Chapter XXXVIII: Appendix: III

I give below enough of the Telepathy Code used by Hill and myself to show the system on which we worked. The portion here given is about one-sixth of the whole code.

══════╤════════════╤════════════╤════════════╤════════════
│ │ │ │WHAT I HAVE
│ │ THIS │ THING │ HERE
│ │ (1) │ (2) │ (3)
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(0) A│Yes │Watch │Chain │Key
M│I want you │ │ │
│to │ │ │
│tell me │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(¼) B│Thanks │Pin │Nail │Screw
N│Will you │ │ │
│say? │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(½) C│Thank you │Button │Badge │Star
O│Bones │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(1) D│Well │Banknote │Coin │Purse
P│I want you │ │ │
│to │ │ │
│tell us │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(2) E│All right │Handkerchief│Tie │Tie-clip
Q│Say │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(3) F│Quick │Glass │Cup │Mug
R│Come on │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(4) G│Quicker │Cork │Corkscrew │File
B│Come along │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(5) H│Quickly │Matchbox │Match │Bit of wood
T│Come │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(6) I│Tell me │Pipe │Box │Pipe-cleaner
U│Good │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(7) J│Tell us │Cigarette │Cig.-paper │Cig.-roller
V│Very good │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(8) K│Can you tell│ │ │
│me? │Pencil │Rubber │Fountain-pen
W│I want to │ │ │
│know │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(9) L│Can you tell│ │ │
│us? │Letter │Card │Envelope
X│We want to │ │ │
│know │ │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(10)│Will you │ │ │
│tell me? │Book │Notebook │Paper
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(11)│Will you │ │ │
│tell us? │Knife │Scissors │String
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(12)Y│Do you know?│Candle │Lamp │Oil
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(20)Z│Can you say?│Fruit │Flower │Vegetable
══════╧════════════╧════════════╧════════════╧════════════

══════╤════════════╤════════════╤════════════
│ │ ARTICLE │ ONE
│ │ (4) │ (5)
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(0) A│Yes │Ring │Strap
M│I want you │ │
│to tell me │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(¼) B│Thanks │Buckle │Belt
N│Will you │ │
│say? │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(½) C│Thank you │Crown │Medal
O│Bones │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(1) D│Well │Pocket-book │Spectacles
P│I want you │ │
│to tell us │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(2) E│All right │Cap │Scarf
Q│Say │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(3) F│Quick │Bottle │Saucer
R│Come on │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(4) G│Quicker │Tin-opener │Adze
B│Come along │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(5) H│Quickly │Stone │Earth
T│Come │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(6) I│Tell me │Tobacco │Case
U│Good │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(7) J│Tell us │Cig.-lighter│Cig.-holder
V│Very good │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(8) K│Can you tell│ │
│me? │Nib │Charcoal
W│I want to │ │
│know │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(9) L│Can you tell│ │
│us? │Photo │Stamp
X│We want to │ │
│know │ │
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(10)│Will you │ │
│tell me? │Ink │Ruler
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(11)│Will you │ │
│tell us? │Wire │Rope
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(12)Y│Do you know?│Wick │Candlestick
──────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────
(20)Z│Can you say?│Grass │Leaf
══════╧════════════╧════════════╧════════════

In order to indicate any article to me Hill asked the question in the horizontal column in which the article appeared, and added the word or words at the head of the perpendicular column. Thus:—

“_Tell me_ what _this_ is,” meant a pipe.

“_Can you tell us_ what this _article_ is?” meant a photograph.

“_Yes_, what’s this _one_?” meant a strap. And so on. (The italics indicate the key words.)

The table given shows eighty articles. By prefixing the word “_now_” to his question, Hill let me know he was referring to a second series of eighty articles. “_Now, tell me_ what _this_ is,” did not mean a “pipe,” but it referred to the article in the corresponding position in the second series. Similarly a prefix of “_now then_” referred to a third series. And so on. The questions were very much alike and it required an acute observer to notice that no two were exactly the same.

The addition of the words “_in my hand_” indicated that only a portion of the article in the list had been shown. Thus when Slim Jim produced the stump of a candle Hill’s question was, “_Do you know_ what _this_ is _in my hand_?”

Each question in the horizontal columns also stood for a letter of the alphabet, so that it was possible (though slow) to spell out the name of an article.

Both the questions in the horizontal columns and the headings of the vertical columns were used to indicate numbers. Thus, “_Tell me quickly_ if you _can say_ what _this_ number is? _Come along!_ _Don’t you know_ it?” is 6 5 2 0 1 4 1 2.

We had key words for decimals, fractions, subtraction, addition, and for repetition of the last-named figure. We also had key words to indicate any officer or man in the camp.

If the same thing was handed up to Hill twice in succession the question could nearly always be varied in form. Thus a “pipe” is indicated either by “_Tell me_ what _this_ is” or “_Good!_ What’s _this_?”

Finally we had a system for using the code without speaking at all, which we employed with success at a private séance in “Posh Castle,” but which is too intricate to describe here. An amusing result of our use of this alternative system was to bewilder completely those in the company who thought the message was conveyed by the form of Hill’s question to me. They argued (quite fallaciously), that because we could do it without speaking, therefore what Hill said to me when he did speak had nothing to do with my answers.

I ought, perhaps, to add that perfection in the use of the code involves a good deal of memory work and constant practice. Nothing but the blankness of our days in Yozgad and the necessity of keeping our minds from rusting could have excused the waste of time entailed by preparation for a thought-reading exhibition. It is hardly a fitting occupation for free men.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE SILENCE OF
COLONEL BRAMBLE

By ANDRÉ MAUROIS. _Second Edition. 5s. net._

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--------------------------------------------------------------------

JOHN LANE, The Bodley Head, Vigo Street, W.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Transcriber’s note:

Errors in the text have been corrected where they can be reasonably attributed to the printer or editor, or where the same word appears as expected elsewhere.

The original text has unpaired double quotation marks which could not be corrected with any confidence.

There are multiple references to footnotes 4 (p. 36), 24 (p. 140), 92 (p. 341), and 96 (p. 342).

The details of each correction are noted below.

p. 31 as if there’s nothing[’/”] Corrected.

p. 36 under one name or another, pumped[,] the Removed.
sitter

was the [usuall ittle/usual little] Corrected.
throng of spectators

p. 50 could spot your style,[’/”] Corrected.

p. 66 Any fresh mud or dampness on the Restored.
revolver du[e]

p. 67 the banisters, with [e]very appearance Restored.
of weakness.

p. 69 ground would hav[e] to be covered at Restored.
night

p. 76 hands with their delicate [taper] _Sic._
fingers

p. 81 and I know it’s not that grub.[”] Added.

p. 160 —Lieut. Spink.[’]” Added.

p. 192 must be “[wropped] in mystery.” _Sic._

p. 206 our main points simultaneously[.] Added.

p. 210 just read something about it.[”] Added.

p. 227 Please protect us[,/.] The Commandant is Corrected.

p. 228 [“]Your obedient servants, Added.

p. 231 and I noticed Captain Su[bh/hb]i Fahri Transposed.

p. 237 several British officers here know a Added.
little Turkish.[”]

p. 265 clear recollections of [unnamable] _Sic._
tortures

p. 290 paratyp[l/h]oid, dysentery,” I said. Corrected.

p. 308 mor[d/n]ing following the Board Meeting Corrected.