100 years ago in Spokane: Indictments show drug-dealing had become dangerous criminal trade in town

A federal grand jury in Spokane handed down nine indictments for narcotics trafficking, along with other indictments for horse-stealing, liquor-dealing and counterfeiting.

The narcotics indictments were more proof that drug-dealing had become a dangerous criminal trade in Spokane. All of the accused traffickers had been arrested during raids in the spring. Some were accused of smuggling drugs in from Canada, others with dealing it out of various hotels.

From the radio beat: Radio was sweeping the region, and the Spokane Daily Chronicle was going all-in on this new modern technology.

The Chronicle already had its own radio station, KOE, broadcasting from the top of the Chronicle building, but now it was announcing two new “radio departments” (radio feature articles) every day.

The first was a Q-and-A column in which RT Carr, “radio expert” at Spokane’s Pacific Telegraph Institute, would answer radio-related questions from readers.

The second was a syndicated “radio science” column out of New York, which would explain some of the “interesting mysteries of the science.”

These two columns were in addition to a regular digest of radio news, titled “Picked Up By Radio,” which was already running in the paper. For instance, in that day’s digest were stories about whether indoor antennas were just as good as outdoor antennas (yes) and about a local contest for the best homemade radio receivers.