Yesterday, the Dow fell 123.47 points (0.74%) to 16,516.50, the NASDAQ closed 32.52 points (0.71%) lower at 4,557.95, and the S&P 500 decreased 12.36 points (0.63%) to 1,935.69. The Russell 2000 was down 3.29 points (0.32%) at 1,033.89, and the Wilshire 5000 lost 142.64 points (0.72%) to finish at 19,749.65.

On the NYSE, 3.1 billion shares traded, with a slight lead for advancers. On the NASDAQ, 2.7 billion shares changed hands, with a slight lead for declining issues.

ON THIS DATE: In 1692, in Salem Village, in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Salem witch trials began. Four women were the first to be charged. In 1781, in America, the Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation. In 1790, the U.S. Congress authorized the first U.S. census. In 1803, Ohio became the 17th U.S. state. In 1845, U.S. President John Tyler signed the congressional resolution to annex the Republic of Texas. In 1867, Nebraska became the 37th U.S. state. In 1869, postage stamps with scenes were issued for the first time. In 1872, the U.S. Congress authorized the creation of Yellowstone National Park. In 1873, E. Remington and Sons of Ilion, New York, began the manufacturing the first practical typewriter. In 1932, the 22-month-old son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh was kidnapped. In 1937, U.S. Steel raised workers’ wages to $5 a day. In 1937, in Connecticut, the first permanent automobile license plates were issued. In 1941, FM radio began in Nashville, Tennessee, when station W47NV began operations. In 1954, the United States announced that it had conducted a hydrogen bomb test on the Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. In 1961, the Peace Corps was established by U.S. President John Kennedy. In 1995, Yahoo! was incorporated. In 2003, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed was captured by CIA and Pakistani agents near Islamabad. He was the suspected mastermind behind the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001.