Captain Folsom takes over a ship a tramp steamer called the Satropos only to find out that all the crew except two have quit. They all left when they heard that Folsom was to be made captain because of his reputation. He lost one ship in a hurricane and his next ship in a fire, with many lives lost. Although Folsom was exonerated, the crew are superstitious and consider him a jinx and refuse to work with him. King is asked to try and get a crew. The crew do return, with a pay increase, and the insurance inspectors approve the voyage. To help the captain, King signs on to see all goes well as he suspects that there could be some sabotage.
—jem