The Carpenter Who Went to Jail on Principle
A local carpenter faces jail time after refusing to pay a poll tax, equating his plight to the political climate of Tsarist Russia.
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.
J. T. Parker, a carpenter who lives near Lake Union, was fined $1 and costs last evening by Justice Von Tobel for refusing to pay his poll tax to Deputy Assessor W. B. Rowland. On the stand, Parker said he did not propose to pay the tax because he didn't believe he could be forced to, and because he did not have the money. Offered a release if he would promise to pay, he refused, was fined, and upon declining to pay the fine, was committed to the county jail. Parker tore his hair and avowed that America was worse than Russia, claiming he was being imprisoned for debt.
“Parker tore his hair and avowed that America was worse than Russia; that he was being imprisoned for a debt.”
Tax protests and debates over civic obligation vs. personal sovereignty remain a recurring theme in American political discourse, mirroring modern anti-tax sentiment and civil disobedience.
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