September 1931
The following events occurred in September 1931: September 1, 1931 (Tuesday) A mutiny broke out among sailors and officers in the Chilean Navy when crews stationed at the port of Coquimbo revolted against proposed reductions in salaries. In a suburb of Havana at 2:20 in the morning, a large bomb exploded at the branch of the Royal Bank of Canada. The blast caused several thousand dollars worth of damage. Born: Cecil Parkinson, English politician; in Carnforth (d. 2016) Javier Solís, Mexican singer and actor, in Tacubaya, Mexico City (d. 1966) September 2, 1931 (Wednesday) The Italian government announced a surprise agreement with the Vatican allowing Azione Cattolica to operate as long as it abstained from politics and did not compete with the interests of the state in any way. The Chilean cabinet resigned over the naval mutiny crisis. September 3, 1931 (Thursday) King Alexander I of Yugoslavia proclaimed the Yugoslav Constitution by decree. The new Constitution provided powers to the King as both head of state and commander-in-chief of the Yugoslavian armed forces, with power to dissolve Parliament with approval of the cabinet. The German stock exchange reopened for the first time since being shut on July 13. The P. G. Wodehouse novel If I Were You was first published. September 4, 1931 (Friday) Jimmy Doolittle set a new transcontinental flight record of 11 hours 15 minutes. Born: Mitzi Gaynor (stage name for Francesca von Gerber), American film actress and dancer; in Chicago September 5, 1931 (Saturday) The Chilean military attacked the mutinous naval base of Talcahuano. By an 8–7 vote the World Court ruled that the Austro-German customs agreement violated the 1922 Protocol for the reconstruction of Austria. Died: John Thomson, the 22-year-old goalkeeper for the Scottish soccer football team Celtic, was fatally injured during a match against Rangers at Ibrox Stadium in Glasgow. Thomson, the goalkeeper, was diving for the ball while Rangers striker Sam English was moving forward; Thomson fractured his skull and ruptured an artery on the right side of his brain when he collided with English's knee. Thomson died hours later after being taken to Victoria Infirmary. September 6, 1931 (Sunday) The Chilean Air Force bombed rebel warships at Coquimbo. Hack Wilson was suspended by the Chicago Cubs for the rest of the season for "failure to observe training rules". September 7, 1931 (Monday) The Chilean mutineers surrendered. King George V opted to take a pay cut of £50,000 a year for as long as the depression lasted. September 8, 1931 (Tuesday) Ramsay MacDonald's First National ministry passed its first test in the British House of Commons, winning a vote of confidence 309–250. The Labour Party voted solidly against the new government. Born: Jack Rosenthal, English playwright and TV screenwriter; in Cheetham Hill, Manchester (d. 2004) September 9, 1931 (Wednesday) Ramsay MacDonald's government won a vote of cloture 306–212 to cut off debate about its emergency economic bill. September 10, 1931 (Thursday) A hurricane struck British Honduras, killing at least 2,500 people and leveling St.