The common saying about cryptologists, as William phrased it, was that “it is not necessary” to be insane, “but it helps.” There was uncomfortable truth in the joke. To operate at the highest level of the field seemed to require the kind of pitiless attention and focus that turned some otherwise pleasant and well-adjusted people into zombies who stumbled down the stairs. Mental breakdown was a hazard of the job. During the coming war, several American cryptologists would crack under the strain. Captain Joe Rochefort, one of the
