John Wallis on Time

"About the beginning of our Civil Wars, in the year 1642, a Chaplain of Sr. Will. Waller's shewed me an intercepted Letter written in Cipher. He shewed it me as a Curiosity And asked me between jeast and earnest, whether I could make any thing of it. And he was surprised when I said perhaps I might, if it proved no more but a new Alphabet. It was about ten a clock when we rose from Supper. I then withdrew to my chamber to consider of it. And by the number of different Characters therein, I judged that it could not be more than a new Alphabet, and in about 2 hours time I had deciphered it; and I sent a Copy of it the next morning to him from whom I had it. And this was my first attempt at Deciphering."