The Juggler's Oracle; Or, The Whole Art Of Legerdemain Laid Open - free ebook by H. (Herman) Boaz

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The Juggler's Oracle; Or, The Whole Art Of Legerdemain Laid Open

H. (Herman) Boaz

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132 chapters

THE JUGGLER’S ORACLE;

THE JUGGLER’S ORACLE;

OR, THE WHOLE ART OF Legerdemain Laid Open: CONSISTING OF ALL THE NEWEST AND MOST SURPRISING TRICKS AND EXPERIMENTS, WITH CARDS, CUPS AND BALLS, CONVEYANCE OF MONEY AND RINGS, BOXES, FIRE, STRINGS AND KNOTS; WITH MANY CURIOUS EXPERIMENTS By Optical Illusion, Chymical Changes, and Magical Cards, &amp;c. THE WHOLE Illustrated by upwards of Forty Wood Engravings. BY THE SIEUR H. BOAZ, THIRTY YEARS PROFESSOR OF THE ART. LONDON: PRINTED FOR WILLIAM COLE, 10, NEWGATE STREET. PRINTED BY G. H. DAVID

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THEJUGGLER’S ORACLE.

THEJUGGLER’S ORACLE.

Is an art whereby a person seems to work wonderful, incredible, and almost impossible feats. There is no supernatural or infernal agency in the case; for every trick is performed by nimbleness, agility, and effrontery....

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The Operator.

The Operator.

The Operator, or Conjurer, should be a person of bold and undaunted resolution, so as to set a good face upon the matter, in case of the occurrence of any mistake whereby a discovery of the nature of the trick in hand may take place by one of the spectators. He ought to have a great variety of strange terms and high-sounding words at command, so as to grace his actions, amaze the beholders, and draw their attention from the more minute operations. He ought likewise to use such gestures of body a

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To deliver Four Aces, and to convert them into Knaves.

To deliver Four Aces, and to convert them into Knaves.

Make a pack of these eight cards, viz. four knaves and four aces; and, although the eight cards must be immediately together, yet must each knave and ace be evenly set together, and the same eight cards must lie also in the lowest place of the pack; then shuffle them so always, at the second shuffling; so that, at the end of shuffling the said pack, one ace may lie undermost, or so as you may know where it goeth and lieth always: I say, let your aforesaid pack, with three or four cards more, lie

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Method of making the Pass.

Method of making the Pass.

This art consists in bringing a certain number of cards from the bottom of the pack to the top. I shall explain the method of doing it, before proceeding further, as many of the following recreations depend on the dexterous performance of this manœuvre. Hold the pack of cards in your right hand, so that the palm of your hand may be under the cards. Place the thumb of that hand on one side of the pack, the first, second, and third fingers on the other side, and your little finger between those ca

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The Card of Divination.

The Card of Divination.

Have a pack in which there is a longer card than the rest; open the pack at that part where the long card is, and present the pack to a person in such a manner that he will naturally draw that card. He is then to put it into any part of the pack, and shuffle the cards. You take the pack and offer the same card in like manner to a second or third person; observing, however, that they do not stand near enough to observe the card each other draws. You then draw several cards yourself, among which i

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Another Way.

Another Way.

This recreation may be performed without the long card, in the following manner: let a person draw any card whatever, and replace it in the pack; you then make the pass, and bring that card to the top of the pack, and shuffle them without losing sight of that card. You then offer that card to a second person, that he may draw it, and put it in the middle of the pack. You make the pass, and shuffle the cards a second time, in the same manner, and offer the card to a third person; and so again to

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The Four Confederate Cards.

The Four Confederate Cards.

You let a person draw any four cards from the pack, and tell him to think of one of them. When he returns you the four cards, you dexterously place two of them under the pack, and two on the top. Under those at the bottom you place four cards of any sort, and then, taking eight or ten from the bottom cards, you spread them on the table, and ask the person if the card he fixed on be among them. If he say no, you are sure it is one of the two cards on the top. You then pass those two cards to the

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The Fifteen Thousand Livres.

The Fifteen Thousand Livres.

You must be prepared with two cards like the following:— and with a common ace and five of diamonds. The five of diamonds, and the two prepared cards, are to be disposed thus:— and, holding them in your hand, you say,—“A certain Frenchman left fifteen thousand livres, which are represented by these three cards, to his three sons; the two youngest agreed to leave their 5000, each of them, in the hands of the elder, that he might improve it.” While you are telling this story, you lay the five on t

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The Magic Ring.

The Magic Ring.

Make a ring large enough to go on the second or third finger, in which let there be set a large transparent stone, to the bottom of which must be fixed a small piece of black silk, that may be either drawn aside or expanded by turning the stone round. Under the silk is to be the figure of a small card. Then make a person draw the same sort of card as that at the bottom of the ring, and tell him to burn it in the candle. Having first shown him the ring, you take part of the burnt card, and, reduc

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The Card in the Mirror.

The Card in the Mirror.

Provide a mirror, either round, like the following figure, or oval; the frame of which must be at least as wide as a card. The glass in the centre must be made to move in the two grooves, C D and E F; and so much of the silvering must be scraped off as is equal to the size of a common card. Observe that the glass be likewise wider than the width of the card. Then paste over the part where the quicksilver is rubbed off a piece of pasteboard, on which affix a card that exactly fits the space, whic

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The Marvellous Vase.

The Marvellous Vase.

Place a vase of wood or pasteboard, like the following:— A B, on a bracket L, to the partition M. Let the inside of this vase be divided into five parts, c, d, e, f, g ; and let the divisions c and d be wide enough to admit a pack of cards, and those of e, f, g , one card only. Fix a thread of silk at the point H, the end of which, passing down the division d , and over the pulley I, runs along the bracket L, and goes out behind the partition M. Take three cards from a piquet pack, and place one

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The Nerve Trick.

The Nerve Trick.

Having previously looked at a card, bid the person draw one, taking care to show him that which you know; when he has it, let him put it at the bottom; let him shuffle the cards, then look at them again, and, finding the card, place it at the bottom; then cut them in half; give the party that half which contains his chosen card at the bottom, to hold between his finger and thumb, just at the corner; bid him pinch them as tight as he can; then striking them pretty sharply, they will all fall to t

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To make the Constable catch the Knave.

To make the Constable catch the Knave.

Take a pack of cards, and look out the four knaves; lay one of them privately on the top of the pack, and the other three down upon the table, saying, “ Here, you see, are three knaves got together, about no good you may be sure ;” then lay down a king beside them, saying, “But here comes the constable and catches them together: ‘ Oh, says he, have I caught you? Well, the next time I catch you together, I’ll punish you severely for all your rogueries. ’ ‘ Oh ,’ but say they, ‘ you shan’t catch u

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To change a Card into a King or Queen.

To change a Card into a King or Queen.

To do this, you must have the picture in your sleeve, and, by a swift sleight, return the card, and fetch out the picture with a back bending. The manner of doing this is better learnt by frequent trials than can be taught by many words. But, if you would do this feat, and yet hold your hand straight and unmoved, then you must peel off the spots or figure of a card, as thin as you can, and just fasten it on the picture with something that will make it stick a little; then, having shown the spots

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To tell a Person what Card he took Notice of.

To tell a Person what Card he took Notice of.

Take any number of cards, as ten, twelve, and then, holding them with their backs towards you, open four or five of the uppermost, and, as you hold them out to view, let any one note a card, and tell you whether it be the first, second, or third from the top; but you must privately know the whole number of those cards you took. Now shut up your cards in your hands, and take the rest of the pack, which place upon them; then knock their ends and sides upon the table; so it will seem impossible to

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To tell what Card is at the Bottom, when the Pack is shuffled.

To tell what Card is at the Bottom, when the Pack is shuffled.

When you have seen a card privately, or as though you marked it not, lay the same undermost, and shuffle the cards till your card be again at the bottom. Then show the same to the bystanders, bidding them remember it. Now shuffle the cards, or let any other shuffle them, for you know the card already, and therefore may, at any time, tell them what card they saw, which, nevertheless, must be done with caution or show of difficulty....

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Another Way, not having seen the Cards.

Another Way, not having seen the Cards.

If you can see no card, or be suspected to have seen that which you mean to show, then let a bystander shuffle, and afterwards take the cards into your own hands, and, having shown them, and not seen the bottom card, shuffle again, and keep the same cards as before you are taught; and either make shift then to see it when their suspicion is past, which may be done by letting some cards fall, or else lay down all the cards in heaps, remembering where you laid the bottom card; then see how many ca

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To tell, without Confederacy, what Card one thinks of.

To tell, without Confederacy, what Card one thinks of.

Lay three cards at a distance, and bid a bystander be true, and not waver, but think on one of the three, and by his eye you shall assuredly perceive which he thinks on; and you shall do the like if you cast down a whole pack of cards with the faces upwards, whereof there will be few, or none plainly perceived, and they also court cards; but as you cast them down suddenly, so must you take them up presently, marking both his eyes and the card whereon he looks....

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To make a Card jump out of the Pack, and run on the Table.

To make a Card jump out of the Pack, and run on the Table.

Take a pack of cards, and let any one draw a card that he likes best, and afterwards take and put it into the pack, but so as you know where to find it at pleasure. Then take a piece of wax, and put it under the thumb-nail of your right hand, and thus fasten a hair to your thumb, and the other end of the hair to the card. Now spread the pack of cards open upon the table, and, making use of any technical words or charms, seem to make it jump on the table....

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To tell a Card, and to convey the Same into a Nut, or Cherry-Stone.

To tell a Card, and to convey the Same into a Nut, or Cherry-Stone.

Take a nut or cherry-stone, and burn a hole through the side of the top of the shell, and also through the kernel, if you will, with a hot bodkin, or bore it with an awl, and with a needle pull out the kernel, so as the same may be as wide as the hole of the shell; then write the name of the card on a piece of fine paper, and roll it up hard. Put it into the nut or cherry-stone, and stop the hole up with a little wax, and rub the same over with a little dust, and it will not be perceived; then l

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To let Twenty Gentlemen draw Twenty Cards, and to make one Card every Man’s Card.

To let Twenty Gentlemen draw Twenty Cards, and to make one Card every Man’s Card.

Take a pack of cards and let any gentleman draw one; then let him put it into the pack again, but be sure where to find it again at pleasure; then shuffle the cards again, and let another gentleman draw a card; but be sure that you let him draw no other than the same card as the other drew, and so do for ten or twelve, or as many cards as you think fit; when you have so done, let another gentleman draw another card, but not the same, and put that card into the pack where you have kept the other

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To transform the Four Kings into Aces, and afterwards to render them all Blank Cards.

To transform the Four Kings into Aces, and afterwards to render them all Blank Cards.

A clever juggler will take four kings in his hand, and apparently show them to the bystanders, and then, after some words and charms, he will throw them down upon the table, taking one of the kings away, and adding but one other card; then taking them up again, and blowing upon them, he will show you them transformed into blank cards, white on both sides; then throwing them down as before, with their faces downwards, he will take them up again, and, blowing upon them, will show you four aces. Th

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To name all the Cards in the Pack, and yet never see them.

To name all the Cards in the Pack, and yet never see them.

To do this, you must privately drop a little water or beer, about the size of a crown-piece, upon the table before which you sit; then rest your elbows upon the table, so that the cuffs of your sleeves may meet, and your hands stick up to the brims of your hat; in this posture your arms will hide the drop of water from the company; then let any one take the cards and shuffle them, and put them into your hands; also let him set a candle before you, for this trick is best done by candlelight. Then

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To show any one what Card he takes Notice of.

To show any one what Card he takes Notice of.

Let any one take a card out of the pack, and note it; then take part of the pack in your hand, and lay the rest down upon the table, bidding him lay his noted card upon them; then, turning your back towards the company, make as though you were looking over the cards in your hand, and put any card at the fore-side; and, whilst your are doing this privately, wait till the cards are laid out in heaps, to find what the bottom cards are. Bid any one take four cards of the same number, viz. four aces,

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To tell the Number of Spots on the Bottom Cards, laid down in several Heaps.

To tell the Number of Spots on the Bottom Cards, laid down in several Heaps.

Bid any one take the whole pack of cards in his hand, and, having shuffled them, let him take off the upper card, and, having taken notice of it, let him lay it down upon the table, with its face downwards, and upon it let him lay so many cards as will make up the number of spots on the noted card, e. g. twelve. If the card which the person first took notice of was a king, queen, knave, or a single ten, bid him lay down that card with its face downwards, calling it ten; upon that card let him la

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To make any two Cards come together which may be named.

To make any two Cards come together which may be named.

When any one has named what two cards he would have come together, take the cards and say, “ Let us see if they are here or not, and, if they are, I’ll put them as far asunder as I can ;” then, having found the two cards proposed, dispose them in the pack, and cause them to come together. This trick would seem much more strange, if, when you have brought the proposed cards together, by laying them in heaps, you lay the heap wherein the proposed cards are at the bottom of the pack, and then shuff

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Card nailed to the Wall by a Pistol-shot.

Card nailed to the Wall by a Pistol-shot.

A card is desired to be drawn, and the person who chooses, is requested to tear off a corner, and to keep it, that he may know the card; the card so torn is then burnt to cinders, and a pistol discharged with gunpowder, with which the ashes of the card are mixed. Instead of a ball, a nail is put into the barrel, which is marked by some of the company; the pack of cards is then thrown up in the air, the pistol is fired, and the card appears nailed against the wall. The bit of the corner which was

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To tell what Card one thinks on.

To tell what Card one thinks on.

Take twenty-one cards, and begin to lay them down three in a row, with their faces upwards; then begin again at the left hand, and lay one card upon the first, and so on the right hand, and then begin at the left hand again, and so go on to the right; do this till you have laid out the twenty-one cards in three heaps, but, as you are laying them out, bid any one think of a card, and, when you have laid them all out, ask him which heap his card is in; then lay that heap in the middle, between the

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Another Way to tell what Card is noted.

Another Way to tell what Card is noted.

When one has noted a card, take it and put it at the bottom of the pack; then shuffle the cards till it comes again to the bottom; then see what is the noted card, which you may do without being taken notice of; when you have thus shuffled the cards, turn them with their faces towards you, and knock their ends upon the table, as though you would knock them level; and, whilst you are so doing, take notice of the bottom card, which you may do without suspicion, especially having shuffled them befo

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To make a Card jump out of an Egg.

To make a Card jump out of an Egg.

To do this wonderful feat you must have two sticks, made both of one size, so that no person can know one from another; one of these sticks must be made so as to conceal a card in the middle, thus: you must have one of your sticks turned hollow quite through, and then an artificial spring to throw the card into the egg at pleasure. The operation is thus:—Take and peel any card in the pack, which you please, and roll it up. Now put it into the false stick, and there let it lie until you have occa

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The Little Sportsman.

The Little Sportsman.

This is a little pasteboard figure which holds a bow, with an arrow, which it shoots at the instant required, and hits a paper placed opposite, on the top of a pedestal: This paper is divided into several squares, which are numbered, and the arrow flies and always hits the number chosen by one of the company. The action of the spring which impels it is restrained by a little pin, which the confederate lets go at pleasure, by moving the levers hid in the table; when you push this pin, the arrow f

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To pass the Balls through the Cups.

To pass the Balls through the Cups.

You must place yourself at the farther end of the table, and provide three cups made of tin; you must likewise have your black magical stick, to show your wonders withal. You are also to provide four small cork balls, to play with; but do not let any more than three of them be seen upon the table. N. B.—Always conceal one ball in the right hand, between the middle finger and the ring finger; and be sure you make yourself perfect to hold it there, for by this means all the tricks of the cups are

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A still more Extraordinary Mode of Playing at Cups and Balls.

A still more Extraordinary Mode of Playing at Cups and Balls.

You must provide six cups made of the same size and metal (persons with hands, as seen above, require only three), but keep three of them concealed in the juggling-bag until they are required. The trick performed by the three first cups is as follows:—Take out of the bag your three cups, and place them on a table. You must have balls of cork provided, and concealed, but one ball must be on the table. Then say, “ Ladies and Gentlemen ,” turning up your three cups (though at the same time you must

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To convey Money from one Hand to the Other.

To convey Money from one Hand to the Other.

Hold open your right hand and lay therein a sixpence, and on the top of it place the top of your left middle finger, which press hard upon it, at the same time using hard words. Then suddenly draw away your right hand from the left, seeming to have left the coin there, and shut your hand cleverly, as if it still were there. That this may appear to have been truly done, take a knife, and seem to knock against it, so as to make a great sound. This is a pretty trick, and, if well managed, both the

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To convert Money into Counters, and the Reverse.

To convert Money into Counters, and the Reverse.

Another way to deceive the lookers-on is to do as before, with a sixpence, and, keeping a counter in the palm of your left hand, secretly, seem to put the sixpence therein, which being retained still in the right hand, when the left hand is opened, the sixpence will seem to be turned into a counter....

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To put a Sixpence into each Hand, and, with Words, bring them together.

To put a Sixpence into each Hand, and, with Words, bring them together.

He that hath once attained to the faculty of retaining one piece of money in his right hand may show a hundred pleasant deceits by that means, and may manage two or three as well as one. Thus, you may seem to put one piece into your left hand, and, retaining it still in your right, you may, together therewith, take up another like piece, and so, with words, seem to bring both pieces together. A great variety of tricks may be shown in juggling with money....

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To put a Sixpence into a Stranger’s Hand, and another into your own, and to convey both into the Stranger’s Hand with Words.

To put a Sixpence into a Stranger’s Hand, and another into your own, and to convey both into the Stranger’s Hand with Words.

You take two sixpences evenly set together, and put the same, instead of one sixpence, into a stranger’s hand, and then, making as though you put one sixpence into your own hand, with words, you make it seem that you convey the sixpence in your own into the stranger’s hand; for, when you open your said left hand, there shall be nothing seen, and he, opening his hand, shall find two sixpences, which he thought was but one....

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To show the same Feat otherwise.

To show the same Feat otherwise.

To keep a sixpence between your fingers serves especially for this and such like purposes: hold your hand, and cause one to lay a sixpence upon the palm thereof, then shake the same up almost to your finger’s end, and putting your thumb upon it, you may easily, with a little practice, convey the edge betwixt the middle and fore-finger whilst you proffer to put it into your other hand (provided always that the edge appears not through the fingers, on the back side); take up another sixpence, whic

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To throw a Piece of Money away, and find it again.

To throw a Piece of Money away, and find it again.

You may, with the middle or ring finger of the right hand, convey a sixpence into the palm, with the same hand, and, seeming to cast it away, keep it still, which, with confederacy, will seem strange: to wit, when you find it again, where another has placed the like piece. But these things cannot be done without practice; therefore. I will proceed to show how things may be brought to pass with less difficulty, and yet as strange as the rest, which, being unknown, are much commended; but, being k

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To make a Sixpence leap out of a Pot or to run along a Table.

To make a Sixpence leap out of a Pot or to run along a Table.

A juggler takes a sixpence and throws it into a pot, or lays it on the middle of a table, and, with enchanted words, causes the same to leap out of a pot, or run towards him or from him along the table, which seems miraculous till you know how it is done, which is thus: Take a long black hair of a woman’s head, fasten it to the rim of a sixpence, by means of a little hole driven through the same with a Spanish needle. In like sort you may use a knife or any small thing; but if you would have it

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To make a Sixpence sink through a Table, and to vanish out of a Handkerchief.

To make a Sixpence sink through a Table, and to vanish out of a Handkerchief.

A juggler will sometimes borrow a sixpence and mark it before you, and seem to put the same in the middle of a white handkerchief, and wind it so as you may the better see and feel it; then he will take the handkerchief and bid you feel whether the sixpence be there or no; and he will also require you to put the same under a candlestick, or some such like thing; then he will send for a basin of water, and, holding the same under the table, right against the candlestick, he will use certain words

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To know if a Coin be a Head or Woman, and the Party to stand in another Room.

To know if a Coin be a Head or Woman, and the Party to stand in another Room.

This is done by confederacy: he that lays it down, says, “ What is it? ” and that is a sign it is a head; or he says, “ What is it now? ” and that is a sign it is a woman: cross and pile in silver is done the same way. By confederacy, divers strange things are done: thus, you may throw a piece of money into a pond, and bid a boy go to such a secret place where you have hid it, and he will bring it, and make them believe it is the same that you threw into the pond, and no other. So let a confeder

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To command Seven Halfpence through the Table.

To command Seven Halfpence through the Table.

To do this, you must employ a tinman to make holes, with room enough for a die to go in and out, and let him clap a good halfpenny upon them all, and so make them fast, that nobody can tell them from true ones. Then get a cap to cover your halfpence, also a cap and a die for the company to fling, to amuse them; when you are thus provided, the manner of performing is thus:—Desire any body in the company to lend you seven halfpence, telling them that they will soon be returned; then say, “ Gentlem

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To command a Sixpence out of a Box.

To command a Sixpence out of a Box.

You must get a box turned with two lids (one must be a false one), and there put the counter, so that it may rattle; and you must have a small peg or button to your box, to hinder the counter from jingling, and at the bottom of the box you must have half a notch made, just fit for a sixpence to come out. So, to perform this feat, you must desire any body to lend you a sixpence, and to mark it with whatever mark he may please; then let him put it into the box himself; afterwards put the cover on,

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To blow a Sixpence out of another Man’s Hand.

To blow a Sixpence out of another Man’s Hand.

Blow on a sixpence, and immediately clap it into one of the spectator’s hands, telling him to hold it fast; then ask him if he is sure he has it. He, to be certain, will open his hand and look. Then say to him, “ Nay, but if you let my breath go off, I cannot do it. ” Then take it out of his hand again, blow on it, and, staring him in the face, clap a piece of horn in his hand, and retain the sixpence, shutting his hand yourself. Bid him hold his hand down, and slip the sixpence into one of his

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To make a Ring shift from one Hand to another, and to make it go on whatever Finger is required, while Somebody holds both Arms.

To make a Ring shift from one Hand to another, and to make it go on whatever Finger is required, while Somebody holds both Arms.

Desire some person in company to lend you a gold ring, recommending him at the same time to make a mark on it, that he may know it again. Have a gold ring of your own, which you are to fasten by a small piece of catgut string to a watch-barrel, which must be sewn to the left sleeve of your coat. Take in your right hand the ring that will be given you: then, taking with dexterity, near the entrance of your sleeve, the other ring fastened to the watch-barrel, draw it to the fingers’ ends of your l

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To Transfer a Counter into a Silver Groat.

To Transfer a Counter into a Silver Groat.

Take a groat, or a smaller piece of money, and grind it very thin on one side; then take two counters, and grind them, the one on one side, and the other on the other side; glue the smooth side of the groat to the smooth side of the counter, joining them as close together as possible, especially at the edges, which may be so filed that they shall seem to be but one piece; to wit, one side a counter and the other side a groat. Then take a little green wax, for that is softest, and therefore best,

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To make a Silver Twopence be plain in the Palm of your Hand, and be passed from thence wherever you like.

To make a Silver Twopence be plain in the Palm of your Hand, and be passed from thence wherever you like.

Put a little red wax, not too much, upon the nail of your longest finger; then let a stranger put a two-penny piece into the palm of your hand, and shut your fist suddenly, and convey the two-penny piece upon the wax, which, with use, you may so accomplish, as no man shall perceive it; then, and in the meantime, use words of course, and suddenly open your hand; hold the tips of your fingers rather lower than the palm of your hand, and the beholders will wonder where it is gone; then shut your ha

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To convey a Sixpence out of the Hand of one that holds it fast.

To convey a Sixpence out of the Hand of one that holds it fast.

Stick a little wax upon your thumb, and take a bystander by the fingers, showing him the sixpence, and telling him you will put the same into his hand; then wring it down hard with your waxed thumb, and, using many words, look him in the face, and, as soon as you perceive him look in your face, or on your hand, suddenly take away your thumb, and close his hand, and it will seem to him that the sixpence remains. If you wring a sixpence upon one’s forehead, it will seem to stick when it is taken a

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To convey a Shilling from one Hand into another, holding your Hands apart.

To convey a Shilling from one Hand into another, holding your Hands apart.

It is necessary to mingle some merry pranks among your grave miracles, as, in this case of money, to take a shilling in each hand, and, holding your arms abroad, to lay a wager that you will bring them both into one hand without bringing them any nearer together; the wager being laid, hold your arms abroad, like a rod, and, turning about with your body, lay the shilling out of one of your hands, upon the table, and, turning to the other hand, so you shall win your wager....

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To transform any small Thing into any other Form, by holding of Paper.

To transform any small Thing into any other Form, by holding of Paper.

Take a sheet of paper, and fold or double the same, so as one side be a little longer than the other; then put a counter between the two sides of the leaves of the paper, up to the middle of the top of the fold; hold the same so as it be not perceived, and lay a sixpence on the outside thereof, right against the counter, and fold it down to the end of the longer side. When you have unfolded it again, the sixpence will be where the counter was, so that some will suppose you have transformed the m

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Another Trick of the same Nature.

Another Trick of the same Nature.

Take two papers, three inches square each, divided into two folds, of three equal parts on either side, so as each folded paper remains one inch square; then glue the back side of the two together, as they are folded, and not as they are opened, and so shall both papers seem to be but one, and, which side soever you open, it shall appear to be the same, if you have handsomely done the bottom, as you may well do with your middle finger, so that, if you have a sixpence in one hand, and a counter i

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A Watch recovered after being beaten to Pieces in a Mortar.

A Watch recovered after being beaten to Pieces in a Mortar.

A watch is borrowed from one of the company, and, being put into a mortar, another person is shortly after requested to beat it to pieces with a pestle. It is then shown to the company, entirely bruised; in a few minutes the watch is restored entire to its owner, who acknowledges it to be his property. It is easy to devise that, to effect this, the mortar must be placed near a concerted trap, and that it must be covered with a napkin, to afford an opportunity to the confederate to substitute ano

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The Egg-Box.

The Egg-Box.

This is the Egg-box, put together like two beehives—one on the top of another. The following is the under-shell, covered over artificially with the white thin skin of a real egg. The upper shell is of the same shape, but larger, and is merely the lid of the box. The following is the lower part of the box. Put B, which is the outward shell, upon C, and both upon D, which arrangement puts all in readiness for the performance of the trick. Now call for an egg, and bid all the bystanders look at it,

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The Penetrative Guinea.

The Penetrative Guinea.

Provide a round tin box, of the size of a large snuff-box, and likewise eight other boxes, which will go easily into each other, and let the least of them be of a size to hold a guinea. Each of these boxes should shut with a hinge, and to the least of them there must be a small lock, that is fastened with a spring, but cannot be opened without a key; and observe, that all these boxes must shut so freely, that they may be all closed at once. Place these boxes in each other, with their tops open,

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The Chest which opens at Command.

The Chest which opens at Command.

There is a little figure of Mahomet within the chest, in the body of which is a spring, made of brass wire, twisted in a spiral form. By this means the little figure, though higher than the chest, can, by the accommodation of the spring, be contained within when it is shut, as the spring in the body closes and shortens. The chest is placed on levers concealed in the table, which communicate their motions by the assistance of the confederate to the bolt and lock. As soon as the staple is disengag

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The Melting-Box.

The Melting-Box.

The melting-box is made in the fashion of a screw, so that the lips may hang without discovery. F is the outer part of the box; G, the first inside part; H, the second inside part; and I, the round case, made of leather, with a button on the top, and wide enough to slip on and off, half in the bottom of the box, into which put a small quantity of quicksilver, killed or amalgamated, which may be done with the shavings of pewter. In the second part, which is H, let there be six single pence: put t

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Trick upon the Globe-Box.

Trick upon the Globe-Box.

This is a trick not inferior to the best that is shown with boxes: it is a box made of four pieces, and a ball, so big as is imagined to be contained therein; the ball serves in the same way as the egg does in the egg-box, only to deceive the hand and eye of the spectators: this ball, made of wood or ivory, is thrown out of the box upon the table, for every one to see that it is substantial; then, putting the ball into the box, and letting the standers-by blow on the box, taking off the upper sh

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Trick with the Funnel.

Trick with the Funnel.

You must get a double funnel; that is, two funnels soldered one within the other, so that you may, at the least end, pour in a quantity of wine or water; this funnel you must have ready filled beforehand, with whatsoever liquor you please, and call for some of the same kind; then draw the funnel, and, setting your middle finger under the bottom of it, bid somebody (or do it yourself) pour it full, and drink it up before them, and turn the broad end of the funnel downwards, saying, “ Gentlemen, a

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The Magical Bell and Bushel.

The Magical Bell and Bushel.

This bushel must be turned neatly, like the egg-boxes, so that they cannot find out where it opens; and you must have a false lid to clap on and off, and upon that false lid glue some bird-seed; and then you must have a true lid made to clap neatly upon the false one; now you must have your artificial bell to show with your bushel. You may make your bell with wood or brass; but it must be made to unscrew at top, that it may hold as much seed as your bushel will when it is filled; and you must ha

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Out of an Empty Bag to bring upwards of an Hundred Eggs; and, afterwards, a living Fowl.

Out of an Empty Bag to bring upwards of an Hundred Eggs; and, afterwards, a living Fowl.

First, buy two or three yards of printed calico, or linen, and make a double bag, at the mouth of which, on that side next you, make four or five little purses, in each of which put two or three eggs, and do so till you have filled that side next to you. Have a hole made at one end of the bag, that no more than two or three eggs may come out at once. Then have another bag like unto that exactly, that one must not be known from the other; put a hen into that bag, and hang it on a hook on the side

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Bonus Genius; or, Hiccius Doctius.

Bonus Genius; or, Hiccius Doctius.

You must have the figure of a man made of wood, about the bigness of your little finger, the head whereof must be made to take off and put on at pleasure, by means of a wire that is in the neck; also, you must have a cloth cap, with a little bag within, to convey the head into; the bag must be neatly made, that it may not easily be perceived; show your man to the company, and say, “ Ladies and gentlemen, this I call my Bonus Genius ;” then show the cap, saying, “ This is his coat ;” say moreover

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To make a Knife leap out of a Pot.

To make a Knife leap out of a Pot.

Have a pot full of water standing on a table; then take a piece of whalebone, about three inches long,—let it be pretty stiff, that it may spring the better: take also a new stiff card, and fold it down the middle, longways; cut a hole through both folds at each end, half an inch, or more, from the ends; put one end of the whalebone in at one end of the card, bend it like a bow, and then put the other end of the whalebone into the other end of the card; set this in the pot, two inches deep in th

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To turn a Box of Bird-seed into a living Bird.

To turn a Box of Bird-seed into a living Bird.

You must have a box made on purpose, with a false lid. It must be turned neatly, like the egg-boxes, so that it cannot be perceived where it opens. You must likewise have a false lid to clap on and to take off. On that lid glue some bird-seed. Before you show the box to the company, put a bird into it; put on the false lid, and then show the box to the bystanders. It will seem to be full of seeds. Now put on the true lid, saying, “ Ladies and gentlemen, I command all the seeds out of my box, and

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To produce a Carmine Red Flame.

To produce a Carmine Red Flame.

The flame of spirit of wine may be coloured by the addition of various bodies which the spirit holds in solution, or which are mixed with it. The flame of alcohol, or spirit of wine, is tinged red in the following manner: put into a small iron ladle, one part of muriate of strontia , and pour over it three or four of alcohol ; then set it on fire with a candle, or a piece of burning paper; it will burn with a bright red carmine flame, especially if the mixture be heated, by holding the ladle ove

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An Orange-coloured Flame.

An Orange-coloured Flame.

Put muriate of lime deprived of the water of crystallization, into an iron ladle, cover it with spirit of wine, and it will then burn in the manner stated. To prepare the muriate of lime, dissolve common marble in muriatic acid, and evaporate the solution to perfect dryness....

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To make Balloons with Soap and Water that catch Fire and detonate.

To make Balloons with Soap and Water that catch Fire and detonate.

Fill with hydrogen gas a bladder with a cock fixed to it; to which adapt a copper tobacco pipe: dip the bowl, of the pipe into soap-lather; press gently on the bladder filled with inflammable air, and a small soap bubble will issue, which, instead of falling to the ground, will rise most rapidly. Instead of pure hydrogen gas only, fill the bladder with a mixture of one third of atmospheric air and two thirds of hydrogen gas: and, when they arise in the air, hold a candle to them, and the report

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A Brilliant Blue Flame.

A Brilliant Blue Flame.

Mix boracic acid in spirits of wine, set the solution on fire, and the above effect will ensue....

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An Emerald Green Flame.

An Emerald Green Flame.

Prepare nitrate of copper, thus:—let copper clippings or filings be dissolved in a sufficient quantity of nitric acid, of a moderate strength; when no further effervescence ensues, boil the acid gently upon the copper, until a pellicle appears; decant the solution, evaporate it slowly, and, when a very strong pellicle or skin appears, suffer it to crystallize. The salt is of a fine blue colour. Then cause the alcohol (spirit of wine) to burn upon this nitrate of copper, and it will exhibit a bea

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Loud Detonations, like the Discharge of Artillery.

Loud Detonations, like the Discharge of Artillery.

Put into a bottle, not quite transparent, half an ounce of iron filings, over which pour four ounces of pure water; add one ounce of sulphuric acid, and shake the mixture. If you apply a lighted paper tied to the end of a stick, near the top of the bottle, an instantaneous vivid flame will suddenly dart from the bottom, accompanied by a tolerably loud detonation. Fifteen or twenty successive loud reports may likewise be obtained, by touching the aperture of the bottle with a lighted wax taper, f

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A Well of Fire.

A Well of Fire.

Add gradually one ounce, by measure, of sulphuric acid, to five or six ounces of water, contained in an earthenware basin, and add to it also, gradually, about three quarters of an ounce of granulated zinc. A rapid production of hydrogen gas will instantly take place. Then add, from time to time, a few pieces of phosphorus of the size of a pea. A multitude of gas-bubbles will be produced, which take fire on the surface of the effervescing liquid; the whole surface of the liquid will become lumin

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To make a Room seem all on Fire.

To make a Room seem all on Fire.

Take sal ammoniac half an ounce, camphor one ounce, aquæ vitæ two ounces; put them into an earthen pot in the fashion of a chamber-pot, but narrow something upon the top; then set fire to it, and the room will seem, to them that are in it, to be all on fire....

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To walk on a hot Iron Bar, without Danger of Burning.

To walk on a hot Iron Bar, without Danger of Burning.

Take half an ounce of camphor, dissolve it in two ounces of aquæ vitæ, add to it one ounce of quicksilver, one ounce of liquid storax, which hinders the camphor from firing; take also two ounces of hematitis , a red stone, to be had at the druggist’s; and when you buy it, let them beat it to powder in their great mortar, for it is so very hard that it cannot be done in a small one; put this to the above-mentioned composition, and, when you intend to walk on the bar, you must anoint your feet wel

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To Eat Fire, and blow it up in your Mouth with a Pair of Bellows.

To Eat Fire, and blow it up in your Mouth with a Pair of Bellows.

Anoint your tongue with liquid storax, and you may put a pair of tongs into your mouth, red hot, without hurting yourself, and lick them till they are cold. By the help of this ointment, and by preparing your mouth thus, you may take wood-coals out of the fire, and chew them as you would bread; dip them into brimstone powder, and the fire will seem more strange. The sulphur puts out the coal, and shutting your mouth close puts out the sulphur. You may then chump the coals and swallow them, which

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To Light a Candle by a Glass of Water.

To Light a Candle by a Glass of Water.

Take a little piece of phosphorus of the size of a pinhead, and with a piece of tallow stick it on the edge of a drinking-glass. Then take a lighted candle, and, having blown it out, apply it to the glass, when it will immediately be lighted. You may likewise write with a bit of phosphorus on paper some horrible words, which will appear awful when the candle is withdrawn from the room....

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Fulminating Powder.

Fulminating Powder.

Take three parts of saltpetre, two parts of salt of tartar, and one part of sulphur pounded and mixed together; heat sixty grains of this composition in a spoon, and it will fly away with a fearful noise, like thunder. A grain by weight of this powder, put into a tobacco-pipe, will cause a loud report and much merriment, particularly if the smoaker is not aware of the trick put upon him....

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To set fire to a Combustible Body by the Reflection of two concave Mirrors.

To set fire to a Combustible Body by the Reflection of two concave Mirrors.

The rays of a luminous body, placed in the focus of a concave mirror, being reflected in parallel lines, if a second mirror be placed diametrically opposite the first, it will, by collecting those rays in its focus, set fire to a combustible body. Place two concave mirrors at about twelve or fifteen feet distance from each other, and let the axis of each of them lie in the same line. In the focus of one of them place a live coal, and in the focus of the other some gunpowder. With a pair of doubl

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To give the Faces of the Company the Appearance of Death.

To give the Faces of the Company the Appearance of Death.

Dissolve some common salt in spirits of wine, and pour the whole on some saffron in a saucer. Take away the candle from the room, and set fire to the spirit with a little burning tow. The countenances of every person in the room will, by this light, put on a cadaverous, deadly appearance, the fairest complexion appearing green, whilst the red of the lips and cheeks will be of an olive hue....

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To dispose two little Figures, so that one shall light a Candle, and the other put it out.

To dispose two little Figures, so that one shall light a Candle, and the other put it out.

Take two little figures of wood or clay, or any other materials you please, only taking care there is a little hole at the mouth of each. Put in the mouth of one a few grains of bruised gunpowder, and a little bit of phosphorus in the other, taking care that these preparations are made beforehand; then take a lighted wax candle, and present it to the mouth of the figure with the gunpowder, which, taking fire, will put the candle out; then present your candle, having the snuff quite hot, to the o

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To construct a Lantern which will enable a Person to read by Night, at a great Distance.

To construct a Lantern which will enable a Person to read by Night, at a great Distance.

Make a lantern of a cylindric form, or shaped like a small cask placed lengthways, so that its axis may be horizontal, and fix in one end of it a parabolic or spheric mirror, so that its focus may fall about the middle of the axis of the cylinder. If a small lamp or taper be placed in this focus, the light, passing through the other end, will be reflected to a great distance, and will be so bright, that very small letters on a remote object may be read, by looking at them with a good telescope.

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To cut a Lace asunder in the Middle, and to make it whole again.

To cut a Lace asunder in the Middle, and to make it whole again.

Provide a piece of the lace which you mean to cut, or at least a pattern like the same, one inch and a half long, and keep it double privately in your left hand, between some of your fingers, near to the tips thereof; take the other lace which you mean to cut, still hanging about your neck, and draw down your said left hand to the bout thereof, and, putting your own piece a little before the other, the end, or rather middle, whereof you must hide betwixt your fore-finger and thumb, make the eye

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To burn a Thread and make it Whole again with the Ashes.

To burn a Thread and make it Whole again with the Ashes.

Take two pieces of thread of one foot in length each: roll one of them round like a small pea, which put between your left fore-finger and thumb. Now, hold the other out at length, between the fore-finger and thumb of each hand, holding all your fore-fingers daintily; then let one cut the same asunder in the middle; when that is done, put the tops of your two thumbs together, and so shall you with less suspicion receive the thread which you hold in your right hand into your left, without opening

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To pull many Yards of Ribbon out of the Mouth.

To pull many Yards of Ribbon out of the Mouth.

Jugglers get money from maids, by selling laces by the yard, putting into their mouths one round bottom, as fast as they pull out another, and, at the exact end of every yard, they tie a knot, so as the same rests upon their teeth; then they cut off the same, and so the beholders are doubly and trebly deceived, seeing as much lace as will fill a hat, and the same of what colour they like, to be drawn out of the mouth; and yet the juggler talks as though there was nothing in his mouth....

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To cut a Piece of Tape into four Parts, and make it Whole again with Words.

To cut a Piece of Tape into four Parts, and make it Whole again with Words.

Take a piece of narrow white tape, about two or three yards long. First present it to view to any that may desire it; then tie both the ends of it together, and take one side of it into one hand, so that the knot may be about the middle of one side, and, using some circumstantial words to beguile the spectators, turn one hand about toward yourself, and the other from you; so shall you twist the tape once, then clap the ends together, and then, if you slip your finger and thumb of each hand betwe

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To unloose a Knot upon a Handkerchief by Words.

To unloose a Knot upon a Handkerchief by Words.

Make a plain loose knot with two ends of a handkerchief, seeming to draw the same very hard. Hold fast the body of the handkerchief near to the knot, with your right hand, pulling the contrary end with your left. Then close up handsomely the knot, which will be somewhat loose, and pull the handkerchief so with your right hand, that the left hand may be near the knot; then will it seem to be a true and firm knot; and to make it appear more assuredly to be so indeed, let a stranger pull at the end

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To draw a Cord through the Nose.

To draw a Cord through the Nose.

This trick is called the bridle, being made of two alder sticks— Through the hollowness thereof is placed a cord, the same being put upon the nose, like a pair of pincers or tongs; the cord which goeth round the same being drawn to and fro, the beholders will think the cord goes through your nose very dangerously; the knots at the end of the cord, which stay the same from being drawn out of the stick, must not be put at the very top, for that must be stopped up, but half an inch beneath each end

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To take three Button-Moulds off a String.

To take three Button-Moulds off a String.

Take two little whipcords, of two feet long each, double them equally, so as there may appear four ends; then take three button-moulds (the hole of one of them must be bigger than the rest), and put one button-mould upon the eye or bout of one cord, and another on the other cord; then take the button-mould with the greatest hole, and let both the bouts be hidden therein, which may be the better done if you put the eye, or bout, of the one into the eye or bout of the other; then put the middle bu

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The Multiplying Mirror.

The Multiplying Mirror.

A mirror is to be made as follows: first make a hoop or fillet of wood about the width of a half-crown piece, and let the thickness be about a quarter of an inch. In the middle of this hoop fasten a bottom of wood or brass, and place several hooks of the size of small peas. Then open the one side of this bottom, set in a piece of crystal glass, and fasten it in the hoop close to the bottom; then take a quantity of quicksilver, and put so much into the hoop as will cover the bottom; then let into

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The Magic-Lantern.

The Magic-Lantern.

This lantern is called magical on account of the formidable apparitions that, by virtue of light, show upon the white wall of a dark room. The body of it is generally made of tin, and of the shape of a lamp. Towards the back is a concave looking-glass of metal, which may either be spherical or parabolical, and which, by a grove made in the bottom of the lantern, may be either advanced nearer or put farther back from the lamp, in which is oil or spirit of wine; and the match ought to be a little

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The Phantascope.

The Phantascope.

The Phantascope is a magic-lantern improved; that is, it will magnify or diminish the figures it is to reflect, without impairing their neatness. This instrument is composed of a tin box, surmounted by a kind of chimney, pierced on one of its faces with a hole of a diameter corresponding with that of the cylinders, sliding into one another like the tubes of an opera-glass: this tube is adjusted by means of a slide established above the aperture made in the phantascope. The part of the adjoining

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The Enchanted Mirrors.

The Enchanted Mirrors.

Make a box of wood, of a cubical figure, of about fifteen inches every way. Let it be fixed on a pedestal, at the usual height of a man’s head. In each side of this box, let there be an opening of an oval form, ten inches high, and seven wide. In this box place two mirrors, with their backs against each other; let them cross the box in a diagonal line, and in a vertical position. Decorate the openings in the sides of this box with four oval frames, and transparent glasses, and cover each of them

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The Wonderful Phantoms.

The Wonderful Phantoms.

In a partition make two apertures of a foot high, and ten inches wide, and about a foot distant from each other. Let them be at the common height of a man’s head; and in each of them place a transparent glass, surrounded with a frame, like a common mirror. Behind this partition place two mirrors, inclined to it in an angle of forty-five degrees (that is, be halfway between a line drawn perpendicular to the ground and its surface); let them be both eighteen inches square; let all the space betwee

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The Real Apparition.

The Real Apparition.

Behind a partition place, in a position somewhat oblique, a concave mirror, which must be at least ten inches in diameter, and its distance from the partition equal to three fourths of the distance of its centre. In the partition, make an opening of seven or eight inches, either square or circular: it must face the mirror, and be of the same height with it. Behind this partition place a strong light, so disposed, that it may not be seen at the opening, and may illumine an object placed near it,

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To draw a Deformed Figure, which will appear well proportioned from a certain Point of View.

To draw a Deformed Figure, which will appear well proportioned from a certain Point of View.

Draw any thing you may fancy on a thin white pasteboard; then prick it; afterwards put the same on an horizontal surface, which we will suppose to be another pasteboard; put a lighted candle behind that drawing, and draw on the horizontal surface the lines given by the light; this will give a deformed design. This being done, take away the drawing that was pricked, and the candle; then place your eye where the light was, and you will see your drawing assume a regular form....

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To change the Colour of a Rose.

To change the Colour of a Rose.

Burn some sulphur under the rose, by holding underneath it a lighted bundle of matches. This will fade the red colour, and make the flower turn white or blanched. Its primitive colour will return in about a couple of hours....

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To turn Water into Wine.

To turn Water into Wine.

Take four glasses; rub one in the inside with a piece of moist alum: let the second have a drop of vinegar in it; the third empty. Let the fourth be filled with clean water; in your mouth put a clean rag, with ground basil tied close in it, the bulk not to be bigger than a small nut, which must lie between your hind teeth and your cheek; then take some of the water that is in the glass into your mouth, and return it into the glass that hath the drop of vinegar in it, which will cause it to turn

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Arbor Dianæ; or, the Silver Tree.

Arbor Dianæ; or, the Silver Tree.

This name has been given to a beautiful and curious precipitation of silver, by means of mercury in an arborescent form. The experiment is made by putting a soft amalgam of silver into six parts of a solution of nitrate of silver, and four of a solution of nitrate of mercury, or— Amalgamate in a glass mortar one quarter of an ounce of pure mercury and half an ounce of fine silver. Insert in this amalgamation four ounces of pure nitric acid for the solution, and increase the whole by a pint of di

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The Lead Tree.

The Lead Tree.

The precipitation of a solution of acetate of lead by means of a piece of zinc, so as to form what is commonly called the lead tree, is perfectly analogous to this theory, but is too well known to require illustration....

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The Tree of Mars.

The Tree of Mars.

Dissolve iron filings in aqua fortis moderately concentrated, till the acid is saturated; then pour gradually into the solution a solution of fixed alkali, commonly called oil of tartar. A strong effervescence will take place, and the iron, instead of falling to the bottom of the vessel, will afterwards rise, so as to cover its sides, forming a multitude of ramifications heaped one upon the other, which will sometimes pass over the edge of the vessel, and extend themselves on the outside, with a

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To form a Metallic Tree, in the Shape of a Fir.

To form a Metallic Tree, in the Shape of a Fir.

In a small globular bottle with a tall neck, dissolve one ounce of fine silver in three ounces of nitric acid; put the bottle into a sand bath, and let it remain over a slow fire till the liquid be half reduced; then add three ounces of good white-wine vinegar, a little warmed; shake the mixture, and place the bottle in any place where it is not likely to be disturbed: in about a month’s time a beautiful metallic fir will appear, ramifying to the very surface of the liquid....

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To make a Gold or Silver Tree, to serve as a Chimney Ornament.

To make a Gold or Silver Tree, to serve as a Chimney Ornament.

Make an amalgam of a small portion of fine gold, and ten times the quantity of purified cinnabar. Grind and wash the amalgam in water, till no black colour appears: when perfectly clean, dry the amalgam, and insert it into a glass retort; place it in a sand bath over a slow fire, which must be preserved ignited for a day or two; gradually increase the heat, to expel the mercury from the gold, whose metallic vegetation will be perfectly in proportion to the mercury which escapes. When the fire is

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Sympathetic or Secret Inks.

Sympathetic or Secret Inks.

Sympathetic or secret inks are those fluids which, when written with on paper, are invisible when dry, but acquire colour by heating the paper, or by applying to the invisible writing another chymical agent. These phenomena arrested particularly the attention of the old chymists, and accordingly, in their fanciful way, they called them sympathetic inks . The writing made with this ink may, therefore, at pleasure be made to become visible or invisible successively, by alternately warming and cool

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Preparation of Green Sympathetic Ink.

Preparation of Green Sympathetic Ink.

Put into a mattrass one part of cobalt or zaffree, and four ounces of nitro-muriatic acid. Digest the mixture with a gentle heat until the acid dissolves no more; then add muriatic of soda, equal in quantity to the cobalt employed, and four times as much water as acid, and filter the liquor through paper....

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Blue Sympathetic Ink.

Blue Sympathetic Ink.

This ink, which may be used like the preceding, is prepared in the following manner. Take one ounce of cobalt reduced to powder, put it into a Florence flask, and pour over it two ounces of pure nitric acid. Expose the mixture to a gentle heat, and, when the cobalt is dissolved, add, by small quantities, a solution of potash, until no more precipitate ensues. Let these precipitates subside: decant the super-natant fluid, and wash the residuum repeatedly in distilled water, until it passes tastel

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Yellow Sympathetic Ink.

Yellow Sympathetic Ink.

Neutralize muriatic acid with brown oxide of copper: the solution is of a dark olive-green colour, and by evaporation yields crystals of a grass-green colour of muriate of copper, which, when dissolved in ten parts of water, forms this ink, and may be employed as before stated....

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Purple Sympathetic Ink.

Purple Sympathetic Ink.

Dissolve cobalt or zaffre in nitric acid, add salt of tartar gradually and in small quantities to avoid too powerful an effervescence, let the precipitate subside, and, having drawn off the super-natant clear liquid, add a sufficient quantity of water, when the ink will be fit for use....

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Rose-coloured Sympathetic Ink.

Rose-coloured Sympathetic Ink.

Dissolve zaffre in nitric acid, to which add saltpetre well purified, and you will possess a rose-coloured ink, having the same properties as the preceding....

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Application of the Secret Inks.

Application of the Secret Inks.

Write any unimportant matter with common ink, and let the lines be tolerably wide apart; then between these lines write the communication you wish to make with any of the above invisible inks. Your correspondent, by holding the paper before the fire, will be speedily enabled to peruse the letter; the characters will again become invisible when the paper has cooled. The writing in common ink will serve to lull the suspicions of those who might intercept the letter. With this kind of ink, some ver

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A Drawing which alternately represents Winter and Summer Scenes.

A Drawing which alternately represents Winter and Summer Scenes.

Draw a landscape, and delineate the ground, the trunks, and branches of the trees, with the usual water-colours employed for that purpose, tracing the grass and trees with sympathetic ink. By these means you will have a drawing, which, at the common temperature of the atmosphere, will represent a winter piece; but if it be exposed to a proper degree of heat, not too strong, you will see the ground covered with verdure, and the trees suddenly wrapped with a beautiful foliage; replace the picture

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Demonstration of the various Strata of Earth which cover the Globe.

Demonstration of the various Strata of Earth which cover the Globe.

In a middling-sized glass bottle, three parts full of clear water, infuse pure alumine precipitated by ammonia, till the bottle is nearly filled.—Expose the bottle to the cold air in frosty weather; or, at other times, to artificial frost. At the moment when the frigorific effect ensues, the alumine will divide all over the surface of the water, and form itself into separate and very regular strata....

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To freeze Water in the Midst of Summer, without the Application of Ice.

To freeze Water in the Midst of Summer, without the Application of Ice.

Take eleven drachms of muriate of ammonia, ten of nitrate of potash, and sixteen of sulphate of soda; reduce each of these salts separately to a fine powder, and mix them gradually in a glass, or rather in a thin metal vessel, with five ounces of water (the capacity of the vessel should be only just large enough to hold the materials): the result will be, that, as the salts dissolve, cold will be produced, and a thermometer immersed in the mixture will sink at or below freezing. A little water,

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To swallow a long Pudding made of Tin.

To swallow a long Pudding made of Tin.

This pudding must be made of tin, consisting of twelve or thirteen little hoops, round, and in little ringlets, so that they may seem to fall one through another. It must have little holes made at the biggest end, that it may not hurt your mouth: hold this pudding, for so it is called, privately in your left hand, with the hole end uppermost, and with your right hand take a ball out of your pocket, and say, “ If there is any old woman that is out of conceit with herself, because her neighbours d

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An Artificial Spider.

An Artificial Spider.

Take a bit of burnt cork, as big as a pea, and give it the shape of a spider; make its legs with threads of hemp; put a grain of lead into the cork to give it some weight; then hang this artificial spider by a bit of gray sewing silk (that is not twisted), between two bodies, the one electrified, and the other not; or between two bodies endowed with different electricities: it will go and come between these two bodies, and the movement of the legs will be seen as plainly as if it were a living s

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To pass a Ring through your Cheek.

To pass a Ring through your Cheek.

You must have two rings made of silver or brass, or what you please, of one size, colour, and likeness, saving that one must have a notch through it, and the other must be whole, without a notch; show the whole ring, but conceal that which hath the notch, and say, “ Now I’ll put this ring through my cheek ,” and privately slip the notch over one side of your mouth; then take a small stick, which you must have in readiness, and slip the whole ring upon it, holding your hand over it about the midd

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To cut a Hole in a Cloak, Scarf, or Handkerchief, and by Words to make it whole again.

To cut a Hole in a Cloak, Scarf, or Handkerchief, and by Words to make it whole again.

To do this, you must have a piece of the same ready in your hand, the sample of that you intend to cut; then, amongst other tricks, clap your hand upon the place you intend to cut. Now drawing the false piece through, cause it to be cut off, and, griping your hand, show the hole from whence the piece came away which is in your hand. This is done by pretending to feel in your pocket for a needle and thread to sew it up again. But, drawing your hand out of your pocket, say “ I have no needle, but

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The Dancing Egg.

The Dancing Egg.

Three eggs are brought out; two of them are put on a table, and the third in a hat; a little cane is borrowed from one of the company, and it is shown about, to convince the spectators there is no preparation. It is then placed across the hat; the hat falls to the ground, and the egg sticks to it as if glued; the orchestra then plays a piece of music, and the egg, as if it was sensible of the harmony, twists about the cane from one end to the other, and continues its motions till the music stops

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To make Three Figures dance in a Glass.

To make Three Figures dance in a Glass.

Take little hollow figures of glass about an inch and a half high, representing little children, or grown-up persons. These may be had of the glass-blowers; and, as they contain a body of air, are lighter than water. Immerse them in water contained in a glass of the following shape:— This glass is about a foot or fifteen inches high, and covered with a bladder, which is tied fast over the top; a small quantity of air is to be left between the bladder and surface of the water; so, when you comman

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To shoot a Swallow, and to bring him to Life again.

To shoot a Swallow, and to bring him to Life again.

Load your gun with the usual charge of powder, but, instead of shot, put in half a charge of quicksilver: prime and shoot. If your piece bears ever so far from the bird, the swallow will find itself stunned to such a degree, as to fall to the ground in a fit. As it will regain its senses in a few minutes, you may make use of the time, by saying that you are going to bring it to life again. This will greatly astonish the company. The ladies will, no doubt, interest themselves in favour of the bir

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Singular Trick with a Fowl.

Singular Trick with a Fowl.

Take a cock from roost at night, or off its walk by day, and bring him into a room full of company; keep both your hands close to his wings; hold them tight: put him on a table, and point his beak down as straight as possible; and then let any one draw a line with a piece of chalk, directly from his beak, and all the noise you can possibly make, with drums, trumpets, or even crowing of other cocks, will not disturb him from the seeming lethargy, which that position you have laid him in, with the

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To put a Lock upon a Man’s Mouth.

To put a Lock upon a Man’s Mouth.

You must have a lock made for this purpose, according to the figure; one side of its bow must be immoveable, as that marked A; the other side is noted B, and must be pinned to the body of the lock, as appears at E. It must be so pinned that it may play to and fro with ease; this side of the bow must have a leg as at B, and then turn it into the lock; this leg must have two notches filed on the inner side, which must be so managed that one may lock or hold the two sides of the bow as close togeth

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To thrust a Bodkin into the Forehead, without Hurt.

To thrust a Bodkin into the Forehead, without Hurt.

Take a hollow bodkin, so that the blade may slip therein as soon as the point is held upwards. Seem to thrust it into your forehead, and, with a little sponge in your hand, bring out blood or wine, making the spectators think that the blood or wine (whereof you may say you have drank very much) runs out of your forehead; then, after showing some appearance of pain, pull away your hand suddenly, holding the point downwards, and it will fall out, and seem never to have been thrust into the haft; b

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To thrust a Bodkin through your Tongue.

To thrust a Bodkin through your Tongue.

This trick is to be performed in much the same manner as the former, and, as in the first case, without hurt; if the reader will take the pains to practise this trick, he will be in no more danger of performing one than the other. To render the deception as complete as possible, proceed as follows:—Make a bodkin, or nail, the blade thereof being cut in the middle, so that one part may not be close to the other, by almost three quarters of an inch, each part being kept asunder by a small crooked

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To appear to cut your Arm off, without Hurt or Danger.

To appear to cut your Arm off, without Hurt or Danger.

You must provide yourself with two knives, a true one and a false one, and let them be so like each other, that no person can tell one from the other. When you go to show this feat to the company, put the true knife into your pocket; then take out the false one, and clap it on your wrist undiscovered. If, with a sponge, you make the knife bloody, it will seem so much the more strange. This is the form of the knife:—...

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Tricks with a Cat.

Tricks with a Cat.

Fix a little bell to the end of a cat’s tail, and let her go; she, feeling the tightness of the string, and hearing the bell jingle, will run up and down as if she were mad, flying against the doors and windows; then, if she can, she will get into some hole to hide herself; but, when she wags her tail ever so little, out she comes, and will be as mad as before, and will never rest till it be off. Walnut shells, fastened with a little warm wax or pitch to the cat’s feet, will make sport all over

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To make a Calf’s Head bellow, when served up to Table.

To make a Calf’s Head bellow, when served up to Table.

This is effected by the following simple stratagem:—Take a frog that is alive, and put it at the further end of the calf’s head, under the tongue, which you must let fall all over it, taking care not to put the frog there till the calf’s head is going to be served up. The heat of the tongue will make the frog croak; which sound, coming from the hollow part of the head, will be like the bellowing of a calf, as if it were alive....

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To make a Ball rise above the Water.

To make a Ball rise above the Water.

Place on the spout of the fountain an inverted cone of wire net-work; throw into it a light hollow copper ball, two inches and a half in diameter, which let fall to the narrow part of the cone to reach the spout: it will rise, and remain suspended in the air till brought down by the wind, and repeatedly re-ascend....

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Mode of sealing Letters, whereby an impression cannot be taken.

Mode of sealing Letters, whereby an impression cannot be taken.

Take a piece of any aromatic resin, or of amber, and set fire to it on an earthen plate. It will emit a smoke of an agreeable smell: hold your watch-seal over the fumigation; it will become black: then melt some sealing-wax, in the usual way, spread it on paper, and apply to it the seal, prepared as above; and, when you take it off, the engraving will be seen very plainly. In order to prevent the impression from being taken, flatten the sealing-wax with the blade of a knife: this is easily done,

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The Enchanted Egg.

The Enchanted Egg.

Have ready a penny-worth of quicksilver in a quill, sealed at both ends with good hard wax; then cause an egg to be boiled, and take off a small bit of the shell of the narrow end, and thrust in your quill of quicksilver, and lay the egg on the ground; you will have sport enough; for it will keep tumbling about as long as there is any heat in it....

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To cut a Man’s Head off, and to put it into a Platter, a Yard from the Body.

To cut a Man’s Head off, and to put it into a Platter, a Yard from the Body.

This is a noble trick, if it be performed by a skilful hand. To show it to advantage, you must cause a board, a cloth, and a platter to be purposely made, and in each of them to be made holes, for a man’s neck. The board must be made of two planks, the longer and broader the better; there must be left, within half a yard of the end of each plank, half a hole, so as, both the planks being thrust together, there may remain two holes, like to the holes in a pair of stocks. There must be made likewi

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To cause Beer to be wrung out of the Handle of a Knife.

To cause Beer to be wrung out of the Handle of a Knife.

To do this, you must have a small piece of sponge, with liquor put in it privately; then, unseen, place this beyond your right ear; but let not the sponge be too big, or too full of liquor, lest you be discovered. Now, taking a knife, stick it, with the handle upwards, in a table or stool (but observe to place your company before you); then bid them look, saying, “ There you see is nothing of wet, either on this handle or the table ;” so stretch your empty hand towards your ear, darting the poin

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To cut a Glass by Heat.

To cut a Glass by Heat.

You must have a piece of well-dried match-cord. Having lighted it by the candle, take a beer-glass, and hold the match to the edge of the glass; now have your finger ready wetted, and, when the glass is very hot, clap your finger to the hot place, and it will suddenly crack about a quarter of an inch downward; then keep the coal of the match at the like distance from the end of the crack; and, as it follows, so move your hand, and cut it screw-fashion, otherwise it will not hold together till yo

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