Transcriber’s Note:

Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_) and text
enclosed by equal signs is in bold (=bold=).

Additional Transcriber’s Notes are at the end.

       *       *       *       *       *

MULTUM IN PARVO LIBRARY.

Entered at the Boston Post Office as second class matter.

=Vol. 2.= APRIL, 1895. Published Monthly. =No. 16.=




Book OF Parlor Tricks.


  How to Perform Them.

  Smallest Magazine in the world. Subscription price
  50 cts. per year. Single Copies 5 cts. each.

  PUBLISHED BY
  A. B. COURTNEY,
  Room 74, - - 45 Milk Street,
  BOSTON, MASS.




The Diviner.


The point of this trick consists in divining a word which is named,
together with several others. Two of the players commonly agree
between themselves to place it after an object that has four legs; for
instance, a quadruped, a table, etc., etc.

_Example._--If Emily wishes to have Henry guess the word which Susan
has secretly told her, she says to him, “Susan has been shopping;
she has bought a rose, a dress, some jewelry, a table, a bonnet, a
shawl----” Henry, of course, will easily guess that the object in
question is a _bonnet_, for the word “_table_,” which precedes it, has
four legs.




To Walk Upon a Hot Iron Bar.


Take half an ounce of camphor, dissolve it in two ounces of aqua vitæ,
add to it one of quicksilver, one ounce of liquid storax, which is the
droppings of myrrh, and prevents the camphor from firing; take also two
ounces of hematis, which is a red stone, to be had at the druggists’;
and when you buy it, let them beat it into a powder in their great
mortar, for, being very hard, it cannot well be reduced in a small one;
add this to the ingredients already specified, and when you purpose
to walk upon the bar, anoint your feet well with it, and you may do so
without the slightest danger.




The Restored Ribbon.


Have two pieces of colored ribbon of exactly the same size and
appearance, one of which, being damped, may be secured in the palm of
the hand, previous to exhibiting. The other may be cut in pieces and
burned in a plate by the audience. Taking now the ashes, you call for
a basin of water, with which you moisten them, stating by the magical
influence of the “cold water cure,” the color and form of the burned
ribbon will be restored. Rubbing the damp ashes in the hand, you draw
forth, at the same time, the concealed ribbon, which will appear to be
the same that had been consumed.




Interesting Problems.


By steeping an egg in vinegar for some time it can be made pliable
enough to be stuffed into a bottle. Then restore the egg to its natural
shape by pouring water into the bottle.




How to Drop a Tumbler on the Floor Without Breaking It.


This requires a steady hand and smooth table. You simply set a tumbler
upon a table near the edge and gently push the tumbler with your
forefinger until it is very nicely balanced upon the edge of the table.
Now by giving the tumbler a very gentle push again it will fall to the
floor, striking upon its bottom edge, and remain standing either upon
its bottom or lying upon its side perfectly sound. Be careful and have
no covering upon the table, as the less friction you can get the surer
you are to perform your trick.




Magic Money.


This conjuring trick is performed thus: Procure two quarters and a
half-dollar; conceal one of the quarters in the _right_ hand; lay the
other quarter and the half-dollar on a table, in full view of the
audience; now ask for two handkerchiefs; then take the half-dollar
up, and pretend to roll it in one of the handkerchiefs; but, in lieu
thereof, roll up the quarter, which you had concealed, and retain the
half-dollar; give the handkerchief to one of the company to hold; now
take the quarter off the table, and pretend to roll that up in the
second handkerchief; but put up the half-dollar instead; give this
handkerchief to another person, and beg him to “hold it tight,” while
you utter, “Presto! fly!” On opening the handkerchiefs the money will
appear to have changed places. This is one of the best tricks in this
book.




Sorcery.


This is a somewhat singular trick. One of the party is placed behind
a screen in an adjoining room, where he cannot possibly see the
players--or may be blindfolded. One of the party must then call out,
“Do you know Miss ----?” naming a lady’s name. “Yes.” “Do you know
her dress?” “Yes.” “Her wreath, her slippers, her gloves and her
bracelets?” “Yes.” “Her handkerchief?” “Yes.” “Her fan?” “Yes.” “Well,
then, since you know her dress so well, tell me what article of her
costume I am now touching?” If the one behind the screen is acquainted
with the trick, he will, of course, answer directly, “her bracelet,”
the only article mentioned which has the word “and” before it.




Odd or Even.


To tell in which hand of a person, having an odd number in one hand
and an even number in the other, the odd or even number is. Desire the
person to multiply the number in his right hand by a figure which is an
odd number, and the number in his left by an even one; and to say if
the products added together are odd or even. If even, the even number
is in the right hand; if odd, the even number is in the left hand.




To Discover Card by Weight.


Desire any person in company to draw a card from the pack, and when he
has looked at it, to return it to you with its face downward; then,
pretending to weigh it nicely, take notice of any particular mark on
the back of the card, which, having done, put it among the rest of the
cards, and desire the person to shuffle them as much as he pleases;
then, receiving the pack from his hands, you pretend to weigh each card
as before, and proceed in this way until you discover, from the back of
it, the particular card he selected.




How Money is Saved.


Why pay a dollar, or even twenty-five cents each for books when we
offer to send you the following set of twelve volumes on receipt of
only ten cents. Read the list.

Book of Short Stories. A collection of interesting sketches.

Mormonism Exposed, by a Mormon Slave Wife. Telling about the secret
rites of the Danites, doings of Polygamists with their numerous wives,
etc., etc. This book is of thrilling interest.

Prize Cook Book. A collection of valuable household recipes from the
best cooks in America. If you don’t need this book yourself, some lady
will appreciate it.

Dr. Parkhurst’s Exposures. This book tells about the celebrated
exposure of dens of iniquity in N. Y. Low life in the Metropolis is
laid bare.

Art of Love Making, and Guide to Etiquette. This little volume is
indeed interesting.

Book of Brief Narratives. Never before published. Very interesting.

Guide to Fortune Telling and Dream Book, compiled from the secrets of
Madame Le Normand.

Book of Detective Stories. Thrilling adventures of detectives in
ferreting out crime.

Secrets of the Harem. A description of the beautiful wives and slaves
of the Sultan, by one who has been there.

How to Get Rich. Secrets for coining wealth, many of which have never
been published before.

Marriage Manual. If you are married, or expect to be, you should get
this important book and keep it securely under lock and key.

How to Become a Lightning Calculator. By a glance at this book you can
learn to add, subtract, multiply and divide instantaneously.

To get the complete set, send ten cents, silver or stamps, to Keystone
Book Co., P. O. Box 1634, Philadelphia, Pa., or to the firm from whom
you purchased this book. You will receive the books promptly and will
be well pleased with them.




Eatable Candle-Ends.


Take a large apple and cut out a few pieces in the shape of
candle-ends, round at the bottom and flat at the top, in fact, as much
like a piece of candle as possible. Now cut some slips from a sweet
almond, as near as you can to resemble a wick, and stick them into the
imitation candles. Light them for an instant to make the tops black,
blow them out, and they are ready for the trick. One or two should be
artfully placed in a snuffer-tray, or candlestick; you then inform your
friends that during your “travels in the Russian Empire,” you learned,
like the Russians, to be fond of candles; at the same time lighting
your artificial candles (the almonds will readily take fire and flame
for a few seconds), pop them into your mouth, and swallow them one
after the other.




The Wonderful Hat.


Upon a table place three pieces of bread, or any other eatable, at a
little distance from each other, and cover each with a hat, take up
the first hat, and removing the bread put it into your mouth, letting
the company see that you swallow it, then raise the second hat, and
eat the bread which was under that, then proceed to the third hat in
the same manner. Having eaten the three pieces, ask any person in the
company to choose which hat he would like the three pieces of bread to
be under, and when he has made his choice of one of the hats, put it
on your head, and ask him if he does not think they are under it. By
the way, if you are interested in tricks, let us call your attention to
Prof. Roltair’s celebrated cabinet of magic. It contains twenty-five
new and startling tricks with complete apparatus, so that you can
easily give a two hour’s entertainment. Among the numerous tricks
are: The load of articles from a borrowed hat, such as cannon balls,
cabbages, boxes, etc.; the famous ink and water trick, with apparatus,
so that you can instantly change a glass of ink to clear water, new and
surprising card tricks including a pack of wizard’s cards, the famous
dancing skeleton, true secret of ventriloquism, by means of which you
can learn to throw the voice into hay-lofts, closets, trunks, etc.,
magic wand, and many other wonderful sleight of hand marvels are all
contained in Prof. Roltair’s cabinet. The regular price is two dollars,
but you can now obtain it, complete, postpaid, by sending fifty cents
in stamps or money order to W. S. Everett & Co., 113 Munroe Street,
Lynn, Mass., or the firm from whom you purchased this book.




The Invisible Coin.


“Is silver a visible or invisible thing?” What a singular question!
You will reply, certainly silver is a visible thing. A good many poor
creatures, however, are of a different opinion; and possibly they are
not altogether wrong, as we are about to show.

Will you kindly lend me a quarter, having first marked it, that you
may know it again. Very well! There is a little handkerchief which
will serve for me to make the experiment I have promised you. In
the middle of this handkerchief, as you will perceive, I will put
the quarter, which you have marked with a small cross. I am only
folding the handkerchief that the quarter may be well wrapped up in
it; you can have no difficulty in recognizing its shape. However!
You are suspicious! I will make an improvement. There, sir, hold the
handkerchief yourself, first above the little parcel formed by the
coin. You may touch it, and convince yourself that it is still in its
place. Now, I take the handkerchief by the opposite corner, I draw it
toward me, unfolding it entirely; I then turn it over, shake it, and
wave it in the air, to convince you that the coin has disappeared. The
fact is evident. But, did you see it go? No! Certainly, then, silver is
sometimes an invisible body.

Which fact you may prove by the foregoing process, if you have a
handkerchief in one corner of which a quarter dollar has been sewed.
You appear to put the borrowed quarter in the middle of the said
handkerchief; then, instead of this coin, which you retain in your
hand, concealed between the fore and middle fingers, you fold the
handkerchief making the little parcel in the middle with the quarter
sewed in the corner, in a sort of hem, so that the coin is not seen,
and cannot drop out. When you quickly pull the handkerchief out of the
hand which held it, the illusion is complete.

As to the marked coin which it is easy for you to have put on the
table, or in your pocket, you may make it reappear in a cup, a box, or
anything else, which adds to the effect of the trick you have performed.




The Wizard Skeleton.


This is an animated figure, fourteen inches high. It represents a
skeleton, miniature but lifelike in appearance. You may pass it around
for examination, then stand it upon the floor and it will begin to
dance without any visible motive power. Just think of it! People will
imagine that ghosts or demons are near. This trick can be done in any
room very easily. The skeleton will dance to music, jump, lie down,
etc., just as you command. We will send the apparatus and secret of
Wizard Skeleton for 6 cents in stamps. Address, A. B. Courtney & Co.,
493 Washington street, Lynn, Mass., or the firm from whom you purchased
this book.




Magic Writing.


Present a person with a slip of paper, a pen and a tumbler of water,
and desire him to dip the pen in the tumbler, and write down whatever
he pleases. When dry, the words will be invisible, but, if the paper
is immersed in the contents of the tumbler, the writing will make its
appearance quite distinctly. To perform this the pen should be a quill
one, and new, and the water in the tumbler should have one or two
crystals of sulphate of iron (green vitriol) previously dissolved in
it, while the writer should be careful the pen does not get dry in use.
When the writing has been executed, the tumbler should be taken away,
on pretence of the water being rather dirty, and wanting changing;
another similar tumbler is brought back, filled to the same height with
water, in which a few drops of tincture of galls have been poured. When
the paper is immersed in this, the writing will quickly appear.




The Columbus Egg Trick.


To make an egg stand on one end on any polished surface seems very
extraordinary, yet it can be done, even on a looking-glass. Now, from
the form of an egg, nothing is more liable to roll, and on nothing more
so than on a looking-glass. To accomplish this trick, let the performer
take an egg in his hand, and while he keeps talking and staring in the
face of his audience give it two or three hearty shakes; this will
break the yolk, which will sink to one end, and consequently make it
more heavy, by which when it is settled you may make it, with a steady
hand, stand upon the glass; this would be impossible while it continued
in its proper state.




The Ring and the Handkerchief.


Previously provide yourself with a piece of brass wire pointed at
both ends, and bent round so as to form a ring about the size of
a wedding-ring, which conceal in your hand; then commence your
performance by borrowing from a gentleman a silk pocket-handkerchief,
and from a lady a wedding-ring; request some person to hold two of
the corners of the handkerchief, and another to hold the other two,
keeping them at full stretch. You next exhibit the wedding-ring to
the company, and announce to them that you will make it pass through
the handkerchief. Then place your hand under the handkerchief, and
substituting the false ring which you have previously concealed, press
it against the centre of the handkerchief, and desire a third person
to take hold of the ring through the handkerchief, and to close his
finger and thumb through the middle of the ring. Hold the handkerchief
in this manner to show that the ring has not been placed within a fold.
Now desire the persons holding the corners of the handkerchief to let
go, the person holding the ring (through the handkerchief as already
described) still retaining his hold. Let another person now grasp
the handkerchief as tight as he pleases three or four inches below
the ring, and tell the person holding the ring to let it go, when it
will be quite evident to the company that the ring is secure within
the centre of the handkerchief. Then request the person who grasps
the handkerchief to hold a hat over it, pass your hand underneath and
open the false ring, by bending one of its points a little aside, and
bring one point gently through the handkerchief, the remainder may
easily be drawn out,--be careful to rub the hole you have made in
the handkerchief with your finger and thumb to conceal the fracture.
You then put the wedding-ring you borrowed over the outside of the
handkerchief, and desiring the person who holds the hat to take it
away, exhibit the ring (placed as described) to the company, and while
their attention is engaged, taking the opportunity of concealing, or
getting rid of the brass ring.




The Smashed Watch.


You request some one of the company to lend you a watch, and put it
immediately into a mortar; a few moments afterward you cause it to be
pounded, by another person, with a pestle; you exhibit the wheels,
face, mainspring, and drum barrel broken and smashed; and finally,
after a few minutes, you return the watch, whole and safe, to the
proprietor, who recognizes it.

After all that we have said, it will easily be perceived that the
mortar must be placed near the trap in the table of which we spoke
in the last trick, and covered with a napkin, in order that the
confederate may substitute another watch.

To produce a complete illusion in this case, you must take care to
put in the mortar a second watch, the hands, works, and case of which
should, in some degree, resemble those of the borrowed one. And this is
by no means difficult; for you can either have an understanding with
the person lending the watch, or you may manage to ask the loan of some
one whom you have seen elsewhere, and whose watch you may have had an
opportunity of examining shortly before, with a view of procuring a
similar one.

After replacing the fragments in the mortar, cover them a second time
with the napkin, and amuse the company with a riddle or conundrum, or
by some other tricks, to give your partner time to collect all the
bits, and replace the perfect watch in the mortar.




The Magic Stick.


The principal actor in this trick takes his place in the center of the
room armed with a long stick, with which he describes several circles,
etc., on the carpet, at the same time muttering a mock incantation,
after which he touches one of the company (his accomplice) on the
shoulder, bidding him quit the room, preparatory to guessing on whom
the magic stick would pause in its evolutions. The magician then
touches several of the company, one after another, lightly, with his
wand, each time saying, “The wand passes,” until he allows it to pause
at one particular person, saying, “The wand rests.” His accomplice
immediately names the person _who has spoken last_; this being the one
indicated by the stick. The person leaving the room must, of course, be
within hearing, and the magician must artfully encourage the company to
keep up a conversation.

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Transcriber’s Notes:

Variations in spelling and hyphenation were retained as they appear in
the original publication, except that obvious typographical errors
have been corrected.

Punctuation has been made consistent.