As a reward for 40 years of stainless service at sea, Captain Douglas R. V. Lee was given command of the $12 million Royal Mail liner Magdalena. A silent, broad-shouldered man of 59, Captain Lee planned to make two voyages in his spanking new 17,500-ton ship, then retire. After that, said his wife: "My business will be him, and his business me."
The Magdalena's maiden voyage began uneventfully enough out of London. After a smooth South Atlantic crossing, the liner coasted down to Santos and Buenos Aires, picking up a cargo of Brazilian oranges and Argentine beef, then headed northeast...