The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1940-05-28

We Dig Into The Barrel
To Settle en- Argument
The Court Tried TO Jail
Gov. Isaac Stevens
Then the Governor jailed
The Court
Another of those to-settle-an-
argument queries concerns the
incident Of Isaac I. Stevens, first
governor Of the territory OF
Washington, issuing a pardon to
himself when he was about to
be jailed for contempt OF court.
The order was issued by Judge
Edward Lander because Isaac
Stevens, as commander-in-chief
Of territorial troops. had declared
martial law IN Pierce and Thurs
ton counties and caused the ar
rest Of several Pierce county
settlers. Then Gen. Isaac Stew
ems appealed to Gov. Isaac Stew
ems and the governor pardoned
the general.
The incident caused quite
furore. The courts were just as
jealous of their authority in the
eighteen-fifties as they are to-
day, and sometimes less reason.
Some of the judicial appoint
ments of those days were made
solely on the basis of politics,
and in some cases the prefix
Judge" was acquired by those
who never could have obtained
it any other way. However that
may have been, in this instance
the court was pretty sore. The
story Of the incident runs like
this:
Early In 1885 Gov. Stevens re-
ceived information that certain
"evil disposed persons with In
dian wives who had fathers,
brothers and other relatives
among the hostile Indian tribes,
and living on Nisqually bottoms,
had been giving aid and COM
fort to the enemy"
The governor sent word to the
suspected parties and asked
them for the time being to leave
their homesteads and accept
domicile in Steilacoom or Olym-
pia for the duration of the war,
just as we did with some of the
conscientious DIRECTORS" dur
ing the World war. They COM
piled with the governors request
temporarily and then moved
back to their ranches.
Shortly after they went back,
two Americans were ambushed
by Indians near Nisqually. The
Indians were said to have been
given food and shelter by the
suspected friendly whites on the
flats.
That made Gov. Stevens mad.
He sent a detachment of terri
torial troopers to Nisqually and
on a charge of treason arrested
Charles Wrenn, Sandy Smith,
John Mcleod, Henry Smith, and
John McField, and placed them
in the custody of Col Silar Casey
at Fort Steilacoom.
Then things began to boil.
Other citizens of Pierce county
resented what they termed Gov.
Stevens high handed action and
started couple of attorneys to
the home Of Judge F. A. Cheno-
with, judge Of this district on
WILDLY island, journey of 100
miles, to get a writ of habeas
corpus directed to Col. Casey.
Gov. Stevens heard of the
move and Immediately ordered
the prisoners moved to Olympia,
out of Judge Chenowith's juris-
diction. Then Gov. Stevens went
further and notified the judiciary
that he desired the civil courts
suspended during the period of
martial law. That made the jul
dietary sore. All the lawyers in
this part of the territory held a
mass meeting and denounced the
governor.
Then to show the governor
what they thought of his order,
the regular term of the Pierce
county district court was con-
vened with Chief Justice Lander
presiding for Judge Chenowith
who was i'll.
Gov. Stevens showed what he
thought of this judicial flaunt-
ing of the executive order by
that an allied defeat will mean