Today is Monday, February 17, the 48th day of 2014. There are 317 days left in the year.
1568 ― Holy Roman Emperor agrees to pay annual tribute to Sultan for peace
1776 ― First volume of Gibbon’s “Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire” published
1904 ― Giacomo Puccini’s opera “Madame Butterfly” premieres in Milan
1913 ― First minimum wage law in U.S. takes effect (Oregon)
1933 ― First issue of “Newsweek” magazine published
1972 ― President Nixon leaves Washington, D.C. for China
1972 ― British Parliament votes to join European Common Market
1981 ― Chrysler Corp reports largest corporate losses in U.S. history
1986 ― Johnson & Johnson announces it no longer sells capsule drugs
1995 ― Federal judge allows lawsuit claiming US tobacco makers knew nicotine was addictive and manipulated its levels to keep customers hooked