A Scantling Scuffle at the Boom
A simmering dispute over local timber booms erupts in violence at Chenoise Creek.
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.
An assault case was heard before Justice Arnold this morning. N. P. Willis, W. L. Stiles, and P. V. Galch manage the Grays Harbor boom at the mouth of the Humptulips. Relations between them have been strained, with Stiles claiming Willis threatened his life. Willis and Balch, who operate a separate boom at Chenoise Creek, summoned Stiles to meet them. Upon arrival, a heated argument occurred; Willis grabbed Stiles by his coat lapels and declared, 'I'll settle with you now!' Stiles broke free, grabbed a piece of scantling, and pursued Willis, who fled into a house. Stiles smashed a door panel in the process. Although a warrant was issued for assault with a deadly weapon, it was found to be defective, and Stiles was released.
“Willis came and grabbing Stiles by the lapels of the coat with both hands exclaimed 'I'll settle with you now!'”
This incident highlights the intense, often violent, territorial nature of the turn-of-the-century timber industry in Grays Harbor. Disputes over 'booms'—the structures used to corral logs in rivers—were common and mirrored the cutthroat competition for control over local waterways.
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