The Captain of Police Faces Charges
A employment agent accuses the Captain of Police of 'using language intended to provoke an assault' during a dispute over swindled laborers.
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.
P. J. Concannon, the employment agency proprietor, had Captain of Police Nick Hanna arrested yesterday afternoon on the charge of using language intended to provoke an assault. Capt. Hanna went to the employment office to investigate a case wherein several laborers had been sent to a ranch near Snohomish, but found neither place nor man. Hanna wanted Concannon to return the laborers' money, especially three that were penniless, immediately, but Concannon wanted to let the matter go another day. In the end, Concannon paid back three men Friday night and the remainder, six, yesterday morning. Hanna's case will be heard by Justice Caldwell Tuesday morning.
“Hanna wanted Concannon to return the laborers' money, especially three that were penniless, immediately.”
This incident highlights the pervasive corruption and lack of oversight in 19th-century employment agencies, which often exploited laborers with promises of non-existent jobs. The sight of a high-ranking police officer intervening in a labor dispute—and being arrested for it—reflects the complex, often blurred lines between civic authority and private business interests in early Seattle.
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