An individual moves from the city to a small port town in Maine and hires Mr. Siles to paint their piazza. However, a fog rolls in and Mr. Siles tells the city-dweller a story about the fog. Mr. Siles had a store clerk that was from the midwest — a young boy named Wessel’s Andy. Andy had been the son of farmers, but had always been fascinated with ships. He had cut out a picture of a schooner and taped it to his wall and looked at it day and night. His father had gotten angry with him and so he painted over the picture with white paint. Andy laughed and said that the ship had gone into the fog, but then he got very sick and couldn’t work. People began to think he was crazy and so he moved across the country to the small port town. There, Andy asks Mr. Siles for a job in his ship’s supply store. Mr. Siles gives it to him and sees that Andy is a hard-worker, but not all that strong. One night Andy tells Mr. Siles that he moved to the beach because he feels called by a boat to board it, and he sees the boat sometimes in his head. Andy says he is afraid to board the ship because he isn’t sure why it is calling him. Mr. Siles thinks he is slightly crazy but then Andy stands up and looks out the window and says that he saw the boat in the fog. Mr. Siles gives him some whiskey to calm him down and then puts him to bed. Andy is awake later and tells Mr. Siles that something is holding him back and that he’s not crazy. A week later at the store a few boys tell a man the story of Captain Salsbury who had a daughter named Hope. Hope was beautiful but couldn’t find a man she loved to love her back. Her father, wanting the best for her, said he would take her on his ship and find a man for her. They left one day and a fog rolled in and they were never seen again.  After hearing this story, Andy seems intrigued and he asks Mr. Siles if anyone would have a picture of Hope Salsbury. Mr Siles says Captain Salsbury’s cousin Ed may have one and that night Mr. Siles gets a call from Ed saying that Andy had broken into his house and was looking at his family picture album. Mr. Siles comes to collect Andy and Andy tells him that along with the ship he also sees a girl’s face, that girl being Hope Salsbury. Andy also says that he is leaving soon to go on the ship with Hope. Mr. Siles goes on a walk to clear his head, but then feels a pull to return to the wharf. As he does he sees a fog surrounding it and Andy on the wharf jumping into the water. Mr. Siles jumps in after him, but before he does he sees the Salsbury’s ship in the fog. He tries to reach Andy, but can’t get to him in time. He wakes on the beach and knows that Andy has made it on the ship.