The Dumbarton Castle junior officer remembers Gilbert 'Monkey' Stephenson turning ship visits into sudden emergencies. Officers could be told that the captain was dead, a fire had broken out and a mine threatened the bow, then ordered to act. Stephenson demanded that officers make their men think and sent those he judged inefficient for extended retraining. Nighttime attempts to steal ships' logs tested vigilance. When an officer reversed the exercise by boarding Stephenson's own ship and claiming to have captured it, Stephenson was delighted by the initiative.
Notable Point · 2:32:58-2:34:13
Monkey Stephenson's working-up drills demanded initiative
Emergency drills, surprise night visits and enforced retraining tested whether escort officers could respond and make their crews think.