The Failed Coup at Washington Agricultural College
A group of anonymous agitators attempts to purge the regents of the state's young college, but they refuse to put their names to the accusations.
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 investigation billed for today failed to materialize, as the persons bringing the charges would not sign them. The regents waited anxiously for the plaintiffs to attach their signatures, but they did not wish to sign them. Boyd J. Tallman, representative of the governor, twice called upon the persons making the charges against the college regents to sign the same, and they have thus far refused to do so. Many of Pullman's leading citizens, in the dark touching this conspiracy, called upon the regents and were at once shown the charges in full. The regents are standing firm for the most public investigation. They claim that this is due the people as well as themselves. Their excuse for not signing the charges was that they had been surprised by the method adopted for investigation, and that they wanted an attorney to present the case for them.
“The regents are standing firm for the most public investigation. They claim that this is due the people as well as themselves.”
This power struggle at what would become Washington State University highlights the era's volatility in governance, where political patronage and 'anonymity' were weapons used to try to unseat public officials. Today, while the mechanism of influence has shifted, the tension between public institutions and groups seeking to capture their governance remains a staple of civic discourse.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.