Not a ship could leave either Rossyth or
Cromarty without an immediate cable being sent by me to Berlin,
reporting how many war vessels and of what type had put to sea, also
if possible the reason for the movement.
At the Intelligence Department, I was given carte blanche as to how to
go about my mission. I am frank to say I did not care at all for it.
I had good reason to be wary. The suspicious state of England at the
time, and a stringent law just passed, made this mission very
dangerous as far as your liberty was concerned. There was no danger
of a knife thrust as in the Balkans, but there was of jail. Contrary
to all precepts of British law, there had been rushed through the
House of Commons, the Official Secrets Act, a clause so elastic and
convenient for convictions that a judge could charge a jury to find a
man guilty on suspicion only. As I recall it the gist of it was:
"Any person or persons making or obtaining any document whatsoever,
endangering or likely to endanger the safeguards of Great Britain can
be found guilty notwithstanding there being no consequent proof of any
actual offense. A sentence of seven years penal servitude will be
given the offender."
It does not need a lawyer to point out the tremendous power of
prosecution that this added clause to the statutes put in the hands of
the English government. As I stated, it was rushed through the House
of Commons, but it was necessary.
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