The Lost Ship

This issue contains "The Lost Ship, or Cruise for a Shadow," by Roger Starbuck, a maritime adventure serial. The narrative follows the whaling ship Norwich, commanded by young Captain Thomas Camp, caught in a violent storm in the Kamtchatka Sea in October. Despite his mate Gibbs's advice to leave earlier, Camp remains to fill his vessel at a northern whaling ground. When the ship begins dragging toward rocky cliffs, Camp orders the anchors raised and attempts to sail clear, but the main-topmast snaps and the helmsman is washed overboard. Gibbs takes the wheel and navigates through a treacherous passage between ice floes, narrowly averting disaster. However, the ship has been damaged—scraping rocks during their escape opens a hull breach. As water floods the hold, the crew prepares to abandon ship in boats. A heavy sea washes Gibbs overboard (though he is rescued), while Camp remains aboard, waving farewell as the vessels drift apart into darkness.