lair. Consultation with Poe's _Gold Bug_, and an hour's
application that morning after breakfast, gave me the key, though I had
no chance that day to discover more. It is what is called a
'checker-board' code. Here, I will draw it out!"

The hunchback turned to a blank space in the diary and rapidly sketched
a diagram. He handed it across, for Martin's interested inspection,
and Martin beheld the following:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
1 a | b | c | c | e
---|---|---|---|---
2 f | g | h | i | j
---|---|---|---|---
3 l | m | n | o | p
---|---|---|---|---
4 q | r | s | t | u
---|---|---|---|---
5 v | w | x | y | z

Number 6 for spacing
between words

"You will observe that the letter 'k' is missing," said Little Billy.
"You use 'c' for 'k,' and to write a message, you merely write down the
line the letter is on, and its position on that line. Thus, in
Winters's message, the first two numerals are '43.' That means, fourth
line, third letter, or the letter 's.' You see, you take the numbers
in pairs--that is, until you reach a number 6.

"There are no numbers in the code above 5, so Winters used a 6 to
indicate the spaces between words. To illustrate: Winters's secret
begins with the numbers 43344544236. Pair these numbers off, and we
have 43-34-45-44-23-6. Decipher with the diagram, and we have, 4th
line 3rd letter, or 's,' 3rd line 4th letter, or 'o,' 4th line 5th
letter, or 'u,' 4th line 4th letter, or 't,' 2nd line 3rd letter, or
'h.' That makes s-o-u-t-h, or the word 'south.'

"But there is no need of my continuing the translation. Friend Smatt
has kindly attended to that for us. Here it is."

Martin took the proffered piece of paper, the piece of paper covered
with Smatt's handwriting, that had come out of the envelope. He read
in Lawyer Smatt's bold, angular hand,

South end beach--in elephant head--4 starboard--windy cave--2
port--aloft--north corner dry cave.

"That marks the location of our prospective, odorous loot," continued
the hunchback. "No doubt about it. The captain and I remember very
well the cave opening in the rock shaped like an elephant's head, on
the south end of Fire Mountain's beach. It is up to us to get there
first."

"But how did Smatt--" commenced Martin.

"How did Smatt come to be in possession of the skin? I am coming to
that. The Jap, Ichi, brought it to him.

"That morning, after Ruth and I had discussed the d