13 th June

323 BC Alexander the Great died.

1898 The Yukon Territory entered into the confederation of Canada. (See July 1st entry.)

1944 Missiles were first used in warfare. (See March 16th entry.)

1966 The U. S. Supreme Court issued the Miranda decision.

1967 First African-American Supreme Court Justice was nominated.

1979 President Jimmy Carter proposed a superfund to clean up hazardous waste.

This is the day when Alexander the Great was proven right for saying he had no more worlds to conquer. He had felt that he had done it all, overtaking Persia and portions of India as well as establishing settlements along the way. However, while he was in Babylon, plotting his next conquest, he fell ill after a banquet and—on this day in 323 bc—died of a fever.

The anniversary of a landmark nomination is always a cause for celebration. In 1967, Thurgood Marshall was nominated to the U. S. Supreme Court by President Lyndon B. Johnson. It was a long time in coming, but it came. Marshall became the Supreme Court’s first African-American justice, and went on to a truly distinguished career.

This is the anniversary of a landmark decision that ensured the rights of those suspected of committing a crime. In 1966, the U. S. Supreme Court handed down the Miranda decision which states: If you are arrested for a crime, you have the right to remain silent and not make any statement at all; any statement you make may and probably will be used against you in a court of law; you have the right to have a lawyer present to advise you either prior to any questioning or during any questioning; if you are unable to hire a lawyer, you have the right to have a lawyer appointed to counsel with you prior to or during any questioning; and you have the right to terminate the interview at any time.

Our nation’s natural resources are fragile and finite, and in the course of our industrial progress, suffered greatly from mismanagement and misuse. On this day in 1979, President Jimmy Carter joined the ranks of conservation-minded Executives in Chief like Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Richard M. Nixon when he proposed a superfund to clean up hazardous waste. He also set aside vast tracts of land as wilderness areas to be preserved for future generations.