ins, The Assassin s Handbook was expanded in the fifth millennium (5345 5348) by a commit tee appointed by Emperor Kelal Djordjevich to discuss the theory and practice of legal ized murder under the rules of the Great Convention and the conditions defined by the Guild Peace The expanded Handbook resulting from the committee s deliberations was widely circulated and read dunng the Old (pre Atreides) Imperium, for it was held in high regard by mercenaries and master assassins employed by the emperor and the Great Houses Also used by several training schools for professional assassins the Handbook fell into some official disrepute during the reign of Paul Muad Dib and the Regency of his sister Aha, although its principles continued to be employed During the long reign of Emperor Leto Atreides, the Handbook was officially held to be as contemptible a^ the profession of assassin, and Emperor Leto s Imperial guard, the warrior females or Fish ASSASSIN S HANDBOOK 39 ASSASSIN S HANDBOOK Speakers'' were ordered to confiscate copies of the Handbook whenever they found it, although privately they were instructed to master its principles As a result of this suppression, far fewer copies of the Handbook survive than might be desired A few may be found m museums on Giedi Prime and Grumman, while the remainder appear to be located in private collections The authorship of the original version of the handbook is a matter for controversy, but a consensus seems to assign it to Keshas Zhorzh, a third millennium assassin employed by House Montaiu Zhorzh was suspected of several murders of prominent aristocrats, es pecially members of House Gmaz, House Atreides, and House Herzog Oddly, Zhorzh himself succumbed to chaumurky probably administered by an Imperial servant, in 3756 On Zhorzh's life, see The Practice of Death by Zhautu Kuuraveer The expanded version of The Assassin's Handbook is attributed by most authorities to the committee of rune appointed by the Pro lector Kelai Djordjevich, it was later ratified by the Landsraad (5359), by which time several of the authors, themselves mentals and master assassins employed by the Great Houses, had become victims of the vreissi tudes of their profession One of the com mrttee, however, deserve;, special note the Imperial representative, Count Otho Fenrmg, himself known lo have been an able assassin- indeed, some have argued, one of die su pfeme artists of his profession Count Fennng's influence on the final draft of the The Assassin s Handbook appears to have been considerable, especially when fee text is com pared to his monograph on The Fine Art of Professional Homicide, the passages concern ing methods of circumventing the rules of kanly without detection In the early millen ma after the Butlenan Jihad, assassination flourished, but assassination m general was often crude and impulsive, tacking in the finer artistry and subtlety which the master assassins of the old Irapenum attained The accomplishmen