Line 9, L should be I. The corresponding cipher letter should be K instead of H; an error in copying by the encipherer. The errors by the encipherer above noted are fairly common ones. These and similar errors are usually found when a cipher message, prepared as a rough draft by the encipherer, is copied by a clerk and a careful check of the copy is not made. The letters mistaken depend, of course, on the encipherer's hand writing or printing. Other errors, besides those noted, are the confusion of C, G, and Q; I, and J; B and R, etc. The error by the encipherer, in not changing his disk setting for one letter and thus throwing out the whole process of deciphering, would not have occurred had he put the message into eight columns or a multiple thereof and enciphered each column with one disk setting. This latter method is also very much faster. Telegraphers' errors in cipher transmission are common and often very confusing. Note should be taken as to whether Continental or American Morse was used for transmission. An analysis along the lines indicated will usually develop the error and correction. If not, a repetition should be demanded, calling attention, if possible, to the particular groups that are not clear. The deciphered and corrected message is: "Reliable information from Casas Grandes received here that a mounted detachment left there last night to escort shipment of arms and ammunition to be smuggled across border next Friday night, at a point twelve miles east of Douglas. This is in your district. Will you take necessary steps to prevent this shipment going over? Leader of smugglers said to be Juan Hernandez of Naco." Another remarkable example of errors in transmission by American Morse is the following: A message, partly in cipher and partly in plain text, contained the cipher words GA GTXIEIT EIDISXQ This, deciphered as far as possible by the alphabet determined by analysis of the rest of the cipher, read SU SME_Y_M Y_O_GES It was finally decided that the context required a single word like SUSPENDIO or SUSPENDIOLES for this cipher group. An examination along this line showed that the cipher words should have been received G A G L X C U R D P X G and were received G A G T X IE IT EI D IS X Q and that there were five errors in transmission in these three cipher groups alone. NOTES [1] Occurrence rare, usually in proper names. [2] The method used is not the most satisfactory one for several reasons and a better method is that of writing the message in multiples of the key and enciphering the columns as already described. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Manual for the Solution of Military Ciphers, by Parker Hitt