Mr. William H. Robinson,
The Caronia,
Broadway and Evenside Ave.,
New York City.
The advertisement on the reverse of the sheet ran as follows:
ANGLERS—When you are looking for “Baits That Catch Fish,” do you see these spinners in the store where you buy tackle? You will find here twelve baits, every one of which has a record and has literally caught tons of fish. We call them “The 12 Surety Baits.” We want you to try them for casting and trolling these next two months, because all varieties of bass are particularly savage in striking these baits late in the season.
DEALERS—You want your customers to have these 12 Shoemaker “Surety Baits” that catch fish. This case will sell itself empty over and over again, for every bait is a record-breaker and they catch fish. We want you to put in one of these cases so that the anglers will not be disappointed and have to wait for baits to be ordered. It will be furnished FREE, charges prepaid, with your order for the dozen bait it contains.
The peculiar feature of the communication was that it was profusely be-pimpled with tiny projections, evidently made by thrusting a pin in from the side which bore the illustrations. The perforations were liberally scattered. Most, though not all of them, transfixed certain letters. Accepting this as indicative, Bertram had copied out all the letters thus distinguished, with the following cryptic result:
b-n-o-k-n-o-a-h-i (doubtful) i (doubtful) d-o-o-u-t-s-e-h-w h-e-w-a-l-e-w-f-i-h-i-e-l-y-a-n-u-t-t-m-a-m (doubtful) g-e-x-c-s (doubtful) s-e M-e-p-c (two punctures) t-y-w-u-s-o-m-e-r-s h-a-s 1 S-k-t-s-a-s-e-l-e-v-a-h (twice) W-y-o-u (doubtful) h-c-s-e-v-t-l-t-f-r (perforated twice) c-a-o-u-c-e-o-c (doubtful) m-t (perforated twice) n-o-h-a-e-f-o-u-w-o-r-i-t-h-i-r-e-d-w-l-l-b (Perforated three times) f-u-h-g-e-p-d-h-o-d (doubtful) e-f-h-g-b-t-n-t.
“Yes, the copy’s all right,” growled Bertram. “Tell me again how you came by it.”
“Robinson came here twice and missed me. Yesterday I got the note from him which you’ve seen, with the enclosure which has so threatened your reason. You know the rest. Perhaps you’d have done well to study the note for clues to the other document.”
Something in his friend’s tone made Bertram glance up suspiciously. “Let me see the note,” he demanded.
Average Jones handed it to him. There was no stamp on it; it had been left by the writer. It was addressed, in rather scrawly chirography, to “A. Jones, Ad-Visor,” and read: