Jim Kershner’s this day in history

From our archives, 100 years ago

Two unusual stories, both involving hot water, hit the front page:

• A Spokane man went to a barber shop, where the barber talked him into a complicated treatment to cure his baldness. The customer said the barber swathed his head in hot towels, took off his shoes and “shoved my feet into hot water.”

The man remained in that posture for an hour and a half before he got suspicious and jumped out of the chair. By that time, the barber had surreptitiously removed $200 in cash from his customer’s pockets and had repaired to a nearby bar, where he was spending it.

The barber was convicted of theft.

• Stella Burk, 17, filled her bathtub with water at the Milton Hotel, Second Avenue and Post Street. But she neglected to check the temperature.

She stepped in and immediately fainted because it was so hot. She “sank into the water” and stayed there for an undetermined amount of time before she succeeded in crawling out onto the floor. Her faint cries for help were heard by other hotel guests.

She was found in a semi-conscious state and taken to the hospital for treatment.

Also on this date

(From the Associated Press)

1982: An agreement was announced in the 57th day of a strike by National Football League players.