The discovery, in some more or less mysterious way, of an unknown card
is one of the stock feats of the conjurer, and indeed in one shape
or another is one of the most hackneyed of card tricks. But the wise
magician never discards a good trick simply because it is an old one. He
repolishes it, adds a bit here, takes away a bit there, presents it in a
new shape and with new patter, and behold! the “chestnut” of yesterday
becomes a latest novelty of today.
To obtain the maximum effect from a trick of the above kind, it is
necessary in the first place to convince the spectator that the drawn
card cannot possibly be known beforehand to the performer; and in the
second place to persuade him that it is discovered in some actually
impossible (and therefore magical) way; taking advantage, where possible,
of some known scientific truth which may lend colour to your suggestion.
It is surprising, in conjuring matters, how much even the smallest
percentage of fact increases the power of the average spectator for
swallowing fiction. The patter for the trick which follows has been
arranged upon these lines.
The requisites for the trick are a pack of cards from which three known
cards have been withdrawn and palmed (or so placed to be in instant
readiness for palming), a hand-mirror, and a silk handkerchief.
The introductory oration may run somewhat as follows:
“You all know, ladies and gentlemen, what an important part finger-prints
now play in the detection of crime. Happily there is no connection
between conjuring and crime, beyond the fact that they both begin
with a _C_. No conjurer that I know of has ever murdered anybody or
been murdered himself, and when a conjurer borrows a half-crown, he
always--well, almost always returns it. But each one of us, whether
criminal or curate, burglar or bishop, possesses a definite set of
finger-prints, quite unlike those of anybody else. And, what is more, we
cannot touch anything, ever so lightly, without leaving upon it our sign
manual in the shape of a more or less perfect impression of our fingers,
imperceptible to ourselves, but quite visible to the expert in such
matters.
“Practice in distinguishing such points forms a highly interesting
study. Of course it must be pursued with a proper amount of tact, or it
may get you into trouble, as in the case of a gentleman I once heard of
who took up the study with more zeal than discretion. He said to his
wife, not leading up to the subject gently, as he should have done,
but in a peremptory sort of way, ‘Maria, I want your finger-prints.’
Unfortunately, Maria was rather a quick-tempered lady, and she had
just been having a few words, of a hostile nature, with the cook. She
slapped his face, and said, ‘Well, now you’ve got ’em.’ He had! They were
very distinct, but not quite in the shape he wanted. I am going to ask
permission to read some of your finger-prints, but, I trust without fear
of such painful results.
“In the first place, I should like this pack of cards to be thoroughly
well shuffled.”
While this is done, performer palms the three known cards, and when the
pack is returned, proceeds to force them on different members of the
company. Each of the drawers is requested to allow his or her card to lie
for a few moments face down on the palm of the outspread hand. The cards
drawn are then returned to the pack, which is again shuffled, and spread
face upward on the table.
“Each of the three cards which have been drawn now has a complete set of
finger-prints upon its surface, but there are no doubt others on many
other cards, the result of previous handling. To enable me to distinguish
the right ones, I must ask each person who chose a card to give me, for
the purpose of comparison, a fresh impression, on the glass of this
mirror. First, however, we must remove any prints that may already be
upon it.”
He accordingly breathes upon the glass, and wipes it carefully with the
handkerchief.
“Now, Sir” (to the person who first drew), “will you kindly press your
hand flat against the glass. Thank you. Not a very clear impression, but
I dare say it will be good enough. I have now only to discover the card
bearing the same imprint, and I shall know that it was the one you drew.”
(He picks it out from the exposed cards on the table.) “Here it is, I
think, the ---- of ----” (as the case may be).
The other two cards are then discovered after the same fashion. As the
performer knows beforehand what they are, this will give him little
trouble, but he will be wise, for the sake of effect, not to discover
them too readily. For the same reason, great importance should ostensibly
be attached to the thorough cleaning of the hand mirror before each new
attempt, so as to get a clear impression.
The trick as above described can be worked with any pack of cards, but
where those used are the performer’s own property, he can make it even
more effective by marking the three cards to be freed in such a way as
to be distinguishable (by himself only) by their backs. The drawers in
this case are requested to press their hand against the _back_ of the
card, and the cards are spread face down upon the table, the performer
apparently not knowing the nature of the card indicated to him until he
has turned it up.