Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1903-06-18
DAILY SHORT STORY
The Cipher Telegram.
Ioriglnal.l


daughter of q general. AT the time the
Crimean war broke out she was en-
gagged to Dimitri Olizoff, lieutenant in
the Russian army. There are cases
where lovers become so wrapped in
each other that separation is agony. So
it was with these two young people
when Dimitri OliZoff departed for the
ward. Lisa held to him till the last
minute and fell in q stupor when he
left her.
1t had been arranged between them
that Olizoff should not only send word
by everyday mail, but telegraph her in
case of his being wounded or taken
sick This might involve sending news
of a battle. The Russian government
gives out all the news, not permitting
even the newspaper correspondents to
send any except what has passed a
censor. Therefore Olizoff would not
only be obliged to send his message
surreptitiously, but in cipher. The
lover arranged Il code, giving Lisa the
key He did not tell her that there was
little hope of his being able to use it.
Still, since the cipher was simply q few
ordinary sentences, each with a special
meaning, the sending of a message was
not impossible.
Olizoff was wealthy, and Russian Off
Gals are very corrupt. He made the
acquaintance of n telegrapher at head
quarters and arranged with him for
l 900 rubles to send n message if re-
quired.
One evening Lisa was at an enter
tainment at the house of Vladimir
Sohnski, a prominent government of
fetal at st. Petersburg. The Malakof
had been stormed and the government
was especially DESTROYS of keeping
news which forebode the defeat of the
Russian cause from the people. The
host knew of it and was instructed TO
proceed with his entertainment, since
n postponement would excite suspicion.
In the midst of the festivities n tele-
gram was handed to Lisa. She tore off
the envelope, scanned the words in the
message and fell in a faint. SOhnski,
who had been feigning to be In a merry
mood. but really was depressed by what
he was concealfng, happened to be near
Lisa when she swooned. He seized
the telegram, noticed the point from
whence it came and knew at once that
it must be Il cipher message containing
some news about the disaster. He
had Lisa carried upstairs to a private
room, notified the police to come and
take charge of her, and disappearing
from among his guests went directly
to the imperial palace with the tele-
gram.
The telegram was composed of two
sentences, II am on picket duty to-
day. and "I love you as ever" the
first meaning There has been disas-
ter" the second Il am badly wounded"
1t had been understood between the
lovers that in the latter event Lisa
should 30 to her lover if possible. Lisa
before recovering from her swoon
raved about his condition. then as soon
as she came to herself raised herself
from the couch on which she had been
laid, saying that she must go at once
to him. Then for the first time she saw
among those about her police officer.
She knew at once that she had betray-
ed herself.
Lisa was sent to her fathers house,
where she was kept under the surveil-
lance of the police. Every effort was
made without success to induce her to
tell from whom the telegram, which
was unsigned, came. But it was quite
plain that it must have come from her
lover. An account of the matter was
sent to the headquarters of the army
with orders to watch Olizoff without
informing him of the result of his mes
sage, in the hope of catching him send
ing another and discovering through
what operator he sent it. Olizoff, how
for hn
was lying I'm hospital severely
wounded.
Several months passed, during which
Lisa was kept in close confinement,
without any knowledge of her lovers
condition. She did not know whether
he had died of his wound or would live
to suffer a worse fate for sending sur
reptitiously a telegraph message that
only the government might send. She
sank rapidly under the strain. Those
who attended her dared not speak of
anything that had happened in connec-
ton with the matter, and Lisa did not
even know how her own father, who
was with the army in the CriInea,
stood toward her.
One afternoon there was n sound of
horses hoofs and the clatter of sabers
in the court. Thinking that her father
had returned from the war. n sudden
thrill of hope passed through Lisa that
he would bring her news of Dimitri.
Then she heard her fathers voice and
looked for him to rush upstairs as he
was used to doing when he came home. |
but when he did not she supposed that |
he had not forgiven her for her part in
the deceit. Presently she heard several |
people coming up the stairway very |
slowly. Then her door opened and her
father entered, followed by the order |
fies supporting the wasted figure Of her |
lover.
"You are forgiven. my daughter" |
said the father. THE emperor has |
listened to my prayer in your behalf. |
Vladimir won his own forgiveness by |
gallantry in the action of which he |