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Manganese

James Bates

    Adrian held the Brodie Helmet in his hands, trembling with excitement. Next to him his partner Louis said, “Is that what you’ve been looking for all these years?”
    Adrian’s voice was shaking as he nodded, “Yeah, I have. I’ve seen them online and on eBay but they didn’t look as cool as this one.” He held it up for Louis to get a better look.
    “It looks kind of rusty to me.”
    Adrian smiled, “Some call it rust, I prefer to think of it as a patina.”
    Louis laughed, “Spoken like a true science geek.”
    “These helmets were designed by a guy named John Brodie for the British soldiers in World War I. It’s made of steel and is solid, solid, solid. The patina builds up on the steel.”
    “You know, not to change the subject, but I’ve always heard about steel, but, really, what is it, anyway?”
    “It’s made primarily out of iron, like iron ore from up on the iron range, and a little carbon. Mix in some manganese for strength and bingo, you’ve got steel. I call it metallurgy magic.”
    Adrian taught middle school science in Hopkins, a suburb of where they lived in Minneapolis. “Louis grinned, “Your science is showing.” Then he taped on the brim of the helmet with his knuckle. It gave off a ‘thunk, thunk.’ “Sounds awfully sturdy.”
    “It is. That’s why it’s such a great helmet. Brodie invented it in early 1915, right at the beginning of England’s involvement in the war. It was so successful that the United States started manufacturing in in 1917. It’s an iconic symbol of World War I.” He gazed lovingly at the flat brimmed helmet with the round hump in the middle. “Isn’t it awesome?”
    Louis had to admit it was. “I wouldn’t think these would be all that hard to find, though. They must have made hundreds of thousands of them.”
    “They did. Get this, until these bad boys were made,” Adrian ran his hand over the smooth, rounded top, “the soldiers just wore a leather or a cloth kind of cap.” He shook his head sadly, “Not a lot of protection.”
    “No kidding.”
    “John Brodie made his fortune in gold and diamonds in South Africa and took it upon himself to design this for better protection for the British troops.” He held it out for Louis to get a good look. “It’s made of one sheet of steel, so it’s easy to make. Or form. It’s got a leather liner inside and a leather chin strap.”
    “Interesting,” Louis said. Like most people, he’d never really considered helmets used in the military before. “What’s with the wide brim?”
    “That’s to help protect against shrapnel.” Adrian shook his head. “It was a hell of a war. Trench warfare, lots of crap flying through the air.”
    “Why are you so interested in it?”
    “The war or the helmet?”
    “Both, I guess.”
    “My great grandfather served in World War One. He was twenty-four when he joined. By the time the United States entered in 1917 these types of helmets were being used by all the allies like Canada, Australia, Portugal, New Zealand, even South Africa. In the states they called it The Doughboy Helmet. You might have heard that term used before.”
    “I have.”
    “Look at the tag with this helmet.” Adrian read out loud, “Original Brodie Helmet, War Office Design. 1915.” He turned to Louis, “This is the original designed helmet. After this the others were similar, but slightly different. You don’t see the originals too often. It’s pretty rare. I’m definitely going to get it.” Adrian handed it to Louis, “Here, check it out.”
    Louis took the helmet and made it a point of giving it a good looking over. He was happy Adrian was happy, but, really, it didn’t look all that great to him. It was worn and dirty. In his world a steel helmet was a steel helmet, but that was the nature of shopping for antiques; to each their own. Get him started on old books and you’d never get him to stop talking. “Here you go,” he gave the helmet back. “I’m glad you found it. Are you ready to go?”
    Adrian gratefully took the helmet and held it to his chest. “Yes, I am.”
    As they made their way to the front of the store, Louis asked, “Where are thinking of putting it?”
    “Oh, it definitely deserves a place of honor, don’t you think?” Adrian grinned, and gave Louis a spontaneous one-armed hug. “I was thinking over the fireplace. What do you think?”
    Louis smiled back, “You love it, don’t you?”
    “I do.”
    “Then I think over the fireplace is a great place.”
    After they got home, Adrian excitedly looked for just the right nail to use. Then he took an extrodinary amount of time to get it centered perfectly between two beautiful Ming dynasty vases. Then he carefully drove the nail into the wall and lovingly placed his new purchase on the nail. Louis had to admit that over the fireplace really was a great place for the Brodie Helmet, especially when Adrian stood next to it and gently ran his hand over its worn surface and smiled. Especially then.

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