The Ten-Cent Bet That Backfired
An Everett light company employee tried to bluff a union man over strike-related power outages, but ended up losing his confidence and his pride.
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.
This is the story of how an employee of the local light company tried to get away with a monumental bluff, got it called, and then got scared at his own noise. A local union man was filing home from work the other afternoon and exclaimed to his companion: 'Well, I see where I don't have any electric lights when I get home. There are a couple of rats cutting the connection now.' He had ordered his lights removed until the company saw fit to deal with the striking electricians. Mr. Employee of the light company—we'll call him No. 52—faithful to the company, of course—butted in: 'I'll bet you,' he exclaimed, 'that we are installing lights in six houses to every one house we disconnect on account of the strike. I'll bet you $100 to 10c.' He instantly saw his mistake, but still wanted to put up a front, so he added: 'I'll tell you what I will do; I'll bet you $10 to 10c on the proposition.' He was taken on in less time than it takes to tell it, and the money was put up with the street car conductor. The unionist got off at his corner and No. 52 rode on. After the unionist had left, No. 52 squealed for his money and finally induced the stakeholder to give it back to him. The unionist who took the short end of the bet is responsible for the truth of this story and he considers his 10c well invested. He had a mortal cinch on that $10, he figured, but was willing to let it go. If he had been given a chance to win that ten spot there would have been a sadder and wiser light employee. He is wiser now and it is safe to say that he will make no more fool bets of $10 to 10c.
“He is wiser now and it is safe to say that he will make no more fool bets of $10 to 10c.”
Labor disputes in the early 20th century were deeply personal and often played out on the street corners of developing cities. This anecdote highlights the tension between utilities and the public, a friction point that persists in modern debates over corporate accountability and energy infrastructure.
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