Fifteen Hundred Wanted Seattle; the Flyer Had Room for Five Hundred
Holiday travelers packed the Flyer dock until police were called, then counted every passenger down the gangplank one by one while a thousand sorely disappointed people turned to the Interurban.
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.
For a time yesterday afternoon it was feared there was going to be serious trouble at the Flyer dock, and had it not been for the intervention of the police officers the Flyer would have been greatly delayed in leaving the dock on her regular 4:50 trip.
Early in the afternoon people began gathering at the dock, intending to go to Seattle. When the Flyer arrived fully 1,500 people were on hand to get on board. The captain, seeing the crowd, announced that he was allowed to carry only 500 people, and was persistent in seeing that no more than that number passed onto the boat.
The people began crowding and jamming until the police were called and quieted the crowd. A close count of every one passing down the gangplank was made, and when the allotted number, 500, was reached no more were allowed to go on board. Fully a thousand people were sorely disappointed. Many of them patronized the Interurban electric line later in the day.
“A close count of every one passing down the gangplank was made, and when the allotted number, 500, was reached no more were allowed to go on board.”
Sound-side travel has always run on a hard capacity number and a soft temper: the same scene plays out on every summer ferry queue and sold-out stadium train today. Then it was a steamer captain holding to a 500-passenger license; now it is a vessel certificate, a reservation system and an app that tells you the boat is full.
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