and is succeeded by his brother Abd al-Hafid. August 28 – American Messenger Company, as predecessor of United Parcel Service founded in Washington State, United States. August 31 – The Great Storm of 1908 starts to pound the Bristol Channel, lasting into the morning of September 2. September September 10 – The first Minas Geraes-class Dreadnought battleship for Brazil, Minas Geraes is launched at Armstrong Whitworth's yard on the River Tyne in England, catalysing the "South American dreadnought race". September 17 – At Fort Myer, Virginia, Thomas Selfridge becomes the first person to die in an airplane crash. The pilot, Orville Wright, is severely injured in the crash but recovers. October October 1 Official launch of Henry Ford's Ford Model T automobile, the first having left the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant in Detroit, Michigan, on September 27. The initial price is set at US$850. Penny Post is established between the United Kingdom and United States. October 5 Bulgaria declares its independence from the Ottoman Empire; Ferdinand I of Bulgaria becomes Tsar. The Melting Pot, a play by Israel Zangwill, opens in Washington, D.C. The title quickly becomes a widely used symbol for assimilation of immigrants to the United States. October 6 – The Bosnian crisis begins, after the Austro-Hungarian Empire annexes Bosnia and Herzegovina from the Ottoman Empire. October 14 – The Chicago Cubs beat the Detroit Tigers in the 1908 World Series. The Cubs would not win another World Series for 108 years. October 29 – Olivetti, the well-known typewriter and business equipment company, is founded in Italy. November November 3 – 1908 United States presidential election: Republican candidate William Howard Taft defeats William Jennings Bryan, 321 electoral votes to 162. November 6 – Western bandits Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are supposedly killed in Bolivia, after being surrounded by a large group of soldiers. There are many rumors to the contrary however, and their grave sites are unmarked. November 15 – King Leopold II of Belgium formally relinquishes his personal control of the Congo Free State (becoming Belgian Congo) to Belgium, following evidence collected by Roger Casement of maladministration. November 25 The Christian Science Monitor newspaper is first published, in the United States. A fire breaks out on as it leaves Malta's Grand Harbour, resulting in the ship's grounding and the deaths of at least 118 people. December December 2 – Young Emperor Puyi ascends the Chinese