The Professor and the Stewardess
A Vashon Island college professor was physically confronted on a steamer by a former employee over accusations of theft.
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.
A heated combat between a college professor and a lady who was formerly a stewardess at the college was witnessed by passengers on the steamer Norwood Saturday afternoon. Professor Jones of Vashon College was the interested party, and the trouble arose through remarks attributed to him concerning the lady's honesty. Saturday afternoon, both took passage on the Norwood for Tacoma, and when about in the latitude of Brown's Point, the woman requested an interview with the professor. This was refused, and what followed was short and to the point. The fisticuffs took place in the after cabin in the presence of a number of passengers, but there were no seconds or referee. The first blow administered by the woman was a stiff uppercut, which landed on Professor Jones' face. It was quickly followed by some clever ring work and rapid sidesteps, and when the mill was over, those who witnessed it said that the professor was not entitled to the big end of the gate receipts. The lady in the case was a Mrs. Markham, a well-known resident of Burton. Professor Jones, it is said, accused her of being the cause of the disappearance of some silverware while she was stewardess of the college. The affair has created high feeling in Burton and the end is not yet.
“The first blow administered by the woman was a stiff uppercut, which landed on Professor Jones' face.”
This altercation on the Norwood ferry highlights the social intensity of small-town Puget Sound life at the turn of the century. Vashon Island's maritime connection to Tacoma remains vital today, though passengers are now more likely to be commuting for work rather than settling personal disputes with their former employers on the open deck.
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