Louis Kruh, in 1982 and in 1988, in Cryptologia, compared the word usage and sentence structure in the three letters from Beale to Morriss in 1822 with the remaining text of the 1885 Beale Papers.  

He noted that both the letters and the remaining text appeared to have been written by the same person.  

Based on his analysis, Kruh concluded that The Beale Papers was a hoax. 

Kruh is correct in his analysis, the letters and the text were written by the same person, myself.

Compare the 1822 letters, the 1885 text and my 1843 short story, The Gold Bug.

            Kruh pointed out that the 1822 letter writer, purportedly Thomas Beale, and the anonymous author of the 1885 text, made amazingly similar word choices and sentence structure in their writing. \

Kruh noted these sentences from the 1822 letters:

The reasons are simple and easily told, IT WAS imperative upon us that someone…

IT WAS with this design that I first visited your house…

The idea seemed to prevail, and IT WAS doubtless correct that when outside parties…

IT WAS finally decided that it would be sent…

IT WAS in accordance with these instructions that I visited… 

IT WAS not considered advisable…

IT WAS too frequently visited by the neighboring farmers…

IT WAS at this time I handed you the box… 

            Kruh observed these examples from the text of the 1885 Beale pamphlet:

IT WAS during the period of his success that Mr. Morriss…

IT WAS at this time that Mrs. Morriss exhibited…

IT WAS the unblemished character …

IT WAS in 1862…

IT WAS in the month…

IT WAS not until 1845…

IT WAS not until 1862…

IT WAS not the wealthy alone…

            Now I offer The Gold Bug as an example of my style, but you need not accept that choice.

There are similarities to The Beale Papers in many of my stories.  In The Gold Bug, I created these sentences:

IT WAS a novelty, and by no means an ungrateful one.

IT WAS about a month after…

IT WAS about three in the afternoon…

IT WAS a beautiful scarabaeus…

IT WAS a species of table land

IT WAS firmly secured by bands of wrought iron…

IT WAS growing late, and it behooved us to make exertion…

IT WAS difficult to say what should be done…

IT WAS quite dirty…

IT WAS at this moment that his eyes, and mine also, fell upon the scrap of parchment…

IT WAS lying half buried in the sand…

IT WAS clear that the action of the caloric…

Does any of us know for certain why we favor a particular style or word?  

I was very deliberate when selecting words to establish a mood or setting in my stories, true, but I still had tendencies, as every author does, which are revealed by a close examination of my work.  For example, let us now examine a very obvious and somewhat awkward sentence structure that I favored.  Kruh identified this tendency toward the use of reflexive pronouns in The Beale Papers.  He noted these sentences in the 1822 letters:

Perhaps not so reliable as YOURSELF

Several friends who like MYSELF

Each member of the party bound HIMSELF

Appropriating the portion assigned to YOURSELF

A gift not from MYSELF alone

Affecting the fortunes of MYSELF

Some letters addressed to YOURSELF

Sealed addressed to YOURSELF and endorsed

My highest esteem for YOURSELF

            Kruh observed these sentences in the 1885 text:

His friends, who were formerly as sanguine as HIMSELF

Benefit from the source HIMSELF

Readers be more fortunate than MYSELF

Friendship for MYSELF and family

It should revert to MYSELF

He came…seeking entertainment for HIMSELF

Exception of the two letters to MYSELF

And to MYSELF alone did he reveal it

Save what has been consumed upon it MYSELF

As fully as I MYSELF do

            Now observe some sentences I used in The Gold Bug:

…to speak the truth, (I) found MYSELF not a little puzzled…

…(I) flatter MYSELF that I am not quite a blockhead.

…(he) proceeded to seat HIMSELF upon a sea-chest in the farthest corner of the room.

Jupiter and MYSELF are going upon an expedition into the hills…

We started about four o’clock- LeGrand, Jupiter, the dog, and MYSELF.

 …while LeGrand contented HIMSELF with the scarabaeus…

…in many cases were prevented from precipitating THEMSELVES into the valleys…

Taking now a spade HIMSELF, and giving one to Jupiter and one to me…

…and now and then caught MYSELF actually looking…

The settings THEMSELVES, which we picked out from among the other gold…

Presently, I took a candle, and seating MYSELF at the corner of the room…

I let MYSELF down to the ledge…

With the rest of the adventure I believe you are as well acquainted as MYSELF.

…I betook MYSELF to a more methodical investigation of the affair.

            When I wrote I loved MYSELF! Ha, ha.  I can not say why I developed a preference for the use of –MYSELF- and other reflexive pronouns.  Perhaps I was taught to use this style or maybe it was popular among the authors I read in my youth.  

However I developed this tendency, there is no doubt that this habit of using reflexive pronouns is very apparent in my writing.  It makes sense, therefore, that I would continue this tendency when I wrote The Beale Papers.