Mayor Yesler Calls for Calm Amid Rising Anti-Chinese Sentiment
Facing mounting pressure and threats of violence, the Mayor of Seattle summons citizens to address the growing anti-Chinese agitation.
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.
In view of the threatening aspect of affairs over the agitation of the Chinese question, I have conceived it prudent to call a meeting of the taxpayers and property owners for the purpose of taking counsel and devising ways and means to prevent further bloodshed and destruction of property. Now, therefore, I, H. L. Yesler, Mayor of the city of Seattle, do hereby call upon all law-abiding citizens to assemble at Yesler's Hall, this Wednesday evening at 7:30 p.m. Good speakers have volunteered to address the meeting.
“I have conceived it prudent to call a meeting... for the purpose of taking counsel and devising ways and means to prevent further bloodshed.”
This meeting marks a pivotal moment in the 1885 anti-Chinese expulsions, a dark period in Seattle's history where civic leaders struggled to maintain order against xenophobic mobs. Today, the location—near the historic site of Yesler's Hall—serves as a reminder of the city's complex legacy regarding labor, immigration, and civil rights.
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