From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library:

[The following piece of found-at-random news comes from The Tacoma Daily Ledger, although the story took place in New Whatcom (a town which later became part of the City of Bellingham).

The tale reads like a screwball comedy. Published on November 9, 1897, the headline writer very appropriately made a reference to characters from Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors]:

Mrs. Woods of Whatcom Secures a Divorce From Her Absent Spouse and Claims the Husband of Mrs. Lewis as Her Own — Row in the Lewis Family — Lewis Disappears — Woods Returns; Then Lewis, and Mystery Is Solved.

 NEW WHATCOM, Nov. 8.–(Special)–A most remarkable romance has been sequelized by the recent return to this city of James A. Woods, laden with treasure from Alaska. Mrs. James A. Woods has been residing in this city for the past five years while her husband was hunting gold in Alaska. She kept furnished rooms for rent.

One day last summer a Mr. Lewis and wife arrived in the city from Montana and proceeded to hunt furnished rooms. Mrs. Lewis finally rented one of Mrs. Woods’ rooms and the Lewis’ moved in.

When Mrs. Woods was introduced to Mr. Lewis she at once convinced herself that he was Mr. Woods, her husband. She applied for and secured a divorce from Mr. Woods. Being fully convinced of Mr. Lewis’ real identity, Mrs. Woods imparted the information to Mrs. Lewis. Then there was a storm, a terrible upheaval of family quietude, and finally about three weeks ago Mr. Lewis disappeared and no trace of him could be discovered.

Last Friday James A. Woods arrived in the city, stating that he had landed at Victoria from Alaska October 28. The city police spotted him and placed him under surveillance; they had little doubt that the smooth-shaven Woods was none other than the bearded Lewis; besides, a peculiar scar upon Woods’ left thumb tallied with a similar mark on Lewis’ thumb. What was still more remarkable was the fact that Mrs. Lewis believed the new comer to be Mr. Lewis, while Mrs. Woods knew him as the real Woods.

Another search was made for Lewis and that gentleman reappeared upon the scene Saturday. Now it is all settled that Woods is really Woods of Alaska and Lewis is the real Lewis of Montana, though the remarkable resemblance of the two men to each other in all prominent features except whiskers fully explains and warrants the confusion.

[This newspapers and many others are available on microfilm and can be circulated to your local library on request]

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library:

(An alternative title for pun-lovers could be: A Quack Dentist in Blaine Ducks From the Web of the Law Without Paying the Bill. Patients and Creditors are Down in the Mouth)

Con artists always make good news stories, no matter what the era. There seem to be no shortage of articles about swindlers in these old newspapers. This particular tale is more amusing than most– found at random in The Blaine Journal, March 14, 1902, page 1:

 FLEW THE TOWN

 Our “Dentist” Gets up and leaves Without Giving any Notice to His patrons and Creditors. Warrant Out For Him.

“A fellow signing himself Dr. S.J. Clifford blew into this city a short time ago and opened up a dental office. There was a splendid opening for a dentist here and while this fellow didn’t look just right yet he found some patrons, mostly because they were too busy to get away to Whatcom to have the work done. The doctor was long on collections but generally short on the cash. The result of this was that he was soon in debt for board and had a lot of work on hand partly paid for but not yet finished. Since the ‘doctor’ left many amusing things have come to light. It is said that at one time he was secretary of a local lodge and that the boys found him ‘short on the cash’ and made him ‘dig up’ forthwith. Rumor has it that one of our prominent citizens is mourning the loss of a set of teeth. Several complain of having paid him money for the work that he has not yet finished. He was practicing dentistry without a license and the state board was hot on his trail. The man was not without a little love affair and it is said that he has written to his fair one to come and see him as he is very sick with the spinal meningetis in the hospital at Seattle. A warrant was issued out of the county attorney’s office for him and a hunt was made in Whatcom for the much wanted tooth carpenter but he had left there a few hours before and was in Seattle. The dentists down in the county seat know him, for he had one of them buy a dinner and another loaned him a dollar on the strength of professional courtesy. He is probably out of the state and looking for pastures new and the warrant is about two days too old to catch him.”

A competitor's ad in the same newspaper

The Blaine Journal is the earliest ancestor of the present-day Ferndale Record. All of these newspapers on microfilm are available via inter-library loan.

To read more about medical frauds, look in any library catalog under one of my all-time favorite Library of Congress subject headings: Quacks and quackery.

[accompanying material: An ad for a rival dental office, Whatcom Dental Parlors, and, a notice for a fraternal meeting with “Doctor” Clifford’s name as secretary]

"Dr." Clifford was active in the community