The Saber and Scroll
worked at BP . Mair decided to write the Foreign Affairs office . She received a response within a week with an interview appointment at the London office .
In early 1940 , “ Dilly Knox had made the first breaks into the Enigma code .” 25 Mair ’ s April 1941 interview consisted of questions regarding her “ degree , music , and German in particular .” 26 She was given a brief description of the job , “ that they were looking for graduates to work in a new unit ,” and “ the purpose of this new department was to intercept and crack codes the Germans were sending to their frontline troops .” 27 At that point , the Foreign Office was handpicking “ all the brightest young men , and by the continuing belief that only a certain type of person could be trusted to keep a secret ,” 28 such as Elizabeth Blandy , an early recruit assigned to Hut Six . Elizabeth had been referred by a friend of her father who knew someone in the Foreign Office . In fact , early on , one had to know somebody who knew someone to land a job at BP .
By the time Mair interviewed for BP , the Foreign Office had provided a simple description , unlike earlier recruits , such as Elizabeth ’ s friend Jane Hughes . Jane provided insight into an early interview to work at BP ; the first step was to find out if Jane was suitable . She met with Mr . Milner-Barry in an interview filled with lots of silence before advancing to the next level of interviews . Meeting with Commander Edward Travis was similar : he was under the Official Secrets Act ( OSA ) and could not say anything . Jane left with a job at BP and the understanding that she had “ an important job to be done and everyone ought to do it if they were able to because it was so vital .” 29
Secrecy
Decades of secrecy surrounded Britain ’ s breaking of the Enigma code and the use of the intelligence gained . Thousands of people were sworn to silence while doing a job without detailed knowledge of their job description or the reason for their work . People and expectations were different in the 1940s compared to today . Currently , governments and militaries contain massive amounts of classified documents , missions , jobs , and so forth , where leaking information has become quite prevalent surrounding politics . Most military actions and movements are headline news , but not in England during World War II . The silence was golden , and Britain used the OSA of 1939 to ensure that progress made on the German Enigma was as silent as the radio waves on most days .
The OSA was reenacted in 1911 from a prior act of 1889 . 30 The act outlines many liabilities to the state , such as spying , harboring spies , wrongful communication or information , and prohibited places , and the penalties for each , which could be either misdemeanors or felony charges . In 1920 , new amendments were added to the OSA , which changed / added new wording and modified penalties . Other items included were details regarding the unauthorized use of uniforms , falsifying or forging reports , and interfering with police or his majesty ’ s forces . 31 Fol-
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