Part 1
+--------------------------------------------------+ | Note: | | | | _ around word indicated italics _Erebus_ | | = around word indicated bold =DICK & FITZGERALD= | +--------------------------------------------------+
THE MAGICIAN'S OWN BOOK,
OR THE WHOLE ART OF CONJURING.
BEING A COMPLETE HAND-BOOK OF PARLOR MAGIC,
AND CONTAINING OVER ONE THOUSAND
OPTICAL, CHEMICAL, MECHANICAL, MAGNETICAL, AND MAGICAL EXPERIMENTS, AMUSING TRANSMUTATIONS, ASTONISHING SLEIGHTS AND SUBTLETIES, CELEBRATED CARD DECEPTIONS, INGENIOUS TRICKS WITH NUMBERS, CURIOUS AND ENTERTAINING PUZZLES, TOGETHER WITH ALL THE MOST NOTED TRICKS OF MODERN PERFORMERS. THE WHOLE
ILLUSTRATED WITH OVER 500 WOOD CUTS,
AND INTENDED AS A SOURCE OF AMUSEMENT FOR ONE THOUSAND AND ONE EVENINGS.
NEW YORK: DICK & FITZGERALD, 18 ANN STREET. 1862.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1857, by
DICK & FITZGERALD,
in the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York.
PREFACE.
The publishers of this interesting volume do not conceive that it requires an elaborate introduction to the reading public. Some brief remarks, however, may not be inappropriate as a preface to THE MAGICIAN'S OWN BOOK, since the "black art," as in lessen lightened ages the practice of all these innocent and interesting feats was termed, is not yet as popularly understood in this country as it is abroad. There is a charm in legerdemain, or sleight of hand, that all, whether young or old, can readily appreciate. There is a mystery in it that piques the understanding as well as provokes the curiosity of the spectator. If the trick be executed with address, it excites our admiration; and the simpler it appears, the more it engages our fancy and fascinates our attention. And it is not only when we are mystified in public, cajoled in great saloons, and in the presence of crowds, that these effects are developed. They are called forth by the performances even of some humble artist in the family circle, whose ingenuity of mind has enabled him to gather up the more available of these practical puzzles. It would seem, therefore, a useful thing to place this source of harmless amusement within the reach of all who can relish its eccentricities, and instead of leaving it in the hands of "professors," as a pecuniary speculation, to enable the domestic group to master and enjoy it in all its ever-varying phases of novelty and gratification. To do this is what the publishers propose in the issue of this volume; and they flatter themselves, that if carefully studied, it will prepare the Young Conjuror to convert the parlor, at any desirable moment, into a place of genuine entertainment for himself and his companions, and ample repay him for the little time and thought he may devote to the acquisition of the necessary skill and dexterity.
Sleight of hand, magic, necromancy, &c., are all terms of art applicable to the same series of performances. The parlor student, therefore, once familiar with the general principles upon which these "experiments" are effected, will find little difficulty in comprehending at a glance, notwithstanding all the show of gorgeous paraphernalia and auxiliary machinery employed, the _modus operandi_ of every one of them he may witness in public. This will be a new source of pleasure to him, independent of his ability to turn "Conjuror" on his own account at home. Nor can we well conceive of any rational objection likely to be urged against a kind of knowledge, so unimpeachable in its nature, and so mirth provoking in its results. Acting Charades are common, even among the most fastidious families. Enigmas and puzzles, in pantomime and speech, afford innoxious amusement to thousands. The publishers only consider THE MAGICIAN'S OWN BOOK a new addition to the current list of entertainments of that character; for what is a sleight of hand feat but an enigma placed before the spectator for solution? What is a trick in "natural magic" but a puzzle repeated to those who behold it, each one of whom is tacitly expected to guess how it is accomplished, while the little practitioner only holds the key to the mystery? In truth, the parlor needs some increase in its means of social amusement. The number it embraces is extremely limited. They soon weary. This weariness creates an appetite for outside attractions, not always wholesome, and too often insidiously pernicious. THE MAGICIAN'S OWN BOOK nicely fills up, therefore, the void in the category of parlor recreations. It may be made to present an ever-changing, always tempting, stay-at-home inducement, and in this shape becomes a moral assistant of no unimportant description, as well as the piquant source of good humored bamboozlement.
In conclusion we would say, that the MAGICIAN'S OWN BOOK contains a great variety of curious tricks and deceptions, many of which have never before appeared in print, and for many of which the publishers beg to acknowledge their indebtedness to Mr. John Wyman, Junior, the celebrated magician, that gentleman having kindly furnished clear and simple explanations to many of his most surprising parlor feats and fancies.
INDEX.
Sleight of Hand Tricks. PAGE
The Flying Dime, 3
The Flying Dime, (another method,) 4
The Beads and Strings, 5
To get a Ring out of a Handkerchief, 5
To tie a Knot in a Handkerchief which Cannot be drawn Tight, 6
The Three Cups, 7
To tie a Handkerchief round your Leg, and get it off Without Untying the Knot, 8
The Magic Bond, 8
The Old Man and his Chair, 8
To tie a Knot on the Left Wrist, without letting the right hand approach it, 10
The Magic Handcuffs, 11
To pull a String through your Button-hole, 11
The Cut String Restored, 12
The Gordian Knot, 12
The Knot Loosened, 13
To Conjure Nuts in your Ear, 13
To Crack Walnuts in your Elbow, 14
To Take Feathers out of an Empty Handkerchief, 14
The Knotted Handkerchief, 14
Houdin's Nut Trick, 16
Conjuring a Ring, 17
The Erratic Egg, 18
The Obedient Dime, 19
The Prisoner Released, 19
Advantageous Wager, 19
The Double Meaning, 20
The Three Spoons, 20
The Juggler's Joke, 20
To Cause Water and Wine to Change Places, 21
The Wizard's Wit, or Is it Possible, 21
The Toper's Stratagem, 21
The Impossible Omelet, 21
New Perpetual Rotary Motion, 22
The Miraculous Apple, 22
An Omelet Cooked in a Hat, 23
The Infallible Prophet, 23
Philosophy Cheated, 24
The Disappearing Dime, 26
The Hat and Die Trick, 27
The Penetrative Cents, 27
The Doll Trick, 29
The Flying Coins, 30
The Vanished Half Dime, 30
The Restored Document, 30
The Magic Rings, 31
The Fish and Ink Trick, 32
The Hat and Cannon Ball Trick, 32
The Dime in the Ball of Cotton, 33
The Egg and Bag Trick, 33
The Dancing Egg, 34
The Bell and Shot Trick, 34
The Burned Handkerchief Restored, 35
The Fire Eater, 35
The Egg Box Trick, 36
The Globe Box Trick, 36
The Coffee Trick, 37
The Handkerchief Trick, 38
The Magic Funnel, 41
The Magic Bottle, 41
The Bottle Trick, 42
The Magic Quarter, 44
To change a Dime to a Quarter, 44
Wyman's Gun Trick, 46
The Hatched Bird, 46
The Apple and Orange Trick, 47
A Magician's Box Explained, 47
The Enchanted Coin, 48
The Mysterious Coin, or How to Make Dollars pass through a Wine Glass, a China Plate, a Table, and fall into the Hand, 49
The Egyptian Fluids, or Impossibilities Accomplished, 50
The Magician's Snow Ball, 51
The Magnetized Cane, 52
Wyman's Mode of performing the Egg Bag Trick, 52
The Dancing Automaton, 354
The Invisible Springs, 355
The Flight of the Ring, 356
The Magic Book, 360
The Tape Trick, 360
The Knotted Thread, 361
The Transposable Pieces, 362
Tricks and Deceptions with Cards.
To Make the Pass, 55
To Tell a Card by its Back, 55
The Card named without being seen, 56
The Card told by an Opera Glass, 56
The Four Kings, 58
The Four Accomplices, 58
To Tell the Card thought of, in a Circle of Ten, 59
To guess the Card thought of, 59
To tell the number of Cards by Weight, 60
Audacity, 61
The Card found at the second guess, 61
The Card found under the Hat, 61
To call the Cards out of the Pack, 61
Heads and Tails, 62
The Surprise, 62
The Revolution, 63
The Slipped Card, 63
The Nailed Card, 63
To ascertain the number of Points on three unseen Cards, 64
To tell the numbers on two unseen Cards, 64
The Knaves and the Constable, 64
The Pairs Re-paired, 65
The Queens Digging for Diamonds, 66
The Triple Deal, 67
The Quadruple Deal, 67
The Card Discovered by the Touch or Smell, 67
The Ingenious Confederacy, 67
Hold it Fast, 69
The Charmed Twelve, 69
The Trick of "Thirty-one," 70
To tell the Names of the Cards by their Weight, 71
The Cards in the Vase, 73
The Metamorphosis, 74
To hold Four Kings, or Four Knaves in your Hand, and to Change them suddenly into Blank Cards, and then to Four Aces, 76
To Change a Card in a Person's Hand, 76
The Card in the Egg, 77
The Fifteen Thousand Livres, 78
Hints to Amateurs, 79
Cure for Troublesome Spectators, 80
To make a Card jump out of the Pack, 357
The Tell-Tale Cards, 357
The Double Dozen, 358
The Housebreakers, 359
The Magic of Chemistry.
Sympathetic or Invisible Inks, 84
The Silver Tree, 85
Cleopatra's Pearls, 86
Wonderful Experiments in Combustion, 86
Mimic Rain, 86
Marine Illumination, 87
The Mimic Explosion, 88
The Shower of Fire, 88
The Magical Heat, 88
The Magic Lamp, 89
Surprising Experiments with Potassium, 89
The Water Demon, 89
A Flame produced with Ice, 89
The Chemical Chimney Sweep, 90
The Magical Illumination, 90
The Chemical Chameleon, 91
Crystallizations of Metals, 92
Beauties of Crystallization, 93
To Crystallize Camphor, 93
To do. Tin, 94
Crystals in Hard Water, 94
Varieties of Crystals, 94
A Liquid Changed to a Solid, and Heat from Crystallization, 94
Beautiful Experiment, 95
A Solid Changed to a Liquid, and intense Cold from the Liquefaction, 95
Magic of Heat, 95
Sublimation by Heat, 96
Heat Passing through Glass, 96
Metals unequally Influenced by Heat, 97
Spontaneous Combustion, 97
Inequality of Heat in Fire Irons, 97
Expansion of Metal by Heat, 97
Evaporation of a Metal, 98
A Floating Metal on Fire, 98
Ice Melted by Air, 98
Splendid Sublimation, 98
Magic Inks, 98
Chameleon Liquids, 99
The Magic Dyes, 99
Wine Changed into Water, 99
Two colorless Transparent Liquids become Black and Opaque, 100
Two colorless Fluids, Make a colored one, 100
Change of Color, by colorless Fluids, 100
To Change Blue Liquid to White, 100
Veritable "Black" Tea, 100
Restoration of Color by Water, 101
Two Liquids Make a Solid, 101
Two Solids Make a Liquid, 101
A Solid, Opaque Mass, Makes a Transparent Liquid, 101
Two cold Liquids Make a Hot one, 101
Quintuple Transmutation, 102
The Same Agent may Produce and Destroy Color, 102
Union of two Metals without Heat, 102
Magic Breath, 102
Two Bitters Make a Sweet, 103
Visible and Invisible, 103
To Form a Liquid of two Solids, 103
The Spectral Lamp, 104
Curious Change of Colors, 105
The Protean Light, 105
The Chameleon Flowers, 105
To Change the Colors of Flowers, 105
Changes of the Poppy, 106
Changes of the Rose, 106
Light changing White into Black, 106
The Visibly Growing Acorn, 106
Colored Flames, 107
Orange colored Flame, 107
Emerald Green Flame, 107
Instantaneous Flame, 107
To Cool Flame by Metal, 108
Proof that Flame is Hollow, 108
To Hold a Hot Tea Kettle on the Hand, 108
Incombustible Linen, 108
The Burning Circle, 108
Water of different Temperatures in the same Vessel, 109
Warmth of Different Colors, 109
Substitute for Fire, 109
Laughing Gas, 109
Flame from Cold Metals, 110
Phosphorus in Chlorine, 110
Magic Vapor, 111
Gas from the Union of Metals, 111
Camphor Sublimated by Flame, 111
Green Fire, 111
Brilliant Red Fire, 112
Purple Fire, 112
Silver Fire, 112
Fiery Fountain, 112
Combustion without Flame, 112
Combustion of Three Metals, 113
To Make Paper Apparently Incombustible, 113
Heat not to be estimated by Touch, 113
Flame upon Water, 113
Rose Colored Flame upon Water, 113
To Set a Mixture on Fire by Water, 114
Waves of Fire on Water, 114
Water from the Flame of a Candle, 114
Formation of Water by Fire, 114
Boiling upon Cold Water, 114
Currents in Boiling Water, 114
Hot Water Lighter than Cold, 115
Expansion of Water by Cold, 115
The Cup of Tantalus, 115
The Magic Whirlpool, 116
Artificial Fire Balls, 117
To Melt Steel as Easily as Lead, 118
To Tell a Lady if She is in Love, 118
To put an Egg in a Phial, 118
To Astonish a Large Party, 118
Magical Test Papers, 119
Infinite Divisibility, 119
Chemistry an Agent in Secret Writing, 327
To Melt a Piece of Money in a Walnut Shell, without Injuring the Shell, 355
The Pyramid of Alum, 354
Experiments in Electricity.
The Rotary Tobacco Pipe, 123
The Erratic Feather, 123
The Attractive Sealing Wax, 124
The Unneighborly Balls, 124
The Electrified Paper, 124
The Sociable Feather, 124
The Eccentric Feather, 124
The Discontented Pith Ball, 124
The Dancing Bran, 124
The Electrical Cat, 124
Electrical Shock from a Sheet of Paper, 125
Light under Water, 126
Simple means of Producing Electricity, 126
Attraction and Repulsion Exhibited, 127
How to Make an Electrical Machine, 127
Conductor, 128
The Plate Electrical Machine, 129
How to Draw Sparks from the Tip of the Nose, 129
How to Get a Jar full of Electricity, 129
The Electrical Battery, 130
Dancing Balls and Dolls, 131
The Electrical Kiss, 131
Ringing Bells, 131
Working Power of Electricity, 132
The Electrified Wig, 132
Imitation Thunder Clouds, 133
The Lightning Stroke Imitated, 133
The Sportsman, 134
Experiments in Galvanism.