Jim Kershner’s This day in history » On the Web: spokesman.com/topics/local-history

From our archives, 100 years ago

A Spokane wife learned of her husband’s infidelity from her 4-year-old tot, who gravely imparted the news: “The lady from the candy store kissed papa and papa kissed her.”

Then Milton, the 4-year-old, warned his mother not to tell papa, presumably because papa had warned the kid to keep his mouth shut.

Armed with this information, Milton’s mother filed for divorce. The husband had to defend himself against plenty of other charges, including the wife’s claim that he had spit in her face, abused her and “in fits of temper threw himself on the floor and acted strangely.”

Just to clarify, that was the husband, not the tot.

The wife also claimed that her husband liked to brag about how attractive he was to other women, but he said it wasn’t his fault because it ran in his family.

During the divorce hearing, the husband became so excited and agitated, the judge had to order him to stop badgering the witnesses. The judge granted the divorce decree.

Also on this date

(From the Associated Press)

1941: President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in his State of the Union address, outlined a goal of “Four Freedoms”: Freedom of speech and expression; the freedom of people to worship God in their own way; freedom from want; freedom from fear.