The services--Navy, Army and Royal Air Force--were represented in the Hut
in order to facilitate exploitation. Further, all collateral intelligence
which might be of aid to operational personnel--PW interogations, daily
and weekly intelligence reports, situation reports from commands in the
field etc.-- were made freely available. To the aluminus of Arlington Hall,
accustomed to the slower procedure which traffic of mainly strategic or
diplomatic character permits and used to the organisation which seperated the
cryptanalytic agency from the intelligence-exploiting agency, this naked
view of signal intelligence was exhilarating.
G. C. and C. S. had the highest priority in the recruitment of
personnel, not only for Hut Three but for the other departments as well.
B. P. was thus able to draw upon universities in the Unite King-
dom and upon all the services for the best-qualified people. The American
party considered themselves fortunate to be associated with colleagues of
unvarying high calibre. The high standard of qualification was maintained
not only for operational but also administrative personnel.
In view of the exacting nature of the work, B. P. considered it
necessary that members of Hut Three take a week's leave every three months
in order to retain their efficiency. The American party were not always
able to take advantage of this rest period since American policy of
leaves and furloughs did not coincide with the British.
In the watches all British personnel were as a matter of policy
captains except the senior member (Number 1) who was a major. The majority
of the American party were of lesser rank than their British colleagues
fulfilling the same duties and their American colleagues from the Embassy
serving as military or air advisers. This state of affairs was never
quite comprehensible to the British, but it is believed that the morale
of the American party did not suffer materially despite the slowness or
lack of promotion since the importance of the task being performed was
apparent ans afforded compensation in itself.
