“Better now,” replied Ned.
As soon as the Modoc was well within the river the effects of the blow were no longer noticeable. In a short time the steamer was tied up at a dock and the boys turned in for the night.
Captain Wiggs had some business to transact in Detroit, and spent nearly all of the next day there, giving the boys a chance to go ashore and see some of the sights. They resumed their trip that evening, through Lake St. Clair, and proceeding without stop to Lake Huron.
Emerging well out upon this vast body of inland water, the boys, one bright morning, got a fine view of it.
“Isn’t it—isn’t it big!” exclaimed Fenn. “It’s—it’s simply—”
“Help him out, Ned,” suggested Bart. “You ought to have some big adjectives on hand, left over from that last French history lesson. This is too much for Stumpy.”
“It certainly is a lot of water,” commented Frank. “I thought Lake Erie was big, but this seems to beat it.”
The boys stood at the rail, absorbed in the contemplation of the beautiful scene before them. Captain Wiggs too, though he had viewed the lake many times, could not but admire the beauty of it as it sparkled in the morning sun.
One of the men from the engine room suddenly appeared on deck, and, standing behind the commander, who was explaining something to the boys, waited until the captain had finished.
“Did you wish to see me?” asked Mr. Wiggs, turning to the man.