shadow of britain

Chapter 867 Don't be fooled by how enthusiastically Melbourne is beating around the bush.
Admiralty of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

Whitehall, London
December 15 2025

By order of Her Majesty’s gracious permission, the Naval Commission of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland:

Elder Carter is hereby promoted to Second Secretary of the Admiralty and appointed Deputy Director of the Chart Survey Bureau of the Admiralty, and is assigned to directly assist Colonel Francis Beaufort, Director of the Chart Survey Bureau, in all matters relating to charts, surveying and nautical data.

All subordinate officials and relevant departments must be aware of this appointment and, within the scope of their duties, strictly abide by its instructions and await its dispatch.

Elder Carter, in the course of performing his duties, shall enjoy and exercise all the rights, privileges and benefits accorded to this position.

This decree is hereby issued and shall be regarded as evidence.

By order of the Naval Committee

sign:

Sir John Barrow
Second Secretary (Permanent Secretary) of the Admiralty of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
……

Elder stared at the appointment letter, his fingertips gripping the bright red wax seal tightly, his knuckles turning slightly white from the force.

His breathing became rapid, and his chest felt bloated as if it were being roasted in a furnace.

The paper rustled in his trembling hands, and the appointment letter shook incessantly.

"Secondary Secretary, Deputy Director in charge of day-to-day operations..." Elder murmured, as if he couldn't believe that the line of black printed words was truly written on the parchment. His mind was a mess, and he couldn't even remember how he had received the letter of appointment from Arthur.

Arthur, sitting opposite him, gently placed the saucer back on the table, his fingers gracefully gripping the handle of the teacup, and slowly sipped the hot tea. In the firelight, his expression was calm to the point of indifference, as if this appointment was nothing to be surprised about, but simply something he had expected.

He's only a second-class clerk. If he's willing, considering that he persuaded Victoria to give up her right to review death sentences, even if he tries to get a first-class clerk position for Elder, the Ministry of the Interior will have to do everything they can to help him.

However, firstly, that would easily make Lord John Russell, the Home Secretary, and Mr. Phillips, the Permanent Secretary of the Home Office, feel that his appetite was too great, and could easily arouse unnecessary hatred and attention.

Secondly, it's not always true that the higher your official rank, the more power you have.

The position in the Navy Department that oversaw the Greenwich Observatory and the Cape of Good Hope Observatory was that of a First Secretary, but it was clear that the First Secretary held far less power than the Second Secretary, who was the Deputy Director of the Chart and Survey Bureau.

The power of the deputy director of the nautical chart bureau lay primarily in his chair, which was right next to that of the director, Colonel Beaufort.

Despite his unremarkable rank, Colonel Francis Beaufort, a 63-year-old technical officer in the Royal Navy, is the central figure in the entire Royal Navy's scientific department. Even the notoriously discerning Royal Navy Council had to admit: "In our service, few officers possess even half of Beaufort's expertise and ability, and his enthusiasm and perseverance are unmatched."

Unlike those Royal Navy admirals who were good at winning battles, Beaufort, although he had military achievements and was a participant in the "glorious Battle of June 1st", his most outstanding abilities were in the fields of water depth measurement and bearing determination.

All the nautical chart data for the La Plata estuary in South America and southern Asia Minor were determined by Beaufort's team. The first edition of the Admiralty Tide Tables, the internal wind scale (Beaufort scale), and the weather symbol coding were also Beaufort's masterpieces.

In keeping with the British custom of using useful tools to the fullest extent, in 1829, Beaufort, who was 55 years old and should have retired according to custom, was appointed by the Admiralty as Director of the Admiralty Chart Survey. Two years later, he went a step further and was given full authority over the newly established scientific departments of the Admiralty, overseeing the Admiralty Chart Survey, the observatories at Greenwich and the Cape of Good Hope, and the Office of Nautical Almanacs and Nautical Clocks.

When Beaufort first took office, the Royal Navy produced only 19 new nautical charts each year. Last year, the number of new nautical charts produced annually exceeded 600, and the geographical scope of the chart surveys also expanded significantly, covering not only domestic waters but also as far overseas as the Pacific and Indian Ocean coasts.

More importantly, Beaufort also excelled in promoting scientific talent within the Royal Navy. Captain Robert FitzRoy, Charles Darwin, and Elder Carter, who completed the circumnavigation of the globe, Captain John Franklin, who was responsible for exploring the Northwest Passage in the Arctic, and William Sewell, who determined the tide tables for Europe and North America, were all discovered and given important positions by him.

However, even though Beaufort was energetic and always enthusiastic about naval scientific work, he was, after all, a 63-year-old man.

Therefore, starting a few years ago, Beaufort gradually stopped focusing on practical work and instead took the helm of the overall direction of the operation, paying close attention to the details of the scientific research results he loved. As for the trivial practical implementation work, he mainly left it to the civil servants below him.

As Beaufort ages and his energy declines, more and more power will fall into the hands of Elder, the deputy director of the chart surveying bureau.

Even just looking at it now, Elder wields considerable power.

This is primarily reflected in publishing and distribution.

Before any Royal Navy ship sets sail, it must obtain the latest nautical charts and almanac from the Chart Survey Office.

These nautical charts not only cover the waters near Britain, but also encompass the Caribbean Sea, the Indian Ocean, the Pacific islands, and even the complex waters of South America and Southeast Asia.

As deputy director, Elder had the authority to decide which batches of nautical charts to print first, which nautical data to publish later, and even to influence which captains would receive complete data before setting sail by adjusting the printing volume, while others would have to rely on the old version.

Secondly, the data sources of the Chart Survey Bureau did not rely entirely on the measurements of the naval fleet. Astronomical observations from the Greenwich Observatory and the Cape Observatory, tidal studies by scholars of the Royal Society, and even the logbooks submitted by merchant ship captains all came together on Elder's desk.

He was responsible for organizing the screening and archiving of data, deciding which data would be included in the Nautical Almanac and which would be kept for internal reference. In other words, he held the key to the relationship between science and practice; which scholar's research would be included in the Royal Navy's standard documents largely depended on his word.

There is also the right to make recommendations on budgets and personnel. Although the funds ultimately need to be approved by the Navy's financial secretary and the legislature, the deputy director must first draft the budget proposals regarding how many draftsmen the Chart Survey Bureau needs, how many instruments to purchase, and whether to hire more clerks and cartographers.

Beaufort is quite old, and unless the situation has deteriorated to the point where he must intervene personally, he usually only nods in the general direction, while the specific personnel quotas are decided by the deputy director. Therefore, nowadays, even when the Ministry of Finance issues inquiries, they habitually go directly to the deputy director for a response.

Even if Elder wanted to make some extra money, it would be much easier now.

Since the 1810s, the Chart Survey had gradually become the data center upon which British maritime transport depended.

Trading companies that want to make money at sea, insurance companies that deal in merchant ships, and even overseas franchise companies like the East India Company and the African Company are all trying to find out the latest water depths and shipping lane conditions.

Although the Navy Department sets prices for publicly sold nautical charts, it is well known that the Navy Department cannot sell all internal documents and unpublished revised drafts and other strategic intelligence at the same time. The real decision-maker regarding which nautical charts can be sold and which must be strictly sealed is Elder, the unassuming second secretary and deputy director of the Chart Survey Bureau.

The power he wielded was enough to influence the voyage risks of many long-distance fleets, and enough to make a host of business tycoons who roamed the world humbly come to him for help.

Ten years ago, who would have imagined that two University of London students would be sitting in this warm café, one holding the reins of the Chart Survey and the other moving freely among the various departments of Whitehall, and if he so desired, even having a minor arm-wrestling match with the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary?

Sir Arthur Hastings's status in London politics was already quite unique.

His background as a Scotland Yard native, once ridiculed as that of a "peasant from Yorkshire," has now become evidence that he "comes from the people."

Whether it was the articles in the London Gazette or the policing experience cited in debates between the Houses of Lords and Lords, he possessed a unique voice between the monarchy and the government. The high-ranking officials in the cabinet may not have genuinely liked him, but most of the time they had to admit that without Sir Arthur Hastings, certain thorny issues might not have been resolved so cleanly.

As for Elder Carter's status, it is a different, more subtle manifestation.

To outsiders, this potential recipient of the Royal Medal only saw the title of "Second Secretary of the Admiralty," which sounded far less prestigious than some First Secretaries in the Treasury or Foreign Office. But those who truly roamed Whitehall knew that the approval of the Deputy Director of the Chart and Survey Bureau often influenced the success of a fleet's voyage, and could even sway the selection of new ports in colonies and the profits and losses of commercial trading companies. Even self-proclaimed insurance experts and shipowners chatting amiably in cafes had to greet Elder with smiles and try to build rapport with him.

Elder clutched the letter of appointment tightly, blinking hard as if trying to force back the tears welling in his eyes, but his voice still trembled slightly as he spoke: "I...I swear, I will live up to the trust of the nation, and I will live up to the recognition of Her Majesty the Queen and the members of the Admiralty. Even if it costs me my life, I will live up to this appointment!"

As he said this, his palm was still restlessly rubbing the wax seal on the appointment letter.

Arthur glanced at it and swore to God that even when Elder went to Leicester Square to find girls to watch the play, his restless little hands hadn't been this active.

He stirred the teaspoon in his hand, and said with a half-smile, "Look, who is this? Where has my friend Mr. Elder Carter, who always complains and rants about social injustice, gone?"

Elder, shameless, shoved the appointment letter back into his pocket: "Where else could he have gone? He's become part of social injustice. It's just polite talk, Arthur, do you really need to take this so seriously?"

Arthur shook his head, slowly stirring his teaspoon, the metal tapping lightly against the porcelain, producing a crisp sound. "Eld," he said, "it really makes one feel sorry for you. So many people would kill to get into Whitehall, even just as a third-class clerk, they could boast about it for a lifetime in their local gentry circles. Now you're in charge of the practical work of an entire bureau, dozens of people under you working overtime to draw up plans at your command, and yet you insist on playing the victim. What do you mean by being part of social injustice? You need to remember, you got to this position through your genuine talent and ability."

Elder laughed heartily, of course he understood what Arthur meant: "Of course, if it's not real talent and ability, what else could it be but alumni connections? Only scoundrels from Oxford and Cambridge like to play the nepotism game. We, the graduates of the University of London, rely on our own abilities when we go out into the world!"

Arthur picked up his teacup and lightly clinked it against Elder's: "To celebrate your promotion at the Admiralty, how about taking a day off and coming to Paris with me for a couple of days?"

Upon hearing Arthur's suggestion, Elder retorted without hesitation, "Go see Alexander? With that fat man's petty temper, he'd be furious if he knew I got promoted. When are we going? I can pack my bags tonight when I get home."

Arthur waved his hand gently: "There's no rush to go to Paris. Her Majesty the Queen will be attending the closing ceremony of Parliament on the 17th, so it's not too late to leave after that. Besides, after Parliament closes, I can travel with Lord Brougham. He plans to go to Provence for the summer during the recess, so traveling with him will save me from being lonely on the road."

"Lord Brougham?" Elder paused, then scoffed. "How ridiculous... A man who once sat on the throne of the Lord Chancellor is now forced to flee to Provence for a quiet life. The Viscount of Melbourne and the Whigs are truly capable of such a thing. They've probably forgotten who, during the 1832 Parliamentary Reform Bill deliberations in the House of Lords, delivered speeches for over three hours in 85-degree Fahrenheit, ultimately collapsing from exhaustion and begging the House to pass the bill. And who, after losing his position as Lord Chancellor, disregarded past grievances and assisted the Melbourne Cabinet in passing the Municipal Reform Bill?"

Arthur put down his teaspoon: "You're right. Lord Brougham's predicament these past few years has been largely due to Prime Minister Viscount Melbourne. His methods of suppressing his old colleagues are far more sophisticated than his outward appearance of sleeping soundly in the House of Lords."

Like all University of London graduates, Elder had long disliked the Viscount of Melbourne's faction.

He slammed his teacup down on the table: "The people in Melbourne, in the end, are just afraid that Lord Broham's brilliance will overshadow them. What a pity, without Lord Broham, where would the University of London, the Court of Chancery, and even the entire British education and legal system be today? The Whigs are really good at kicking away the ladder after crossing the river."

Arthur gently swirled the tea in his cup: "What's even more interesting is that the guy is now constantly fawning over Her Majesty the Queen, claiming to be loyal and devoted. If you saw with your own eyes his obsequious behavior at Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace, ha..."

Elder narrowed his eyes, staring at Arthur, half angry and half mocking, and said, "Your Majesty is so young, I'm afraid you can't see through the tricks of these old foxes, can you?"

Arthur didn't speak, but gave Elder a meaningful look.

Although Arthur didn't finish his sentence, his eyes were enough to pique Elder's interest in digging into Melbourne's shady dealings.

"Him? Viscount William Lamb of Melbourne? Ha! If I didn't know about his old, trivial matters, I might have been fooled by him."

(End of this chapter)