diff options
Diffstat (limited to 'old/50238.txt')
| -rw-r--r-- | old/50238.txt | 4785 |
1 files changed, 0 insertions, 4785 deletions
diff --git a/old/50238.txt b/old/50238.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 3c25cec..0000000 --- a/old/50238.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4785 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, Stormy Voyage, by Robert Leckie - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: Stormy Voyage - Sandy Steele Adventures #3 - - -Author: Robert Leckie - - - -Release Date: October 17, 2015 [eBook #50238] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STORMY VOYAGE*** - - -E-text prepared by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 50238-h.htm or 50238-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/50238/50238-h/50238-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/50238/50238-h.zip) - - -Transcriber's note: - - Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - - - - - -STORMY VOYAGE - - - * * * * * * - -Sandy Steele Adventures - -Black Treasure -Danger at Mormon Crossing -Stormy Voyage -Fire at Red Lake -Secret Mission to Alaska -Troubled Waters - - * * * * * * - - -Sandy Steele Adventures - -STORMY VOYAGE - -by - -ROGER BARLOW - - - - - - - -Simon and Schuster -New York, 1959 - -All Rights Reserved -Including the Right of Reproduction -in Whole or in Part in Any Form -Copyright (C) 1959 by Simon and Schuster, Inc. -Published by Simon and Schuster, Inc. -Rockefeller Center, 630 Fifth Avenue -New York 20, N. Y. - -First Printing - -Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 59-13882 -Manufactured in the United States of America -By H. Wolff Book Mfg. Co., Inc., New York - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - 1 Off to the Mesabi 11 - 2 The Long Boats 22 - 3 Bull's-Eye 34 - 4 A Plot Discovered 45 - 5 A New Friend 58 - 6 Man Overboard! 73 - 7 In the Locks 81 - 8 Fire! 93 - 9 Charged with Arson 105 - 10 The Unsalted Seas 116 - 11 The Big Blow 130 - 12 A Web of Lies 142 - 13 Cookie to the Rescue 156 - 14 Checkmated 167 - 15 Safe in Port 178 - 16 Summer's End 184 - - - - - CHAPTER ONE - Off to the Mesabi - - -Jerry James's foot came down gently on the brake pedal of Old Faithful, -his cut-down, open-air jalopy, and as the car slowed, Sandy Steele -vaulted lightly over the side onto the pavement. With a wave of his hand -and the shout, "See you tonight, Jerry," Sandy whirled and sprinted up -the front walk. - -His long, gangling legs gobbled up the distance with astonishing ease -and catapulted Sandy up the porch steps three at a time. But then, after -the screen door had slammed shut behind him, Sandy Steele came to a -sudden halt as though tackled by an entire enemy football team. - -"Dad!" he cried. "But I thought you'd be in Alaska by now!" - -"Signals off, Sandy," John Steele said, rising from the porch hammock -and laying aside his evening newspaper. He gazed soberly at his tall, -blond son. "You know, Sandy," he went on, "I believe you've grown -another two inches in the few days I've been away." - -"It's Mom's cooking," Sandy said, smiling. He brushed aside the cowlick -that had flopped over his eyes as he ran up the walk. His face resumed -its normal expression of quiet thoughtfulness, and he said, "What -happened, Dad?" - -"Change of plans, Sandy. Instead of testing for uranium in Alaska, the -government has decided that I'd better spend the summer on the Mesabi -Range." - -"Mesabi?" Sandy repeated, frowning. Then, brightening, he exclaimed, "Oh -sure. That's in Minnesota. The ore mines. Mr. Wilson told us all about -it in class the other day. Why are you going there instead of to Alaska, -Dad?" - -John Steele's face became grave. - -"I don't know how much your teacher told you about the Mesabi iron-ore -mines, son. But the truth is that these ore deposits are among our -country's greatest treasures." His voice turned grim. "And I'm afraid -they're running out." - -Sandy looked perplexed. "But I thought there were whole mountains of ore -up there. At least, that's what Mr. Wilson said." - -"Your teacher's right, Sandy. But, unfortunately, most of these deposits -are of low-grade ore. As the son of a government geologist, you should -know what that means." Sandy nodded soberly and automatically lifted a -hand to brush back the cowlick that had fallen forward again. His father -continued, "The average iron content of the Mesabi ore has been dropping -pretty steadily. If it gets much below 50 per cent, it would be doubtful -if it would be worth working. And the Mesabi, son--the Mesabi is the -greatest producer of iron ore in the world." - -"Gee," Sandy said. "That _is_ serious, isn't it?" - -"Couldn't be worse, son. From iron ore comes steel, and steel is the -backbone of any modern nation. That's why it's important for somebody to -uncover some high-grade deposits. And that," he said, smiling at the -expression of deep seriousness on the face of his son, "that explains -why John Steele will spend his summer in Minnesota instead of Alaska." - -Suddenly he laughed. Leaning forward, he ruffled Sandy's hair. - -"Come, now. There are other important things in the world. Such as the -score of this afternoon's game between Valley View and Poplar City. You -haven't told me who won yet." - -Sandy grinned jubilantly. "We did," he said. "Three to nothing." - -"Oh, ho! Shut 'em out, eh? How many strike-outs?" - -"Twelve," Sandy said, blushing. "But you should have seen the homer -Jerry hit! Boy! It must have traveled close to four hundred feet in the -air. Honestly, Dad, Jerry James could play in the big leagues if he -wanted to. Why, he's got a big-league arm already. Today he caught two -men trying to steal second and he picked another man off third." - -Inwardly pleased at his son's refusal to boast of his shut-out victory, -John Steele said, "Well, the pitching helps, too, Sandy." He turned to -lead the way into the dining room of their comfortable home, when he was -stopped in his tracks by a cry of dismay from Sandy. - -"What's wrong, son?" he said, turning. "What is it?" - -"Alaska!" Sandy burst out. "Don't you remember, Dad? Jerry and I were -going to join you in Alaska this summer! That's why we'd saved all the -money we made at Mr. James's drugstore." - -Sandy's father struck his forehead with the flat of his hand. "By -George, I'd forgotten all about it," he said. - -"Yes," Sandy said, dejected. "It looks as if Jerry James and I will be -the only ones around Valley View this summer." His face darkened. -"Pepper March is going to South America with his father. Won't he rub it -in when he hears that our Alaska trip is off!" He shook his head. "And -Quiz Taylor's got a job as counselor at a boys' camp." - -"Oh, come now," his father said. "It isn't that bad. Maybe you and Jerry -can use all that spare time to sharpen up your forward-passing -combination." - -Suddenly, the look of disappointment disappeared from Sandy's face. In -an instant he was his old high-spirited self, and he all but shouted, -"Dad! Dad! I've got it! Why can't Jerry and I go to Minnesota?" - -"Minnesota! What on earth would you do there?" - -"Oh, I don't know. Of course it isn't as romantic as Alaska and all -that. But still--why, we could even ride cross-country in Old -Faithful--you know, Jerry's jalopy. We've got enough money. And, maybe," -he said, growing more excited, "maybe by the time we got there, you -could find a job for us in the ore mines!" - -"Son," John Steele said, "it's an idea." - -"Sure, Dad--it isn't as though Jerry and I aren't strong enough to do a -man's work." - -"Well," his father said with a grin, "I don't know for sure if you can -do a man's work, yet, son--but I do know you can put away a man's meal. -And unless I miss my guess, that's fried chicken that I smell cooking in -there. So let's go in and eat, and talk some more about this Minnesota -business." - - -Jerry James was already behind the soda fountain in his father's -drugstore when Sandy Steele came walking through the door. Sandy put on -a long face as he moved around the counter and began winding a white -apron around his own slender, hard-muscled waist. - -"Hey, what's wrong, Sandy?" Jerry said. "To look at you, you'd think it -was Poplar City that won this afternoon." - -"Bad news, Jerry." - -"What?" - -"The Alaska trip's off." - -"Oh, no!" Jerry groaned. "And after we saved all that money!" He slumped -forward on the counter and propped his lean, lantern jaw into his hands. -Then he ran his hands back over his close-cropped inky-black hair and -said, "I could tear it out by the handful! What happened, Sandy?" - -"Dad's orders were changed," Sandy replied, carefully making his voice -sound glum. Then, unable to contain himself any longer, he let out a -whoop and whacked his chum soundly on the back. "But we're going to -Minnesota instead!" - -"Minnesota?" - -"Sure thing! Dad says he's pretty sure he can get us jobs in the ore -mines. Honest, Jerry, it'll be great! Maybe it's a chance we'd never get -again ... to go east I mean. The mines are right on the Great Lakes, you -know. Who knows? We might even take a trip on the Great Lakes." - -"Sa-ay," Jerry breathed, his dark eyes gleaming. "That would be -something, wouldn't it? But how will we get there? I mean, would we have -enough money for the train fare?" - -"Don't be a chump, Jerry. Have you forgotten Old Faithful?" - -Well, Jerry James had forgotten. But the instant he remembered it, his -face lighted up with an expression of purest joy. - -"What a trip!" he shouted. "Driving Old Faithful all the way from -California to Minnesota! Sleeping out at night under the stars! Boy, oh -boy, Sandy, I can hardly wait until--" - -"I can hardly wait any longer," an unfriendly voice cut in, and, turning -around, both boys looked into the features of Stanley Peperdine March. - -"Pepper!" Jerry exclaimed. "Have you been waiting here all this time?" - -"I have," Pepper March said coldly. "I was wondering if you two brave -explorers were ever going to stop telling each other fairy stories." - -"I guess we were kind of charged up," Jerry said sheepishly. "What'll -you have, Pepper?" - -"A Coke, please. And please remember not to put cracked ice in it." - -"Why no ice, Pepper?" - -"It makes my teeth chatter," Pepper said, and then, hearing Jerry -snicker, he flushed darkly and turned to Sandy to sneer, "So your old -man's going to Minnesota?" - -"Do you mean my father?" Sandy said, with a quiet note of warning in his -voice. - -Sandy's reply flustered Pepper March. He turned away to sip his drink, -pretending not to have heard. Sandy studied his old rival. As usual, -Stanley Peperdine March was dressed in the height of fashion. When -Pepper March was around, it was never hard to tell which boy came from -the wealthiest family in Valley View. In fact, Pepper's people were -among the richest in the state. And he rarely overlooked a chance to let -the world know about it. - -Sandy Steele moved down behind the counter a bit so as to look Pepper in -the eye, and said, "As I said before, Pepper, did you mean my father?" - -Pepper looked deliberately at the soda jerk's cap and white apron that -Sandy wore and said, "It seems to me that you're getting kind of uppity -for a hired hand." - -Sandy felt himself flushing. He fought hard to keep control of himself, -and he carefully avoided looking into Pepper's taunting eyes for fear of -getting angrier. Then he felt Jerry's reassuring hand on his arm and -heard him say, "Be careful, Pepper, I'm warning you." - -"Oh, you two. Can't you take a little joke? Of course, I meant his -father. What's the difference, anyway? Father, old man--" - -"Careful!" Jerry snapped. - -"Oh, all right. All I meant was that I was wondering if Sandy's old, uh, -if Mr. Steele was going to Minnesota to make ore testings. Is he?" -Pepper rushed on eagerly, dropping his customary air of superiority. - -"Nosy, aren't you?" Jerry grinned, but Sandy stopped him before he could -make further sport of the nettled Pepper. - -"Why do you want to know?" Sandy asked evenly. - -Pepper shrugged. "Just curious, that's all." He finished his Coke and -got off his stool with a jaunty air, and just then, Sandy Steele had a -sudden inspiration. - -"I know why you want to know!" he said triumphantly. "That's why you're -going to South America with your father, isn't it? To inspect the South -American ore fields!" - -Pepper whirled in anger. "Think you're smart, don't you?" he snarled, -and Sandy smiled and said, "_I_ never said it, Pepper." - -"Oh, yes, you do!" Pepper went on, furious by now. "But let me tell you, -Mr. Goody-Goody, maybe we _are_ going to South America to look for ore! -And that's nobody's business but ours. And furthermore, my old man says -that anybody who bothers with the Mesabi mines any more must be crazy! -You hear that, Steele? So your old--" he stopped short at a warning -glance from Sandy, before racing on--"so your father's going to -Minnesota on a wild-goose chase. He isn't going to find anything but a -lot of dirt! And while you two dopes are sweating away in a worked-out -iron mine, I'll be sailing up the Orinoco River on my father's yacht." -He smirked, threw a dime on the counter, made a little mocking bow at -the door, and went out. - -For a moment, there was silence in the drugstore. Then Jerry James -picked up Pepper's glass, rinsed it and dried it off and returned it to -the shelf. With a wink, he turned to his friend and said, "That Pepper's -sure a windbag, isn't he?" Sandy shook his head. His face was sober. - -"I wish it was just talk, Jerry," he said. "But I'm afraid it's true. -Dad said tonight there was a possibility of just that very thing -happening. And he said it would be a terrible thing for American -industry if we had to start buying our iron ore in South America." - -For another moment, Sandy Steele frowned. He pushed his cowlick back -from his eyes and struck the counter top with the flat of his hand. -"Boy," he said grimly, "now I've got another good reason for hoping that -Dad finds what he's looking for in Minnesota!" - - - - - CHAPTER TWO - The Long Boats - - -Two weeks later, Old Faithful chugged away from the curb in front of the -Steele home with the farewells of Sandy's mother ringing in the ears of -both boys. - -"Goodbye, Sandy; goodbye, Jerry," she had cried, waving one hand with a -gaiety that was at odds with the tears forming in her eyes. "Be good -boys, both of you. And please be careful! Give my love to your father, -Sandy." - -"Okay, Mom," Sandy had shouted back. "And tell Aunt Netty I'll send her -a postcard." - -Mrs. Steele had nodded and brushed a hand across her eyes. Then she -waved again. For fully another minute, she stood on the porch steps -watching until the freshly painted jalopy piled high with luggage and -other belongings at last disappeared around a corner. Then, with a sigh, -she went inside to begin packing for her own visit to a widowed sister -who lived in northern California. - -In the front seat of Old Faithful, meanwhile, there was anything but -tears. Both boys wore wide grins on their faces as they rolled down the -main street in Valley View, waving and calling cheerfully to friends -that they passed. As they neared the bus terminal, they saw Quiz Taylor -herding a group of boys into a big station wagon. - -"So long, Quiz," Sandy called. "See you in September." - -Quiz Taylor looked up and his round, bespectacled face broke into an -affectionate grin. "So long, boys," he yelled. "Hope you have an -ore-full time." - -Both Jerry and Sandy made wry faces at Quiz's terrible pun, but then -they burst into good-natured laughter and waved again to their stubby -friend as Old Faithful sped on down the street. - -"He's something, that Quiz," Jerry said. - -"He sure is," Sandy said. "I kind of wish he were coming along." - -"Well," Jerry said slowly, spinning the wheel to make the turn that -would take them through the higher part of town lying between them and -the highway, "Quiz would be okay if we were going to write a history -about ore mines. But _working_ in one? Nosirree!" - -"I guess you're right, Jerry. Give Quiz a week up there and he'd have -the whole history of mining memorized, backward and for--" - -"Oh, ho," Jerry said, interrupting. "Do you see what I see?" - -Sandy leaned forward. They were passing along Ridge Road, the finest -street in town. A hundred yards ahead of them, in front of the March -mansion, a big black Cadillac limousine was drawn up to the curb. A -uniformed chauffeur held the rear door open while Mr. March got in. -Standing on the curb, awaiting his turn, was Stanley Peperdine March. - -"Shall we wave to the stinker?" Jerry asked with a grin. - -"Might as well," Sandy said. "No sense in holding a grudge." - -"Okay," Jerry said, and as Old Faithful came abreast of the shining, -expensive March car, he tooted the horn gaily and called out, "Hi-ya, -Pepper, old sport." - -"Hi, Pepper," Sandy yelled, and lifted his hand to wave. But Pepper -March had looked up and stiffened when he heard Jerry's voice. He stared -straight at them both with open dislike, and then, as Sandy Steele -raised his hand in greeting, Pepper March raised his to his nose and -wiggled his fingers at both of them! - -There was a silence in the front seat of Old Faithful. At last, it was -broken by Jerry James, saying in disgust, "See what I mean, Sandy? -You're too nice to that stinker." - -"Oh, well," Sandy said. "At least we can look forward to a whole summer -without Pepper." - -Then Jerry slipped his jalopy into second gear as they descended the -steep ramp leading down to the highway. In a moment, they had reached -the broad cement strip and Jerry carefully forced the speedometer up to -a point a few miles below the limit. Then he let out a long exultant -yell. "Only two thousand miles to go, Sandy!" he shouted above the roar -of Old Faithful's motor. - -"Yep," Sandy said. "Minnesota, here we come!" - - -What a trip it was, from inland California east and north to the shores -of Lake Superior! The boys alternated at the wheel during those glorious -five days. They averaged 400 miles a day. For the first time, they got a -notion of the grandeur of their country, as Old Faithful whined -patiently up the terrific grades of the Rocky Mountains and the boys -could see the gigantic peaks rearing grandly in the air. - -Then they were rushing down again into the valley of the Great Salt Lake -in Utah and through the clean, neat streets of Salt Lake City. After -climbing again into Wyoming, they drove across the Bad Lands of South -Dakota into Minnesota. It was wonderful, indeed, driving by day, -frequently pausing to take in the sights, and sleeping out under the -stars. - -One night they chose a farmer's field to spread their sleeping bags in. -In the morning, Sandy awoke suddenly. He had dreamed that his mother had -come into his bedroom and was smothering him with kisses. "Aw, Mom," he -protested, "cut the kissing." When he opened his eyes, he saw that he -was really being kissed--by a big brown cow who was busily licking his -face. - -"I guess the cow didn't like your sleeping on the best eating-grass," -Jerry laughed as they ran from the field and jumped back into Old -Faithful. - -That was on the morning of the last day, and by that afternoon, they had -driven through Duluth and finally come to the Lake Superior port of Two -Harbors--not far from the Mesabi pits inland. - -When the two of them got their first glimpse of the lake they couldn't -believe their eyes. - -"It's as big as the ocean," Sandy said in amazement. - -"You can't even see the sides, let alone the other end," Jerry said. "It -sure is different seeing a thing than reading about it in school." - -But they _really_ boggled when they saw the enormous ore docks built out -into the water, with the famous "long boats" of the Great Lakes nestled -beneath them. The size of the equipment for loading the boats with -precious ore was truly unbelievable. - -"They're like skyscrapers lying on their sides," Sandy said. "Look, -look, Jerry! See all those railroad cars up on top of the docks. There -must be hundreds of them." - -"Railroad cars! Is that what they are? They look like Tootsie Toys from -here." - -"Yes, but how about those ore boats? I never saw ships so long. Look at -that big one over there, will you, Jerry? It must be twice as long as a -football field." - -Although Sandy was not aware of it, he had come pretty close to hitting -a bull's-eye. Some of the ships, or boats as they call the Great Lakes -vessels, actually were 600 feet and more in length, and a football -field, as Sandy well knew, is only 300 feet long. Just then, the boys -heard a terrific clanking and clanging above them. Looking up, they saw -a gigantic crane seize a railroad car as though it truly were a toy, -turn it over in the air and let the ore run out of it--like a boy -shaking sand from his shoes. The ore dropped down through chutes into -the holds of the freighters below. - -For a full minute, neither youth could speak. They were too filled with -admiration for the vast industry their country had created on the shores -of the inland seas, and too full of pride in the achievement. - -Then Sandy said, "We'd better go find my father before it gets too -dark." - -Jerry nodded and they climbed back into Old Faithful and drove on. At -last, when they came to what appeared to be a series of hills filled -with puffing and panting steam shovels occupied in slicing deep cuts -into the hillside, Jerry stopped the car in front of a sign that said: - - Lake Ore Mines, Inc. - -"That's it!" Sandy exclaimed. "That's where Dad's doing his testing. -Lake Ore Mines. Come on, Jerry, drive through the gate." - -"But, Sandy," Jerry said in disbelief. "These can't be mines. I don't -see any mine shafts." - -Sandy grinned. "If you'd paid more attention to Mr. Wilson instead of -diagraming football plays you'd know that the Mesabi doesn't have -shafts. There's so much ore on top of the ground here that they don't -need them. They just skim it off with steam shovels. Strip mining, they -call it." With a sheepish shrug of his broad shoulders, Jerry James let -out the clutch and Old Faithful leaped ahead. They drove along a bumpy -dirt road, raising clouds of dust. They went for about a mile across a -maze of railroad tracks over which the ore cars passed, before they -reached a rough wooden shack. - -The front door opened and a short, strongly built man stepped out. He -had the rolling gait of a sea captain, and from this and the nautical, -visored cap that he wore, Sandy guessed that he was a skipper of one of -the ore boats. The man stopped and looked at them, and both boys saw -that he had a small, flat nose, little brown, close-set eyes and thin, -tight lips. He needed a shave, too. - -"Pardon me, sir," Sandy said politely. "But can you direct us to the -Government Geologist's station?" - -The man paused and gave them a searching look before he answered. "Back -there," he said, jerking his finger over his shoulder--and walked away. - -Jerry and Sandy exchanged glances. Then the shack door opened again. -This time, John Steele stepped out--trim and youthful-looking in his -leggings and whipcord breeches and open-necked shirt and wearing the -campaign hat he'd saved from his days in the U.S. Marines. - -"Dad!" Sandy shouted, overjoyed. He almost knocked his friend down in -his haste to greet his father. - -"Well, well," John Steele said. "If it isn't the adventure twins from -Valley View, California. How are you, son?" he said, grasping Sandy's -hand. Then he gave Jerry a hearty whack on the arm. "Glad to see you -again, Jerry. How was the trip out?" - -"Great, sir!" Jerry said with enthusiasm. "I'll never forget it." - -"That's the ticket. Do these things while you're young, boys. Sort of -gives you a cushion of memories for your old age." - -John Steele's face went grave. - -"You didn't get my telegram, did you, Sandy?" - -"Telegram, sir?" - -"I see you didn't. Well, boys, buck up--there's another dose of bad news -coming. I'm afraid I won't be able to get jobs for you." - -"No jobs!" the two youths chorused disbelievingly. - -"That's right. This low-grade ore situation has gotten so bad that ... -well, to make a long story short, boys, there's not as much work around -here as there used to be. And that means jobs only for those who really -need them." - -Sandy and Jerry stood as though thunderstruck. They felt as though their -world had suddenly caved in on them. Neither of them knew what to say, -but both felt the same weary, sinking feeling in their stomachs. For a -long second, Sandy Steele stared at his father. It had been on the tip -of his tongue to argue with him, to say that they could do the job as -well as any grown man. But Sandy knew better. - -He knew that his father would be angered by any such suggestion. He -would remind Sandy that most of the men in the mines were family men -with responsibilities. No, Sandy thought, this is just another one of -those times where I've got to "take it on the chin," as Dad says. - -Taking it on the chin was sort of a Steele family motto. John Steele had -no use for whiners or whimperers, boys who complained that their coach -didn't like them or their teacher was unfair. He had always taught his -son to be dogged. "It's the dogged men who get things done, Sandy," he -would say. "Even if most of the world's applause often goes to the -flash-in-the-pan." - -Remembering this, Sandy lifted his chin and tried to grin. "What do we -do now, Dad," he said, "punt?" - -Mr. Steele smiled. "That's the spirit, son," he said. "Now, listen. The -sun will come up tomorrow just as it always does and by then you may be -over this little disappointment. So supposing you two walk around the -mines a bit while I finish my work, and then we can have dinner and talk -things over." - -"Okay, Dad," Sandy said. - -"Sure thing, Mr. Steele," said Jerry. - -Trying to hold their heads higher than they felt like holding them, the -two boys turned and strolled off toward the lake shore. As they walked, -they hardly heard the rattle-and-bang of the steam shovels digging ever -deeper into the hillsides. Nor were they very much aware of the railroad -cars that would receive the ore and then go clattering out on the ore -docks to fill the holds of the ships. They were too deeply plunged into -gloomy thoughts of the long, dull summer that lay ahead of them back -home in Valley View. - - - - - CHAPTER THREE - Bull's-Eye - - -Suddenly, Sandy Steele stiffened. He grabbed his chum by the arm and -pointed in horror toward the lake. - -There, not a hundred feet away, an elderly, white-haired, finely dressed -gentleman stood gazing at one of the loading boats. He was absolutely -unaware of the certain death that traveled toward him in the shape of a -wildly swinging ore bucket. - -"Down!" Sandy shouted. "Down, sir!" - -The old man did not hear him. There was too much clamor about him. - -Sandy and Jerry both dug their toes into the hard surface of the ground -beneath them--like track sprinters ready to go off their mark. But the -man was too far away. They could not have covered twenty feet before -that horrible bucket would have done its awful work. With dreadful -speed, the huge bucket--weighing two tons or more--was swinging closer, -ever closer. And still the old man was unconscious of the fact that -perhaps only a few seconds lay between his life and his death. - -With a cry of despair, Sandy Steele sought to tear his eyes away. But he -could not. Sandy was not that sort of youth. In anguish, his eyes roved -the surrounding area--hunting for some means to save the old man's life. -Then they fell upon a chunk of ore. It was just a trifle bigger than a -baseball. - -Without a second's delay, Sandy Steele pounced upon the piece of ore. He -grasped it with his two-fingered, pitcher's grip and whirled and threw -with all his might. Every ounce of strength in Sandy Steele's lanky, -cablelike muscles went into that throw. The ore left his hand and -whizzed toward the big bucket with all the speed that had had the Poplar -City batters eating out of Sandy's hand only a few weeks ago. - -CLANG! - -The ore struck the bucket with a resounding, echoing ring! - -Instantly, the old man's head turned. - -He saw death but a few feet from his head. - -In the next instant, he dropped to the ground and the bucket passed -harmlessly above him. - -"Are you all right, sir?" Sandy Steele cried. - -Both Sandy and Jerry had charged up to the old man's assistance -immediately after Sandy had made his splendid throw. Now, they helped -him regain his feet. - -"Why, I guess I _am_ all right, boys," the man said, giving just the -smallest shudder as he dusted himself off. "But one more second, and I -guess I _wouldn't_ be." He looked sharply at Sandy. - -"Was it you who threw that rock?" - -"Yes, sir." - -"Well, son, it must have been a great throw. Worthy of old Christy -Mathewson himself. But better than that, boy, you saved my life. And I'm -much obliged." He held out his hand. "What's your name, son?" - -"Steele, sir. Sandy Steele. This is my friend Jerry James." - -"Pleased to meet you, boys. My name is John Kennedy." He adjusted his -coat lapels and turned to look out at the loading docks again. "See that -boat out there? That's one of mine. The _James Kennedy_. Named after my -father, boys. He founded the family shipping line." A shadow passed over -the man's normally ruddy and pleasant features. "I guess I was too busy -watching the _James Kennedy_ loading to notice that confounded bucket -was getting set to whack my head off." Mr. Kennedy shot them a sly look. -"Like to go aboard her?" - -"Would we!" - -"I'll say!" - -Smiling, Mr. Kennedy led the way toward the long narrow ore freighter. -Loading operations had been completed by the time they reached the dock, -so they were allowed to proceed with little danger. They walked in awe -beneath the now silent ore chutes, conscious as never before of their -great size. Then, when they had come abreast of the _James Kennedy_'s -wheelhouse and superstructure in the after part of the ship, their host -said genially, "All right now, boys--hop to it. Down the ramp there and -wait for me." - -As Sandy's feet struck the slightly grimy steel deck, he noticed that -the crewmen were busily covering up the load of ore that had just been -deposited in the vessel's holds. For a moment, he watched them. Then he -gave a start. - -The man who was directing them was the same short, powerfully built man -that they had seen coming out of John Steele's field-testing shack a -little earlier. - -"Oh, ho," said Mr. Kennedy, observing Sandy's gesture. "So you know -Captain West, eh?" - -"Not exactly, sir. But I do remember seeing him coming out of my -father's field station only a few minutes ago." - -"Your father's field sta--" Mr. Kennedy struck his hands together -sharply. "Why, of course! How could I have missed the resemblance! -You're John Steele's son, aren't you?" Sandy nodded proudly, and Mr. -Kennedy rambled on, beaming: "Nothing like having your life saved by -your friend's son. Sort of keeps it in the family. And I certainly must -tell John Steele what a fine boy he has! Ah, that's it--down that ladder -there. Smells like we're just in time, boys." - -Still chuckling, Mr. Kennedy gingerly followed Sandy and Jerry as they -clambered down a narrow, steep, iron stairway that led into a cabin -fitted with a long table having benches on either side. A few of the -crewmen in faded blue shirts and dungarees were already seated, eating. -They smiled at the two youths. - -"This is the galley, boys," Mr. Kennedy said. "Ah, here's Cookie." - -Sandy and Jerry burst out laughing as the little man shuffled into the -galley, and then, seeing them, threw up his hands in mock horror and -made a dive as though to save the platters of food on the table from -destruction. - -"S.O.S.," he wailed, "S.O.S. Save Our Suppers!" - -"All right, Cookie," Mr. Kennedy chuckled. "That'll be enough. How about -rustling up a feed for my two young friends? This lad here," he started -to say, looking at Sandy. But then, seeing Sandy blush, he went on: -"This lad here has just done the Kennedy Shipping Line a great favor. -Show him how we treat our friends, Cookie." - -"Aye, aye, sir," Cookie said, bobbing his bald head and grinning. He -shuffled off, and when he returned, he almost staggered under the burden -of the platter he held. Boy, Sandy and Jerry thought, eying the platter -hungrily, Mr. Kennedy sure does treat his friends well! - -There were thick, juicy steaks and plates of French fried potatoes, -pitchers of cold milk and plates of hot rolls and hard, cold -butter--and, after dinner, two kinds of pie and plenty of ice cream. - -"Boy, oh, boy," Jerry James said weakly, after he had at last put down -his fork. "I'd say that meal was worth the drive from California--even -if we didn't get jobs in the mines." - -"Jobs?" Mr. Kennedy said. "Mines?" - -"Yes, sir," Sandy put in. "You see, Dad thought that he'd be able to -land us summer jobs. That's why Jerry and I drove all the way from -Valley View, where we live. But when we got here, Dad told us that work -was so slow in the mines there just weren't any jobs." - -As he spoke, Sandy's good spirits began to drop a little. So did -Jerry's. For the moment, in the excitement of the events following the -incident with the ore bucket, they had forgotten all about their -disappointment. But now they realized once more that they were stranded -2,000 miles from home, without a job and just enough money to take them -right back where they'd started from. - -Mr. Kennedy looked at them soberly. "That _is_ too bad," he said. "But -what your father says about the mines is true, Sandy." He frowned. "How -I wish it were not! Listen, boys, and I'll let you in on a little -business secret." They leaned toward him, and Mr. Kennedy went on. "This -boat, the _James Kennedy_, is making one of my firm's last runs down the -lakes to Buffalo." He shook his head. "There's just nothing to be done -about this low-grade-ore situation, and I've decided to sell the -shipping line." He grimaced. "In fact, I'm selling out to my worst -competitor, not the sort of fellow I'd like to sit down to dinner with, -boys. But he's made me an offer, and I'm taking it. - -"That's business, boys. So, you young fellows have the rather doubtful -honor of sitting in the galley of the last of the Kennedy boats to--" - -Mr. Kennedy's mouth came open and he brought his clenched hand down on -the table with a crash that startled Sandy and Jerry. - -"Why not?" he said, smiling at them. - -"Why not what, sir?" Sandy asked in polite puzzlement. - -"Why not sign on a pair of young huskies from California as a sort of -small reward for saving this leathery old skin of mine--that's what!" - -Sandy Steele drew a sharp breath of joy and Jerry James had to keep from -jumping on the mess table to dance a jig. - -"You don't mean it, sir!" Sandy gasped. - -"Certainly, I mean it. Why, wouldn't you boys rather see the Great Lakes -from the decks of a long boat than from the bottom of some dusty old ore -digging?" - -"Would we!" Jerry shouted. "Just ask us, that's all--just ask us!" - -"I already have," Mr. Kennedy said, chuckling. He was obviously enjoying -the sensation his offer had created. - -"Well, then, we accept," Sandy Steele said quickly. "When do we start?" - -"You can come aboard tonight, if you like. In fact, you probably should. -The _James Kennedy_ is shoving off in the morning. You'd better not take -any chances on missing her." - -"Right," Sandy said, grinning in delight at his friend Jerry. Then, his -face fell and he exclaimed, "Dad! We promised Dad we'd have dinner with -him!" - -Mr. Kennedy glanced at his watch. "Why, it's only six o'clock," he said. -"If I know John Steele, he'll be working well past that." Looking up, he -said, "Don't tell me two deck hands like yourselves are going to object -to eating a second dinner?" - -Jerry James grinned sheepishly. "Well, sir, if you put it that way--I -guess not. In fact," he said, rubbing his stomach gently, "I'm not quite -as full as I thought I was." - -"I thought so," Mr. Kennedy said, getting to his feet and leading the -way out of the galley. "Now," he continued, puffing at the exertion of -climbing the ladder topside, "you boys had better get your things -together and report back here to Captain West. He'll be notified that -you're shipping aboard. Captain West's one of the finest skippers on the -Kennedy Line." - -They walked together to the lake shore. At the end of the dock, Sandy -could see a handsome, well-kept limousine--not flashy and loaded with -chrome, like Pepper March's. - -"I'm driving back to Buffalo, boys," Mr. Kennedy told them. "Getting too -old to weather those Great Lakes storms, I guess. I've sailed the -Kennedy boats since I was fifteen, but now...." His voice trailed off -and his kindly face saddened. "Well, now, I guess things are changing. -The Kennedy boats will soon be the Chadwick boats. By the time I get -home, I suppose Paul Chadwick will have the whole deal drawn up and -waiting for my signature." - -He held out his hand. "Goodbye, boys. Have a happy voyage--and remember -to give your father my best, Sandy." He turned and walked slowly to the -car and the chauffeur who held a rear door open for him. He was a -mournful figure as he got in the back and drove off in silence. - -Sandy and Jerry waved as the car departed, and then Sandy said through -clenched teeth, "Oh, how I hope Dad can locate some high-grade ore -deposits!" - -"Me, too!" Jerry James exclaimed. "I'd hate to see a fine old gentleman -like Mr. Kennedy forced to sell his shipping line." - -"And to someone he doesn't trust!" Sandy added, his face serious and his -voice grim. "Come on, Jerry, we'd better hurry if we want to get to -Dad's place before dark." - - - - - CHAPTER FOUR - A Plot Discovered - - -"Now, supposing I tell you my good news?" - -The speaker was John Steele. He asked his question as he and Sandy and -Jerry carried their loaded trays from the cafeteria-style mess hall to -their table on a terrace outdoors overlooking the lake. - -Ever since the two youths had rejoined Sandy's father--almost bumping -into Captain West as he came out of the field shack for the second time -that day--they had been eagerly recounting their good fortune. Sandy's -father had been delighted to hear that his old friend John Kennedy had -signed on his son and Jerry for the Duluth-to-Buffalo run. At one point, -when he asked Sandy how they had met Mr. Kennedy, Sandy flushed and -looked away. - -Jerry James had proudly jumped into the breach. "Sandy saved Mr. -Kennedy's life, Mr. Steele," Jerry had said. - -Then, of course, nothing would do but that Jerry should relate the -entire episode while John Steele listened with shining eyes. At last, -Mr. Steele had proposed dinner. Now, as he said, "Supposing I tell you -my good news?" Sandy was glad to have someone change the subject. - -"Sure, Dad," he said. "Fire away." - -John Steele drew a deep breath. "I've discovered some high-grade ore -deposits," he said. - -For the second time that day, Sandy and Jerry felt a wild thrill of joy. -For a day that had started out so badly, things were indeed looking up! - -"Wonderful, Dad, wonderful! Where?" - -"Not too far from Lake Superior. Of course, they'll have to run the -railroad spur a bit farther inland, but that's really no problem." John -Steele's voice took on a note of pride. "Matter of fact, these deposits -are rather rich. Sixty per cent iron content, I'd say--maybe even more." - -"What a day, huh, Jerry? Just think, this means that Mr. Kennedy may not -have to sell his lake boats, after all." - -"That's right, son. If this vein is as rich as I think it is, he may -even have to build a few more boats--to take care of the load." - -Sandy Steele's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Dad," he burst out, "I've -got a great idea!" - -"What's that, Sandy?" - -"Where can I get in touch with Mr. Kennedy? He was leaving for Buffalo." - -"Why, I would say he's heading for Minneapolis first. He won't be there -until quite late. Why, Sandy--what do you have in mind?" - -"I'm going to put in a long-distance call and tell him the good news! -After all, he's been pretty good to Jerry and me. This is the least we -can do for him." - -"I'd say you've been pretty helpful already, Sandy," Mr. Steele drawled. -Then, smiling, he went on, "But you don't need to worry. That's all been -taken care of. Captain West has been informed, and he will tell Mr. -Kennedy." - -"Oh," Sandy said, a note of doubt mingling with the disappointment in -his voice. - -"Sandy!" John Steele's voice was sharp. "What did you mean by that 'Oh'? -You make it sound as though Captain West is not to be trusted." - -"Oh, no, sir," Sandy rushed on, embarrassed. "Nothing of the kind. I -don't even know him, Dad--except by sight. And I've heard Mr. Kennedy -himself say that Captain West was a very fine skipper." - -"He is that," Sandy's father said, relaxing. "I guess I misunderstood -you, son." - -"Anyway," Jerry James put in, "it will all be in the newspapers, won't -it, Mr. Steele?" - -"Not exactly, Jerry. You see, these things take weeks, even after you've -made your initial discovery. Not that I'm not certain of these deposits. -Far from it! I've never been more so. But there is always a certain -amount of time before a report is properly nailed down--firmly enough -for the newspapers to print it, that is." - -"But what you've discovered today, Dad--that's enough to make Mr. -Kennedy change his mind about selling?" - -"It certainly is!" - -"Good," Sandy said. Then, laying down his knife and fork, he leaned back -in his chair with a sigh. He brushed back his cowlick and looked -sorrowfully at the slice of roast beef remaining on his plate. - -"Honestly," he said, "I don't think I've got room for another single -ounce." - -"Well, well," Jerry James said, apologetically, as he reached over and -speared the morsel with his fork. "I think that I just might be able to -handle it." - - -The unbelievably long silhouette of the _James Kennedy_ lay long and -dark like a great sea serpent against the looming bulk of the ore dock -as Sandy Steele and Jerry James returned to the lake shore. They carried -suitcases in which they had hurriedly stuffed the few things they'd be -needing for shipboard life. Each had put in soap and comb and toothpaste -and toothbrushes and two sets of dungarees for working hours, plus a -good pair of slacks and a sport shirt for those days when they hoped to -go ashore in Great Lakes ports like Detroit or Cleveland. - -They had disposed of Old Faithful easily enough. Sandy's father had been -pleased to take charge of Jerry's jalopy while they were gone. It was -just what he needed for the short trips between his field shack and the -ore borings. - -As the two friends walked up the _James Kennedy_'s ramp, their feet were -dragging just a trifle. They had had a long and eventful day, and they -were tired. When they stepped on deck, Jerry lost his balance and -stumbled. Sandy had to shoot out an arm to keep him from falling. -Suddenly, out of the dark, a voice growled, "Late, ain'cha?" - -Sandy stopped dead, his hand still grasping Jerry's arm. He heard a low -snicker, and then the voice said, "Jumpy, too, ain'cha?" - -"Well, no," Sandy Steele said slowly, his eyes searching the darkness. -"Where are you?" - -"Over here." - -As their eyes became accustomed to the darkness, the two youths made out -the figure of a tall man seated on a canvas chair. He leaned back -against the bulkhead and stared at them from unfriendly eyes. - -"I guess you two are Ma Kennedy's little chicks," he sneered. "That -right?" - -Sandy Steele felt a quick rush of anger. But he controlled himself and -said, "We're the men Mr. Kennedy signed on, if that's what you mean." -"Men!" The tall man slapped his feet on the deck and cackled. "'Men,' he -says! Ain't that a hot one?" He glared at them. "Which one of you's -named Steele?" - -"I am," Sandy said. - -"Go down below and report to the skipper. He's waiting for you. First -deck down, first cabin to starboard." - -"To starboard?" Sandy repeated, and then, remembering that he was aboard -ship, he blushed in the dark. The tall man's cackle of derision didn't -help his self-control any. But Sandy resolved to ignore the man. With a -reassuring squeeze of Jerry's arm, he left his friend and clambered -below. - -Going down the ladder, Sandy Steele hoped the unfriendly tall man would -not make Jerry a target for his ridicule. Jerry James was good-natured -enough, but he did have a hair-trigger temper. - -When Sandy reached Captain West's cabin, he stopped and knocked. - -"Come in," a gruff voice called, and Sandy pulled the heavy bulkhead -open and stepped inside a small, dimly lighted room. Captain West was -seated at a desk. He had his back to the door, but he swung around when -Sandy entered. Sandy noticed that he still hadn't shaved. Apparently he -had been writing a letter, for he laid down a fountain pen with the air -of a man who has been interrupted. - -"Who are you?" Captain West growled, even though Sandy was sure that he -had recognized him. - -"Sandy Steele is my name, sir." - -"Oh, you're one of the two kids old man Kennedy--" Captain West stopped -and ran a thick stubby hand across his lips. "How well do you know -Kennedy?" he snapped. - -Sandy was taken aback. "I don't understand you, sir." - -"Don't play dumb with me, Steele. You know what I mean. Are you a -relative of his, or something? A nephew, maybe?" - -"No, sir. I met him today for the first time." - -Captain West showed his disbelief. His thin lips parted and he started -to laugh. It wasn't a friendly laugh. Listening to it made Sandy feel -anything but good-humored. - -"C'mon, kid." Captain West stared. "Let's have the truth. What's your -connection with Old Man Kennedy?" - -Sandy Steele was furious inwardly. He hadn't liked the way the tall man -topside had referred to Mr. Kennedy, but to hear Captain West--the -valued skipper of the Kennedy Shipping Line--going on in the same -disrespectful tone, well, that was going too far. - -"I _am_ telling the truth, Captain," Sandy said coldly. "I only met -_Mr._ Kennedy today, and that was by accident." Captain West raised his -thick, dark eyebrows quizzically, and Sandy, with great reluctance, -launched into the tale of the ore bucket. - -When he had finished, he found, to his amazement, that Captain West was -regarding him with what could only be disgust! - -"So _that's_ the answer," Captain West muttered. With a sort of -displeasure, he swung around and began writing again. - -"All right, Steele," he said over his shoulder. "Mr. Briggs will show -you and the other boy to your quarters. And you can report to Cookie in -the morning." - -"Cookie!" - -Sandy Steele couldn't believe his ears. Before he could stop himself, he -had taken two quick steps around to the side of Captain West's desk. -With swift, reddening anger, Captain West threw down his fountain pen -and slapped two hairy paws over the letter he'd been writing. - -"Are you insubordinate already?" he shouted. "Who do you think you are, -questioning a skipper's orders like that? D'ya think I'm going to let a -pair of punk kids the likes of you work topside where the men are? Not -on your life! You'll report to the galley where you belong, and leave -the men's work to the men. Now, get out of my sight!" - -Sandy Steele felt himself going hot and cold by turns. He clenched and -unclenched his fists as he stood there, looking down into the little -piggish eyes of Captain West. They seemed to gleam wickedly in the -reflected light of the desk lamp. Finally, with a low, mumbled "Aye, -aye, sir," Sandy Steele turned slowly around and left. - -Abovedeck, he found Mr. Briggs. Apparently, he had not bothered to make -game of Jerry, for the two of them stood against the rail gazing out at -the moon that had just begun to rise over Lake Superior. In the light of -the moonlight shimmering on the water, Mr. Briggs got a look at Sandy's -whitened face. - -"Ho, ho," he cackled. "Skipper gave you the rough side of his tongue, -eh? Well, you'll get used to it. Here, let me show you two below." - -They went down, down and down, to the lowest hold, and as they descended -the ladder, Sandy Steele wondered to himself if he could ever possibly -get used to an insulting man like Captain West. He was thinking the same -thing as he and Jerry tumbled wearily into the bunks which occupied -almost all the space in their tiny cabin. Jerry slept below, and Sandy -above. - -The more Sandy thought of Captain West, the more convinced he became -that he and Jerry should leave the ship before the _James Kennedy_ cast -off her moorings and got under way. But, no, he thought again, that -would be too much like quitting. Still, what were they to do? For some -unexplained reason, Captain West despised them and was determined to -make their voyage as unpleasant as he could. But why? Sandy could not -understand it. He forced his tired brain to go over all the events of -the day. He could recall seeing Captain West twice at his father's field -station. Then, he had seen him again when Mr. Kennedy brought them -aboard ship. Apart from that, he had never seen the man before. - -Suddenly, in a tiny corner of Sandy Steele's brain, a light flashed. -Astounded, unable to believe what he remembered seeing, Sandy shot -erect. His head struck the overhead a painful blow, and below him Jerry -James sputtered out of a sound sleep. - -"Sandy! Sandy, what happened?" - -"I just hit my head, but never mind that, Jerry," Sandy whispered. -"Listen, remember when Mr. Kennedy was saying so sadly that the Kennedy -boats would have another name soon?" - -"Yes?" - -"Can you remember the other name?" - -"Sure. It was Chadwick. He said he was completing a deal with Paul -Chadwick." - -Jerry James heard a sharp hiss above him, and then the rustling of -bedclothes. Then, to his surprise, a pair of long, lean-muscled legs -dropped down in front of his eyes. In the next instant, Sandy Steele was -crouching in his underwear alongside Jerry's bunk, whispering excitedly. - -"Chadwick! That's it! Listen, Jerry, when I came in to Captain West's -cabin tonight, I interrupted him as he was writing a letter. I didn't -mean to see who it was addressed to, but I did." Sandy paused -dramatically. "It was addressed to Mr. Paul Chadwick!" - -For a long second, there was a silence in the little cabin, a silence -broken only by the heavy breathing of the two youths. Then, as Jerry -James scrambled quickly from his bunk, Sandy whispered, "We've got to -get out of here and warn Mr. Kennedy, Jerry. I'm positive that Captain -West is working for the Chadwick shipping interests, and against Mr. -Kennedy. He'll never tell Mr. Kennedy about the deposits Dad discovered! -And Mr. Kennedy will go right ahead and sell his boats for practically -nothing!" - -"You're right, Sandy," Jerry whispered, hastily pulling on his dungaree -pants. "Good thing you found out about Captain West before it was too -late. Our ship doesn't sail until to--" - -Jerry James cut short his sentence with a groan. In their mad rush to -get dressed, Sandy and Jerry had not noticed the steady shuddering of -the _James Kennedy_'s sides. They had paid no heed to the regular -throbbing of her motors. - -The _James Kennedy_ had put out on Lake Superior ten minutes ago. - - - - - CHAPTER FIVE - A New Friend - - -In the morning, there was no time to make further plans, as the two -friends had promised each other before they finally dropped off to -sleep. They were awakened by the sound of Cookie's voice as the little -man leaned in the door of their cabin and cried, "Up and at 'em, boys, -up and at 'em! It's five o'clock, and that's the time to rise and -shine!" - -Still sleepy-eyed, Sandy and Jerry tumbled out of their bunks and stood -looking at Cookie with blank expressions on their faces. Cookie returned -their stare with a toothless grin. - -"Don't rightly know where you are, hey, boys? Well, you're aboard the -_James Kennedy_ and right now we're out in the middle of Lake Superior." -He cocked a twinkling eye at them and flashed another one of his smiles, -and the youths were heartened to find someone, at least, who seemed to -want to be friendly with them. - -"Go ahead and wash up," Cookie said. "Be in the galley in fifteen -minutes and I'll have your breakfasts ready. In fact, you might just -have the time to go topside and see the sun come up." - -Then he was gone. - -Sandy and Jerry obediently headed for the washroom. There, they sloshed -cold water on their faces and brushed their teeth. That made them feel -better. By the time they had grasped the handrail of the ladder leading -abovedeck, they had recovered their normal high spirits. - -"Shucks," Jerry said. "I don't see what we got so riled up about last -night. We'll be in Buffalo in plenty of time to warn Mr. Kennedy." - -"You're right, Jerry," Sandy said. "That's what I was thinking, too. -Funny how you forget that a boat can make good time because it's moving -in a straight line. Driving in an automobile, Mr. Kennedy will have to -go through six or seven states." - -"Sure. And don't forget that a boat keeps moving all the time, like a -railroad train. In a car, you have to stop to get some sleep or eat." - -It was still dark as they came out on deck. Far out in front of them, -they could see the bulk of the forward superstructure--the navigation -bridge and the deck gang's quarters--rearing out of the black. Beneath -their feet they felt the steady throbbing of the _James Kennedy_'s -engines. All around them, for miles and miles, stretched the flat, black -surface of Lake Superior. Ahead of them, for they were sailing due east, -there was a light rosy glow that heralded the rising of the sun. Even -then, as they looked, a line of horizon was beginning to take shape. - -"Isn't it something?" Sandy whispered. "Here we are, thousands of miles -inland. Yet, it's just like sailing on an ocean." Sandy Steele stretched -his neck and stood on his tiptoes and turned slowly around. "You can't -see anything but water," he said. - -"Boy, what a country!" Jerry James breathed. - -The two youths fell silent. Carefully, they looked away from each other, -for neither one wished to betray the strong emotions that held him at -that moment. Their feelings were a mixture of pride and love of country -and a certain awe in the presence of its beauty and grandeur. - -"Hey," Jerry said, suddenly breaking the spell. "What's that light out -there?" - -He pointed and Sandy Steele's eyes followed his finger. - -"I'll bet it's another lake boat," Sandy said. "Sure! That's what it is. -And there's another one. There must be a half dozen of them, Jerry." - -Jerry James chuckled. "Say," he said, "this lake's a regular freeway, -isn't it?" - -Sandy nodded. "I think I hear Cookie calling us, Jerry," he said. "Let's -go below." - -On their way down, Sandy went on, "We'd better keep what we know about -Captain West a secret. We'll wait until we get to Buffalo to telephone -Mr. Kennedy. Of course, if we're delayed or a storm comes up, we'll have -to think of something else. Who knows? Maybe we'll stop in Detroit or -some other Great Lakes port, and we can call him from there." - -"Right," Jerry said, and then, "Hey, do you smell what I smell?" - -Sandy did, indeed, and the eyes of both of them went wide with wonder at -the sight of the breakfast Cookie had set up for them on a tiny table at -the end of his gleaming, spotless, aluminum galley. - -"Eat hearty, boys," Cookie said, bobbing his bald head in the direction -of the ham and eggs and stacks of toast and jars of jelly. "Plenty more -where that came from." - -"Boy," Jerry said, "do you always eat like this?" - -"On the Kennedy boats, you do," Cookie said. "Of course, almost all of -the lake boats feed good. But there ain't any to compare with the old -white K Line." Cookie's face darkened. "Now, if you was aboard a -Chadwicker, I don't think you'd be chowing down so good." - -"How's that, Cookie?" Jerry said, squaring himself away to attack his -fourth egg. - -"Humph!" Cookie grunted, as he started to sharpen a long thin knife. -After a series of expert, clashing strokes against the sharpening steel -he held in his hand, he bent over a haunch of bacon on his board and -began to slice it down. "Chadwick's the cheapest line on the lakes, -that's why," he went on. "And I ought to know. Sailed on the Chadwickers -for five years, I did. And not a night went by that I didn't have to -count the eggs and hand the keys to the icebox over to the skipper." - -Jerry chortled at the notion of a crestfallen Cookie locking up his -beloved icebox for the night. "Boy," he said, forgetting himself, -"that's one more reason why we've got to stop Mr. Kennedy from -selling--" - -Sandy Steele's foot moved swiftly under the table, and Jerry clutched -his ankle with a surprised expression of pain on his face. - -"Hey, that hurt!" he started to say, but then, remembering their secret, -he flushed in embarrassment. - -Cookie had whirled and was looking at them with an expression of -bewilderment. - -"Selling?" he repeated. "Did you say selling?" - -"Oh, no," Jerry choked, his face getting redder and redder. "I said -_sailing_. You see," he rushed on frantically, trying to think of a good -story, "what I really meant was...." - -Poor Jerry. He had begun to flounder, because he wasn't used to the -strain of making up a good lie on the spur of the moment. But just then -one of the crewmen came to his rescue. - -"Hey, Cookie," he said irritably as he poked his head inside the galley. -"When do we eat? I've been sitting out here for five minutes." - -To the great relief of both Jerry and Sandy, Cookie instantly forgot his -question and turned to covering his grill with sizzling slices of bacon -and gently popping eggs. - -"All right, boys," he said. "Turn to." - -For the next hour or so, Sandy and Jerry flew back and forth between the -mess hall and the galley, bringing the breakfasts of the crewmen and -clearing the dirty dishes away. Then, when breakfast was over, Cookie -set them to work washing the dishes. When this was done, Cookie opened a -cupboard and took out a bucket and mop together with a long-handled, -T-shaped instrument that looked something like a window washer's rubber -blade. - -"Know what this is, Jerry?" he said, grinning. - -Jerry James shook his head. - -"This here's what they call a squeegee. And she's going to be your -sweetheart until we get to Buffalo." - -Sandy laughed at the look of displeasure on his chum's face, as Cookie -gave them a demonstration of how the squeegee is handled. First he -filled the bucket with soapy water. This he sloshed over the deck in the -mess hall. Then, with the motion of a man raking a lawn, he worked the -squeegee across the deck. The rubbery blade made squeaking noises as it -moved. - -"That's how the squeegee got its name," Cookie said. "Hear it? Squee ... -gee ... squee ... gee...." He winked at Sandy. "Now, you, Sandy, you go -over the deck with this mop after Jerry's finished. Do the same in the -galley. And remember, you do this after every meal." - -"Every meal!" Jerry exclaimed. - -"That's right, boy. A ship's galley has to be as clean as a hospital. -You've got men living aboard ship in close quarters and you can't take -any chances with dirt and germs. Now, turn to!" - -They turned to. - -And by the time they had gotten the mess hall and the galley sparkling -again to Cookie's liking, it was time for lunch! They had to go through -the same process again, and Jerry James moaned, "Honestly, Sandy, the -water in this bucket is probably the only water we'll see until we get -to Buffalo!" - -But the second time they went through their round of chores, they moved -with more speed because they were more practiced. By a little after four -o'clock, they had finished. Cookie ran an approving eye over their -handiwork, and said, "Good job, boys. What say we go topside and have a -talk while I smoke my pipe?" - -They were only too glad to agree. - -Up above, they noticed that Captain West was standing at the starboard -rail, talking to his mate, Mr. Briggs. The skipper scowled when he saw -the boys. He spoke quickly to his mate, and Mr. Briggs hurried over to -them. As he came up, Sandy saw that he did not look so fierce by -daylight as he had seemed at night. In fact, his chin was a trifle weak -and he had the worried air of a man who suffers from indigestion. - -"You," Mr. Briggs said, aiming a dirty fingernail at Sandy. "Skipper -wants you." - -Sandy nodded and followed him to Captain West. - -"Ain't I seen you and your friend somewheres before?" the captain asked. - -Sandy nodded. He knew that he shouldn't have, but he couldn't help -himself. He was not fond of Captain West. - -The skipper's eyes flashed and his face reddened and his hand came up -involuntarily. But he held it back, and snarled, "When I ask a question, -I want it answered out loud! And when you talk to me, you say 'Sir.' -Now, answer my question." - -"Yes, sir," Sandy said evenly. "You saw us in front of my father's -testing station." - -"Your father's testing--" Captain West began to repeat, puzzled. But -then his face cleared, and he said, "So that's it! Certainly, your -name's Steele, too." Now, a look of cunning crept into his face. He -softened his voice. "Young fellow, perhaps I was a bit hard on you last -night. Step over here to the rail for a moment. I want to ask you a few -questions." - -Sandy followed him. - -"Well, well, well," Captain West said, pretending to be jovial. "You -certainly are a chip off the old block." - -Sandy flushed, and the skipper mistook it for a sign of pleasure. -Actually, Sandy was disgusted by the man's attempt to fool him. - -"Now, my boy," Captain West went on. "When did you see your old, ahem, -see your father last?" - -"Just before we came aboard," Sandy said stiffly. - -"Hmmm. Your father didn't, ah, that is to say, did your father say -anything about--" - -Sandy saw his chance and interrupted swiftly. "Excuse me, sir, if you -mean did he mention you, the fact is that he did." - -"Ah?" - -"He said," Sandy told Captain West in all truthfulness, "he said that -you were one of the Kennedy Line's finest skippers." - -"Well, well," Captain West said, plainly pleased. "That was very kind of -your father. Did he, ah, by the way, say anything about his work?" - -"In what way, sir?" Sandy asked innocently. For a moment, Captain West -hemmed and hawed, but then, probably because he was satisfied that Sandy -knew nothing of the important information which he was disloyally -keeping from his employer, he dropped the question. He sent Sandy back -to Cookie and Jerry with the promise that if the two youths worked well -enough in the galley, he would bring them topside for the return trip. - -Jerry eyed Sandy questioningly upon his return, but Sandy merely -shrugged and squatted alongside Cookie to listen to the old man talk. - -"You see, boys," Cookie said, waving his pipe in the air, "we're within -sight of land again. That shoreline way ahead, to either side, means -that we're getting close to the Soo." - -"The Soo?" - -"Yup, the Sault Sainte Marie. They call it the Soo, though, probably -because nobody but the Frenchies can pronounce it right. That's where -Lake Superior empties into Lake Huron through the St. Mary's River. -That's where the Soo Locks are, boys. If you're headed downlake, they -float you down to a lower level. If you're headed uplake, they raise you -up." - -"Like the Panama Canal?" Sandy asked. - -"Right. Now, you take us. We're going downlake. So, once we've entered -Lake Huron from Lake Superior, we can keep on going down Huron and -through the Detroit River into Lake Erie, past Detroit and Cleveland and -on to Buffalo. Or else, we can sort of double back, head west, that is, -and sail through the Straits of Mackinac into Lake Michigan and hit -Milwaukee and Chicago." - -Both Sandy and Jerry shook their heads in wonder. - -"You know, Cookie," Sandy said, "it's hard for us to get used to the -idea of Chicago and Milwaukee and Detroit and Cleveland as port cities. -We're from the West, and when we think of a port we think of San -Francisco or Los Angeles. Or, if it's in the East, we think of Boston or -New York." - -"Well, that's only natural. You think of the ocean. But let me tell you, -boys, some of these Great Lakes ports are among the biggest in the -world! Ocean or no ocean." - -Cookie removed his pipe from his mouth and pointed with the stem at the -boat that trailed the _James Kennedy_ about a half mile to port. It was -not quite half as long as the _Kennedy_, though it seemed to be about as -wide. Its decks were loaded with railroad cars. - -"See that?" Cookie said. "That's a car ferry. You won't see ships like -that hardly anywhere else in the world. It's even a bit out of place on -Lake Superior. Usually, they use 'em more on Lake Michigan to carry the -new cars from the factories in Detroit. And this," Cookie went on, -pointing his pipe at the long row of hatches separating the _Kennedy_'s -stern and bow superstructures, "this is something you'll never see -outside of the Lakes. Put these long boats on the ocean, boys, and those -deep ocean swells would break them in two. - -"But they're just right for the Lakes. It's what your biology teacher -might call a perfect example of adaptation. Lake freighters are built -for just two reasons, boys--to carry bulk cargoes like ore or coal or -grain and to fit through the narrow locks at the Soo. They can build -them as long as a city block, but they can't be too wide or too deep." - -"Do they have storms on the Lakes, Cookie?" Jerry asked. - -Cookie's eyes danced merrily and he jabbed his pipe at Jerry as he said, -"Storms, hey! Let me tell you, boy, there's plenty of rough weather -around the Great Lakes. Four months out of the year they're empty, the -weather's so bad. That's why the boats are built to load and unload so -fast. Sometimes you don't get more than seven months in a season. Rest -of the time, the boats stay in port." - -Cookie puffed thoughtfully in his pipe. He glanced downward. Below them, -the dark lake water flowed swiftly past the _James Kennedy_'s hull. - -"When a lake boat sinks," Cookie said somberly, "there ain't many -survivors, if any." - -"Why not, Cookie?" Sandy asked, surprised. - -"That's pretty cold water down there, that's why. You don't last very -long in that water if it happens to be early spring or fall. I've seen -ice floating in these waters as late as it is now." He shivered a bit. -"Cold water, boys. I remember once a feller I knew broke his leg and we -didn't have no medicines aboard to help ease the pain while we was -setting it. So we just hauled up a bucket of cold Lake Superior water -and stuck his leg in it a while. By gum, it got numb in no time. He -didn't feel a thing until after we'd got him all fixed up with a splint -and bandages." - -Cookie got to his feet. "That's one reason I never bothered to learn how -to swim." He looked at the sky. "Well, time to go below again. We ought -to hit the Soo just before dark." - -He arose and walked over to the leeward, or starboard, side of the ship -and began emptying his pipe. He leaned far over the rail to make sure -that none of the still-glowing coals would land aboard ship. - -As he did, a long, gathering swell from the wake of the car ferry that -had overtaken and passed the _James Kennedy_ struck the ship's port -stern with savage force. The _Kennedy_ heeled slightly to starboard, and -poor little Cookie, knocked off balance by the force of the blow, -slithered over the rail. - -With a long, wailing cry of despair, the little man plunged into the -freezing-cold waters of Lake Superior. - - - - - CHAPTER SIX - Man Overboard! - - -"_Man overboard!_" - -From fore and aft, from port to starboard, from every quarter of the -_James Kennedy_'s great length, that ancient rallying cry of the sea -arose. - -"Man overboard!" - -"Where?" they shouted. "Where?" - -"Man overboard off the starboard stern!" - -There was a mad scuffling of feet on the steel decks as the crewmen -rushed for the rail, some to reach for a line and a life preserver, -others merely to stare. - -Hardly had Cookie's body entered the water with a resounding splash, -than there was a clanging of bells in the engine room beneath Sandy and -Jerry. The ship's motors roared in a rising crescendo of power. The -_James Kennedy_ shivered and shuddered like a live thing, and out from -beneath its stern there issued a wild, white boiling of angry water. - -"Full speed astern!" someone cried. - -Then, with another great quiver, the _James Kennedy_ seemed to come to a -halt. - -All of this happened quickly, perhaps within only a few seconds. But -rapid as had been the reactions of these trained seamen, they were still -far behind the swift decisiveness of Sandy Steele. - -The moment he had seen Cookie lose his balance, Sandy had braced his -steel-muscled legs, ready to go to his aid. When their little friend's -body had vanished, Sandy had raced over to the railing. Jerry was not -far behind. - -Sandy did not hesitate. He recalled, with dread, what Cookie had been -telling them only moments before about the killing cold of the lake -water. As he ran, he stripped off his own shirt and threw it to the -winds. As he reached the railing, he knelt, swiftly untied his shoes, -and pulled them off. - -Down below him, Cookie's bald head had appeared above the surface. - -"Help!" he called weakly. "Help!" - -Then, before the horrified gaze of all aboard the _Kennedy_, the little -man choked on a mouthful of water, threw up his hands and sank out of -sight. - -Splash! - -Straight as an arrow, Sandy Steele's body had swept out from the ship's -side--hitting the water only a few feet to the side of the spot where -Cookie had gone under. - -Even as Sandy went beneath the surface, he felt a shiver run through his -body from the tips of his toes to the top of his head. It was not only -from the impact of having dropped twenty feet. It was from the terrible, -numbing drop in temperature. For a moment he felt as though his body -were a thing of stone. - -But Sandy quickly got his legs and arms working. He surfaced and looked -around him. Nothing. - -Sandy dove down once more. - -It was as black as night under the surface. Still, he forced himself -farther and farther down, swinging his arms in front of him in long, -slow, underwater breast strokes. He hoped to touch Cookie in this way, -if he could not see him. - -Sandy's lungs were bursting. - -In another moment or two, he would have to come back up. He dared not go -down a second time, either, for the cold was creeping into even his -tough young body. - -Suddenly, his finger tips brushed against some object.... - -Sandy felt a thrill of joy. He stretched out his hands and felt -something hard and unbending. His heart sang. He had grasped Cookie's -shoe! - -It was only just in time. - -The little man had swallowed so much water and been in the lake so long -that he had lost consciousness. When Sandy discovered him, he was headed -down in what might have been his death dive. - -Quickly, Sandy slid his hands along from Cookie's shoes to seize him -firmly by the ankles. - -With a savage, scissor kick of his long legs, Sandy drove upward to the -surface. - -How happy he was when his head at last burst into the open air and he -could breathe again! Even though his ears had begun to ring, he could -hear the great cheer that went up when he came into view, with Cookie -safely in his arms. - -"He's got him!" the crewmen cried. "He's got Cookie! Here, throw him a -line!" - -There was a splash beside his head and Sandy saw a length of rope -floating in the water. Weakly, he put out his hand to grasp it. With the -other, he struggled to hold the unconscious Cookie's head above the -water. Sandy felt himself getting weaker and weaker. - -Would he make it? He felt a tug at the other end of the line. In -despair, he felt the rope sliding through his powerless fingers. - -There came another, far heavier, splash beside him. - -Jerry James had come to his chum's rescue. - -He had jumped in! - -Blowing noisily through his nose, Jerry stroked over to Sandy's side. -There were two more thuds in the water. - -Life preservers. - -"Here," Jerry gasped, getting his hands under Cookie's limp shoulders. -"Let's get one of these doughnuts over his head." - -Together, the two chums slipped the preserver over Cookie's head. They -yanked up his arms and draped them over the ring, to make sure that he -would not slip through it. Then, they pushed him over to the side of the -gently rolling freighter, winding the rope about his waist. - -"Okay," Sandy called, lifting a hand weakly from the water. "Haul away!" - -The men at the rails pulled and Cookie slowly left the water. As they -lifted him, the pressure of the rope around his waist acted like a kind -of artificial respiration. Water streamed from his open mouth as he made -his ascent. At last, he was safely on deck, and then the two friends -were pulled from the lake. - -Instantly, they were wrapped in warm blankets. They were both glad that -it was June, and not November, as they realized how cold they were, even -though swathed in wool and bathed in sunlight. Somebody forced Sandy to -swallow a little glass of burning liquid, and he guessed that it was rum -from the heat of it in his stomach and the way his eyes began to water. - -"Ugh," Sandy said, "I'd sooner drink a gallon of lake water." - -"You nearly did," a harsh voice said; and, opening his eyes, Sandy saw -Captain West forcing his way through the knot of sailors who had -surrounded him. For once the skipper had shaved, though his eyes were -bloodshot. - -"That was a foolhardy stunt, boy," Captain West went on, growling and -not noticing the rush of color into Sandy Steele's face. "You could have -drowned." - -"But what about Cookie, then? Did you want me to let him drown--sir?" - -"Mind your tongue, boy. We've got lifeboats for that sort of thing. We'd -have had him out of there in no time." - -"But what about the lake cold?" Jerry James put in hotly. "It might have -killed him before you could get to him." - -Captain West sneered. "I can see you've been listening to Cookie's sea -stories. The Lakes aren't that cold in June." - -"Oh, n-no?" Jerry James asked wryly, pulling his blankets closer about -him. "Th-then why are m-my t-t-teeth ch-chattering?" - -A ripple of laughter ran through the onlooking men and Captain West -swung on Jerry with his eyes sparking fiercely, furious at getting an -argument from any of his crew. - -"You young whippersnapper!" he roared. "If I had a brig aboard this -ship, I'd put you in it--just to teach you some respect for your -betters. Here," he snarled, whirling on the men, "get back to work, you -lazy louts." He glanced at his watch. "You'll hear about it if we're -late for the locks. All this grandstanding over a ship's cook!" He -glared at Sandy and Jerry. "You two! Down below to the galley! And -remember--jumping in after your bald-headed friend may have made extra -work for yourselves. While Cookie's in bed for the next day or two, I'm -going to be expecting you to do his work!" - -Then Captain West spun around and rolled forward to his bridge. - -As Sandy Steele and his friend went down the ladder, hardly able to -believe that any man could be so unfair, they felt the ship's engines -begin to throb again. - -The _James Kennedy_ was once more making for the Soo. - - - - - CHAPTER SEVEN - In the Locks - - -"Sandy, we're sinking!" - -Jerry James's forehead was wrinkled with concern beneath his jet-black -hair as he uttered those words. It was the first thing either youth had -said since they had returned to the galley and gone to work preparing -the evening meal. - -An hour ago, they had been shivering beneath their blankets. Now, the -exertion of working in that overheated room, where the hard aluminum -fixtures only served to refract the heat, had forced them to strip to -the waist. Even so, their bodies glistened with sweat. - -"I said we're sinking, Sandy," Jerry repeated, somewhat nervously. - -Sandy nonchalantly swung the oven door shut as though his friend had -said nothing more upsetting than, "It's raining outside." Smiling, he -took off his asbestos glove and laid it on the stove top. - -"You know, Jerry, I believe you're right." - -"But, Sandy, I'm not joking! I tell you, I can feel the ship going -down." - -"Of course you can," Sandy said easily. "Let's go watch it." - -Then Sandy grinned--and Jerry James clapped his hands to his forehead in -dismay and cried, "Of course; we're in the locks!" - -"Right the second time," Sandy laughed. "And I'll bet if we had been -going uplake, you would have sworn that we were flying! Come on, let's -go topside." - -They clambered above and feasted their eyes on one of the strangest -sights they had ever seen. - -The _James Kennedy_ was floating in what can only be described as a -long, narrow tub--almost a quarter mile in length and with about ten or -fifteen feet clearance on either side of the sixty-foot-wide ship. What -amazed Sandy and Jerry was that there were at least four more of these -enormous, man-made tubs, some as large, others smaller. All of them held -vessels of about the same size as the _Kennedy_. Some even held two of -them. - -The tubs were formed by huge water gates at either end. Behind their -boat, Sandy and Jerry could see the water level of Lake Superior. What -astonished them was that it seemed to be higher than they were! - -And it was. - -At that very moment, as the two friends glanced over the side, they -could see that water was being pumped out of their tub. They were, as -Jerry James had said, sinking! The level of the water in their tub was -dropping so fast that more and more of the water gate behind them became -visible. Now, they could see, it had actually become a dam, holding out -the waters of Lake Superior that rose above them. - -One of the strangest sensations was to turn and glance at another one of -the locks--for that is what these tubs are called--to see a boat that -was headed upstream rising higher and higher in the air. Its tub was -filling with water, making it float higher and higher until it would -reach the same level as Lake Superior, and then it would sail out. - -"Boy, oh, boy," Jerry said, rolling his eyes. "I'm getting the same -dizzy feeling you get in a department store. You know, Sandy--when -you're on the down escalator and you pass somebody on the up escalator." - -Sandy nodded in silence. He was too intent upon what was happening to -bother to talk. - -He craned his neck over the side to see what was happening up forward. -Sandy saw that the _James Kennedy_ was now well over ten feet below the -level of Lake Superior. Suddenly, the water gates at the forward end of -the lock swung open. - -They sailed out! - -Sandy shook his head in amazement, and then he heard a friendly voice -beside him say, "Pretty tricky, hey?" Turning around, Sandy saw one of -the seamen who had helped pull Cookie out of the water. He was short but -well-built, with dark-red hair and warm brown eyes. Sandy knew that the -other men called him Sam. - -"Did you ever sail through the Soo before?" Sam asked. - -He seemed pleased when Sandy shook his head, as though he was delighted -to have someone he could explain things to. As he began to talk, Jerry -joined them. - -"First off, boys," Sam said, "I want you to know that the men all feel -that was a mighty brave thing you did this afternoon. Don't feel too bad -about what the skipper said, either. He has his good days and his bad -ones, and I guess today was one of the bad ones." - -Sandy and Jerry both bobbed their heads politely, hiding the grins that -sprang to their faces when they realized that they were both thinking it -was about time for Captain West to have one of his good days! - -"Now," Sam said, with a note of pride in his voice, "I'll bet you didn't -know that you've just passed through the biggest shipping highway in the -world." - -"Oh, no," Jerry argued. "You don't mean that the Soo is bigger than the -Panama Canal." - -"And the Suez, too?" Sandy asked. - -"Bigger'n both, boys. Of course, I mean more ships pass through these -locks. Look," he said, turning to survey the scene that was rapidly -falling behind them. "Just look at that." - -Sandy Steele and Jerry James did take a long look, and when they had -finished, they were inclined to agree with Sam. In all, there must have -been fifty of those peculiar long boats passing through the locks at one -stage or another, their stubby smokestacks sending thin columns of smoke -into the darkening sky. - -"Boy, oh, boy," Jerry said. "And to think I never knew there was such a -place two weeks ago." - -"You weren't the only one, Jerry," Sam said, smiling. "There aren't too -many Americans who know what you mean when you say Sault Sainte Marie." - -"What does that mean, anyway?" Sandy asked. - -"Simple. It's French for Rapids of St. Mary. You see, where we're -sailing now, the St. Mary's River dropped twenty feet in less than a -mile. With all of Lake Superior pouring through here down into Huron, -that made for mighty rapid rapids. The Indians used to carry their -canoes around the rapids. So did the Frenchies. Of course, as soon as -commerce started springing up between the Lakes cities, and as soon as -they started tapping all that ore up north, they had to have a way into -Lake Superior that was safe for the big boats. So they built the locks." - -Neither youth opened his mouth to speak. They were impressed. But Sam's -reference to the ore deposits had also recalled to their minds the fact -that this was no ordinary summer's voyage for them. During the hard work -of the day, and the excitement of pulling poor Cookie out of the water, -they had forgotten their resolve to inform Mr. Kennedy of the good news -that Captain West was treacherously keeping from him. - -But now that Sam had spoken of ore, they remembered it, and Sandy asked -the seaman, "Where are we headed now, Sam?" - -"Well, now we're on Lake Huron. We'll head downlake for Detroit." - -"I didn't know Detroit was on the Lakes." - -"It isn't. Not properly, anyway. It's on the Detroit River, but that's -just the waterway where Huron narrows and empties into Lake Erie." - -"Oh. Will we lay over there?" - -"Well--" Sam grinned--"if we don't--then I'm going to have a mighty -disappointed wife and kids." - -"Oh, you live there. Well, thanks, Sam. Come on, Jerry--we'd better be -getting back to work." - -The two friends went below. As they entered the galley and began setting -up dinner, Sandy said to Jerry, "Maybe Captain West will let us go -ashore in Detroit, tomorrow. If he does, we can telephone Mr. Kennedy." - -Jerry pursed his lips. "You know, Sandy, I've been thinking. We don't -really know that the skipper is working for that rival firm. I mean, all -we have to go on is the fact that you saw him writing a letter addressed -to a Mr. Paul Chadwick. That could just be coincidence." - -"Pretty tall coincidence." - -"Well, yes. But then again, Captain West might just happen to know Mr. -Chadwick. It might be a personal letter." - -"That's worse! Don't you remember what Mr. Kennedy said about Chadwick? -He said he wasn't the sort of man he'd like to sit down to dinner with. -He said he was only selling out because it was good business to accept -his offer. If Captain West's a friend of Chadwick's, then he's no friend -of Mr. Kennedy's!" - -Sandy Steele was becoming excited. As usual, he had to keep brushing -back the cowlick that kept falling in his eyes as he talked. - -"Be reasonable, Jerry. Don't you remember how Mr. Briggs talked so -insultingly of Mr. Kennedy when we first came aboard? 'Ma Kennedy' he -called him. Then, when I was in Captain West's cabin, he kept calling -him 'Old Man Kennedy.' Doesn't sound like much respect for their -employer. And this afternoon, when we came on deck with Cookie, the -skipper tried to pump me." - -Jerry's eyes flew open. - -"That's right," Sandy rushed on. "I didn't have time to tell you before. -But he pretended to be friendly, just so he could find out how much I -knew about Dad's discovery of the high-grade ore deposits." - -Sandy Steele's lips tightened. - -"No, Jerry," he said grimly. "Captain West is not to be trusted." - -Then, to the horror of both youths, they heard an ugly, mocking voice -saying, "You don't say?" - -Sandy Steele and Jerry James turned and looked straight into the leering -face of Captain West's mate. - -He stood in the doorway of the galley. His slender, tall body swayed -slightly, and from the glazed expression of his eyes, Sandy and Jerry -could guess that he was drunk. There was a bottle bulging in his hip -pocket, and Sandy recognized it as the one from which someone had poured -that drink of rum for him abovedecks. - -"So!" Mr. Briggs lisped in a drink-thickened voice. "So Ma Kennedy's -little chicks don't trust their skipper, eh?" - -"You'd better get some sleep, Mr. Briggs," Sandy said evenly. - -The mate flushed angrily. - -"Don't tell me what to do, you double-crossing little show-off!" he -grated. "Here, stand aside there, and let a man pass." - -He stepped into the galley, grinning wickedly, plainly unaware of how he -wavered on his feet and disgusted, rather than frightened, the two -youths. He all but fell as he moved to the little table on which Cookie -had served them their breakfasts that morning. He sat down at it and -pulled out the nearly empty bottle of rum and stood it at his elbow. - -"So you're going to run and tell tales out of school, hey? Going to -tattle on us, are you?" He brought his hand down on the table top with a -crash. "Not if I can help it!" - -The rum bottle jumped and nearly fell to the floor. But Mr. Briggs -grabbed it just in time. He threw back his head and tilted the bottle to -his lips. "Ahhhh!" he said. "Now, serve me my dinner!" - -Neither Sandy nor Jerry moved. - -"You hear me?" the mate yelled angrily. "I'm mate aboard this scow. -Bring me my dinner!" - -Reluctantly, Jerry moved to obey. Mr. Briggs watched him, scowling. Then -he banged the bottle on the table and said, "Have a drink, Blackie. -That'll put some zip into those lazy legs of yours." - -"My name's Jerry," Jerry replied hotly. "And I don't drink." - -"Don't drink, hey? Regular sissy, aren't you? Well, I'm mate aboard this -scow, and when I tell a man to drink, he drinks!" - -Mr. Briggs lurched to his feet. Still swaying, he seized the bottle by -its neck and moved toward Jerry. - -Sandy Steele moved quickly to head him off. He well knew Jerry's -split-second temper and he wanted to stop the mate before he did -something he would regret. - -"Please, sir," he pleaded. "Don't! He's getting your dinner. Now, if -you'll just sit down--" - -The mate shouldered Sandy roughly aside. - -"Out of my way," he mumbled. "Here, you," he said to Jerry, swinging the -bottle up in an arc, "take a drink like I ordered you to." - -As Mr. Briggs brought the bottle up with a speed that might have dug the -mouth of it deep into Jerry's throat, the youth raised his own arm to -defend himself. The bottle struck him on the forearm. A jet of rum came -streaming out. It fell on the open flame of the stove, and a sheet of -blue flame leaped up into the air. - -It came dangerously close to the reeling mate. Frightened, Mr. Briggs -brought his right arm around as though to shield his face from the -flames. But he had forgotten that he still held the bottle. His gesture -emptied the remainder of the bottle onto the stove and another jet of -flames leaped toward him. This time, the fire reached one of the roasts -standing on the stove. - -With a popping and sizzling, the roast came alight, and now the panicky -Mr. Briggs lunged for the roasting pan to remove it from danger. But all -he succeeded in doing was to overturn a pan of grease, into which, in -terror, he dropped the flaming roast. - -In an instant, Cookie's beloved galley had become a roaring caldron of -flames. - -"Fire!" he shrieked, and charged blindly into the passageway, covering -his face with his hands. - -"Fire! Fire! All hands on deck! Captain, Captain--come quick! Those -blasted boys of Kennedy's have set the ship on fire!" - - - - - CHAPTER EIGHT - Fire! - - -For a split second, Sandy and Jerry stood rooted in helpless anger. - -It was bad enough that the drunken, clumsy mate had set the galley -ablaze. But now he had shifted the blame to them! The injustice of it -was an outrage, and for the space of that split second, the two youths -were so stunned that they could not move. - -Then they sprang into action. - -And to Jerry James's amazement, Sandy Steele turned and ran from the -flaming room. - -"Sandy!" Jerry called. "Sandy, come back!" - -But Sandy Steele kept on running up the passageway, and Jerry could not -believe what he saw. Then, when Sandy disappeared into the cabin where -Cookie had been placed, Jerry understood. "Good old Sandy," he said -proudly, and then he whirled and dashed down the passageway in the other -direction--hunting for a fire extinguisher. - - -Cookie was half out of his bunk when Sandy rushed through the opened -door. The little man had heard Mr. Briggs's shout, and he had -immediately dragged himself from his pillows. He was going to help put -out the fire! - -But he was too weak to get very far, and he lay half in, half out of his -bed, panting, when Sandy burst in on him. - -"Quick, Cookie!" Sandy said. "The galley's on fire." - -"I know, boy," Cookie gasped. "I heard the mate." His eyes were sad as -he gazed at Sandy. "How could you do it, Sandy?" - -"I didn't!" Sandy gritted between clenched teeth, as he stooped to wrap -blankets around Cookie, before coming erect in the fireman's carry. - -"But the mate said--" - -"He did it, not us!" Sandy replied. "Come on, Cookie--there's no time -for explanations." - -Gently supporting the little man on his right shoulder, Sandy hurried -from the room. He took him to the cabin farthest from the blaze. Once -inside, he placed Cookie on the bunk. The weakened little man looked -around him in astonishment. - -"This is the mate's quarters," he burst out. "You can't put me in here, -boy." - -"Never mind that," Sandy said grimly. "I'd put you in the captain's -quarters, if I thought it would be safer. I'm not taking any chances on -your getting trapped by the fire, Cookie." - -"Is it really that bad?" - -"I don't know, but I'll soon find out! Now, you just stay put while I go -back and help fight the fire." - -Without another word, Sandy turned and raced back down the passageway. - - -A wild scene greeted Sandy's eyes. - -Thick, greasy clouds of smoke--from the roasts and the other cuts of -meat that had caught fire--rolled from the galley. Through the smoke, he -could see the red and yellow of the flames. Sometimes a sheet of fire -would lance out through the smoke, and there would be a hissing and a -crackling that would warn the smoke-grimed and panting fire fighters -that another big can of lard had exploded and caught fire and was now -making their task even harder. - -All along the passageway lay thick lines of hose. They were crisscrossed -and intertwined, and, sometimes, when they leaped under the pressure of -the water coursing through them, they gave the passageway the look of a -snake pit. - -Crewmen wearing fire helmets dashed up and down, helter-skelter, some of -them with fire extinguishers in their hands, others carrying fire axes. -A bucket brigade had been formed among the spare crewmen, and Sandy saw -the buckets passing from hand to hand with the precision of an assembly -line in a factory. The empty buckets would be passed up the ladder to be -refilled by a man who fastened them to a rope and then lowered them into -the lake. - -From what Sandy could see, most of the fire seemed to be centered in the -middle of the galley, next to the stove. Luckily, Cookie had wisely -insisted that his old grease-soaked wooden cabinets be replaced by -nonflammable metal ones, otherwise the fire would have been -uncontrollable. As it was, it was bad enough. Flames shot higher and -higher from the meat-chopping table. Here, the thick slab of wood had -become thoroughly soaked by the overturned grease. Beneath the terrible -roaring sound it gave off as it burned, Sandy could hear the hissing and -snapping of the grease. - -Above all the sound and fury of the fire itself, and the excited babble -of the men as they rushed here and there to prevent the flames from -spreading to the mess hall, Sandy could hear the booming of Captain -West's voice. - -"You, there!" he shouted at Jerry James. "You with the fire -extinguisher--over here! Now, then, through the smoke here onto that -table!" - -With his head picturesquely swathed in an undershirt which he kept -removing to soak with water, Captain West was a romantic figure as he -rushed up and down the passageway directing the fire fighting. - -"Water!" he would thunder. "More water!" Or else: "You ax men, get busy -in the mess hall! Chop up those tables and benches and get the wood -abovedecks!" - -Seeing him, hearing him, Sandy wished that Captain West was as loyal as -he was commanding. - -But there was little time for Sandy to waste in admiration of the -skipper. All of these things that he witnessed passed through his mind -in one swift, crowding instant--and then he too leaped into action. - -The moment that Sandy rushed up there had been a loud explosion in the -galley, and one of the ax men was thrown back against the bulkhead by -the force of it. He slumped to the deck, unconscious, and his ax slipped -from his hand. - -Quick as a flash, Sandy seized the ax and joined the men at work in the -mess hall, while two others quickly jumped to obey the skipper's orders -to remove the stricken man to a safe place. With a thrilling surge of -confidence in the strength of his lean-muscled body, Sandy Steele began -to swing his ax. His first stroke went whistling through the air and the -ax blade bit deep into the thick wood of a bench. With a wrench -requiring all of his power, Sandy yanked it free. Once again, he drove -the blade downward. - -Swish! Crack! - -The bench split in two. Quickly, shortening his grip on the ax handle -like a batter dragging a hit, Sandy stroked twice, backward and forward, -and the bench had become a neatly stacked pile of kindling. With a -glance of admiration, one of the crewmen scuttled forward, seized the -bundle of sticks in his arms and carried them topside. - -Meanwhile, as the men with the axes steadily demolished the mess-hall -furniture, getting it safely out of harm's way, the fire in the galley -seemed to rage higher and higher. The heat in the passageway was now -intense. The naked torsos of the fire fighters gleamed in the reflected -light of the flames, and rivulets of sweat marked their course down -flesh blackened by the greasy smoke. As the roar of the flames grew -louder and louder, the expression of concern on Captain West's face grew -deeper. - -He was thinking of the coal bunkers directly beneath the galley. If the -fire should ever get to them, that would be the end! - -Anxiously, Captain West peered through the smoke. It stung his eyes and -made them water. He had to wind a wet cloth around his mouth to keep -from choking. But he saw what he wanted to see. - -That chopping table was still blazing away like an enormous torch. In -fact, it was a torch--for the grease had prepared it for burning as -completely as any stick dipped in pitch. But Captain West had seen that -the fiery table had been partially burned through at the point where it -was fastened to the wall. If he could chop it the rest of the way, the -table would fall down. Then it could be pulled out into the passageway -with hooks and the hoses could play upon it with full force. - -In that way, Captain West reasoned, he could attack the fire at its very -heart. Immediately, the skipper called for one of the ax-bearing crewmen -to attempt the job. There was no time to lose. Another five or ten -minutes, and the coal would go up! - -The crewman slipped quickly into a heavy raincoat to shield his body -from the flames. He saturated a cloth with water, wound it around his -lower face, and plunged into the smoke. - -In an instant, he came reeling back--choking and sputtering. - -"It's too much, sir," he gasped. "No man can go into that stuff and -live." - -Before Captain West could reply, Sandy Steele had raced down the -passageway from the mess hall. - -"Let me have that raincoat," he said to the astounded man. "I think I -know a way to get that table out." - -Still choking, the man took off his coat. Captain West opened his mouth -to protest, but then, seeing that Sandy was dead serious, he closed it -again and let the determined youth take over. - -"Jerry!" Sandy called to his chum. "Quick! You get one on, too. Then, -you protect me with the fire extinguisher while I swing the ax." - -Jerry James nodded. Like his friend, he garbed himself in one of the -heavy black slickers, covered his nose and mouth with a soaked cloth, -and preceded him into the smoke. Jerry held his extinguisher like a -soldier wielding a light machine gun, spraying the flames with a -constant stream of thick, white chemicals. - -Behind him moved Sandy Steele, grasping his ax. - -The combination that worked so well on the playing fields of their home -state of California was now going into action far, far from home, and in -a far more serious cause. But it was working just as well! - -Choking, sputtering, staggering, all but blinded, Sandy Steele charged -to the reddish blur he could see a few feet ahead of him in the smoke. -Waves of heat rolled against his body and he felt himself going weak. -But he lowered his head and struck on. - -Once, a tongue of flame seemed about to gather in volume and leap toward -him from the roaring chopping-block. Just in time, a jet of thick white -liquid streamed out toward it and smothered it before it could get -started. Good old Jerry, Sandy thought. - -At last, he had made it to within a few feet of the burning table! - -It was as close as he dared go. - -Without hesitation, Sandy Steele raised his ax and brought it down, -hard. - -Crash! - -The table seemed to sway. Sandy raised his arms again, wondering if he -would have the strength for another blow. He was thoroughly sick, -now--nauseated by that sickening, grease-laden smoke. The effort of his -first mighty stroke had all but sapped his strength. Yet, he could not -falter now! He had to do it! One more stroke would slice through the -remaining wood. Calling upon all his reserves, Sandy Steele rocked -backward on his heels, rose on his toes and brought the ax down upon the -wood. - -It was a blow that rang out even above the roar of the flames! Even the -weary men gathered in the passageway could hear it. - -And it severed the table from the thick bolt that had held it to the -bulkhead. - -Sandy Steele jumped back just in time. - -With a loud crash and a flashing of sparks and a shooting of flames, the -table fell toward him. - -The momentum of Sandy's jump sent him staggering backward, off balance. -That was how he emerged from the cloud of smoke that separated the -excited, yelling crewmen from the fire inside the galley. - -Behind Sandy, running low and gasping, but still clutching his fire -extinguisher, came Jerry James. - -If someone had not caught Sandy, he would have gone sprawling. As it -was, he was having difficulty keeping his legs under him. They seemed to -have gone all rubbery from his ordeal. But he clenched his teeth and -stayed erect, watching as the crewmen began to drag the blazing table -from the galley into the direct play of massed hoses and extinguishers. -It sizzled and smoked and sent off clouds of steam as though it were a -small volcano, but the fire was at last put out. - -Then, one by one, all of the other burning articles within the galley -were separated from the main body of the fire and doused. The hoses sent -streams of lake water splashing against the now-smoldering and smoking -bulkheads. The bucket brigade was disbanded, for it was no longer -needed. - -And then, as Sandy Steele felt the youthful vigor of his body swiftly -returning, his eyes fell on an object that he dearly wished to preserve -for the eyes of Captain West. - -It was the rum bottle. - -It lay beside the stove, almost at the exact point where it had fallen -from the hand of Mr. Briggs. - -Here was not only the cause of the fire. Here was proof of who really -had started it! - -Sandy slipped from the support of the friendly arms that had grasped -him. He bent to pick up an asbestos glove dropped by one of the crewmen. -He slipped it on his right hand and walked quickly forward to retrieve -the bottle. - -As he leaned over, he felt himself jostled aside. He nearly fell down -again. A tall man stepped in front of him and swung the flat of an ax -down on the bottle. He did it deliberately. He shattered the bottle into -a hundred pieces. - -"Why did you do that?" Sandy cried, unable to hide his anger. - -The man in front of him turned with a wicked smile, and said, "You could -have burned yourself on that, Little Lord Show-off--and you're in enough -hot water already." - -It was Mr. Briggs. - - - - - CHAPTER NINE - Charged with Arson - - -No one was less surprised than Sandy Steele when the order came for him -and Jerry James to report to Captain West in his cabin. - -It was by then close to midnight. Once the fire had been put out, there -had remained the task of clearing away the debris and cleaning up. This -had occupied the crew for a few more hours, and Sandy and Jerry had not -been happy to hear the grumbles about burned suppers and lost sleep or -to see the glances of hostility that were directed their way. Mr. -Briggs, it seemed, had been as expert in spreading his falsehoods among -the crew as he had been in taking them to Captain West. - -Only Sam had remained friendly, and it had been Sam who had brought the -order. - -"Captain says you two are to report to him right away," Sam said. He -shook his head sadly. "Too bad, boys," he went on. "If I can read storm -signals right, I'd say you were in for it." - -"In for it!" Jerry burst out hotly. "Is that what we get for putting out -the fire?" - -"Hold it, Jerry," Sandy said gently, calming his friend down. "That -won't do any good." He looked at Sam. "I suppose Mr. Briggs is with -him?" - -Sam seemed surprised. "Now, how do you know that?" - -Sandy's answer was a grim tightening of his lips. On the subject of Mr. -Briggs, he did not trust himself to speak. Sandy wondered how much -longer he was going to be able to control his temper. It seemed to him -that every time either he or Jerry did something they were supposed to -do, even something they really needn't have done, their only reward was -some penalty or a leer from Mr. Briggs or an insult from the skipper. -What had begun as a high school boy's dream of a splendid way to spend -the summer seemed to be turning into a nightmare. Sandy let out his -breath in a deep sigh. He looked at Jerry and was startled to see the -sulky expression on his friend's normally cheerful countenance. - -"I'm not going," Jerry said sullenly. - -"Wha-a-at?" Sam said, as though he couldn't believe his ears. "What did -you say, young fellow?" - -Before Jerry could reply, Sandy had propelled him up the passageway and -out of earshot. He didn't want their friend Sam to get the notion that -they were mutinous. - -"Jerry," he whispered fiercely, "you've got to stop talking like that!" - -"I don't care!" Jerry said stoutly. "We've been pushed around long -enough, and now I've got to get it off my chest. Listen, Sandy--you know -very well what's going to happen when we get in there with the captain. -He's going to accuse us with a lot of lies that he's heard from the -mate. He'll not only forget that we risked our lives to get at that -table, but he'll turn around and say we started the fire." - -"Shhh!" Sandy said, looking around anxiously. - -Jerry lowered his voice, but he didn't stop talking. "It's true! Why, -look what he said to you after you rescued poor old Cookie from -drowning! He acted as though you'd jumped in just to make him late for -the Soo Locks. Honestly, Sandy, I don't know why you bother--" - -"Because we've got to!" Sandy insisted, squeezing Jerry's arm. "Don't -you realize that a captain aboard ship is a lot different from a teacher -or a football coach? He's got you in his power, Jerry. His word is law! -Really. You can't disobey him!" - -"Oh, no?" Jerry said. - -"If you do," Sandy warned, "you'll wind up in jail. I mean it, Jerry. -Now is just the time when we've got to keep our heads." He dropped his -voice to a whisper. Then he went on: "Captain West must know by now that -we've found out about him. You remember that Mr. Briggs was out in the -passageway, eavesdropping, while we were talking about it. He's -certainly told the skipper. Now, with the fire, he's got an excuse to do -something that will keep us from warning Mr. Kennedy." - -Jerry's eyes widened. "Such as what?" he asked. "Such as locking us up -somewhere." - -There was a momentary silence, and then Jerry James groaned and said, -"Boy, oh, boy, we really _are_ in trouble, aren't we?" - -Sandy smiled in relief. He could tell by the tone of his friend's voice -that he had gotten over his resentment. With a reassuring squeeze of -Jerry's arm, Sandy continued, "We are. That's why we've got to stay -calm. So, whatever you do, Jerry, don't say or do anything foolish when -we get in there with Captain West." - -Jerry James's jaw tightened and he clapped his friend on the arm. -"Right," he said, and then the two of them walked up the passageway and -knocked on the door of Captain West's cabin. - -"Come in," the skipper growled. - -They entered. - -"What took you so long?" Captain West snapped. - -"We were delayed," Sandy said. - -"Oh," the skipper mocked, glancing over at his mate, who sat on the -bunk. "Did you hear that, Briggs? They were delayed, he says. Well," he -sneered, his voice turning ugly, "you'll have plenty of time for delays -where I'm putting you." - -The skipper peered at them with eager expectation, as though he hoped -his remarks would goad them into losing their tempers. Observing this, -Sandy was inwardly pleased. He realized that the skipper could not be -too confident of himself, that he was not sure of how much the youths -actually knew--no matter what Mr. Briggs had said to him. - -"Well?" the skipper roared, crashing his fist down on his desk. "What -have you to say to that?" - -"Nothing, sir," Sandy replied evenly. - -A red flush began to spread over Captain West's face. But it was -supplanted by a cunning look. - -"Playing doggo, eh?" he muttered. "Well, we'll see." He looked over at -his mate with a grin, and said, "Now, you just tell that story of yours -again, Mr. Briggs." - -The mate nodded. - -"It was this way, sir," he started, gazing up at the overhead with an -expression of shocked innocence. "Just before suppertime, I happened to -be passing the galley and saw these two." He lowered his eyes and jabbed -a dirty thumb in the direction of Sandy and Jerry. Then he raised his -eyes again and said, "They were playing catch with a can of tomatoes." - -Jerry gasped in indignation, and Sandy quickly gave him a warning nudge. - -"That's what they were doing, sir--throwing it back and forth like a -couple of schoolkids at a picnic. Then this black-haired fellow here, he -let go a good one and it went right through the grandstander's hands and -hit the can of fat on the stove and knocked it over on the fire. And -then, sir," the mate concluded, a note of smugness in his voice, "then, -sir, the fat was really in the fire." - -With a look of gloating, the captain swung his eyes on Sandy and -Jerry--and that was when Sandy opened his mouth and said, "He's a liar." - -Almost the moment that the words dropped from his lips, Sandy Steele -wished he could have bitten his tongue in two. But he had finally had to -give in to the resentment that had been smoldering inside him almost -from the moment he had walked aboard the _James Kennedy_. But, to say -that, after all his good advice to Jerry! He glanced over at his friend, -half expecting him to be disgusted with him. - -He was grinning! - -Then Sandy had to laugh, too--if not from the delight so plain on -Jerry's saucy face, then from the look of injury on the face of the -mate. Mr. Briggs actually acted as though he had been unfairly accused! -So, Sandy laughed--and when he did, Captain West arose from his chair -with a roar of rage. - -"Get out of here! You smooth-faced, insubordinate little firebugs! Get -back to your quarters and stand by to face a court of inquiry on charges -of arson and insubordination! That'll teach you to laugh at me and call -my mate a liar! Eh? How about that, eh? How will your friend, Old Man -Kennedy, like that, eh, when he hears that his white-faced schoolboys -are headed for some Buffalo jail? And you, Mr. Briggs, I'm ordering you -to keep these two under lock and key until we get to Buffalo." Then, -puffing up his chest like a giant bullfrog, Captain West issued a final -roar: - -"GET OUT!" - -Their heads held high, Sandy and Jerry marched back to their quarters. - -And the door had hardly swung shut behind them, before the skipper -whirled and pounced upon his mate with the low snarl of an enraged puma. -With a cry and a whimper, the fawning mate who had opened his mouth for -words of toadying praise, cringed back against the bulkhead. - -"No, Skipper, don't," he whined, but Captain West ignored his pleas and -seized him by the shirt collar and began to shake him. - -"You lying, sniveling drunk!" the skipper growled. "Do you think you -fooled me for a moment? I saw you smash that rum bottle in front of that -Steele boy's face tonight. I smelled your breath when you came reeling -down the passageway, shrieking like the lily-livered ninny you are." He -shook Mr. Briggs again, fiercely. "Do you think I believed that -cock-and-bull story of yours? Do you? Answer me!" - -Terrified, the mate babbled, "N-no, sir." - -"But you still took me for a fool, is that it?" the skipper snarled, -almost beside himself. Then, seeing Mr. Briggs burst into a fit of -uncontrollable blubbering, he uttered a growl of disgust and flung him -back on the bunk like a sack of wheat. He returned to his desk and sat -down again. - -"Briggs," he said heavily, "if it wasn't for the fact that I can make -use of you, I'd have skinned you alive long ago. I pretended to believe -you tonight only because I saw a chance to put those nosy brats of -Kennedy's in their place. I want them under lock and key until that deal -is signed in Buffalo. And that's the day after tomorrow." The skipper -drew another deep breath. "They belong to you, Briggs," he said. "And -you'll answer for them with your hide." His voice took on an ugly, -menacing tone that raised bumps of fear all along the mate's spine. - -"If something goes wrong, Briggs, if I see you so much as look at -another bottle, I'll flay that hide of yours from one end of the Lakes -to the other. I've got too much at stake to fool around! Paul Chadwick -wants those Kennedy boats and I want him to get them. If it's the last -thing I do, I'm going to be chief captain of the combined Chadwick and -Kennedy lines--and no high school kids are going to get in my way by -telling Old Man Kennedy about those high-grade ore discoveries. So, -remember that, Briggs--and now get out of here and let me get some -sleep." - -Still trembling, the shaken mate crept from Captain West's quarters and -closed the door softly behind him. Then he slipped down the passageway -toward the tiny cabin occupied by Sandy Steele and Jerry James. - -The moment Mr. Briggs vanished from sight, the door of the cabin -adjoining the skipper's came stealthily open. Then, slowly, the figure -of a little bald-headed man emerged. He shut the door carefully behind -him, and then glanced swiftly up and down the corridor. - -On tiptoe, he slipped over to Captain West's door. He bent his head to -listen. Then he backed off carefully and raised both clenched fists to -shake them in a gesture of anger and defiance, before he whirled -silently and made his way out of sight. - -The little bald-headed man was Cookie. - -He had heard every word spoken in the captain's cabin since Sandy and -Jerry had made their appearance there. Every inch of his little frame -burned with determination to come to the rescue of his young friends and -help thwart the schemes of the crafty Captain West. - -In their own cabin, meanwhile, the two friends had just climbed wearily -into their bunks. - -Suddenly they shot erect as they heard a rattling and clanking outside -their door. But they knew in the next instant what the noise meant. It -was Mr. Briggs "dogging down" the heavy outside handle. - -"Well," Jerry said, "now we're prisoners." - -"Yes," Sandy said, "but I have a funny feeling that things are going to -start to get better." - -"Why?" - -"Because," Sandy said grimly, "they couldn't possibly get any worse." - - - - - CHAPTER TEN - The Unsalted Seas - - -Unfortunately, Sandy Steele was wrong. - -Things could get worse, and they did. - -They worsened, not only for the two youths from Valley View, California, -but for everyone aboard the _James Kennedy_--to say nothing of all those -other thousands of human souls who sailed the lower Lakes on that -memorable summer morning. - -For it was on that morning that a freak summer storm that had been -rushing down from the north, roared like a scourge across Lake Huron -before bursting in all its fury upon the shallow waters of Lake Erie. It -was a storm that blew with shattering force across a body of water -notorious for rough weather. - -There are no storms so sudden and so strong as those that fall upon the -Great Lakes, and Sandy Steele and Jerry James were about to witness one -of the worst within the memory of the grizzled sailors of "the unsalted -seas." - -There are the treacherous gales, and sometimes hurricanes, of late fall -or early winter--those wailing winds that sheathe a ship in fresh-water -ice, before driving it to its destruction. - -In the days of sailing ships, there have been single storms upon the -Lakes in which as many as a hundred ships--with thousands of sailors and -passengers--have perished within twenty-four hours. Steam-driven -freighters, and motorships, too, have sunk to the bottom of these cold -waters--and more than a few of the ocean liners that have managed to -make their way to the Lakes via the St. Lawrence River have gone to a -fresh-water grave. - -The very first ship to sail the Lakes was the bark, _Griffon_, of the -famous French explorer, LaSalle. It set sail from Buffalo on August 7, -1679, reached the shores of Lake Michigan, and then disappeared -completely on its return voyage. - -From Superior to Ontario, the floors of the Lakes are littered with all -manner of ships that have gone down in these storms--with their cargoes, -their jewels, their gold, their stacks of currency still undamaged in -safes. - -And it is above the surface of Lake Erie, the body of water toward which -the _James Kennedy_ was placidly steaming, that the Great Lakes storms -blow the worst and the wildest. For Lake Erie is the shallowest of all -the lakes. Its average depth is only 70 feet, compared to that of 250 -for the rest of them. At its deepest, it is only 210 feet--compared to -1,180 feet on Lake Superior. - -Erie is a shallow saucer, a basin, and when the winds go whistling -across its surface they create something of the effect that a boy might -make by blowing onto a shallow saucer of water--but on a much, much -greater scale. The winds whip up mountainous waves that can break a -freighter in two. There have been storms on Lake Erie as freakish and -furious as that recorded by the veteran mariner who had moored his -vessel on the Canadian shore opposite Buffalo. To his amazement, the -wind blew so savagely that it drove the water out and away from his -ship's hull and left him sitting there, high and dry! - -Even today, in our modern age, there have been freighters that have -ventured into Erie storms, from whom nothing has been heard except a -last, despairing message: "We are breaking up." - -So it was on Lake Erie that this unusual summer storm struck with such -violence, only a few hours after the _James Kennedy_ had left the -Detroit River and swung its prow east by north for Buffalo. - - -Oddly enough, Captain West was elated when the storm broke. - -He would not have been quite so overjoyed had he known how terrible it -would become. But his first reaction to the gale was simply that this -would probably keep the _James Kennedy_, and the two youths, out on the -Lakes until well after Mr. Paul Chadwick had finished his deal with Mr. -Kennedy. - -In fact, Captain West had decided against going ashore in Detroit for -much the same reasons. He had suddenly realized that it might be risky -to place Sandy Steele and Jerry James within reach of a big city--with -its telephones and telegraphs, and, worse, its buses and railroads. They -might, in some way, get off the ship. Then they would be free to warn -Mr. Kennedy. - -So Captain West had left orders to make downriver past Detroit and out -into Lake Erie. - -He awoke to the shudder and roll of his ship. In his ears, he could hear -the whine of a rising wind. When he gazed out of his porthole, his eyes -fell on a slate-gray sea. - -"A storm!" he cried, grinning with wicked delight. "Oh, ho, Captain -West's luck is running good. This'll close that deal for good and all!" - -Pleased as could be, the skipper sprang from his bunk and began putting -on his foul-weather clothing. He strode briskly from his cabin. About to -make topside, he paused at the mate's door. He swung it open and leaned -in. - -"Briggs, I think you'd better unlock those boys." - -The mate gawked as though he couldn't believe his ears, but Captain West -held up a thick, hairy paw when he opened his mouth to protest. - -"Do as I say! They're not going anywhere, especially in this storm. It's -one thing to keep them locked up like that under the pretext of facing -charges, Briggs. But it's another to have them trapped below decks -during a storm." - -The mate nodded obediently, and Captain West wheeled and headed for the -ladder. Moving along the passageway, he was surprised to find that he -had to stretch out flat against the bulkhead to keep from falling. The -_James Kennedy_ was bucking that much! - -Clambering up the ladder, he needed all his strength to keep from being -thrown below. When he got on deck, the wind seemed to whistle through -his ears, and he pursed his lips in a whistle of his own when he -observed the huge, rising seas and the dirty clouds scudding low and -threatening above him. - -Glancing over the side, Captain West whistled again. - -There was a good two feet less of freeboard already, and the _James -Kennedy_ seemed to be plunging deeper into the steely, rain-dimpled -waves. Captain West pulled his cap lower on his forehead and thrust one -powerful shoulder ahead of him as he bucked into the screaming wind. The -rain came slanting at him in sheets and raked his face. He ducked his -chin deeper into his shoulder, not quite so jubilant a skipper as he had -been upon awakening. - -For this, indeed, was the start of a real blow! - - -Below decks, Sandy Steele and Jerry James were awake, too. They had been -so for perhaps a half hour before Captain West, roused from a deep sleep -by the unfamiliar pitching of the vessel. Now they sat on the lower -bunk. Both boys had deeply serious expressions on their faces. Sandy was -not even aware of the cowlick that hung forward on his forehead, and -Jerry James's brow was a mass of wrinkles. They were listening to the -steady clanking and groaning of the _James Kennedy_'s steel fibers as -the laden ore boat rolled in the rising seas. Even below, they could -hear the thin wailing of the winds above. - -"Sounds like a real storm, Sandy." - -"Yes, and do you realize what this could mean?" - -"Well, I guess it could mean anything--that is, if it got bad enough." - -"Oh, I don't mean sinking or anything like that. I mean it could keep us -from reaching Buffalo in time." - -"Oh," Jerry said, in a small, glum voice, and for a time neither youth -spoke. Then they heard a rattling at their door. - -It opened, and the unfriendly face of Mr. Briggs peeped in. The two -youths leaped to their feet. - -"Stay where you are!" the mate snapped. "You ain't going anywheres." He -grunted, pushing the door back and securing it against the bulkhead. -"Skipper says he wants your door open. Can't say as I agree with him, -but he's the skipper." - -"Can we go out?" Sandy asked. - -"No." - -"How about some food?" Jerry queried, rubbing his stomach. - -The mate snickered. "You'll get the same as the others--biscuits and -water." He snickered again. "That's all the food that's left after what -you two boobs done to the galley." - -"What _we_ did!" they chorused, indignantly. - -"Yes, you!" the mate snarled, backing into the passageway. "And don't -try to come it over me with that innocent-angels business." - -Sandy and Jerry exchanged glances of amazement, and then, again, they -burst out laughing. - -"Boy, oh, boy," Jerry breathed, to the annoyance of the mate, "when our -Mr. Briggs tells a story, he sticks to it!" - -The mate's mouth flew open for an angry reply, but then, it just -remained agape and not a sound issued forth. - -The mate seemed to be rising in the air, towering over the two youths in -the cabin. He lost his balance and fell. His mouth still yawning and his -hands frantically clawing for a hold on the smooth steel deck, he began -to slide toward them. - -Then the boys were hurled backward against the bulkhead. They struck it -with a crash and slithered to the floor, all but stunned. - -For one long dreadful moment, it seemed to all three of them that the -_James Kennedy_ would never return from that sickening roll to -starboard. There was that bottomless instant when it appeared that the -heavily burdened vessel would never stop heeling over until it had -turned turtle and plunged to the bottom. - -Then, it stopped. - -It seemed to hang in the air. - -Sandy and Jerry drew their breath in sharply. They had the terrible -sensation that there was nothing beneath the _James Kennedy_ to support -it, and that once this long, hanging pause had ended--it would drop, -drop, drop. Slowly, they let their breath out. - -The vessel had begun to right itself. - -With the same slow, deliberate, rolling motion, it heeled over to port, -and now it was Sandy and Jerry who rose in the air above the mate and -who felt themselves sliding toward him. Again, it seemed that the _James -Kennedy_ would overturn, and the hanging sensation was repeated. But -when the vessel had righted itself this time, it seemed merely to -shiver--before plowing straight ahead. - -Scrambling erect, the two youths stared at Mr. Briggs. The mate's face -had been drained of color and his little eyes glistened with fear. - -"That," he said, in a voice hoarse with awe and disbelief, "was a wave!" - - -Up above, in the pilothouse, Captain West had watched that monster swell -come and go, and now even he was a trifle shaken as he mopped his brow -in relief. He wondered what would have happened if that wall of water -had struck them fore and aft, rather than abeam. - -He gazed through his windows and wagged his head gravely. The winds -still rose in violence. They whipped at the _James Kennedy_ from every -quarter, seeming to change direction every other moment like a cyclone -gone mad. The seas were a battering confusion. The waves ran this way, -the wind another. Between them, they tore at the ship's superstructure -and thundered against her sides. Sometimes two great waves would dash at -each other from opposite directions, colliding with a great roar and a -shattering shower of spray. - -Captain West saw with alarm that the waves were increasing in height. -They were already well past ten feet. They would go on to twenty, of -that he was disturbingly certain--and after that? - -After that, Captain West knew, waves and running seas of that height -would batter the long, narrow, shallow _James Kennedy_ until she broke -in two. He no longer placed such great importance on staying out of port -to make sure of Mr. Chadwick's deal. He would have given anything, just -then, to be safe and snug behind the breakwater at Buffalo. - -Peering through his rain-splashed windows, the skipper sought a glimpse -of some other vessel. But his visibility had been greatly reduced by the -sheets of rain and the darkening skies. The unearthly light that had -greeted him when he came on deck had been slowly subsiding. Now, as the -clock raced on toward noon and the storm raged on in unabated fury, he -could see only the clashing seas around him and hear that high-pitched -wailing of the wind. - -He shook himself. - -"This is bad, very bad," he said to Sam, who had taken over as -wheelsman. - -"Aye, aye, sir," Sam said. "I've been through some bad ones on the -Lakes--but I've not seen any worse than this one. And it's just -starting, if I read the signals right." - -The captain bobbed his head in unhappy assent. The _James Kennedy_ -staggered and seemed to shake herself as she drove forward into a wall -of lake water, and he embraced a stanchion to keep his feet. He waited -until the vessel had steadied herself, and then he lurched across the -pilothouse to the rear windows to stare with dismay at the spectacle -below him. - -Grayish seas were swamping the decks of the _James Kennedy_, and the -crewmen were frantically at work trying to secure the hatch of one of -the holds. Wind and water had torn at a corner of the steel hatch and -had peeled it back as though a giant can opener had been at work. Each -time the _Kennedy_ dug into one of the heavy seas swinging toward it, -the crewmen would seize the rails and hang on for dear life while the -water swept down on them. - -Then, while the vessel rose high again and the waters ran off the sides, -they would resume the battle against the hatch--battering away at it -with sledge hammers in an attempt to seal the hold. - -One look at this scene was enough for Captain West. He could see at a -glance that more men were needed. - -"Mr. Briggs!" he shouted at his mate through the speaking tube. "Get -every available man up on deck to Number Four hatch!" - -The mate's voice wailed hollowly in reply: "They're all up there -already, sir--every man that can be spared." - -"Nonsense, Briggs! Who else have you got down there?" - -"Just myself and those two high school brats." - -Captain West fell silent. He frowned. The ship shuddered and he was -forced to grab Sam's shoulder for support. Below, he could see the angry -waters sweeping down the decks while the crewmen clung in terror to the -rail. Many of them, he noticed, had wrapped lines around their waists -and secured them to the railing. But there just weren't enough of -them--and that hatch, yawning like a fatal hole in the ship's armor, -just had to be closed! If it was not, if it grew larger, then the lake -water would pour through. It would saturate the tons and tons of ore -that lay in the typical ore freighter's single huge hold. The weight of -the _James Kennedy_ would be at least doubled, and the merest ripple or -slightest breeze might suffice to send her plunging to the bottom! - -No, that hatch must be sealed! Every available hand was needed to do it, -and quickly, even though they might belong to the most troublesome pair -of youths Captain West had ever known. - -"Send them up, Mr. Briggs," he ordered, and turned to give additional -orders to the wheelsman, Sam. - -Below, Mr. Briggs aimed a thumb at his "prisoners" and grunted, "Get up -to Number Four hatch on the double. You heard the captain, so you know -what's wanted. Take a crowbar there, and you both better have a line." -He leered. "If you want to get to Buffalo, you'd better tie yourself to -the rail up there and hang on tight." - -Without a word, Sandy Steele and Jerry James seized coils of rope from -hooks along the passageway. Then Sandy grasped a crowbar and the two -hastened topside. - - - - - CHAPTER ELEVEN - The Big Blow - - -Sandy could not suppress a gasp of astonishment the moment he emerged on -deck and felt the smashing power of that screaming wind, and sensed, -rather than felt, the awesome force of those mountainous seas thundering -down on the _James Kennedy_ with the crunching sound of huge boulders -colliding. There was water everywhere, pelting down from above in the -rain and rising in great shafts of spray and spume as the waves cracked -and crashed on the wallowing freighter. - -Jerry James was aghast. He opened his mouth and shouted something at -Sandy, but the wind tore the words from his mouth. The two boys were -forced to talk in gestures. Sandy laid down his crowbar, placing a foot -on it to keep it from rolling over the side. Then he pointed to the -rail. He wound his rope around his waist. Next, he looped it over the -railing, before fashioning a good strong slipknot. He backed off a few -feet, the muscles of his calves straining to maintain a purchase on the -slippery, heeling decks. Carefully, he tugged. The rope held. He nodded -at Jerry and his friend followed suit. Once, just before Jerry had -finished, the black-haired youth looked up and saw, in fright, a huge -wave bearing down on them amidships. It struck the side just as the -_James Kennedy_ rolled away from it--luckily for the two youths. - -The impact of that wave sent a long shiver through the 600-foot length -of their freighter and what seemed a very wall of water shot high into -the air before it fell on them with a drenching crash. It drove them to -their knees. - -So great was the shock, that neither Sandy nor Jerry could remember the -sensation of coldness or wetness. All they could think of was that -mighty weight that flattened them, almost driving the breath from their -bodies. - -Then the water began to wash away, and Sandy Steele felt an almost -irresistible tug. Quickly, he wound his arms around the line he had only -just fastened to the railing. He tried to stand up, but the rushing -water knocked his legs out from under him. He seemed immersed in a -whitish, greenish froth, but then, as his eyes and ears cleared he saw -the low clouds swinging overhead and the lake water boiling by beneath -him, and heard the despairing cry of his friend: - -"Help, Sandy! Help, I'm going!" - -Too late, Jerry James had rushed to finish tying his slipknot. But he -had it only half finished when the wave struck. The water swept him up -like a chip and now it was rushing him toward his destruction, over the -side. - -Sandy Steele saw his friend's peril. - -Without hesitation, he released his own grip on the line and dove for -Jerry's body. - -He dove against the water and he struck Jerry with a waist-high tackle. - -As his wiry arms closed around his friend's middle, Sandy snapped his -own body around in a half-twist, whirling himself against the pressure -of the rope. It was well that he did, for the receding wave was pushing -him in the other direction. That way, the rope would have unwound and -the two boys would have rolled over the side and drowned. - -But Sandy Steele's split-second thinking applied the pressure in the -right place and the rope held. - -Gasping, the two lay on the deck. They could see the angry, running seas -beneath them, and then, as the _James Kennedy_ heeled away, the rim of -the lake and then only the clouds. - -They were saved. - -But they were too weak to congratulate each other, and all that Jerry -James could do to show his gratitude was to flop his hand weakly on his -friend's back. Now, as they blew lake water from their mouths, they were -aware of the cold, of their drenched clothing clinging to their -goose-pimpled flesh, and of the chill breath of the wind. - -"Let's go!" Sandy finally shouted. "If we stand here, we may get socked -with another one." - -Jerry nodded and quickly secured himself to the rail, glancing up every -now and then as though he expected to see another great black wave -racing toward him. Then they made their way forward to the Number Four -hatch where the little band of lake sailors struggled bravely to keep -the lake out of the _James Kennedy_'s hold. - -There were nine deck hands and one deck officer, a tall, serious-looking -man named Davis. Through his water-filled eyes, Sandy could see that Mr. -Davis had taped his spectacles securely to his temples, for fear they -would be washed away. He remembered Sam saying that Mr. Davis was "as -blind as a bat" without his glasses. Sam was with the group, -too--ordered down from the pilothouse by Captain West. That was probably -because the skipper wanted to make good use of the great strength that -lay in Sam's deep chest and thick shoulders. Sam swung a heavy sledge -hammer, as he and two other men--one of them a blond, Swedish giant -named Gunnar--attempted to batter the sprung steel hatch cover back into -place. Sandy could hear the metallic clanging of their blows above the -wind and sea as he and Jerry approached, both of them side-stepping -along the rail while they clung to their ropes. - -Then Mr. Davis yelled, "All hands to the rails!" - -To his horror, Sandy saw that the _James Kennedy_'s prow had plunged -into a wall of water that reared before it. The bow sliced into it as -the _V_ of a plow might pierce a snowbank--and though the boat itself -remained steady, that parted wave was now flowing around either side of -the forward cabins and sweeping down the decks! - -Swiftly, the men whirled and scurried for the rails. They dove for them, -in fact! They curled around them and bent and turned their heads away -from the onrushing water, and Sandy noticed that the hammer-swingers had -fastened their tools to their wrists by thick lengths of rope. - -Then the water hit. - -It was far worse than the wave that had nearly carried Jerry James to -his death. - -But it did not last as long. It struck with swift savagery, lifting -Sandy and Jerry and the rest of them from their feet. It sought to tear -them free of the rail and drive them aft and into the water. But that -great crushing blow and terrible tug was only of a few seconds' -duration, and then it was gone. - -Sandy looked around. Water was spilling back over the sides of the -_James Kennedy_, but at the rail, where there had been ten men, there -were now only eight. - -Two men had been washed overboard, one of them a hammer man. - -But there was little time to dwell upon the horror of those missing -figures at the rail. - -Mr. Davis had lost his glasses. The wave had torn them from his head. -The tall deck officer peered wildly about him. He had backed from the -rail, digging furiously at his eyes to clear them of water. Now, as he -looked around him on the deck of the heaving ship, it was plain that he -had lost his bearings. He took a step forward. Another. Then, rapidly, -two more. He was walking toward the rail! - -Involuntarily, Sandy and Jerry took two steps toward him. But they were -too far away. - -Their friend Sam wasn't. - -The stocky seaman with the muscles like steel hawsers swiftly shot out a -clutching hand and stopped his superior officer before he drowned -himself. - -"You'll have to go back, sir!" Sam shouted above the wind. "You can't -stay out here blinded like that. Here," he shouted at one of the men, -"help Mr. Davis below." - -The man wound a guiding arm around the deck officer, and together, they -made their way aft along the rail. - -Sam glanced at Sandy Steele and Jerry and shouted, "You two--we need -your help. Come over here. That's right, pay out the line." - -The two lads let go their tight hold on their safety lines and came over -to the torn hatch, turning around and around to unwind their ropes. - -"Now," Sam shouted again, cupping his hands so that he could be heard -above the storm and the rattling of the ship. "Now, we can't waste any -more time rushing over to the rail every time we ship a little water. -That last wave must have poured a couple of tons of water into the hold. -A few more like that, and we'll be down in Davy Jones's locker. Here's -what we're going to do. - -"We've got eight men left and two sledge hammers. So, Gunnar here takes -one hammer and I take the other. While we're hammering down the hatch -cover, you three hold Gunnar," he said, pointing to a trio of seamen, -"and you three hold me." He pointed to Sandy and Jerry and a fourth -seaman. "If the water comes over the side again, well, we'll just have -to ride it out. You men secure yourselves to those bits. And for gosh -sakes," he yelled, his husky voice rising to full volume, "don't anybody -let go of Gunnar or me when the water hits!" - -Quickly, Sandy and Jerry did as they were ordered. They fastened -themselves to those stubby, mushroom-shaped iron pegs that are called -bits. Then, Jerry and the other seaman wound their arms around Sam's -powerful legs and Sandy, because he was the tallest, grabbed him by the -waist. - -Sam and Gunnar got to work. - -Their hammers clanged rapidly against the stubborn steel, forcing it -down at a steady but agonizingly slow pace. Sandy marveled to feel the -strength surging through Sam's hard torso, as he hugged the sturdy -seaman with all his might. Sam's chest heaved and the muscles of his -back bunched as he brought the heavy hammer up and down, up and down. - -Soon, Sandy's own body ached from the strain of holding Sam erect -against the swaying and staggering of the _James Kennedy_. And the hole -was being closed so slowly! - -Once, a fair-sized wave swept suddenly over them. Sandy felt Sam go down -under its onslaught, but he held him fast even though his body screamed -in pain from the effort. The seaman and Jerry held on, too, and when the -waters had spilled back into Lake Erie, a grinning Sam spat -contemptuously and scrambled to his feet and swung his hammer again. - -The resumed clanging of the hammer swung by Gunnar, the Swede, told -Sandy that his crew had held fast as well. - -Now, the hatch was closed. Sam and Gunnar were swiftly and skillfully -pounding the steel snugly into place when a sudden gust of wind spun Sam -around just as he was bringing his hammer down for the final blow. - -Unable to stop himself, Sam now had his whistling sledge hammer aimed -directly at the unsuspecting head of Gunnar! In a fraction of a second, -the iron hammerhead would drive deep into Gunnar's skull. It would smash -it open as easily as an eggshell, with Sam's great strength propelling -it. - -In that tiny interval of time, Sandy Steele swiftly sat down. He buckled -his legs and dragged Sam back with him, and as he did, he heard a -familiar voice beneath him yelp with pain. There was a loud metallic -clang--like the sound of a firebell--as Sam's sledge hammer swished -harmlessly past the back of Gunnar's head and struck the steel deck with -terrific force. But the big Swede had been saved, even if Sandy's friend -Jerry seemed to have wound up a casualty. - -He lay writhing on the deck and Sandy had to bend quickly to make sure -the rolling of the ship didn't roll him over the side. - -"What's wrong?" he shouted in Jerry's ear. - -"My ankle," Jerry yelled back, grimacing. "I think it's sprained. When -you fell on me, I guess." - -Sandy groaned. He was sorry that his friend had been hurt, of course, -but now, he realized, he would have to go it alone. He glanced up and -saw the Swede staring down with a puzzled look on his face. His gaze -wavered from Jerry to the spot where Sam's hammer had struck, making him -jump in surprise. Now Sam was waving his arms wildly and shouting an -explanation of what had happened. As he spoke, Gunnar's mouth came open -and his blue eyes grew round. - -When Sam had finished, Gunnar came over to Sandy. He leaned down and -yelled in his ear, "Tanks. You ban safe my life. You goot poy." - -Sandy nodded, embarrassed. Then he said, "Can you help me move my -friend? I think he's sprained his ankle." - -Gunnar bent and lifted Valley View High School's husky right end as -easily as a child. "Ay take him below," he said simply, shifting Jerry's -weight to one side and supporting him with one huge arm, while with the -other he held fast to the rail. He staggered off. - -Sam grinned at Sandy. "Nice work, Sandy," he said, shouting through -cupped hands again. "You sure made a friend today." - -Sandy nodded. He had glanced up to see Captain West staring down at him -from the pilothouse. It recalled to him that the most important mission -of his voyage still lay ahead of him, and that his dependable friend, -Jerry, probably would no longer be of help. - -"I sure hope so, Sam," Sandy said. "Because I think I may be needing -one." - -Then Sandy Steele and Sam swayed aft with the rest of the _James -Kennedy_'s weary deck hands. - - - - - CHAPTER TWELVE - A Web of Lies - - -Jerry James's ankle seemed swollen to twice its normal size by the time -the big seaman, Gunnar, had carried him below and gently deposited him -on the bottom bunk of Sandy's and Jerry's cabin. - -"It's yust a sprain, Ay tank," Gunnar mumbled as he peered at the ankle -after having removed Jerry's dripping clothing and wrapped him in -blankets. - -"Does it hurt much, Jerry?" Sandy asked anxiously. - -Jerry tried to smile and shrug it off. But it was obvious to Sandy that -his friend was in great pain. He turned around, bumping into Sam, who -had also jammed himself into the tiny room. Outside the open door, Mr. -Briggs stared in at the scene with eyes of unpitying curiosity. - -"Have you got any medicine, Sam?" Sandy asked. "I mean, something to -kill his pain a little." - -Sam shrugged. "Best thing that we can do is give him some rest and try -to get that swelling down. He'll need a doctor's care when we get to -port." He paused as the _James Kennedy_ began to heel over in a long -roll. Everybody reached for support, and Sam grinned and added, "_If_ we -get to port." - -"We will," the mate butted in. "Captain just called down to say the -wind's going down." - -"Py yiminy," said the big Swede, beaming, "Ay tank Ay live long enough -for farm, after all." - -Sam smiled fondly at Gunnar. "You big galoot," he said, good-humoredly. -"You can't stand to be ashore two days without getting landsick." He -turned his gaze back to Jerry James. "You know," he said, "I think I've -got just the thing to take down that swelling some and ease the pain, -too." - -"What's that?" Sandy asked. - -"Well, seeing as how you must have swallowed a couple of bucketfuls of -it yourself not long ago, I'll tell you. It's lake water!" He leaned out -into the passageway and called, "Hey, one of you lads, get up above and -fetch us a bucket of lake water, hear?" Then he grinned, plainly -enjoying himself. "All you have to do is stand on deck until the first -wave comes along!" - -In another five minutes, Jerry James had been carefully lifted into a -sitting position by Gunnar and his sprained right foot had been thrust -into a bucket of cold Lake Erie water. Jerry had winced at his first -contact with it, but he soon grew accustomed to it. In half an hour -more, the swelling had gone down considerably and Jerry was able to turn -in with his ankle swathed in strips of sheeting soaked with water. - -"Keep dousing it with water every hour or so," Sam had suggested to -Sandy. - -Then Sam and Gunnar had trudged back to the barren mess hall to join the -rest of the crewmen who squatted glumly against the bulkheads, munching -the hard biscuits and cold water passed out to them by a Cookie who -seemed to have lost his usual cheerful spirits. - - -Up above, meanwhile, Captain West saw, to his alarm, that he had been -mistaken about the storm. The winds had indeed died down, but only for a -time. - -Now, with the coming of darkness, they were again rising. What had -resumed as the gentlest of whispers was now a wild screaming and -hammering around the pilothouse that threatened to smash in even those -stoutly reinforced windows. The seas were again pounding. The _James -Kennedy_ seemed to be weakening. No longer did she plow ahead, straight -and true, with the passage of each successive wave. Now she was -wallowing in the troughs--and the thundering seas battered her -mercilessly. Each time, she staggered and drove on. But each time, she -seemed to drive on a little less powerfully. - -The waves roared at her in combinations now--sometimes two waves -following quickly upon another, frequently three. - -Alone in his pilothouse, Captain West realized that a few hours more of -such punishment would mean the end of his ship and all aboard her. -Below, in the mess hall, the veteran sailors realized it, too. But they -said nothing, merely exchanging fearful glances. Only God could save -them now, they knew. In such a storm, even the most superb seamanship -was useless. - -Captain West knew it, too. He wondered if he should radio for help. But -what good would that do? Who could get to him? Besides, Captain West had -no wish to make contact with the mainland. The storm had given him his -perfect excuse for arriving in Buffalo too late to communicate with his -employer, Mr. Kennedy. He wished to stay out of contact with the Kennedy -offices for as long as possible. - -But something had to be done. Quickly, Captain West bent over his chart. -His eyes swept over it, eagerly searching for some island or outcropping -of land to which he might run for shelter. All around him now were the -voices of insane power, the clashing and crashing of that surging sea, -the wailing of the wind. As Captain West bent his head, a great wall of -water gathered before the _James Kennedy_'s bow. - -It rose, black and awful, to the height of Captain West's -pilothouse--and then it struck. - -It fell with a roar. Captain West dove for a stanchion. He threw his -arms around it and held on. The water burst the bulkheads of the -pilothouse. It flattened those steel walls as though they were made of -paper. It swept away the pilothouse as easily as a wave washing away a -fruit crate. - -Captain West heard that wrenching roar, and then the lake water poured -over him. He clung desperately to the stanchion. He felt that monstrous -weight--hundreds and hundreds of tons--driving the _James Kennedy_ down -and down, and he wondered if the vessel would ever re-emerge from it. - -Down below, in his tiny cabin, Sandy Steele held his breath as he felt -that wave strike the ship and drive it down. - -But the _James Kennedy_ came up. - -Buried though she had been, the gallant vessel shook herself like a -soaked and weary mastiff, and her bow popped out of the frothing white -seas, streaming water from every side--and she gave a long shudder and -drove forward again. - -A concerted sigh of relief broke from the throats of the lake sailors -huddled in the mess hall. - -Sandy Steele felt the light film of perspiration that had gathered on -his forehead, and he involuntarily squeezed the arm of his friend. - -Captain West slowly released his grip on the stanchion. - -They had been through the worst of it, he knew now. - -The wind was dropping as swiftly as it had risen. Above him, the clouds -were thinning out. A ghostly glow seemed to illuminate the scene as the -moon shone palely through them. In its light, Captain West could see the -dark seas running around him, glittering like polished black glass. - -Captain West surveyed the damage to his pilothouse. The compass was -destroyed. The steering gear was so badly damaged that it would be -impossible to make any headway against a strong wind. But the wind was -falling to a murmur. He would be able to steer, and he would navigate by -hand compass from one of the lifeboats. - -He decided to wait another few minutes to be certain that the storm was -over. Then he would go below to fetch Sam and the big Swede, Gunnar. He -couldn't call them. The speaking system was ruined, too. - -Captain West removed his hat and began to wring it dry. If he lived to -be a hundred, he told himself, he would never see another wave like that -one. - - -The men in the mess hall were in an ugly mood. - -They knew that the worst was over, and so they had begun to grumble. -With nothing to fear, they had time to complain. Mr. Briggs was quick to -seize upon their discontent and turn it to his own ends. - -He had been listening to two of them grumble bitterly about the fact -that they had had nothing solid to eat since lunch the day before. The -smaller of the pair, a man with sharp features and untidy, mouse-colored -hair, had begun to talk louder and louder. - -"Thirty-six hours, Dick," he complained. "Thirty-six hours since we've -had a real bite or a hot sup. Nothing but hard biscuits and stale -water." - -"Aye," said his friend heavily. "And whose fault is it? What are we -doing out on Erie at a time like this, when we could be ashore in -Detroit? We could be drinking our coffee nice and easy in some -restaurant right now. Whose fault is it? That's what I want to know." - -Mr. Briggs's little eyes roved rapidly over the mess hall. He saw with -satisfaction that Sam and Gunnar had dozed off. He sidled over to the -two discontented men, who had begun to cast dark, threatening glances -about them as though they sought the author of their misfortunes. - -"Who's to blame, you say?" Mr. Briggs whispered, glancing quickly around -him. "I'll tell you." He pointed down the passageway. "It's those snippy -brats of Old Man Kennedy's, that's who's to blame!" he burst out. - -"Oh, come, now," the little man named Bogert said. "Don't tell me that a -couple of vacationing high school boys have anything to do with running -this ship." - -"Just listen to me!" Mr. Briggs said fiercely. "Who do you think caused -that fire in the galley last night? It was those two blasted brats -tomfoolin' around, that's who it was! If you're wondering who you've got -to thank for your empty bellies, it's those kids down the way. -Especially the blond one. Every last scrap of decent food was burned up -in that fire. That's why you're getting biscuits and water." - -The two men exchanged angry glances. Seeing that he had convinced them, -Mr. Briggs rushed on. - -"And why are we out on Lake Erie instead of being berthed in Detroit? -That's their fault, too! The skipper didn't want to make for Buffalo so -soon. But he had to. With a couple of firebugs like them aboard, he said -he couldn't take any chances!" - -The big man named Dick let out a low growl. - -"How about Perkins, Dick?" the mate added, deliberately attempting to -goad the big man into a rage. "Perkins was your friend, wasn't he, Dick? -And now he's on the bottom of Lake Erie, washed over the side in a storm -we never should have been in! All because of a couple of dirty brats who -haven't shaved yet!" - -The big man shook his head. He got to his feet and gazed down at the -mate. He clenched and unclenched his hamlike hands and another deep -growl rumbled from his chest. - -"What are you going to do, Dick?" his friend Bogert asked. The little -man was slightly nervous. - -"I'm gonna pay 'em back," the big man said slowly. He blinked his eyes -stupidly. "I've been starvin' and I lost my best friend and I almost got -washed overboard myself and it's all on account of them kids. I'm gonna -pay 'em back, Bogert." He turned to the mate and growled, "Where are -they?" - -But he needn't have asked. - -At that moment, Sandy Steele walked down the hall with a bucket. He -needed more water to freshen his friend's bandages. - -"There he is!" the mate shouted. "There's the wise one--the one that -called me a liar!" - -The big man whirled and pounced. Before Sandy knew what was happening, -he had been grasped by the collar and spun around. There was not even -time to struggle. The big man held him firmly in that left hand and drew -back his big right fist for a smashing blow. - -"Wise kid," Dick muttered. "I'm gonna give you a good one from old -Perkins." - -Sandy started to duck. - -But the blow never landed. - -Instead, it was Dick himself who was whirled around now, while an angry -voice said, "Ay tank Ay give you goot wan." - -Then there was a sharp spat of bone meeting bone. An expression of -amazement came over Dick's face. Then his face went blank and his knees -buckled and he sank gently to the deck. - -Gunnar smiled and lifted his enormous right fist for the rest of the -shocked sailors to see. - -"Ay yust tell you maybe Ay hit real hard next time." - -Murmurs of admiration came from the lips of the onlookers, and at that -moment, Mr. Briggs sought to steal from the room. But Sam, who had also -been awakened, moved to head him off. - -"What's your hurry, mate?" he asked easily. - -"Well, er, I was, er, just going to...." Mr. Briggs stammered, clearing -his throat. He cast a nervous glance at the big Swede, who stood glaring -at him while, behind him, the big man, Dick, slowly pushed himself up -from the deck. "Well, you see--" the mate stuttered, but then his eyes -lost their fear and his face grew spiteful and defiant again as Captain -West came sloshing into the room. - -"What's going on here?" he bellowed. - -Every head spun toward him and there was a babble of excited voices in -reply. But, of course, it was Mr. Briggs who answered the skipper's -question. - -"Oh, nothing at all, sir," he said, giving Captain West a broad wink. -"Just a bit of friendly horseplay, that's all, sir." - -Captain West grunted and nodded. Then he said, "You, there, Sam and -Gunnar. Get up above to the pilothouse. A wave swept everything but the -deck away, but you can still steer by hand compass. Get one from one of -the lifeboats. The rest of you," he roared, whirling quickly, "the rest -of you get back where you belong. The storm's over! We'll make Buffalo -by tomorrow night." - -A weak cheer followed that news. The men shuffled down the passageway. -Captain West waited until the sailors had gotten out of earshot, before -he jerked a rude thumb at Sandy and growled, "He making trouble again?" - -The mate nodded. "Just before you came below, he stirred up a fight -between Dick and the Swede." - -Sandy Steele sucked his breath in sharply. - -"That's a lie!" he burst out sharply. - -Captain West ignored his protest. He merely glared savagely at Sandy and -said, "Shut up!" He seemed to be pondering something. Then, his forehead -smoothed out and he spoke to his mate. - -"Briggs, we're only a few hours away from that Chadwick-Kennedy deal. -I'm taking no chances on Buster, here. So, he's yours until we dock -tomorrow night. Take him into your cabin with you and batten down the -door. Don't come out until I send for you. You hear me?" - -The mate nodded glumly. "Don't I get nothin' to eat?" he whined. - -"Stop bleating about your blasted belly," the captain snapped. "I'll -send Cookie in to you. Now, now, hold on! Whoa! What about the other -brat? Where's he?" - -"In bed," the mate said. "He sprained his ankle during the storm." - -"Bad?" - -Mr. Briggs grinned evilly. - -"Bad enough to keep him in bed." - -"Good," Captain West said. "Now, get out of here--and don't let me see -your ugly face until we dock in Buffalo. And as for him," he went on, -jerking his head toward Sandy, "I don't _ever_ want to see _his_ face -again!" - -Sadly assuring himself that the feeling was mutual, Sandy Steele -preceded the mate down the passageway to his cabin. - - - - - CHAPTER THIRTEEN - Cookie to the Rescue - - -Sandy Steele was not a quitter, yet it seemed to him that the game was -over and he had lost. - -He sat on the bunk in Mr. Briggs's cabin, with the mate leering at him -from a corner chair, and miserably considered his own plight. There -didn't seem to be any way out. Jerry James could not move from his bed -for another day or two, so there was no help there. And here _he_ was, a -prisoner! - -There wasn't any way in the world for him to reach Mr. Kennedy. - -Sandy shook his blond head mournfully. Seeing his gesture, the mate read -the feeling behind it and said, "If you had the brains you were born -with, you'd forget about everything and go to sleep." - -Sandy's face went cold. He pretended not to have heard, but the mate was -not to be denied his favorite pleasure of gloating. - -"Ma Kennedy's little chick's lost its tongue, eh?" he sneered. "Too bad -you ain't going to see Ma Kennedy before tomorrow night. And by that -time, the skipper'll be the chief captain of the Chadwick-Kennedy Line, -and yours truly'll be a full master." - -Oho, Sandy thought to himself, so that's the mate's reward for his -treachery. He decided to remain quiet. The talkative Mr. Briggs might -give away some more secrets. - -"Don't think you can outwait me," Mr. Briggs went on. "You're the one -who needs the sleep--not me. While you heroes was battling the storm -this afternoon, I was having myself a little rest. So I'm fresh as a -daisy." - -Sandy still said nothing. - -"And furthermore," the mate snapped, plainly nettled, "even if I did -doze off, it wouldn't help you." He tapped his breast pocket. "The key -to that there door is tucked away in here. You'd have to kill me to get -it." - -Sandy smiled, and the mate lost his temper. - -"Why, you--" he began, but just then there was a knock on the door. - -"Who's there?" the mate called. - -"It's me. Cookie." - -Mr. Briggs relaxed. "Got some grub, hey, Cookie?" - -"Yessirree. Got a little hot coffee, too." - -"Hot coffee!" the mate exclaimed, jumping to his feet and opening the -door to let Cookie enter. "How on earth did you ever rustle that up?" - -"Oh, just a little of Cookie's magic," the little bald-headed man -chuckled as he slipped through the door carrying a tray. - -Sure enough! He did have hot coffee! The aroma of it filled Sandy's -nostrils and his mouth watered. - -He smiled fondly at Cookie, and then, to his shocked disbelief, the -little man's face went ugly with hatred. - -"Don't smirk at me, you Jonah, you!" Cookie shrilled. "I've had nothing -but bad luck since you and your friend came aboard this ship!" Sandy -recoiled from the little man as though he had been struck, and Cookie -raged on, "Yes, I mean you, Sandy Steele! First, I nearly drown because -of you. Then, you and your stupid friend burn my galley down. And now -look at the mess everybody's in because of your silly meddling!" Sandy -shrank away from him, as insult after insult fell from the little man's -trembling lips--to the intense delight of Mr. Briggs. - -But Cookie, who had set his tray on the table, moved closer and closer -toward Sandy, until he had poked his wrinkled little face within a few -inches of the youth's nose. - -Then he winked and grinned. - -Sandy Steele's heart leaped for joy, and he almost jumped up and kissed -the little man. As it was, he knew his face must have given him away, -for Cookie had quickly flashed him a warning look, before he began -backing away, still mouthing insults. - -Sandy felt better when he saw Mr. Briggs slap Cookie on the back and -heard him say, "Cookie, I couldn't have said it better myself. The only -thing I can add to what you've said is that those brats are twice as bad -as you say they are." - -Still sputtering angrily, Cookie bent to his tray and began pouring the -mate a cup of steaming hot coffee. - -Determined to play his part, Sandy put a pleading note into his voice -and said, "Aw, Cookie--how about some coffee?" - -"You?" Cookie burst out, enraged. "I wouldn't give you a glass of lake -water if you were dying of thirst!" - -"Heh, heh," the mate laughed, evidently pleased that the little man -shared his sentiments. "You're in a rare mood tonight, Cookie. Why don't -you sit down and talk a bit." - -"I will," Cookie said. He took a seat, carefully smoothing his stained -white apron. He watched the mate take a sip. "How's the coffee, mate?" -he asked. - -"Fine, Cookie--fine." - -"Ah, yes, hot coffee's good after a storm. Especially with a shot of rum -in it." - -"Rum? Did you say rum?" - -With a sly wink, Cookie reached behind him and under his apron. He -brought out a bottle and brandished it happily. - -"Aye, rum, mate." He cast a dark look at Sandy. "It's all that could be -salvaged from the fire. I'd been saving it to make mince meat." He -unscrewed the cap and tilted it to pour it into the mate's cup. "Here, a -little of this'll warm your belly." - -"Oh, no, no, no!" the mate chattered, holding up a hand to block Cookie. -"I'd like to, Cookie--I swear I would! But I'd better not." - -"Why not?" Cookie asked innocently. "A man's got a right to a proper -drink after a storm." - -"Well, er," the mate stammered, "as a matter of fact, the skipper, er, -suggested to me that I'd better not." - -"Of course," Cookie agreed, raising the bottle again. "But that was -before the storm. Now, you know Captain West would never begrudge a man -a snort after coming through what we've been through." - -Cookie's voice was so easy and coaxing that Sandy marveled to hear it. -And the mate could not resist it. - -"Well, Cookie, since you put it that way, I suppose you're right. But, -just a little, now. Whoa, whoa! That's plenty!" - -"Oh-oh," Cookie said, with exaggerated concern, "I hadn't really meant -to put that much in." - -"No harm done," Mr. Briggs said grandly. "No harm done, really." - -"Well, I'm certainly glad to hear that." - -"Perfectly okay, Cookie, perfectly okay. By the way, aren't you going to -have a spot yourself?" - -"Well, I don't mind if I do. Here, I'll just try a little in this cup -here." - -They gabbed on like that for a few minutes, their talk reaching Sandy's -ears against the background of the mate's noisy sipping of his coffee. -For a while, Sandy ignored their conversation. He was too busy trying to -figure out what Cookie was up to. - -Obviously, the little man was trying to get the mate drunk. But why? -Cookie knew nothing of the forthcoming deal between Paul Chadwick and -Mr. Kennedy. At least, so Sandy thought. So he could not understand -Cookie's actions. But he did see that the little man's plan was working. -As time wore on, and the heaving of the _James Kennedy_ became less and -less pronounced, Sandy noticed that the words of Mr. Briggs were also -becoming less pronounced. His voice was thickening. He was not even -aware that Cookie's drinks had dwindled away to almost nothing, while -his own had swelled in size. - -"By the way, mate," Cookie said, as Mr. Briggs's head began to loll on -his shoulders. "I've got a funny one to tell you." - -"Whash that, Cookie, ol' pal?" - -"It's about that big Swede, Gunnar. He told me he was going to use the -ship-to-shore telephone to call his girl-friend back in Duluth. I told -him he was crazy because it's against the ship's rules to use the -ship-to-shore." - -"Right, thash right. Phone's locked up, anyway." - -"But you know what that big stupe said? He said he'd be able to make the -call in spite of that, because he knew that if he gave you five dollars -you'd give him the key." - -The mate's brow darkened. - -"He'sh a liar," he mumbled. "Never take bribe." - -"He said you did," Cookie rushed on eagerly. "In fact, he showed me the -key." - -"Liar!" the mate repeated. "He'sh liar!" He leaned forward drunkenly and -with a knowing leer on his face, he tapped Cookie on the knee. "I'll -prove it," he mumbled. "Prove he'sh liar." He fumbled in his side -pocket. Then he drew out a bunch of keys on a ring. "Here'sh key!" he -gloated, swaying as he attempted to thump his chest. "Gunnar's big liar. -Mr. Briggs don't take bribes." - -"Well, well," Cookie said, shaking his head as though grieved. "To think -he'd tell me a big one like that. Here, mate, have another drink." - -But the mate did not answer. - -His head had sagged forward on his chest. Raising his voice, Cookie -repeated his request. But the mate still did not reply. - -With a glance of utmost contempt, Cookie reached forward and grasped his -shoulder and shook him gently. - -"Have a drink, mate," he said. - -The mate's mouth fell open and his head snapped back and a long, -whistling snore broke from his throat. - -With a grin of triumph, Cookie got to his feet. He walked over to Sandy -and stuck out his hand. - -"Shake, pal," he whispered. - -With eyes shining with gratitude, Sandy Steele clasped his little -friend's hand. He realized, now, that Cookie must know everything--else -why all that nonsense to find out where the key to the radio shack was -located. For that ship-to-shore telephone was Sandy Steele's only hope! - -"Wait ten more minutes," Cookie whispered. "Wait until he's so sound -asleep we can get that key away from him without waking him." - -Sandy nodded. He sat on his bunk for a time, watching the first pale -light of dawn growing steadily brighter outside, and as the day -brightened, his spirits soared with it. At last, his chance had come! - -Cookie arose and moved softly to the snoring mate. He put his mouth to -his ear, and said in a loud voice, "Have another drink, mate." - -Mr. Briggs's answer was a sputtering snore. - -Cookie slapped him sharply on the cheek and cried, "Wake up, mate." Mr. -Briggs slept on as though made of stone. - -With another cocky grin, the little man reached down into Mr. Briggs's -side pocket and pulled out his set of keys. He found the one he wanted, -separated it from the rest, removed it--and then stuck the others back -where they had come from. - -"Let's go," he said to Sandy. - -"Sure you have the right key, Cookie?" Sandy asked. - -"Sure. I'd know it anywhere. Come on, follow me." - -As they went out, Cookie removed the key that the mate had left in the -lock when he opened the door to admit him. When they had stepped out -into the corridor, he closed the door softly behind him and locked it. - -"Just in case," he chirped, putting the key in his pocket. - -Then the two made their way to the radio shack. - - -"Shhh!" Cookie said, as he quietly unlocked the door to the radio shack. -"Don't show a light either." He glanced rapidly around him. "There," he -said, pointing to an object standing alongside a radio transmitter. -"That's it." - -A tingling thrill shot through Sandy Steele's body as his eyes pierced -the dim light that filtered through a porthole and fell on the -ship-to-shore telephone. - -"You use it just like any other telephone," Cookie whispered, as he bent -to lock the door. "Just give the operator the letters there at the -bottom, and then give her the number you want." - -Sandy Steele groaned. - -"I don't know Mr. Kennedy's number," he said. - -Cookie's brow puckered. "Well, ask the operator to locate him for you. -She might help." - -She did. - -"You see," Sandy explained, once the operator had let him know she was -on the line, "all I know about Mr. Kennedy is that he lives in Buffalo -and that he owns the Kennedy Shipping Lines. Is that enough to go on?" - -His heart sang when a pert voice replied, "I think so. Would you hold -on, please?" - -"Yes," Sandy said, and then his heart stopped singing as another voice, -neither pert nor far away, roared from outside the door. - -"Who's in that radio shack?" - -It was the voice of Captain West. - - - - - CHAPTER FOURTEEN - Checkmated - - -John Kennedy was an early riser. He had been so all his life. He had -made no exception to his custom on this warm summer morning, rising with -the first light of dawn. - -But he was not happy to greet this day. It would mark the sale of the -shipping line that had been in his family for close to a century. Though -he hurried through his bath with his usual brisk, sure motions, Mr. -Kennedy was a sorrowing man by the time he had walked out on the sundeck -of his big stone house on Delaware Avenue. - -Mechanically unwrapping his napkin and spreading it on his lap, he gazed -without appetite at the breakfast laid out for him. His ears were deaf -to the morning song of the birds, and his eyes were blind to the -pleasant prospect of the gardens and green lawns that stretched away -beneath him. - -With a sigh, Mr. Kennedy picked up his knife and fork and began to eat. - -There was the sound of footsteps and Mr. Kennedy glanced up to see his -valet advancing timidly toward him. - -"Well, Jenkins?" - -"I, I'm sorry to disturb you, sir--but there's a young gentleman on the -telephone." - -"Jenkins," Mr. Kennedy said gently, struggling to conceal his -irritation, "must I repeat my very plain orders that I am not to be -disturbed at breakfast?" - -The valet's face turned a deep red. He began to back away -apologetically. - -"I beg your pardon, sir. I will inform young Mr. Steele that he may call -later." - -Mr. Kennedy's eyebrows rose. "Steele? Did he say his name was Steele?" - -"Yes, sir. He was quite excited, sir. Something to do with a discovery -of ore, I gathered." The butler shrugged with an apologetic air. -"However, I will do as you say, sir." He turned to go, and was all but -knocked off his feet by the elderly, white-haired tornado that had shot -past him. - -Upon hearing those two words--"Steele" and "ore"--Mr. Kennedy had not -hesitated. He had thrown down his fork, torn his napkin from his knees -and leaped from his chair to bound into his bedroom and the telephone on -his bedside table. Jenkins was shocked. He had never seen Mr. Kennedy -run before--and never, never heard him shout over the telephone. - -"Wha-a-at? What's that, boy? Speak up, Sandy, I can't hear you. What -_is_ that dreadful hammering noise?" - - -Wham! Wham! Wham! - -That dreadful, hammering noise which Mr. Kennedy heard was the sound of -a sledge hammer striking the door of the radio shack. Captain West was -trying to batter it down. - -He had run for a sledge hammer the moment he realized that his shouted -commands to open the door were being ignored. Cookie stood a little -aside, staring out of frightened eyes as the door jumped under the -captain's powerful, bludgeoning blows. - -"Hurry, Sandy," he whispered feverishly. "Oh, hurry! The lock's going to -give in another minute." - -Sandy had nodded. His own eyes were fastened on the door; his heart -seemed to thump in time to Captain West's hammering; he cradled the -telephone as he waited for Mr. Kennedy in an agony of desperation. - -It was at this point that Sandy Steele at last heard the familiar voice -of Mr. Kennedy come over the line. - -Now, Sandy Steele did not care whether Captain West heard him or not. He -began to shout to make himself heard. - -"Mr. Kennedy, don't sell your boats!" - -"What? What's that, boy?" - -"I said, don't sell your boats. The ore! My father has discovered big -deposits of high-grade ore!" - -There was a long silence at the other end. Then Sandy heard Mr. Kennedy -say: "Boy, I hope you know what you're talking about. That's mighty -important news." - -"Oh, I do, sir! My father told me all about it just before we left Two -Harbors." - -There was another pause, during which the hammering outside the door -became more insistent. Sandy could hear the lock beginning to give. - -"That's very strange, Sandy," Mr. Kennedy said doubtfully. "I should -think I would have heard of it before now." - -"You were supposed to, you were supposed to, sir!" Sandy shouted. -"That's what all that hammering's about, sir. It's Captain West trying -to break into the radio shack. He doesn't want you to know!" Sandy -caught his breath and went on, "I hate to tell you this, sir, but I'm -afraid Captain West has been working for Mr. Chadwick and against you." - -This time, the silence at the other end was so prolonged that Sandy -feared he had been disconnected. At last, Mr. Kennedy spoke again, -sadly. - -"Sandy, a moment ago, you lifted my spirits as they have seldom been -lifted. But, just now, you drove them down again with about the worst -piece of news I've ever heard. Let me speak to Captain West." - -Wham! Crrrash! Snap! - -At that moment, with a blow of demonic strength, the enraged Captain -West burst the last shred of the barrier separating him from Sandy -Steele. - -He charged into the room shouting threats and with his eyes shooting -sparks of hatred. As he did, Sandy held out the telephone to him, and -said, "Mr. Kennedy would like to speak to you." - -All of Captain West's bluster and bravado seemed to vanish at the sight -of that tall, blond boy who had stood so unflinchingly in his path and -now extended the telephone toward him with that calm announcement. The -fight went out of his eyes. The color drained from his face. His -powerful shoulders sagged and his whole body seemed to slump. - -Without a word, Captain West turned and dragged himself from the room. - -"He doesn't want to speak to you, sir." - -"So it's true, then! Well, get me someone else in authority, Sandy. Put -Mr. Briggs on." - -Sandy paused, awkwardly. - -"I'm sorry, Mr. Kennedy, but I think the mate was working against you, -too." - -"Oh, Lord, Lord! Am I surrounded by unfaithful employees? Goodness, is -there no one on the _James Kennedy_ that I can trust except you, boy? -Who else is there in authority?" - -"There's Mr. Davis, sir--the next officer. But he's lost his glasses and -can't see. We've just been through a terrible storm, sir." - -"Yes, yes, I read about it in the newspapers. But I thought you would be -in port at Detroit. Is there no one else?" - -Sandy pondered. Then his face brightened. "There's Sam and Gunnar." - -"Sam! Who on earth is Sam? Oh, no, no--never mind, Sandy. Forget that -question. Goodness knows I have good reason to trust your judgment. Put -Sam on, whoever he is!" - -Sandy grinned. - -"Get Sam up here, Cookie," he shouted. Then, returning to Mr. Kennedy, -he asked, "Anything else, sir?" - -"Anything else! My goodness, boy--what else is there? For the second -time within a week, I find myself in your debt." - -Sandy was too embarrassed to make any comment, and Mr. Kennedy rushed -on, "I don't know how to thank you, boy--but I'll think of something. -Remember, you're to call me the moment you arrive in Buffalo. Both you -and your friend. By the way, how is he?" - -"Jerry? Oh, he's all right, sir--just a sprained ankle from the storm." - -"My goodness! You have had a stormy voyage, haven't you?" - -Sandy grinned again, remembering the plunge into Lake Superior to save -Cookie, the fire in the galley as the _James Kennedy_ steamed into Lake -Huron, that spanking storm on Lake Erie--to say nothing of the combined -badgering of Mr. Briggs and Captain West. But Sandy saw no reason to -tell Mr. Kennedy exactly how right he was. He just felt good, that was -all--so he grinned again and said: "Yes, sir, I guess you could call it -a stormy voyage. Here's Sam." - -Sam stepped up and took the telephone from Sandy's outstretched hand. -His manner was hesitant, for he had never spoken to the owner of the -line before. His face was grave, but as he listened, his eyes grew wider -and wider. Finally, with an expression of amazement and a snappy, "Yes, -sir!" he hung up and turned to Sandy and Cookie. - -"Well, what do you know?" he murmured. - -"Well, what?" - -"I'm in charge!" - -Cookie's mouth popped open. He began to dance in excitement, flipping -his apron in the air. "Hooray for Sam!" he shouted. "Yippee! Yip, -yip--yippeee!" - -"All right, Cookie," Sam cautioned, laughing. "Take it easy, now. It's -only until we get to Buffalo." - -"Who cares?" Cookie yelled. "Let's celebrate, anyway. I'll bake a cake!" - -Both Sandy and Sam had to laugh again at the capering little man. His -eyes shone when he promised to bake a cake, but when Sandy reminded him -that he would have to do it with burned flour, a sly look came over his -face and he pointed an accusing finger at the blond youth and shouted, -"It's all his fault, Skipper! There's the culprit! That's the landlubber -who burned down my nice, new galley!" - -Sandy grinned happily. "Honestly, Cookie, you should have been an actor. -Why, I almost believed those things you said about me, myself." His face -turned serious. "How did you know about Mr. Briggs and Captain West, -anyway?" - -"I heard 'em talking," Cookie said simply. "The night of the fire, you -put me in the mate's cabin, remember? Well, it was after they called you -in that I overheard them talking about Mr. Kennedy selling out to -Chadwick." Cookie struck his fist into his palm savagely. "Chadwick!" he -said. "Me sail on another Chadwicker? I'd sooner die on land! No, sir, -Sandy, when I heard that, I knew I had to help you. I told myself I'd -swim all the way to Buffalo with you on my back, if it meant blocking -that deal." - -"But you can't swim, Cookie." - -"No matter," the little man said grimly. "I'd've done it. I'd do -anything, before I'd sail a Chadwicker again." - -Of course, that unhappy notion was no longer a possibility--not after -the scene which took place in Mr. Kennedy's office several hours after -Sandy and Cookie and Sam had gone below to break the news to Jerry -James. - -Mr. Paul Chadwick had arrived and been ushered into Mr. Kennedy's -conference room, where the lawyers of both firms had assembled to handle -the details of the sale. Mr. Chadwick came striding in. He was a fat, -pompous man with pouches beneath his pale eyes. He had a sharp way of -speaking and he ordered his employees around as if he thought they -belonged to him, body and soul. - -"Well, Kennedy," he shot out as he took a seat at the table, "I presume -everything is in readiness?" - -"Yes, Paul," Mr. Kennedy said softly. "Everything is set." - -"Good. All right, Cogswell," he snapped, turning to one of his lawyers. -"Let's have the papers. Quick, man! The papers. Don't dawdle like a -kindergarten child; give me the papers!" - -Red-faced, the lawyer pulled a legal-looking document from his brief -case and passed it to Mr. Chadwick. In the embarrassed silence that -followed, the only sound that could be heard was the scratching of Mr. -Chadwick's pen as he hurriedly signed his name. - -"Here, John," he said grandly, passing the document across the table. -"Now, you sign right there. And, then, the Kennedy boats will belong to -me." - -"I think not, Paul," Mr. Kennedy said easily as he accepted the papers -and tore them swiftly in two. "I think they'll still belong to me." - -He handed the torn contract back to his astounded shipping rival. Mr. -Chadwick stared at the pieces in disbelief. - -"But this is preposterous!" he shouted. "You can't do this to me! You -agreed to sell, Kennedy. Why, why," he spluttered, his cheeks puffing -out like a frog's, "why, I'll sue!" - -"Go ahead, Paul," Mr. Kennedy said, getting to his feet. "And, by the -way, you may be getting busy soon, shipping all that new, high-grade ore -down from the Mesabi--as I expect to--and you may find yourself in need -of a skipper or a mate." He smiled. "I know just the men for you, Paul. -Fine, dependable men--men like Captain West or Mr. Briggs." - -A shadow of dismay passed over Mr. Chadwick's pale eyes. Without a word, -he jumped to his feet and hurried from the room. - - - - - CHAPTER FIFTEEN - Safe in Port - - -That night, under a star-dusted sky, with the lights of Buffalo to guide -her and beckon her on, the battered _James Kennedy_ limped into port. - -And waiting to greet her, in addition to her owner and his personal -physician, was a throng of chattering newspaper reporters and -photographers. The tale of the _James Kennedy_'s ordeal at sea had -preceded her. Even as the vessel was slowly warped into her berth, -photographers raced alongside her in excitement-eagerly snapping -pictures of her damaged superstructure with its wrecked pilothouse. The -flashing of their light bulbs added to the general air of excitement. - -The moment the ship was securely in port, the newspapermen came hurrying -up the gangplank. - -"Where's the skipper?" they shouted. "Where's Captain West?" - -"There he is!" one of them shouted in dismay. "He's gone ashore -already." - -True enough. The moment the newshawks had come aboard the _James -Kennedy_ and spilled over her decks, Captain West had seized the chance -to slip down the gangplank. Now he was hastening out of sight. He all -but broke into a run when he heard the yell of the newsman who had -identified him. But he slowed again when he saw that his path would take -him past Mr. John Kennedy, the employer he had attempted to betray. His -step faltered. He tried to lift his eyes to the level of Mr. Kennedy's, -to brazen it out. But he could not. His gaze fell. - -He slunk by and disappeared in the darkness. - -With a heavy sigh, Mr. Kennedy turned to the man beside him and said, -"Come, Doctor--we'd better have a look at that James boy." - -The two men made their way up the gangplank. - -"Sandy!" Mr. Kennedy exclaimed, when he caught sight of the tall, blond -youth standing at the head of the ramp. "Goodness, boy, I'm certainly -glad to see you." His face took on a worried look and his eyes searched -Sandy Steele's lanky frame. "You're all right, aren't you, boy? I mean, -I certainly wouldn't want John Steele holding me responsible for--" - -"Oh, I'm fine, sir," Sandy said, smiling. "Just a bit hungry, that's -all." - -"We'll fix that soon enough," Mr. Kennedy vowed. "But let's have a look -at your friend first. Where is he?" - -"Down below, sir. Here, I'll lead the way." - -Sandy and Mr. Kennedy and the physician, whose name was Dr. Hilliard, -disappeared down the hatch. As they did, a tall, thin, furtive figure -crept around the cabin. It glanced around fearfully, before sneaking -down the gangplank and running up the wharf. - -It was Mr. Briggs. - -Below, meanwhile, Dr. Hilliard had gently unwrapped the torn sheets -bound around Jerry James's ankle. He studied the injured member with -professional concern. Both Jerry and Sandy watched his face anxiously, -for both of them were thinking of the football season that lay ahead. - -"John," Dr. Hilliard said, with mock gravity, "if they had more people -like this young oak stump around, I'd be out of business." - -"Hooray!" Sandy cried, and Jerry James grinned with delight. - -"Of course," the doctor hurried on, "you'll need a cane for a week or -two, young man. But otherwise I'd say you're none the worse for wear." - -At that remark, Jerry winked at his friend. He rubbed his stomach -sorrowfully. "Outside of being hungry, Doctor, I'd say--" - -Mr. Kennedy broke in. - -"Boys," he said, glancing at his watch, "I promise you that in fifteen -minutes you will be in my dining room sitting down to the best meal that -was ever served up in Buffalo." - -And they were. - - -Less than a week later, the two friends were back on the Great Lakes -again--bound for Minnesota once more, this time to ship aboard a load of -grain. - -They had had a wonderful time as the guests of Mr. Kennedy. They saw all -the sights of Buffalo, including Niagara Falls, that great escarpment -over which Lake Erie plunges, and they had crossed the Peace Bridge into -Canada to have one of those famous beefsteaks at the Chinaman's in Fort -Erie. Then, after Dr. Hilliard had pronounced Jerry James fit to walk -again without the use of his cane, they had taken ship again. - -Their vessel was now the _Cecil Rogers_ (almost all Great Lakes boats -are named for shipping leaders), for the beloved old _James Kennedy_ was -in drydock undergoing extensive repairs. - -And their new skipper was? - -"Sam!" the two youths cried as they came aboard. - -Sure enough, it was their old friend, and there was Cookie, too, -grinning at them from over the rail. And there was Gunnar towering -behind him! - -"Boys," Sam said, chuckling, "meet my mate." - -There were shouts of jubilation and hand-shaking all around as Sandy and -Jerry got their gear aboard ship and into their quarters. This time, -they had a room twice as large as the rathole they had shared on the -_James Kennedy_. And this time, aboard the _Cecil Rogers_, they shipped -as deck hands. - -"No more galley slavery for us," Jerry exclaimed, and Sandy nodded in -agreement. - -That was how the two lads from Valley View passed the remainder of that -summer. They sailed up and down the Lakes, as the _Cecil Rogers_ hauled -its cargoes of ore, grain and coal. Sometimes they made Canadian ports, -and once they passed through the Welland Ship Canal into Lake Ontario, -the lake that lies the farthest east. - -At last came the sad day when they had to reclaim Old Faithful from the -hands of Sandy's dad and say goodbye to their friends. School would -reopen in another week, and they had to be heading west. - -"Gootpy, poys," Gunnar called from the rail, as Jerry's jalopy began to -chug away from the loading dock where the _Cecil Rogers_ lay. "Haf goot -trip." - -"Send us a picture of your football team," Cookie yelled, and Sam -shouted, "Keep your chin up, boys. Maybe we'll see you next summer." - -"Goodbye, goodbye," Sandy Steele and Jerry James cried, and then they -were out of sight. - - - - - CHAPTER SIXTEEN - Summer's End - - -There was a hint of autumn in the air as Jerry James swung Old Faithful -off the highway and up the ramp leading to Valley View. Both boys felt a -deep surge of pleasure run through them as they picked out the familiar -landmarks that told them they had come home again. - -The dusty old jalopy rolled along Ridge Road and past the March mansion. - -"Doesn't look like anybody's home," Sandy said. - -"That's what I thought," said Jerry. "I wonder what happened to our -friend Pepper." - -Sandy shrugged. "I don't know. But it sure was good spending all those -weeks without him. Jerry!" he yelled. "Did you hear that?" - -Jerry James had, and his eyes sparkled with delight. - -What the two boys had heard was the unmistakable thud of a foot meeting -pigskin! - -"Boy!" Sandy said. "I can hardly wait for school to open. Sounds funny, -I know, but if the fall means school, it means football, too!" - -"You bet, Sandy. The only thing I missed on the Great Lakes was not -having a chance to practice." - -"Oh, we'll be all right. At least, we stayed in shape." - -They had. They were as hard as the decks of the _James Kennedy_ and -their bodies were burned the color of walnut. - -"Well, here we are," Sandy said, as Old Faithful swung into his street. -Jerry nodded. In another instant, he had mechanically lifted his foot -from the gas pedal, as he always did when he approached Sandy's house, -and the jalopy had begun to slow down. Grasping his jam-packed suitcase -in one hand, Sandy Steele vaulted lightly to the pavement. "See you -tonight at the drugstore, Jerry," he called, and then he turned and ran -into the house. - -"Mom!" Sandy Steele called as the screen door slammed shut behind him. -"Mom! It's me. Sandy. I'm home!" - - -The whole crowd from Valley View High had gathered at the James -drugstore that night, and, of course, most of the talk was about how the -school's football team would fare in the league competition that season, -and especially how its heroes stacked up against those from the arch -rivals in Poplar City. - -As usual, Quiz Taylor was the center of a crowd as he spieled off the -weight, height and past season's record of nearly all the boys who would -be playing for Poplar City in the coming fall. - -"Honestly, fellows," he said, his round face gloomy, "I don't see how we -can beat them. Of course, we have Jerry and Sandy, but we don't have a -runner to compare with their fullback, Tomkins." - -"What about Pepper March?" someone asked. "He scored six touchdowns for -Valley View last year." - -"Yes, Quiz," Sandy said. "What about Pepper? Where is he, anyway? You'd -think he'd be here, the night before school opens." - -Quiz Taylor began to shake with laughter. - -"D-didn't you hear about Pepper?" he sputtered, his face crinkling with -merriment. "Haven't you heard about what happened to Stanley Peperdine -March?" - -"No. What happened?" - -"Yeah, Quiz," someone else said. "Cut the comedy, and let us in on the -joke, too." - -Still chuckling, Quiz Taylor said, "Pepper won't be home for another two -weeks. A couple of the sailors aboard that ship they were on came down -with one of those rare, tropical diseases. Pepper and his father had to -spend the summer in quarantine." - -There was a roar of laughter at the expense of the unpopular Pepper. - -Sandy Steele turned to his friend and said, "Well, Jerry, we may have -had a stormy voyage, but I'll bet we had a better summer than Pepper -did." - - - - - * * * * * * - - - - -Transcriber's note: - ---Copyright notice provided as in the original--this e-text is public - domain in the country of publication. - ---Silently corrected obvious typographical errors; left non-standard - spellings and dialect unchanged. - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STORMY VOYAGE*** - - -******* This file should be named 50238.txt or 50238.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/5/0/2/3/50238 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive -specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this -eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook -for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, -performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given -away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks -not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the -trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country outside the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and - most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no - restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it - under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this - eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the - United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you - are located before using this ebook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format -other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain -Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -provided that - -* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - -* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm - works. - -* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The -Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the -mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its -volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous -locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt -Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to -date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and -official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - |