The Highwayman's Professional Courtesy
A Seattle attorney was held up by armed men at 5:00 a.m. in North Seattle, only to be released unharmed when the robber recognized him as the defense lawyer for a former client.
W. W. Stewart, a lawyer with an office in the Seattle National Bank building, was held up last Monday morning about 5 o'clock as he was walking downtown from North Seattle. Two men accosted him, one holding a revolver to his head while the other searched his pockets. Suddenly, the highwayman looked Stewart in the face and, turning to his companion, said, 'Well, as I live, it's the lawyer who defended Reddy Long.' With those words, they allowed the surprised lawyer to continue his journey without taking any of his valuables.
“Well, as I live, it's the lawyer who defended 'Reddy' Long.”
This incident highlights the thin line between the legal establishment and the criminal underworld in 1890s Seattle, where social networks often crossed paths in unexpected ways.
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