1999: Internet Capital Group, Inc. goes public on NASDAQ, selling 14.9 million shares at an initial price of $6.00 (adjusted for a later 2-for-1 split). By yearend 1999, the stock hits $170 per share, generating a 2,733.3% return in less than five months. However, the stock goes on to lose 98% of its value in the year 2000, wiping out the entire 2,733% gain and leaving the stock down 45% from its IPO. By August 5, 2001, the stock is at $1.45 per share.

Internet Capital Group, Form 10-K SEC filing, for year ended December 31, 2000, p. 12;The New York Times, January 2, 2001, p. C2

1997: The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 becomes Federal law, 136 years after Congress first created income taxes. Unlike most laws with similar names, it does contain at least one provision that gives real relief to taxpayers: the Roth IRA, which creates new ways for middle-class Americans to accumulate tax-free savings.

1891: The first modern traveler's check is cashed, as American Express executive William G. Fargo countersigns Cheque No. 600002, for $50, at the Hotel Hauffe, in Leipzig, Germany.

Reed Massengill, Becoming American Express: 150 Years of Reinvention and Customer Service (American Express, New York, 1999), p. 41.

1861: Federal income tax is inflicted on the public for the first time, as the Revenue Act of 1861 becomes law, assessing a tax of 3% on all personal income in excess of $800 a year to help pay for the Civil War.