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e is doubled with great frequency in English--in such words, for
example, as 'meet,' '.fleet,' 'speed,' 'seen,' been,' 'agree,' &c. In
the present instance we see it doubled no less than five times, although
the cryptograph is brief.
"
Let us assume 8, then, as e. Now, of all words in the language,
'the' is most usual; let us see, therefore, whether there are not
repetitions of any three characters, in the same order of collocation,
the last of them being 8. If we discover repetitions of such letters,
so arranged, they will most probably represent the word 'the.' Upon
inspection, we find no less than seven such arrangements, the characters
being;48. We may, therefore, assume that; represents t, 4 represents
h, and 8 represents e--the last being now well confirmed. Thus a
great step has been taken.
"
But, having established a single word, we are enabled to establish
a vastly important point; that is to say, several commencements and
terminations of other words. Let us refer, for example, to the last
instance but one, in which the combination;48 occurs--not far from
the end of the cipher. We know that the; immediately ensuing is the
commencement of a word, and, of the six characters succeeding this
'the,' we are cognizant of no less than five. Let us set these
characters down, thus, by the letters we know them to represent, leaving
a space for the unknown--
165
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