"_
THE MAN who held in his hand the document of which this strange
assemblage of letters formed the concluding paragraph remained for
some moments lost in thought.
It contained about a hundred of these lines, with the letters at even
distances, and undivided into words. It seemed to have been written
many years before, and time had already laid his tawny finger on the
sheet of good stout paper which was covered with the hieroglyphics.
On what principle had these letters been arranged? He who held the
paper was alone able to tell. With such cipher language it is as with
the locks of some of our iron safes--in either case the protection is
the same. The combinations which they lead to can be counted by
millions, and no calculator's life would suffice to express them.
Some particular "word" has to be known before the lock of the safe
will act, and some "cipher" is necessary before that cryptogram can
be read.
He who had just reperused the document was but a simple "captain of
the woods." Under the name of _"Capitaes do Mato"_ are known in
Brazil those individuals who are engaged in the recapture of fugitive
slaves.
Pages:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25