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The American Black Chamber (The 1920s Cryptographic Bureau)
by Yardley, Herbert O
- Used
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Good. No dust jacket. Signed by previous owner. Foxing to front end papers. Lower page block: single small insect condo, empty,
- Seller
-
Newport, New Hampshire, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Indianapolis.: Bobbs Merrill., 1931. First edition. Likely 1st. No print line.. Hard cover. Good. No dust jacket. Signed by previous owner. Foxing to front end papers. Lower page block: single small insect condo, empty, not penetrating secret code info. Age-toning; lesser quality acidic text paper.. 1 375 p. Black cloth over boards; red titles. 22 cm. Deckled outside page block. Larger, readable text font size. B&W author casual portrait frontispiece plate. Facsimile code pages, tricks-of-trade codes. Secrets unveiled: In 1928, the Black Chamber de-codification operations were suspended in America by order of a new Secretary of State, following guidelines to no longer "read" coded international messages. The Black Chamber, known as the Cryptographic Bureau, specialists examined cypher telegrams of foreign governments, "where chemists forge diplomatic seals and photograph letters of foreign plenipotentiaries". The author fostered this secret organization for the American Government, he explains in the Foreword, and directed it for 12 years, employing 165 men and women. Author Yardley had arrived previously 16 years earlier as a telegraph operator. The department was born of the British World War I success in breaking international codes, helping America in its growth. Thus, a "secret diplomacy" was established.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Hedgehog's Whimsey Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- Alibris.US1990011387
- Title
- The American Black Chamber (The 1920s Cryptographic Bureau)
- Author
- Yardley, Herbert O
- Format/Binding
- Hard cover
- Book Condition
- Used - Good. No dust jacket. Signed by previous owner. Foxing to front end papers. Lower page block: single small insect condo, empty,
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First edition. Likely 1st. No print line.
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Publisher
- Bobbs Merrill.
- Place of Publication
- Indianapolis.
- Date Published
- 1931
- Keywords
- U.S. Cryptographic Bureau, a "secret diplomacy"|Disbanded 1928|de-codification operations|Code-breakers
- Bookseller catalogs
- US History & American Studies;
Terms of Sale
Hedgehog's Whimsey Books
30 day return guarantee, with full refund including original shipping costs for up to 30 days after delivery if an item arrives misdescribed or damaged. Return postage is not offered for returns considered discretionary. Please read the description of the item or book thoroughly before placing an order. A few photos specific to the book may be requested before ordering. Shipping is most economical by media mail, and quickest by U.S. Priority Mail. Occasionally a lightweight item will be upgraded to 1st Class Mail domestically as a courtesy. Heavy and / or large items to be shipped internationally often require additional postage, mutually agreed upon via biblio.com.
About the Seller
Hedgehog's Whimsey Books
Biblio member since 2017
Newport, New Hampshire
About Hedgehog's Whimsey Books
Hedgehog's Whimsey Books was born in a random moment when I decided to become a used books seller. Beginning in 2001, I apprenticed myself with a longtime pro in the next town, hoping to learn her secrets. She encouraged my free help but was wary of sharing all those secrets. Nonetheless, she turned me loose when she felt I would not embarrass her; she was impressed, finding I actually knew something about books and authors and styles. I am still learning, and I am having a good time with the random avalanches of books to be recycled into good homes, one by one. Inventory has mounted: my mother downsized her 7,000-plus library, and we (my Geezer and I) went to library book sales, yard emporiums on weekends, estate dispersals, and added the books my kids left behind, wanting to stock their own shelves anew. Some folks simply tooled down our dirt road and left boxes on our porch. Myself? Well, I am also a photographer, journalist, curious stuff collector, avid reader, writer, editor, small-time publisher, and online pontificator. At Hedgehog Enterprises, I do "Words & Pictures by & for Folks with Prickly Backs, Soft Bellies, & Small Brains", established in 1991. Since I have the smallest brain (by unpopular vote), I am the Head Hedgehog. Do I specialize in particular genres? I thought I did, but my barn has lots of Geezer-built shelves, and we have many interests, so topics vary, as do book conditions and editions. I try to describe such, and sometimes have too much fun as I poke along. There is no charge for the therapy of browsing, folks, so find my sites and stay awhile. If a purchase results, know that the tax collector in Newport, New Hampshire, may get a pleasant surprise. Or, I may buy a few more apple cider donuts or sweet potatoes. No pressure. Hedgehogs do have yearnings. If you should visit by chance or by appointment, enjoy our old New Hampshire farmhouse location alongside the Sugar River and its companion recreation Rail Trail, nearby two historic railroad covered bridges just off Chandlers Mill Road. Feel welcome. -- Lucy G Wells, proprietor.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Plate
- Full page illustration or photograph. Plates are printed separately from the text of the book, and bound in at production. I.e.,...
- Jacket
- Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
- Facsimile
- An exact copy of an original work. In books, it refers to a copy or reproduction, as accurate as possible, of an original...
- New
- A new book is a book previously not circulated to a buyer. Although a new book is typically free of any faults or defects, "new"...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
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