The Underground Economy of the Slot Machine
A Tacoma counterfeiting case reveals the grit of early 20th-century labor disputes and the petty warfare waged against the city's machine-room owners.
E. Stickney, Charles Harmon, M. Anderson and A. Brown, the automatic machine workers who were arrested Saturday charged with counterfeiting, were given a hearing before the United States Commissioner. The principal witness was Secret Service Agent Bell, who described the counterfeiting apparatus found in Harmon's home. Attorney Leo, representing the prisoners, asked Agent Bell if the slugs were counterfeit coins. Bell admitted they were not finished counterfeits, but were made to be passed in slot machines. One of the defendants, Stickney, claimed he made them to get even with 'Baldie,' the machine operator, who had been filling his machines with slugs. Stickney testified that everyone in town knew he was using the slugs, and claimed he offered to stop the practice if Baldie paid him $10, which he needed for attorney's fees after a prior brawl. The workers claimed the operation was a form of local labor retaliation against the owner's unfair practices.
“I frankly say that I believe they were being made for use in machines and for no other purpose.”
This story offers a rare glimpse into the 'hidden' labor conflicts of the era, where workers used the tools of the city's vice economy to fight back against employers. Today's gig economy workers often face similar power imbalances, though they tend to use online reviews or labor organizing rather than DIY slugs to reclaim their wages.
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