A Scandalous Arrest in Room 43
A manicure and massage parlor operator is arrested in a Seattle hotel on charges of adultery with a prominent Tacoma contractor.
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.
Mrs. Kate E. Boyd, a prepossessing woman of about 30 years, was arrested about 1 o'clock yesterday afternoon in room 43 of the Snoqualmie hotel by Constable Samuel Parker, of Tacoma, on a warrant sworn out by Mrs. John T. Long, of Tacoma, charging her with adultery with her husband, John T. Long. The warrant, which was sworn out before Justice McGilvray, of Tacoma, and approved by Justice Caldwell, of this city, alleges that the offence was committed in Tacoma on August 15. Mr. Parker received word that Long had also been arrested in Tacoma on the same charge. Mrs. Boyd formerly ran a manicure establishment in Tacoma, but recently moved to this city and has run a manicure and massage establishment here. Long is a well-to-do contractor in Tacoma, having built the Pierce county courthouse there. Mrs. Boyd was taken to Tacoma last evening.
“Mrs. Kate E. Boyd, a prepossessing woman of about 30 years, was arrested about 1 o'clock yesterday afternoon in room 43 of the Snoqualmie hotel.”
Public interest in the private lives of prominent figures has always been a staple of the local press. Today, social media might drive the discourse, but in 1893, the 'scandal sheet' style of reporting ensured that an affair involving a high-profile contractor and a small-business owner became the talk of the town.
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