100 years ago in Spokane: Medical Society debate shows the debate over paying for health care isn’t new

If you think the debate over paying for health care is new, consider this:

The Spokane Medical Society was considering a proposal to expel members who had contracts with companies to provide care for their employees.

“… Practically all employers collect from their employees a stipulated sum which is turned over to the doctor under contract to care for the individual employees in sickness or accidents,” the Spokane Daily Chronicle reported. “Some of the organizations even go so far as to include the members of the employees’ family for a small additional sum.”

Among companies that had such a system was Washington Water Power (now Avista).

From the criminal justice beat: Sheriff George Reid announced he was disbanding the “famous ‘kangaroo court’ of the Spokane County jail.”

“It was getting too rank,” Reid said. “It was all right as long as their fines were reasonable, but when they took a man who was in jail for only two days and fined him $4 out of the $5 he had, it was going too far. They threatened to ‘bathtub’ him with his clothes on and they did ‘bathtub’ another man a couple of weeks ago.”

The article doesn’t say what the purpose of the “kangaroo court” was.

From the boxing beat: A former Hillyard boxer, Walter Hemple, was helping heavyweight champion Jess Willard prepare for his bout against soon-to-be heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey. The fight was scheduled for July 4 in Toledo, Ohio.

Hemple fought under the name Jack Hemple when he was in Spokane.

From the crime beat: Henry E. Haley was clinging to life at Sacred Heart Hospital after he was shot at the Thorslund hotel, 226 W. Riverside Ave.

The landlady of the hotel, Bessie Langer, admitted to shooting him.

“Last night Haley was drinking. He went from room to room looking for me. When he found me he came toward me swinging a short piece of rubber hose, filled with something heavy,” she said. “When he refused to stop, I shot him. I didn’t want to kill him, but just wanted to protect myself.”

Another lodger at the hotel said Haley earlier had broken down his door with a club.

From the talent beat: “World’s champion typist” George Hossfeld would come to Spokane in June to demonstrate his skills at the YMCA.

Hossfeld set set a record of 143 words per minute for 60 consecutive minutes with only 40 errors using a No. 5 Underwood typewriter.

Jim Kershner is on sabbatical.