"Can you shovel coal?"
"We can shovel anything that we are able to lift."
"Very well, then; I'll put you in the stoke hole."
"What kind of a hole is that?" questioned Jarvis.
"That is the place where the black-faced gang shovel the fuel under the boilers to make the ship move along."
"Oh, you mean the firemen?"
"That's the scientific name. The common name is stoker. I'll send you down to the chief engineer, and he will give you a trick. You'll have to work like sixty, and if you don't you'll get off at the Soo and foot it back home," continued the skipper gruffly.
If Steve were disappointed, or objected to the work that had been assigned to them, he made no comment. Jarvis, however, made no secret of his displeasure. He grumbled under his breath, despite the warning looks directed at him by Steve Rush.
Captain Simms pushed a button, and a few minutes later a short man, clean shaven, red of face like the captain, entered.