The Vanishing Steamer: Seattle Waits in Fog for the 'Port Albert'
Passengers and agents grow anxious as the British-American steamer goes missing off the Pacific Northwest coast, sparking fears of a wreck or mechanical failure.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The unaccountable delay of the steamer Port Albert in reaching Seattle from San Francisco is causing considerable uneasiness on the part of her agents, the British-American Steamship Company. The vessel left San Francisco Sunday, June 10, and barring any other delays, should have arrived here last Thursday evening at the latest.
All day yesterday the steamer was expected to put in an appearance, but the day went by and not a sign was seen of the overdue vessel. It was thought that the United States gunboat Machias would bring some news of the Port Albert, but her officers state that they saw nothing of her.
It was stated at the office of the British-American company this morning that in the event of nothing being heard from the Port Albert today, a powerful tug of the Puget Sound Tugboat Company will be sent out to go along the coast in search of the steamer. The tug will thoroughly patrol the coast between Cape Flattery and the Columbia River.
The agents also state that the captain of the Port Albert, being unfamiliar with the northwest coast, may be standing out in the ocean a considerable distance. The weather is said to have been exceedingly foggy and misty about the cape during the past few days, and would necessitate the steamer's running at half speed. On the other hand, she may have broken down, and is at the present time drifting helplessly about in the waters of the Pacific.
In an era before reliable radio communication, a missing ship off the treacherous Cape Flattery was a genuine terror for Seattle's maritime community. Today, while we still worry about supply chain delays and weather disruptions, the sheer isolation and helplessness of a vessel drifting in the fog highlights how much technology has shrunk our world and mitigated the fear of the unknown.
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