The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1889-09-18
fnE CIPHER In The BOOK.

named Eustachc Loriot. ~ man of some
- years of age, fresh, r,dlsly, falrN'otn'
p~sexioncd. rather stout, OF medium height
u large head. with forehead unduly pronii'
nent, Socratic nose and china-blne eyes.
He WINS "a deputy Judge OF the tritaiilai,
hut his Duties leaving him considerable
leisure. and being po~sessssi al AN inue-
pendent fortune, he lsad eariH a~landotss
himself tn N passion for bric-a-brac. His
collection comprised "a little of everything
rare hooks, medals. old china. He was.
moreover, ~ member of am antiquarian st-
ciety. to which hi addressed enthusiastic
and prolix memoirs on each of his dis
coveries.
Like many collector. he displayed u
childish simplicity and c~rhulity IN the
subject of his antiquities. Apropos of a.
fragment of china ar % piece ut old iron
his imagination suggested to him marvel
osss histories. which hc ended 10y believing
in .s firmly as in the articles of faith.
He had found, for example, i'm a second,
hand shop. n shareless mask of forged
iron. pierced with three holes for the eyes
and mouth, and he was perfectly CON.
iron mask that had served tai conceal the
features of the. mysterious prisoner Of 81.
Marguerite and the Bastilc. He had very
nearly Qtarrcled with mc for vcutsiringt tai
insinuate mildly that according tn anthem
tic accounts the. famous iron mask was of
been of iron, il was not likely that in the
seventeenth c~entury-tha cpHA.h of skilled
workmanship there would not have been
Ntat ~ ~ Irfr1stS ~ tt
thing less heavy and less uncomfortable
than this lump of iron.
~s.hildless. His wife wa. a. pretty brunette
VI y years. well made, lively. with "a pair
of dangerous dark eyes. and u light down
Elegant. pleas~ur-loving. she found life
extremely dull in the silent house In the
QUARTER DIES Grangsttes, wlcr, her hus-
where no visitors were received excepting
"a few old antiquarian. and q young law
amateur i'm rare hooks. This celebrated
advocate. Frederic Simonnct by name.
wa not NOR, than. ~ years of age. and
He often came tai borrow from Loriot's
library. and the evcning ON which ] had
the R, DE ar OF making mi. nc~auaintnnc.,
'Daphnis and Chloe," bound i'm rcd mo-
rocco.
the book to me. "herc is a rarr hook that
came from the library of NJ. dies Arrnoisss.
a gentleman Of Lorraine who was impri--
death. and whose mistress. IA launtlrcssn
aided him To escape on the morning OF
the day iixcd for his execution. I secured
this book for almost nothing at the sale of
the effects OF the daughter of the very
woman who sawed Dies Amoise~." I took
the book. and while turning the leaves ~
marked a singular circumstance. Here
and tllere. from pare to page, whole lines
phcn. some in red ink. others in yellow.
and having the appearance, Of age.
,"Ah. this IL c'lriosis." ~nurn,rsl;
copy ~ / asked OF Lorios. showing him
the marked pages. the same time l
uneasy, troubled expression of the. law
yer's c~ountcnance. l turned toward Mime.
Loriot. and was astonished tn see. her
fusion in Frederic Si~nlonnet's.
Loriot had perceived nothing. His
near-siRhted eyes fixed On the volume. hc
il In very strange, and what is straIgcst Of
all is that IL had escaped ne until now.
And you. Simonnet. had you remarked
"I? No.. responded the lawyer. red
slsnins slightly; II attached n" import
During this time the young wife had not
uttered u word, hut was bending over the
fire. stirring IL nerv1,Sly:
mp; ''for my part, I think there is AN his
torical enigma iberia mysterious lam
You shall see; you shall sec."
And he rubbed his hands.
Some eight days after ] met Loriot, and
with characteristic imretiosity he scizssi
me by the hand.
my friend" he said. II ann on the
key. Here is what / kav. found :" far"
tat fhe same time drawing the copy of
"Daphnis and Chloe" from his pocket.
opening the volume. .'notice that the dots
are always in yellow and the hyphcns al
ways in red ink. They seem To answer
~" shhtt
Dies Arnoises kept this book in his prison.
and his mistress visiting him there. some
times took away and sometimes returned
the volume. SO that with the aid of u cipher
the two lovers used il as "a means of cor
respondence. Ha! is not that an invcu-
io,s explanation? Only ] have not yet
Uncovered the key to the cipher. hut with
patience I shall find liz"
"WM you lend me the book for "a couple
OF days?"I responded. ~ have studied
to help you"
He consented. and l took the book home |
with me. Ii did not require amy long
study tn discover the key, for the cipher
used by the two correspondents was of
the simples. They had made use of ths.
characters In the text, retaining their mr.
binary value. and il sufiiced tn place the
marked letters side 10y side To reconstruct
the sentences.
The first that / deciplnrrxsl was this:
goes to the tribunal Tomorrow at =
o'clock. Come; we shall not bc dis
turbed."
To which the hypl,ens i'm red ink ~
sponded:
~. is under..ood: darling. Az o'clock.
1 WAS highly edited, and IL my hypothc-
sis did not exactly coincide with Lorict's.
ID was none the less interesting.
The next day j called at the judge AT AN
hDur when ] felt certain of meeting his
wife. / fonnd her alone. before "a blazing