100 years ago in Spokane: Police chief declares war on ‘gypsies’

Spokane Police Chief William Weir declared war on what he called “gypsies and fortune-tellers” in the city.

Weir pulled no punches – in fact, his tirade sounds over-the-top and problematic to today’s ears.

“I’m going to run these gypsies and other fortune-tellers out of the city,” he said. “They are no good to the city and are simply robbing the people who come to them. There is no city ordinance at present that will allow me to simply go after these gypsies and run them out of the city, but they are going to be gotten rid of. … There is no good reason for their existence in their profession inside the city limits. I am declaring war on the whole bunch of them.”

This was apparently prompted by complaints from Spokane residents about the tactics of itinerant fortune tellers. One man told police that he went to a gypsy camp and began to have his fortune read, but the incident ended when his purse (wallet) was taken from him.

The man reported the incident to police, but when a police wagon arrived the camp had vanished.

Weir warned that “they are going to find Spokane a bad place to stop in.”

From the playwright beat: “A Voice in the Dark,” a play written by Ralph E. Dyar, a writer for The Spokesman-Review, had its New York premiere.

New York critics praised it, calling it “the most absorbing entertainment of this season,” and a “vibrant melodrama.” The Evening World critic said, “If you like murder mystery plays, you are sure to be held by ‘A Voice in the Dark.’ ”

Dyar was present for the premiere.