"I fear the Zeppelin menace will be serious in the North Sea before many
months. It is only the bad weather which protects us."
The alterations to my machine were being carried on by a first-class
firm at Willesden, therefore, at Teddy's suggestion, all three of us ran
over in the car in order to inspect the work, which we found progressing
most favourably.
The foreman engineer, a big fat, elderly man, just as we were about to
leave the premises, called me aside and, in a confidential tone,
exclaimed:
"Excuse me, sir. But did you send a gentleman named Hale here?"
"Hale?" I repeated, looking at him in surprise. "I know nobody of that
name!"
"Well--here's his card," said the engineer. "He called yesterday
afternoon, and told me that you'd sent him, and that he had your
authority to look at your machine."
I took the rather soiled card, and saw upon it the name: "Harold Hale--
National Physical Laboratory."