Violence in the Opium Dens of Colfax
A brutal feud between laborers in a remote Eastern Washington opium joint ends in a horrific shooting and a manhunt.
About three o'clock this afternoon three shots were heard in the vicinity of the North Main street bridge in Colfax, and an instant later a tall Chinaman issued from a little opium joint, followed shortly by two others whose faces were covered with blood. One of them was uninjured, having merely been spattered with blood, but his companion, Lee Yonk, presented a horrible sight. The entire lower portion of his jaw had been shot away, and blood was spurting from his mouth and the gaping wound. Three doctors took him in charge, but it was discovered that the bullet had penetrated to the spinal column, where it had lodged, and his recovery is impossible. A portion of the jaw had to be amputated. Besides the more important injuries, Lee Yonk had a portion of one finger shot away, two of the bullets taking effect. The weapon used was a 44-calibre Colt's revolver. Bock Kin, the tall Chinaman, was arrested for the shooting and is now in the county jail. The other Chinamen who were present at the time of the shooting say that it was the result of an old feud. The bullet which struck Lee Yonk in the jaw first passed through a board partition three-quarters of an inch thick.
“The entire lower portion of his jaw had been shot away, and blood was spurting from his mouth and the gaping wound.”
While historic newspapers often framed crimes in marginalized communities with sensationalism, this report captures a violent episode in Colfax’s labor history. It serves as a reminder of the volatile conditions faced by immigrant workers in the late 19th century, whose struggles and conflicts were frequently relegated to the fringes of local journalism.
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