The End of the Chain Gang in Seattle
City officials move to retire the practice of using prisoners for manual street labor, shifting to rock-breaking in a bid to deter professional tramps.
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 board of public works, at a meeting held Saturday, adopted a resolution to change the system of utilizing city prisoners. At present, they are employed in sweeping the streets and cleaning gutters. The finance committee of the council has decided that the results did not justify the expense. Hereafter, all prisoners will be compelled to spend their time breaking rock. It is feared in police circles that the abolition of the chain gang will rid Seattle of all professional tramps.
“It is feared in police circles that the abolition of the chain gang will rid Seattle of all professional tramps.”
The turn-of-the-century debate over 'professional tramps' and the utility of forced street labor mirrors ongoing modern tensions in Seattle regarding how the city manages homelessness, public order, and the intersection of civic infrastructure and labor policy.
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