- REF ID:A27549. 

MaJor General James D. O'Connell 

Chief Signal Officer of the Army 

Department of the Army 

Washington 25, D.C. 

Dear General O'Connell: 

17 December 1957 

You will recall that the Chief Signal Officer used to publish a 

monthly journal, "lbe Signal Corps Bulletin", which from time to time contained articles or brief items of information about cryptology. Originally 

the Bulletin was classified For Official Use Only, but about 1933 this was 

superseded by Restricted, the classification which was carried from then 

on by the Bulletin until its publication ceased or was suspended in December 1940, with issue No. 108. 

In 1942 the cryptological articles and items of information mentioned 

above were collected and printed in single volume under the title Articles 

nn Cryptography and Cryptanalysis Reprinted from the Signal Corps Bulletin 

as collateral reading material for students. A copy thereof from my personal library (Inclosure 1) accompanies this letter. You will note that 

the Restricted marking has been crossed out and initialled by me when, on 

30 August 1954, my then secretary at the National Security Agency was 

informed by Mrs. Rice, then a member of~the Personnel and Training Division 

in the Office of the Chief Signal~~!hat the Signal Corps Bulletin~ 

had been downgraded "by D/F from Security on 5 May 1950 and now carry no 

classification." (Inclosure 2) I do not know whether my secretary also 

inquired into the status of the book Articles on Cryptography and Cryptanalysis Reprinted from Tile Signal Corps Bulletin. 

I The recently-published book, !he Shakespearean Ciphers Examined. by 

Mrs. Friedman and my self (Cambridge University Press, London and New York, 

4 October 1957) has stirred up so much interest in my old and now unclassified writings that a prospective publisher is anxious to republish some 

or all of them, including those in the old "Signal Corps Bulletin." How- ever~ since the information as to the declassification of the Bulletin was 

hot in writing, and since the status of the document containing a collection of those articles is not known to me, I think it would be advisable 

and desirable to have, in writing, before doing anything about such republication an official statement regarding the current classification of each 

or all of the Signal Corps Bulletins from No. 1 to 108 inclusive. I would 

be grateful if the statement would also state whether or not there would 

be official objection to my agreeing to the private republication of any or 

all of my articles and items of information contained in the Bulleting, or 

@'pp roved for Release by NSA on 05-16-2014 pursuantto E .0. 1352a 
REF ID:A27549. 

of the collection of them as contained in the document entitled Articles 

on Cryptography and Cryptanalysis Reprinted from The Signal Corps Bulletin. 

I would certainly agree that a republication of the articles should 

not carry anything on the title page which might convey or be considered 

or deemed to be an attempt to convey the idea that the republished material 

is an official document, although a prefatory note indicating the source of 

the material would certainly be desirable. 

Tile situation outlined above applies equally to my brochure Elements of 

Cryptanalysis, which was published by the Chief Signal Officer in 1923 as 

Training Pamphlet No. 3, and was classified Off c al Use • When 

infonned as to its present classification was requested see Inclosure 2) 

my secretary was informed that the Signal Corps had no record of such a 

publication. A copy of this brochure, also from my personal library, 

accompanies this letter (Inclosure 3). The brochure is now so old that it 

is regarded as being a "classic". It is only of historical significance, 

of course, and valuable only to collectors of cryptologic literature. A 

private republication of this old and quite obsolete document would, I know, 

be welcomed by collectors. 

It would therefore be very much appreciated if a statement substantially 

similar to that suggested in the case of the Signal Corps Bulletins and in the 

case of Articles on Crvptoqraphy and Cryptanalysis Reprinted from the Signal 

Corps Bulletin would be included in the statement I request. 

In addition to the foregoing, there are two or three more of my technical brochures which were classified and published by the Chief Signal 

Officer and which would now also constitute interesting material for 

republication in a collection of my early and now, I hope, entirely 

unclassified writings in the field of cryptology. One, for example, is 

entitled e ram f nua 6 7 and its Cryptographic 

Bac.kground. Inclosure 4). This brochure was written in collaboration with 

the late Dr. Charles J. Mendelsohn, a former colleague and friend whose 

manuscript Writings and miscellaneous noted on cryptologic subJects were 

entrusted to me when I was appointed literary executor of his estate upon 

his sudden death in 1939. Tile aforementioned brochure on the Zimmermann 

telegram was published by the Chief Signal Officer in 1938 as a Confidential 

document; but on 1 April 1946 its classification was changed to Restricted, 

When the letter classification was eliminated in 1953, some classified 

documents were upgraded, some were downgraded, and some were made unclassified. 

It would be desirable for me to have the official statement I am requesting 

for the documents mentioned above include or also cover the Zin1Bermann 

telegram brochure and any or all of my other brochures which accompany this 

letter and are listed in Inclosure 5. 

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REF ID:A275497 

It is requested that all Inclosures except 2 and 5 be returned to 

me. 

!banking you for your consideration in this matter, and with Christmas 

greet1ngs and best wishes for the New Year to you and to all your associates 

in the Office of the Chief Signal Officer, I am, 

5 Incls 

a/s 

Sincerely, 

3