The sailing date of the steamer Dawson City has again been postponed. This time it is not definitely set, but it is hoped by the leaders of the expedition to be ready to start June 7th.
This is the third time it has been necessary to change the sailing date. It was first set for May 15th, then changed to the 21st, aud postponed again to the 29th, and now without date.
The delay in getting the boilers in has been the cause of all the trouble. The engines, made by the Krogh Manufacturing Company, have been set up for some time, but the boilers were put in only about a week ago. They were made by the Risdon Iron
Works.
Not until the boilers were in was it possible to test the engines and correct and adjust them. That is the work in hand now. So far as can be told everything is perfectly satisfactory except the small faults of adjustment that are always expected.
As soon as everything is ready, probably in two or three days, a trial
trip will be made. If the machinery works properly then the supplies and outfit of the members of the Leonard party and the baggage of the passengers will be taken on board at once and the the little vessel will start on her long trip without a day's further delay.
The supplies of the party are stored ready to be loaded at short notice.
Joseph A. Leonard, the leader in the enterprise, and his right-hand man,
J. H. Woodrum, are devoting every energy to getting the machinery in readiness for an early start for the gold fields. They believe that they will still be able to land their passengers in Dawson City ahead of those who have to be transferred at St. Michaels.
The company is making no effort to secure more passengers, as the
indefiniteness in the sailing date makes it unsatisfactory to men anxious to reach the gold-fields. The number of passengers carried is &a matter of indifference to the company in any case, as a smaller number will make it possible to carry that much more
merchandise for trading.
The membership of the Leonard party is full, though one more may yet be added. The law requires that the assistant engineer as well as the engineer must be licensed. No one has been secured in that capacity, but a San Francisco man who desires to
become a shareholder has applied for the place. His offer will probably be accepted. If not, an assistant engineer will be hired.
