BULLETIN OF LATEST

SLEIGHTS AND TRICKS.

Burling Hull.
WI LL ALMA
M.I.M.C. (LONDON)
The State Li brary of Vi ctori a
" A L MA CONJ URI NG C OL L E C T I ON"
T H E P A S S S U R P A S S E D . ^
A S Y of accompl i shment and cl ean of operat i on, puzzl i ng
to the trai ned eye because of its unsuspect ed si m-
pl i ci ty and above all emi nent l y pract i cal where the
pass is i mpracti cal , it woul d be di ffi cul t to find a more
val uabl o mani pul at i on for the up-to-date card worker, or one
more sui ted t o the needs of the magi cal st udent who has not
yet acqui red a pass whi c h is i nvi si bl e t o the spect at or on the
wat c h f or the sl ei ght .
Ef f e c t : Per f or mer has three cards sel ected and repl aced
on top of pack whi c h is then cut (the pack may be cut in the
Or t hodox manner if desi red, cards bei ng pl aced bet ween the
t wo port i ons) br i ngi ng cards to center. The (Jack is now
passed f rom hand to hand- whi l e descr i bi ng the ef f ect to f ol l ow
t hi s f or the sake of convi nci ng the spect at ors that no separa-
ti on is bei ng ret ai ned by the l i ngers as requi red in the pass.
The cards are mi l l ed and the spect at or i nvi ted to i nsert hi s
l i nger in the pack at any poi nt, as i l l ustrated in No. 1, the
pack bei ng i mmedi at el y cut at that poi nt and the f ami l i ar
dovet ai l shuf l l e ( No. 4) execut ed. T h e shuttle is once re-
peated and the cards, i mpossi bl e as it appears t o the audi ence,
are wi t hi n the perf ormer' s possessi on.
1 wi l l of f er a si mpl e suggest i on for the concl usi on of the
tri ck t hough it may f ol l ow any f or m the perf ormer desi res.
The pack may be; pl aced in perf ormer' s pocket af t er it is
demonst rat ed that the l atter is empt y, and af t er an i nt roduc-
ti on, t o t he ef f ect t hat he wi l l demonst r at e the ef f ect of " Ki nd-
ness and mental i nf l uence on pl ayi ng cards, " he cal l s for var-
i ous cards and produces t hem f rom his pocket . In order to
prove t hat " any card may be produced j ust as readi l y, ' ' he
request^. one of the spect at ors to call f or the card whi ch lie
sel ected, and lie (the per f or mer ) wi l l produce it. The
sel ected card is then produced f rom the pocket and the plan
cont i nued wi t h the remai ni ng c ar ds ; except t hat in the case
of the l ast card, the perf ormer st at es t hat he wi l l announce the
name of the card bef ore pr oduci ng it, si mpl y requi ri ng the
spect at or t o thi nk of the car d; and t hus the tri ck is concl uded.
Secret and Oper at i on: The trick depends upon a subtl e, but
si mpl e operat i on ou one card. Hi ther, upon t aki ng the pack-
af t er it has been shuffl ed, or af t er cards have been sel ected
and whi l e part i es are memor i zi ng cards, the bot t om card of
the pack is dr awn back about one- quart er inch by means of
the ri ght t humb (as i l l ustrated in No. 2) and the corner of
that card is bent under (as i l l ust rat ed in No. 3, whi ch is a vi ew
of the pack f r om bel ow) . The sel ected cards are now pl aced
on top of the pack and the pack cut, br i ngi ng the sel ected cards
No. 3.
Rending Corner.
to the center, and incidentally the cornered card directly over
them. Anot her method is to cut the pack and of f er the upper
portion t o the spectators to pl ace their sel ected cards upon
(thi s is the reverse of the usual method, but by cut t i ng the
pack whi l e spectators are l ooki ng at their cards, they wi l l not
know whi ch is the upper or l ower packet ). The pack is passed
from hand to hand, fingers pressi ng the pack t oget her, maki ng
the turned corner invisibl e as in No. 5 (the arrow and C in-
di cati ng position of cornered card). The pack bei ng cut as
in No. 1 a f ew times, the perf ormer di vi des the pack i nto t wo
portions, taking care to include the cornered card in upper
portion as lie shuffles them together as in No. 4 in f ol l owi ng
manner: As the cornered card appears ready to fall he inter-
rupts the running of the cards in the left hand until the cor-
nered card and the selected cards have fallen, thus assuring that
the selected cards will retain their relative positionand con-
tinues the shuffle wi t h both packets. Thi s action shoul d be
made to correspond wi th the shuffle so that it wi l l not appear
to i nterfere wi th a fair mi xi ng of the cards. The second ti me,
the pack is cut at the cornered card, the ri ght t humb nail bei ng
inserted under the turned corner and l i f t i ng up that card and
all those above it. By shuf f l i ng the cards agai n and al l owi ng
the top cards of the lower portion to fall on top at the end, the
selected cards wi l l be left on top. Ta ki ng the pack in the
manner illustrated in No. 6; opposi te movement s of the upper
and l ower hands as indicated by the whi t e arrows will suffice
to strai ghten the bent card whi ch may later be brought to the
center of the pack and shoul d it come to lig;ht at any ti me, wi l l
be considered an accidental i nj ury to the card from previ ous
use.
No. 4. No. 5. No. 6.
C H A M E L E O N C A R D .
Thi s puz z l i ng little card mys t er y is excel l ent l y adapt ed to
of f -hand present at i on at the card tabl e. I find it an excel l ent
means of excus i ng mysel f f rom pr essi ng i nvi t at i ons to fill out
a tabl e of card pl ayers. If my reader det est s card pl ayi ng as
heart i l y as I do, he wi l l vot e me hi s si ncere t hanks for thi s
rel ease f rom the boredom of card pl ayers, f or he woul d have
di f f i cul ty in i nduci ng even the most ent husi ast i c card fiend t o
t ake a hand agai nst hi m af t er t he f ol l owi ng demonst rat i on.
Ef f e c t : The magi ci an gat her s the cards f r om the t abl e and
af t er a prel i mi nary shuf f l e al l ows a card to be sel ected by one
of the part y wi t h i nst ruct i ons not to permi t the rest of the
c ompany to see the f ace. The card is now pl aced on the t op
of the pack and pack cut by spect at or. A f ew addi ti onal cut s
are rapi dl y made by perf ormer and a second spect at or al l owed
t o r emove a card. Thi s card ret urned and " l ost in pac k" the
r emai ni ng spect at or or card pl ayer is al l owed to sel ect and
ret urn a card. The perf ormer now r emoves a card, st at i ng
t hat it is hi s choi ce, and t hat by merel y wa i v i ng it in air (sui t-
i ng act i on to wor ds ) he wi l l change it t o the card sel ected by
the first part y. Th e phenomena is demonst rat ed to the sati s-
f act i on of the par t y who sel ected the first card, wher eupon the
perf ormer asks part y t o pl ace it on t op of pack and count care-
f ul l y three cards f rom the bot t om pl aci ng t hem on top. Th e
pack is t aken by perf ormer and gi ven a ruffl e, then i mmedi -
at el y handed t o second part y wi t h i nst ruct i ons t o count down
t o the f ourt h card, whi c h wi l l now be f ound t o be the second
card sel ected. The card is pl aced on t op of pack in the hands
of perf ormer who st at es t hat as a fitting cl i max, he wi l l pro-
duce f rom the pack any one of the three cards desi red in the
f ol l owi ng manner : Th e perf ormer wi l l count t o t hree and at
the word " Thr e e , " the)' are each to pronounce the name of the
card t hey sel ected and that whi ch is cal l ed for in the l oudest
t ones wi l l fly to the to]) of the pack. At the si gnal , they all
call out thei r cards (?) perf ormer t hr ows the card f ace up on
t he tabl e and they find t hey have all sel ected t he same card.
Th e ef f ect of the three parti es all cal l i ng at t he t op of thei r
voi ces f or the same card and l earni ng that t hey have been
tri cked so compl et el y, is l udi crous in the ext r eme; and in the
l augh that f ol l ows, t hey wi l l all decl are thei r pref erence f or a
less expert card pl ayer.
Oper at i on: A s may be surmi sed, thi s trick is operated 011
the pri nci pl e of the cornered card and in fact is an appl i cati on
of the same idea as the f or egoi ng tri ck. The bot t om card is
cornered and the card sel ected returned to top of pack, the
usual cut s are made and a final cut br i ngs the sel ected card
t o the top agai n, and it is of f ered to the second part y who
accept s it as a second c ar dt he met hod bei ng f ol l owed wi t h
the third par t yeac h bei ng warned not t o al l ow his card to
be seen by the ot her persons. The operat i on from thi s poi nt
on is obvi ous.
H E N R Y HA R D I N ' S H A N D K E R C H I E F P R O D U C T I O N .
Thi s handkerchi ef product i on is undoubt edl y one of the
cl everest sl ei ght s for the purpose of pr oduci ng a handkerchi ef
under condi t i ons f orbi ddi ng the use of f akes. The amat eur
wi l l find it ver y usef ul in a parl or or i mprompt u pr ogr am, en-
abl i ng him to produce a silk at cl ose quart ers. It is the ori g-
i nati on of I l enr y Hardi n, who needs no i nt roduct i on, I am
sure.
Ef f e c t : St andi ng wi t h ri ght si de t o audi ence, perf ormer
dr aws back his sl eeves, and exhi bi t s his hands in much the
same manner as if execut i ng the change- over- pal m, except t hat
t he pal ms do not approach near enough f or such a t ransf er.
The hands are then pl aced t oget her and a silk produced.
B. H. A D D I T I O N A L W R I N K L E T O S H O W B O T H
P A L MS A T ONC E .
T o dispel any idea that the change- over- pal m was empl oyed
whi ch the manner of exhi bi t i ng the hands may create, I have
devi sed a met hod enabl i ng the perf ormer to show both pal ms
at once and in such a l ogi cal manner that the movement s
appear as part of a little pant omi ne if the wor ds are l ef t out.
" I have f requent l y been asked t o expl ai n the secret of
maki ng sil k handkerchi ef s out of not hi ng. Even a magi ci an
cannot accompl i sh such an i mpossi bi l i t y, but as there are many
No. 7. No. 8. No. 9.
After turn to right.
handker chi ef s and ot her arti cl es floating about , i nvi si bl e t o
ordi nary eyes, he si mpl y r emoves the out er coat i ng of i nvi si -
bi l i t y, andt her e y ou are.
For exampl e, let us t ake thi s i nvi si bl e silk tip here [cat ch-
i ng mot i on wi t h ri ght ha nd] a nd dr a wi ng it t hr ough the
hands [sui t abl e mot i ons of dr awi ng i nvi si bl e silk t hr ough
hands] roll it up i nto a ball and pl ace it bet ween the t humb
and second finger. No w witli this hand | s howi ng ri ght as in
No. 10] t ake the l i ttl e bal l of s i l kkeep your eye on i t and
pl ace it bet ween pal ms, r ubbi ng it about unti l it becomes vi si -
ble. [ No. 12]. " Al l you have to do is rub it l ong e n o u g h ;
onl y be sure you have the handkerchi ef , or y ou wi l l get no
resul t s. "
Wo r k i n g : Fold silk small, and tie on right wrist (as in
No. 7 with flesh pi nk thread. Draw cuff over it as in No. 8.
When ready: st and ri ght si de t o audi ence and draw back
sleeves. .Wheel to right, allowing left hand to fall so it
will hide the silk on right wrist (see No. 9) while exhibiting
right handthen turn back to left, and bring silk into palm
by forcing up with heel of hand till thread snaps.
A D D I T I O N A L WR I N K L E . '
Either after, or without any previous exhibition of hands,
go through the motions of catching silk in air with right hand
and placing it between thumb and second finger, etc., (as de-
scribed above). Then as you state you will take handkerchief
No. 10.
Showir.g hands.
in right hand, turn that hand toward audience as in No. 10,
which enables them to see that both hands are entirely empty,
yet does not expose the silk, whi ch lies j ust back of the bend
of the ri ght wri st (note ar r ow) . Apparent l y take the "i n-
vi si bl e" silk from l eft hand, l etti ng hand pass onward, whi l e
fingers of left hand gather the silk from right wrist as in No.
11. Dr aw right back and devel op handkerchi ef. ( No. 12) .
S UP E R - S UP R E ME F ORC E .
In the opinion of many to whom I have t aught this im-
proved method of f orci ng, it is the finest and most subtl e,
as wel l as general l y usef ul means ever devi sed. In fact, some
of my pupi l s have informed me years af ter l earni ng it, that it
is by far the most val uabl e sl ei ght of their acqui si ti on.
Advant ages : The el ement of risk wi th even the most
aggressi ve spectator who may have a suspi ci on of the per-
former' s intention is enti rel y el i mi nated by the apparent abso-
lute fai rness of the operation. It is wel l adapted to cover or
turn off an error, in any trick, as it is avai l abl e wi t hout pre-
vi ousl y execut i ng the pass, etc., to bri ng card to center.
Ef f ec t : Runni ng the cards from hand to hand in the usual
manner, a spectator is invited to indicate a card by pl aci ng his
forefi nger on it, but not to remove it. T o prove that the
choice of card has not been infl uenced, perf ormer suggest s
that party may change his mi nd and indicate another card if
he so wi shes. The pack is now separated at that point indi-
cated, and the card turned face t oward audi ence or spectator,
wi th request to memori ze same; i mmedi atel y af ter whi ch the
No. 13. Course travelled
by card under pack.
No. 14. llow cards
are slid above forc-
ing card (Jack S),
No. 15. Squaring top
pack up so Jack
comes at bottom.
cards are gi ven t o the spect at ors to shuf f l e. Several cards
may be f orced in same manner or any t ri ck in whi ch it is neces-
sary t hat the card or cards used to be f orced or known to the
perf ormer bef ore hand, may now be present ed.
Secret and Oper at i on: Br i ng card or cards it is desi red t o
force, t o bot t om of pack. Run cards f rom l ef t to ri ght in the
usual manner, but st art the act i on whi l e appr oachi ng audi -
ence, so as t o gi ve t i me for the f ol l owi ng oper at i on: Wi t h the
second and third f i ngers of l eft and r i ght hand wor k the bot t om
card over t owar d ri ght side in course descri bed by arrow, till it
reaches the posi t i on s hown in No. 14. The cards are still run
f rom l ef t to ri ght , but t hey pass above the f or ci ng c ar d; whi ch
in the i l l ustrati on is the "Jack of Cl ubs . " Wh e n card is indi-
cated, l i ft up that card wi t h all the cards above it and bef ore
s howi ng the f ace, square up the upper port i on as in No. 15.
The resul t is pi ct ured by the si mpl e di agram in No. 1 5; C
bei ng the card, part y i ndi cated, pas s i ng bet ween A the upper
cards and B the bot t om or f or ci ng card, whi ch bei ng on the
bot t om is accept ed by spect at ors as the one he i ndi cat ed.
C O N C L U D I N G T H E E F F E C T .
Onc e the card or cards desi red are f orced by the above
pl an any such as the " Tor n and Rest or ed Car d, " or the " Ri s -
i ng Cards' ' may be execut ed and wi t h bet t er ef f ect t han had
any ot her syst em of f or ci ng been empl oyed. For the cl ub
room or parl or entertai ner, the f ol l owi ng ef f ect may be pre-
sented wi t h great success.
Effect: A card is sel ected and returned to pack, cards
shuf f l ed by audi ence. Per f or mer count s off an)- number of
cards desi red by audi ence and hands t hem t o one of the spec-
tators. The part y shows each one t o audi ence one at a ti me,
while the performer is blindfolded or turns his back. Wh e n
the sel ected card is reached, the perf ormer commands him
to stop, and announces the name of the card.
Operation: Wh e n pack is returned af t er shuffl e, ruffl e
cards and note whet her card is nearer top or bot t om. As k
how many cards shal l be used. Several numbers wi l l be
cal l edsel ect one near 25. Count off t he desi red number,
f ace up, and note what posi ti on the sel ected card ( say the
Ac e of Spades) lies f rom the end you count f rom ( whi ch
shoul d be the end the card is nearest ) and hand pack t o the
spect at or. Say the number is 18 f rom the top. Proceed as
in descri pti on, havi ng party hand you each card after s howi ng
it . Count the cards and when the 18th is reached, say " S t o p! !
Y o u are hol di ng the Ac e of Spades, whi ch is the card sel ect ed, "
whi ppi ng off bl i ndf ol d.
AUTO-OPERATIVE SHUFFLE. J
Thi s is not hi ng but a sel f -operat i ve f al se shuf f l e, execut ed
by the audi ence t hemsel ves, under the i mpressi on t hat t hey are
mi xi ng the cards. Of course, it is s i mpl e as in fact is any
really good trickbut t hat ver y f act cont ri but es t owar d i ts
perf ect i on.
Whi l e I hit upon the i dea some year s back, and i ncl uded
it in my i nst ruct i on courses al ong wi t h the hundred and one
l ittl e i nci dent al s that the magi cal i nst ruct or passes on to hi s
pupi l s and wa s nat ural l y under the i mpressi on t hat it wa s
part l y to my credi t ; I l ater l earned, however , t hat the i dea is
empl oyed in Henr y Har di n' s " Hi ndoo Mi racl e Card Tr i c k, "
and the credi t is undoubt edl y due t o Ai r. Hardi n, ( unl ess hi s
date is l ater t han mi ne f or I am not acquai nt ed wi t h the
part i cul ars) .
Effect: Af t e r any regul ar f al se shuf f l e the per f or mer con-
cl udes wi t h what in all f ai rness appears to be a mos t thor-
ough mi xi ng of the cards, accompl i shed by dr oppi ng the cards
in a borrowed hat and i nt roduci ng a represent at i ve member of
the audi ence to shake them up thoroughly.
Secret: The secret lies in the pecul i ar f act (easi l y ascer-
t ai nabl e) that the cards so pl aced, cannot be di st urbed in thei r
order of ar r angement by s haki ng the hat. It is one of those
pecul i ar pri nci pl es whi ch at first appear t o be out l awed by
r eason, and the magi ci an t akes advant age of as a pri nci pl e
of del usi on.
Observe the following: For the purpose of secur i ng the
best ef f ect , I of f er the f ol l owi ng s ugges t i ons whi ch are usef ul .
It is wel l to cover the hat wi t h a l ar ge handkerchi ef bef ore
pl aci ng it in the hands of the spect at or to shake ( under im-
pressi on he is mi xi ng cards) or else to f orce part y to hol d
hat above his head ( expl ai ni ng that you desi re thi s so that
the audi ence wi l l he abl e to vi ew it bet t er) ; and this for the
purpose of pr event i ng him f rom di scover i ng that the cards do
not change thei r order. In r emovi ng the cards f rom the hat,
do not take them all out at one time, but in separate "handfuls,
: r
as if t hey were gr eat l y swi rl ed about by the shaki ng t hey had
recei ved.
For the pre-arranged pack, I know of not hi ng bet t er in
the wa y of a fal se shuf f l e, but the best effect is obtai ned by
first empl oyi ng a " To p and Bot t om" fal se shuffl e and c on -
cluding wi t h the Aut o- Oper at i ve Shuf f l e.
HANDKERCHIEF CREATION.
(Parlor Trick.)
Thi s ef f ect wi l l he found usef ul in many wa y s wher e a
handkerchi ef is requi red in an openi ng tri ck. T w o met hods
are of f e r e d: one empl oyi ng a t hi mbl e is avai l abl e at any
t i me ; and, the ot her bv its nature is onl y practi cal as an open-
i ng tri ck.
Ef f e c t : Af t e r dr awi ng hack hi s sl eeves, perf ormer pro-
ceeds to prove both hands empt y by exhi bi t i ng both pal ms
at once, l i ngers wi de apart , and the backs of the hands in t he
same manner.
The pecul i ari t y of thi s product i on is that it docs not re-
qui re even a thread to aid it and yet is not dependent on
pal mi ng. Magi ci ans wi l l recall ment i on of the tri ck in i ssues
of Thi' Splriiix', Mar ch. 1908, and l ater.
Pr epar at i on: Wi nd a silk handkerchi ef t i ght l y around the
tip of the t humb and t uck the loose end under one of the binds.
Anot he r pl an wher e the product i on of the sil k is not want ed
as an openi ng tri ck, it may be bound around a l arge-si zed
t hi mbl e f l attened to fit the t humb, and flesh col ored.
Oper at i on: Come f orward wi t h silk on t humb, covered by
f i ngers. Dr a w back sl eeves as in No . 17, so t humb is nat ural l y
covered (the sl eeve is dr awn by us i ng onl y the f i ngers so as
not to di st urb sil k on t humb) ar r ow i ndi cat i ng posi ti on of
silk. Br i ng hands t oget her as in No . 18, ( No. 19 s hows how
t humb ball of l eft hand is sl i pped out si de crotch of ri ght
t humb, so silk lies behi nd l ef t hand) and turn f aci ng audi ence,
as in No. 20, t urni ng pal ms out war d, whi ch exhi bi t s the pal ms.
Now turn hands downwar d br i ngi ng t humb wi t h silk qui ckl y
i nsi de l ef t pal m and exhi bi t (as i n No . 21) back of hands.
No. 17. Xo. 18. No. 19.
The manner of t urni ng first the right hand to cover the
change of t humb f r om back to i nsi de of hand is i l l ustrated in
No. 22, but this act i on shoul d be so quickly followed by posi-
tion illustrated in No. 21, that it is i ndi st i ngui shabl e.
Tur n hands back to posi t i on No. 20, and br i ng the fingers
around so t hey meet in f r ont s l i p t humb bet ween pal ms and
dr aw out silk.
Pract i ce the movement s bef ore a mi rror and note the re-
markabl e i l l usi on t hey create when execut ed wi t h moderate
speed. The t hi mbl e idea wi l l enabl e the perf ormer to slip
same on his t humb at any moment if it is not desi red to arrange
silk on t humb bef orehand.
No. 20. No. 21.
No. 22.
16
Ma ny l i ave been the at t empt s to devi se an i mproved
met hod of c hangi ng the face card of the pack, but i nvar-
i abl y the st age perf ormer finds such met hods t o be but i mprac-
ti cal "novel t i es' ' and is f orced t o fal l back on the ol der, but
more rel i abl e sl ei ght s. 1 have tri ed ever yt hi ng of the sort that
has come to my noti ce, and my vari ed magi cal i nt erest s keep
me in t ouch wi t h most ever yt hi ng new or supposedl y new in
the magi cal field. I have even wor ked l ong on my own initia-
ti ve t o devi se superi or met hods to t each my pupi l s f or pupi l s
expect an i nst ruct or to be equal l y prof i ci ent in ever y one of the
f our hundred sl ei ght s known to magi c and t o have at hi s fi nger
tips a new wr i nkl e or suggest i on for ever y one of t hem.
I here descri be and expl ai n f or the first ti me my ori gi nal
col or change, whi c h is the last and best of the three met hods
whi ch rapi dl y f ol l ow each other in my supposed expl anat i on
of the tri ck, in my own publ i c wor k. Magi ci ans who have wi t -
nessed the execut i on of the t r i c kof whi ch I make qui te a
l engt hy f eat ur eneed 110 f urt her acquai nt ance wi t h its remark-
abl e ef f ect i veness, or the gener ous appr oval it secures from
the audi ence.
Effect: Af t e r execut i ng several col or changes ( pref erabl y
by a di f f erent met hod each t i me) t he per f or mer of f ers to ex-
plain the process. Spreading his fingers wide apart, the per-
f ormer dr aws the second fi nger of the ri ght hand over the f ace
card ( a s i n No. 23) several ti mes, expl ai ni ng t hat this " s of t ens
the pi ps " ; then the ri ght hand is drawn back, whi l e the per-
f or mer di rect s at t ent i on t o the " s of t appear ance" of the pips.
The ri ght hand wi t h the fingers spread apart, now passes down
over pack, and the f ace card is seen to have changed col or.
No. 25. (Mirror showing
1 ack ami tri.nt). K right
fingers; Tright thumb.
I.. F.left forefinger.
fingers.
.No. 23. No. 24. No. 26.
Operation: Wh e n the ri ght hand covers the pack as in
i l l ustrati on wi t h t humb agai nst back card and fingers l yi ng
across f ront of packthe thumb pushes the back card forward
about one-quarter inch. The left forefinger secures a purchase
on thi s proj ect i on and bends the card backward (see No. 24).
The n the right thumb is pl aced agai nst it and the ri ght hand
comes away wi t h the card curl ed up in the pal m hel d by the
t humb ( a s i n No. 26) . Thi s , of course, al l ows the fingers t o
be spread wi del y apart, and the hand is waved about somewhat
t o prevent a sharp observer f rom not i ci ng the absence of the
t humb whi l e at the same ti me bringing to attention the f act
that the fingers are wide apart.
As the ri ght is agai n br ought t owar d pack, the fingers are
brought together and the thumb releases the card whi ch now
comes i nto the regul ar pal m posi ti on, and it is deposi ted on
the face of the pack. Thi s change whi ch is t he onl y one
operated wi t h fingers wi de apart, I have f ound creates the most
perfect illusion of any known method.
THE WONDER PASS.
The pri nci pl e i nvol ved in the f ol l owi ng seri es of mani pu-
l ati ons is one whi ch I val ue ver y hi ghl y, f or it has enabl ed me
to produce more uni que and seemi ngl y i mpossi bl e ef f ect s wi t h
a borrowed pack of cards than anyt hi ng else of this nat ure I
have ever seen. Now, I hope my reader wi l l not expect any-
t hi ng st art l i ng, new or compl i cat ed, f or he wi l l be di sappoi nt ed.
Hut, what is better yet , it is wonderfully simple, practical and
deceptive and as f or its novel t y, it is suf f i ci ent to say that it is
novel in the adopt i on, sufficiently so to have puzzled a number
of very good magicians.
Consi der the f ol l owi ng ef f ect f r om the st andpoi nt of the
spect at or, and j udge whet her it woul d puzzl e you. Read the
ef f ect bef ore r eadi ng the expl anat i on.
Effect: Per f or mer cal l s for a pack of cards, whi ch he first
has sl ui fi l cd by the spect at ors. He al so cal l s for an el asti c
band, or suppl i es one hi msel f . Sever al cards are sel ected f rom
t he pack, the perf ormer di vi des the pack in t wo as usual , and
has t he. sel ect ed cards pl aced on the l ower hal f, l i e then sl i ps
the el asti c band over thi s l ower hal f, in order to prevent the
cards bei ng sl i pped or t ransf erred t o the bot t om of the pack.
The n t h e spect at ors t hemsel ves pl ace the upper porti on on the
l ower, t hus br i ngi ng the sel ected cards f ai rl y in the center and
l osi ng thei r l ocat i on. The fact that the elastic band tightly
encircles the pack absolutely prevents the execution of the
pass or any similar sleight. In f act , it is a sl ow and di ffi cul t
operat i on t o ext ract a card f rom the pack, and it is impossible
to al ter the posi t i on of any card wi t hout r emovi ng the el asti c
band.
Fr om thi s poi nt ou any number of t ri cks can be perf ormed,
such as the f ol l owi ng:
No . 1. The perf ormer i nqui res at what number one of the
spect at ors woul d l i ke hi s card to appear, say 15 is named. Th e
per f or mer s l owl y dr aws off cards one at a ti me, a s i n No. 27,
( whi ch is a sl ow operat i on, as the el asti c band ret ards i t ), unti l
f ourt een cards have been t aken of f , whi ch l eaves the fifteenth
card on the pack. The f ourt een cards are shown and the
sel ected card is seen t o be abs e nt t he n the spect at or dr aws
off the fifteenth card hi msel f and finds it to be the one which he
sel ect ed.
No. 2. 1 r ecommend present i ng thi s ef f ect first and then
fol l owi ng" wi t h No. 1. The cards af t er bei ng sel ected and re-
t urned t o the pack as descri bed in the f or egoi ng are dropped
i nt o the t rouser pocket . The per f or mer st at es t hat he wi l l
produce any one of cards desi red. One of the spect at ors cal l s
f or a card, wher eupon he pl unges hi s hand i nt o his pocket
and produces that card. The same course is f ol l owed wi t h the
second. The n he t akes the pack f rom hi s pocket and of f ers to
cause the r emai ni ng sel ected cards to appear at any number
from the top and Effect No. 1is now present ed.
Manipulation. Fi r st pl ace the el asti c band to the left of
the t abl e so that you will have to turn in that direction to se-
cure it. Ha v e the cards sel ected and ask each spect at or to
note hi s card and also to show it to others. Hol d the pack in
your left hand, whi c h hangs at your side and as you turn to
No. 27. No. 28. No. 29.
get the el asti c band, cause about half the cards to turn over
and f ace the others, by pr essi ng downwards wi t h the thumb
and u p wi t h the ti ngers as in i l l ustrati on No. 28, assi st i ng the
moti on by allowing this portion to touch your coat (No. 28
again) and drawing the hand upward, whi ch al one wi l l cause
the packet to t urn over. Hand the el asti c band, whi ch you
have now secured, to a spect at or, and, t ur ni ng your at t ent i on
to the pack, lift off about one-third of the cards. Ha v e the
choosers pl ace thei r cards on the l ower porti on, then have the
el asti c band pl aced over the cards, deposit the one-third upper
portion on the table in order to f ree your hand so that you can
assi st the spect at or in the operat i on. St op at thi s poi nt and
expl ai n, " I pl ace the t i ght el asti c band around the cards t o
prevent any suspi ci on that by some qui ck mov e me nt l i ke this,
( hol di ng the cards in both hands, make an up and down flourish
and secretly turn pack over), or ot herwi se, I mi ght be abl e,
af t er pl aci ng the cards t oget her, to pal m off the cards or shi f t
t hem about . No w, whi l e I l i f t the el asti c band, wi l l you
slide the rest of the cards on t op? ( Spect at or does so a s i n
No. 2) . No w your sel ected cards are in the cent er and I can-
not shi f t t hem or t ake one out wi t hout a lot of s nappi ng of
the band and hard pul l i ng. ( Le t some one t ry t o dr aw a
card off the t op) . Can I ?"
The cards are now at the bot t om and you can pl ace pack
m your pocket , and produce the cards sel ected, as in Ef f ec t
No. 2. The n t aki ng t hem out wi t h the sel ected card at the
bot t om, ask at what number the r emai ni ng card is desi red to
appear. Wh e n the number is gi ven, st art dr awi ng off the
cards as in No. 30, until one l ess than the number is reached
Show that the card is not among t hem, fanning them out with
right hand as in No. 31, and say, " Just f ourt een cards, count
No. 32. Another method.
Turning behind sleeve
while reaching for band.
No. 31. Turning
packet.
them yourselves, the card is not among them." (Under cover
of fanned out cards, reverse pack in left handNo. 31 shows
packet turning). Toss fan aside and point to top card of
pack, "Here draw the card off yourself to see that I do not
exchange it." Tl;e effect is surprising to the initiated, for
there is not a fairer or more impossible feat in the whole
category of magic, than to cause a selected card to appear at
any number when the pack is bound by an elastic band which
absolutely prevents the manipulation of the cards.
T H E I MP R O MP T U MA G I C I A N .
I have given this trick the above title because the entire
trick is performed by one of the spectators, who succeeds in
completely mystifying himself as well as the other parties to
the trick. I use it as a concluding effect after performing
several impromptu card tricks and find it very effective for
press demonstrations or similar occasions. Knowing the
mental acuteriess of the average reporter, and the fact that
they all seem to know something of magic themselves, I feel
1 am paying the trick a high compliment in saying that it has
never failed to completely mystify on every occasion of the
sort; and has frequently puzzled magicians as well.
I gener al l y begi n by st at i ng, that by wa y of concl usi on I
wi l l t ransf er my magi c power t o a certai n spect at or f or thi s
tri ck. Shuf f l i ng the pack t wi ce, I ask hi m to i nsert hi s f i nger
in the pack as in No . 1, at any poi nt, whi l e I am r unni ng the
cards in a sort of riffle. He does so, and I separate the pack
at thi s poi nt, handi ng hi m the cards and request i ng hi m to
count the cards out on the tabl e one at a ti me. I count my
porti on out ont o the tabl e, keepi ng ti me wi t h hi mf or a
reason whi ch wi l l appear l ater. I then have hi m square the
cards up on his l ef t hand and request hi m t o t ake one card
from the top and slip it i nto the cent er of the pack. I next
request hi m to t ake one card f rom the bot t om and slip it into
the cent er and anot her t aken f rom the top and sl i pped i nto
the center, then one more f rom the bot t om, whi ch I have
pl aced in the cent er also.
Anot her card is now t aken and handed to the person at
his ri ght and anot her f rom the top is handed to the part y on
hi s l eft, both of whom are request ed to pl ace the card in thei r
pockct af t er l ooki ng at it. The perf ormer now col l ect s the
r emai ni ng cards and cal l s at t ent i on to the fact t hat up to the
present , he has not touched the cards and that the entire opera-
tion has been performed by one of the spectators. One of
the perf ormers hol di ng a card is request ed to t hi nk of t he
name of his card. To uc hi ng hi m on the f orehead the per-
f ormer reads hi s mi nd ( ?) and announces the name of the
card correct l y. The same is repeat ed wi t h the ot her card.
Ther e is gener al l y a heavy at mosphere of t hought af t er t hi s
experi ment and the most puzzled man is the one who handled
the cards.
Operation: In gat her i ng up the cards f rom some previ ous
tri ck, gl ance at and memorize the two bottom cards, while
squaring up the pack. Exec ut e the dove-t ai l shuf f l e, but do so
in such a manner t hat two cards fall below the memorized
cards. ( Ref er to i l l ustrati on No. 4, and let right hand repre-
sent porti on of the pack wi t h the two memorized cards at the
bottom"). No w rel ease the two cards f rom the left hand
packet, l et t i ng them fall first. The n permi t the two memorized
cards f rom the ot her packet to fall on top of these. The n run
the rest of the cards in di f f erent l y. Ruf f l e the cards as de-
scri bed, havi ng person i nsert finger in pack at any poi nt ( a s
in No. 1) and cut the pack at t hat poi nt, handing himi the
lower portion, sayi ng, " Al l ri ght , t ake t hose cards and count
t hem out ont o the tabl e (or my hand) one at a t i me. " He
does so and the perf ormer count s the r emai ni ng cards keep-
i ng ti me wi t h hi m, whi ch puzzl es him and causes him to wat ch
the perf ormer, so if he is one who is f ami l i ar wi t h magi c he
wi l l not noti ce that he is reversi ng the cards in count i ng t hem.
l l a v e the cards pl aced squared up on pal m and have one
card f rom the top pl aced in the cent er, etc., as descri bed.
The n tell hi m to t ake "another" card f rom the top (and he
naturally takes the top card as he has been doi ng) , and have
hi m hand it t o the person on hi s ri ght and "another" to the
part y at ' hi s l eft. Yo u. of course, know whi ch cards t hey hol d
and any desi red concl usi on may be br ought about. The
mani pul at i ons are so cl ever l y arranged and di sgui sed and the
at t ent i on of the person hol di ng the cards is di st ract ed in such
a manner that even the best posted magi ci ans have "f al l en, ' '
and fal l en hard on thi s part i cul ar card t r i c ka fact of whi ch
I have abundant l ocal proof .
THE INDECEPTIVE DECEPTION.
Thi s is one of t hose t ri cks whi ch gai n their ef f ect by
means of the perf ormer out wi t t i ng the spect at ors whi l e
appar ent l y demons t r at i ng that no decept i on is empl oyed.
Explanation: A tri ck wel l - known t o the publ i c is that in
whi ch the per f or mer has a sel ected card returned to the pack-
by c ut t i ng the pack, and whi l e doi ng so t akes opport uni t y to
memor i ze the bottom card of the upper portion, whi ch, when
the upper porti on is ret urned, causes the memori zed card to
fal l next t o or above the sel ected card, t hereby enabl i ng the
perf ormer t o l ocate the sel ected card on l ooki ng t hr ough the
pack l ater.
Effect. A sel ected card is ret urned t o the pack in the
manner descri bed above, except that j ust as the perf ormer is
about to pl ace the tipper porti on above the card he i nt errupt s
hi msel f and r emar ks that he has j ust remembered that there
is a met hod of l ocat i ng a card by memor i z i ng the one above
it. He descri bes the tri ck and i l l ust rat es how the card woul d
come above the sel ected one by br i ngi ng the upper packet
down at ri ght angl es on the l ower as in No . 33, but in order to
prove that lie does not resort to such t ri ckery he changes his
course and wi t h hi s t humb pushes the sel ected card off the
to]) of the l ower porti on and into the cent er of the upper
packet as s hown in No . 34. Ev e r y t hi ng is apparent l y fair,
especi al l y if the perf ormer gi ves the pack a dove-tai l shuffl e
and even submi t s the packet to the audi ence for the same
purpose. Th e card is in the perf ormer' s possessi on at once.
Operation: At the poi nt i l l ustrated in No. 33, the left
fingers pass upwar d and press slightly against the top card of
the upper portion. As the hands s wi ng t owar d the ri ght side
and the l ef t hand
poi nt s to the
card, whi ch the
perf ormer e x -
pl ai ns is mem-
ori zedthe left
fingers draw off
the card from
the top of the
upper packet on-
to the l o w e r .
Thi s is done j ust
as the hands are
turned over as
s hown in No. 33,
whi ch shoul d be
accompani ed by
a s wi ng t o the ri ght . Thi s covers the slip, whi ch in thi s
trick must be execut ed far more noi sel essl y than usual , as the
spect at ors' at t ent i on is cent ered on the cards. Do not press
t oo hard on the sl i pped card, whi ch wi l l cause it to snap down
b u t dr awi ng it off l i ght l y, let it come slowly against the
packet as the t urni ng movement is desi gned to cover the oper-
ati on compl et el y.
Ref er r i ng t o No. 35, " B" represent s the sl i pped card, whi ch
is, of course, the one turned i nto the packet . The cards are
then dove-tai l ed shuffl ed and " A" , the sel ected card, is al l owed
to fall on top. If pref erred, pause at thi s poi nt (as s hown in
No. 35) wher e " B " is hal f wa y in the packet , ext endi ng t hat
porti on t o a spect at or, and remark, " Her e, push the card in
wi t h y our o wn hand, " and af t er doi ng so, " Whi l e you have
the cards you mi ght as wel l shuf f l e t hem. " Wh e n the port i on
is ret urned, pl ace your half on t op and execut e the top and
bot t om f al se shuf f l e, or cut and dove-tai l shuffl e t hem, per-
mi t t i ng the sel ected card to fal l on top at the end.
BURLING HULL "INVISIBLE PASS."
It is amus i ng to note the number of so-cal l ed " i nvi s i bl e"
passes descri bed in the current books and peri odi cal s. Ma ny
combi nat i ons of sl i ps and cut s are of f ered, some of whi ch are
cl ever, but all lack the ver y cpiality for whi c h t hey are advo-
cated. In all there is apparent a movement of the hands. If
one wer e to keep an obj ect in such rapi d mot i on that a person
coul d not di st i ngui sh what the obj ect was, it woul d not make
it i nvi si bl e, but merel y i ndi st i ngui shabl e. In the f ol l owi ng,
not even to the i ni ti ated is the movement vi si bl e.
No. A.
Effect: Af t e r cards are returned t o pack, perf ormer merel y
pul l s back sleev es and proceeds wi th the " exper i ment . "
Working: Keep the hal ves of the pack di vi ded by the little
l i nger in the usual manner, but bend the i ndex f i nger under
the pack as in phot o ( A) . Whi l e expl ai ni ng the trick to
f ol l ow, or r equest i ng the loan of any arti cl e, you may requi re,
draw back the sl eeve of the hand hol di ng the pack ( phot o A) .
The n dr aw back sl eeve of the ot her arm as in phot o ( B) ,
but as hand goes behi nd sl eeve as in phot o, l ever the top
porti on of pack up agai nst the sl eeve by st r ai ght eni ng the little
f i nger and wi t h the i ndex f i nger push edge of the l ower por-
tion up so it passes over the edge of ot her porti on (photo 3),
and let that port i on fal l back i nto the hand and the f ormer
l ower porti on is 011 top. The sl eeves shoul d be dr awn back
in a l ei surel y manner, gi vi ng ti me t o make the pass easi l y.
Dr a wi ng the first sl eeve back s l owl y excuses the coupl e of
ext ra seconds on the second sl eeve. Th e compl et e move bei ng
made under cover of t he dr awi ng back of sl eeve is absol ut el y
i nvi si bl e. Wi t h pract i ce, it can be made l i ke l i ght ni ng, but
it is unnecessary, as it can be operat ed s l owl y, unti l the reader
is prof i ci ent, wi t h as much success.
A UNIQUE THIMBLE "MOVE."
Effect: Th e t hi mbl e is pl aced on the tip of the second
finger of the ri ght hand. Thi s is s l owl y i nserted in the l ef t
hand as in phot o ( D) , and as s l owl y wi t hdr awn, but wi t hout
the t hi mbl e as in phot o ( E) . Af t e r the usual i nterval , the l ef t
hand is sl owl y opened and the t hi mbl e has vani shed.
No. 1). No. F.. No. F.
Working: The beaut y of thi s vani sh lies in its l ack of
suspi ci ous movement s and the s l ownes s wi t h whi ch it is
execut ed. The t hi mbl e f ai rl y enters l ef t hand and the f i nger
fai rl y comes out empt y as i l l ustrated in phot os ( D and E) , but
by l ooki ng at phot o ( F) , the secret lies exposed. The second
l i nger bends around the t humb and the lirst and third l i ngers
gri p the t hi mbl e on each sid?. The second f i nger is st rai ght -
ened and wi t hdr awn f rom hand. The t hi mbl e may be im-
medi at el y t humb- pal med, cent er- pal med; the hand may be
st rai ght ened so t hi mbl e lies finger-palmed under second finger,
or it may be back- pal med and the inside of hand shown. The
moves shoul d be operated wi t h consi derabl e sl owness to br i ng
out the f ul l ef f ect.
BURLING HULL THIMBLE PRODUCTION.
I Reprinted fromDeviltry, copyright 19091
Effect: The perf ormer cal l s at t ent i on t o the ri ght hand.
Mol di ng it ext ended f rom the body he exhi bi t s first the back
of the hand, fingers wi de apart, then t ur ni ng the pal m t owar d
the audi ence, the inside of hand. W hile hol di ng the hand,
pal m t oward audi ence, st at i onary, a t hi mbl e suddenl y appears
on the ti p of the second finger.
The back of the hand is first shown. The n the 4'i'st j oi nt
of the second finger is presscJ agai nst the mout h of t hi mbl e
t o st eady it whi l e the first and thi rd fingers gri p it on sides.
The first and second movement s are i l l ust rat ed by the upper
and l ower hands in phot o ( G) .
The fingers are now st rai ght ened and inside of hand s hown
( phot o H) u p p e r hand as s hownl owe r s hows posi ti on of
t hi mbl e at back of hand.
Phot o I s hows upper hand as t hi mbl e is produced and
l ower hand as second finger is dr awn back and shot i nto mout h
of thi mbl e. Wi t h the i nt roduct i on of the above mani pul at i on
a new era is opened to the t hi mbl e wor ker as t hi mbl es may be
passed f rom hand t o hand wi t h pal ms t owar d audi ence, passed
t hrough knees, etc., col ors changed, mul t i pl i ed, etc., all ki nds
of passes bei ng possi bl e wi t h bot h hands, pal ms t owar d
audience. AkHACP
H 8 1 B U
No. G. Upper hand
shows first movement.
Lower shows second.
No. H. Upper hand
shows front view.
Lower shows position
of thimble.
No. L Upper shows
production. Lower
shows finger enter-
ing thimble.