The Great Vegetable Stand-off
A local farmer fights for payment against a stubborn restaurant owner on Pacific Avenue.
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 two weeks ago, a farmer named Miller, living near Sumner, sold to D.T. Mooney, a Pacific Avenue restaurateur, some vegetables. He was to deliver them on Tuesday, and, complying with the agreement, he expected pay for them. He was told to wait half an hour. At the expiration of the time he called again, and was thus delayed three several times without being paid. Mooney then told him to call in an hour. Miller acquiesced again, and calling once more and receiving no better satisfaction, he said he would take the vegetables if Mooney couldn't pay for them. He shouldered the sack containing them, when Mooney caught him by the collar, knocked the sack off his shoulder and ejected the farmer from the restaurant. Miller then went before Justice Campbell and swore out two complaints against the offender, one for obtaining goods under false pretenses, and the other for assault and battery. Mooney was promptly arrested and on the following day he paid $8.75 for the luxury of his temper.
“Mooney was promptly arrested and on the following day he paid $8.75 for the luxury of his temper.”
Pacific Avenue was the heart of early Seattle's commercial district, long before it was paved over and renamed. This petty dispute over unpaid invoices and physical ejection highlights the rough-and-tumble nature of frontier commerce, where business disputes were often settled with fists and local magistrates rather than credit departments.
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