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Re: Telegram codebook



Shelly Henley Kelly wrote:

> The Rosenberg Library has a book titled, "Telegraphic Cipher Code,
> especially adapted to the Cotton Trade"  arranged and published  by A.
> B. Shepperson, NY, 1876.
>
> A few examples from the book:
>
> Opium - Shall we close the sale?
> Opponent - Have you done anything on our order?
> Optional - Have you sold?
> Orally - How much shall we sell?
>
> Even the numbers have words!  1= abundant; 2=accosting...
> Days of the week, months, dates, times (in a.m. and p.m.) -- all have
> different words!

I have one, printed in 1929, entitled _Beunting's International Cotton
Code_ (sec. ed., Bremen [?]).  This one uses five-letter nonwords
to allow quick and easy communication between people in the trade.

For instance, under "Cancel, Unintelligble, Repeat" they have

    bzidu = Please check over your telegram, apparently you omitted article
    bzioz =  "           "        "        "         "
"         "         "     quantity

Under "General Questions" they have things like

     laast = Can you obtain?
     kzyij = Shall we give notice?

There are over 600 pages of this stuff, dealing with all possible issues
and problems.

Ed Frank

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