The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1870-08-02
agritultute, MLarksts

thing else in the desk y said he, address
sing Parker.
"You may go otand look ? growled that
potentate; and he led the way tile experl
following. te -
The desk was quite empty, with ths
exception of two or three scraps of waste
paper. On one Of these tf1e exper,
pohnced, and returned with ansair o
elation to the other room. He then un
folded this scrip of paper, disclosed {
half sheet exactly the size of that on
which Elinor Beaumonl's letters were
written, in which oblong holes at inter
walls mad been cut
He then placed this half sheet oyel
the letter, and handed both, thus placed
to my uncle, whose astonished eyes feal
the following words. which the hole.
left visible: 49,.
~Fleet windhothd Fifty sail Of Til
line. Twenty smaller, SHOULD til,
wind change, expect us on Friday"
| s"Fhe deYiltn said my uncle; ssslnt
Nelson ordered of to the West Indies
Then was there, as you mary suppose
hurrving and scurrJing, and running and
chasing, and tlispatching government
fcouriers, and semaphore telegraphs, anf
carrier-pigeons, and all the old world
means of communication then in fash
ion. The key thus obtained disclosed
tbs whole correspondence, which turned
out,o bea connected series of letters
from the French government, sm1gglet
into Jersey. The rest history knows
! the intended INVASION was abandoned
and Napoleon went elsewhere
| but what put you on the scent p
asked my uncle afterwards, with many
apologies to the expert. ~. ~ IS
81 suspected the trick from the first,
although it was a very good specimen
of it. The letters were too innocent
and had too little point in them Bm
they, were done with admirable sklll.--
The grammer was complete; and the
little dots or marks which bungIers use
to guile them in writing the words which
are to, be read were entirely absent, The
way in which the deception is effected
lis this. The correspondents, before CON
IrnenciHg, take o. sheet Of paper sand cut
| holes in it, which; Of course, il in the two
half sheets. exactly correspond. They
each take one, half sheet, and when the
letter is to be written, the writer so ar
ranges the words that those intended to
be read shall appear inrthe holes when
the half sheet is placed over the paper,
which is of the same size. When his
correspondent receives the letter, be pla-
ices his half sheet over it and; reads the
words as you did. The difficulty, which
was so well conquered in this case, is. to
make the sense run fuently, and to pre-
vent any visible break in the writing
Without the half sheet with the holes
in it, no one can have the slightest clue
to the real meaning.
"My suspicious, once aroused, were
confirmed by the inquiries which I made.
The whole story about the sister was a
fabrication. The letters did come from
Jersey, the answers went to Fleet street,
to the charge Of very notorious foreign
agents. Bntif onr friend had not been
fool enough to leave bis half sheet in
his desk, we might have groped in vain
for the mystery"
/ Beaumont disappeared that night, and
was never heard ofagain at the Admiral
Ity. 1t transpired afterward that some
accompIica had warned him or the exs