The Sheriff Who Stopped a 'Socialist' Wedding
When the radical labor agitator August Spies and his bride attempted to marry while Spies was in custody, a Seattle-area official intervened to prevent the 'empty formality' from taking place.
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.
It will not be forgotten that when the Avelings were here, they spoke of love and marriage as mere social questions. Dr. Aveling admitted that polygamy would be a natural outcome of his views, as under the doctrine of socialism there would be no obligation for a man to live with a woman longer than he was strong enough to hold them or either desired to leave the other. 'Divorce would not be possible,' said Mrs. Aveling, 'or necessary, as there would be nothing to divorce.' Such is the doctrine of promiscuous prostitution put forth by two of the most prominent advocates of socialism. Since the refusal of the Sheriff to allow the consummation of the marriage in the jail, the former has given expression to the same views, and corroborates what was said by the Avelings. In his interview with a representative, the agitator made the following remarks: 'It makes little difference. It is only a mere ceremony, an empty formality, and will not change our relations in the least. The young lady has too liberal ideas to be affected by the despotic order any more than I myself am, and, with her acquiescence, remember, we will waive all ceremonies, and, when the time comes, will live as husband and wife.' This brutal proposition is an insult to the young woman whom he pretends to love, as well as to her parents and relatives. It will still further increase the odium which all decent people have for this man and will heighten the congratulations which they will feel like extending to the Sheriff that he has for a time at least prevented him from ensnaring this deluded girl.
“It is only a mere ceremony, an empty formality, and will not change our relations in the least.”
This 1887 report reflects the intense Victorian-era moral panic surrounding labor radicals and socialists. Just as historical anxieties about the 'dissolution of the family' were used to delegitimize the labor movement, modern political discourse often weaponizes housing or social policy debates to paint opponents as threats to traditional social order.
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