“Secrecy and Secretiveness.”
There are three types of Secrecy:—
| I. | The Ostrich. |
| II. | The Red Box. |
| III. | The Real Thing. |
I. The ostrich buries his head in the sand of the desert when pursued by his enemy, and because he can’t see the enemy concludes the enemy can’t see him! Such is the secrecy of the secretive and detestable habit which hides from our own officers what is known to the world in other Navies.
II. The secrecy of the Red Box is that of a distinguished Admiral who, with great pomp, used to have his red despatch box carried before him (like the umbrella of an African King), as containing the most secret plans; but one day, the box being unfortunately capsized and burst open, the only contents that fell out were copies of “La Vie Parisienne”!
Such, it is feared, was the secrecy of those wonderful detailed plans for war we hear of in the past as having been secreted in secret drawers, to be brought out “when the time comes,” and when no one has any time to study them, supposing, that is, they ever existed; and, remember, it is detailed attention to minutiæ and the consideration of trifles which spells success.
III. There is the legitimate secrecy and secretiveness of hiding from your dearest friend the moment and the nature of your rush at the enemy, and which of all the variety of operations you have previously practised with the Fleet you will bring into play! But all your Captains will instantly know your mind and intentions, for you will hoist the signal or spark the wireless message, Plan A, or Plan B ..., or Plan Z!
“After I have made known my intentions,” began Nelson’s last order; and it expressed the experience of a hundred battles—that the Second in Command (and in these days it may well be amplified into the individual officers in command) are to fulfil the spirit of the peace manœuvre teaching, and assist by the teaching in carrying out the meaning of brief signals to the destruction of the enemy’s Fleet. The secret of success lies in the first part of the sentence: “After I have made known my intentions.”
Confidence is a plant of slow growth. Long and constant association of ships of a Fleet is essential to success. A new-comer is often more dangerous than the enemy.
An Army may be improvised in case of war, but not a Navy.
Immense importance of constant readiness at all times. A Fleet always ready to go to sea at an hour’s notice is a splendid national life preserver! Here comes in the water-tube boiler! Without previous notice or even an inkling, we have been ready to start in one hour with water-tube boiler ships. You can’t exaggerate this! One bucket of water ready on the spot in the shape of an instantly ready Fleet will stop the conflagration of war which all the Fire Brigades of the world won’t stop a little later on! Never forget that from the very nature of sea fighting an initial Naval disaster is irretrievable, irreparable, eternal. Naval Colensos have no Paardebergs!
Suddenness is the secret of success at sea, because suddenness is practicable, and remember that rashness may be the height of prudence. How very rash Nelson was at the Nile to go in after dark to fight the French Fleet with no chart of the shoals of Aboukir!
But you must be sure of your Fleet and they must be sure of you! Every detail previously thought out. Trust no one! (My friend, Maurice Bourke, used to tell a story of the Yankee barber, who put up in his shop: “To trust is to bust, and to bust is hell!” which means “no credit given”). Make the very best of things as they are. Criminal to wait for something better. “We strain at the gnat of perfection and swallow the camel of unreadiness.”