“Not if it’s worth doing,” answered Evans. “It’s no more complicated or difficult than director firing or torpedo work or several other things you rely on in battle, that have been perfected by intensive effort and labor. It’s just a matter of insisting that the gear shall be in working trim, and then everlastingly drilling the men in the use of it.”
For a moment Fraser sat deep in thought while the other watched him. Then, as his face bespoke the conclusion of his train of thought, Evans added:
“The one thing I fear as a menace to the success of such a plan is treachery. Any little leakage of information bearing on it might well prove fatal. I should be afraid to have an intimation of the plan go even to the General Staff in Washington.”
Fraser looked at him hard and nodded thoughtfully.
“Yes,” he said, “a hint of it to the enemy would be fatal. But confidential messages to the General Staff are well safeguarded.”
“Would any such message be necessary? I hate to think how easy it would be for a radio operator of the wrong kind to tip some one off by means of a cipher worked into the traffic; and you can’t know all about every operator.”
Fraser nodded.
“That’s true,” he said; “it’ll pay to keep the lid on good and tight, if we try any game like this. But then, that’s a big ‘if.’”
During the next few days the ideas Fraser had arrived at during their talk recurred to him from time to time with increasing force, but with all his acumen he never knew the power of suggestion whereby the strategic plan which so fired his enthusiasm had been laid before his mind’s eye. At last he discussed, with some of the admirals in command of divisions of the fleet, the question of training the personnel to place their divisions in long-range formations by means of radio-compass triangulation, and pointed out some of the tactical advantages that might be had by so doing. The admirals for the most part thought little of the idea. They were used to thinking of the radio compass as a useful adjunct to navigation in thick weather, and as being possibly useful in finding enemy submarines, but to use it for fleet formations seemed ridiculous. Some thought it looked well on paper, but wouldn’t work out in the practice; one or two simply didn’t think. These officers, excellent men, well trained in their profession, could hardly be blamed for shying at so radical an innovation. An eminent scientist has said anent the inflexibility of the mind in the latter half of its career, that, considering what an immutable structure the nervous system becomes at maturity, the remarkable fact is that we can take in any new ideas after fifty. The flexible mind at this age is a rarity; the original mind at any age is a rarity.
Fraser sought Commander Jeremy and was surprised and impressed with the number of verified predictions of weather several days in advance and the regularity with which they were correctly made. The intricate system of measurements of temperature, humidity, wind direction and velocity presented a truly wonderful picture of scientific development; and the way all these were correlated with similar data from remote stations and the conclusions were reached was marvelous.