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The National Cipher Challenge

Challenge 8

RULE REMINDER: Rapid fire multiple submissions put an unreasonable load on the servers and make it difficult for others to submit. Anyone who makes an unreasonable number of submissions will be open to disqualification. In the first instance this will mean that anyone who submits more than 20 times in 10 minutes will be disqualified.

Low down, dirty, two faced dog

ISKCH DCONI YIGOJ CLAKH WYTWC IGQUT CDJOV MFBJI YXYHW BDGIS UMPWF HKUQT IIVHP AVVLX UTYUF CZIVS DOKYF GLLBH TSZNO VRCJJ WTPZL YLKTG AXVMU SKCYH YHMUL KRIGS KGZAF CZBYH ZNPPJ HFYTM JSNHP WVFAO XXISZ NLDRA GNZWV SFNPM RVLYJ GRFMM ZTVVL BABNQ SCLAK TGXYT FPWBA XUWNI YIUZM IDLIS LLHNH SKIOM DCJZA KFDHO ZFVVL MZXIR VUVMU SYUUT DSNUO XNHFY AQVHS BDHKC KZPWE OLWLK ICUMP LEFWW UHTFA YOMWC YHPWE OLMYX UBMLB HISZN LANVK CSURH KYVMI SVLVG ZGWCA BEIEG VVYYA MKGRI VHPAV VLZVL ISVUL EVVLB ABNHD OZGFQ GNZNI CXYZB NSTXS NFKLC RGZVL CKGRB GCATC IUYWL VFMJZ BJWZN MHCZS YSURI DUCRC VYCOX SRDOV PJHFY TBXSJ SUTGA GWHBU BANZT VSZNT KRCLN JTIHF IJXYH LUOMP OKSSW IOZXL XEWKH YXTBG WYBVV LAUBK OAPLE COGNF TNSEI ZHXMS GZGFD SYDKL CFCZX JOWLN WEOKF PHCOJ YUBDT GHVBK QMXVK KBALB HUBSN ZXIBM YTHJC LXLEJ OZQVE COLBA BNBGC ABEIE GHZEW LUJBI PMFMH VQANJ TIDFI TFFQW BAPFQ WBAFF FXXLM TOJNE XJHUO KHIDD UTBEO ZNPPJ SNFLL DSZNL MLZDI WHKHF UAVLZ WLALV PLULK RGJIP KIOOO KGZVL UOMEK GHREC SOMPM ZSKML ZIODN HAKAG LMMZT WHLUK CFXSN FVKSU TGAGW ZFIOD UPKVD ECLAK MZQUH JOWLV GVSKC KGRFW AUTUH SBAYW CYHPW RSZHV WVRFY WQVGA SLGFA VHHMI CXZLA TIEWP XVVLS IWVAJ UKGRR WHPTI HKLLB UZGMF UUSXZ HMJUF CZBID MXLFI OFUMH PFJID MEOLM UHTSZ NVLCO KCLKV VLMLL JODWY XGDMB ZBKWJ VLAKA GLMWV HAOYV VFKLL VZTXI YBVVL XUTKB WHPME CUVBL VVLGV KWGHI VKKSZ NUXVK LYIGF WKCCB UZSHY XKBAM RLZFL CYXYH GYOME CWFPA NSFIS TJFWC KEFGZ MPMZF TSIWV RAPVK GSTXS NFQFU OMISY LHEYQ MGFFI OYHPW EOLMH KFTKQ VECOL CKGRV WHVXY HFIFG RDEIJ TZRFC ALRSW BALES CULPU BSMYX KGDII AKCTM LBDFS SJGVR AMLKG SZNUB VQFYZ XIDJC LAKRF UZKFW JLHPV JANJX WTWYY TJMGJ LLUSD FHVFG WMLAK BGCAT CIHIW LLCFY NBUBA YOMXB GGHFF FXXLM ZIJWL KJDGI YMECH OFEZJ SYOLV WDYYR EOHGV VVVLN HAKGA HVBXS JYOME WDIYM ECUZV MTSHM HXKOU CSXUH KITXY H

Official Decrypt

Top Secret: For your eyes only

The most delicate aspect of control in the region is that the Company relies heavily upon troops recruited from among the indigenous population. These so-called Sepoys, are effective warriors and their presence in the presidency armies both bolsters and weakens the East India Company. On the one hand it allows for a standing army much larger than could be provided by British soldiers alone, while on the other it risks internal division between the troops from the sub-continent and their officers recruited from the British upper classes. There is also the constant worry of an armed uprising staffed by soldiers trained and armed by the EIC. Much effort and money is expended on heading off that danger, and I see no reason why the Imperial Arms Company should not benefit from that largesse. It is well known that Hindu warriors are at best reluctant to pollute themselves with animal products extracted from the cow. The common practice of lubricating ammunition with tallow has led to some unrest, and our introduction of mineral oils and greases in our weapons may go some way to alleviating their concerns. I need hardly say that the contract to arm the East India Company regiments would be highly valuable. All of this is pure speculation, and I think it would be wise for us to consult with the leaders of the Hindu and Sikh communities, in order to establish whether our understanding of their concerns is correct, and if so, to what extent we have managed to address them. Support from those quarters would provide the board of the IAC with the assurance that it needs to make the required investments. With this in mind, you are authorised to discreetly approach the courts of Duleep Singh and the Hindu Rajas to discern whether or not our plan would meet their approval. Kaiser

Kate writes to Charles

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Official Decrypt

Top Secret: For your eyes only

My dear Charles, I guess you have, by now, worked out the challenge set by Kaiser and solved already by our dear Mrs Lovelace. I was kicking myself when I finally saw it, specially since I was the one who inspected the cargo in Liverpool. I should most probably have already figured the thing out for myself, but I must admit that I had to ask Mrs Lovelace for some help, and her reply set me to thinking. If you have not yet resolved that mystery, perhaps her answer will help you too: Given the bullet boxes were all askew in the crates when the customs officials inspected them, why were they all the right way up when I looked at them later? It is clear someone emptied the crates and then refilled them, but to what end? Was the contraband really that small that it could be hidden between the bullets? Was it hidden in the bullets themselves? I now know the answer to that riddle, but the question of what the contraband might be remains a deep mystery, and I am hoping that the files I inspected at Herr Kaiser’s mansion may reveal the secret to us. Mrs Lovelace has, with her usual grace and kindness, been teaching me the art of decypherment, and together we have been working on the Janus Project files, with but little success, though the page I have included in this letter does show some promise. Mrs Lovelace has determined that this one is most likely encyphered using a Vigenere cipher, but our attempts to solve it have not been successful, and I fear we must have missed something. Perhaps you will be more successful Well I hope you have managed to receive and to decode this letter and that you find it helpful. I understand that Wheatstone has now completed the installation and testing of his telegraphic apparatus at all our homes, and so we are expecting your reply by way of that machine. It will be most exciting to see it in operation. With my fond regards, Kate Warne.

This challenge closed on 11/12/2024. Please click the Official Decrypt button above to see the correct answers.

RULE REMINDER: Rapid fire multiple submissions put an unreasonable load on the servers and make it difficult for others to submit. Anyone who makes an unreasonable number of submissions will be open to disqualification. In the first instance this will mean that anyone who submits more than 20 times in 10 minutes will be disqualified.

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