The Price of Discontent: A Warning from the 1877 Panic
While Seattle thrives on the steady hum of mills and logging camps, a Seattle editor warns citizens against petty grievances by recounting the harrowing hunger and unemployment plaguing the rest of the country.
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.
Show me a man who is contented, and I will show you a fool. This is true of human nature the world over. There is a feeling of restless discontent inherent in the human breast, which is never fully satisfied. We are disposed to underrate the advantages we enjoy, and to brood over our imaginary or real misfortunes. There is no better cure for the discontent engendered by such morbid inaction than a comparison between our standing and that of those less fortunate than ourselves. For this reason, let all local fault-finders ponder for a moment over the following facts. Here we are, enjoying all the blessings of healthful prosperity. Wages are good, and the logging camps, mills, and coal mines are all running at their full capacity. Business generally is in a flourishing condition. Now let those who think they have reason to be discontented look at the following: In a report from the Commissioners of Charities of New York City, we find: 'Not since the panic of '57 has there been such distress and so much poverty among the people of this city as there is today. There are 40,000 industrious mechanics and laboring men out of work and dependent on charity.' A correspondent from Pennsylvania writes: 'Thousands of the laboring men are without money, food or substantial clothing... starvation staring them in the face. Many of the mines have closed for the winter, and others are working only half time. The men have been reduced in wages to 85 cents per day... and there are thousands of others who are anxious to work for this pittance and cannot get even this.'
“There is no better cure for the discontent... than a comparison between our standing and that of those less fortunate than ourselves.”
This 1877 editorial highlights the recurring 'Seattle Exceptionalism'—a belief that our local economy is insulated from broader national instability. Today, as Seattle grapples with its own economic volatility and cost-of-living crises, the reminder that prosperity is local and fragile remains as relevant as it was during the post-Civil War depressions.
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