THE PUZZLE Quodes

I cannot resist the se If-referential idea of a quotation about quotations. But I do hope the solver will emerge from this puzzle feeling better than cranky old Ralph Waldo Emerson when he wrote in his journal. “I hate quotations.”



Instructions

A simple kind of substitution cipher can be created by using a keyword (of any length) and then writing out the remaining unused letters in alphabetical order. This is lined up above some known succession of all the letters to give the code. I have chosen the typewriter keyboard layout for the letter base. If the keyword has any repeated letters, the extra ones must be eliminated. For example, if the keyword were PEGGY, the second G would have to be eliminated, and the cipher would look like this:

PEGYABCDFHIJKLMNOQRSTUVWXZ

QWERTYUIOPASDFGHJKLZXCVBNM

ALLISON in the code would appear as TFFAZJH.

Each of the seven quotations in this month’s puzzle is in a different cipher. The first order of business is to decode the sayings. Use lengths and spelling peculiarities of words, their placement, punctuation, etc. to help break each code, Once a quotation has been decoded, you will be able by deduction to discover what the keyword was. I have supplied a typewriter letter layout between each pair of quotations for your convenience. Each quotation will suggest its keyword, or in some cases actually include it. The keywords taken together form a familiar progression, and when you unscramble the specified letters from the seven keywords, you will have an overarching word that wraps up the puzzle. The quotations, keywords, and wrap-up word are all necessary for a complete solution.

Need some help? If your intuition fails you. brute force will sometimes work. The most common letter in English is e (12.3 percent frequency), followed by t, a, o, n, i, s, r. and h in that order. The most common two-letter words, in order of frequency, are of to, in, it, is, be, as, at, so, The most common three-letter words, in order: the, and, for, was, his, not, but, you, are. Four-letter words: that, with, have, this, will, your, from. One or two more may be added to this last list by those attempting this puzzle.

Send the complete solution by June 10 to Quodes, D Magazine, 1700 Commerce St., 18th floor. Dallas, TX 75201. Include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. The first correct solution in a random drawing will receive a white polo shirt embroidered with the D logo. A runner-up will receive a 12-month gift subscription to D Magazine. Winners and the completed puzzle will appear in the August issue. Log on to www.dmagazine.com each Monday for new helpful hints.