ijsCr imine Nemoc aretN emoso rtesu avivi tcont
aabbb abaaa ababa ababa abaaa aabaa aabaa baaba
H I L L I E E T
entus Nemoi namor esapi tNemo bonus Nemos apien
aabaa abbab abbaa abbab baaaa baaba aabbb aabaa
E O N O R T H E
sNemo estex omnip arteb eatus &cNic holas NemoN
babaa aaaaa baaba aabaa baaaa abaaa aabaa abbba
W A T E R I E P
obody quidv aleat NemoN emore ferre potes tvirs
ababa aaaaa abaaa abbaa baaab abbab aabab aabbb
L A I N S O F H
apitq uipau caloq uitur
babba baaaa abaaa aabaa
Y R I E

DECIPHERED PASSAGE

None of these groups begins with two b's, and the resulting letters spell out the line quoted,

h i l l i e e t e o n o r t h e w a t e r i e p l a i n s o f h y r i e

Hillie Eteon or the waterie plains of Hyrie.

The capitalization and punctuation are suggested by the rules of literary construction. There are four possible wrong groupings, but this illustration required only the trial of three to find the correct one. Should there be obscure, or doubtful, letters in the text that make the resulting letters of a group uncertain, pass the whole group by until those are marked which are certain. There are always a sufficient number of b's to indicate what the word really is in the groups preceding and following. In the resulting phrase above, a number of the letters might be passed over as abbreviations and yet the sense could hardly be mistaken even in this short and disconnected line, while with the context it would be made perfectly clear.

Mr. Marston quotes another passage as evidence that I have “copied Pope”:

“Hee was th’ first of th’ Greekes who boldlie sprang to th’ shore when Troy was reach’d, and fell beneath a Phrygian lance.”

Referring to my MS., I find this comes from page 38, Anat. of Mel., commencing in line 11. I have had this printed, also, and grouped for the resulting bi-literal letters that form the deciphered passage, and I think it well to use this because it illustrates one of the points that should be clearly understood.

Anatomy of Melancholy, p. 38, l. 11 (Edition 1628).