D Alesandro

THREE-HUNDRED pound Solomon Liss erupted from his chair in the ornate chambers of Baltimore City Hall and mocked his brand-new colleague on the City Council, a ''small, dapper'' man, according to news accounts of the day. It was May 22, 1959.''I am quite a sizable dragon and would like to admonish the new councilman he is too small to be a St. George and to accomplish my demise. I expect to be here after he's gone,'' Liss sniffed at Peter G. Angelos, a 29-year-old law student.''Yes,'' Mr. Angelos replied to Liss in his first meeting, ''[you]

George Matthews Howard, who was a chauffeur for topBaltimore City officials for 26 years, died in his sleep Thursday at Irvington Knolls Care Center. He was 95."He was a fixture at City Hall and especially in the comptroller's office," said Thomas J. D'Alesandro III, who was mayor from 1967 to 1971.His father, the late Thomas D'Alesandro Jr., who was mayor from to 1959, was occasionally driven by Mr. Howard."He was a very, very distinguished-looking man who always carried himself with an impressive bearing.

150 years ago in The SunMay 4: A Big Snake -- Two gentleman, gunning on Saturday in the vicinity of Kell's Woods, shot a black snake near 6 feet and a half long.May 7: Another Outrage -- The captain of a canal boat was assaulted a night or two since by a parcel of rowdies at Pratt Street bridge, and shamefully beaten.100 years ago in The SunMay 4: Mr. Henry E. Black, against whom the State's attorney had filed an information for refusing to pay the toll on Charles Street Extended, came into court at Towson yesterday in obedience to the bench warrant.

From The Sun Feb. 18-24, 1846* Feb. 19: In the report of the proceedings of the Second Branch of the City Council for Tuesday evening, there was a typographical error. We were made to say that a proposition had been submitted to increase the salary of the Mayor to $300 -- it should have been to $3,000. Quite a difference.* Feb. 23: The Birth-day of Washington -- Yesterday being the anniversary of the birth of the Father of his country, it was duly observed by several of our military companies.

Hector D'Alesandro, a retired court clerk whose father and brother were mayors of Baltimore and whose sister is a congresswoman, died early Saturday of cancer in his late parents' home on Albemarle Street in Little Italy. He was 60.Mr. D'Alesandro was a lifelong resident of Baltimore who worked in the Office of the Clerk of the Baltimore City Circuit Court for 38 years. He retired in 1993.Mr. D'Alesandro may have been best known for his family name, which has become synonymous with politics.

William Boucher III was hailed yesterday as a passionate striver for civil rights whose good humor and intelligence helped build alliances between businessmen and politicians seeking to solve Baltimore's most vexing problems."

* Unveiling: Babe Ruth statue.* Height: Nine feet.* Weight: 800 pounds.* Cost: $150,000 (est.)* When: Tomorrow, 5 p.m.* Where: North side Camden Yards.*There stands Babe Ruth, in bronze, larger than life, which is appropriate. His hometown of Baltimore pays him the ultimate salute in commemorating the 100th year of his birth with the erection of a statue. In what might be considered an exclusive interview, The Babe, contacted in the Great Beyond, offered the following responses to a reporter's questions:What do you think of the statue?

THIS YEAR'S Baltimore mayoralty campaign promises to be interesting with Mayor Kurt Schmoke challenged by City Council President Mary Pat Clarke. With that in mind, Glimpses feels compelled to recall some of Baltimore's former mayors. We conclude: They were men of strong character, rugged individuals, all.* Of Mayor Thomas Gordon Hayes, H.L. Mencken wrote in 1939: "He was the first reform mayor of Baltimore. When Mayor [Howard] Jackson does something, he's only rewriting Hayes. Hayes (1899-1903)

In the summer of 1992, in a gesture of high political honor and long family friendship, Nancy D'Alesandro invited William Donald Schaefer to sit at her table for a neighborhood spaghetti dinner at St. Leo's Roman Catholic Church in Little Italy. The governor of Maryland accepted. Then Nancy D'Alesandro changed her mind.Days after the invitation arrived, Schaefer made the colossal political blunder -- to Mrs. D'Alesandro, and to other Democrats -- of endorsing George Bush for president. The earth slipped its axis.

Nancy D'Alesandro, the matriarch of a Baltimore family that sent loved ones to City Hall and Congress, died Monday at Mercy Medical Center after a heart attack at her lifelong home on Albemarle Street in Little Italy. She was 86.Mrs. D'Alesandro was a traditional Italian wife from the Old Country who nevertheless raised a namesake daughter who now represents California's 5th Congressional District.Her husband, Thomas D'Alesandro Jr., was the legendary mayor of Baltimore from 1947 to 1959 and served multiple terms in the House of Representatives.