The Shadowy Business of the Slot Machine King
A divorce trial involving a Tacoma slot machine operator reveals a hidden world of illicit gambling and domestic abuse.
When the divorce suit of Wealthy Ann Baldie against F. H. Baldie was called in the superior court, the courtroom was packed. Judge Huston ordered all to retire except the parties and counsel. Mrs. Baldie testified to a history of domestic violence and threats. Regarding community property, she mentioned two houses, an automobile, slot machines, and a mummified Indian eight feet tall. Mrs. Baldie claimed her husband boasted he owned all the slot machines in town and had a fence around the business so no one else could compete. During the afternoon, when the partner of Baldie was questioned about receipts, the court intervened, with Judge Huston ruling that because the slot machine business was illegal and unlawful, the court could not become a party to inquiring into how the methods were conducted.
“Judge Huston holding that, as Baldie's business was illegal and unlawful, the court could not become a party to the inquiry into the methods on which it was conducted.”
This case highlights the intersection of early 20th-century 'vice' economies and the domestic sphere. The judge's refusal to adjudicate the profits of an illegal business provides a sharp look at how the courts of the time handled the gray-market gambling industry that operated in Tacoma.
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