Chapter 3

CHAPTER III.

THE RUNIC WRITING EXERCISES THE PROFESSOR

"Undoubtedly it is Runic," said the Professor, bending his brows;"but there is a secret in it, and I mean to discover the key."

A violent gesture finished the sentence.

"Sit there," he added, holding out his fist towards the table. "Sitthere, and write."

I was seated in a trice.

"Now I will dictate to you every letter of our alphabet whichcorresponds with each of these Icelandic characters. We will see whatthat will give us. But, by St. Michael, if you should dare to deceiveme -"

The dictation commenced. I did my best. Every letter was given me oneafter the other, with the following remarkable result:

mm.rnlls esrevel seecIde sgtssmf vnteief niedrke kt,samn atrateS saodrrn emtnaeI nvaect rrilSa Atsaar .nvcrc ieaabs ccrmi eevtVl frAntv dt,iac oseibo KediiI

[Redactor: In the original version the initial letter is an 'm' witha superscore over it. It is my supposition that this is thetranslator's way of writing 'mm' and I have replaced it accordingly,since our typography does not allow such a character.]

When this work was ended my uncle tore the paper from me and examinedit attentively for a long time.

"What does it all mean?" he kept repeating mechanically.

Upon my honour I could not have enlightened him. Besides he did notask me, and he went on talking to himself.

"This is what is called a cryptogram, or cipher," he said, "in whichletters are purposely thrown in confusion, which if properly arrangedwould reveal their sense. Only think that under this jargon there maylie concealed the clue to some great discovery!"

As for me, I was of opinion that there was nothing at all, in it;though, of course, I took care not to say so.

Then the Professor took the book and the parchment, and diligentlycompared them together.

"These two writings are not by the same hand," he said; "the cipheris of later date than the book, an undoubted proof of which I see ina moment. The first letter is a double m, a letter which is not to befound in Turlleson's book, and which was only added to the alphabetin the fourteenth century. Therefore there are two hundred yearsbetween the manuscript and the document."

I admitted that this was a strictly logical conclusion.

"I am therefore led to imagine," continued my uncle, "that somepossessor of this book wrote these mysterious letters. But who wasthat possessor? Is his name nowhere to be found in the manuscript?"

My uncle raised his spectacles, took up a strong lens, and carefullyexamined the blank pages of the book. On the front of the second, thetitle-page, he noticed a sort of stain which looked like an ink blot.But in looking at it very closely he thought he could distinguishsome half-effaced letters. My uncle at once fastened upon this as thecentre of interest, and