Speaker 1: The Moabite Cipher by R. Austin Freeman. A large and
Speaker 1: motley crowd lined the pavements of Oxford Street as Thorndyke
Speaker 1: and I made our way leisurely eastward. Floral decorations and
Speaker 1: drooping bunting announced one of those functions inaugurated from time
Speaker 1: to time by a benevolent government for the entertainment of
Speaker 1: fashionable loungers and the relief of distressed pickpockets. For a
Speaker 1: Russian grand Duke, who had torn himself away amidst valedictory
Speaker 1: explosions from a loving if two demonstrative people, was to
Speaker 1: pass Anon on his way to the Guildhall, and a
Speaker 1: British prince, heroically indiscreet was expected to occupy a seat
Speaker 1: in the ducal carriage near Raftbone Place. Thorndyke halted and
Speaker 1: drew my attention to a smart looking man who was
Speaker 1: lounging in a doorway, cigarette in hand. Our old friend,
Speaker 1: Inspector Badger, said Thorndyke. He seems mightily interested in that
Speaker 1: gentleman in the light overcoat. How d'ye do Badger? For
Speaker 1: at this moment the detective caught his eye and bowed
Speaker 1: who is your friend. That's what I'd like to know, Sir,
Speaker 1: replied the Inspector. I've been shadowing him for the last
Speaker 1: half hour, but I can make him out, though I
Speaker 1: believe I've seen him somewhere. He don't look like a foreigner,
Speaker 1: but he has something bulky in his pocket, so I
Speaker 1: must keep him in sight until the Duke is safely passed.
Speaker 1: I wish, he added gloomily, these beastly Russians would stop
Speaker 1: at home. They give us no end of trouble. Are
Speaker 1: you expecting any occurrences? Then asked Thorndyke. Bless you, Sir,
Speaker 1: exclaimed Badger. The whole root is lined with a plainclothesman.
Speaker 1: You see, it is known that several desperate characters followed
Speaker 1: the Duke to England, and there are a good many
Speaker 1: exiles living here who would like to have a wrap
Speaker 1: at him. Hallo, what's he up to now? The man
Speaker 1: in the light overcoat had suddenly caught the Inspector's too
Speaker 1: inquiring eye, and forthwith dived into the crowd at the
Speaker 1: edge of the pavement. In his haste, he trod heavily
Speaker 1: on the foot of a big, rough looking man by
Speaker 1: whom he was in a moment hustled out into the
Speaker 1: road with such violence that he fell, sprawling face downwards.
Speaker 1: It was an unlucky moment. A mounted constable was just
Speaker 1: then backing in upon the crowd, and before he could
Speaker 1: gather the meaning of the shout that arose from the bystanders,
Speaker 1: his horse had set down one hind hoofed firmly on
Speaker 1: the prostrate man's back. The inspector signaled to a constable,
Speaker 1: who forthwith made a way for us through the crowd.
Speaker 1: But even as we approached the injured man, he rose
Speaker 1: stiffly and looked round with a pale, vacant face. Are
Speaker 1: you hurt, Thorndyke asked gently, with an earnest look into
Speaker 1: the frightened, wondering eyes. No, sir, was the reply. Only
Speaker 1: I feel queer sinking just here. He laid a trembling
Speaker 1: hand on his chest, and Thorndyke, still eyeing him anxiously, said,
Speaker 1: in a low voice to the inspector cab or ambulance
Speaker 1: as quickly as you can. A cab was led round
Speaker 1: from Newman Street, and the injured man put into it. Thorndyke,
Speaker 1: Badger and I entered, and we drove off up Rathbone Place.
Speaker 1: As we proceeded, our patient's face grew more and more ashen,
Speaker 1: drawn and anxious. His breathing was shallow and uneven, and
Speaker 1: his teeth chattered slightly. The cab swung round into Good Street,
Speaker 1: and then suddenly, in the tinkling of an eye, there
Speaker 1: came a change. The eyelids and jaw relaxed, the eyes
Speaker 1: became filmy, and the whole form subsided into the corner
Speaker 1: in a shrunken heap, with the strange, gelatinous limpness of
Speaker 1: a body that is dead as a whole while its
Speaker 1: tissues are still alive. God save us the man, instead,
Speaker 1: exclaimed the inspector in a shocked voice, For even policemen
Speaker 1: have their feelings. He sat staring at the corpse as
Speaker 1: it nodded gently with the jolting of the cab until
Speaker 1: we drew up inside the courtyard of the Middlesex Hospital,
Speaker 1: when he got out briskly with suddenly renewed cheerfulness, to
Speaker 1: help the porter to place the body on the wheeled couch.
Speaker 1: Well we shall know who he is now, at any rate,
Speaker 1: said he, as we followed the couch to the casualty room.
Speaker 1: Thorndyke nodded unsympathetically. The medical instinct in him was, for
Speaker 1: the moment, stronger than the legal. The house surgeon leaned
Speaker 1: over the couch and made a rapid examination as he
Speaker 1: listened to our account of the incident. Then he straightened
Speaker 1: himself up and looked at Thorndyke. Internal hemorrhage, I expect,
Speaker 1: said he. At any rate, he's dead, poor beggar, as
Speaker 1: dead as nebukanezer Ah. Here comes the bobby. It's his
Speaker 1: affair now. A sergeant came into the room, breathing quickly,
Speaker 1: and looked in surprise from the corpse to the inspector.
Speaker 1: But the latter, without loss of time, proceeded to turn
Speaker 1: out the dead man's pockets, commencing with the bulky object
Speaker 1: which had first attracted his attention, which proved to be
Speaker 1: a brown paper parcel tied up with red tape. Poor
Speaker 1: pie begad, he exclaimed with a crestfallen air, as he
Speaker 1: cut the tape and opened the package. You had better
Speaker 1: go through his other pocket, sergeant. The small heap of
Speaker 1: odds and ends that resulted from this process tended with
Speaker 1: a single exception to throw a little light on the
Speaker 1: man's identity, the exception being a letter sealed but not stamped,
Speaker 1: addressed in an exceedingly illiterate hand to mister Adolph Schoenberg,
Speaker 1: two thirteen Greek Street. Soho he was going to leave
Speaker 1: it by hand, I expect, observed the inspector with a
Speaker 1: wistful glance at the sealed envelope. I think I'll take
Speaker 1: it round myself, and you had better come with me, sergeant.
Speaker 1: He slipped the letter into his poe, and, leaving the
Speaker 1: sergeant to take possession of the other effects, made his
Speaker 1: way out of the building. I suppose, doctor, said he
Speaker 1: as we crossed into Berner Street. You are not coming
Speaker 1: our way. Don't want to see mister Schoenburg. Thornburgh reflected
Speaker 1: for a moment, Well, it isn't very far and we
Speaker 1: may as well see the end of the incident. Yes,
Speaker 1: let's go together. Number two one three Greek Street was
Speaker 1: one of those houses that irresistibly suggested the observer the
Speaker 1: idea of a church organ, either jamb of the doorway
Speaker 1: being adorned with a row of brass bell handles corresponding
Speaker 1: to stop knobs. These, the sergeant examined with the air
Speaker 1: of an expert musician, and having as it were, gaged
Speaker 1: the capacity of the instrument, selected the middle knob on
Speaker 1: the right side and pulled it briskly, whereupon a first
Speaker 1: floor window was thrown up and a head protruded, but
Speaker 1: it afforded us a momentary glimpse only for having caught
Speaker 1: the sergeant's upturned eye. It retired with surprising precipitancy, and
Speaker 1: before we had time to speculate on the apparition, the
Speaker 1: street door was opened and a man emerged. He was
Speaker 1: about to close the door after him, when the inspector interposed,
Speaker 1: does mister Adolf Schoenburg live here? The newcomer, a very
Speaker 1: typical jew of the red haired type, surveyed us thoughtfully
Speaker 1: through his gold rimmed spectacles as he repeated the name Schoenburg. Schoenburg. Ah, yes,
Speaker 1: I know, he lives on the third floor. I saw
Speaker 1: him go up a short time ago, third floor back,
Speaker 1: and indicating the open door with a wave of the hand,
Speaker 1: he raised his hat and passed into the street. I
Speaker 1: suppose we had better go up, said the inspector, with
Speaker 1: a dubious glance at the row of bell poles. He
Speaker 1: accordingly started up the stairs, and we all followed in
Speaker 1: his wake. There were two doors at the back of
Speaker 1: the third floor, but as the one was open, displaying
Speaker 1: an unoccupied bedroom, the inspector rapped smartly on the other.
Speaker 1: It flew open almost immediately, and a fierce looking little
Speaker 1: man confronted us with a hostile stare. Well said he,
Speaker 1: mister Adolf Schoenburg, inquired the inspector, vell flat about him,
Speaker 1: snapped our new acquaintance. I wish to have a few
Speaker 1: words with him, said badger. Then vacta, do still come
Speaker 1: bangin at my door? For demanded the other. Why doesn't
Speaker 1: he live here? No first floor front, replied our friend,
Speaker 1: preparing to close the door. Pardon me, said Thorndyke. But
Speaker 1: what is mister Schoenburg like? I mean like, interrupted the resident.
Speaker 1: He's like a blooming signeye with a carroty beard and
Speaker 1: gold gig lamps. And having presented this impressionist sketch, he
Speaker 1: brought the interview to a definite close by slamming the
Speaker 1: door and turning the key with a wrathful exclamation. The
Speaker 1: inspector turned towards the stairs, down which the sergeant was
Speaker 1: already clattering in hot haste, and made his way back
Speaker 1: to the ground floor, followed as before by Thorndyke and me.
Speaker 1: On the doorstep, we found the sergeant breathlessly interrogating a
Speaker 1: smartly dressed youth whom I had seen a light from
Speaker 1: a hansom as we entered the house, and who now
Speaker 1: stood with a note book tucked under his arm, sharpening
Speaker 1: a pencil with deliberate care. Mister James saw him come out, sir,
Speaker 1: said the sergeant. He turned up towards the square. Did
Speaker 1: he seem to hurry, asked the inspector, Rather, replied the reporter.
Speaker 1: As soon as you were inside, he went off like
Speaker 1: a lamp lighter. You won't catch him. Now, we don't
Speaker 1: want to catch him, the detective rejoined, gruffly. Then, backing
Speaker 1: out of earshot of the eager pressman, he said, in
Speaker 1: a lower tone, that was mister Schoenberg, beyond a doubt,
Speaker 1: and it is clear that he has some reason for
Speaker 1: making himself scarce. So I shall consider myself justified. In
Speaker 1: opening that note, he suited the action to the word, and,
Speaker 1: having cut the envelope open with official neatness, drew out
Speaker 1: the enclosure. My hat, he exclaimed, as his eye fell
Speaker 1: upon the contents. What in creation is this? It isn't shorthand,
Speaker 1: but what the deuce is it? He handed the document
Speaker 1: to Thorndyke, who, having held it up to the light
Speaker 1: and felt the paper critically, proceeded to examine it with
Speaker 1: keen interest. It consisted of a single half sheet of
Speaker 1: thin note paper, both sides of which were covered with
Speaker 1: strange crabbed characters written with a brownish black ink in
Speaker 1: continuous lines, without any spaces to indicate the divisions into words.
Speaker 1: And but for the modern material which bore the writing,
Speaker 1: it i'd have been a portion of some ancient manuscript
Speaker 1: or forgotten codex. What do you make of it? Doctor,
Speaker 1: inquired the inspector anxiously, after a pause during which Thorndyke
Speaker 1: had scrutinized the strange writing with knitted brows. Not a
Speaker 1: great deal, replied Thorndyke. The character is the Moabide or Phoenician,
Speaker 1: primitive Semitic in fact, and reads from right to left.
Speaker 1: The language I take to be Hebrew at any rate
Speaker 1: I can find no Greek words, and I see here
Speaker 1: a group of letters which may form one of the
Speaker 1: few Hebrew words that I know. The word badim lies.
Speaker 1: But you had better get it deciphered by an expert.
Speaker 1: If it is Hebrew, said Badger. We can manage it
Speaker 1: all right. There are plenty of Jews at our disposal.
Speaker 1: You had better take that paper to the British Museum,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke, and submitted to the Keeper of the Phoenician
Speaker 1: Antiquities for decipherment. Inspector Badger smiled a foxy smile as
Speaker 1: he deposited the paper in his pocket book. We'll see
Speaker 1: what we can make of it ourselves first, he said.
Speaker 1: But many thanks for your advice. All the same doctor, No,
Speaker 1: mister James, I can't give you any information just at present.
Speaker 1: You had better apply at the hospital. I suspect, said
Speaker 1: Thorndyke as we took our way homewards, that mister James
Speaker 1: has collected enough material for his purpose already. He must
Speaker 1: have followed us from the hospital, and I have no
Speaker 1: doubt that he has his report with full details mentally
Speaker 1: arranged at this moment, and I am not sure that
Speaker 1: he didn't get a peep at the mysterious paper in
Speaker 1: spite of the Inspector's precautions. By the way, I said,
Speaker 1: what do you make of the document? A cipher, most probably,
Speaker 1: he replied. It is written in the primitive Semitic alphabet, which,
Speaker 1: as you know, is practically identical with primitive Greek. It
Speaker 1: is written from right to left, like the Phoenician Hebrew
Speaker 1: and Moabite, as well as the earliest Greek inscriptions. The
Speaker 1: paper is common cream laid note paper, and the ink
Speaker 1: is ordinary indelible Chinese ink, such as is used by draftsmen.
Speaker 1: Those are the facts, and without further study of the
Speaker 1: document itself, they don't carry us very far. Why do
Speaker 1: you think it is a cipher rather than a document
Speaker 1: and straightforward Hebrew? Because it is obviously a secret message
Speaker 1: of some kind. Now, every educated Jew knows more or
Speaker 1: less Hebrew, and although he is able to read and
Speaker 1: write only the modern square Hebrew character, it is so
Speaker 1: easy to transpose one alphabet into another that the mere
Speaker 1: language would afford no security. Therefore, I expect that when
Speaker 1: the experts translate this document, the translation or transliteration will
Speaker 1: be a mere farrago of unintelligible nonsense. But we shall see.
Speaker 1: And meanwhile, the facts that we have offer several interesting
Speaker 1: suggestions which are well worth consideration. As for instance, now,
Speaker 1: my dear Jervis, said Thorndyke, shaking in a monitory forefinger
Speaker 1: at me. Don't I pray you give way to mental indolence.
Speaker 1: You have these few facts that I have mentioned, consider
Speaker 1: them separately and collectively and in their relation to the circumstances.
Speaker 1: Don't attempt to suck my brain when you have an
Speaker 1: excellent brain of your own to suck. On the following morning,
Speaker 1: the papers fully justified my colleague's opinion of mister James.
Speaker 1: All the events which had occurred, as well as a
Speaker 1: number that had not, were given in the fullest and
Speaker 1: most vivid detail, a length the reference being made to
Speaker 1: the paper found on the person of the dead anarchist
Speaker 1: and written in a private shorthand or cryptogram. The report
Speaker 1: concluded with the gratifying, though untrue statement that, in this
Speaker 1: intricate and important case, the police have wisely secured the
Speaker 1: assistance of doctor John Thorndyke, to whose acute intellect and
Speaker 1: vast experience, the portentous cryptogram will doubtless soon deliver up
Speaker 1: its secret. Very flattering, laughed Thorndyke, to whom I read
Speaker 1: the extract on his return from the hospital. But a
Speaker 1: little awkward of it should induce our friends to deposit
Speaker 1: a few trifling mementoes in the form of nitro compounds
Speaker 1: on our main staircase or in the cellars. By the way,
Speaker 1: I met Superintendent Miller on London Bridge. The cryptogram, as
Speaker 1: mister James calls it, has set Scotland Yard in a
Speaker 1: mighty ferment. Naturally, what have they done in the matter?
Speaker 1: They adopted my suggestion, after all, finding that they could
Speaker 1: make nothing of it themselves, and took it to the
Speaker 1: British Museum. The museum people referred them to Professor Poppelbaum,
Speaker 1: the great paleographer, to whom they accordingly submitted it. Does
Speaker 1: he express any opinion about it? Yes? Provisionally after a
Speaker 1: brief examination he found it to consist of a number
Speaker 1: of Hebrew words sandwich between apparently meaningless groups of letters.
Speaker 1: He furnished the Superintendent off hand with a translation of
Speaker 1: the words, and Miller forthwith struck off a number of
Speaker 1: hectograph copies of it, which he has distributed among the
Speaker 1: senior officials of his department, So that at present here
Speaker 1: Thorndyke gave event to a soft chuckle. Scotland Yard is
Speaker 1: engaged in a sort of missing word, or rather missing
Speaker 1: sense competition. Miller invited me to join in the sport,
Speaker 1: and to that end presented me with one of the
Speaker 1: hectograph copies on which to exercise my wits, together with
Speaker 1: a photograph of the document. And shall you, I asked,
Speaker 1: Not I, he replied, laughing. In the first place, I
Speaker 1: have not been formally consulted, and consequently am a passive,
Speaker 1: though interested spectator. In the second place, I have a
Speaker 1: theory of my own, which I shall test if the
Speaker 1: occasion arises. But if you would like to take part
Speaker 1: in the competition, I am authorized to show you the
Speaker 1: photograph and the translation will pass them on to you,
Speaker 1: and I wish you joy of them. He handed me
Speaker 1: the photograph in a sheet of paper that he had
Speaker 1: just taken from his pocket book, and watched me with
Speaker 1: grim amusement as I read out the first few lines. Woe, city, lies, robbery, prey, noise, whip,
Speaker 1: rattling wheel horse, chariot, day, darkness, gloominess, clouds, darkness, morning,
Speaker 1: mountain people strong, fire them flame. It doesn't look very
Speaker 1: promising at first sight, I remarked, what is the professor's theory?
Speaker 1: His theory, provisionally, of course, is that the words form
Speaker 1: the message and the groups of letters represent mere filled
Speaker 1: up spaces between the words. But surely, I protested, that
Speaker 1: would be a very transparent device. Thorndyke laughed. There is
Speaker 1: a childlike simplicity about it, said he. That is highly attractive,
Speaker 1: but discouraging. It is much more probable that the words
Speaker 1: are dummies and that the letters contain the message. Or again,
Speaker 1: the solution may lie in an entirely different direction. But listen,
Speaker 1: is that a cap coming here? It was it? I
Speaker 1: drew up opposite our chambers, and a few moments later
Speaker 1: a brisk step ascending the stairs heralded a smart rat
Speaker 1: tat at our door. Flinging open the ladder, I found
Speaker 1: myself confronted by a well dressed stranger, who, after a
Speaker 1: quick glance at me, peered inquisitively over my shoulder into
Speaker 1: the room. I am relieved. Doctor Jervis said he to
Speaker 1: find you and doctor Thorndyke at home, as I have
Speaker 1: come on somewhat urgent professional business. My name, he continued
Speaker 1: entering in response to my invitation, is Barton. But you
Speaker 1: don't know me, though I know you both by sight.
Speaker 1: I have come to ask you if one of you,
Speaker 1: or better still, both could come to night and see
Speaker 1: my brother. That said Thorndyke, depends on the circumstances and
Speaker 1: on the whereabouts of your brother. The circumstances, said mister Barton,
Speaker 1: are in my opinion, highly suspicious, and I will place
Speaker 1: them before you, of course, in strict confidence. Thorndyke nodded
Speaker 1: and indicated a chair. My brother, continued, mister Barton, taking
Speaker 1: the proffered seat, has recently married for the second time.
Speaker 1: His age is fifty five and that of his wife
Speaker 1: twenty six, and I may say that the marriage has
Speaker 1: been well, by no means a success. Now, within the
Speaker 1: last fortnight, my brother has been attacked by a mysterious
Speaker 1: and extremely painful affection of the stomach, to which his
Speaker 1: doctor seems unable to give a name. It has resisted
Speaker 1: all treatment hitherto. Day by day the pain and distress increase,
Speaker 1: and I feel that unless something decisive is done, the
Speaker 1: end cannot be far off. Is the pain worse after
Speaker 1: taking food, inquired Thorndyke. That's just it, exclaimed our visitor.
Speaker 1: I see what is in your mind, and it has
Speaker 1: been in mine too, so much though that I have
Speaker 1: tried repeatedly to obtain samples of the food that he
Speaker 1: is taking, and this morning I succeeded. Here he took
Speaker 1: from his pocket a wide mouthed bottle, which, disengaging from
Speaker 1: its paper wrappings, he laid on the table when I called.
Speaker 1: He was taking his breakfast of arrowroot, which he complained
Speaker 1: had a gritty taste, supposed by his wife to be
Speaker 1: due to the sugar. Now I had provided myself with
Speaker 1: this bottle, and during the absence of his wife, I'm
Speaker 1: banished unobserved to convey a portion of the arrowroot that
Speaker 1: he had left into it. And I should be greatly
Speaker 1: obliged if you would examine it and tell me if
Speaker 1: this arrow rout contains anything that it should not. He
Speaker 1: pushed the bottle across to Thorndyke, who carried it to
Speaker 1: the window, and, extracting a small quantity of the contents
Speaker 1: with a glass rod, examined the pasty mass with the
Speaker 1: aid of a lens. Then, lifting the bell glass cover
Speaker 1: from the microscope which stood on its table by the window,
Speaker 1: he smeared a small quantity of the suspected matter onto
Speaker 1: a glass slip and placed it on the stage of
Speaker 1: the instrument. I observe a number of crystalline particles in this,
Speaker 1: he said, after a brief inspection, which have the appearance
Speaker 1: of arcinious acid. Ah, ejaculated mister Barton, just as I feared.
Speaker 1: But are you certain? No, replied Thorndyke. But the matter
Speaker 1: is easily tested. He pressed the button of the bell
Speaker 1: that communicated with the laboratory, a summons that brought the
Speaker 1: laboratory assistance from his lair with characteristic promptitude. Will you
Speaker 1: please prepare a marsious apparatus, Polton, said Thorndyke. I have
Speaker 1: a couple ready, Sir, replied Pulton, then poured the acid
Speaker 1: into one and bring it to me with a tile.
Speaker 1: As his familiar vanished silently, Thorndyke turned to mister Barton,
Speaker 1: Supposing we find arsenic in this arrowroot, as we probably shall,
Speaker 1: what do you want us to do? I want you
Speaker 1: to come and see my brother, replied our client. Why
Speaker 1: not take a note from me to his doctor? No, no,
Speaker 1: I want you to come. I should like you both
Speaker 1: to come and put a stop at once to this
Speaker 1: dreadful business. Consider it is a matter of life and death.
Speaker 1: You won't refuse I beg you not to refuse me
Speaker 1: your help in these terrible circumstances, well said Thorndyke, as
Speaker 1: his assistant reappeared. Let us first see what the test
Speaker 1: has to tell us. Poulton advanced to the table, on
Speaker 1: which he deposited a small flask, the contents of which
Speaker 1: were in a state of brisk effervescence, a bottle labeled
Speaker 1: calcium hypochlorite, and a white porcelain tile. The flask was
Speaker 1: fitted with a safety funnel and a glass tube drawn
Speaker 1: out to a fine jet, to which Polton cautiously applied
Speaker 1: a lighted match. Instantly there sprang from the jet a tiny,
Speaker 1: pale violet flame. Thorndyke now took the tile and held
Speaker 1: it in the flame for several seconds, when the appearance
Speaker 1: of the surface remained unchanged save for the small circle
Speaker 1: of condensed moisture. His next proceeding was to thin the
Speaker 1: arrowroot with distilled water until it was quite fluid, and
Speaker 1: then pour a small quantity into the funnel. It ran
Speaker 1: slowly down the tube into the flask with the bubbling
Speaker 1: contents of which it became speedily mixed. Almost immediately a
Speaker 1: change began to appear in the character of the flame,
Speaker 1: which from a pale violet turned gradually to a sickly blue,
Speaker 1: while above it hung a faint cloud of white smoke.
Speaker 1: Once more, Thorndyke held the tile above the jet, but
Speaker 1: this time no sooner had the pallid flame touched the
Speaker 1: cold surface of the porcelain than there appeared on the
Speaker 1: latter a glistening black stain. That is pretty conclusive, observed Thorndyke,
Speaker 1: lifting the stopper out of the reagent bottle. But we
Speaker 1: will apply the final test. He dropped a few drops
Speaker 1: of the hypochlorite solution onto the tile, and immediately the
Speaker 1: black stain faded away and vanished. I now answer your question,
Speaker 1: mister Barton, said he replacing the stopper as he turned
Speaker 1: to our client. The specimen that you brought us certainly
Speaker 1: contains arsenic and in very considerable quantities, then exclaimed mister Barton,
Speaker 1: starting from his chair, You will come and help me
Speaker 1: to rescue my brother from this dreadful pearl. Don't refuse me,
Speaker 1: doctor Thorndyke, for mercy's sake, don't refuse. Thorndyke reflected for
Speaker 1: a moment before we decide, said he we must see
Speaker 1: what engagements we have. With a quick, significant glance at me,
Speaker 1: he walked into the office, whither I followed in some bewilderment,
Speaker 1: for I knew that we had no engagements for the
Speaker 1: evening now, Jervis, said Thorndyke, as he closed the office door.
Speaker 1: What are we to do? We must go, I suppose,
Speaker 1: I replied. It seems a pretty urgent case. It does.
Speaker 1: He agreed. Of course, the man may be telling the truth.
Speaker 1: After all, you don't think he is. Then, no, it
Speaker 1: is a plausible tale, but there is too much arsenic
Speaker 1: in that arrow root. Still I think I ought to go.
Speaker 1: It is an ordinary professional risk, but there is no
Speaker 1: reason why you should put your head into the noose.
Speaker 1: Thank you, I said, somewhat huffily. I don't see what
Speaker 1: risk there is, but if any exists, I claim the
Speaker 1: right to share it. Very well, he answered, with a smile.
Speaker 1: We will both go. I think we can take care
Speaker 1: of ourselves. He re entered the sitting room and announced
Speaker 1: his decision to mister Barton, whose relief and gratitude were
Speaker 1: quite pathetic. But said Thorndyke, you have not yet told
Speaker 1: us where your brother lives. Rexford, was the reply. Rexford
Speaker 1: in Essex. It isn't out of the way place, but
Speaker 1: if we catch the seven fifteen from Liverpool Street, we
Speaker 1: shall be there in an hour and a half. And
Speaker 1: as to the return, you know the trains, I suppose,
Speaker 1: Oh yes, replied our client. I will see that you
Speaker 1: don't miss your train back. Then I will be with
Speaker 1: you in a minute, said Thorndyke, and taking the still
Speaker 1: bubbling flask, he retired to the laboratory. Whence he returned
Speaker 1: in a few minutes carrying his hat and overcoat. The
Speaker 1: cab which had brought our client was still waiting, and
Speaker 1: we were soon rattling through the streets toward the station,
Speaker 1: where we arrived in time to furnish ourselves with dinner
Speaker 1: baskets and select our compartment at leisure. During the early
Speaker 1: part of the journey, our companion was in excellent spirits.
Speaker 1: He despatched the cold fowl from the basket and quaffed
Speaker 1: the rather indifferent claret with as much relish as if
Speaker 1: he had not had a single relation in the world,
Speaker 1: And after dinner he became genial to the verge of hilarity.
Speaker 1: But as the time went on, there crept into his
Speaker 1: manner a certain anxious restlessness. He became silent and preoccupied,
Speaker 1: and several times furtively consulted his watch. The train is
Speaker 1: confoundedly late, he exclaimed, irritably, seven minutes behind time. Already
Speaker 1: a few minutes more or less are not of much consequence,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke. No, of course not. But still, ah, thank Heaven,
Speaker 1: here we are. He thrust his head out of the
Speaker 1: off side window and gazed eagerly down the line. Then,
Speaker 1: leaping to his feet, he bustled out onto the platform
Speaker 1: while the train was still moving. Even as we alighted,
Speaker 1: a warning bell rang furiously on the up platform, and
Speaker 1: as mister Barton hurried us through the empty booking office
Speaker 1: to the outside of the station, the rumble of the
Speaker 1: approaching train could be heard above the noise made by
Speaker 1: our own trade moving off. My courage does not seem
Speaker 1: to have arrived yet, exclaimed mister Barton, looking anxiously up
Speaker 1: the station approach. If you will wait here a moment,
Speaker 1: I will go and make inquiries. He darted back into
Speaker 1: the booking office and threw it onto the platform, just
Speaker 1: as the up train roared into the station. Thorndyke followed
Speaker 1: him with quick but stealthy steps, and, peering out of
Speaker 1: the booking office door, watched his proceedings. Then he turned
Speaker 1: and beckoned to me. There he goes, said he, pointing
Speaker 1: to an iron footbridge that spanned the line, And as
Speaker 1: I looked, I saw clearly defined against the dim night sky,
Speaker 1: a flying figure racing toward the upside. It was hardly
Speaker 1: two thirds across when the guard's whistle sang out its
Speaker 1: shrill warning. Quick Jervis exclaimed Thorndyke, She's off. He leaped
Speaker 1: down onto the line, whither I followed instantly, and crossing
Speaker 1: the rails, we clambered up together onto the footboard opposite
Speaker 1: an empty first class compartment. Thorndyke's magazine knife, containing among
Speaker 1: other implements, a railway key, was already in his hand.
Speaker 1: The door was speedily un locked, and as we entered,
Speaker 1: Thorndyke ran through and looked out onto the platform. Just
Speaker 1: in time, he exclaimed, he is in one of the
Speaker 1: forward compartments. He relocked the door, and, seating himself, proceeded
Speaker 1: to fill his pipe. And now said I, as the
Speaker 1: train moved out of the station, perhaps you will explain
Speaker 1: this little comedy with pleasure, he replied, if it needs
Speaker 1: any explanation. But you can hardly have forgotten mister James's
Speaker 1: flattering remarks in his report of the Greek Street incident,
Speaker 1: clearly giving the impression that the mysterious document was in
Speaker 1: my possession. When I read that, I knew I must
Speaker 1: look out for some attempt to recover it, though I
Speaker 1: hardly expected such promptness. Still, when mister Barton called without
Speaker 1: credentials or appointment, I viewed him with some suspicion. That
Speaker 1: suspicion deepened when he wanted us both to come. It
Speaker 1: deepened further when I found an impossible quantity of arsenic
Speaker 1: in his sample, and it gave place to certainty when
Speaker 1: having allowed him to select the trains by which we
Speaker 1: were to travel, I went up to the laboratory and
Speaker 1: examined the timetable for I then found that the last
Speaker 1: train for London left Rexford ten minutes after we were
Speaker 1: due to arrive. Obviously, this was a plan to get
Speaker 1: us both safely out of the way while he and
Speaker 1: some of his friends ransacked our chambers for the missing document.
Speaker 1: I see, and that accounts for his extraordinary anxiety at
Speaker 1: the lateness of the train. But why did you come
Speaker 1: if you knew it was a plant, my dear fellow,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke. I never miss an interesting experience if I
Speaker 1: can help it. There are possibilities in this too, don't
Speaker 1: you see? But supposing his friends have broken into our
Speaker 1: chambers already that contingency has been provided for. But I
Speaker 1: think they will wait for mister Barton and us. Our train,
Speaker 1: being the last one up, stopped at every station and
Speaker 1: crawled slussfully in the intervals, so that it was past
Speaker 1: eleven o'clock when we reached Liverpool Street. Here we got
Speaker 1: out cautiously, and mingling with the crowd, followed the unconscious
Speaker 1: Barton up the platform, through the barrier, and out into
Speaker 1: the street. He seemed in no special hurry, for after
Speaker 1: pausing to light a cigar, he set off at an
Speaker 1: easy pace up New Broad Street. Thorndyke hailed a hansom, and,
Speaker 1: motioning me to enter, directed the cabman to drive to
Speaker 1: Clifford's Inn. Passage. Sit well back, said he. As we
Speaker 1: rattled away up New Broad Street. We shall be passing
Speaker 1: our gay deceiver presently. In fact, there he is a
Speaker 1: living walking illustration of the folly of underrating the intelligence
Speaker 1: of one's adversary. At Clifford's in passage, we dismissed the cab, and,
Speaker 1: retiring into the shadow of the dark narrow alley, kept
Speaker 1: an eye on the gate of Inner Temple Lane. In
Speaker 1: about twenty minutes we observed our friend approaching on the
Speaker 1: south side of Fleet Street. He halted at the gate,
Speaker 1: plied the knocker, and after a brief parley with the
Speaker 1: night porter, vanished through the wicket. We waited yet five
Speaker 1: minutes more, and then, having given him time to get
Speaker 1: clear of the entrance, we crossed the road. The porter
Speaker 1: looked at us with some surprise. There's a gentleman just
Speaker 1: gone down to your chambers, sir, said he. He told
Speaker 1: me you were expecting him. Quite right, said Thorndyke, with
Speaker 1: a dry smile. I was good night. We slunk down
Speaker 1: the lane, past the church and through the gloomy cloisters,
Speaker 1: giving a wide berth to all lamps and lighted entry,
Speaker 1: until emerging into paper buildings. We crossed at the darkest
Speaker 1: part to King's Bench Walk, where Thorndyke made straight for
Speaker 1: the chambers of our friend. Anstey, which were two doors
Speaker 1: above our own. Why are we coming here, I asked
Speaker 1: as we ascended the stairs, But the question needed no
Speaker 1: answer when we reached the landing, for through the open
Speaker 1: door of our friend's chambers, I could see in the
Speaker 1: darkened room ants Tea himself with two uniformed constables and
Speaker 1: a couple of plains clothes men. There has been no
Speaker 1: signal yet, sir, said one of the latter, whom I
Speaker 1: recognized as a detective sergeant of our division. No, said Thorndyke,
Speaker 1: but the m C has arrived. He came in five
Speaker 1: minutes before us, then exclaimed Anstey. The ball will open shortly,
Speaker 1: Ladies and gents. The boards are wax the fiddlers are
Speaker 1: tuning up and not quite so loud. If you please, sir,
Speaker 1: said the sergeant, I think there is somebody coming up
Speaker 1: Crown Office Row. The ball had in fact opened. As
Speaker 1: we peered cautiously out of the open window, keeping well
Speaker 1: back in the darkened room, a stealthy figure crept out
Speaker 1: of the shadow, crossed the road, and stole noiselessly into
Speaker 1: the entry of Thorndyke's chambers. It was quickly followed by
Speaker 1: a second figure, and then by a third, in which
Speaker 1: I recognized our elusive client. Now listen for the signal,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke. They won't waste time. Confound that clock. The
Speaker 1: soft voiced bell of the Inner Temple clock, mingling with
Speaker 1: the harsher tones of Saint Dunstan's and the law courts,
Speaker 1: slowly told out the hour of midnight. And as the
Speaker 1: last reverberations were dying away, some metallic object, apparently a coin, dropped,
Speaker 1: with a sharp clink onto the pavement under our window.
Speaker 1: At the sound, the watchers simultaneously sprang to their feet.
Speaker 1: You two go first, said the sergeant, addressing the uniformed men,
Speaker 1: who thereupon stole noiselessly in their rubber soled boots down
Speaker 1: the stone stairs and along the pavement. The rest of
Speaker 1: us followed with less attention to silence, and as we
Speaker 1: ran up to Thorndyke's chambers, we were aware of quick
Speaker 1: but stealthy footsteps on the stairs above. They've been at work,
Speaker 1: you see, whispered one of the constables, flashing his lantern
Speaker 1: onto the iron bound outer door of our sitting room,
Speaker 1: on which the marks of a large jemmy were plainly visible.
Speaker 1: The sergeant nodded grimly, and, bidding the constables to remain
Speaker 1: on the landing, led the way upwards. As we ascended,
Speaker 1: faint rustlings continued to be audible from above, and on
Speaker 1: the second floor landing we met a man descending briskly
Speaker 1: but without hurry from the third It was mister Barton,
Speaker 1: and I could not but admire the composure with which
Speaker 1: he passed the two detectives. But suddenly his glance fell
Speaker 1: on Thorndyke, and his composure vanished. With a wild stare
Speaker 1: of incredulous horror, he halted as if petrified. Then he
Speaker 1: broke away and raced furiously down the stairs, and after
Speaker 1: a moment, a muffled shout and the sound of a
Speaker 1: scuffle told us that he had received a check. On
Speaker 1: the next flight, we met two more men, who, more
Speaker 1: hurried and less self possessed, endeavored to push past, but
Speaker 1: the sergeant barred the way. Why bless me, exclaimed the latter.
Speaker 1: It's Moky and isn't that Tom Harris. It's all right, sergeant,
Speaker 1: said Mokey, plaintively, striving to escape from the officer's grip.
Speaker 1: We've come to the wrong house. That's all, the sergeant
Speaker 1: smiled indulgently. A I know, he replied, but you're always
Speaker 1: coming to the wrong house, smoky, and now you're just
Speaker 1: coming along with me to the right house. He slipped
Speaker 1: his hand inside his captive's coat and adroitly fished out
Speaker 1: a large folding gemmy, whereupon the discomfited burglar abandoned all
Speaker 1: further protest. On our return to the first floor, we
Speaker 1: found mister Barton sulkily awaiting us, handcuffed to one of
Speaker 1: the constables and watched by Polton with pensive disapproval. I
Speaker 1: needn't trouble you tonight, doctor, said the sergeant, as he
Speaker 1: marshaled his little troop of captors and captives. You'll hear
Speaker 1: from us in the morning. Good night, sir. The melancholy
Speaker 1: procession moved off down the stairs, and we retired to
Speaker 1: our chambers with anstey to smoke a last pipe. A
Speaker 1: capable man that Barton observed, Thorndyke ready plausible and ingenious,
Speaker 1: but spoilt by prolonged contact with fools. I wonder if
Speaker 1: the police will perceive the significance of this little affair.
Speaker 1: They'll be more acute than I am. If they do,
Speaker 1: said I naturally, interposed Anstey, who loved to cheek his
Speaker 1: revered senior, Because there isn't any It's all Thorndyke's bounce.
Speaker 1: He is really in deduce of a fog himself. However
Speaker 1: this may have been. The police were a good deal
Speaker 1: puzzled by the incident, for on the following morning we
Speaker 1: received a visit from no less a person than Superintendent
Speaker 1: Miller of Scotland Yard. This is a queer business, said he,
Speaker 1: coming to the point at once, this burglary. I mean,
Speaker 1: why should they want to crack your place right here
Speaker 1: in the temple too? You've got nothing of value here?
Speaker 1: Have you? No hard stuff as they call it? For instance,
Speaker 1: not so much as a silver teaspoon, replied Thorndyke, who
Speaker 1: had a conscientious objection to plate of all kinds. It's odd,
Speaker 1: said the Superintendent, deuced odd. When we got your note,
Speaker 1: we thought that anarchist idiots had mixed you up with
Speaker 1: the case. You saw the papers, I suppose, and wanted
Speaker 1: to go through your rooms for some reason. We thought
Speaker 1: we had our hands on the gang, instead of which
Speaker 1: we find a party of common crooks that we're sick
Speaker 1: of the sight of I tell you, sir, it's annoying
Speaker 1: when you think you've hooked a salmon to bring up
Speaker 1: a blooming eel. It must be a great disappointment. Thorndyke agreed,
Speaker 1: suppressing smile, it is, said the detective. Not but what.
Speaker 1: We're glad enough to get these beggars, especially Halkett or Barton,
Speaker 1: as he calls himself, a mighty slippery customer. Is Halkett
Speaker 1: and mischievous too, But we're not wanting any disappointments. Just now,
Speaker 1: there was that big jewel job in Piccadilly Taplin and Horns.
Speaker 1: I don't mind telling you that we've not got a
Speaker 1: ghost of the clue. Then there's this anarchist affair. We're
Speaker 1: all in the dark there too. But what about the cipher,
Speaker 1: asked Thorndyke. Oh hang the cipher, exclaimed the detective irritably.
Speaker 1: This Professor Popelbaum may be a very learned man, but
Speaker 1: he doesn't help us much. He says. The document is
Speaker 1: in Hebrew and he has translated into double Dutch. Just
Speaker 1: listen to this. He dragged out of his pocket a
Speaker 1: bundle of papers, and, dabbing down a photograph of the
Speaker 1: document before Thorndyke commenced to read the professor's report. The
Speaker 1: document is written in the characters of the well known
Speaker 1: inscription of Mesha, king of Moab, who the devil's he
Speaker 1: never heard of him well known. Indeed, the language is Hebrew,
Speaker 1: and the words are separated by groups of letters, which
Speaker 1: are meanings and obviously introduced to mislead and confused the reader.
Speaker 1: The words themselves are not strictly consecutive, but by the
Speaker 1: interpolation of certain other words, a series of intelligible sentences
Speaker 1: as obtained, the meaning of which is not very clear,
Speaker 1: but is no doubt allegorical. The method of decipherment is
Speaker 1: shown in the accompanying tables and the full rendering suggested
Speaker 1: on the enclosed sheet. It is to be noted that
Speaker 1: the writer of this document was apparently quite unacquainted with
Speaker 1: the Hebrew language, as appears from the absence of any
Speaker 1: grammatical construction. That's the professor's purport, doctor, And here are
Speaker 1: the tables showing how he worked it out. It makes
Speaker 1: my head spin to look at him. He handed to
Speaker 1: Thorndyke a bundle of ruled sheets, which my colleague examined
Speaker 1: attentively for a while, and then passed on to me.
Speaker 1: This is very systematic and thorough, said he. But now
Speaker 1: let us see the final result at which he arrives.
Speaker 1: It may be all very systematic, growled the Superintendent, sorting
Speaker 1: at his papers. But I tell you, sir, it's all
Speaker 1: bosh the latter word, he jerked out viciously as he
Speaker 1: slapped down on the table the final product of the
Speaker 1: professor labors there, he continued, that's what he calls the
Speaker 1: fool rendering, And I reckon, it'll make your hair curl.
Speaker 1: It might be a message from Bedlam. Thorndyke took up
Speaker 1: the first sheet, and as he compared the constructed renderings
Speaker 1: with the literal translation, the ghost of a smile stole
Speaker 1: across his usually immovable countenance. The meaning is certainly a
Speaker 1: little obscure, he observed, though the reconstruction is highly ingenious.
Speaker 1: And moreover, I think the professor is probably right, that
Speaker 1: is to say, the words which he has supplied are
Speaker 1: probably the omitted parts of the passages from which the
Speaker 1: words of the cryptogram were taken. What do you think, jervis?
Speaker 1: He handed me the two papers, of which one gave
Speaker 1: the actual words of the cryptogram, and the other a
Speaker 1: suggested reconstruction with omitted words supplied. The first read whip, noise, prey, robbery, lies, city, woe, horse,
Speaker 1: wheel rattling, darkness, day, chariot, mountain, mourning, darkness, cloud, gloominess,
Speaker 1: flame them, fire, strong people. Turning to the second paper,
Speaker 1: I read out the suggested rendering, woe to the bloody city.
Speaker 1: It is full of lies and robbery. The prey departeth
Speaker 1: not the noise of a whip, and the noise of
Speaker 1: the rattling of the wheels, and of the prancing horses,
Speaker 1: and of the jumping chariots. A day of darkness and
Speaker 1: of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness.
Speaker 1: As the mornings spread upon the mountains, a great people
Speaker 1: and a strong A fire devoueth before them, and behind
Speaker 1: them a flame burneth. Here the first sheet ended, and
Speaker 1: as I laid it down, Thorndyke looked at me inquiringly.
Speaker 1: There is a good deal of reconstruction in proportion to
Speaker 1: the original matter, I objected. The professor has supplied more
Speaker 1: than three quarters of the final rendering exactly burst in
Speaker 1: the superintendent. It's all, Professor, and no cryptogram. Still, I
Speaker 1: think the reading is correct, said Thorndyke. As far as
Speaker 1: it goes, that is good, Lord, exclaimed the dismayed detective.
Speaker 1: Do you mean to tell me, sir, that all that
Speaker 1: ball our dash is the real meaning of the thing.
Speaker 1: I don't say that, replied Thorndyke. I say it is
Speaker 1: correct as far as it goes, but I doubt it's
Speaker 1: being the solution of the cryptogram. Have you been studying
Speaker 1: that photograph that I gave you, demanded Miller with sudden eagerness.
Speaker 1: I have looked at it, said Thorndyke evasively, but I
Speaker 1: should like to examine the original if you have it
Speaker 1: with you, I have, said the detective. Professor Popelbaum sent
Speaker 1: it back with a solution. You can have a look
Speaker 1: at it, though I can't leave it with you without
Speaker 1: special authority. He drew the document from his pocket book
Speaker 1: and handed it to Thorndyke, who took it over to
Speaker 1: the window and scrutinized it closely. From the window, he
Speaker 1: drifted into the adjacent office, closing the door after him,
Speaker 1: and presently the sound of a faint explosion told me
Speaker 1: that he had lighted the gas fire of course, said Miller,
Speaker 1: taking up the translation again, disgibricious, the sort of stuff
Speaker 1: you might expect from a parcel of crack brained anarchist.
Speaker 1: But it doesn't seem to mean anything, not to us,
Speaker 1: I agreed. But their phrases may have some prearranged significance.
Speaker 1: And then there are the letters between the words. It
Speaker 1: is possible that they may really form a cipher. I
Speaker 1: suggested that to the professor, said Miller, But he wouldn't
Speaker 1: hear of it. He is sure they are only dummies.
Speaker 1: I think he is probably mistaken, and so I fancy
Speaker 1: does my colleague. But we shall hear what he has
Speaker 1: to say presently. Oh I know what he will say,
Speaker 1: growled Miller. He will put the thing under the microscope
Speaker 1: and tell us who made the paper and what the
Speaker 1: ink is composed of, and then we shall be just
Speaker 1: where we are. The superintendent was evidently deeply depressed. We
Speaker 1: sat for some time pondering in silence on the vague
Speaker 1: sentences of the professor's translation, until at length thorndyke reappeared,
Speaker 1: holding the document in his hand. He laid it quietly
Speaker 1: on the table by the officer, and then inquired, is
Speaker 1: this an official consultation, certainly, replied Miller. I was authorized
Speaker 1: to consult your respecting the translation, but nothing was said
Speaker 1: about the original. Still, if you want it for further study,
Speaker 1: I will get it for you. No, thank you, said Thorndyke.
Speaker 1: I have finished with it. My theory turned out to
Speaker 1: be correct. Your theory, exclaimed the asuperre intended eagerly. Do
Speaker 1: you mean to say? And as you are consulting me officially,
Speaker 1: I may as well give you this. He held out
Speaker 1: a sheet of paper, which the detective took from him
Speaker 1: and began to read. What is this, he asked, looking
Speaker 1: up at Thorndyke with a puzzled frown. Where did it
Speaker 1: come from? It is the solution of the cryptogram, replied Thorndyke.
Speaker 1: The detective re read the contents of the paper, and,
Speaker 1: with the frown of perplexity deepening, once more, gazed at
Speaker 1: my colleague. This is a joke, sir, You are fooling me,
Speaker 1: he said, sulkily. Nothing of the kind, answered Thorndyke. That
Speaker 1: is the genuine solution. But it is impossible, exclaimed Miller.
Speaker 1: Just look at it, doctor Jervis. I took the paper
Speaker 1: from his hand, and as I glanced at it, I
Speaker 1: had no difficulty in understanding his surprise. It bore a
Speaker 1: short inscription in printed Roman capitals. Thus the pickerdilly stuff
Speaker 1: is up to Chimbley for sixteen Warder Street, second floor back.
Speaker 1: It was hid because of old Moki's Jewde Moki is
Speaker 1: a blighter, then that fellow wasn't an anarchist at all,
Speaker 1: I exclaimed, No, Miller, he was one of Moki's gang.
Speaker 1: We suspected Mochi of being mixed up with that job,
Speaker 1: but we couldn't fix it on him. By jove, he added,
Speaker 1: slapping his thigh. If this is right, and I can
Speaker 1: lay my hands on the loop, can you lend me
Speaker 1: a bag? Doctor, I'm off to Warder Street this very moment.
Speaker 1: We furnished him with an empty suit case, and from
Speaker 1: the window watched him making for Miter Court at a
Speaker 1: smart double. I wonder if he will find the booty,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke. It just depends on whether the hiding place
Speaker 1: was known to more than one of the gang. Well,
Speaker 1: it has been a quaint case and instructive too. I
Speaker 1: suspect our friend Barton and the evasive Schoenberg were the
Speaker 1: collaborators who produced that curiosity of literature. May I ask
Speaker 1: how you deciphered the thing? I said, it didn't appear
Speaker 1: to take long. It didn't. It was merely a matter
Speaker 1: of testing a hypothesis. And you ought not to have
Speaker 1: to ask that question, he added, with marked severity, seeing
Speaker 1: that you had what turned out to have been all
Speaker 1: the necessary facts two days ago. But I will prepare
Speaker 1: a document and demonstrate to you tomorrow morning. So Miller
Speaker 1: was successful at his quest, said Thorndyke. As we smoked
Speaker 1: our morning pipes after breakfast, the entire swag, as he
Speaker 1: calls it, was up the chimbly undisturbed. He handed me
Speaker 1: a note which had been left with the empty suit
Speaker 1: case by a messenger shortly before, and I was about
Speaker 1: to read it when an agitated knock was heard at
Speaker 1: our door. The visitor, whom I admitted, was a rather
Speaker 1: haggard and disheveled, elderly gentleman, who, as he entered, peered
Speaker 1: inquisitively through his concave spectacles from one of us to
Speaker 1: the other. Allow me to introduce myself, gentlemen, he said,
Speaker 1: I am Professor Poppelbaum. Thorndyke bowed and offered a chair.
Speaker 1: I called. Yesterday afternoon, our visitor continued at Scotland Yard,
Speaker 1: where I heard of your remarkable decipherment and of the
Speaker 1: convincing proof of its correctness. Thereupon I borrowed the cryptogram
Speaker 1: and have spent the entire night in studying it. But
Speaker 1: I cannot connect your solution with any of the characters.
Speaker 1: I wonder if you would do me the great favor
Speaker 1: of enlightening me as to your method of decipherment, and
Speaker 1: so save me further sleepless nights. You may rely on
Speaker 1: my discretion. Have you the document with which you asked Thorndyke?
Speaker 1: The professor produced it from his pocket book and passed
Speaker 1: it to my colleague, You, observe, professor, said the latter,
Speaker 1: that this is a laid paper and has no water mark. Yes,
Speaker 1: I noticed that, and that the writing is an indelible
Speaker 1: Chinese ink. Yes, yes, said the savant impatiently. But it
Speaker 1: is the inscription that interests me, not the paper in ink, precisely,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke. Now it was the ink that interested me
Speaker 1: when I caught a glimpse of the document three days ago. Why,
Speaker 1: I asked myself, should anyone use this troublesome medium. For
Speaker 1: this appears to be stick ink when good writing ink
Speaker 1: is to be had. What advantages has Chinese ink over
Speaker 1: writing ink? It has several advantages as a drawing ink,
Speaker 1: but for writing purposes it has only one. It is
Speaker 1: quite unaffected by wet. The obvious inference, then, was that
Speaker 1: this document was for some reason likely to be exposed
Speaker 1: to wet. But this inference instantly suggested another, which I
Speaker 1: was yesterday able to test. Thus he filled a tumbler
Speaker 1: with water, and, rolling up the document, dropped it in.
Speaker 1: Immediately there began to appear on it a new set
Speaker 1: of characters of a curious gray color. In a few seconds,
Speaker 1: Thorndyke lifted out the wet paper and held it up
Speaker 1: to the light. Now there was plainly visible an inscription
Speaker 1: in transparent lettering, like a very distinct water mark. It
Speaker 1: was printed in Roman capitals, written across the other writing,
Speaker 1: and read the pickerdilly stuff is up the chimbly four
Speaker 1: one sixth Warder Street, second floor back. It was hid
Speaker 1: because of old Moki's Jewde Moky is a blighter. The
Speaker 1: professor regarded the inscription with profound disfavor. How do you
Speaker 1: suppose this was done, he asked gloomily. I will show you,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke. I have prepared a piece of paper to
Speaker 1: demonstrate the process to doctor Jervis. It is exceedingly simple.
Speaker 1: He fetched from the office a small plate of glass
Speaker 1: and a photographic dish, in which a piece of thin
Speaker 1: note paper was soaking in water. This paper, said Thorndyke,
Speaker 1: lifting it out and laying it on the glass, has
Speaker 1: been soaking all night and is now quite pulpy. He
Speaker 1: spread a dry sheet of paper over the wet one,
Speaker 1: and on the former wrote heavily with a hard pencil,
Speaker 1: Moky is a blighter. On lifting the upper sheet, the
Speaker 1: writing was seen to be transferred in a deep gray
Speaker 1: to the wet paper, and when the latter was held
Speaker 1: up to the light, the inscription stood out clear and transparent,
Speaker 1: as if written with oil. When this dries, said Thorndyke,
Speaker 1: the writing will completely disappear, but it will reappear whenever
Speaker 1: the paper is again wetted. The professor nodded. Very ingenious,
Speaker 1: said he A sort of artificial palump set in fact.
Speaker 1: But I do not understand how that illiterate man could
Speaker 1: have written in the difficult Moabite script. He did not,
Speaker 1: said Thorndyke. The cryptogram was probably written by one of
Speaker 1: the leaders of the gang, who no doubt supplied copies
Speaker 1: to the other members to use instead of blank paper
Speaker 1: for secret communications. The object of the Moabite writing was
Speaker 1: evidently to divert attention from the paper itself in case
Speaker 1: the communication fell into the wrong hands. And I must
Speaker 1: say it seems to have answered its purpose very well.
Speaker 1: The professor started, stung by the sudden recollection of his labors. Yes,
Speaker 1: he snorted, but I am a scholar, sir, not a policeman.
Speaker 1: Every man to his trade. He snatched up his hat
Speaker 1: and with a curt good morning, flung out of the
Speaker 1: room in dudgeon. Thorndyke laughed softly, Poor professor, he murmured,
Speaker 1: our playful friend Barton has much to answer for. And
Speaker 1: of the Moabite cipher by R. Austin Freeman