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98 stories matching quot
- A Newspaper Editor's Silence in Court: The Lugrin Libel Trial
C. H. Lugrin, managing editor of the Seattle Telegraph, rested his defense without calling witnesses in a libel trial brought by Police Chief Rogers. The case now goes to the jury.
- The Secret Courthouse Bond Deal Benton County Tried to Ram Through
Commissioners Clements and McNeill authorized $125,000 in bonds for a Prosser courthouse after a closed-door plan their own lawyer admitted was designed to keep taxpayers in the dark. A Kennewick lawsuit put the deal before Judge Grady.
- A Railroad Blockade Broke the Lumber Glut
Puget Sound mills had been selling below cost. Then floods and a strike cut the supply line—and manufacturers finally got the upper hand on prices.
- The City Can Tear It Down: The Supreme Court Backs Seattle's Fire Limits
Daniel K. Baxter put up a twenty-foot shell of wooden posts wrapped in corrugated iron inside Seattle's fire limits. The state Supreme Court said the city could knock it down without ever going to court — and municipal building codes came out of it stronger than before.
- The Mugwump’s Ledger: How Seattle’s Territorial Secretary Gamed the Law Printing Contract
A fierce editorial exposes Secretary Owings for delaying the publication of territorial laws to favor a cronies’ printing bid, while padding the bill with 40 pages of his own party platform.
- The Hop Gold Rush of 1886
As hop prices soar in the Puyallup Valley, Washington Territory farmers find themselves in the midst of a speculative frenzy, echoing the volatility of modern commodity markets.
- Governor Hay Wants to Appoint, Not Elect, Washington's Officers—This Labor Editor Says No
A proposal to make state offices appointive sparks a fierce defense of the direct primary and the people's right to choose their own officials.
- The Coal King’s Dilemma: Seattle vs. the World
As global markets crash and foreign rivals flood San Francisco with cheap fuel, local miners and merchants scramble to save their industry from extinction.
- The Professional Tramp and His Seven Languages
A recurring visitor to the Post-Intelligencer office earns his keep with tall tales, Shakespearean quotes, and a refined taste for cocktails.
- A Michigan Orator Packs the Armory and Rides Down the Populists
Roswell G. Horr brings the Republican gospel of protection and sound money to a standing-room crowd in Seattle — and turns the free-silver men in the hall into the evening's comedy act.
- The Daily Paper War: How Seattle’s Press Attacked Its Peers
In an era of mudslinging, the Post-Intelligencer battles a rival for misrepresenting its stance on international news and moral standards.
- The Wharf King’s Victory: Yesler Wins Millions in Land Battle
Judge Lichtenberg rules that the state cannot seize waterfront property without paying just compensation, halting the Harbor Line Commission and protecting H.L. Yesler’s empire.
- The Ghost Ship of Puget Sound
While a steamer crew vanished into the waves, Port Townsend customs officials sat in their offices waiting for 'official notification' before launching a rescue, fueling public outrage.
- The Sheriff Who Wouldn't Shield the Strikers: A Labor Standoff in Newcastle
When a coal mine strike erupted in Newcastle, King County, Sheriff Cochrane refused to protect workers willing to cross the picket line, sparking a public confrontation with the mine superintendent and accusations of union intimidation.
- The Delegate Who Sold Seattle’s Future for Five Thousand Dollars
A scathing editorial in the Puget Sound Dispatch accuses Territorial Delegate George Freeman Willard of betraying Seattle’s interests—specifically the mud flats of Duwamish Bay—to secure his own political and financial gain, while simultaneously accepting bribes from rival railroad companies.
- The Octopus and the Seal: A Local Captain’s War Against a Washington Monopoly
In 1901, Port Townsend resident James G. Swan published affidavits from experienced hunters to debunk Professor Elliott’s claim that seal pups sink like stones, exposing the Alaska Commercial Company’s stranglehold on federal policy.
- The 'Pompous Autocrat' of the Sound
A Seattle newspaper lashes out at a revenue cutter captain who refused to aid a vessel in distress, claiming his uniform shouldn't be 'rubbed the wrong way.'
- The Flight of a Crooked City Treasurer
When the city press exposed deep corruption in the treasurer’s office, Adolph Krug didn't wait for the trial—he fled.
- The Guard Mutinied Over a Railroad Strike
A 1894 court of inquiry found Tacoma’s Company G guilty of mutiny, cashiered a captain who surrendered to strikers at Sprague, and exposed a forged strike-edition letter.
- The Great Incorporation Panic of 1878
When a legal technicality threatened to render Seattle’s entire municipal government illegitimate, a frantic scramble to re-incorporate revealed the fragile foundations of early frontier law.
- The Warden Fights Back: Prison Labor, Jute Sacks and a Seattle Newspaper Scandal
Accused of selling prison-made sacks to middlemen and brutalizing convicts, Walla Walla’s warden answers his critics with a detailed defense—and a challenge to inspect the prison.
- The High Price of 'Hello'
Medical experts warn that the grueling labor and public abuse faced by telephone operators are breaking the health of a generation of working women.
- Olympia Bought a $1,500 Sewer Map Critics Called Worthless
A letter to the editor accuses the city council of buying a stranger's sewer plan without scrutiny—complete with a harbor reservoir already condemned in San Diego.
- The Bank Clerk Who Stole a Quarter-Million to Prove a Point
A bank employee holds his own employer's cash hostage to force a change in labor relations and banking ethics.
- The Strange Mystery of Eugene Semple's 'Sack'
As the senatorial deadlock in Olympia stretches on, an ex-governor arrives with rumors of a $1,000 slush fund to buy his way into office.
Also about this, in other words
- Whatcom Vigilantes Warn Local Troublemaker
A known card sharper and thief was given a blunt invitation to leave town or face a 'necktie festival' at the hands of local residents.
- An Undocumented Arrival in Whatcom
A Chinese man found hiding in a tool box on a rail car bound for Seattle illustrates the brutal reality of the Exclusion era.
- Vigilante Threat Forces Ocosta Resident Out of Town
A 'White Cap' warning left on a door successfully intimidated a local man into leaving town within 24 hours.
- A Corporate Heist in Whatcom
A shareholder warns Seattle merchants not to purchase illegal drafts from a Whatcom corporation attempting to bleed its own company dry.
- Tom Parrott’s Near-Perfect Game
Seattle’s star pitcher shuts down Spokane batters for eight innings in a dominant performance at the ballpark.
- A Rent Dispute Turns Violent in the Alley
When a tenant in a Main Street lodging house couldn't pay his $24 debt, his landlord was attacked with a knife.
- A Minister’s Sharp Critique of City Hall’s 'Joinery'
Rev. Wallace Nutting takes the pulpit to call out bureaucratic waste, road-grading failures, and a lack of conscience in police enforcement.
- Quinault and Quil-ich-ulte Reservation Established by Treaty
Superintendent of Indian Affairs William W. Miller formally establishes boundaries for the Quinault and Queets lands, warning settlers of trespassing.