SOLVING CIPHER SECRETS Edited by M. E. Ohaver TRY YOUR WITS ON THE GREAT CODES AND CRYPTOGRAMS IN WHICH MEN HAVE MASKED THEIR MESSAGES OF LIFE AND DEATH LYNN'S new cipher department appears to be hitting the spot. Readers are writing to congratulate us daily; readers are submitting solutions of the cipher F we published; and readers are sending in their own secret messages which they challenge the world to solve. We propose to entertain you more at length with these challenge cryptograms later. Meanwhile FLYNN'S will continue " Solving Cipher Secrets " under the expert editorship of Mr. Ohaver as a regular department. Through practical application it will offer a synopsis of puzzle-making through the centuries. At the same time it will give our readers a problem on which to exercise their analytical powers at regular intervals. Set your teeth for a try at this juicy specimen from England's history. N FLYNN'S for December 13 significant characters. To illustrate the was printed a transposition- null-cipher, take the following instance cipher, that is, one in which where every third letter is non-significant. the characters retained their Yoku atre adipschoviemed, sflay flor byopur glipfe. original meanings or values, Yo ua re di sc ov er ed, jl y f or yo ur li je. but had their relative order changed. This week's cryptogram is a null- By omitting the void characters, the mes• cipher. sage stands out in plain language: " You In a system of this class the cipher char• are discovered, fly for your life." We will acters are of three kinds: (i) significants, now outline a brief history of this week's (2) non-significants, or voids, and (3) in• cipher. dicators. During the administration of William Pitt The significant characters retain their as Premier of England, Sir John Trevanion, original values and their original order. a distinguished cavalier and " malignant," The non-significant characters have no was locked up as a prisoner in Colchester value, being used to confuse any attempt to Castle. Already Sir George Lisle and Sir read the cipher without the key. Non- Charles Lucas had paid the extreme penalty significants are disregarded when decipher• for their views, and Trevanion had every ing a message. reason for expecting a similar bloody end. Indicators are sometimes used in null- But Sir John was a tough old bird, and ciphers for the purpose of indicating the as he awaited his doom he indulged in many 1151 1152 FLYNN'S a hearty curse at the canting, crop-eared Now this letter was nothing other than a scoundrels who held him in durance vile. preconcerted cipher, which Sir John was Pacing his cell like a caged lion, and mutter• able to read in a minute's time. It told this ing the wish that he would rather have crafty plotter that his friends had contrived fallen, sword in hand, faced by the foe than a plan to effect his escape. to be done away witli in this ignominious And Sir John, needless to say, lost no manner, he was startled one day by the time in taking advantage of it. On the next jailer, who, entering his cell, left him a letter evening he asked that he be allowed to with the words, " May't do thee good, it has pass an hour of prayer in the chapel. By been well looked to before it was permitted means of a bribe, this was readily accom• to come to thee." plished. But before the allotted hour had Trevanion took the letter, and by the aid expired, the chapel was empty. The bird of a lamp which the jailer had grumblingly had flown. left him, made out the following: The secret message contained in the mis• sive consisted of but twenty-eight letters, VVoRTHiE SIR JOHN : Hope, that is ye beste comfort of ye afflict• forming seven words. All the other charac• ed, cannot much, I fear me, help you now. ters, besides these twenty-eight, are non- That I would saye to you, is this only: if ever significants. To assist you in the solution I may be able to requite that I do owe you, we are willing to give a little suggestion. stand not upon asking me. 'T is not much I can do: but what I can do, bee you verie If you would rather try it without help, do sure I wille. I knowe that, if dethe comes, not read the next paragraph. if ordinary men fear it, it frights not you, ac• The significant characters of the message counting it for a high honour, to have such are found by counting a certain number a rewarde of your loyalty. Pray yet that you may be spared this soe bitter, cup, I fear not of letters forward from each punctuation that you will grudge any sufferings; only if mark, these latter being the " indicators " bie submission you can turn them away, 't is in the present cipher. These letters taken the part of a wise man. Tell me, an if you in their order as found will form the secret can, to do for you any thinge that you wolde have done. The general goes back on message. Look sharp, now, and see if you Wednesday. Restinge your servant to com• can learn how Sir John escaped from the mand. R. T. chapel. ANSWER TO SCYTALE CIPHER IN FLYNN'S FOR DECEMBER 13 The scytale cipher in FLYNN'S for De• Our next article will tell you about a cember 13 contained the following message: cipher system that baffled investigators for All is lost. Mindarus is killed. The sol• nearly fifteen centuries. It will also contain diers want food. We can neither get hence, a lesson in cryptography that will enable nor stay longer here. you to solve such a cipher in a surprisingly The " interval " was four; that is, there few minutes. were four lines in the original message as The same issue of FLYNN'S that contains written on the scytale. The " interval " is it will also contain the solution of the readily found by trying the first group, Trevanion cipher. " AL," successively with each of the follow• The following readers submitted correct ing groups. solutions of the scytale cipher within one It is then only necessary to rewrite the week of the magazine's appearance: message as below, in columns of four groups Mr. Rocco de Angelis, Brooklyn, New York. each, when the translation can be read in Mr. H. M. Duff, Cleveland, Ohio. the usual manner, from left to right. Mrs. Lulu Bliss Haldimand, New York, New York. AL L IS L OST .MI NDA RUS IS Mr. Harold Logan, Ottawa, Canada. KIL LED .TH E S OLD lER S W ANT Mr. Wallace Morrison, Florence, Alabama. FOG D.W E C AN NEI THE R G ET Mr. Harold Lloyd Mowick, Chicago, HEN CE, NOR STA Y LO NGE R H ERE. Illinois. 12 W F .