Show I t 1 i 1 r The Complex Cipher 4 Taken from r the ther r Notebook of an Old Detective i by Charles Edmonds Edmond Walk d And With Names Name and Places Hidden Published as IS a Proof That Truths Truth Tr th Is Stranger Than Fiction i coon t 5 l This story throbs with realism realIsm realism real- real ism In the words word's narrowest meaning It is a faithful rendering rendering ren ren- dering of an authentic experience expert ence in the career of a high official of a detective agency whose name is a household word throughout the English English- speaking world Real names of persons and places are sometimes sometimes some some- times disguised In all other respects respects re re- the amazing often thrilling thrilling thrilling thrill thrill- ing always gripping facts are recorded just as they happened I. I Felix Hazard snorted with disgust and nd eyed with vast disparagement the sheet of paper paper spread flat open upon the he desk between himself and Helen Bertel The sheet bore what was seemingly a meaningless jumble of ot typewritten letters after this fashion And you cant can't find the weak place lace asked the girl girl the the joint in ints ints Its ts armor I IFor For Hazard had descanted at considerable considerable consid- consid erable length on the principles of cr or secret writing pointing point point- ng mg out the number of weaknesses that render all such writings susceptible of Interpretation when one diligently and intelligently sets himself to the task f bringing to light their hidden mean mean- ing Cryptography is a fascinating tudy averred Hazard discursively leaning back and rumpling his hair But no system has ever been devised devised de- de that meets all requirements he principles by which most ciphers ire are solved have been given a good eal leal of study and have been so that the expert usually as pretty plain sailing when he herings herings rings himself to the task of reading message not intended for his eyes Poes Poe's Gold Bug Dug holds the interest almost Almost solely by a description of ot the Solution of ot a cryptogram and the same lame is true of Sherlock Holmes' Holmes solution solution so- so lution ution of the dancing men cipher hese two examples however are about th simplest forms of cipher wil writing ng The speaker abruptly banged the pen pen sheet on his desk with his palm This thing though is not going o 0 fo be easy to interpret I believe it its its fa s based upon what is known as the Square ey-Square system but as it is one hat lends itself to innumerable varia- varia ions and combinations only time and laborious effort are going to give us ushe ushe che he clue we need unless need unless indeed we Should stumble upon it accidentally Helen Bertels Bertel's fine gray eyes slowly ook ok stock of the mans man's outward evil evidences evi evi- dences lences of perturbation rumpled perturbation rumpled hair l wrinkled clothing disarranged tie tic days' days growth of beard beard and and her softened She consulted a sec second nd sheet of ot Taper paper that lay upon the desk which yore pore numerous memoranda Said she If U the fixed rules for deciphering Cryptograms cryptograms amount to anything at fill 11 I dont don't see why they shouldn't I to every case You tell me thatis that hat 2 is the letter most frequently used If C next and then come In the follow follow- following ng ing groups arranged according to heir respective degree of ot frequency ONI DL YUM C lK We Ve know that all words 11 f single letters must be A I or 0 O and that hat the double letters that occurs occur's occur s 1 post frequently are EE 00 OO FF LL find sad Ind SS Am 1 I correct so far J Hazard nodded Go on he en en- r Next then the commonest words I it It d two letters according to their freI fre- fre I Tience Vence are of to in it is be he by r as at an BO so Disregarding th the is almost never used in ciphers and ind and are lead the words of or three I then follow follow- Hazard glumly broke in Never mind the words of four let- let I f rs Did you ou apply all these tests to toI tolis I lis us cipher Helen signified that she had And Andle Andie I Ie le ie result was quite as silly and mean- mean gless gl ss as it t already is she added Is not hot hard The reason to find azard explained This cipher I contain enough repetitions of ol groups itter-groups groups to suggest anything at ii 11 none of the commonest words are Ten iVen yen remotely suggested and and as for a or T or any of the rest one is ot of t justified even In guessing at a otter letter All this signifies that a m has bas been used that avoids Hons Ions Such a system Is the so-called so Key Key- Square If It has been used my work works t s all cut out for me The Square Key repeated the girl what is it With his pencil Hazard drew a l quare containing twenty five smaller In each of ot tho the latter ho he in In- a a. letter Jetter of the alphabet A Abe At Athe Atlie be lie top of each of the five vertical Columns 8 he wrote a numeral l numeral 1 2 I II 3 I and and 5 5 and likewise a at t bno one end o of each of ot the five horizontal columns The completed figure appeared thus J I 2545 o 55 S T Z 3 i 0 J e eJ J s n J i II w P m c cu cv 3 v u e 5 I Here is the key said he Every letter inside the square is indicated by I two wo of the bordering numerals By Dy agreement one letter is dropped in inthis inthis this his case the letter X c which is represented by two zeros To manufacture or decipher a message message mes- mes sage age by this key assuming let us say ay that the first two words will be Meet 1 me the first letter m is inthe in inthe I the he third vertical column and also the i third hird horizontal column The numerals numerals numerals numer numer- als 33 therefore would indicate the theetter letter etter m In like manner 51 would be e 22 would woud be t and so on The cip cipher ipher would appear thus Note that out of ot six combinations combinations ions of two t two numerals three three one one half are are repetitions 51 or the letter e But the authors of our hidden message message mes- mes I sage age have offered us a problem that thatis i is s far from being so simple as my illustration 11 il is This cryptogram I is composed composed composed com com- posed of letters instead of ot numerals and please and please remember this this contains contains every letter with three notable lons The only letters that dont don't appear appear appear ap ap- ap- ap pear are A B D and I. I Perhaps those three exceptions will supply us with the he clue we are seeking Let us proceed a step farther By enlarging our square with the addition addition addi- addi tion lon of one vertical column and one horizontal column we have thirty-six thirty smaller mailer squares instead of twenty-five twenty thus hus providing spaces for not only all the he letters of the alphabet but the nine numerals and the cipher or zero as well And instead of numerals around the borders of the square let letus letus letus us try the effect of capital letters The enlarged square key appeared thus hus M NO W. W O 0 P Q R RL L e db i c d S cle e f 5 xh T d m n o p y I st sf rr lL y y 1 Hyz z G 5 7 8 9 o 0 Y f P TED E D C B B E A Now observe pursued Hazard The capital letters around the border take the place of numerals and will supply the cipher letters Furthermore Furthermore Furthermore Further Further- more by extending the letters entirely around the border as I have here there are eight possible different combinations combinations combinations com com- of two capital capita or cipher letters letters letters let let- to designate any desired letter or numeral inside the key For instance suppose you want to indicate the letter e which Is in the first horizontal column and the fifth vertical vertical vertical ver ver- column The small square produced produced pro pro- by this intersection is indicated by Q at the top and S at the right right right- QS which Is the letter lette e In like m manner S at the right and B D at the bottom or B at the bottom and L at atthe atthe atthe the left or L Land and Q all designate e Proceed around the square key In the reverse direction and four more different different different dif dif- dif dif- ferent combinations will all indicate e as e as LB LD BS SQ Yet this is no more difficult to read with the key than the simpler numeral form torm The possibilities inherent In this extension and elaboration of the key- key square system arc are almost endless in their variety Any arrangement of the tho alphabet may be made inside the square and around the border the capital or cipher letters need follow no sequence or any special order But the result will always be the same- same eight possible combinations to designate designate designate nate any desired letter with this tremendous tremendous tremendous tre tre- disadvantage for any anyone one trying try ing to read the message without the key that key that Is to say In a message of ordinary length the most common letters lots let and words need never be he repeated repeated re re- Helen made a despairing gesture the tho use she exclaimed I Well Nell lets let's see If its it's any use There are four tour clues in this cipher which promise that the task of ot solving it Is not altogether hopeless Have you counted the characters in our cryptogram No Well there are of them In that number It is isa isa isa a bit singular and not without cause t that at three o ot the commoner letters of ot the alphabet are entirely A missing A I B D and I. I There Those hose letters are are arp three II of our clues The fourth Is quite as significant and all together they ena en en- enable a able le us to advance with considerable a assurance another step alle Let us see Counting around the theo o outside of the square key we learn that there are twenty-four twenty spaces or column ends opposite each of which is set ono one of the capital or cipher letters This leaves two letters of the alphabet that are arc rot not utilized and my temporary rejection of X and Z Is not altogether arbitrary as you will presently presently pres pres- see For one thing they are two letters Z Z particularly that particularly that are arc used comparatively comparatively comparatively com com- seldom but in our cipher X appears five times and Z four once XZ appear in combination and once Furthermore it is significant that both appear amon among the first eleven letters of or the cipher message and not at all among the last forty If X and Z were inserted merely to mislead mislead mislead mis mis- lead and obscure such would be the natural psychological tendency of the writer with mind intent on getting the correct letters for his message Again subtract 9 the number of times these two letters appear from the result is an even number susceptible of ot being grouped into pairs We Ve may now go forward still another another another an an- other step then if my hypothesis is wrong we shall soon know it Consider once more A B and I the three letters that do not appear Here I trust is our clue not only to the arrangement of the letters Inside the square but of ot tho the cipher capitals around the border Here is a detail our cipher writer never considered The last ten squares of ot the square key-square are occupied occupied occupied pied by the nine numerals and the zero If If this cipher message contains no number expressed in numerals there are eighty different two-letter two combinations that would not be used eight for each of or these ten squares The bottom horizontal column contains contains contains con con- nothing b but t numerals consequently consequently consequently conse conse- the two cipher letters at either end of this column would not appear if the message contains no number The column next above contains only the last two letters of the alphabet y and z two letters that are comparatively comparatively comparatively com com- seldom used Now V then is it not likely that likely that A is at one end or the other of ot either the thelast thelast thelast last horizontal column or the one immediately immediately im mediately above it that B is also a designator of ot one or the other of these two columns and the capital I still stilla a third designator But I believe I c can n determine the value of ot still a fourth cipher letter the letter J. J It appears just once in our cryptogram then between two Qs This determines a fifth cipher capital letter because if A is the designator at the right of the horizontal column next the bottom the capital B D the designator at the right of the bottom horizontal column and C D E F F. F G O Gand Gand and H the bottom designators in sequence sequence sequence se se- quence from right to left I would be opposite B Band and J opposite A. A Still In seq sequence ence Q would designate at the top the third vertical column Thus either or JQ would Indicate the numeral 1 1 We are pretty positive now where the cipher capitals belong around the border outside the key square If It in addition my arrangement of the alphabet al ai- al- al inside the square corresponds with the key used by the writer of the cipher the reading of his message means only the matter of a little time and trouble While I make a few tests you group the letters of the cipher message message mes meso I sage into pairs eliminating X and Z of course every time they appear For some minutes there was silence while the two bent their heads over their tasks With the first eight or orten orten orten ten pairs of letters of the cipher before before be be- fore him Hazard made several false beginnings then by and by very gently gently gently gent gent- ly and undemonstratively he leaned across the desk and patted Helens Helen's hand My dear girl he announced weve wove got fot it it Take this key and try for yourself Tho The square key-square he handed across the he desk to her appeared thus O P g Q R s rN T r TL N H B i c L- L d G f UM u uM M A h r J S Jk f fL Y f L m TZ u i o 0 p q 9 r W Wu X s t e u ur V Y W x Y Jyz z 2 3 4 15 S 6 7 8 9 O 0 B BH BJ H J JG O G j F FED Z E D C ii For months Chicago had been dominated by a a. gang of jewel and express express' thieves conveniently y called by the police and the Sutherlands Sutherlands Suther- Suther r- r lands the Secret Six although they had confederates all over the country Their activities up to tho the time of Miss t I. Bertels Bertel's abduction had d been confined almost solely to stealing valuable S s from rom tho the Transcontinental Express company and robbing woman oman guests of c costly sUy jewels at notable so so- cial CIa functions which last consideration tion lon made it almost certain th that t some someone someone someone one or more members of the gang had entree to the city's most fashionable circles In connection with the fact that all aU stolen packages and their contents contents' were known at the principal Chicago office of the company which was also a sort of auditing office for the balance balance bal bal- ance of tho the country and that tho the manager manager man man- ager of ot the local office who ho hovas was vas also the son of the company's pr president was a leader in the Lake Shore set suspicion was directed toward this this' this this' young man at an early stage So So Ina ina In Ina a night the fashionable young man Harry Butler Dutler was transformed Into a thief and a fugitive fugitive from justice justic The Tho of Helen Bertel bythe bytho by tho the Six her rescue by Hazard and other operatives of or the Sutherland Detective Detective Detective De De- De- De agency the sensational escape of th the s Six x have all ll be been n narrated in to a previous story of this series Suffice Suffice Suf Suf- fice flee it to say that Harry Butler Dutler was disgraced the gang scattered and for forthe forthe forthe the time being at le least st the their r criminal activities checked the Sutherlands Sutherland's resources |