Justice Returns in Irons
Two thieves, previously operating in Portland, are brought back to Seattle in custody after a stint in Victoria.
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 two young fellows Dixon and Wise, who arrived in Seattle from Portland some four months ago, dressed in the latest cut clothing, and before they left went through Frank and Dickinson's safe, returned from Victoria yesterday, in custody of Chief Woolery, dressed in the Provincial prisoner's garb and heavy irons. On their arrival here they were escorted to the county jail, followed by a large crowd of boys and men anxious to get a glimpse of the bold and daring thieves. They are now in the hands of the authorities and will be tried at the approaching term of the District Court. While on this subject it will not be out of place to mention the untiring zeal and energy displayed by our efficient Chief of Police, Mr. Woolery, in ferreting out these thieves. The Victoria authorities have manifested a commendable disposition in this matter, also.
“followed by a large crowd of boys and men anxious to get a glimpse of the bold and daring thieves.”
Before the existence of a unified international police database, cross-border cooperation between law enforcement in Victoria and Seattle was a vital, albeit laborious, aspect of frontier justice. The public fascination with seeing the 'daring thieves' in irons reflects a time when criminal justice was a spectator sport.
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