The Judge's Warning Against Mob Rule in 1885 Seattle
Facing rising anti-Chinese violence, Chief Justice Greene of Washington Territory warned grand jurors that economic cycles and social grievances do not justify the 'folly of Xerxes'—mob violence.
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.
Addressing the Grand Jury, Chief Justice Greene spoke on the growing agitation against the Chinese population in Seattle. He remarked, 'The business depression which affects our local industries is not caused by, although it is related to, the presence of the Chinese. It has to do with larger and more compelling causes. All nature is rhythmical... In the rush and flush of good times, there is a tendency to let the rate of wages rise above the normal level. When hard times ensue, these tendencies are reversed. To try to correct them by violence is the folly of Xerxes... Recently, in this city, threats have been publicly and notoriously made, to the effect that if the Chinese—some of whom are located under the very shadow of this courthouse—are not gone by the 1st of November, they will... be driven out by violence and bloodshed. Never was a law-abiding community more audaciously bearded... We need no outside help, no military force summoned from abroad to keep our peace. We ourselves, with the help of God, will vindicate our personal courage, our capacity for self-government, our loyalty to law, our hatred of cowardice, brutality and crime.'
“To try to correct [economic cycles] by violence is the folly of Xerxes. They will obey the rebuke of no man but One.”
Justice Greene's lecture on the 'rhythmical' nature of economic cycles and the dangerous scapegoating of marginalized groups during downturns mirrors contemporary anxieties surrounding Seattle's rapid housing and economic shifts. His urgent appeal to the grand jury serves as a stark reminder of the fragile boundary between civic order and the 'mob law' that historically plagued the city's growth.
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