Prior to, and immediately after the trick, the thimble may be palmed as instructed elsewhere.

A NEW POSTAL TRICK.--This is very useful, as it can be employed in conjunction with any trick where a word, message, total of sum, etc., is to be produced in a magical manner. An ordinary postcard is handed to a spectator with a request that he will tear a small piece from one corner, and having done so, hand both portions back to the performer.

The corner is laid on the table and the card torn up into small pieces which are then placed in the magic pistol (see p. 61), and fired at a borrowed hat. The card is afterward produced from the hat covered with writing, and fully restored with the exception of the corner, which on being fitted to the card is found to correspond in every way.

The trick is accomplished with the aid of a second card prepared with the necessary writing, and from which a corner has been removed. This card is secretly introduced into the hat when returning with it to the stage. The performer, having palmed the portion missing from the card in the hat, makes an exchange when laying the corner on the table. The plain card is then torn into fragments, and together with its corner is placed in the pistol, which is then fired at the hat. It is well to place a piece of paper in the mouth of the cone to receive the torn pieces of card, as by this means the danger of dropping any on the floor is obviated.

An additional effect may be obtained by having previously placed in the body of the pistol a piece of paper containing a powder for producing colored fire, when, after having disposed of the cup containing the torn card, you appear to overhear a remark to the effect that you have put something in your pocket, to which you reply, "No, I certainly did not put anything in my pocket. See, here is the paper containing the card" (really the package of colored fire). The package of powder is then laid on a plate and fired, after which the card is removed from the hat.

NEW SLATE TRICKS.--Under this heading will be noticed several methods, all of recent invention, for performing the well-known slate trick.

FIRST METHOD.--Two ordinary school slates are given into the hands of a spectator, who, after making a careful examination, ties them together with stout cord, in which condition they are placed in the cabinet.

Writing is immediately heard, and when it ceases the slates are at once handed out to the performer, who on separating them finds the required message.

The secret lies in the fact that the medium is provided with two small wooden wedges; also an umbrella rib, to which at one end is fitted a minute piece of pencil. All he has to do, therefore, is to force the wedges between the slates on one side until sufficient s.p.a.ce is provided for the insertion of the rib, when the writing of the message will be found an easy matter.

SECOND METHOD.--In this case the two slates, after examination, may be actually screwed together with iron bolts, but in spite of this precaution writing is obtained as before.

Under these circ.u.mstances the performer is provided with a piece of prepared chalk--not the conventional commodity as sold by every chemist, but prepared by coating a piece of steel, about the size of a pea, with chalk paste, which is then allowed to dry. The piece of chalk is placed between the two slates, which are then bolted together and put into the cabinet; when, under the influence of a powerful horseshoe magnet pa.s.sed over the outside of one slate as required, the prepared chalk will produce the spirit writing.

THIRD METHOD (ONE SLATE ONLY).--After examination the slate is held by the performer above his head, when almost immediately writing is heard; and on the slate being turned round it is found to contain the desired message.

The slate, a small one for preference, is provided with a loose vulcanite flap covering one side, and concealing the writing which is already there. The performer hands the slate round for examination (keeping the flap in position by means of the fingers), and asks a spectator to initial it in one corner to satisfy himself that it is not exchanged. This having been done, and while returning to the stage, the performer removes the flap under cover of his body and places it in the vest, or in the large pocket in the breast of the coat. He then holds the slate above his head, fingers in front and thumbs behind. The sound of writing is produced by scratching with one thumb on the back of the slate, and when this has been continued long enough the message is revealed.

FOURTH METHOD (ONE SLATE ONLY).--In this instance the slate, which is an ordinary one, is shown to be clean on both sides, in which condition it is given to a spectator to hold. The performer then takes a pistol and, at a few paces, fires direct at the slate, on which, immediately after the report, the message is discovered.

To produce this startling effect all that is necessary is to write the message on the slate with glycerine just before commencing the trick, and to load the pistol with a small charge of powder, on the top of which is placed a quant.i.ty of powdered chalk.

THE SPIRIT HANDKERCHIEF.--The effect of this trick, which is exceptionally good, is as follows:--Several knots having been tied in a large silk handkerchief borrowed from a member of the audience, it is thrown on the floor of the stage when it immediately begins to act as if it were a live snake, twisting and twirling about in every conceivable form. The performer pa.s.ses his wand over, under, and all round the handkerchief, thus proving to the satisfaction of the most astute that there are no connections.

It is hardly necessary to say, however, that in spite of such convincing proof to the contrary, connection is actually made with the handkerchief, and it is done in the following manner:--A fine black silk thread is stretched across the stage from one wing to the other, the ends being in the hands of two a.s.sistants. Having obtained the loan of the handkerchief, the performer, standing behind the thread, takes it diagonally by two corners and twists it up rope fashion. He then ties three knots in it, one a little below the centre, one a little above the centre, and the third at one end. While this is being done the a.s.sistants raise the thread round which the last knot, forming the head of the snake, is actually tied; but owing to the thread being invisible this will pa.s.s un.o.bserved.

Having made the last knot the performer drops the handkerchief on the floor, when its emulation of a live snake will depend entirely on the adroit manner in which the a.s.sistants manipulate the thread. Finally, it should be made to jump into the hand of the performer, who should at once hand it, with the knots still tied, to the owner. This is managed by the a.s.sistant at one end dropping the thread and the other one pulling it clear of the handkerchief.

THE MYSTERIOUS COMMUNICATION.--This trick, which is a very good one, is performed by a method very little known. The effect is as follows:--Any person writes on a piece of paper any word or series of words to form a short sentence, and having done so, folds the paper and puts it in his pocket. At this stage the performer introduces a reel of telephonic wire, the end of which, containing a loop, is handed to the writer, with a request that he will place the loop over the ball of the left thumb. This having been done, the performer places the reel against his forehead, and, after a few seconds' thought, writes the message, or an answer thereto, on the blackboard.

To obtain this result, all that is necessary is to be provided with a piece of paper smeared over on one side with white wax, or common washing soap; also a slab of plate gla.s.s by way of writing board. The paper is placed on the gla.s.s, waxed side downward, in which condition the a.s.sistant takes it to a gentleman in the audience. When writing on the paper a very faint impression, invisible to any one who does not actually look for it, is obtained on the gla.s.s. In the act of taking the gla.s.s back from his a.s.sistant the performer obtains the desired cue. The use of the wire is optional, but, of course, it adds much to the effect of the trick.

THE GREAT DICTIONARY TRICK (NEW METHOD).--This is an improvement on the old trick under this name, as any dictionary may be used, whereas formerly the trick depended entirely upon a dictionary composed of one page repeated throughout. The effect is as follows:

The performer hands a sealed envelope to a spectator, asking him to take care of it, and not break the seal until requested. A dictionary is then given for examination, after which a lady inserts in it, at any page, a playing card. A counter bearing a number, say twenty-seven, is taken from a bag containing fifty, all numbered differently; the dictionary is opened at the page containing the card, and due note is taken of the twenty-seventh word indicated by the counter, and which is, we will suppose, "Magic." The gentleman is next requested to open the envelope, and on doing so finds to his astonishment that it contains a card on which is written "Magic, n, sorcery; enchantment,"

in exact accordance with the word chosen, apparently by chance, from the dictionary.

The seeming mystery is easily explained. Obtain a new twenty-five cent pocket dictionary, and, having opened it somewhere about the middle, bend the covers right back until they touch each other. Any new book used thus will ever afterward, unless otherwise maltreated, open readily at the same page. After the dictionary has been examined the performer allows it to fall open at this page, into which he secretly introduces a playing card previously palmed in his right hand. The book is then closed.

The performer, still holding the book, gives a card, identical in every respect with the other one, to a lady, with a request that she will insert it between the leaves in any position and push it right into the book. The performer, of course, takes care that the two cards do not clash. In this condition the dictionary is laid on the table.

A small bag, preferably of silk, is next introduced, from which the performer takes a handful of counters numbered from one to fifty and gives them for examination, after which they are returned to the bag.

Any person is now allowed to place his hand in the bag and remove one counter, but it is needless to say, however careful he may be, the number chosen will be twenty-seven, which is accounted for by the fact that the bag is provided with a division through its entire length, forming two pockets, one of which contains the counters numbered one to fifty, and the other, fifty counters all bearing the same number, _i.

e._, twenty-seven.

The dictionary is now opened by the performer at his own page, which every one will take to be the one chosen by the lady; some one is asked to note the twenty-seventh word on that page as indicated by the counter, the trick being brought to a conclusion as already described.

The performer can always ensure the left-hand page of the opening being read, by holding the book, with the card, in such a position that the twenty-seventh word on the right-hand page cannot be seen. Care must also be taken not to expose the duplicate card.

By way of variation the chosen word may be produced with the sympathetic ink, or it may be revealed by the method employed in "A New Postal Trick."

For the above trick, in the form described, I am indebted to Mr.

Maurice Victor, a most skilful exponent of sleight of hand.

LONG-DISTANCE SECOND SIGHT.--Two performers, usually a lady and a gentleman, are required for this seance. The gentleman introduces the lady, who is then escorted by a committee, chosen from the audience, to a room in a different part of the house, in which she is secured under lock and key. Several of the committee then guard the room, while the others return to the concert-hall and give the performer the following particulars:--Time shown by any watch (not necessarily the proper time); initials of any person in the room; any number of four figures; any word of four or five letters; number of cigarettes in any case, and kind of case; amount of money in any purse, and kind of purse. After this has been done a member of the committee takes pen, ink, and paper to the lady, who immediately writes down the time, initials, number, etc.; these, on examination, are found to be correct, although she has never left the room, neither has the performer left the stage, and no connection of any description exists between them.

This inexplicable performance is thus accomplished: The performer is provided with a small writing pad, three and one-half inches by two inches, consisting of a piece of cardboard, on which are held, by means of two elastic bands, several cigarette papers. This pad, together with a small piece of soft lead pencil, is placed in the right-hand trousers pocket. As the various items are called out, the performer stands with his right hand in the pocket, a perfectly natural att.i.tude, and appears to be thinking deeply; but he is really writing down the particulars, one under the other, on the cigarette paper, which, with a little practice, can be done quite legibly. He then tears off the paper and rolls it into a small ball between the fingers.

A piece of plain paper is now obtained from any member of the audience, in order to prove that a prepared piece is not used, and together with a fountain pen, supplied by the performer, is taken, by one of the committee, to the lady. While the paper is being obtained the performer has ample time to remove the cap from the pen, and, before placing it on the opposite end of the pen in the place provided for it, he inserts in it the small ball of paper, which is thus secretly carried to the lady. On receipt of the pen and paper the lady requests to be left alone for a few seconds, as otherwise she will not be able to obtain the aid of "the spirits," and in the absence of the committeeman she takes a hairpin, and with it extracts the ball of paper from the pen, reads, and writes out the required information.

It is necessary that the order in which the various items are called out should be known alike to the performer and medium, as otherwise the "time" might be mistaken for the "number," and other errors might occur. A number of letters to indicate the various kinds of purses and cigarette cases, as "L" for leather, "S" for silver, etc., should also be agreed on between the two parties.

It will be obvious that the above trick is subject to much variation according to the taste of the performer, and may be elaborated if desired. A throw of dice; a person's age; or the name of a selected card (write "8 D" for eight of diamonds, etc.) may be subst.i.tuted for any of the items given above.

CHAPTER VIII

AFTER DINNER TRICKS

In introducing to my readers a series of simple, but effective, tricks in magic, I would state that it has been my life study to popularize the art of sleight of hand, simply because, at the outset, I was impressed with the idea that, while having no desire to emulate the skilled professional magician, certain very novel and entertaining tricks were within the reach of all persons possessed with the least desire to amuse their friends.

Every one is not musical; every one cannot sing or recite; but every one can, with but little practice, learn to perform the following tricks, and thus put themselves in a position to brighten what might otherwise prove to be a dull evening.

THE CHINESE CROSS.--The only properties required for this excellent little trick are six stout straws of the kind used for lemonade, and the small metal accessory shown at A in Fig. 30. The straws are fashioned into the form of a cross as shown in the figure, which is about half the actual size. It will be observed that pins are pa.s.sed longitudinally, through the three straws at each extremity of the structure; this is done with a view to keeping it perfectly flat, otherwise the binding where the two pieces intersect would not be effectual. The piece of metal is next pushed into the centre straw at the foot of the cross in such a manner that it will not readily fall out, and so as to be entirely covered with the exception of the sharp needle point. The cross is laid on the palm of the left hand; the right hand makes a few pa.s.ses over it, when it is suddenly seen to stand erect, and to rise or fall at command.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 30.--Chinese Cross]

The method of working is as follows:--The cross is laid on the hand in such a manner that its foot, carrying the metal fake, point upward, comes in contact with the base of the middle finger; the point is now inserted in the hard flesh at the base of the said finger, when it will be found that to cause the cross to lie flat on the hand the fingers must be bent at an angle of about sixty degrees to the palm. If the hand be now straightened out very slowly the cross will rise gradually until it a.s.sumes a perpendicular position--or ninety degrees. By a slight movement of the fingers, practically imperceptible, and if noticed at all raising no suspicion, the cross is caused to rise and fall as often as desired.

In view of the possibility of the cross being "s.n.a.t.c.hed" by a person overanxious to discover the secret, care should be taken to see that the metal fake is attached to the hand more firmly than to the centre straw. Perhaps the better way would be to work the trick with the fake attached to the hand from the commencement, then the cross may be given for examination at any time.