Meanwhile, the development of the air-craft carrier had proceeded, but not with the same rapidity. It was evident to me in 1916 that for anti-Zeppelin work we should look towards the aeroplane flying from the deck, rather than to the sea-plane, although it also could rise from the deck; but I gathered the time was hardly ripe for the step, owing to the landing difficulty, and the first efforts of the Royal Naval Air Service lay in the direction of providing a type of sea-plane that would fly well off the deck and climb quickly. These efforts were fairly successful, but the development of the heavier-than-air craft machine for use with the Fleet did not begin until the aeroplane was adopted for the work; and this took place in 1917, when progress became rapid, and continued until the end of the War. There remains the question of the airship, which was also being developed during the period 1914–16, but as this matter was not within the province of the Fleet, it is unnecessary to touch upon it here. V.--THE BLOCKADE The story of the development of the Grand Fleet would be incomplete without reference to the Blockade, and, in particular, to the work of the 10th Cruiser Squadron. In the early days of the War, the 10th Cruiser Squadron consisted of the ships of the “Edgar” class--vessels at least twenty years old; and during August, 1914, the Admiralty commissioned three armed merchant ships, the _Mantua_, _Alsatian_ and _Oceanic_, to strengthen the squadron for blockade work; the latter ship was lost by shipwreck in September of that year. The Blockade in those early days was carried out by the 10th Cruiser Squadron and by the other cruiser squadrons attached to the Grand Fleet. During November, 1914, the ships of the “Edgar” class were withdrawn owing to their unseaworthy condition, and the ships’ companies utilised to commission a number of additional armed merchant cruisers. By the end of December, 1914, the squadron consisted of eighteen ships, being raised later to a strength of twenty-four ships. A very large proportion of the officers and men of the reconstituted 10th Cruiser Squadron belonged to the Mercantile Marine. The advent of so large a squadron of these vessels called for a considerable organisation for their maintenance; they were based on Liverpool for all the heavy work of upkeep, whilst a secondary advanced base at Swarbachs Minn, on the west coast of the Shetland Islands, was gradually developed, and obstructed against submarine attack. The work of organisation was carried out by Rear-Admiral de Chair, who commanded the squadron, ably seconded by Rear-Admiral H. H. Stileman, the Senior Naval Officer at Liverpool, to whom we were much indebted for hearty co-operation and efficient organisation at the base.