Retired teacher Graham Bradbury has been translating the diary for the Anglo-Boer War Philatelic Society, and has already translated passages with elements of semaphore as well as Pitman's and Greg's shorthand.
The diary catalogues the life of the soldier as he goes to war. He recounts friends that die from enteric fever, or typhoid, caused by infected drinking water, and sketches diagrams of defensive military positions from the battlefield.
After being shot in the calf, he convalesces in hospital.
"I think he was quite a ladies' man," Mr Bradbury told dotJournalism.
"From the tone of the writing, it seems that he was married, but quite fancied several young ladies."
At the beginning of the diary, the soldier mentions a political journalist who shows him shorthand. Four short passages appear late in the diary, and Mr Bradbury has been unable to decipher them.
"It could be in shorthand because it is personal and he didn’t want his wife to read it - or it could be military," said Mr Bradbury.
"We really need to find an 80-year old secretary or journalist who can translate this."
The full story will be published by the society next year. Anyone who may be able to help translate these short passages of text should contact jemima@journalism.co.uk.
• Story update - February 2005
All the entries were successfully translated by an encryption expert, but the entries were not made public because they detailed the soldier's personal thoughts on his marriage and extra-marital relationships.
See also:
http://www.boerwarsociety.org
http://www.journalism.co.uk/news/story733.shtml
Senior Desk Editor - International News Desk
