MAGICIANS’ TRICKS.
MAGICIANS’ TRICKS: HOW THEY ARE DONE
BY
HENRY HATTON AND ADRIAN PLATE
WITH CONTRIBUTIONS BY
FELICIEN TREWEY, KARL GERMAIN, WILL GOLDSTON, AND OTHERS
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. We are such stuff
As dreams are made of .
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The Tempest, Act iv. Sc. 1
NEW YORK THE CENTURY CO. 1910
Copyright, 1910, by The Century Co.
Published, October, 1910
TO OUR BROTHER CONJURERS. PROFESSIONALS AND AMATEURS IN THE HOPE THAT IT MAY AFFORD SOME ENTERTAINMENT AND A LITTLE INSTRUCTION. THIS BOOK IS FRATERNALLY DEDICATED BY THE EDITORS
CONTENTS
viii
CONTENTS
CONTENTS
ix
X
CONTENTS
CONTENTS
xi
1
ACKNOWLEDGMENT The Editors beg leave to acknowledge their indebtedness to Messrs Trewey, Germain, Fischer, Blind, Conradi, Caroly, Goldston, Okito, Ducrot, Elliott, De Lion, Fuigle and others of their brother conjurers who have generously contrib uted
explanations
Magicians’ Tricks.”
of
tricks
to
“The
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FOREWORD is a distinct fascination about conjuring not easy to understand. In the many years that we, the writers of these papers, have practised the art, we have known many men, and some women, who took it up for pleasure or money, or both, and we have never known one to lose interest in it. Shakspere, that master “mindreader, ” must have understood this ceaseless hankering, for he makes Rosalind say: “I have, since I was three years old, conversed with a magician most profound in his art,” which undoubtedly means that she had taken lessons in conjuring all those years. We preface our instructions “with these few remarks” as a warning, so that we may not be blamed should our readers find them selves possessed of this undying love for “conjuration and mighty magic.” That “the hand is quicker than the eye,” is one of those accepted sayings invented by someone who knew nothing of conjuring—or, as is more likely, by some cunning conjurer who aimed still further to hoodwink a gullible public. The fact is, that the best conjurer seldom makes a rapid motion, for that attracts attention, even though it be not understood. The true artist in this line is deliberate in every movement, and it is mainly by his actions that he leads his audience to look not where they ought, but in an entirely different diThere
FOREWORD
rection. Mr. David Devant, who for a number of con secutive years has entertained London with his ingenious tricks, has said: “The conjurer must be an actor. By the expression of his face, by his gestures, by the tone of his voice, in short, by his acting, he must produce his effects. ” He is certainly right, but as it is not our pur pose to furnish an essay on conjuring as a fine art, let us turn on the lights, ring up the curtain, and let the magician make his bow.
MAGICIANS’ TRICKS.
MAGICIANS’ TRICKS INTRODUCTION Before beginning any explanations we shall have to trespass for a few minutes on the patience of our readers while we describe certain articles that are almost neces sities for the successful production of many tricks. The first are: THE CONJURER’S CLOTHES.
The coat is generally provided with four special pock ets, in addition to the several pockets found in every well-made garment of its kind. Of these special pockets two are in the breast, one on each side, and two inside the coat tails, also one on each side. The breast pockets are inside the coat and nearly under the arms. They open perpendicularly and are spacious enough to hold a rabbit, a pigeon, or other large object. The tail pock ets are about seven inches in width and six in depth, and the opening slants slightly, being higher at the back than at the front. They are placed so that the performer’s knuckles touch the opening when his arm hangs at his side. They are professionally known as profondes, and into them is dropped anything of a rea sonable size that the performer wishes to be rid of. Some performers have a tempered wire stitched around the opening to make it more accessible. 3