and scarab and in the 14th century BCE scarab bearing the name of the Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep III and dedicated to the "Lady of the Sycamore Tree," usually associated with the foundations of Egyptian shrines, an heirloom found in a later Iron I phase. The last Canaanite city of Stratum VIII was destroyed in a violent conflagration, dramatically illustrated on the Summit by a severely-burnt storeroom complex that yielded jars containing carbonized grains, lentils, and figs.

Iron Age I
Stratum VII is characterized by a new material culture with Aegean and Cypriot affinities introduced by the Philistines, one of the Sea Peoples featuring the locally-made Philistine 1 (previously designated Mycenaean IIIC:1) pottery. Such pottery is known as Cypriot Bichrome ware, and Philistine Bichrome ware. In the Strata VI–V Philistine 2 (Bichrome) pottery with red and black decoration on white slip is a major part of the ceramic assemblage. The material culture of Stratum IV is characterized by Philistine 3 (debased) pottery and the influence of a ceramic tradition of predominantly red-slipped and burnished ware.

In the upper city features in Stratum VII, include a mudbrick city wall, megaron-type buildings, hearths, a limestone bathtub, and an industrial kiln area. In Strata VI–V, a major feature was the mudbrick glacis, a cultic room with an incised scapula similar to those found in the 12th and 11th century BCE shrines at Enkomi and Kition on Cyprus.

In the lower city, along the ridge of the southern slope of the tel, behind the Iron I mudbrick city wall of Stratum VI, were a number of architectural units and finds, which included a bull-shaped zoomorphic vessel, an incised ivory tube, and a bronze pin and needle. Stratum V monumental building was constructed on a similar scale as the one in the elite zone. The artifacts, many representing a continuation of Aegean traditions, include a rectangular bone plaque painted in blue and incised with the depiction of the rear of a horse, a Mycenaean-type female figurine, a gold spiral hair-ring, a conical stamp seal depicting two prancing gazelles, an iron knife with an ivory handle, two small pebbled hearths, and two goat skulls.

The domestic buildings continued in use in Stratum IV with no substantial change, and special finds included an incised scapula, similar to those found in the upper city.

Also in the lower city, in the elite zone, Stratum VII was represented by a number of installations, including rectangular hearths. In Stratum VI circular hearths were found in a large public structure, which also produced a round ivory pyxis lid decorated with scenes of animals in battle. In Stratum V, a megaron-type building contained superimposed pebbled hearths, three rooms with benches and bamot, and a monumental entrance hall with two mushroom-shaped stone pillar bases.

One room yielded 20 spherical loom weights in the Aegean tradition. This building also produced three miniature bronze wheels from a cultic stand of a type known from Cyprus and reminiscent of the biblical description of the mechonot (laver stands) and a bronze Janus-faced linchpin from a chariot wheel. Another special find was an iron knife with a pierced spool-shaped ivory handle attached with three bronze nails. In Strata VI and V, the building complex contained a large stone bath, a monolith, two stone pillar bases, and several hearths. In Stratum IV the plan of the building complex was reused and its cultic function continued, as attested by the finds, including a cache of ivory, faience, and stone objects, among them decorated earplugs and a ring depicting the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet. The destruction and abandonment of the Stratum IV lower city during the first quarter of the 10th century marked the end of both the early Philistine city and of the Iron I in general at Ekron.

Iron Age II
Following the destruction of the Iron I Stratum IV city during the first quarter of the 10th century, the lower city was abandoned. Only the upper city was occupied in Strata III–II fortified with a mudbrick city wall and a 7 m wide mudbrick tower faced with Phoenician –type ashlar masonry in header-and-stretcher construction. Stratum III was continued in the monumental architecture of Stratum IIA–B, with the addition of a series of rooms, probably shops or market stalls, that opened onto the re-paved street, to which a stone-lined central drainage system was added in Stratum IIB.

Both the lower city and the upper city were reoccupied. In the lower city, new fortifications included a city wall and a three-entryway gate protected by a gatehouse, similar to those excavated at Timnah (Tel Batash), Gezer, Lachish, and Ashdod. To the east of the gate, an 80 m long row of stables or storehouses associated with a large public building was built between the city wall and an outer screening wall. The outstanding feature was the olive oil industrial zone, laid out in a belt extending throughout the lower city along the inner face of the city wall. Special finds include a cache of seven well-preserved large iron agricultural tools and nine four-horned limestone altars.

The 115 oil presses found at Ekron have a production capacity of 500–1,000 tons, making it the largest ancient industrial center for the production of olive oil thus far excavated. In Stratum IB of the last third of the 7th century, the diminution in olive oil production is associated with the end of Assyrian domination in Stratum IC and the expansion of the Egyptian sphere of influence to Philistia ca. 630 BCE. Master suggests the answer is to be found in the rediscovery of an old trade route and the entrance of a new player in the olive oil and wine market, the Ionians. The southern trunk route that connected Egypt by sea to the West lay in disuse for five hundred years, while the northern trunk route functioned as the only major route. Ships that made use of the northern route passed by Ashkelon on their journey to and from Egypt, which of course placed Philistia in an advantageous position viz-a-viz trade with Egypt. However, sometime during the latter part of the 7th century the southern route was rediscovered and the Ionians re-established direct trade connections with Egypt. They soon started to undercut the Philistine oil and wine trade. Lower trade volumes meant lower profit margins and so we see some olive oil presses being decommissioned in the latter part of the 7th century. Ashkelon and Ekron’s full productive capacities were no longer needed.

In the elite zone of the lower city, in Stratum I, the Ekron Royal Dedicatory Inscription, one of the most important finds of the 20th century in Israel, was found in the holy of holies, or cella, a room in the sanctuary of the Temple Complex 650. The inscription mentions Ekron, thus confirming the identification of the site, as well as five of its rulers, including Ikausu (Achish), son of Padi, who built the sanctuary.

The sanctuary reflects a Phoenician design, paralleled in Astarte Temple 1 at Kition on Cyprus. The Ekron Royal Dedicatory Inscription incised on a rectangular-shaped limestone block has five-lines and mentions Ekron, thus confirming the identification of the site, as well as five of its rulers, including Ikausu (Achish), son of Padi, who built the sanctuary to Ptgyh, his lady. Padi and Ikausu are known as kings of Ekron from the 7th century Neo-Assyrian Royal Annals. The language and form of writing of the Ekron inscription show a significant Phoenician influence, and the name Ikausu is understood as "the Achaean" or "the Greek" and Ptgyh has been interpreted as a Greek goddess.

Other special finds come from the side-rooms of the sanctuary, which yielded a treasure trove of gold, silver, and bronze objects, including a gold cobra (a uraeus), and a unique assemblage of ivories with cultic connotations. The ivories include a depiction of a woman, perhaps a royal personage; a knob bearing the cartouche of the 12th century Pharaoh Ramses VIII; a large head, probably from the top of a harp; and a large object with a male figure on the front, the image of a royal female personage on the side, and a cartouche of the 13th century Pharaoh Merneptah on the back.

The buildings of the elite zone also produced 16 short inscriptions including kdš l’šrt ("dedicated to [the goddess] Asherat"), lmqm ("for the shrine"), and the letter tet with three horizontal lines below it (probably indicating 30 units of produce set aside for tithing), and silver hoards.

The entire Iron II city was destroyed in a violent conflagration during the 604 BCE campaign of the Neo-Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II, after which the site was only partially and briefly resettled in the first quarter of the 6th century. A well-preserved Assyrian courtyard-type building was the only remaining architectural evidence for Stratum IA. Thereafter, Ekron was abandoned until the Roman period.

Roman to Islamic periods
After the its destruction in 603 BCE the city is not mentioned until the Hellenistic period. It is then mentioned as part f the toparchy given by Alexander Balas to Jonathan Apphus for his loyalty. It Is mentioned for the last time is the Onomasticon when Eusebius writes about a large Jewish village by the name Accaron between Azotus to Iamnia. There is but fragmentary evidence from the Roman, Byzantine and Islamic periods found only in Fields IV Upper and V.

title: Ekron


text:
President of Algeria

The president of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria (رئيس الجمهورية الجزائرية الديمقراطية الشعبية) is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Algerian People's National Armed Forces.

The current president is Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who succeeded Abdelaziz Bouteflika on 19 December 2019.

History of the office
The Tripoli Program, which served as Algeria's constitution when it won its war for independence from France in 1962, established the president as the head of state with a prime minister assisting in the operation of government. Internal political maneuvering resulted in a new constitution in 1963 that abolished the prime minister position and devolved all executive power upon the office of the president. For the first four decades of independence, the government was controlled as a one-party state by the National Liberation Front. The presidency was held by a succession of FLN members; Ahmed Ben Bella, Houari Boumédienne and Chadli Bendjedid. The constitution written in 1976 maintained the executive power of the Presidency, but the modifications of 1979 stripped the head of government status from the office.

Towards the end of the 1980s, there was a liberalization of the FLN regime. However, when the Islamic Salvation Front won parliamentary elections in 1991, the military forced Chadli Bendjedid to dissolve the parliament and resign on 11 January 1992. The military declared a state of emergency and took over government of the country, establishing a five-member High Council of State. The council appointed a president, Muhammad Boudiaf, to take office for a three-year term to facilitate a transfer back to normal elections for the office. However, Boudiaf was assassinated, and succeeded by Ali Kafi. Meanwhile, the country descended into a period of civil war, between the military government and Islamic guerrillas. Kafi was replaced in 1994 by Liamine Zéroual, who called the first of these elections in 1995, winning the full five-year term easily in disputed in election as the civil war was continuing. He called another early election in 1999, with the Islamic insurgency mostly suppressed. Abdelaziz Bouteflika won this election after all other candidates dropped out. He won re-election on 8 April 2004, in elections that were also disputed, won again in 2009, relatively unchallenged, and 2014; he declared his candidacy for a 5th term in the election scheduled for 18 April 2019, but, on 2 April 2019, he resigned before his 4th term ended, due to pressure from the military after protests.

As provided for under Article 102 of the Algerian Constitution, Abdelkader Bensalah, President of the Council of the Nation, became acting president of the country upon the resignation of Abdelaziz Bouteflika on 2 April 2019. His term could last for a maximum of 90 days, until elections, in which he could not participate, were held.

The current president is Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who won the 2019 Algerian presidential election on 12 December and assumed the office on 19 December 2019.

Term limits
As of 2021, there is a two-term limit for the president in the Constitution of Algeria. The term limit was reinstated in 2016.

title: President of Algeria


text:
List of presidents of Benin

This is a list of presidents of Benin (formerly Dahomey) since the                formation of the post of President in 1960, to the present day.

List of officeholders
{{legend|Black|Dahomeyan Democratic Rally (RDD)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|Gold|Dahomeyan Democratic Party (PDD)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend||People's Revolutionary Party of Benin (PRPB)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|Yellow|Benin Rebirth Party (RB)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend|Crimson|Action Front for Renewal and Development (FARD–Alafia)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
 * Political parties

{{legend||Military|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}} {{legend||Independent|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
 * Other factions

{{legend|#E6E6AA|Denotes acting or interim head of state}}
 * Status

title: List of presidents of Benin


text:
President of Burundi

The president of Burundi, officially the President of the Republic (French: Président de la République), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Burundi. The president is also commander-in-chief of the National Defence Force. The office of the presidency was established when Michel Micombero declared Burundi a republic on 28 November 1966. The first constitution to specify the powers and duties of the president was the constitution of 1974 adopted in 1976. The constitution, written by Micombero, affirmed Micombero's position as the first president of Burundi. The powers of the president currently derive from the 2005 constitution implemented as a result of the 2000 Arusha Accords after the Burundian Civil War. The current president since 18 June 2020 is Évariste Ndayishimiye.

The president's stated role is to represent Burundi's national unity and ensure that the laws and functions of the state are created and executed with full compliance in the constitution. The president is granted a variety of powers throughout the constitution. Title V establishes the executive powers granted to the president and Title VI establishes legislative powers granted to the president. The president has the power to appoint military commanders, ambassadors, magistrates, provincial governors and members of various national councils. The president also appoints all judges, including those of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court. The president can organize government and can call for parliamentary sessions under extraordinary circumstances. In addition to promulgating legislation, the president has the power to propose and amend laws and can veto laws that parliament is unable to agree upon. The president can also amend the constitution. The president represents Burundi in international affairs by signing and ratifying its treaties. The president is the sole office to manage war, but needs approval from parliament and the National Council of Security to start wars. The president is the sole post that can authorize military action. The president is also the sole post to grant civil and military awards.

A presidential term is seven years, and a president can serve two terms. The president is assisted by two presidentially appointed vice-presidents; however, the 2018 Burundian constitutional referendum passed to eventually reduce the number of vice-presidents to one. The president is entitled to a pension after the end of their final term of office.

Origin
In 1966, Michel Micombero became a rallying force for opposition to king Ntare V of Burundi. When Ntare V promoted Micombero to the post of Prime Minister of Burundi, Micombero launched the November 1966 Burundian coup d'état. Micombero overthrew Ntare V and declared Burundi a republic and himself its president. Micombero formalized his role as president in his 1974 constitution formally adopted in 1976. The constitution guaranteed Micombero's presidency and established a one-party state led by the Union for National Progress (UPRONA). Political instability continued in Burundi. After the 1987 Burundian coup d'état, Pierre Buyoya seized the post of the presidency and implemented the 1992 constitution. The new constitution instituted multiparty elections in Burundi. Opposition to the change started the Burundian Civil War in 1993. In 1996, Buyoya returned to power and sought reconciliation and transition to democracy. In 2000, the Arusha Accords were signed by all three sides of the conflict, and between 2000 and 2005, Buyoya and Domitien Ndayizeye worked under the 2001 and 2004 transitional constitutions to transition Burundi to democracy. The 2005 constitution is a final product of the transition. The powers and duties of the presidency are enshrined within the 2005 constitution, which does not feature a prime minister.

Executive powers
The president is both head of state and head of government. The president is tasked with representing the republic of Burundi, ensuring the integrity of the constitution, and executing the functions of the state and its laws. The president is assisted by two vice-presidents. The president shares many powers and duties with the two-vice presidents and can delegate powers, with exceptions, to them. The president arranges the government with approval from the vice-presidents. The president has the power to direct the agenda of the government and provides executive instructions for the two vice-presidents through presidential decree. The president appoints military commanders and ambassadors with approval from the Senate. The president dictates the agenda of the ambassadors and can recall them. The president also appoints provincial governors after approval from the two vice-presidents and confirmation from the Senate. The president has the power to declare a state of emergency after approval from the cabinet, the National Assembly, the Senate, the National Council of Security and the Constitutional Court.

The president serves as the commander-in-chief of the military. The president has the sole power to authorize use of the military and has the power to declare and end wars with approval of the National Assembly, Senate and National Council of Security.

The president has the power of pardon with approval from the two vice-presidents and the Superior Council of the Magistracy.

The president grants civil and military decorations. The president serves as the figure to whom all members of government are responsible.

Legislative powers
The president has the power to propose law and can amend laws related to the domain of law with approval from the Constitutional Court. The president promulgates law and validates law in accordance with the constitution and the Constitutional Court. The president has the power to organize special sessions and may assemble the government yearly to discuss Burundi's budget. If the government is unable to agree upon the passage of a bill, the president has the power to either veto the bill or request the National Assembly to make a final decision.

Judicial powers
The president ensures the independence of the judiciary. The president leads the Superior Council of the Magistracy and appoints magistrates with approval from the Senate. The president has the power to appoint all judges, including those of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court. The president requires approval from the Supreme Council of the Magistracy and Senate to appoint judges to the Supreme Court and requires approval from the Senate to appoint judges to the Constitutional Court.

Matters of defense
The president has the duty of informing the National Assembly and Senate if use of the military is authorized and must organize a special session for this purpose if the government is not already meeting. The president is explicitly bound by the constitution to follow international military law. The president has the sole power to allow foreign soldiers into Burundi.

Matters of council
The president appoints the members of truth and reconciliation councils, which the president also oversees. The president also appoints the members of the National Council of Security, the Economic, financial and Social Council, and the National Council of Communication.

Matters of diplomacy
The president represents Burundi internationally. The president negotiates, signs and ratifies treaties in accordance with the constitution and the Constitutional Court.

Amending the Constitution
The president has the power to amend the constitution.

The first president post-transition
The 2005 constitution distinguishes between a first president and subsequent presidents. The first president is elected by a two-thirds majority vote by the National Assembly and Senate. If the first president is absent for any reason, another person is elected as first president through the same means.

Eligibility
To be eligible for the presidency, a candidate is required to be a national of Burundi by descent. Candidates must reside within Burundi when their candidacies are announced, and the candidates must be at least 40 years old upon conclusion of the election. Additionally, candidates must be valid voters and must not be facing penalty according to electoral law. Each candidate also requires 200 supporters, all of whom must also be valid voters.

The first president is not eligible for election.

Election process
Candidates for the presidency must either announce themselves as independents or be sponsored by specific political parties. Burundi's population, endowed with universal suffrage, elects the president by an absolute majority vote in two rounds. If there is no candidate that wins an absolute majority in the first round, then a second round with the top two candidates from the first rounds is held.

The election is held between one and two months before the end of the incumbent's tenure.

Post-election
The president is not allowed to hold other occupations during presidential tenure. If a candidate occupies another public office, their tenure in that office ends immediately upon declaration of the election results. If a candidate occupies a private sector office, they are barred from further business action immediately upon declaration of the election results.

Succession in absence
If the president is temporarily unable to carry out their duties, then the first vice-president assumes the duties of the president until the president is again able to perform their role. If neither the president nor the first vice-president are present, then the second vice-president assumes the duties of the president.

If the president dies, resigns, or is otherwise made permanently unable to carry out their duties, then the duties of the president are carried out by the president of the National Assembly. If the president of the National Assembly is not able to act as president, then the vice-presidents, with assistance from the rest of the government, act jointly as president. A new election for president is immediately conducted unless an emergency has been declared by the Constitutional Court.

Removal
The president can be impeached if two-thirds of both the National Assembly and Senate agree on impeachment. Grounds for impeachment include "grave fault, abuse of power, corruption" and high treason. The president is removed from office if the High Court of Justice convicts the president of a crime.

title: President of Burundi


text:
President of Cameroon

The president of Cameroon is the executive head of state and de facto head of government of Cameroon and is the commander in chief of the Cameroon Armed Forces. The authority of the State is exercised both by the President and by the Parliament.

History
The office of president of Cameroon was established in 1960, following the country's independence from France. The office was held by Ahmadou Ahidjo from 5 May 1960 to 6 November 1982 and then by Paul Biya since 6 November 1982.

Term limits
Term limits for the president were lifted for Biya in 2008.

title: President of Cameroon


text:
Alexander McNutt (governor)

Alexander Gallatin McNutt (January 3, 1802 – October 22, 1848) was a Mississippi attorney and politician who served as Governor from 1838 to 1842.

Early life
Alexander G. McNutt was born into an aristocratic landowning family in Rockbridge County, Virginia on January 3, 1802. He graduated from Washington College (now Washington and Lee University) in 1821, studied law, and moved to Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1820s. He subsequently relocated to Vicksburg, where he practiced in partnership with Joel Cameron. When Cameron was murdered by his slaves in 1833, McNutt subsequently married Cameron's widow, Elizabeth Lewis Cameron. (Before the slaves were executed, a free black man who was also implicated blamed McNutt for the murder, stating that McNutt had instigated it in order to profit by Cameron's death.)

Political career
A Democrat, in 1829 he served as a Selectman in Vicksburg. In 1835 McNutt was elected to the Mississippi State Senate. In 1837 he was elected President of the Senate.

McNutt ran successfully for governor in 1837 and in 1839, serving two terms from 1838 to 1842. During his term Mississippi founded its state library and procured land for construction of a state university, and construction was completed on the state penitentiary. The northern boundary with the State of Tennessee was resurveyed, but the new boundary did not result in more territory for Mississippi and the new city of Memphis proved to outside the bounds of the survey which had been an aim for some of the advocates of the resurvey.

During his governorship, McNutt opposed central banking, including Mississippi's Planters and Union Banks, in which the state had large ownership stakes, arguing that the stockholders and managers were corrupt. The banks sold bonds in an effort to raise revenue, which the state repudiated under McNutt's influence, leaving the state with a large debt.

After leaving office he resumed practicing law. In 1847 he ran unsuccessfully for the United States Senate, losing to Henry S. Foote.

In 1848, McNutt campaigned for the presidential ticket headed by Lewis Cass and was a candidate for presidential elector. While in Desoto County, he became ill and died on October 22, 1848. He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Jackson, Section 6, Lot 57.

Legacy
McNutt's home is a Vicksburg landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The community of McNutt, Mississippi is named in honor of McNutt.

title: Alexander McNutt (governor)


text:
Professor Farnsworth

Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, commonly referred to in-show as either Professor Farnsworth or simply Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series Futurama. The mad scientist proprietor of the Planet Express delivery service for whom the main characters work, he is the great (×30) grandnephew and the great (×30) grandson of series protagonist Philip J. Fry because of a time paradox. He alternates between intelligence and amoral senility due to his greatly advanced age of 175. He demonstrates a mastery of any field of science necessary for the series' plots and is suggested to be one of the most brilliant inventors on Earth. However, he falls asleep constantly, and he routinely sends his crews on suicide missions.

Character
A self-described mad scientist, the Professor is a senile, amoral, deranged, and unpredictable old man (160 years old as of "A Clone of My Own") with very thick glasses and a gift for creating doomsday devices and atomic supermen. He has put at least one parallel universe in peril with his inventions and visited dozens more (see "The Farnsworth Parabox").

The Professor teaches at Mars University and has worked for Momcorp on several occasions but spends most of his time inventing ridiculous devices and sending the Planet Express delivery crew on suicide missions. While at Momcorp, he fell in love with the CEO, Mom, only to leave her and Momcorp when she decided to weaponize his "Q.T. McWhiskers" toy. What he is a professor of is never explicitly stated. In the episode "Mars University", when asked what he is teaching, he responds: "The same thing I teach every semester, the mathematics of quantum neutrino fields. I made up the title so no student would dare take it"; however, this declaration has not precluded the professor from demonstrating mastery of whatever field of science is convenient for a given episode's plot, as shown in Bender's Big Score when he proclaims, "I can wire anything directly into anything! I am the Professor!", proceeding to link Hermes' disembodied head to the ship's computer. Approximately 100 years before the series' timeline, he taught a young (not yet Professor) Wernstrom, whom Farnsworth regarded as a prized student. After he returned a pop quiz to Wernstrom with a grade of A-minus (for poor penmanship), the two became bitter rivals (established in "A Big Piece of Garbage").

As Philip J. Fry's great (x30) nephew, it is likely that he is the great (x29) grandson of Yancy Fry, Fry's older brother from the 20th century. This would also make him the great (x28) grandson of Philip J. Fry II, Yancy's son, although his exact shared family members with Fry have not been stated. However, since Fry has become his own grandfather, he is also Fry's direct descendant, specifically his great (x31) grandson.

In "All the Presidents' Heads", he reveals that he is descended from Philo Farnsworth (widely credited as the original inventor of television); Dean Farnsworth, who created the Farnsworth Lantern Test to check for color vision problems in military aviators and sailors; and David Farnsworth, a colonial-era counterfeiter and British agent who was eventually hanged for his crimes.

Many episodes' major plot points are introduced by Farnsworth announcing, "Good news, everyone!"—either to unveil his latest invention or describe the company's latest delivery assignment, which is usually a suicide mission; he acknowledges this in The Beast with a Billion Backs. On the very few occasions he has actual good news, he often opens with "Bad news, everyone!" After Fry resigns from his job in "Law & Oracle", he states that he only says these phrases to make Fry "feel better about his pointless job." Another is his exclamation, "Sweet zombie Jesus!" He often says "Eh Wha?" when unaware of the situation, or when someone questions a statement he has just made. The Professor often makes mutually contradictory statements just moments apart; this happens especially often when briefing his employees, with the prevailing second statement canceling a much more reassuring first sentence.

The Professor rarely worries about the safety of the crew, viewing them as a means to an end, as evidenced in the first episode. After remarking that he was looking for a new crew for his intergalactic space ship, he was asked "What happened to your old crew?" His response was "Oh, those poor sons of... — but that's not important! What is important is that I need a new crew!" Farnsworth's employees later discover that their predecessors died while gathering not-ordinary honey from Space Bees ("The Sting"). The Professor issues his new crew the previous crew's career chips from a manila envelope labeled "Contents Of Space Wasp's Stomach" ("Space Pilot 3000").

It was revealed in "Mobius Dick" that the first crew was ingested by a four-dimensional space whale in 2961, only returning to Earth when rescued by Leela in 3011. This appears to be the only crew the Professor showed some emotion towards, given his purchasing of a monument to honor the 50th year of their disappearance.

He frequently sends his crew on dangerous missions even when he has the foreknowledge that they will probably not make it back alive. His missions are typically those other delivery companies will not take, such as serving subpoenas to Mafia-controlled worlds or casual deliveries to virus-infested planets. Even the commercial that he had produced for his company makes several remarks to this effect, including "When other companies aren't crazy or foolhardy enough…" and "Our crew is replaceable, your package isn't."

In one episode when the crew and his ship are sent off to war, he immediately tries to hire another crew, going so far as to assign them similar character roles; he is clearly surprised to be interrupted by his old crew returning. Even his familial relationship to Fry does not dampen the glee with which he assigns dangerous delivery missions. When asked about the nature of his delivery "business", Farnsworth once clarified that he viewed his company more as "a source of cheap labor, like a family." He also frequently covets his employees' organs and blood; he keeps Amy Wong around because they share a blood type and in "Anthology of Interest II" retrieves a pair of plastic tongs and a box labelled "Leela's organs" when Leela is knocked unconscious. In "How Hermes Requisitioned His Groove Back", he tries to encourage a suicidal Hermes Conrad to kill himself in a way that would not damage his liver because "other people need it".

It is established in the episode "Mother's Day" that the Professor was once Mom's lover and employee. However, they could not maintain their relationship due to Mom's lust for power, prompting them to break up (this reportedly happened three times). When Mom takes control of all the world's robots to cause an uprising, her sons Walt, Larry, and Igner attempt to get the Professor to seduce Mom and retrieve the remote for the robots. They get back together briefly, but break up once more when Mom learns the Professor had been initially using her. It is revealed in Bender's Game that the Professor is the biological father of Mom's youngest son Igner — the one whom Mom despises the most.

Some of his more significant inventions include a hat that advanced a monkey to human-level intelligence, a race of mutant atomic supermen, a wide range of doomsday devices, and a pioneer in the development of the 'modern' robots used in the 31st century.

Production
Professor Farnsworth is voiced by Billy West, using a combination of impressions of Burgess Meredith and Frank Morgan. West has stated that the voice for Farnsworth is meant to be a bit shaky and that when developing the voice he came up with "a combination of all the wizard-type characters you heard when you were a kid, Burgess Meredith and Frank Morgan in The Wizard of Oz." There is a direct nod to this in the episode "Anthology of Interest II", in which the Professor portrays the Wizard of Oz.

Many references to the pulp science fiction magazine Weird Tales indicate the Professor may be named in honor of its editor Farnsworth Wright. Another possibility is that he was named after the American inventor and television pioneer Philo Farnsworth, or after the Colonial American figure David Farnsworth, who appeared in the Futurama episode "All The Presidents' Heads" as an ancestor of the Professor and Philip J. Fry. The Professor's first name Hubert may have been chosen in honor of University of California Philosophy professor Hubert Dreyfus, of whom writer and producer Eric Kaplan was a former student.

Farnsworth's design has been compared to a combination of Mr. Burns, Grampa Simpson, and Professor Frink from Matt Groening's other series, The Simpsons.

In the initial storyboards of "Space Pilot 3000", Fry presumes that the Professor is descended from a supposed sister and a supposed brother-in-law named Eddie Farnsworth. In the first season, Farnsworth excuses his unhelpfulness by saying that he was "already in his pajamas". This was an early attempt at a catchphrase that was abandoned after "The Series Has Landed".

In the "Action Delivery Force" segment of "Reincarnation", Professor Farnsworth is voiced by David Herman.

Legacy
In 2020, a new species of snake from the Western Ghats of India, Ahaetulla farnsworthi, was named after the character. One of the researchers, Achyuthan Srikanthan, was a fan of the show and character, and the species was named after Farnsworth as a reference to the character's attempts to revive barking snakes from extinction.

title: Professor Farnsworth