The Bribe, The Bantam, and the Law
A Seattle man stands trial for bribery after a messy encounter with a deputy marshal at the Northern Pacific depot—a case fueled by accusations of corruption and mutual dishonesty.
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.
The hearing of Ah Jim, charged with offering a bribe to Deputy United States Marshal Spriggs, attracted a good deal of interest in United States Commissioner Kiefer's court yesterday. The testimony was, to say the least, very racy. Ah Jim and Deputy Spriggs accused each other of dishonesty and perjury. The case was continued until 10 o'clock this morning.
Spriggs testified that on Sunday night, he arrested two Chinese men at the Northern Pacific depot as they were boarding a Portland train. With the assistance of a man named Charles Saul, he marched them up Yesler Avenue toward the county jail. Near South Sixth Street, Ah Jim joined the deputy and his assistant, and asked him to let the men go. Spriggs alleged that Ah Jim placed $20 in his hand, saying, 'It's $20. Let the Chinamen go. They have only been here two weeks, but Inspector Munn knows about it and said it was all right.'
Ah Jim told a different story. He claimed that when he found the officers taking the men to jail, he asked what it meant. He alleged that Spriggs replied, 'If you will give us $250 we will turn them loose.' Ah Jim claimed the officer eventually negotiated down to $20. When he handed over the money, he was immediately placed under arrest. Ah Jim proved an easy victim for the prosecution during his cross-examination, and contradicted himself on several material points. He remains in jail in default of $1,500 bail.
“Ah Jim and Deputy Spriggs accused each other of dishonesty and perjury. The case was, to say the least, very racy.”
The 1892 bribery case involving Ah Jim and local law enforcement reflects the deep-seated corruption and anti-immigrant sentiment that plagued Seattle's municipal governance at the time. It echoes contemporary concerns about systemic bias in policing and the persistent struggle for equitable treatment under the law for immigrant populations.
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