The Price of a Hand in the Sawmill
A bitter letter to the editor disputes a recent verdict, revealing the harsh realities and dangerous labor disputes of Washington's timber industry.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Editor Post-Intelligencer: In your issue of today I notice, under the heading 'Case Settled,' Thomas Cranney against the Western Mill Co., in which you are made to say that the machine which Cranney was operating was out of repair and that the foreman's attention had been called to it, but he neglected to repair the machine. Now that is not true. Cranney never called the foreman's attention to the machine as being defective, or in any way being in bodily danger. Had he done so, the matter of which he complains was so trivial that it would have been attended to immediately. On the contrary, he (Cranney), a day or two previous to his being hurt, challenged the head sawyer and made his boast that the sawyer could not give him more lumber than he could put through the machine. It was from that cause, more than any other, that he got hurt; for, had he been using due care to avoid accident, he would have seen the planks. I am not interested in the Western Mill, having sold the small interest I held there some time ago, but, in justice to myself and the Mill Company, I believe that Cranney is not entitled to one dollar. It is clear to my mind that it is one of those verdicts where the defendant is, or is supposed to be, able to stand it. In other words, it is a crime to be rich.
“It is clear to my mind that it is one of those verdicts where the defendant is, or is supposed to be, able to stand it. In other words, it is a crime to be rich.”
This 1887 letter highlights the timeless tension between injured workers and corporate liability. Much like contemporary disputes over workplace safety and gig economy protections, the debate hinges on whether accidents are the result of negligence or the inevitable cost of high-pressure 'hustle' culture.
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