At a glanceKey from adjacent plaintext · partial (91% of the cipher)
- The telegrams
- Nine typed copies of telegrams of 25 June to 27 July 1906, mostly between L. A. Guajardo, Jefe Político of Múzquiz, and Governor Miguel Cárdenas at Saltillo, made at the Múzquiz telegraph office for the US Senate subcommittee on the Mexican Kickapoo land frauds.
- Where
- National Archives, RG 59, Numerical File 1906–1910, case 3706/35–45, microfilm M862 roll 342, frames 0505–0513 (file unit 19505183); catalogue 758.
- The cipher
- A two-digit homophonic letter substitution: the tens come in pairs that give the same letter (1 = 9, 3 = 7, 4 = 8) and the unit gives the place in one of three rows.
- How the key was found
- Brice Dudout’s Claude agents fixed the key on two telegrams (T36 and T104) from the clear context around the code; it was frozen and measured once on the six others: 0.796 lexical coverage against at most 0.545 for 1,000 shuffled keys, under the 0.80 he had set in advance. The project re-ran his test and got the same figures.
- What it says
- The governor orders prudence and impartiality, the recommendations for the American commissioners being lawful; Guajardo reports the arrest of the Kickapoo agent Bentley on an Indian’s complaint, and a band of mule thieves heading for the Río Bravo.
- Still open
- The judge’s telegram T54 (14 groups, another key), four words in T35 and T67, and a fresh test of the key.
- Credit
- Transcription, key and reading by Brice Dudout (L’Europe chiffrée), with Claude agents, pull request #378; the lead (catalogue 758) came from the project’s NARA RG 59 triage.
01 The telegrams
On 8 November 1907 Senator Teller sent the State Department, from Douglas, Arizona, copies of telegrams that the Senate subcommittee on the Mexican Kickapoo land frauds had obtained from the federal telegraph office at Múzquiz, Coahuila, and asked for the code passages to be deciphered (frames 0500–0504). Root answered on 14 November that the Mexican Embassy “does not know the code” (frames 0514–0517). The copies themselves are frames 0505–0513. The clear parts were already put into English by the Senate’s translator; the code numbers stand as sent.
| Copy | Frame | Date 1906 | From → to | Coded groups |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T35 | 0505 | 25 Jun | Guajardo → Cárdenas | 95 |
| T36 | 0506 | 25 Jun | Cárdenas → Guajardo | 84 |
| T53 | 0507 | 30 Jun | Guajardo → Cárdenas | 34 |
| T54 | 0508 | 30 Jun | Judge F. Valdés Llano → Cárdenas | 14 (another key) |
| T67 | 0509 | 2 Jul | Guajardo → Cárdenas | 72 |
| T82 | 0510 | 11 Jul | the same text as T67, another copy | (65) |
| T99 | 0511 | 17 Jul | R. C. Conine → Guajardo, in English | 42 |
| T104 | 0512 | 19 Jul | Guajardo → Cárdenas | 59 |
| T124 | 0513 | 27 Jul | Guajardo (Sabinas) → Ignacio E. Rivas | 11 |
That is 411 coded groups without the second copy T82. No image is shown here: the frames are on the NARA catalogue (linked under Sources) and could not be fetched by the integrating session; the contributor’s folder carries text and key only.
02 The key
Each letter is a two-digit number. The tens come in pairs that give the same letter (1 and 9, 3 and 7, 4 and 8: 30 and 70 are both o, 35 and 75 r, 19 and 99 t), and the unit gives the place in one of three rows:
| Row (tens) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A (1/9) | d | y* | · | a | · | h* | · | x | n | t |
| B (3/7) | o | · | g | a | c | r | v | · | f | l |
| C (4/8) | e | h* (81) | u | i | m | s | · | · | b | p |
The anchor was the governor’s “para 40 76 43 99 73 75 quejas”, evitar. The values were fixed on T36 and T104 only and then frozen; the starred values (y = 11/91, h = 15/81) and q = 93 were found later from the sense of the other telegrams and were not part of the measured key. 86 and 28 occur once each and are unknown. The Spanish le is left in clear (Bent-le-y, firmar-le).
The test was written down before it was run (frozen/PROTOCOL.md, 28 October 2026): lexical coverage of the 319 decoded letters of the six held-out telegrams, against 1,000 shuffled keys of the same structure, with the key to count as validated only above the best control and above 0.80. The result was 0.796, best control 0.545 (99th percentile 0.508). The key is far above chance but missed its own bar by 0.004, so it is recorded as partial. The project checked the hashes of the frozen files and re-ran the script on 10 November 2026 with the same result.
03 The reading
The translator often turned pieces of code words he recognised into English (‘the’ for la in la-dron-es, ‘in’ for en in campam-en-to), so many words are part code and part English. Words read only with such help, with a value read after the freeze, or with a copyist’s letter missing are graded probable. Below, Spanish in code is in italics and the translator’s English is in plain type.
T36, the governor to Guajardo, 25 June (all eleven coded words certain):
Conviene obre con toda prudencia para evitar quejas fundadas por una y otra parte, procediendo con toda justificación e imparcialidad, teniendo en cuenta que recomendaciones favor comisionados gobierno americano son en términos legales.
“It is fitting that you act with all prudence, to avoid well-founded complaints from either side, proceeding with full justification and impartiality, bearing in mind that the recommendations in favour of the commissioners of the American government are lawful.”
T35, Guajardo to the governor, 25 June: Bentley and another are accused by an Indian (un indio) of having forced him at night, with blows, to sign an unknown document (firmarle documento), an accusation supported by the American commissioner; three words here are unread. T53, 30 June: the Bentley affair has calmed after the arrest of Bentley by the Juez de Letras; some distinguished persons quienes maniobraron como Ud. sabe (“who manoeuvred, as you know”). T67 and its second copy T82, 2 and 11 July: a group of known thieves (ladrones conocidos) stole mules and took them toward the Río Bravo; they hide the mule herd in the vega; two of the robbers are Kickapoo. T104, 19 July: Creo that abusan tanto unos as otros (“I believe the ones abuse as much as the others”); the commissioner is exigente, Bentley’s wife insolente, which can producir some dificultad. T99, 17 July, from R. C. Conine, is English in the same code: “Your council and advice needed before proceeding farther. When will you come?” T124, 27 July: permits for leaving Indians, noting quien lo pide (two transmission faults restored).
Counted by word (the translator’s English not counted): 80 coded words in the Guajardo/Cárdenas system, 42 certain, 31 probable, 3 restored and 4 unresolved, so 73 of 80 (91.3%) read by sense without the restored words. Counted by code groups, 386 of 411 (93.9%), or 386 of 397 (97.2%) without T54. Both are under the project’s 95% bar for “read”.
04 What remains open
- T54, Judge Valdés Llano to the governor, 30 June: 14 groups (67 56 14 98 09 60 98 91 17 55 07 60 97 98) with tens 0, 5 and 6 outside the three rows, so another key; too short to rebuild alone. Other telegrams of the judge would be needed (Archivo General del Estado de Coahuila, or the federal telegraph originals).
- Four unresolved words: in T35 a‹86› (33 86, a second accused), and “aomang” (33 30 84 73 98 72) and “any” (33 18 11) after “Bought suit Bentley work”; in T67 ‹28›, one group after “watching the”. 86 sits in an empty place of row C and 28 outside the rows; each occurs once. The Spanish original of T35 would settle them.
- Restored: advice in T99 (the copy decodes “advil”), quien lo in T124 (44 where e is needed and a second 39 where o is needed).
- The key is not validated by its own pre-registered test (0.796 against 0.80); a new test needs fresh telegrams of Guajardo or Cárdenas in this system. The transcription was made by an AI agent from the NARA frames and has not been checked against the images by a person.
No earlier decipherment was found: the printed Senate hearings, Affairs of the Mexican Kickapoo Indians (1907–08), vol. 2 pp. 1006–1008, print the numbers without one, and Root’s reply says the Embassy could not read them.
Full texts
The transcription and the decryption of every document on this page, so that the reading can be used and checked. Short files are shown here; all are in the repository.
Coahuila code telegrams, Múzquiz / Saltillo / Sabinas, 25 Jun - 27 Jul 1906 (T35-T124) read in part
Governor Cárdenas orders the Jefe Político of Múzquiz to act with prudence and impartiality towards the American commissioners; Guajardo reports that Bentley and another are accused by an Indian of forcing him at night, with blows, to sign an unknown document, that Bentley was arrested, that 'the ones abuse as much as the others', and a band of mule thieves (two of them Kickapoo) heading for the Río Bravo.
Builds coherent sentences, but under the read bar of 95% of words read as sense (91% here); the holes are marked in the reading.
Transcription
# coahuila1906 - NARA, RG 59, Numerical File 1906-1910, case 3706/35-45, microfilm M862 roll 342, frames 0505-0513: # copies of nine Coahuila telegrams of 25 Jun - 27 Jul 1906 (Mexican Kickapoo affair) made at the Muzquiz telegraph office # for the US Senate subcommittee (Teller), the clear parts already rendered in English by the Senate's translator. # Transcribed once from the NARA frames by an AI agent, 28 Oct 2026, before the key was fixed. One line per telegram after its # header line; two-digit code groups as on the copy; <...> = the translator's clear (English) words, kept verbatim, including # the Spanish 'le' left in clear; '?' after a group = doubtful reading of the typescript. T82 is a second copy of T67. # Header: Tnn = copy number on the frame (35-45 series as filed: T35 ... T124), frame, place, date 1906, sender -> addressee. # Images not reproduced here. T35 0505 Múzquiz 25/6 Guajardo -> Cárdenas 88 80 18 99 <le> 11 33 86 <is> 19 70 10? 30 <accused criminally for> 82 18 83 98 10 83 30 <of having obligated him by night and pounding him between three to> 38 83 35 84 33 35 <le> 10 30 70? 34 82 44 <in> 19 70 <unknown.= Accusation supported by> 34 30 84 83 <if> 30 18 33 90 70 33 84 80 35 43 34 33 18 70 <bought suit> 88 80 18 19 <le> 11 <work> 33 30 84 73 98 72 <to> 33 18 11 <. Ludlow for removing all the> 34 33 84 89 73 84 <in> 19 30 83 98 10 83 30 <to withdraw (him or it) from all investigation> 85 83 <Commissioners> 33 84 80 35 83 34 33 18 30 45 <negotiate permanence> 83 98 90 43 30 85 <to round out investigation I ask you to advise me if I shall assist them.> T36 0506 Saltillo 25/6 Cárdenas -> Guajardo <Conviene> 70 48 35 40 34 30 98 99 70 90 73 49 75 42 90 40 98 74 43 33 <para> 40 76 43 99 73 75 <quejas fundadas por una y otra parte procediendo con toda justificación> 40 83 44 89 73 35 74 43 73 79 83 90 73 10 <teniendo en cuenta que> 75 40 74 30 84 40 98 10 73 34 43 70 98 40 85 <favor> 74 30 44 43 85 43 70 98 73 90 30 45 72 30 48 43 40 75 98 30 73 44 40 75 43 34 73 18 70 <son en terminos legales.> T53 0507 Múzquiz 30/6 Guajardo -> Cárdenas 73 45 42 98 99 70 48 40 98 99 <le> 91 <has entered into tranquil period due prudent intervention Juge of Letters arrested> 48 40 98 <le> 91 <it was dangerous for some distinguished persons> 93 42 43 98 40 45 <handwork> 75 70 98 74 70 44 30 42 90 45 73 48 40 <American commissioner told the Judge he needs to continue ...> T54 0508 Múzquiz 30/6 Valdés Llano -> Cárdenas <Today I arrived here and intervened in matter Kikapoos. There does not exist> 67 56 14 98 09 60 98 91 17 55 07 60 97 98 <will write tomorrow.> T67 0509 Múzquiz 2/7 Guajardo -> Cárdenas 32 25 42 49 30 <the> 10 35 30 18 <is known,> 85 35 30 88 70 <considerable party,> 44 42 <the> 85 <from here taking them direction of Rio Bravo six days ago.= The> 10 35 70 18 <is principal> 80 85 <they are still here, watching the> 28 <.= They hide,> 33 18 84 82 <the> 10 33 <in the> 36 40 32 33 <of the> 39 73 10 35 70 18 <is> 33 81 83 <has ranch> 82 18 30 <from> 30 85 <the> 10 75 30 18 <is protector of the rest.= ... immediate pursuit> 15 73 85 99 33 80 39 35 43 30 <sending one competent man as chief of party, because it is probable that> 15 33 11 73 <that> 88 33 99 43 35 <them if feels> 18 <persecution.= Two Quicappo robbers go accompanying Mexican robbers.> T82 0510 Múzquiz 11/7 Guajardo -> Cárdenas (same text as 0509, another copy) 32 35 42 49 30 <the> 10 35 30 18 <is known,> 85 35 30 88 70 <party considerable,> 44 42 <the> 85 <from here ...= They hide> 33 18 84 82 <the> 10 33 <in the> 36 40 32 33 <of the> 39 73 10 35 70 18 <is> 33 81 83 <has ranch> 82 18 30 <of the> 30 85 <the> 10 75 30 18 <is protector of the rest. ... persecucion> 15 73 85 99 33 80 39 35 43 30 <sending ... probable that> 15 33 11 73 <that> 88 33 99 43 35 <them if he feels> 18 <persecucion.> T99 0511 Múzquiz 17/7 Conine -> Guajardo (Monterrey) 11 30 42 35 34 30 42 98 34 43 39 <and> 73 90 36 43 39 98 <ee> 10 40 10 48 40 38 30 35 40 <pro> 34 <ee> 10 43 98 32 <far> 19 15 40 35 <when will> 11 30 42 34 30 44 40 T104 0512 Múzquiz 19/7 Guajardo -> Cárdenas <... desires by all means to take.=> 34 35 40 30 <that> 73 48 42 45 73 98 19 73 98 19 30 42 98 30 45 <as> 30 19 35 30 45 <. Commissioner> 40 17 43 32 40 98 19 40 <.= Wife Bentley> 43 98 45 30 39 40 98 19 40 <can> 49 35 30 10 42 34 43 35 <some> 10 43 38 43 34 42 39 19 13 10 T124 0513 Sabinas 27/7 Guajardo -> Rivas <You can issue permit for leaving indians taking note of> 93 42 43 44 98 39 39 49 43 10 40 <and issuing passes expressing the names of the indians.>
Decryption
# coahuila1906 - mechanical decryption of transcription.txt with key.tsv: frozen key K1 (+ pairing of the tens), no correction.
# Letters of the code groups are joined; <...> = the translator's English, kept. {x} = a value read AFTER the freeze, not in K1
# (y 11/91, h 15/81); 93 is printed 'a' as K1's pairing rule gives, though it reads q in T53/T124; [nn] = no value (86, 28; T54 is another system; 25 in T67 is a copy slip for 35, see T82).
T35 0505 Múzquiz 25/6 Guajardo -> Cárdenas
bent <le> {y}a[86] <is> todo <accused criminally for> unindio <of having obligated him by night and pounding him between three to> firmar <le> doocum <in> to <unknown.= Accusation supported by> comi <if> onadoamericano <bought suit> bent <le> {y} <work> aomang <to> an{y} <. Ludlow for removing all the> campam <in> toindio <to withdraw (him or it) from all investigation> si <Commissioners> americanos <negotiate permanence> indios <to round out investigation I ask you to advise me if I shall assist them.>
T36 0506 Saltillo 25/6 Cárdenas -> Guajardo
<Conviene> obrecontodaprudencia <para> evitar <quejas fundadas por una y otra parte procediendo con toda justificación> eimparcialidad <teniendo en cuenta que> recomendaciones <favor> comisionadosgobiernoamericano <son en terminos legales.>
T53 0507 Múzquiz 30/6 Guajardo -> Cárdenas
asuntobent <le> {y} <has entered into tranquil period due prudent intervention Juge of Letters arrested> ben <le> {y} <it was dangerous for some distinguished persons> auines <handwork> roncomoudsabe <American commissioner told the Judge he needs to continue ...>
T54 0508 Múzquiz 30/6 Valdés Llano -> Cárdenas
<Today I arrived here and intervened in matter Kikapoos. There does not exist> [67][56][14]n[09][60]n{y}x[55][07][60]xn <will write tomorrow.>
T67 0509 Múzquiz 2/7 Guajardo -> Cárdenas
g[25]upo <the> dron <is known,> srobo <considerable party,> mu <the> s <from here taking them direction of Rio Bravo six days ago.= The> dron <is principal> es <they are still here, watching the> [28] <.= They hide,> anmu <the> da <in the> vega <of the> ladron <is> a{h}i <has ranch> uno <from> os <the> dron <is protector of the rest.= ... immediate pursuit> {h}astaelrio <sending one competent man as chief of party, because it is probable that> {h}a{y}a <that> batir <them if feels> n <persecution.= Two Quicappo robbers go accompanying Mexican robbers.>
T82 0510 Múzquiz 11/7 Guajardo -> Cárdenas (same text as 0509, another copy)
grupo <the> dron <is known,> srobo <party considerable,> mu <the> s <from here ...= They hide> anmu <the> da <in the> vega <of the> ladron <is> a{h}i <has ranch> uno <of the> os <the> dron <is protector of the rest. ... persecucion> {h}astaelrio <sending ... probable that> {h}a{y}a <that> batir <them if he feels> n <persecucion.>
T99 0511 Múzquiz 17/7 Conine -> Guajardo (Monterrey)
{y}ourcouncil <and> adviln <ee> dedbefore <pro> c <ee> ding <far> t{h}er <when will> {y}oucome
T104 0512 Múzquiz 19/7 Guajardo -> Cárdenas
<... desires by all means to take.=> creo <that> abusantantounos <as> otros <. Commissioner> exigente <.= Wife Bentley> insolente <can> producir <some> dificultad
T124 0513 Sabinas 27/7 Guajardo -> Rivas
<You can issue permit for leaving indians taking note of> auimnllpide <and issuing passes expressing the names of the indians.>Reading
# Reading: Coahuila code telegrams of 1906 (NARA M862 roll 342, frames 0505-0513): read in part
Key: `key.tsv` (K1, fixed on T36 + T104 and frozen before the held-out telegrams were measured; partial by our protocol, see
`validation.txt`). Mechanical decoding with the frozen key: `decryption.txt`. Re-read word by word as sentences on 10 Nov 2026
(no new measurement).
The copies are odd: the Senate's translator put the clear parts into English and left the code numbers as they were, and he
often translated **pieces of code words** that he recognised as Spanish words (`<the>` = *la* in la-dron-es, `<is>` = *es*,
`<in>` = *en* in campam-en-to and docum-en-to, `<if>` = *si* in comi-si-onado, `<hand work>` = *mani-obra* in maniobraron,
`<They hide>` = *Ocult-* in Ocult-an). The Spanish *le* stays in clear (Bent-le-y, firmar-le). A word is counted below when
at least one of its letters is in code; the translator's English is not counted.
Conventions (Daniel's): plain = **certain** (every coded letter by the frozen K1 and its pairing rule, word reads as it
stands); {x} = **probable** (needs a value read after the freeze - y 11/91, h 15/81, q 93 -, a letter taken from the other
copy, a letter missing or doubled by the copyist, or a word completed by the translator's English pieces); [x] = **restored**
(a coded value contradicts the reading: a copy or transmission fault); ‹…› = **unresolved**. Words in parentheses are the
translator's English or the Spanish clear, given for the sense.
## Counts
| telegram | certain | probable | restored | unresolved | words |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T35 (25 Jun, Guajardo) | 8 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 18 |
| T36 (25 Jun, Cárdenas) | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| T53 (30 Jun, Guajardo) | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| T67 = T82 (2 and 11 Jul, Guajardo; counted once) | 6 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 22 |
| T99 (17 Jul, Conine, English) | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
| T104 (19 Jul, Guajardo) | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| T124 (27 Jul, Guajardo) | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| **total, Guajardo/Cárdenas system** | **42** | **31** | **3** | **4** | **80** |
| T54 (30 Jun, Judge Valdés Llano) | - | - | - | 14 groups | another key, not read |
Read by sense without the restored words: 73/80 = **91.3%** of the coded words of the Guajardo/Cárdenas system; T54 (14
groups in another system, word count unknown) is unread. By code groups, as counted in round C01: 411 groups (T82 left out
as a second copy), 386 read = **93.9%**; without T54, 386/397 = **97.2%**. Unread groups: T54 (14), 86, 28, "aomang" (6),
"any" (3). Both figures are under the 95% bar: **read in part**.
## T35 - Múzquiz, 25 Jun 1906, Guajardo (Jefe Político) → Governor Cárdenas
> {Bentley} {y} ‹a86› (is) {todos} (accused criminally for) un indio (of having obligated him by night and pounding him
> between three to) firmarle {documento} (unknown. Accusation supported by) {comisionado} americano. (Bought suit) {Bentley}
> (work) ‹aomang› (to) ‹any›. (Ludlow for removing all the) {campamento} indio (to withdraw from all investigation.) Si
> (Commissioners) americanos (negotiate permanence) indios (to round out investigation, I ask you to advise me if I shall
> assist them.)
- certain (8): un, indio, firmarle (*le* in clear), americano, indio, si, americanos, indios
- probable (7): Bentley ×2 (bent-le-11: y = 11 read after the freeze), y (11), todos (code "todo", the plural by sense),
documento (copy "do-o-cu-m" + `<in>` + "to": doubled o, *en* from the translator), comisionado ("comi" + `<if>` + "onado"),
campamento ("campam" + `<in>` + "to")
- unresolved (3): a‹86› (33 86: a second name or word; 86 occurs only here), aomang (33 30 84 73 98 72), any (33 18 11)
## T36 - Saltillo, 25 Jun 1906, Governor Cárdenas → Guajardo (learning text)
> Conviene obre con toda prudencia para evitar quejas fundadas por una y otra parte, procediendo con toda justificación
> e imparcialidad, teniendo en cuenta que recomendaciones (en) favor comisionados gobierno americano son en términos legales.
- certain (11): obre, con, toda, prudencia, evitar, e, imparcialidad, recomendaciones, comisionados, gobierno, americano
## T53 - Múzquiz, 30 Jun 1906, Guajardo → Cárdenas
> Asunto {Bentley} (has entered into tranquil period due prudent intervention Judge of Letters, arrested) {Ben[t]ley};
> (it was dangerous for some distinguished persons) {quienes} {maniobraron} como Ud. sabe. (American commissioner told the
> Judge he needs to continue ...)
- certain (4): asunto, como, Ud., sabe
- probable (4): Bentley (bent-le-91), Ben[t]ley (48 40 98 le 91: the t is missing on the copy; the name is sure from the
context), quienes (93 42 43 98 40 45 "quines": q = 93 read after the freeze, one e missing), maniobraron (`<hand work>` +
"ron")
## T54 - Múzquiz, 30 Jun 1906, Judge F. Valdés Llano → Cárdenas
> (Today I arrived here and intervened in matter Kikapoos. There does not exist) 67 56 14 98 09 60 98 91 17 55 07 60 97 98
> (will write tomorrow.)
Not read: the groups 0x, 5x and 6x are outside the Guajardo/Cárdenas rows, so the judge used another key; 14 groups alone are
too few to rebuild it.
## T67 (2 Jul) and T82 (11 Jul, a second copy) - Múzquiz, Guajardo → Cárdenas
> Grupo {ladrones} {conocidos} robó (considerable party) {mulas} (from here, taking them direction of Río Bravo six days ago.)
> (The) {ladrones} {principales} (they are still here, watching the) ‹28›. {Ocultan} {mulada} (in the) vega (of the)
> {ladrones}; {ahí} (has ranch) uno (from) {los} {ladrones}, (is protector of the rest. ... immediate pursuit) {hasta} el río,
> (sending one competent man as chief of party, because it is probable that) {haya} (that) {batirlos} (if feels)
> {sienten} (persecution. Two Kickapoo robbers go accompanying Mexican robbers.)
- certain (6): grupo (T67 has 25 for 35, a copy slip; T82 has 32 35 42 49 30), robó, vega, uno, el, río
- probable (15): ladrones ×4 (la-dron-es with `<the>` and `<is>`; once "ladron" in code + `<is>`), conocidos (`<known>` + s),
mulas (mu + `<the>` + s), principales (`<principal>` + es), Ocultan (`<They hide>` + an), mulada (mu + `<the>` + da),
ahí (81 = h after the freeze), los (`<from>` + os), hasta (15 = h after the freeze), haya (h 15, y 11), batirlos
("batir" + `<them>`), sienten (`<feels>` + n)
- unresolved (1): ‹28› (one group after "watching the": a word or a place; 28 is outside the rows)
## T99 - Múzquiz (to Monterrey), 17 Jul 1906, R. C. Conine → Guajardo (English plaintext)
> {Your} council (and) [advice] {needed} before {proceeding} {farther}. (When will) {you} come?
- certain (3): council, before, come
- probable (5): your (11 = y), needed (n + clear "ee" + "ded"), proceeding (clear "pro" + c + clear "ee" + "ding"), farther
(clear "far" + t-h-er, h = 15), you (11)
- restored (1): advice (73 90 36 43 39 98 = "advil n": the last two groups contradict "ce"; 98 = n begins "needed")
## T104 - Múzquiz, 19 Jul 1906, Guajardo → Cárdenas (learning text)
> (... desires by all means to take.) Creo (that) abusan tanto unos (as) otros. (Commissioner) exigente. (Wife Bentley)
> insolente, (can) producir (some) dificultad.
- certain (9): creo, abusan, tanto, unos, otros, exigente, insolente, producir, dificultad
## T124 - Sabinas, 27 Jul 1906, Guajardo → Ignacio E. Rivas
> (You can issue permit for leaving Indians taking note of) [quien] [lo] pide (and issuing passes expressing the names of the
> Indians.)
- certain (1): pide
- restored (2): quien (93 42 43 44 98 "quimn": 44 = m where e is needed), lo (39 39 "ll": the second 39 where o is needed);
two transmission faults, the sense is plain
## Values read after the freeze (not in K1, not measured)
y = 11/91, h = 15/81, q = 93 (K1's pairing rule gives a for 93; 13 = a stands in T104). They fit the row structure (A: 1 y,
5 h; C: 1 h) but they were not part of the measured key.Translation
# Translation (English): Coahuila code telegrams, 25 Jun - 27 Jul 1906 Clear parts as rendered by the Senate's translator in 1907; the decoded words put back into English. Unread words are shown as ‹…›; words restored from a faulty copy are in [brackets]. Sense of the Spanish only; see `reading.md` for the counts. **T35 - Múzquiz, 25 June 1906, L. A. Guajardo (Jefe Político) to Governor Miguel Cárdenas, Saltillo.** Bentley and ‹…› are all accused criminally by an Indian of having forced him, at night and beating him, three of them, to sign an unknown document. The accusation is supported by the American commissioner. Bought suit: Bentley ‹…› ‹…›. Ludlow [is] for removing the whole Indian camp, to withdraw it from all investigation. If the American commissioners ask for the Indians to stay in order to complete the investigation, I ask you to advise me whether I shall assist them. **T36 - Saltillo, 25 June 1906, Governor Cárdenas to Guajardo.** It is advisable that you act with all prudence, to avoid well-founded complaints from either side, proceeding with full justification and impartiality, bearing in mind that the recommendations in favour of the commissioners of the American government are in legal terms. **T53 - Múzquiz, 30 June 1906, Guajardo to Cárdenas.** The Bentley affair has entered a quiet period thanks to the prudent intervention of the Juez de Letras, who arrested Bentley; he was dangerous for some distinguished persons, who manoeuvred, as you know. The American commissioner told the judge he needs to continue ... **T54 - Múzquiz, 30 June 1906, Judge F. Valdés Llano to Cárdenas.** Today I arrived here and intervened in the Kickapoo matter. There does not exist ‹14 groups in another code, not read›. Will write tomorrow. **T67 (2 July) and T82 (11 July, a second copy) - Múzquiz, Guajardo to Cárdenas.** A group of known thieves stole a considerable lot of mules from here, taking them towards the Río Bravo six days ago. The chief thieves are still here, watching the ‹…›. They hide the mule herd in the river flat of the thieves; one of the thieves has a ranch there and is the protector of the rest. ... immediate pursuit as far as the river, sending one competent man as chief of the party, because it is probable that they will have to be fought if they feel pursued. Two Kickapoo thieves go with Mexican thieves. **T99 - Múzquiz (to Monterrey), 17 July 1906, R. C. Conine to Guajardo (English).** Your council and [advice] needed before proceeding farther. When will you come? **T104 - Múzquiz, 19 July 1906, Guajardo to Cárdenas.** ... desires by all means to take. I believe that the ones abuse as much as the others. The commissioner [is] demanding. Bentley's wife [is] insolent, [she] can cause some difficulty. **T124 - Sabinas, 27 July 1906, Guajardo to Ignacio E. Rivas.** You can issue permits for the Indians to leave, taking note of [who] asks [for it], and issue passes stating the names of the Indians.
Key: key.tsv
05 Sources
- National Archives, RG 59, Numerical File 1906–1910, case 3706/35–45, microfilm M862 roll 342: file unit 19505183; frames 0500–0504 (Teller’s letter and memoranda), 0505–0513 (the telegrams, e.g. frame 0505), 0514–0517 (Root to Teller, 14 Nov 1907, frame 0514).
- US Senate, Committee on Indian Affairs, Affairs of the Mexican Kickapoo Indians (1907–08), vol. 2 pp. 1006–1008.
- Brice Dudout, transcription, key K1 (CC BY 4.0), validation and reading, pull request #378.
Transcription, key, frozen test and reading: targets/coahuila1906/.
Cite this page
Brice Dudout and Daniel Bourdeau, “Coahuila code telegrams on the Kickapoo affair, 1906”, Cyphersolver, posted 10 November 2026, https://cyphersolver.com/coahuila1906.html.