ON THIS DAY

1773: Captain James Cook’s Resolution becomes the first ship to cross the Antarctic Circle.

1874: Death of the original Siamese twins, Chang and Eng, born in Thailand of Chinese parents and joined at the chest.

1912: Captain Robert Scott and his expedition reach the South Pole, one month after Norway’s Roald Amundsen.

1929: Popeye makes his first appearance as a character in a comic strip.

1995: Japan’s deadliest earthquake in 70 years slams Kobe and other western cities, killing more than 5000 people.

1997: In Dublin, a court grants the first divorce in Ireland’s history.

Birthdays: May Gibbs, Australian writer and illustrator of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie (18771969); Al Capone, US gangster (1899-1947); Muhammad Ali, US boxer (1942-2016)