TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
The right-pointing finger symbol is denoted by ==>.
Some minor changes to the text are noted at the end of the book.
[Illustration: “The Spiritualistic Séance.”]
SPIRIT SLATE WRITING
AND
KINDRED PHENOMENA
BY
WILLIAM E. ROBINSON
Assistant to the late Herrmann
_SIXTY-SIX ILLUSTRATIONS_
MUNN & COMPANY
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN OFFICE
NEW YORK CITY
1898
COPYRIGHTED, 1898, BY MUNN & COMPANY.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
PREFACE.
The author of the present volume is not an opponent of
spiritualism--on the contrary, he was brought up from childhood
in this belief; and though, at the present writing, he does not
acknowledge the truth of its teachings, nevertheless he respects
the feelings of those who are honest in their convictions. At
the same time he confidently believes that all rational persons,
spiritualists as well as others, will heartily indorse this
endeavor to explain the methods of those who, under the mask of
mediumship, and possessing all the artifices of the charlatan,
victimize those seeking knowledge of their loved ones who have
passed away. As a great New York lawyer once said, it was not
spiritualism he was fighting, but fraud under the guise of
spiritualism.
Owing to the fact that the author has for many years been
engaged in the practice of the profession of magic, both as a
prestidigitateur and designer of stage illusions for the late
Alexander Herrmann, and has also been associated with Prof. Kellar,
he feels that he is fitted to treat of clever tricks used by
mediums. He has attended hundreds of séances both at home and
abroad, and the present volume is the fruit of his studies.
Some of the means of working these slate tests may appear simple
and impossible of deceiving, but in the hands of the medium
they are entirely successful. It should be remembered it is not
so much the apparatus employed as it is the shrewd, cunning,
ever-observing sharper using it. The devices and methods employed
by slate writing frauds seem innumerable. No sooner are they caught
and exposed while employing one system than they immediately set
their wits to work and evolve an entirely different idea. It is
almost impossible at the first sitting with a slate writing medium
to know what method he will employ, and should you, after the
sitting, go away with the idea that you have discovered his method
of operation and come a second time ready to expose him, you may
be sadly disappointed, for the medium will undoubtedly lead you to
believe he is going to use his former method, and so mislead you.
He accomplishes his test by another method, while you are on the
lookout for something entirely different. The great success of the
medium is in disarming the suspicions of the skeptic, and at that
very moment the trick is done. Slate writing is of course the great
standby of mediums, but there are many other tricks which they
employ which are described in the present volume.
The publishers have added a chapter on “Miscellaneous Tricks”
which may serve as a supplement to their “Magic: Stage Illusions
and Scientific Diversions, Including Trick Photography,” which has
already obtained an enviable position in the literature of magic,
and has been even translated into Swedish. These tricks are by Mr.
W. B. Caulk and the author.
NEW YORK, November, 1898.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
PAGE
The Single Slate 3
CHAPTER II.
The Double Slate 32
CHAPTER III.
Miscellaneous Slate Tests 41
CHAPTER IV.
Mind Reading and Kindred Phenomena 51
CHAPTER V.
Table Lifting and Spirit Rapping 71
CHAPTER VI.
Spiritualistic Ties 82
CHAPTER VII.
Post Tests, Handcuffs, Spirit Collars, etc. 93
CHAPTER VIII.
Séances and Miscellaneous Spirit Tricks 101
CHAPTER IX.
Miscellaneous Tricks 115
SPIRIT SLATE WRITING
AND
KINDRED PHENOMENA.
CHAPTER I.
THE SINGLE SLATE.
There has probably been nothing that has made more converts to
spiritualism than the much talked of “Slate Writing Test,” and
if we are to believe some of the stories told of the writings
mysteriously obtained on slates, under what is known as “severe
test conditions,” that preclude, beyond any possible doubt, any
form of deception or trickery, one would think that the day of
miracles had certainly returned; but we must not believe half we
hear nor all that we see, for the chances are that just as you are
about to attribute some unaccountable spirit phenomena to an unseen
power, something turns up to show that you have been tricked by a
clever device which is absurd in its simplicity.
There are a large number of methods of producing slate writing,
but the writer will describe a few which will be sufficient to
give an idea of the working of slate tests in general. First we
have the ordinary one in which the writing is placed on the slate
beforehand, and then hidden from view by a flap or loose piece of
slate. (Fig. 1.) After both sides of the slate have been cleaned,
the false flap is dropped on the table, the side which is then
uppermost being covered with cloth similar to the table top, where
it will remain unnoticed, or the flap is allowed to fall into a
second slate with which the first is covered. In the latter case
no cloth is pasted on the flap. Sometimes the flap is covered with
a piece of newspaper and is allowed to drop into a newspaper lying
on the table, then the newspaper containing the flap is carelessly
removed, thus doing away with any trace of trickery.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.--Ordinary Slate with Flap.]
Another way of utilizing the false flap is as follows: The writing
is not placed beforehand on the slate, but on the flap, which,
as before, is covered with the same material as the table top.
This is lying on the table writing downward. The slate is handed
around for inspection, and, on being returned to the performer, he
stands at the table and cleans the slate on one side, then turns
it over and cleans the other. As he does so he lifts the flap
into the slate. The flap is held in firmly by an edging of thin
pure sheet rubber cemented on the flap between the slate and the
cloth covering of the slate. This grips the wooden sides of the
frame hard enough to prevent the false piece from tumbling out
accidentally.
We now come to another style, wherein a slate is cleaned on both
sides, and, while held in the hand facing the audience, becomes
suddenly covered with writing, and the slate is immediately given
for inspection. The writing is on the slate previous to the
cleaning, and is hidden from view by a flap of slate colored silk,
held firmly in place by a pellet of wax in each of the corners of
the silk. Attached to this silk flap or covering (at the end that
is nearest to the performer’s sleeve) is a stout cord or string,
which is also made fast to a strap around the wrist of the hand
opposite to that holding the slate. If the arms are now extended
their full length, the piece of silk covering will leave the slate
and pass rapidly up the sleeve out of the way, and thus leave the
writing exposed to view. (Fig. 2.) The slate is found to be still a
little damp from the cleaning with the sponge and water it had been
given previously. This is easily accounted for. The water from the
sponge penetrates just enough through the cloth to dampen the slate.
[Illustration: Fig. 2.--Removing the Silk from the Face of the
Slate.]
There is still another slate on which we can make the writing
appear suddenly. It is composed of a wooden frame, such as all
wooden-edged slates have, but the slate itself is a sham. It is a
piece of cloth painted with a kind of paint known as liquid, or
silicate slating, which, when dry and hard, is similar to the
real article. This cloth is twice the length of the slate and just
the exact width. The two ends of the cloth are united with cement,
so as to make an endless piece or loop. There is a small rod or
roller in both the top and bottom pieces of the frame, the ends
being made hollow to receive them. Over these rollers runs the
cloth, stretched firmly and tightly. Just where the cloth is joined
or cemented is a little black button, or stud of hard rubber or
leather. This allows the cloth to be pushed up and down, bringing
the back to the front; and by doing so quickly, the writing which
is written on the cloth at the rear of the frame is made to come to
the front in plain view. (Fig. 3.)
[Illustration: Fig. 3.--The Endless Band Silicate Trick Slate.]
Still another idea in a single slate is as follows: An ordinary
looking slate is given out for examination, and, on its being
returned to the medium, he takes his handkerchief and cleans or
brushes both sides of the slate with it; and, upon again showing
that side of the slate first cleaned, it is found covered with
writing apparently done with chalk. The following is the simple
explanation of it: Take a small camel’s hair brush and dip it in
urine or onion juice, and with it write or trace on the slate
whatever you desire, and when it becomes dry, or nearly so, the
slate can be given for examination without fear of detection. The
handkerchief the performer uses to clean the slate with is lightly
sprinkled with powdered chalk. He makes believe to clean the one
side devoid of preparation, but the side containing the invisible
writing is gently rubbed with the handkerchief, not too hard just
enough to let the powdered chalk fall on the urine or onion juice,
where it leaves a mark not unlike a chalk mark.
It will not be out of place to describe a trick by which writing is
produced upon an ordinary china plate by a somewhat similar means.
The plate is examined and cleaned with a borrowed handkerchief,
and then the performer requests the loan of a pinch of snuff, or
uses a little sand or dust, which he places on the plate. He now
commences to move the plate around in circles, and while doing so
the snuff or sand is seen to gradually form itself into writing.
The explanation is simple--whatever writing you desire to appear
on the plate is placed beforehand on it. It is done with a camel’s
hair brush dipped in the white of an egg and allowed to become
dry before being handed around for inspection. As the performer
cleans the plate he breathes on both sides of it, as if to give it
moisture enough to help take off any dirt that might be thereon
when rubbed with the handkerchief. In breathing on the front of
the plate containing the writing done with the white of the egg,
he moistens the writing enough to make the snuff or sand, as the
case may be, adhere to it. Of course, in cleaning the front of the
plate, care must be taken not to brush or disturb the invisible
writing.
It may not be amiss to also mention another method of producing
writing, employed by mediums to obtain a message on a blank piece
of paper which has been placed between two slates, which are held
by the medium in his hand, high above his head, and, on afterwards
taking the slate apart, the paper is covered with writing. This
again calls into use the extra or false flap. (Fig. 1.) A piece
of paper with writing on it is placed face downward on one of the
slates and covered with the false flap. It then looks like an
ordinary slate. On this is placed the plain piece of paper, and
over this is laid the second slate. The slates are now held up
in plain view of the audience, and on being lowered to the table
they are turned over, thus bringing the blank piece of paper under
the false flap and the one with the writing on it on the top of
the flap, which has fallen from the slate, which is now the top,
but originally the bottom one, on or into the under one, and, of
course, on the removal of the present top slate, the writing is
found on what is supposed to be the original blank paper.
[Illustration: Fig. 4.--False Table for Developing Communications
Written with Sympathetic Ink.]
If the paper is to have a private mark put on it by an observer, so
as to prove the writing really does appear on that identical piece
of paper, the operation is varied as follows: The false flap is
done away with, and the paper, which is furnished by the medium,
has written on it the desired communication with ink, which is made
visible and brought out black by means of heat. For the invisible
ink you can use sulphuric acid, very much diluted, so as not to
destroy the paper. The necessary heat is obtained in the following
manner: The table (Fig. 4) on which the slates are resting is
hollow, and has concealed in it a spirit lamp filled with alcohol.
This lamp sits directly under a trap in the table top, which is
covered underneath for safety with sheet iron, so it will not
catch fire. When the slates are placed on the table they are laid
over the little trap door, which, in conjuring parlance, is known
as a “trap.” This is now opened, and the slates allowed to become
well heated and the trap then closed, and the prepared paper, upon
coming in contact with the hot slate, is thus covered with writing.
[Illustration: Fig. 5.--The Development of Spirit Writing.]
Another medium employed a somewhat similar method, only the paper
in this case was placed in a glass vial (Fig. 5) which had been
lying on the iron trap door. The medium’s hand covered the vial,
which was corked and sealed, while the writing was making its
appearance. You can also produce writing on the paper in the vial
without resorting to the use of heat by using a vial that has been
washed out with ammonia and kept well corked, and writing on the
paper with a weak solution of copper sulphate, which is invisible
until the paper is placed in the vial, when the two chemicals
produce writing in blue. Still another message is produced as
follows: The writing is done with iron sulphate on blank cards. Of
course this is invisible. These cards are placed in envelopes and
sealed up. Upon opening the envelopes shortly afterward the cards
are covered with the writing which was before invisible, but is
brought out by a solution of nut galls with which the inside of the
envelopes had been slightly moistened.
The subject of sympathetic inks is such an interesting one that
we give thirty-seven formulas, which include all those which are
liable to be used by the medium.
The solutions used should be so nearly colorless that the writing
cannot be seen till the agent is applied to render it visible.
Sympathetic inks are of three general classes.
_Inks that Appear through Heat._
1. Write with a concentrated solution of caustic potash. The
writing will appear when the paper is submitted to strong heat.
2. Write with a solution of ammonium hydrochlorate, in the
proportion of 15 parts to 100. The writing will appear when the
paper is heated by holding it over a stove or by passing a hot
smoothing iron over it.
3. A weak solution of copper nitrate gives an invisible writing,
which becomes red through heat.
4. A very dilute solution of copper perchloride gives invisible
characters that become yellow through heat.
5. A slightly alcoholic solution of copper bromide gives perfectly
invisible characters which are made apparent by a gentle heat, and
which disappear again through cold.
6. Write upon rose colored paper with a solution of cobalt
chloride. The invisible writing will become blue through heat, and
will disappear on cooling.
7. Write with a solution of sulphuric acid. The characters will
appear in black through heat. This ink has the disadvantage of
destroying the paper. (See the caution given on page 9.)
8. Write with lemon, onion, leek, cabbage or artichoke juice.
Characters written with these juices become very visible when the
paper is heated.
9. Digest 1 oz. of zaffre, or cobalt oxide, at a gentle heat, with
4 oz. of nitro-muriatic acid till no more is dissolved, then add 1
oz. common salt and 16 oz. of water. If this be written with and
the paper held to the fire, the writing becomes green, unless the
cobalt should be quite pure, in which case it will be blue. The
addition of a little iron nitrate will then impart the property of
becoming green. It is used in chemical landscapes for the foliage.
10. Put in a vial ½ oz. of distilled water, 1 drm. of potassium
bromide and 1 drm. of pure copper sulphate. The solution is nearly
colorless, but becomes brown when heated.
11. Nickel nitrate and nickel chloride in weak solution form
an invisible ink, which becomes green by heating when the salt
contains traces of cobalt, which usually is the case; when pure, it
becomes yellow.
12. When the solution of acetate of protoxide of cobalt contains
nickel or iron, the writing made by it will become green when
heated; when it is pure and free from these metals, it becomes blue.
13. Milk makes a good invisible ink, and buttermilk answers the
purpose better. It will not show if written with a clean new pen,
and ironing with a hot flat iron is the best way of showing it up.
All invisible inks will show on glazed paper; therefore unglazed
paper should be used.
14. Burn flax so that it may be rather smoldered than burned to
ashes, then grind it with a muller on a stone, putting a little
alcohol to it, then mix it with a little gum water, and what you
write, though it seem clear, may be rubbed or washed out.
15. Boil cobalt oxide in acetic acid. If a little common salt be
added, the writing becomes green when heated, but with potassium
nitrate it becomes a pale rose color.
16. A weak solution of mercury nitrate becomes black by heat.
_Inks that Appear under the Influence of Light._
17. Gold chloride serves for forming characters that appear only as
long as the paper is exposed to daylight, say for an hour at least.
18. Write with a solution made by dissolving one part of silver
nitrate in 1,000 parts of distilled water. When submitted to
daylight, the writing appears of a slate color or tawny brown.
_Inks Appearing through Reagents._
19. If writing be done with a solution of lead acetate in distilled
water, the characters will appear in black upon passing a solution
of an alkaline sulphide over the paper.
20. Characters written with a very weak solution of gold chloride
will become dark brown upon passing a solution of tin perchloride
over them.
21. Characters written with a solution of gallic acid in water will
become black through a solution of iron sulphate and brown through
the alkalies.
22. Upon writing on paper that contains but little sizing with a
very clear solution of starch, and submitting the dry characters
to the vapor of iodine, or passing over them a weak solution of
potassium iodide, the writing becomes blue, and disappears under
the action of a solution of sodium hyposulphite in the proportions
of 1 to 1,000.
23. Characters written with a 10 per cent. solution of nitrate of
protoxide of mercury become black when the paper is moistened with
liquid ammonia, and gray through heat.
24. Characters written with a weak solution of the soluble platinum
or iridium chloride become black when the paper is submitted to
mercurial vapor. This ink may be used for marking linen. It is
indelible.
25. C. Widemann communicates a new method of making an invisible
ink to _Die Natur_. To make the writing or the drawing appear which
has been made upon paper with the ink, it is sufficient to dip it
into water. On drying, the traces disappear again, and reappear by
each succeeding immersion. The ink is made by intimately mixing
linseed oil, 1 part; water of ammonia, 20 parts; water, 100 parts.
The mixture must be agitated each time before the pen is dipped
into it, as a little of the oil may separate and float on top,
which would, of course, leave an oily stain upon the paper.
26. Write with a solution of potassium ferro-cyanide, develop by
pressing over the dry, invisible characters a piece of blotting
paper moistened with a solution of copper sulphate or of iron
sulphate.
27. Write with pure dilute tincture of iron; develop with a blotter
moistened with strong tea.
28. Writing with potassium iodide and starch becomes blue by the
least trace of acid vapors in the atmosphere or by the presence
of ozone. To make it, boil starch, and add a small quantity of
potassium iodide in solution.
29. Copper sulphate in very dilute solution will produce an
invisible writing, which will turn light blue by vapors of ammonia.
30. Soluble compounds of antimony will become red by hydrogen
sulphide vapor.
31. Soluble compounds of arsenic and of tin peroxide will become
yellow by the same vapor.
32. An acid solution of iron chloride is diluted till the writing
is invisible when dry. This writing has the remarkable property of
becoming red by sulphocyanide vapors (arising from the action of
sulphuric acid on potassium sulphocyanide in a long necked flask),
and it disappears by ammonia, and may alternately be made to appear
and disappear by these two vapors.
33. Writing executed with rice water is visible when dry, but the
characters become blue by the application of iodine. This ink was
much employed during the Indian mutiny.
34. Write with a solution of paraffin in benzol. When the solvent
has evaporated, the paraffin is invisible, but becomes visible on
being dusted with lampblack or powdered graphite, or smoking over
a candle flame.
35. To Write Black Characters with Water.--Mix 10 parts nutgalls,
2½ parts calcined iron sulphate. Dry thoroughly, and reduce to fine
powder. Rub this powder over the surface of the paper, and force
into the pores by powerful pressure, brush off the loose powder. A
pen dipped in water will write black on paper thus treated.
36. To Write Blue Characters with Water.--Mix iron sesquisulphate
and potassium ferrocyanide. Prepare the paper in the same manner
as for writing black characters with water. Write with water, and
the characters will appear blue.
37. To Produce Brown Writing with Water.--Mix copper sulphate and
potassium ferrocyanide. Prepare the paper in the same manner as
before. The characters written with water will be reddish brown.
Here is another trick calling for the use of sympathetic ink. A
medium suggests a number of questions to write on a paper, one of
which you select and write on a slip of paper furnished by the
medium. Writing is done with pen and ink. You are requested to dry
it with a blotter, and not to remove the blotter for a time, the
medium says, so as to keep the paper in the dark, thus giving the
“spirits” better conditions under which to work. After a while the
blotter is removed, and an answer to the question is found on the
same paper. The questions suggested were all of such a character
that one answer would nearly do for any one. The paper the question
was written on had this answer written with invisible ink brought
out by a reagent on the blotter, with which it was saturated, and
thus another mystery is easily dispelled.
We will now take up a few slate tests, in which the slates are
brought or furnished by the spectator or investigator. The tests
in which the slates are brought by skeptics and tied and sealed by
them, and still writing is obtained upon them, are the ones that
are the most convincing and most talked about, and they are offered
to the unbeliever as proof absolute of spirit power.
[Illustration: Fig. 6.--Writing on the Slate with the Pencil
Thimble.]
First we will begin with the single slate which has just been
handed to the medium, after being thoroughly cleaned by the person
bringing it. The skeptic holds one end of the slate in one hand and
the medium the opposite end in one of his hands, and both persons
clasp their disengaged hands. In a short time the slate is turned
over and a few words written in a scrawling style are found. I
must acknowledge that when I first witnessed this test it somewhat
staggered me, but afterward, on seeing it the second time, I was
enabled to fathom its mystery. It is patterned somewhat after the
style claimed to have been used by Slade, wherein he used a piece
of slate pencil fastened to a thimble, and with apparatus attached
to his forefinger of the same hand holding the slate he did the
writing. The thimble (Fig. 6) was fastened to an elastic which
pulled the thimble out of sight up the sleeve or under the coat
when it was done with. But it always required a little scheming
and maneuvering both to use and conceal the device and get rid of
it, and there was always the fear of being detected with this bit
of machinery about the person; so someone of an ingenious turn of
mind hit upon another method. There are some slate pencils made the
same as lead pencils, that is, a very small piece of slate pencil,
about the size of a match, is enclosed in the wood after the manner
of lead pencils. A tiny piece of this pencil is placed at the tip
of the forefinger and over it is placed a piece of flesh-colored
court plaster well fastened to the finger (Fig. 7) and well blended
in with aniline dye with the finger, so both are exactly the same
color. After everything becomes dry and hard a little hole is
made in the court plaster, so as to allow the point of the piece
of pencil to come through enough to mark on the slate. The finger
thus prepared is what does the writing. The message or name must
be written backward, so that when the slate is reversed it will
appear in its correct position. To learn to do this quickly, stand
in front of a looking-glass with the slate in your hand and watch
your writing in the glass as you go along. You do not need to hold
the slate underneath the table in this test; hold it in the air
with a handkerchief over it, so as to disguise the movement of the
finger. The message must necessarily be short, on account of the
radius through which the medium’s finger can travel.
[Illustration: Fig. 7.--The Prepared Finger.]
We now come to another method of using the single slate. The
medium takes the slate and places it on the table and requests the
spectator to write a question on a piece of paper. He, the medium,
gains knowledge of the contents of the paper in various ways; one
is by using a pad of paper which contains underneath the second
or third layer of paper a carbon sheet made of wax and lampblack.
Whatever is written on the first sheet of paper will be transferred
or copied by means of the carbon paper to the sheet underneath it.
Another way is by requesting a person to fold the paper and hold
it against his head, and, under the pretense of showing the person
how to hold it, exchange it for a paper of his own folded in like
manner. This exchanged paper is then opened and read by the medium
while his hand is below the level of the table top, and while he
is holding a conversation with the auditor. After it is read, the
paper is again folded and kept in the performer’s lap until needed.
As he now knows the contents of the paper, he can frame in his
mind a suitable answer. He remarks: “I will ask the spirits first
to give you a decided answer, through me as an independent trance
slate writing medium, whether they will answer your question during
this sitting.” So the medium takes a pencil in hand and writes on
one side of the slate, apparently under spirit control, and then on
the other side. The message is read, and it says the conditions are
very favorable, and no doubt, if the skeptic will place the utmost
confidence in the medium, there will be satisfactory results. After
the slate has been shown with both sides covered with writing, it
is thoroughly cleaned and placed on the table. The medium now picks
up the original paper from his lap and asks the person to give him
the paper he is holding. This the medium apparently places under
the slate; however, he really holds this one back and introduces
the one he has had in his hand, which is the one originally written
upon. He has now his own paper in his hand, and the one with the
question is under the slate. On the slate being turned over in a
short time, it is covered with writing, forming a sensible reply to
the question on the paper, which is now opened and read to compare
it with the answer. All that remains to be explained is how the
writing on the slate appeared there. The false flap is again used,
but in a directly opposite manner to which it has been employed
heretofore. One side of this flap is covered with a portion of the
writing that the medium first wrote under spirit control. Let us
say the first half supposed to have been written on the one side
of the slate, and which he afterward reads off in connection with
that written on the last or second side of the slate. What he
really wrote on the first half of the slate was a correct answer
to the question, and after he turns the slate over to write on
the opposite side he slips the false flap over the answer on the
slate. Of course it is what is on this false flap and on the other
side of the slate that the spectator really reads, and when the
slate is cleaned it is this flap and the opposite side of the
slate. The writing, covered by the flap, which is the answer to
the question, is never seen or touched until after the flap is
allowed to drop into the medium’s lap. The slate can be examined;
and, of course, no trickery can be found in connection with it. The
method described above, in the hands of a calm and cool person, is
a convincing one, and never fails to satisfy the most exacting of
skeptics.
I wish to remark that, if any person tells you he took two slates
of his own to a medium, thoroughly well tied or sealed, and that
the slates never left his (the skeptic’s) hands, and that there
was writing obtained upon the interior surface of the slates
under those conditions, he was sadly mistaken, and has failed to
keep track of everything that actually took place at the time
of the sitting. Suppose two slates tied together are brought to
the medium. Both he and the stranger sit at a table. The slates
are held under the table, the medium grasping one corner and the
skeptic the opposite corner, each with one hand, and the disengaged
hands clasped together above the table. After a while the slates
are laid upon the table, the string untied, the slates taken
apart, but no writing is found. The medium states it must have
been because there was no slate pencil between them. So a small
piece of pencil is placed between the slates, and again they are
tied with the cord by the medium, and he again passes them under
the table, both persons holding the slates as before. Presently
writing is heard, and, upon the skeptic bringing the slates from
under the table and untying the cord himself, he finds one of the
slates covered with writing, although but shortly before they were
devoid of even a scratch. Here is the explanation: The medium does
not pass the slates under the table the first time, but drops them
in his lap, with the side on which the string is tied or knotted
downward, and really passes a set of his own for the skeptic to
hold; he (the medium) supporting his end by pressing against the
table with his knee, which leaves his hand disengaged. There is a
slate pencil, called the soapstone pencil, which is softer than
the ordinary. This is the one used by the medium. He now covers
the face of the slate which is uppermost in his lap with writing,
doing so very quietly and without any noise. Now, as he brings the
slates above the table, he leaves his own in his lap and brings up
the skeptic’s with the writing side down. The slates are untied and
taken apart and shown, devoid of writing upon the inside, which
he claims was caused by not having any slate pencil inside. The
medium now places the pencil upon the slate which was originally
the upper one, and covers this with what was the bottom slate,
which is covered with the writing inside on the back or bottom of
slate. This maneuver or action brings the slate on top with the
writing upon its inside. Nothing could be more simple and natural.
The slates are again tied together, and in doing so the slates are
turned over, bringing the slate containing the writing, still upon
the inside, at the bottom instead of the top, and the string tied
or knotted above the top slate. Of course, when again separated,
the writing is found upon the inside of the lower slate. When the
slates are passed under the table the second time, the spectator
himself is allowed to do this, and the medium, with one of his
finger nails, while holding his end of the slate, produces a
scratching noise on the slate closely resembling the tracing of a
pencil. It is not really necessary to pass the slates under the
table the second time, but they can be held above it if preferred.
Now, suppose two slates are brought that are riveted or screwed or
sealed at the four corners. How can writing be obtained upon them
without disturbing any of the above arrangements? The slates are
held under the table in the same manner as in previous tests. To
produce the writing upon the slates the medium is provided with a
few simple, though effective devices, one of which is a little hard
wood tapering wedge, and a piece of thin steel wire, to one end of
which is fastened a tiny piece of slate pencil. An old umbrella rib
will be found to work admirably, because there is a small clasp
at one end and at its other end a small eye. The pencil is made
to fit into the end with the clasp. Now take the wooden wedge and
push it between the wooden frames of the slates at the sides. The
frames and slates will give enough to allow the wire and pencil to
be inserted and the writing be accomplished with it, after which
the wire is withdrawn, and then also the wooden wedge, and all is
done without leaving any trace or mark behind as to how it is all
performed. (Fig. 8.)
[Illustration: Fig. 8.--Wedging Apart the Slates.]
A well known conjuror at one time made a remark that he could
duplicate any slate writing test he ever witnessed, he having
publicly declared, time and time again, the slate writing test to
be a fraud. He gave a test in private at his own home and hit upon
a rather unique idea. A slate would be cleaned on both sides and
a private mark placed on it, and the slate allowed to lie flat on
the table, and the magician and the committee sat around it and
placed their hands upon the slate. Presently writing was heard, and
upon lifting the slate the side underneath was found covered with
writing. The table was a kitchen table with the ordinary hanging
cloth cover, or table cloth. The table had a double top with room
enough between the two to conceal a small boy. There was a neatly
made trap in both the table cloth and the top of the table; the
cloth being glued around the opening to keep it in place. The trap
door opened downwards. The boy concealed in the table opened the
trap door and did the necessary writing on the slate, and closed
the opening. The idea of having the committee hold their hands on
the slate was to prevent the slate from being accidentally moved
by the boy when writing. The above idea was improved upon by doing
away with the use of the boy and the double top of the table. The
trap in the cloth and table top was still used. But the test was
done with the lights turned out or down low, and the medium had a
confederate sitting at his right hand side. This allowed the medium
to take away his right hand, introduce it under the table, open the
trap, do the writing, shut the trap, replace his hand, and on the
lights being turned up the writing is found. It should be stated
that the medium and committee sat around the table with their hands
resting on the slate, and each person’s hand touching that of his
neighbor; so neither could move without the other being aware of
the fact, but the medium’s right hand neighbor, being one of his
confederates, allows him to take his (the medium’s) hand away
without any one being the wiser.
[Illustration: Fig. 9.--The Trick Slate.]
I will now describe how the writing is obtained upon the interior
of two slates sealed together, and all hands placed on them, and
without the assistance of a confederate. The table is the same as
previously described, that is, it contains the trap. The slates
are two single ones hinged together and sealed around the edges in
any manner the committee may see fit. One of the slates is a trick
slate made in this fashion: The slate part itself is made to work
on a pivot or hinge along one of its sides. (Fig. 9.) The side
opposite to where both slates are hinged together, by touching a
portion of the hinges that hold the two slates together, a catch
concealed in the wooden framework is released, which allows the
slate part itself to drop down on its own hinge or pivot. So when
the slates are placed on the table they are put directly over the
trap in the table, and with the hinges of the two slates toward
the medium. The medium, as he places the slates over the trap in
the table, pushes the hinge releasing the catch, which allows the
underneath slate to drop as far as the table. Now, when the trap
in the table is opened, the slate opens or drops far enough for
the medium to write on that part, also on the slate above it. He
closes both the slate and the table, and the slates, upon being
unsealed, are found covered with writing. The only thing that
remains to be explained is how the medium gets his hand free to
do the writing without being detected. The lamp or gas jet is
close to the medium’s right hand, where he can reach it. Now, all
the persons are seated around the table with their hands on the
slates, and each other’s hands or fingers touching one another.
The medium takes his right hand away to turn down the light, and
his next door neighbor, as soon as the light goes out, feels his
(the medium’s) hand or finger replaced. At least, so he thinks.
What really happens is this: The thumb of the medium’s left hand
is stretched far enough over to touch the hand or finger of the
person sitting on the performer’s right hand side. (Fig. 10.) The
medium immediately goes to work and produces the writing, and when
finished, just as he goes to relight the gas or lamp, he removes
the left thumb to create the impression that he has just taken his
right hand away again for the light.
[Illustration: Fig. 10.--The Medium Holding the Two Skeptics’
Hands.]
Here is a trick I once saw a medium do. He had a number of slates
piled on top of the table; he would clean these, one at a time,
showing each, and after they had been thoroughly examined, he
placed them on the floor. He would then pick them all up together
and replace them on the table, and select two of them, put them
together, holding them in his hand above his head, would shortly
separate them and show one covered with writing. The slates were
devoid of all trickery, as was easily proved in allowing them to be
thoroughly examined.
[Illustration: Fig. 11.--The Slate under the Carpet.]
The explanation is as follows: The floor was covered with carpet.
In this there was a slit or cut just large enough to pass or draw
a slate through. A slate with writing on one side is previously
placed under the carpet, with that side down. (Fig. 11.) The
slates, as they are cleaned, are laid on the carpet immediately
over or near this concealed one, and, on lifting the slates from
the floor, this one is also carried with them, and all placed on
the table.
Of course, it is this slate and one of the prepared ones that are
afterward used. There is little likelihood of any one taking notice
of there being one more slate in the pile.
Some mediums use two single slates, and, after cleaning them on
both sides, hold one in each hand. They sit a little way from the
table and place the right hand, with the slate, under the chair, as
if to draw the chair closer to the table. What the medium really
accomplishes is an exchange of slates. There is a little shelf, or
drawer, under the seat of the chair. On this lies a slate, one side
of which is prepared with writing. The medium picks up the slate
and leaves behind in its place the one held in his right hand as he
moves the chair. This is a method used to a considerable extent and
always successfully.
The following is a clever ruse, ofttimes used by mediums to destroy
all traces of the use of the false flap when it is employed. It is
the test where the flap is used to cover the writing on one slate,
and then that slate is covered with another. Now, if the slates
are turned over or reversed, the writing is uncovered and the flap
remains in the opposite or underneath slate. Now, to get rid of
that flap, the medium deliberately presses his knee against that
slate, breaking not only the slate, but also the flap contained in
it. The broken flap mingles in with the broken slate, and nobody is
any the wiser. Nobody for a moment thinks of picking up the pieces
to see if there are one or more slates. Of course, when the slates
are broken, it is done secretly under the table, and the medium
remarks: “The spirit force is so strong it has smashed the slate.”
A test with a single slate that I once saw done was rather neat in
its way, and I think it worth describing. The slate was examined
and cleaned on both sides, and placed on a small table covered
with a little fancy cloth. On lifting the slate afterward, its
underneath side was found with writing on it. The top of the table
was no larger than the slate. When the slate was laid on the table,
the medium remarked: “To convince you there is no trickery about
the table, I will remove the cloth;” which he did, with the slate
still on or in it, and then replaced the slate and cloth. Now, on
this table top was resting another slate covered with writing on
one side, and that side upward, and this covered with the table
cloth. When the medium picked up the cloth and the slate, which had
just been cleaned, he also carried along the second slate with it,
which was under the cloth, and in replacing the cloth he simply
reversed the sides, laying the first slate on the table, where it
was covered by the cloth, and the second one was thus brought to
view. It is astonishing how such barefaced and simple devices will
deceive the spectator. It is the boldness and air of conviction of
his assertions that carry a medium’s test successfully through.