Seattle Labor Unions Boycott Local Papers
The Knights of Labor organize against the 'importation of reading matter' intended to displace local printers.
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.
At a regular meeting of the Knights of Labor last night, the following resolutions were read and unanimously adopted: Whereas, it having been brought to our notice that unscrupulous parties are endeavoring to break down the interests and future welfare of the journeymen printers of this city, by introducing means of publishing newspapers resorted to only by unprincipled individuals—that of using imported castings of reading matter—and otherwise arranging their business so as to throw skilled workmen out of employment; therefore, resolved, by the Knights of Labor of the city of Seattle, that we endorse the action of the Typographical Union of Seattle in its efforts to overthrow the invasion made upon their trade, and extend to the members thereof our hearty co-operation and sympathy. Resolved, That each and every member of the Knights of Labor in Seattle hereby pledges himself to cease patronage, if any is extended, toward the Seattle Bulletin and Sunday Star, and induce his friends to do likewise.
“Resolved, That each and every member of the Knights of Labor in Seattle hereby pledges himself to cease patronage... toward the Seattle Bulletin and Sunday Star.”
Labor resistance to automation—what the 1885 printers called 'imported castings of reading matter'—was a major flashpoint for the early Seattle press. This tension between skilled labor and the efficiencies of mass production remains a central theme in the evolution of journalism and the broader labor market today.
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