Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1904-03-25

and the World departed for California
waters. In 1869 the Oregon Steam
Navigation Company put on the Will
son G. Hunt, Capt. William Wait,
which compelled the Wrights OF Vic
toria and Captain Finch t. build the
then elegant side-wheeler Olympia,
which arrived in 1870. At this date
T. ID. Moore was Collector OF Customs
at Port Townsend.
Then the Starr Bros. put on the
new side-wheeler Aida, commanded
at different times by Captains Danial
Morrison and ]. q. Parker, connecting
at Port Townsend with the steamer
Isabel, Capt. c. E. Clancy, for Vic
toria. For time the competition be.
tween the Olympia and Aida was
strong, but was brought to a close by
the Starts paying a subsidy OF 81 400
per month TO Finch & Wright. The
Olympia was withdrawn and the STAIRS
took the Olympia-Victoria route and
that business. The STAIRS then had
the steamer North Pacific built at San
Francisco by j. G. North, commanded
first by Capt. Dan Morrison and later
by Capt. Charles E. Clancy and other
now well-known masters. As soon as
the North Pacific arrived the STAIRS
stopped the subsidy. Then Finch
came on again with the Olympia, and
. bitter steamboat struggle for the
supremacy commenced in earnest
The boats were well.matched as re.
CARDS tonnage, models, fine lines,
power and passenger accommodations /;
the " "heft" OF the owners sacks being
about equal.
The public was divided in the way
of favoritism, the Victorians strongly
favoring the Olympia, while most OF
the Puget Saunders backed the North
Pacific. On preparing at Victoria for
the second opposition trip up Sound,
both of the boats were ready for a
grand trial OF speed. They were beau
tifully decorated with their bright
new colors. The thick black smo oke
poured out of the stacks, the pilots
pulled their whistles simultaneously,
passengers we're hurried aboard, gang
planks hustled in, the mates yelled
their orders to the crew, the lines
were let 60 and taken in, and the
large and excited crowd OF people
that covered the dock to see the start
hurrahed with deafening cheers as the
two boats left for Olympia and way
ports. The North Pacific had the
lead by about two and half minu tes,
taking the circle course out Of the
harbor, while the Olympia started in
pursuit, taking the cutoff between the
buoys. At first the North Pacific
seemed to be getting away from her
rival, but che soon unaccountably
slowed her speed somewhat, and the
Olympia, then about a quarter OF q
mile astern, began to overhaul US.
1 had just straightened out the
North Pacific colors that had fouled
the hslliards, when there were cries Of
"Fire! Fire" Captain Morrison hur.
riedly gave me the wheel and rushed
below. The passengers and crew were
greatly excited. The between decks
and hold were choked with smoke,
and the chief and his assistants, Lon
Cox and Sam Evans, were cropping
down below, lanterns in hand, to dis
cover the origin of the fire. The
dense, sitting smoke, soon reached
the cabins, and many OF the passen-
gers were so alarmed that they rushed
for liie.belts. and were ready for q
stampede. In the meanwhile the
mate, with his crew, coupled on the
fire hose to the steam pumps, while
some of the crew tumbled below with
more lanterns, when finally Cox
and Evans, greatly enraged, sang out
simultaneously that they had located
the fire, and then the air was turned
from black TO blue, with language
that do not remember ever hearing
when went to Sunday school. The
origin of the black and intense smoke
had finally been discovered and dis
pensed with. We soon learned the
particulars. Only a moment before
the North Pacific had left the Vic
toria wharf one of the Olympia's fire.
men, known as Brick Top" was seen
to lump ashore from the North Pacific.
He had secretly gone into the hold of
the North Pacific, opened the back
connection of the boiler, and left the
hanging doors braced open. That
individual was in great demand on
our boat for some time after the fire
alarm. In the meanwhile the Olym-
pia had gained on US so that she was
close on to our starboard quarter, and
going five feet to our three. But our
:ew rallied with will, and though
the Olympia, later the Princess Lou
Use, was nearly abreast OF us, the North
Pacific picked right up, and as the
smoke of additional barrels OF pitch
and rosin rolled back from us into the
face of Pilot Wait on the Olympia, we
steadily opened the gap, leaving her
way astern, landing at Port Townsend
wharf thirteen minutes ahead OF oui
rival, amid the booming OF cannon
and the cheers OF the people OF that
place. Soon after the advent OF the
North Pacific on Puget Sound, the