This day in history: Washington Education Association avoids statewide teachers strike; Bomb delivered to women’s Masonic group

From 1975: The Washington Education Association adjourned a chaotic meeting at 5 a.m. after failing to authorize a statewide teachers strike.

Some WEA officials had suggested a walkout as a way of “pressuring the legislature into creating an alternative financing method to special levies.”

Many school districts in the Puget Sound region were in financial trouble after their special levy votes failed.

The WEA delegates approved a procedure to authorize a statewide strike if 60% of the delegates approved it. But the vote in the wee hours of the morning fell short.

“It was a tremendously confusing meeting,” the president of the Spokane Education Association said. “It probably will take several days just to figure out what we did.”

From 1925: An “infernal machine” – a suitcase bomb – was delivered to Spokane’s Masonic Temple, in care of the local Electa chapter of the Order of Eastern Star, a Masonic women’s group.

The bomb failed to detonate when opened by unsuspecting personnel in the office. The suitcase contained 100 loaded shotgun caps, 10,000 pieces of metal shot and a “paper box full of white powder.” It failed to explode only because of “miscalculation by the inventor of the infernal machine.”

“The bomb plot revealed yesterday is one of the most dastardly schemes against a Spokane citizen of organization for many years,” the Spokane police chief said. “It is evident that the sender of the infernal machine had a grudge against the lodge and intended wrecking the new building.”

The suitcase was sent from Los Angeles. The Electa officers said they could think of no reason for any grievance against the Electa officers or chapter.