Primary Meeting Erupts in Laughter
A political primary meeting takes a humorous turn when a physician makes a pointed jab at the judiciary.
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.
Quite an amusing incident took place at the Republican primary meeting. During the balloting for nominees, one member suggested that the meeting should then and there make nominations for Justice of the Peace for Seattle precinct. Whereupon a prominent physician of this city, who, like the majority of our people, would gladly have a certain Judge 'gone from our gaze' at once facetiously moved to amend by nominating a Chief Justice, intimating, if any steps were to be taken, looking to a change in the judiciary, by that meeting, that that was the one to begin with. It is needless to say that this happy hit brought down the house.
“If any steps were to be taken, looking to a change in the judiciary... that that was the one to begin with.”
Local judicial elections remain a highly contentious, often frustrating, part of the American civic landscape. This 1876 incident echoes modern voter exhaustion with the slow pace of change within established judicial power structures.
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