The Pistol That Wouldn't Fire in a Snohomish Saloon
G. K. Friars, chairman of the Snohomish County commissioners, was accused of putting a pistol to Robert Johnson's abdomen in the Gem saloon. Only a bad cartridge prevented a killing.
Snohomish, Jan. 25.—A prosecution is threatened against G. K. Friars, chairman of the board of county commissioners, on a charge of drawing a pistol on Robert Johnson. The affair took place in the Gem saloon, and the failure of the cartridge to explode is probably the only thing that saved Johnson, as the pistol was placed against his abdomen.
“The failure of the cartridge to explode is probably the only thing which saved Johnson, as the pistol was placed against his abdomen.”
A county commissioner pressing a pistol to a man's stomach in a saloon is a reminder that official power in 1890s Washington was personal and often armed. The threatened prosecution also raises a question still with us: who investigates and charges local officials when they cross the line?
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.