A Deadly Labor Dispute Over Wages
A trap-line worker is killed in his cabin by his stepson following a quarrel over unpaid labor.
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.
James M. Snider, 35 years old, trapper and packer near Pe Ell, was shot and killed instantly recently by his step-son, Fred Harazoo, 23, who said, following his surrender to the county officers, that the shot was fired in self-defense. The killing occurred in Snider’s cabin about a quarter of a mile east of Pe Ell on the Little River Road, and resulted, according to Harazoo, from a quarrel over payment in the form of meat and vegetables which the step-son claimed was due for labor performed during the summer.
“resulted... from a quarrel over payment in the form of meat and vegetables which the step-son claimed was due for labor performed during the summer.”
Disputes over unpaid wages are a timeless grievance, but this incident shows how close-quarters labor arrangements in the early 20th century could escalate to lethal violence. It underscores the lack of formal labor protections for casual laborers or family-hired help at the time.
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