CYPHER. 



Sec. ; and as it is advantageous, in every 

 kind of cypher, that the words should not 

 be written from each other, or with spaces 

 between, but that every line should be 

 continuous throughout, the other digits, 

 namely, 67890, may be used to denote 

 blank spaces. It is manifest also, that if 

 there were four or five of these tables, 

 each containing the alphabet in a differ- 

 ent order of arrangement, and the several 

 lines of the intended communication were 

 to be written, in succession, according 

 to each of the tables respectively, the 

 task of decyphering would be greatly en- 

 hanced. 



In fact it does not appear difficult to 

 contrive a multiplicity of cyphers, which 

 shall be beyond the reach of human skill 

 to develope, otherwise than by some for- 

 tuitous circumstance or happy observa- 

 tion, not dependant upon rule; but at 

 the same time it must be observed, that 

 most of those cyphers which are the 

 most difficult to discover are also te- 

 dious, and not unfrequently difficult in 

 the use. 



For the sake of brevity we pass over 

 the variety of arbitrary marks, which may 

 be substituted for the letters of the alpha- 

 bet, or for entire words ; such as a single 

 dot or right line, or unvaried character, 

 deriving its distinct significance from its 

 several positions with regard to ruled 

 lines or spaces on the paper ; which lines 

 may either be actually drawn or apparent, 

 or else their places may be indicated by 

 dots or other marks, to enable the reader 

 himself to draw them. Writing, by means 

 of the characters of music, comes under 

 this class; and the telegraphic signals 

 now so generally adopted may be refer- 

 red to those arbitrary combinations of 

 dots which signify letters or words. And 

 when the notion of these combinations 

 has once been clearly apprehended, it will 

 be easy to deduce the methods of com- 

 municating intelligence by combinations, 

 either contemporaneous or successive, of 

 torches, fires, rockets, or the sounds of 

 belis ; trnmpets, cannon, and other suit- 

 able instruments. 



The number of contrivances which have 

 been or may be adopted, for the convey- 

 ance of secret intelligence, seem capable 

 of unlimited variation, according to the 

 acutenessofthe contrivers. Pantomimic 

 signs and gestures are practised by every 

 one, and are usually carried to such an 

 extent, that we forget that the perform- 

 ers in this description of comedy have no 

 oral communication. The expedients of 



a knotted string, which, when stretched 

 out, shall apply to letters or words upon a 

 gage possessed by the receiver : the 

 scytale of Lysander, or slip of parchment, 

 containing writing which became legible 

 when wrapped round a staff': the ela- 

 borate invention of Hystiaeus, who pre- 

 tended to cure a servant of sore eyes 

 by shaving his head, and writing his 

 secret upon the scalp with a scarifying 

 instrument, after which the man being 

 confined till his hair had grown, this ex- 

 traordinary epistle became in a fit state 

 to be forwarded, along with its bearer, 

 to the place of destination. These, and 

 many others of sufficient note in histo- 

 ry, as well as the events of common 

 life among smugglers and others, mani- 

 fest a variety of instances of the secret 

 conveyance of small parcels, such as 

 parchment, paper, cambric, lace, and 

 the like. A pye, or a bottle of wine 

 or beer, small casks of pickles or provi- 

 sion ; the interior of the construction of 

 saddles, of shoes, or other parts of 

 wearing apparel ; a false skin laced up- 

 on a dog: the intestines of a living ani- 

 mal, or of the human subject employ- 

 ed in swallowing a small receptacle, 

 containing a letter, to be afterwards 

 evaculated. This short list of vehicles 

 may point out how extensive the gene- 

 ral means of secret communication may 

 be made. 



We shall conclude the present arti- 

 cle, which would require a volume to 

 do it justice, by mentioning two other 

 modes of communication with a consi- 

 derable degree of secrecy, though they 

 are perhaps liable to the objection of 

 slowness in the writing. The first con- 

 sists in the use of a dictionary, or other 

 work, which must be paged through- 

 out, and, if convenient, the lines should 

 be counted: but this last necessity may 

 be supplied by means of a scale, or slip 

 of parchment, with lines and numbers 

 from top to bottom, which may be ap- 

 plied to any page, when wanted for rea- 

 dily counting the lines. The correspon- 

 dents being each provided with the same 

 edition of the same work, the writer is to 

 complete his letter in the usual manner ; 

 but, instead of sending off that copy, he 

 sends another, wherein, instead of the 

 words, he writes for each the page, line, 

 and numerical situation in the line, of each 

 word. The correspondent will therefore 

 discover them by seeking in his dictionary, 

 or printed work. It will easily be seen 

 that this method amounts to the same 



