Robert Leckie

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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.” ”

“ 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!” ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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.” ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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! ”

“ 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.” ”

“ 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!” ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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?” ”

“ 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!” ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”