Hans was up before the call at ten o'clock on Saturday evening. He had been dreaming about the plight of the William R. Jammison. The dream had not been a pleasant one. He was still at a loss to explain what had happened to the steering system between Friday, when it was operating by the book, and this morning when it was not. Could it have anything to do with the two new unfamiliar crewmen? A deckhand would not have access to any critical areas, but an engineer definitely would. He promised himself to keep a watchful eye on Norm Bitterman, the new assistant in that department. A talk with George Oliver, the chief engineer, would also be a wise move to alert him to what might turn out to be a problem.

There was no solid reason for Hans's suspicions, but he preferred to take the cautious route.