Tacoma Police Ordered Out of Saloons
New orders from the Chief of Police strictly prohibit patrolmen from drinking on the job or entering saloons unless officially required.
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.
Chief of Police Davis has ordered his patrolmen not to smoke while on duty or go into saloons for drinks. They are prohibited by the new order from going into saloons at all except for the purpose of performing some official duty. At present many policemen are in the habit of smoking while on duty, and some go into saloons and take a nip. They are also prohibited by the new orders from going beyond their beats for any other purpose than official duty.
“They are prohibited by the new order from going into saloons at all except for the purpose of performing some official duty.”
This 1893 order reflects the long-standing tension between the temperance movement and the informal, often saloon-centered social lives of early police forces in Washington state, a struggle that persisted until Prohibition.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.