e difficulties. He was instructed to file, in an
enclosed form, precise particulars of all his officers' records, and
return them accompanied by his own opinion as to their fitness for
promotion. It would be necessary, he was informed, to engage a large
number of additional officers for a fleet which the company had
purchased all standing, and the directors were anxious that those
already in their employ should have the pick of the billets. It was
important, he was warned, that he use care in recommending any man, as
the directors proposed to act upon these suggestions, and the failure of
a nominee would react unfavourably upon the prestige of the commander
responsible for the report.

Like all men who have grown up inside the protecting walls of tradition
and routine, Captain Meredith was unable to view a situation without
prejudice. Some small portion of free and independent judgment he had,
or he would never have become master; but the bulk of the decisions
which he had to make were obtained by unconscious reference to rules,
written or unwritten. This order, however, involved just that small part
of his mental equipment which made his work of interest to him, his
imagination if you like. It forced him to take a far wider view than was
ordinarily advisable. He was aware of the popular legends which have
grown around great commanders--legends of their genius for selecting
subordinates, their uncanny aptitude for appraising a man's powers at a
glance. Not so easy, Captain Meredith had found it. Like most of us, he
had in time cultivated a habit of suspending judgment, a habit of
discounting the dreadful efficiency of the new broom, the total
abstainer, the college-graduate, and the newly married. What he waited
for time to reveal was the man's principle. Without the main girder and
tie-ribs of principle, all was as nothing. And yet what comprised this
principle Captain Meredith would have been sore put to it to explain. It
was not enthusiasm, nor was it will power. It was not even intellect or
civil responsibility. It was deeper than any of these, a subtle
manifestation of character as elusive and imponderable as a beam of
light or the expression on a man's face. Somewhat to his surprise
Captain Meredith's reflections showed him that not even compatibility of
temperament had much to do with it. He and old McGinnis had never been
warm friends, had even had frequent differences on minor details of
executive routine. Neit