Violent Ambush in Haller City
A brutal altercation between two men at a local dance leaves a bartender fighting for his life.
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.
About mid-night last night, a stabbing affray occurred at Haller City, a few miles north of here on the Lake Shore railway. A man named Giddings stabbed a bartender named Joe Cicero in the neck, almost entirely severing his windpipe and jugular vein. The statements as to the cause are conflicting. One story is that both Giddings and Cicero were attending a dance and, between the dances, they retired and drank freely, repeating this until they became thoroughly drunk, when they quarreled over some trivial matter. Another statement advanced is that the trouble between these two parties arose early in the day, at which time Giddings borrowed a dirk knife from a friend, concealing it upon his person, and used it at the first opportunity. Giddings was brought to this city this morning and lodged in jail. Cicero is unable to be moved, and at a late hour was considered past recovery.
“Giddings borrowed a dirk knife from a friend, concealing it upon his person, and used it at the first opportunity.”
Haller City is a ghost of Seattle’s past, once located along the north end of Lake Washington near present-day Maple Leaf or Victory Heights. The casual violence reported here underscores the volatile nature of frontier nightlife and the often-lethal consequences of social gatherings where drink flowed freely.
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