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Ph eee the cargo and the ship at the loading dock at the same time. We must also schedule the ships into our own dock so they are not *) delayed waiting to unload. A Marine Despatcher is assigned the duties of arranging cargoes and scheduling the vessels to avoid as much delay time as possible. Of course, these schedules are often disrupted by bad weather, accidents, ships ahead, etc. We must also maintain our three vessels in A-1 operating condition. This is assigned to a Port Engineer who must keep our ships in condition at all times so they can pass Coast Guard and American Bureau of Shipping regulations. He is in charge of a crew of 30 men who do the winter repair work during the time the ships are laid up. We carry a crew of 33 men on the HENRY and BENSON and 35 men on the CLAY. These men come aboard about the last week in March and stay until the middle of December. During that time they work seven days a week, stand four-hour watches, twice a day—that is, four hours on and eight hours off. While in port they are free to leave the ship if they are off watch; otherwise they must stand their watch. The normal loading time is. five hours, and the normal unloading time is eight to nine hours, so you can see they do not get much time to do their home work. All three of our vessels have passenger quarters and during the summer months many passengers are carried as Company guests. Before you get any ideas, however, I might mention that every request must be signed by the President or a Vice President before it can be accepted. When you see these ships plowing up through the river or across Lake St. Clair: during the summer months, it is easy to draw the conclusion that "this is the life." Out on the Lake in a nice cool summer night breeze? If these same people were out in their cruiser during the middle of November, it is quite a different. picture. When the water gets cold, it gets hard and ruthless. Winds of gale and hurricane force are prevalent after November lst. These ships become covered with ice from the spray which makes the decks very hazardous. These are the conditions that make sailing the most dangerous occupation in the world. This race to close out the season suddenly becomes a fight for life or death. The officers on watch must be extra careful in determining whether or not to venture out into Lake Superior when gale warnings are up.. Their course must be laid out to avoid as mueh stress as o possible to the ship. These large ships bounce around just as much as a yacht does. They roll and twist and heave up in the