sleights already described, or when it is replaced in the pack keep
its position in view. Being previously supplied with a tiny piece of
wax attached to a long hair, press the wax on the card in question,
retaining the hair attached to the thumb or wrist-link. Place the cards
on the table, and by means of the hair pull away from the others the
card that was drawn. The hair will be imperceptible to the audience if
placed facing the performer. While pulling the card away, say that the
card chosen will now walk out of the pack. When it is separated from
the pack the performer should quickly take it, remove the wax, and
expose it to view.
TO DRAW A PARTICULAR CARD FROM A COAT POCKET.
For this trick a _long_ card will be required. _Force_ that card upon
some person, hand him the pack, and request him to be good enough to
place the drawn card in any position in the pack he chooses, and to
place the pack in his own coat pocket, promising that the card drawn
shall be picked out of the pack while in his pocket. The sense of
touch will render the trick perfectly simple, and easy to perform as
promised. The same trick may be varied by placing the cards under a
hat, in a basket, bag, or in any other convenient receptacle.
TO DEAL OUT THE ALTERNATE CARDS IN A PACK SO THAT THE CARDS DEALT OUT
SHALL FALL IN ROTATION AND IN SUITS.
The very greatest care is necessary in arranging the cards for this
trick, as in the event of one card being misplaced, the whole trick
will be spoiled. To arrange the pack sort the suits of spades, clubs,
and diamonds in numerical sequence, and the suit of hearts in the
order of seven, ace, queen, two, eight, three, jack, four, nine, five,
king, six, ten; place the hearts face uppermost so that the seven is
at the bottom and the ten at the top. The other suits are also to be
placed face uppermost, with the aces at the bottom. Sort in together
the suits of clubs and hearts by placing the seven of hearts under the
ace of clubs, the ace of hearts between the ace and two of clubs, and
so on. Place the suit of spades on the top of the suit of diamonds, so
that the ace of spades is immediately atop of the king of diamonds.
Work in together the two half-packs so formed by placing the seven of
hearts under the ace of diamonds, and then take one card alternately
from the bottom of each pack, so that when completely arranged the top
faced card will be the king of spades, and the second card the king of
clubs. The cards are then ready to be brought forward for the trick to
be performed. Turn the pack face downwards, remove the top card and
place it at the bottom, turn up the next card, place the third at the
bottom, turn up the fourth card, and so on, alternately removing a card
to the bottom of the pack and turning up a card. The cards turned up,
commencing with the ace of diamonds, will fall in rotation and in suits.
TO CATCH A SELECTED CARD FROM A PACK THROWN IN THE AIR.
Let a card be drawn by a spectator, replaced by him in the pack, and
by means of the _pass_ or a _false shuffle_ brought to the top by
the performer. _Palm_ the card, again hand the pack to one of the
spectators and request him to throw the whole pack loosely towards you,
and undertake, while the cards are in the air, to pick out the drawn
card. When the cards are thrown thrust the hand smartly into the middle
of the pack, deftly bringing forward the _palmed_ card at the same
time. This is one of the best of the simple sleights-of-hand, and a
little practice will enable any one to make the illusion very pleasing.
THE FOUR RECRUITS.
The following simple deception or puzzle is always received with great
amusement:--Place the four knaves out of an ordinary pack of
cards in a row, state that they represent four recruits, two of whom
were passed, and two refused upon the medical examination owing to a
physical disability; ask the company to designate which were passed
and which refused, and why. Nine people out of ten will fail to detect
any difference, but upon examination of most packs of ordinary cards
it will be found that two of the jacks are printed with _two eyes_ in
each head, whereas the others are printed with _one eye_ only. It may
also be noticed that the kings are usually printed three with two eyes
in each head, and one with one eye only, while the queens are all given
two eyes each. These peculiarities are not so likely to be found in the
modern fanciful cards which are now becoming generally used.
THE FOUR CONFEDERATES.
Let some one draw any four cards from the pack, and tell him to notice
and remember the particulars of one of them. When the four cards are
returned, dexterously place two of them at the bottom and two at the
top of the pack. Under those at the bottom place any other four cards,
and then, taking eight or ten cards from the bottom, spread them out
on the table, and ask if the card fixed upon is among them. If it is
not it will then be apparent that the remembered card is one of the two
at the top of the pack. Make the _pass_ so as to get those two cards
to the bottom of the pack, drawing off the lowest of them; again ask
if that is not the card. If the answer is again "No," bid the right
card to be drawn from the bottom of the pack. If, however, the card
should be among those first shown, the four cards placed under the two
of the four that were held out at the commencement of the trick must
be dexterously removed by making the _pass_ to the top of the pack,
leaving the other two to be dealt with as above described.
THE TRANSMUTABLE CARDS.
For this trick two cards of the same sort, say, for example, the king
of spades, are required in the pack. One of these is to be placed next
to the bottom card, which we will call, but which may be any card, the
seven of hearts. The other is to be placed at the top of the pack; then
shuffle the cards by a false shuffle without disturbing these three
cards, and show some one of the audience that the bottom card is the
seven of hearts. Then privately and secretly drawing this card aside,
take the king of spades from the bottom, which will be supposed to
be the seven of hearts, and place it, face downwards, on the table,
requesting the person to whom the seven of hearts was shown to cover it
with his hand. Again shuffle the cards without displacing the first and
last cards, pass the other king of spades from the top to the bottom
of the pack, and show it to some other person. Draw it privately and
secretly away, bring the seven of hearts to the bottom of the pack,
then place it upon the table and request the second person who believes
it to be the king of spades to cover it with his hand. Take up the
magic wand, wave it, and command the seven of hearts, supposed to be
under the hand of the first person, to change into the king of spades;
and command the king of spades, which is supposed to be under the hand
of the second person, to change into the seven of hearts. Afterwards
request both persons to remove their hands and to take up and show the
cards they have been covering, when, to the astonishment of all, it
will be seen that the performer's commands have been strictly obeyed.
THE TWO CONVERTIBLE ACES.
On the ace of spades fix, by the use of soap or some similar substance,
a heart coloured red, and on the ace of hearts a spade coloured black,
in such a manner that they will easily slip off. Show these two aces
round; then, taking the apparent ace of spades, desire some person to
put his foot or his hand upon it, and during the act of placing on the
ground, or on the table, as the case may be, draw away the spade. In
like manner place the seeming ace of hearts under the foot or hand of
some other person. Then, as in the preceding trick, command the two
aces to change places.
A variety of this trick is sometimes practised with one card only, say
the ace of spades, over which a heart is slightly pasted. After showing
the card to some person, let him hold one end of it, face downwards,
and while he is being amused with the "patter" of the performer who
holds the other end of the card, the heart is slipped off. Then,
placing the card on the table, request that it may be covered with the
hand; knock under the table and command the heart to turn into a spade.
TO TELL THE NUMBER OF CARDS BY THEIR WEIGHT.
Take up a parcel of cards, say forty, among which insert two long
cards; let the first long card be, for example, the fifteenth, and the
other the twenty-sixth from the top. Seem to shuffle the cards, and
then, cutting them at the first long card, poise those cut off in the
left hand, and say, "There should be fifteen cards here." Cut them
again at the second long card, and say, "There are here only eleven
cards." Then holding up the remainder, say, "Here are fourteen cards."
Let the different heaps be then counted, to satisfy the audience as to
the accuracy of the performer's judgment.
TO DISCOVER A CARD DRAWN BY THE THROW OF A DIE.
Prepare a pack of thirty-six cards, in which six different cards are
contained six times. Dispose these cards in such a manner that each of
the six different cards shall follow each other, and let the last of
each suit be a long card. The cards being thus disposed, it follows
that if they are divided into six parcels by cutting at each of the
long cards, these parcels will all consist of similar cards. Let some
person draw a card from the pack, and let him replace it in the parcel
from whence it was drawn, by dexterously offering that pack. Should he
succeed in placing it elsewhere, bring it, by _making the pass_, into
its proper position. Cut the cards several times, so that a long card
may be always at the bottom. Divide the cards in this manner into six
heaps, and giving a die to the person who drew the card, tell him that
the number he throws shall indicate the parcel in which is the card he
drew, which necessarily follows. The performer should place the cards
in his pocket immediately after completing the trick, and be prepared
with another pack to show should any one request to be allowed to
examine the cards.
Many other card tricks might be given that are of a more complicated
nature than the above, but those selected are thoroughly simple and
easy, and of sufficient variety to enable an amateur performer to pass
from one to another without ever being reduced to the necessity of
repetition.
* * * * *
CONJURING WITH AND WITHOUT SPECIAL APPARATUS.
THE TRANSPOSABLE MONEY.
This is a trick fit only for lads with plenty of pocket-money, but
it is both simple and neat. Take two halfpennies and two shillings,
and grind part of each coin on one side only, so that they may be but
of half the usual thickness, then rivet together a shilling and a
halfpenny, and file round the edges of the halfpenny to make it the
same size as the shilling. Place one of these double pieces, with the
shilling upwards, on the palm of the hand, at the bottom of the three
first fingers; place the other piece, with the halfpenny uppermost,
in like manner, on the other hand. Let the spectators notice in which
hand is the halfpenny, and in which the shilling. Then shut both hands,
when the pieces will naturally turn over; open the hands again, and the
coins will apparently have become transposed.
THE PENETRATIVE COIN.
Provide a small box that will shut with a spring, but that can only be
opened with a key, and place this box open in a pocket or some equally
convenient receptacle. Ask some person present to mark a coin, so that
it may be known again, say a shilling, and lend it for the purpose of
the trick. Take this piece in one hand, and being provided with another
coin of the same appearance to place in the other hand, slip the marked
coin dexterously into the small box and close it, change the remaining
coin from one hand to the other, keeping it in view of the company,
in order that it may be supposed to be the marked coin. Place the box
containing the marked coin upon the table, convey away the coin left in
the hand, and pretend to make it pass into the box. Present the box to
the person who lent the coin, and inform him that the marked coin is
therein. Let the key be then given him, and when the box is unlocked,
bid him thoroughly examine the coin, and satisfy himself and the
audience that it is the genuine marked coin handed up by him.
At the best shops at which conjuring apparatus is supplied, boxes
fitting one into the other are provided for this trick, all of which
may be quickly closed at one movement, but which require considerable
manipulation to open one by one.
THE PHANTOM COIN.
Take a sixpence or other small coin, the impression of which is new and
sharply cut, and fasten it unnoticed by means of a bit of common wax to
the end of the thumb. Then, when speaking to some one of the company,
show him the coin, ask him to hold out his hand, in order that the coin
may be placed therein. Keep his eyes turned from his hand by engaging
them in some other direction, press the coin firmly on the palm of his
hand, and bid him close his fingers over the coin, holding it tightly.
The imprint of the coin on the hand will produce a sensation as if
the coin were actually there, but it being stuck to the thumb of the
performer, will, of course, be taken away when the victim closes his
hand. Let the performer then dexterously palm the coin or make away
with it in some other manner, make some cabalistic flourish of the
magic wand, utter some charm, and declare the coin to have vanished.
The person to whom the coin was supposed to be given will, upon opening
and looking at his hand, be astonished to find nothing there.
THE COIN MELTED AND RESTORED.
Borrow from some one of the audience a half-crown piece, for preference
ask for a new coin, and let it be marked before it is handed in.
(N.B.--In conjuring tricks with coins and other articles of common
every-day use, it is always advisable to borrow from the spectators,
as the impression is then conveyed that the articles used are not
specially prepared.) See that there is a good clear space between the
table behind which the conjurer stands and talks, and the audience,
so that without inconveniencing the spectators, or coming too near to
them, he can readily pass round, and stand in front of the table when
the exigencies of the trick require such a position to be taken up.
Provide a lighted candle, and let it be placed upon the table. Having
received the half-crown, look intently at it, rub it smartly on both
sides, place it on the table beside the candlestick, and rub the hands
briskly together--all this by the way of by-play-keeping up in the
meantime some suitable discourse on the nature of metals, the heat
required to melt them, the necessity of developing mesmeric power,
and so on. Take up the coin in the right hand, moving it towards the
left, as though to place it therein, but instead, during its passage,
palm it in the right hand, according to the instructions given for
palming a card.[2] Having pretended to place the coin in the left
hand, close that hand accordingly, as though it really held the coin.
Work about the fingers of that hand, as if to further mesmerise the
coin, and at the same time take the candlestick in the right hand;
this action, while helping the performer the more easily to keep the
coin palmed in a natural manner, will make it appear to the audience
that it is impossible for the coin to have been kept in that hand. The
next appropriate motion is to hold the left hand, still closed, over
the flame of the candle, and to work the fingers as if allowing the
slowly-melting coin to ooze out by degrees, at the same time flicking
the wick of the candle, and if possible damping it slightly, so as
to make it "sputter." In the continuation of the talk, or "patter,"
at this point, call attention to the coin as in the process of being
passed into the candle, open the left hand, and show that the coin is
now no longer therein. After a short lapse of time, and to allow of the
molten silver becoming thoroughly absorbed in the wax or tallow of the
candle, put down the candlestick on the table, and with the fingers
of the right hand (in which, remember, the coin remains palmed) make
believe to draw the now thoroughly melted and absorbed coin out of the
candle through the wick, transferring it bit by bit into the palm of
the left hand. This action should be rapidly performed, and it is well
if, during its progress, the sputtering of the candle can be again
arranged. During the execution of this movement, bring the palmed coin
immediately above the hollow of the left hand, and secretly let it
fall therein. Take the fingers of the right hand from the wick of the
candle, pretend to drop from them the remainder of the recovered metal
into the palm of the left hand, make believe to manipulate it into its
original shape by rubbing it gently with the fingers, as if still hot
and difficult to hold, toss it from hand to hand in order the more
rapidly to cool it, and finally return it to the spectator from whom it
was borrowed.
This is one of the easiest to perform of sleight-of-hand tricks
with coins, but as an introduction to a series of such tricks in a
performance of parlour magic it will be found to be very effective, and
will, if shown in a lively manner, with an accompaniment of appropriate
"patter," never fail to elicit for the encouragement of the performer
considerable applause and admiration.
THE FLYING COINS.
Again ask from some one of the audience the loan of a half-crown piece,
and at the same time take the opportunity--without, however, calling
verbal attention to it--to ostentatiously show the left hand, so that
it may be seen that nothing is held therein. The borrowed coin should
be taken between the finger and thumb of the right hand, and while
it is being handed up, the performer should secretly take a similar
coin from some concealed part of his clothes, and palm it in the right
hand. The palming will be assisted rather than otherwise by taking the
borrowed coin between the thumb and fingers of that hand. That coin is
then to be visibly passed, and distinctly held for a second or two with
the tops of the fingers of the left hand; subsequently, the right hand
is to be brought towards the left, in order that the borrowed coin may
be again visibly taken into the right hand; and while this is being
done the palmed coin being just over the palm of the left hand, should
be secretly let fall therein, just at the moment when the fingers
and thumb of the right hand are taking away the visible coin. As a
consequence, although the borrowed coin will now have been removed from
the left hand, another coin, unknown to the spectators, remains there.
(A little careful practice before a looking-glass will be needed before
the dropping of the secreted coin from the palm of the right hand to
the palm of the left hand can be neatly and artistically managed.) The
pretended passage of the coin from one hand to the other becomes now
a very simple matter. Expatiate upon the great speed at which magic
causes the objects with which it deals to travel, that the closest
possible attention will be needed to detect the coin as it passes; and
as the command "_Pass_" is pronounced, open the left hand, and expose
to the audience the coin hitherto secretly held there; palm the other
coin in the right hand, bringing that hand down carelessly to the side,
or dexterously place the coin in some place of concealment. The latter
can easily and safely be performed, as for some seconds it will be
found that the whole attention of the company will be fixed upon the
coin in the left hand, and a smart natural movement of the right hand
will not then be noticed.
The trick may be continued, and its effect considerably heightened, by
now offering not only to pass another half-crown in the same way, and
adding that, although the pass is too rapid to be made visible, except
to the very quick-sighted, yet, there being two coins involved, it will
be quite possible by the chink to make the pass audible. It will be
evident that the above instructions, with the slight adaptation needed
of jerking the two coins together at the time when the pretended pass
is made, will be all that are sufficient. Another variety of the same
trick, executed in a similar manner, may be performed, to induce the
company to believe that the coins are passed from one hand held on the
top of a table, to the other hand held underneath the table; in short,
there are few tricks so easily and simply capable of variations as
those of the Flying Coins.
THE BOX, THE HALFPENCE, AND THE DIE.
This is a very simple, ingenious little trick, but one that requires
special apparatus, which may, however, be purchased at a trifling cost
at most of the toy-shops, or at any of those establishments from which
conjuring materials are professedly supplied. The materials required
are a block made to represent a pile of ordinary halfpennies (_see_
Fig. 1), out of which a large round piece has been cut (_see_ Fig. 2,
which is Fig. 1 made transparent), and a round pasteboard box that will
cover both blocks (Fig. 3). A loose heap of halfpennies should also be
provided to hand round the room, with a die and a box, in order that
the illusion of the actual halfpennies being used in the performance
of the trick may be kept up. The trick can be best performed by an
operator sitting at one end of a long dining-room table, and, provided
only he is careful to keep his audience at a properly respectful
distance, they may be clustered round the opposite end of the table.
When the exhibited materials have been handed back, the block (Fig. 1)
should be adroitly substituted for the real halfpennies. A simple way
of doing this will be to seem to manipulate the coins into an exactly
even heap; during the manipulation a dexterous movement of one or other
of the hands will enable the necessary change to be made, when the
coins may for convenience, and for the better subsequent developments
of the trick, be placed on a handkerchief or table napkin, spread over
the knees for the purpose. The block (Fig. 1) is to be covered with
the box; the command "Pass" is to be given; the real halfpennies are
to be produced from underneath the table, and thrown thereupon. At
the same time let the box be lifted by slightly pinching it near the
bottom with the finger and thumb of the right hand, by which motion
the block of imitation halfpennies will also be lifted. When the box
is well beyond the edge of the table, and over the lap, relinquish the
pressure, letting the block fall into the lap; throw the box on the
table, and the impression will be created that the halfpennies, upon
being covered with the box, disappeared through, and had to be brought
up from beneath the table. It will be understood that in this simple
deceit, as well as in the more professional sleight-of-hand tricks,
considerable dexterity must be shown to make several of the movements,
that are necessarily described as separate movements, simultaneously.
The die is brought into use in the second part of the trick in the
following manner:--Proceed as above, so far as substituting the real
for the imaginary halfpennies is concerned, and at the same time pass
round the die, in order that it may be duly inspected and examined,
meanwhile place the block in the box secretly, pinching it tightly
so as to hold the block therein. When the die is returned, cover it
visibly with the box, which will secretly contain the block. (Fig. 2).
Pretend to pass the coins up through the table. Remove the box without
removing the block, and it will appear that the magic box has changed
the die into the halfpennies, and that the die has disappeared. It is
scarcely necessary to observe that a reversal of this part of the trick
will, of course, bring back the die, and make the halfpennies disappear.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.--The "Block" of Halfpennies.]
[Illustration: Fig. 2.--The "Block" Showing the Concealed Die.]
[Illustration: Fig. 3.--Pasteboard Box used in the Box, the Halfpence,
and the Die Trick.]
TO PICK A MARKED SHILLING OUT OF A HAT COVERED WITH A HANDKERCHIEF.
Place three shillings taken from some cool place (not the pocket), or
let some one of the audience place three such shillings in a hat, and
cover them with a handkerchief. After this has been done, continue
the "patter" for a minute or two, to allow of the warmth communicated
to the coins by the hand passing away. Then hand the hat and coins to
any one of the audience, and request him to remove any one, but only
one, of the coins. By asking him whether he will be able to recognise
that particular coin again, induce him to retain it for as long a time
as possible in his hand, and, in order that there may really be no
mistake, instruct him how to distinctly mark it by scratching it with
a knife, or in some other equally effectual manner. It is important
that the person taking and marking the coin should not wear gloves.
When all this has been done, let the coin be again placed in the hat,
and covered with the handkerchief. The warmth of the hand of the person
who marked the coin will have made it perceptibly warmer than the other
two, and if the performer is tolerably quick in thrusting his hand into
the hat, there will be no difficulty in detecting this warmth, and
selecting the marked coin. It is not necessary, however, that it be at
once brought out; the performer should make-believe to search for it
for some time before finally withdrawing and exhibiting it.
BURNING THE HANDKERCHIEF.
This is a good sleight-of-hand trick for amateurs. It requires no
special apparatus, and, as here described, gives a good illustration
of the many uses to which the magic wand may be put. Place a lighted
candle on some small table near to, but well removed from contact
with, the spectators; show both hands perfectly empty; borrow a
pocket-handkerchief from some lady present. (N.B.--The handkerchief
should, for the convenience of the performer, be of a small size, and
therefore a lady's handkerchief is preferable.) Take the handkerchief
by the centre, pull it carefully between the left finger and thumb,
and advance to the candle. Before burning it, however, stop and say,
as if in answer to some remark overheard, "Oh, no; the handkerchief
has not been changed. See!" and, at the same time, allow another
inspection of it. Suggest now to its owner that, if burned, she will
desire her handkerchief to be restored again to its proper condition,
and such being the case, announce the necessity of the magic wand
for that purpose. Return to the table on which the wand will have
been placed, which should be some table other than that on which the
candle is standing, and at the same time place, unperceived, between
the left thumb and forefinger, a small piece of material similar to
that out of which a handkerchief is made. The centre of this piece of
cambric should be pointed outwards so that it may be readily pulled
out at the desired moment, the remainder being neatly rolled up and
palmed under the thumb. Place the wand in one of the coat pockets,
and again take the handkerchief, putting it this time into the left
hand, and pull up the small piece of material, completely hiding the
centre of the real handkerchief between the second and third finger
and the palm of the hand. The portion of the smaller material sticking
out from the thumb and forefinger may now be safely burnt, and the
audience may be challenged to see there is no doubt but that it is the
actual handkerchief. (Of course in this, as in all tricks, no person
from the audience must be allowed to approach the performer, except
upon invitation; and, indeed, it is almost always better that articles
to be inspected should be taken by the performer to the audience;
if the audience approaches near to the tricks when being performed
the illusion is generally weakened, if not altogether spoiled.) The
handkerchief being apparently burned at its centre, may, what remains
of it, be now rolled up into a ball, and while this is being done, the
actually burnt piece of material should be separated from the real
handkerchief; then take the magic wand from the pocket, and in doing
so, drop the small semi-burnt piece of cambric, unperceived, into that
pocket, touch the handkerchief with the wand, and return it to its
owner to be examined, when it will be found to be perfectly whole.
THE AUGMENTED COINS.
On a small tray or salver place a number of counters, gilt in imitation
of sovereigns (these counters may be purchased at a very small cost),
and ask of the audience if some one of their number will kindly give
permission to have the coins passed into his hands or pockets. Several
of those present will doubtless volunteer the necessary permission, but
the performer may then protest that one will be sufficient to show his
power, and however much of a wizard he may be, he yet cannot endow all
present with unlimited wealth. The conjurer may further remark that
he will be open and above board, that he will pass coins from himself
to some one of the audience unseen, and without the knowledge of that
one himself. The performer will do well to select for the trick some
person whose countenance indicates an easy disposition, and such an one
should be invited to take from the tray a handful of the coins. This
having been done, the remainder of the counters should be emptied from
the tray on to the table. The person who has taken the handful of coins
should next be asked to count them, and the performer at the same time
must approach him, with the empty salver, carefully held between the
thumb and forefinger of the right hand, in order that the coins, as
they are counted, may be placed therein. It may here be observed that
in the right hand and underneath the salver the performer should have
concealed a small number of similar coins or counters; for convenience
of illustration we will say seven. These counters may very easily be
concealed from sight, inasmuch as the three last fingers which are
to hold them will be naturally covered by the tray. As the assisting
spectator--who, by the way, should be no confederate--counts the
coins one by one, repeat after him the numbers as they are named, to
prevent any mistake or misunderstanding, until he has finished, having
reached, we will suppose, _twenty-two_. He should now be requested to
be good enough to take in one of his hands these twenty-two pieces,
and the performer, suiting the action to the word, will here pour the
twenty-two coins or counters into his own right hand, where they may be
made to imperceptibly mingle with the seven already concealed there, as
before mentioned, and at once the whole twenty-nine should be handed to
and placed boldly into the offered hand of the spectator. As a matter
of experience, it will be found that seven coins so added to twenty-two
will not be detected; but as a further precaution, and to prevent the
possibility of the counters being again numbered, ask the assisting
spectator to keep the hand holding the coins as tightly closed as
possible, and in the other hand to hold the salver, in order still
further to give his assistance and to prove that the salver has nothing
to do with the deception.
The operator should now return to his platform, or behind his conjuring
table, and request that the coins may be held out in the clenched palm
on a level with the heads, or rather a little above the heads, of the
audience generally, in order that no one may be struck by the coins
that are to be made to pass from the performer to take their place
with those held out. The performer himself takes up from the table a
number of counters, say eight, deliberately counting them one by one
as they are taken, and allowing the entire audience to see that here
again there is no deception. (N.B.--Unimportant movements like this
should always be deliberately done.) The spectator whose assistance
hitherto may be described as so valuable should now be asked if he
has any objection to urge why these further eight coins or counters
should not be passed from the performer on the stage or platform to
him at his seat among the audience in the body of the room. It may
confidently be reckoned upon that no objection will be urged. Here,
again, as a preliminary to the final movement by a repetition both
from the performer and the spectator, announce the number of counters
(twenty-two) that are believed to be in the hand of the latter, and
point out that with the eight about to be passed to him there should
then be thirty. At this juncture the eight coins must be dropped into
the hollow of the left hand of the performer; he should bend forward
towards that part of the audience where the assistant for the time
being is situated, and ask him to make a similar movement towards the
platform, the performer indicating by means of his _right_ hand the
exact direction in which the assistant should move. This motion of
the right hand will momentarily divert the attention of the audience
generally from the left hand, which is to be taken advantage of by
secreting the coins in some part of the attire of the performer.
Everything is now ready to make the necessary "pass," and it may now
be done at the first convenient point of the performer's address.
Give the order "pass," and ask whether the shock of the advent of the
additional counters was not felt. At any rate, ask the audience to
verify, by counting, that the additional coins have duly reached the
assistant's hand; and while all eyes are so occupied get possession
secretly of another counter, and hold it, unperceived, in the right
hand. It will be readily understood that the assistant will have but
twenty-nine counters in his hand, inasmuch as the actual number added
was only seven. Possibly, however, he will be so overwhelmed at the
operation that has been apparently performed that one counter more or
less will not be noticed; or, indeed, he may mis-count one, and, if
so, the trick may be allowed to end; but if not, some allusion to the
thirtieth coin having been dropped in its transit may be made, and
the one palmed in the conjurer's right hand may be apparently brought
out of a handkerchief, fan, lap, or pocket of some one of the other
intervening spectators. At any rate, a careful reading of previously
and subsequently described sleight-of-hand tricks will suggest to an
ingenious lad many methods by which, with the aid of the additional
coin, the latter part of the trick may be extended and varied.
TO GUESS THE TWO ENDS OF A LINE OF DOMINOES.
For this trick a whole set of dominoes is required, and from the set
the performer should secretly secure one which is not a double. Let
the remaining dominoes be well shuffled, and placed according to the
ordinary rules of domino games, and the performer may safely and surely
undertake to tell, without seeing them, the two numbers forming the
extremes of the line which may have been placed during his absence
from the room. The numbers on the extreme ends of the domino line will
correspond with the numbers on the domino secreted by the performer. If
the trick has for any good reason to be repeated, see that the secreted
domino is exchanged for another.
Numerous other simple domino tricks will on this model occur to
frequent players with dominoes, and, indeed, many of the card tricks
may be so adapted as to be shown with dominoes instead of cards. So
much space has been devoted to card tricks that the reader cannot do
better, if he desires to show some domino tricks, than refer back to
the card tricks, and make the necessary adaptations for himself.
THE LOST RING RECOVERED.
This is a trick suitable to the abilities of any amateur, and requires
but little in the way of apparatus, a couple of common toy jewellery
rings, a piece of elastic thread, and a lemon being the appliances
needed. Take a piece of elastic thread, from three to four inches
long; let one end be fastened to one of the rings and the other to the
inside of the performer's coat-sleeve, care being taken to have the
elastic of such a length that it permits the ring to be placed on the
finger, and that when the ring is removed it will fly up the sleeve,
so as to be concealed from the audience. Before commencing to show the
trick, a lemon should be procured, and in the middle of it a slit be
cut crosswise, and into the slit the second ring should be pushed until
it lies in the very centre of the lemon. The slit should be carefully
cut so as to remove no portion of the rind; it will then be found that
when the ring has been pushed into the lemon the slit will close up
and be imperceptible, unless its existence is known. The lemon should
then be cut into slices, nearly but not quite severed, and held so
that if anything were between the slices it would fall out. Of course,
care must be taken that the lemon is so cut as to allow the ring to be
in the middle of one of the slices. A piece of tape and a bodkin have
next to be borrowed. The end of the tape should be slipped through the
eye of the bodkin, and pushed lengthways through the lemon in such a
way that it is passed through the ring. The ends of the tape may now
be given to two different spectators, and they should be instructed to
keep the tape at full stretch. The first ring worn on the performer's
finger, and to which the elastic is attached, must at this juncture be
slipped from off the finger, and held between the thumb and finger,
care being taken that it is so held that the audience cannot see the
elastic thread. The hand should be pointed towards the lemon, the
fingers being then suddenly spread out, and the ring let go, and
it will fly away and become hidden up the performer's coat-sleeve.
Surprise at this sudden disappearance of the ring may be expressed, but
it should be surmised that as it was the performer's intention to pass
it into the lemon, perhaps the lost jewel may of its own accord have
taken its flight thither. Let the performer then go to the lemon, and
separating the divisions into which it has been sliced, push them one
by one apart. Each outer slice should be alternately taken and pulled
off from the tape, keeping the central slice until the last. When this
is reached, again take the knife and cut the slice gradually down,
carefully destroying the slit through which the ring was passed, and
continue cutting until the metal of the ring is visible. The performer
should let some one of the audience disengage the embedded ring, which
will, of course, be found strung upon the tape.
TO GET A RING OUT OF A HANDKERCHIEF.
Obtain a piece of gold or brass wire, and bend it into the form of
a wedding-ring, seeing first that both ends are sharpened. Borrow
from one member of the audience a handkerchief and from another a
wedding-ring, unless the performer has previously provided himself with
a suitable ring for the trick. At any rate, palm the false ring, and
allow the real ring to be inspected by handing it round to the company,
and announce that it is to be made to pass through the handkerchief.
The performer then takes the borrowed handkerchief, and places his hand
underneath it, at the same time substituting the false ring, which
had been previously concealed by being palmed, for the actual ring,
which will in the meantime have been received back again. The false
ring now has to be pressed against the centre of the handkerchief,
and an independent person should be desired to hold the ring covered
by the handkerchief by closing his finger and thumb through the hoop
of the ring. Two other spectators may also here be asked, the one to
hold the handkerchief by two of its corners, and the other by the
other corners, keeping it as far as possible at full stretch, so that
it may be clearly seen that the ring in the handkerchief has not been
merely placed in one of its folds. When the audience have had time to
satisfy themselves on this point, those holding the corners of the
handkerchief may be relieved from their duties, the person holding the
ring, however, still retaining his hold. Request now some other person
to grasp the handkerchief as tightly as he pleases some two or three
inches or more below the ring, the person holding the ring being then
asked to let go. Let a hat or some other object be now held by some
person other than the performer over that part of the handkerchief
that is being grasped and that contains the false ring; the performer
then passes his hand under the hat, opens the false ring by bending
one of its sharpened points a little asunder, brings that point gently
_through_ the fabric of the handkerchief, draws out the remainder, and
carefully rubs the hole made thereby in the handkerchief, in order that
the hole may be concealed. The actual ring should not be placed outside
and over the handkerchief, and upon the hat being removed it will
appear to the audience that the ring has been taken from the inside
and placed over a portion of the handkerchief. The false ring will, of
course before this point of the trick, have been palmed or otherwise
got rid of.
* * * * *
In this short account of card, coin, and other conjuring tricks we
have purposely avoided describing such tricks as require either a long
training or expensive apparatus; but in order to show more clearly
what a very simple affair conjuring is, we will here give an account
of two professional conjuring tricks that have attained a world-wide
celebrity. The first given is a description of the celebrated
Gold-fish Trick, as performed by Herr Frikell, which trick, by the
way, dates long before Frikell's time, although the charm with which
he conjured, by combining the genius of the actor with that of the
conjurer, has given him such a pre-eminence in what he undertook as
to make old tricks appear to be invested with a new charm. The second
description is Robert Houdin's own account of the Cups and Balls Trick,
modifications of which have often been published under the title of
"The Travelled Balls."
THE GOLD-FISH TRICK; OR, HOW TO BRING BOWLS OF WATER IN WHICH
GOLD-FISHES ARE SWIMMING OUT OF AN EMPTY CLOTH.
The performer advances on the stage, and stands quite apart from
any surrounding objects; there is nothing in his dress in any way
unusual, and in his hand he holds an ordinary cloth about four feet
square, which the audience is permitted to examine. Upon the cloth
being returned to him by the audience, he throws it over his left
arm and hand, and after a few seconds produces from under it a glass
bowl full of water, in which gold-fishes are seen swimming; the cloth
is again thrown into the air, shaken, and examined, and the trick is
repeated until four large bowls have been produced from apparently
nowhere. The following describes how the trick is accomplished:--Fig.
2 represents an india-rubber cover, the diameter (_a b_) being about
the same diameter as the top of the bowl; the whole cover turns over
the edge flat about two or three inches, so that the opening (_c d_) is
considerably smaller than the diameter (_a b_). After the bowl (Fig.
1) has been about three-parts filled with water, and two or three
fishes placed in it, the cover (Fig. 2) is stretched over the bowl
(Fig. 3); the part of the cover _a b_ (Fig. 2) is, of course, drawn
over the rim of the bowl (_a´ b´_, Fig. 3); and the part _c d_ (Fig.
2) is in contact with the outside top part of the bowl (_c´ d´_, Fig.
3). The bowl, as now covered, can be turned upside down and carried
sideways, without any fear whatever of the water being spilt. The next
point is how to conceal it about one's person. Fig. 4 represents a
small black bag capable of holding two bowls side by side (_i.e._,
the glass bottom of one in contact with the india-rubber cover of the
other), which is tied round the waist, the tail of a dress-coat being
amply sufficient to hide it. The sleight-of-hand required in performing
the trick is to manage the cloth so that it hides the movement of
the right hand and arm in bringing the bowl out of the pocket into
position. When the bowl is brought under the cloth, rest the bowl on
the right hand, and bring away the left from under the cloth. In taking
off the cloth, incline the bowl very slightly towards one end, peel
off the india-rubber cover by means of the left-hand finger and thumb
inside the cloth. The cover remains in the cloth, and must be conveyed
away into any pocket during the public examination of the bowl. The
direction of the conjurer's eyes must be with the bowl, as should the
eyes rest on the cloth after the bowl has been taken out, people will
at once suspect that there is something there, and possibly put awkward
questions, or ask to examine the cloth too soon. To bring out the four
bowls the conjurer must, after exposing the first two, have the pocket
(Fig. 4) replenished by leaving the stage or retiring to one of the
wings, and allowing two more to be placed therein, unperceived by the
audience, by an assistant.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.--Bowl with Gold-fish.]
[Illustration: Fig. 2.--India-rubber Cover.]
[Illustration: Fig. 3.--The Bowl Covered Over.]
[Illustration: Fig. 4.--The Small Bag for Carrying the Bowls.]
HOUDIN'S CUPS AND BALLS CONJURING TRICKS.
The trick of the cups and balls, though one of the oldest known to
conjurers, still remains one of the most interesting, by reason of the
very slight preparation needed for its exhibition and the simplicity of
its mode of performance.
The apparatus required are (1) three cups, (2) a magic wand, (3)
six small balls, (4) six large balls, and (5) either a bag or shelf
placed secretly on the performer's side of the conjuring table. The
cups should be of polished tin; in form they are truncated cones; the
top is concave, so as to afford a resting place for at least three
of the small balls. The magic wand has been previously referred to,
and one is just as good as another. The small balls, or _muscades_,
as Houdin calls them, are made of cork, and should be a trifle more
than half an inch in diameter. The large balls are made of horsehair,
and covered with leather or woollen cloth. This covering is made
of various colours, according to the particular "passes" which the
performer intends to exhibit. Some balls are also made parti-coloured,
two of the segments being of one colour and two of another. The bag,
or _gibecière_, is made of some tolerably thick material, and is tied
round the waist by strings. It has a wide-mouthed opening, allowing
the hand to take freely therefrom the various articles needed for the
performance of the trick, but it may be dispensed with in the event
of a secret shelf being fitted in the performer's side of the table.
Conjuring tables of special make have, as a rule, all the essential
requirements; but it is not difficult for an ingenious lad to arrange
the necessary table for himself out of a common discarded washstand.
The sleight-of-hand required for the manipulation of the cups and balls
is: (1) To conjure away a small ball, (2) to produce the ball when
required at the tips of the fingers, (3) to secretly introduce a small
ball under a cup or between two cups, (4) to cause a small ball placed
between two cups to disappear, (5) to introduce a large ball under a
cup, (6) to execute sundry "feints," hereafter described.
(1) _To conjure away a small ball._--To do this proceed as
follows:--Hold the ball to be conjured away between the thumb and first
finger, as though to show it, close the hand quickly, leaving the thumb
still outstretched. The ball is so made to roll to the second joint
of the forefinger. Nothing will then be easier than to continue to
roll the ball with the thumb as far as the junction of the two fingers
before mentioned, which are to be slightly opened to facilitate the
introduction of the ball. These two movements are in reality but one,
and must be executed with extreme rapidity.
(2) _To produce a small ball._--The reverse movement to that last
described must be employed: that is to say, roll back the ball with
the thumb to the tips of the fingers. Rapidity in effecting the double
movement is here also most essential.
(3) _To secretly introduce a small ball under a cup._--The ball being
hidden in the hand between the middle and fourth fingers, take hold of
the cup between the two projecting mouldings, and lift it ostensibly to
show that there is nothing beneath it; in replacing it on the table let
go the ball, which by reason of its position naturally falls underneath
the cup, by which it is instantly covered. If the performer finds any
difficulty in releasing the ball, he may facilitate the doing so by a
quick contraction of the fourth finger.
(4) _To pass a small ball between two cups._--In the act of releasing,
as just described, give the ball an upward jerk towards the upper part
of the inside of the cup held in the hand, and quickly slip this cup
over that on which it is desired that the ball should be found.
(5) _To cause the disappearance of a small ball placed between two
cups._--When a ball has been placed as above described, it may in the
following manner be made to disappear:--Take the two cups in the left
hand, putting the fingers of that hand inside the lower cup, and giving
a slight upward jerk, as though to send the ball towards the top of the
upper cup, quickly withdraw the lower cup, at the same time lowering
the upper cup, and so covering and concealing the ball.
(6) _To cause the appearance of a large ball on a table._--This effect,
which generally produces special astonishment, is produced by the
simplest possible means. Lift one of the cups with the right hand, and
point to the spot from which it was removed. While the eyes of the
audience are directed to that spot bring the cup adroitly to the edge
of the table, introduce into it, with the left hand, one of the large
balls, and immediately bring the cup and the ball to the middle of
the table, keeping the ball in position with the little finger of the
right hand. In some cases, in putting the ball into the cup, it may
be squeezed in order to make it stick in the bottom; the elasticity
of the ball will readily admit of this. When it is desired again to
produce the ball it will only be necessary to bring down the cup with a
smartish rap on the table.
The "passes" of the cups and balls may be varied indefinitely. Every
conjurer arranges a series to suit his own taste, and the examples we
have here selected will be sufficient for the guidance of amateurs.
It must, however, be admitted that there is but little substantial
difference between the passes. The effect is always one or more balls
made to appear in one place when the spectators believe them to be
in another. It follows that these passes, however varied in point of
form, should be exhibited with moderation, so as not to weary the
audience, or to put sharp-sighted and curious spectators in the way of
discovering how the tricks are performed.
* * * * *
CLAIRVOYANCE OR SECOND SIGHT.
Second Sight is properly classified with Parlour Magic, inasmuch as
there is more in it than is intended to meet the eyes or ears of the
audience, and "Clairvoyance" now almost invariably forms some part of
the entertainment given by the majority of professed conjurers. It is
much beyond our province to go into the description of the elaborate
training that Robert Houdin and his sons went through before they
were able to give their renowned representations; but with them
_sharp-sightedness_, combined with a wonderful power of taking into
the mind, at a glance, numerous objects, was of more importance than
_Second Sight_, whatever scientists may decide that faculty to be.
_Clairvoyance, or Second Sight_, when applied to conjurers' tricks
and private entertainments, is the art of telling the name and
description of articles by a person whose eyes are blindfolded. Much
as _Clairvoyance_ has, from time to time, astonished people before
whom it has been represented, but who have not been initiated into its
mysteries, and much as it undoubtedly will still continue to mystify,
yet, when its first principles are mastered, it will be seen by all
that, although it may form the basis of capital entertainments, yet
it, like the conjuring tricks we have already described, is not, after
all, so wonderful as was imagined. The whole system of presumed _Second
Sight_ rests with two persons (or more, if necessary); the one advances
to the audience to receive such articles as it may be desired to ask
questions about of the other, who is blindfolded, and who is supposed
to possess the power or faculty of _Second Sight_. These questions
and answers are arranged into a system which constitutes the art of
_Clairvoyance_. Sometimes, too, confederates with articles already seen
by the blindfolded performer take part in the deception as part of
the audience; but, in an ordinary way, this is not at all necessary.
In our system, which will require some pains and care to carry out,
there should be a series of questions, each one of which will denote
the answer to be given. The questions should be very simple, so as not
themselves to appear strange or leading, and the questions, with the
corresponding answers, must be carefully committed to memory by _both_
performers. In order that the manner of the deception may be thoroughly
understood, we give just a few illustrations of the system of questions
and answers, which will be useful as models to those desiring to
draw up a set for themselves. We will suppose that some articles of
jewellery have been handed in for the clairvoyant to name. The other
performer will proceed, according to the articles handed in, with the
following questions, first saying himself, "Now, I have had passed to
me some articles of jewellery, which the clairvoyant will describe, and
I will proceed to question him about them."
If the article first held up is a bracelet, the question may be--"_Let_
the company know what I hold in my hand."
If a watch--"_What_ is this that you are to describe?"
If a brooch--"_Now_ what do I hold up?"
If an ear-ring--"To what _use_ is this put?"
If a gentleman's watch-chain--"Say, in _brief_, what I have in my hand."
If a ladies' watch-chain--"Describe, at _length_, what I have in my
hand."
If a gentleman's ring--"Say, what is in my _hand now_?"
If a lady's ring--"Say _now_, what is in my _hand_?"
If a breast-pin--"Say what I hold up now."
If a stud--"What is this for?"
The words italicised should be pronounced with emphasis, as they will
give the clue needed; certain articles cannot be so well indicated in
the questions, and greater care must therefore be taken in committing
the corresponding questions and answers to memory.
Suppose, further, that a brooch has been held up, and that it has to
be more fully described, proceed by telling the audience that the
blindfolded clairvoyant will say of what metal the brooch is made.
If of gold--Question to put--"If of gold or silver?"
If of silver--"If of silver or gold?"
If neither gold nor silver, but a common imitation--"Of what metal is
this brooch made?"
If set with stones--"Is it set with a stone or stones?"
If unset--"How is it set?"
If with a topaz--"_Tell_ the name of the stone."
If with an emerald--"_Endeavour_ to name the setting."
If with pearls--"_Please_ say how set."
If with opals--"Kindly name the setting to the company."
If with diamonds--"_Describe_ the stone with which it is set?"
If with turquoise--"I must _trouble you_ to name the setting."
If with garnets--"_Guess_ the setting."
If with jet--"_Just_ say the nature of the setting."
If with cornelian--"_Come_, now! what is the setting?"
If with amethyst--"_Announce_ the name of the stone."
And so on, arranging questions for colours, for materials, for
miscellaneous articles, such as personal wearing apparel, chimney
ornaments, nicknacks, &c. &c.
* * * * *
VENTRILOQUISM AND POLYPHONY.
These are two distinct branches of the same art or science of sounds,
which may be cultivated by all, but with a success that will vary
according to the special gifts or endowments of the student. Those
possessed of ventriloquial powers have the opportunity of considerably
annoying their fellow mortals if so inclined, but on the other hand
they have also the means of affording them very considerable amusement
and entertainment.
_Ventriloquism_ is a vocal mimicry of sounds, by which an illusion
is produced on the hearer that the sound comes, not from the mimic,
but from some external source. The various descriptions of vocal
mimicry are usually treated under two heads, namely:--1st, The simple
imitation of the voices of persons, animals, musical instruments, and
other sounds and noises of every description, in which no illusion is
intended, and which is generally known by the name of _Polyphony_; 2nd,
the imitation of those voices, sounds, and noises not as originating
in the mimic, but in some other and appropriate source at a given or
varying distance, in any or even in several directions successively,
and which goes by the more general designation of _Ventriloquism_.
The above may be taken as a scientific and fairly accurate definition
of the terms in question; and if in the treatment of this subject the
distinctions above laid down are not strictly adhered to, they will be
departed from only so far as it will be necessary to make the subject
interesting to the reader and easily understood by the student. For
the encouragement of all, we would say that more or less success as
a ventriloquist may be attained by any one. Indeed, Professor Lee
states that he attained the art without a single lesson and as the
result merely of observation and practice. He says further that the
chief requisites for its acquirement are--"A throat and lungs of
average strength, ability to retain sounds in the memory, and the
faculty of mimicry as to tone, look, and even gait, for these in no
small degree contribute to the effect which the artist desires to
produce." It is not at all an unusual thing to meet persons able to
describe and imitate minutely a conversation carried on between half
a dozen persons. To a certain extent this is ventriloquism, and the
gift is capable of very considerable development. In short, the young
practitioner must have the power of enunciating well, and that as far
as possible without any perceptible motion of the lips; of disguising
his voice, so as to imitate other voices and sounds, and of adapting
the degree to the apparent source of the sound.
The relative properties of sound and capacity of hearing are so little
understood, that it is generally supposed a ventriloquist throws his
voice somewhere or other, as it is loosely expressed; a ventriloquist
is often asked, for example, to throw his voice up a chimney or outside
the house. This, of course, is a feat impossible to perform; all the
ventriloquist can do is to speak and utter sounds with precisely
similar organs to those possessed by every one. A ventriloquist does,
however, imitate sounds that strike the ear, as if caused by some
object at a distance. For example, a ventriloquist in imitating the
music which cats so much delight to indulge in on the roofs during
a summer's night, does not trouble himself to make the fearful row
the cats make, but only the sound of the row as it comes to the ear
subdued by distance and by passing through the intermediate ceilings
and walls. It is most important that this distinction between noises as
they are and noises as they are heard, should be constantly borne in
mind during the practice of ventriloquism, and it should be remembered,
as an axiom by all learners of the art, that "near sounds are louder
than distant ones, and _vice versâ_." The fact that _loudness_ as a
property of sound is so little understood is one of the main causes of
the success of so many ventriloquists. The performer by his speech or
his acting leads the audience to expect to hear sounds as from a given
quarter, and the sounds being heard as from an unknown quarter are
believed to be from the quarter indicated. A strange sound being heard
by a roomful of people will elicit cries all round of, "What was that?"
hardly two of the company attributing the sound to the same cause,
and possibly all to the wrong one. One of the commonest and easiest
of ventriloquial deceptions is that of making a man's voice issue as
it were from the chimney. As, however, no one present will be likely
ever to have heard an actual voice proceeding from a chimney, it will,
nine cases out of ten, be the speech or action of the practitioner
accompanied by a strange or unknown sound that will give the real
force to the deception. As a consequence, therefore, it follows that a
ventriloquist, to amuse his audience, must have powers over and beyond
those needed for mimicking sounds; he must be somewhat of an actor;
and as in conjuring, so in this, he must indulge in abundance of what
we then termed "patter." The ventriloquist's deceptions must be well
practised and frequently rehearsed, but he must also well prepare and
study the discourse of which his ventriloquial powers will be but the
illustration.
Baron Mengen, a celebrated ventriloquist, says of himself, that to make
sounds appear muffled or to come from a distance he presses his tongue
against the teeth, and thus "circumscribes a cavity between the left
cheek and the teeth, in which cavity the voice is produced by the air
held in reserve." He furthermore adds, that it is necessary to well
manage the breath, and to respire as seldom as possible.
The ventriloquist must understand the difference between vocal and
other sounds, as embodying the distinction between _ventriloquism_ in
its highest development and mere _polyphony_. Mere sounds, that are
not vocal sounds, can be produced in the vocal tube apart from the
larynx. Some of them are of a definite and uniform pitch, while others
are mere noises, such as rustling, whispering, gurgling, snoring, and
many others. On the contrary, phonation, or the production of voice, is
a result of actions taking place under mechanical laws of acoustics,
combined with the physiological laws of muscular movement. The pitch of
the voice essentially depends on the tension of the vocal ligaments,
the loudness of their vibration, and the quality depends on the form
and size of the vocal tube and the organisation of the larynx. The form
and size of the vocal tube may be altered by dilating or contracting
the pharynx, by dilating or contracting the mouth, by contracting
the communication between the pharynx and the mouth, by altering the
form of the mouth's cavity, and in other minor ways; and it will be
found that each of these modifications of the vocal tube confers a
peculiarity of quality to the voice.
The mimicry of mere sounds will be found by the young practitioner to
be a comparatively easy matter, and he may soon be able to entertain
his friends with fairly accurate imitations of the buzzing and humming
of flies, bees, wasps, and other insects; of knife-grinding, of sawing
and planing of wood, of falling objects, of cats mewing, of dogs
barking, &c. &c. Instructions as to how to imitate these various sounds
would be of little use; each one must find out for himself. In fact,
an ear acutely perceptive to the nice distinctions of sound is about
the only real qualification needed for the attainment of success in the
practice of _polyphony_, as distinct from _ventriloquism_.
In treating the higher part of the subject, which deals with these
illusions in which the voice counterfeits sounds, and also represents
them in such a manner that they appear to issue from their appropriate
source, some further remarks are needed on the questions of _direction_
and _distance_ of sounds. A little way back we repudiated the idea
that ventriloquists threw their voices anywhere; and we return now to
the subject to explain away the delusion, or rather the ignorance out
of which the idea has grown. Man does not hear the distance which a
sound has travelled; he only judges the distance from experience, by
comparing the loudness with which he hears with the known distance
and corresponding loudness of similar sounds. Experience proves, as
previously stated, that error is generally the result of attempting
off-hand to decide either the distance or the direction of an unknown
sound. Bearing in mind, then, that near sounds are louder than distant
ones, sounds having the same pitch, quality, and duration, may be
produced with a graduated reduction or increase of loudness, which,
falling in succession on the ear, will suggest to the mind a varying
distance of the sound's source. The young practitioner should put this
theory into practice, and, at the same time, imitate the sounds of
voices and objects heard at different known distances. By these means
he will the more readily be able to reproduce such sounds when they are
required to form some part of his entertainment. For his encouragement
he should also remember that slight defects in the imitation of
distant voices and sounds may be expected to pass without question.
Further, if the _distance_ from which a sound has travelled is rarely
accurately judged, the would-be ventriloquist will be still further
encouraged by learning that the judgment as to the _direction_ whence
a sound comes is still more fallible. It is notorious, for example,
that a person in a house cannot, by the noise made by an approaching
carriage, judge with any degree of certainty whether it is coming from
the right or the left. The direction whence a sound comes seems to be
judged of by the right or left ear receiving the stronger impression;
but this, of course, can only be when the sounds come from the level,
or thereabouts, of the ear; if above, this mode of judgment, however
accurate it may be made by practice, fails; hence it is that professed
ventriloquists make so many of their unseen characters speak either
from above or below the audience. The practice of holding an apparent
conversation with some imaginary person, or persons, on the roof or
below the floor, almost invariably forms parts of a ventriloquial
entertainment, the performer indicating, either directly or indirectly,
the direction from which he wishes his audience to believe the sound
is coming. Directly, by asking questions such as "Are you up there?"
"Are you down below?" or indirectly, by holding the hand to the ear
and straining, as if listening for sounds from above or below, as the
case may be. By these and similar means, before a sound is produced,
the audience will be prepared to expect it to come from the suggested
direction, and the ventriloquist has merely, by his adjustment of the
vocal loudness, to indicate the necessary distance, when the error in,
or want of judgment of the audience, will complete the illusion which
he has thus already commenced. It has been observed by careful students
of the art that the effect which is produced on sound by its travelling
a distance from any direction is--
1. That its loudness is reduced in proportion to the distance.
2. That its pitch remains unaltered.
3. That its quality or tone is somewhat softened.
4. That its duration remains unaltered.
5. That human speech is somewhat obscured, chiefly in the consonant
sounds.
It is very necessary that the student should study and bear in mind
the full meaning and bearing of these five observations, and that his
action should be guided thereby, remembering that the ventriloquist
imitates the sound, _not as it is heard at its source_, but as it is
heard after travelling from its source to the ear, that is, _as it
strikes the ear_. A skilful ventriloquist will effect his imitations
without any scarcely perceptible movement of his lips, jaws, or
features; but when such movements are absolutely necessary, he will
contrive not to let the audience see them, by turning away for the
moment, his face from the audience, sometimes even not showing so much
as the profile. With a little practice it will soon become easy to
speak without moving the jaw, and it is the movements of the jaw which
disturb the features. The labial sounds, such as _b_, _p_, _m_, when
the jaw is thus fixed, can be made with the slightest possible motion
of the lips. During ventriloquy, the lips and jaws being always more
or less open, this slight labial movement generally remains unnoticed,
unless special attention be directed to it. Practice, too, should be
made to produce all the modifications of the voice without distorting
the features or moving the lips more than is absolutely necessary.
The preceding outline of the philosophy of ventriloquism is sufficient
to exhibit the nature of the art, and we will now proceed with a few
hints as to how certain sounds are to be produced, premising, however,
that they will not be numerous, as no definite rules can be laid down.
A bass and somewhat sepulchral tone is produced in the lower part of
the throat, in much the same manner as when attempting to gurgle,
except that the lips should remain closed, and the head kept in its
natural position.
The greater the distance from which a sound has apparently to come,
the nearer must the tip of the tongue be brought to the front of the
mouth, the greater must be the contraction of the muscles, and the
articulation must be made in the upper part of the throat.
The natural voice may be easily disguised by wearing a pair of
pince-nez spectacles, with a very strong spring. The spring pressing on
the air-passages of the nose will considerably alter the tone of the
voice.
To make the sound of a voice appear as coming from the other side of a
partition, or through a door, it is only necessary to open the mouth
slightly, to fix the jaws fast, to draw back and roll the tongue, and
then to speak; the sound then, instead of being formed in the mouth,
will be formed in the pharynx, and appear to come from beyond such
material as may be indicated by the action or natural speech of the
performer.
To imitate the sound of the same voice after the door has been opened,
or the partition removed, requires somewhat different management. The
voice must not, of course, be altered from the original pitch, but
must be made in another part of the mouth. To do this, the lips should
now be tightly closed, one corner of the mouth (that away from the
audience) should be drawn downwards towards the ear, the lips opened
at that corner only, and the words to be spoken breathed out of the
opening so formed.
To make a sound seem as coming from a distance is accomplished in a
similar manner to that in which a sound is made to appear as coming
from the other side of a door or wall, except that according to the
distance from which the sound is represented as coming, must the palate
of the mouth be thrown more or less back towards the pharynx, when
the sound will be reflected in the cavity so formed, and appear to
come from above or below, or according to the direction in which the
ventriloquist holds his mouth and face. The voice, of course, may be
made to come nearer or to recede, according to the varying size of the
cavity described.
A ventriloquist should always have in his mind the knowledge that
distant or muffled sounds are more or less indistinct, and as certain
consonant sounds are ventriloquially difficult to utter, they may
safely be slurred over, rather than risk the success of the illusion by
moving the lips. For example: if the imitated voice is to be made say,
"See what you are doing there, you bad boy," it should be spoken as if
the labial consonants were omitted, and as if it were written "See 'ot
you're doing there, you' ad whoy." A little careful preparation will
soon enable the performer to dispense with such consonant sounds as
those mentioned, except for his own natural voice.
As a general rule, it may be said that insect-sounds are produced more
by the lips than the throat; but most sounds that are not phonetic may
be produced in various ways, and the discovery of them must be left to
the imitative powers of the reader.
It has already been observed that ventriloquism will be found of great
service in making entertainments of parlour magic, clairvoyance, and
the like more lively. It is related of Comte, the celebrated French
conjurer, that ventriloquism added a great charm to his performances,
but that he made the chief use of his powers in that direction when
on his travels, as he found that they served as puffs for his public
entertainments, and were a great help in attracting crowds. At Tours,
for instance, it is stated he induced the people to break in four
doors, to rescue a man supposed to be dying of hunger. At another place
he renewed the miracle of the prophet Balaam's ass, by making a donkey,
carrying an exceedingly stout man, complain of his excessive weight.
Upon another occasion, at a fair, Comte saw a countryman driving a pig
in order to offer it for sale. The pig was so fat that it could hardly
move, and the following dialogue took place:--
_Comte_: "What's the price of your pig, my good man?"
_Man_: "A hundred francs, sir, at your service."
_Comte_: "The price is too much; seventy francs is abundance."
_Man_: "One hundred francs is the price, neither more nor less; take
the pig at that or leave it."
_Comte_: "Stay (and approaching the animal); I am sure your pig is
more reasonable than are you. (Addressing the pig) Tell me on your
conscience, my fine fellow, are you worth one hundred francs?"
To which the pig was believed to reply in a hoarse and hollow voice:
"You are a long way out; I'm not worth the half--I'm measled, and, if
you buy me, you will be taken in."
Finally, we would recommend our young friends to practise those few
sounds we have mentioned, and others will soon come naturally; to bear
in mind our observations as to sounds from a distance and from various
directions; and before attempting anything like a set entertainment, to
write out beforehand and to rehearse over and over again the dialogues
to be introduced. Strange sounds may sometimes be tried, secretly, in
order to try the effect on others; but care must be taken, if ever
ventriloquism is used for practical joking, and the nerves and feelings
of those against whom the joke is to be directed well considered, or
mischief may attend what would otherwise be perfectly innocent.
FOOTNOTE:
[2] A coin or other article may be as easily palmed as a card, and in
the same manner, except that the muscles of the hand found between
the fleshy cushions at the root of the thumb and little finger will
be found most convenient for holding such articles as a half-crown, a
glass ball, or a cork. Still smaller articles may be held securely and
secretly between the bottom parts of any two of the fingers.
FIRESIDE FUN.
During the long winter evenings, when families are assembled together
for the Christmas vacations, pleasant and profitable hours may be spent
quietly sitting round the fire and indulging in such mental games and
pastimes as will be explained in this section. The English language
is composed of words of various construction, and it is our intention
in the few following pages to describe some of the many ways in which
combined amusement and information may be obtained by exercises in
word and letter puzzles; to speak of the different kinds of acrostics,
enigmas, charades, rebuses, and the like, and how they are made; to
give a few examples of each; and generally to do what we can to help
wile away pleasantly some of those hours which, it is feared, in some
circles may hang heavily for want of that specific instruction which it
will be our object to impart. Moreover, we will treat here of authors,
cities, rivers, countries, mountains, and other matters, so that fair
opportunity is offered to our young friends to turn to account such
knowledge as they possess; and it is hoped that they may be encouraged
to seek further information on the subjects that these various subjects
give rise to.
DECAPITATIONS.
There are English words in abundance which, being shorn of their
initial letter or syllable, form other words of different meanings.
Such words will be considered under the heading of "Decapitations."
It will always afford amusement and interest to an assembled company
if some one of their number selects an appropriate series of words,
and gives an impromptu arrangement, in prose, doggerel verse, or good
rhyme if he can, of the several significations of the various words
thus arrived at, leaving others to puzzle out the series of words from
the descriptions given. In propounding the puzzle, in this and in other
cases to be hereafter described, the proposer should exercise his wit
and ingenuity in making it as amusing as possible. A judicious play
upon words is always appreciated, and sure to cause mirth; indeed, the
maxim "that the worse the pun the better the joke" should be borne in
mind and acted upon when indulging in "Fireside Fun."
We proceed with a few illustrations of "Decapitations," the appropriate
solution being given after each puzzle:--
My whole is a word of one syllable, and expresses a species of
grain.
Behead me, and you make me very warm.
Once again, and at meal times I shall be called into requisition.
And yet again remove my initial letter, and I remain a simple
preposition.
_Answer_: Wheat, heat, eat, at.
My whole is but an atom when complete;
You'll find it both in light and heat.
Behead me once, and you behold
A pleasure ground for young and old.
Decapitate again, and you will find
I long ago preserved mankind.
_Answer_: Spark, park, ark.
I have used all my whole this puzzle to frame,
But if you behead me, then murder you name;
Behead me again, and not dead as supposed,
For I still live and breathe, but am much indisposed.
_Answer_: Still, kill, ill.
As an illustration of "Decapitation" of words by syllables rather than
by letters, we give the following:--
My whole is significant of dissolution.
Behead me, and I am a school exercise significant of construction.
Behead me again, and I denote the place attained by the exercise.
_Answer_: Decomposition, composition, position.
My whole is unbearable.
Beheaded, I am bearable.
Again beheaded, I am easily moved.
Once more beheaded, I remain a solid piece of furniture.
_Answer_: Insupportable, supportable, portable, table.
The following words, among many others, are suitable for
"Decapitation":--
Abate (bate, ate); abundance (bun, dance); abroad (broad, road); bail
(ail, _il_, French for he); bland (land, and); clout (lout, out);
discomfort (comfort, fort); draft (raft, aft); drear (rear, ear); drill
(rill, ill); drink (rink, ink); dwell (well, ell); encompass (compass,
pass); invalid (valid, lid); chair (hair, air); seat (eat, at); shire
(hire, ire); slate (late, ate); and so forth.
CURTAILMENTS AND RETAILINGS.
Here we find an enlargement and modification of the "Decapitation"
series of puzzles, obtained by varying the endings as well as the
beginnings of words, or by varying the endings only. From the examples
given it will be seen that it is legitimate to make these variations in
different ways. The first examples involve the removal of final letters
only to make words of different significance.
Complete, I am a privilege exclusive,
By many sought with hope illusive;
Curtail me, and for sacred use I'm claimed;
Once more, and your own head you've named;
Curtail again, in Erin's Isle I then abound,
And if again you venture, a father will be found.
_Answer_: Patent, paten, pate, Pat, pa.
Curtail a patriarchal dwelling-place, and find the number of that
council in ancient Rome of which Appius Claudius was the chief.
_Answer_: Tent, ten.
Curtail the miser's treasure, and it becomes grey with age or white
as the frost on the grass.
_Answer_: Hoard, hoar.
A monarch curtailed becomes to all a blood relation, said by Hamlet
to be less than kind.
_Answer_: King, kin.
Curtail that organ which is said by some to be the seat of all
emotion, and there remains one of the five senses.
_Answer_: Heart, hear.
In many words the final letters, particularly the last three, when
standing alone, do not, unless re-arranged, express a word conveying
sense or meaning, but by an easy and simple re-arrangement or
transposition can be made to do so. This may be seen in such words as--
Sword, word (_ord_ transposes into _rod_).
Scent, cent (_ent_ transposes into _ten_).
Puzzles of this class are usually included among "Retailings," and the
above examples of "sword" and "scent" are examples combined of both
Decapitation and Retailing.
Again, in other words, the finals can be made to express two or more
words of different meanings, as--
Fowl, owl (which also transposes into _low_).
Scant, cant, ant (which also transposes into _tan_).
The following is a combined Decapitation and Retailing puzzle, the
retailing being effected by a transposition of the letters:--
Strike my whole, and 'twill give you a light.
Behead and retail me, I'm the gossip's delight.
Behead me once more, and your heads I'll adorn;
Once again, and I'm left at last all forlorn.
_Answer_: Match, chat (_atch_ transposed), hat, at.
Many words of more than one syllable may be treated under this puzzle,
by lopping off the original ending and substituting some other which
will make a word of an entirely different meaning, thus:--
Retail what is needed to bury the dead,^a
With that on which doctors rely for their bread;^b
These together combined should be bright and clear,
And be taken for breakfast without any fear.^c
_Answer_: ^a Coffin, ^b fee, ^c coffee.
We will now give a few puzzles founded on one or more of the previous
examples; but our young readers will find that "Retailings" offer a
much wider range of words from which to select than do "Decapitations."
More fun, however, will be obtained by combining the two. The
word _transpose_ is used in some books instead of _retail_; but
_transpositions_, properly so-called, will be treated later on:--
Complete, I am common,
Beheaded, I am a ceremony,
Retailed, I am a head-dress.
_Answer_: Trite, rite, tire.
Complete, I am a servant,
Beheaded, I am an apartment,
Retailed, I am an extensive waste.
_Answer_: Groom, room, moor.
Complete, I grow within a field
And pleasant pasture often yield;
Decapitate, a suitor then
Is quickly brought before your ken.
Behead again, I am a word
Oft on the cricket field is heard.
Restore my head, cut off my tail,
To name a spice you will not fail.
Behead me now, and you will find
The master passion left behind.
Complete me as I was before,
Put on my head, my tail restore,
My second letter take away,
An envelope I am, you'll say.
Now, if you but curtail once more,
I'll show an inlet on the shore.
_Answer_: Clover, lover, over, clove, love, cover, cove.
A word expressing bitter hate
My total does disclose,
'Tis shared alike by small and great
'Twixt those who still are foes.
Now change the scene, take off my head,
A lady comes to view,
A sweeter name may ne'er be said
Than this, if tales be true.
Decapitate once more, and lo!
Small insects now appear;
Retail at once, in French 'twill show
Whence daylight comes so clear.
Restore, take off my head again,
And now in winter I am chiefly seen,
But in summer, too, I'm cooling when
Your lips are parched, I ween.
My whole restore, yet not my tail,
Transposed, then I will name
What we in justice cannot fail
To designate a claim.
_Answer_: Malice, Alice, lice, ciel, ice, claim.
Complete, I am shrill;
Beheaded, a musical instrument;
Beheaded and transposed, I denote equality.
_Answer_: Sharp, harp, par.
Complete, I'm in a difficulty.
Behead me, and I show signs of grief.
Once more, and I am a useful seed;
Again, and I am what philosophers name our ancestors.
Transposed, I am a vegetable.
_Answer_: Scrape, crape, rape, ape, pea.
Complete, I am a reproof.
Beheaded, I am a portion of land.
Beheaded again and transposed, and I become the lot of all humanity.
_Answer_: Chide, hide, die.
Complete, I am without rule or method.
Beheaded and transposed, I am a mythological true friend;
Again, and I give expression to sounds of grief.
_Answer_: Random, Damon, moan.
My whole is a metal.
Beheaded, curtailed, and transposed, I am a noted English poet.
Beheaded and transposed, I then become an American poet.
Curtailed again, and I name one of Italy's chief rivers.
_Answer_: Copper, Pope, Poe, Po.
Sufficient examples of puzzles of this nature will have been given to
show that very many of the words of every-day use may be made to serve
for Retailings.
Still another form of the word puzzle known as Retailings consists in
choosing some word which, upon the addition of one or more letters at
the end, will make one or more different words of distinct meanings, as
in the following examples:--
I am often heard in parliamentary debates. Retail me, and I am the seat
of all affections and passions; retail me again, and I am your near
neighbour when seated round the fireside.
_Answer:_ Hear, heart, hearth.
I am a disagreeable noise. Retail me, and I help to express an
agreeable sound; retail me again, and I am sullied and soiled.
_Answer:_ Din, ding (_ding_, _dong_, the sound of bells), dingy.
I am an earl famous in Scottish story. Retail me, and I am used for
manure; once more, and expect stormy weather.
_Answer:_ Mar, marc (refuse of fruit and seeds from which the oil has
been pressed), March.
I am a plant and its fruit. Retail me, and I am a well-known fruit;
retail me again, and I am a gem.
_Answer:_ Pea, pear, pearl.
I am of great warmth. Retail me, I am bleak and barren; retail me
again, and I am a pagan.
_Answer:_ Heat, heath, heathen.
ANAGRAMS.
The inversion or transposition of the letters of a word or sentence
to form a new word or phrase is an anagram. This is indeed a literary
amusement which will extend the intellect and quicken the thinking
powers of all ingenious riddlers who seek to excel in this mental
pastime. In past ages it engaged the attention of statesmen and
divines, and many wise and witty persons have devoted their leisure
hours to this exercise of ingenuity.
The term anagram, in its proper sense, means the letters of one or
several words written backwards, being derived from two Greek words
"_ana_" (backwards) and "_gramma_" (letter). Thus the word _live_ would
form its anagram--_evil_; but the term anagram is now used in the
wider sense in which we explained it. Our young friends must not be
discouraged at their first attempts in forming anagrams--their anagrams
may have little merit, crude efforts seldom have much to recommend
them--but perseverance here, as elsewhere, will be rewarded. The true
merit of an anagram springs from an apt association of ideas, and a
close relation between the transposed words and the original from which
they are derived. This involves much practice, great thought, and an
infinitude of patience, but is productive of real enjoyment.
The father of the Earl of Beaconsfield, Isaac D'Israeli, devoted a
chapter in his "Curiosities of Literature" to a consideration of the
anagrams which he had met with in his wonderful research. The chapter
should be read by all who wish to excel in these literary exercises,
and from it we have selected a few of the choice specimens recorded
therein:--
"Charles James Stuart--claims Arthur's seat," "James Stuart--a just
master." "An eccentric dame in the reign of Charles I. believed herself
to be gifted with the spirit of prophecy, but as her prophesies were
usually against the Government of the day, she was eventually brought
by them into the Court of the High Commission. She based her claim
as prophetess upon an anagram she had formed on her name: 'Eleanor
Davies--Reveal, O Daniel.' This anagram was imperfect, as it had one
_l_ too many, and the letter _s_ was omitted, but it satisfied her. The
bishops reasoned with her out of the Scriptures to no avail, but one of
the Deans of Arches vanquished her with her own weapons. He took a pen
and hit upon this excellent anagram, 'Dame Eleanor Davies--Never so mad
a ladie.'"
An anagram on the late Princess Charlotte, daughter of George IV., is
also considered worthy of record:--
"Princess Charlotte Augusta of Wales," transformed into "P.C., her
august race is lost. O fatal news."
The elder D'Israeli had a keen perception and a thorough appreciation
of the points in a good anagram. If this is hereditary, the younger
Disraeli, the late Prime Minister of England, no doubt appreciated
the ingenuity of the opponent who converted his title into a stinging
comment on the result of the general election of 1880:--
"The Earl of Beaconsfield--Self-fooled; can he bear it?"
The names of celebrated men and women of the present day, and those who
have come down to us in the pages of history offer a wide field for the
young riddler.
The following are samples, new and old, of this species of anagram,
which we have collected from various sources, in the hope that they may
incite our young friends to fresh exertions:--
"Louis Napoleon--Ape no lion, Soul."
"Lord Monteagle (he who gave information of the Gunpowder Plot)--Go,
tell no dream."
"Horatio Nelson--Lo! nation's hero."
A better one than this was composed by Dr. Burney--
"Honor est a Nilo--His honor is from the Nile."
"Marie Antoinette--Tear it, men; I atone."
"Selina, Countess of Huntingdon--See, sound faith clings to no nun."
"James Watt--Wait steam (the 'J' being converted into 'I')."
"Lord Palmerston--So droll, pert man."
"William Ewart Gladstone--A man to wield great wills."
"Leon Gambetta--Able man to get."
"Florence Nightingale--Cling on, feeling heart."
"The Marquis of Lansdowne--Landowner, oft squeamish."
"Alfred Tennyson, poet laureate--Neat sonnet or deep tearful lay."
It will be noticed that several of the examples that we have given are
particularly apt, anagramatically describing some special feature in
connection with the person selected for experiment.
The names of flowers, birds, &c., can be treated in like manner
and afford much amusement. For instance, who would recognise "The
calceolaria" when transformed into "Eat coal, Charlie," or the
"Geranium," "Ear in mug," the "Heliotrope," "Hit or elope"?
Bird-fanciers would be at a loss to discover "The nightingale" in "High
gale in tent," or "The turtle dove" in the words "Eve, let truth do."
And if we turn to Natural History fresh illustrations abound--"Cool'd
rice" effectually disguises that carnivorous reptile the "Crocodile."
WORD SQUARES.
This is a form of word puzzle which has only to be known to become
widely popular, demanding ingenuity and patience of no common order
before it is mastered. On first setting out we will confine ourselves
to words of four letters. Each line of words from left to right and
downwards must form the same word. One example will clearly show our
meaning.
+---------+
1 | M E A D |
2 | E D G E |
3 | A G U E |
4 | D E E D |
+---------+
1 2 3 4
These letters being read from left to right and downwards, the first
row and the first column will be found to form the same word; the
second row and the second column the same; and so on. This is the
basis of the puzzle. It requires some research to select the fitting
words, when words of four letters only are used, but when words of five
letters are employed we are more puzzled; with words of six letters
our perplexities increase, and upon proceeding to higher numbers we
are almost prompted to be content with what has already been attained.
But difficulty is the great charm to the true riddler, who finds the
construction of riddles to be "a whetstone of patience," as Camden
aptly named it years ago.
In propounding these puzzles the synonyms only of the different words
out of which the puzzle squares are to be formed are to be supplied,
and care must be taken in the selection of the words that they are of
the same number of letters. The following illustration will assist to
make our meaning clear:--
1. Compensations (Amends). 2. A favourite (Minion). 3. To assist
(Enable). 4. To eat sparingly (Nibble). 5. A coin (Dollar). 6. Sarcasms
(Sneers).
+-------------+
1 | A M E N D S |
2 | M I N I O N |
3 | E N A B L E |
4 | N I B B L E |
5 | D O L L A R |
6 | S N E E R S |
+-------------+
1 2 3 4 5 6
The riddler has to puzzle out the answers of the six words, and write
down the answers as shown in the accompanying diagram, always being
careful to see that the words, when written out, are the same in the
columns and rows of the corresponding numbers. This illustration will
completely let our readers into the mysteries of "_word squares_," and
we will now give a few specimens selected from a large quantity which
have come under our notice.
_Four letters._ (1) A river in Oxfordshire ISIS
(2) A portion of our body SIDE
(3) A thought IDEA
(4) A chair SEAT
(1) A very common male Christian name JOHN
(2) A river in the United States OHIO
(3) The noise of a serpent HISS
(4) A portion of the human face NOSE
(1) My first has regal powers to sway, KING
(2) Is worshipped as my second, in a way; IDOL
(3) In harmony my third is sweet and clear; NOTE
(4) My fourth 'midst hills is ever near. GLEN
_Five letters._ (1) A period of time W E E K S
(2) A very common female name E L L E N
(3) To avoid by artifice or stratagem E L U D E
(4) A small anchor K E D G E
(5) A contemptuous contortion of face S N E E R
_Six letters._ (1) A poetical name for old England A L B I O N
(2) A Portuguese province in Africa L O A N D A
(3) A town in East Prussia B A R T E N
(4) Something aimed at or designed I N T E N T
(5) A town in Denmark O D E N S E
(6) A town in France N A N T E S
BIRDS, FRUITS, AND FLOWERS ENIGMATICALLY EXPRESSED.
Little difficulty will be experienced in the construction or solution
of this simple form of enigma. It will, however, be found to possess a
charm all its own, which will add greatly to the mirth and gaiety of
the social circle. The following examples will let our readers into the
whole secret of this pleasant pastime:--
_Birds._--What a severe attack of quinsey prohibits you from doing.
_Ans._--Swallow.
An architect well known to fame.
_Ans._--Wren.
A portion of a whole, and a continued range of hills.
_Ans._--Part-ridge.
What a coward does in the hour of danger.
_Ans._--Quail.
Equality, and a state of utter decay.
_Ans._--Par-rot.
A monarch, and a toiler of the seas.
_Ans._--King-fisher.
_Fruits._--A vowel, and a cooking apparatus.
_Ans._--O-range.
To give way to anxiety and sorrow.
_Ans._--Pine.
The greatest crime in a school-boy's calendar.
_Ans._--Peach.
The colour of growing herbage, and a challenge.
_Ans._--Green-gage.
_Flowers._--The title of one of Macaulay's Lays, and the name of one
of the public funds.
_Ans._--Virginia Stock.
What a good conscience gives to its possessor.
_Ans._--Heart's-ease.
An Irish vehicle, and a people who live under one government.
_Ans._--Car-nation.
What honey is, and the name of more than one king.
_Ans._--Sweet-william.
A religious devotee, and a babe's head gear.
_Ans._--Monk-hood.
A noted Quaker, and a _handy_ article of dress.
_Ans._--Fox-glove.
REBUSES.
Dr. Johnson and succeeding dictionary makers give as the meaning of
the word Rebus, "a word represented by a picture;" but we need not
go further than its literal translation, "by things," to arrive at a
true idea of this enigma. The Rebuses with which we are now about to
concern ourselves will be formed by a series of objects (things) which,
when taken as a whole, will be found to complete the riddle. This is
a pastime in which many of our great men have taken delight. Lord
Macaulay is to be credited with the following:--
Here's plenty of water you'll all of you say, (c) Sea
And, minus the h, a thing used every day, (a) Hay
And here is nice beverage, put them together; (t) Tea
What is it, with claws, but with never a feather? CAT.
We doubt whether this was one of the historian's first efforts, for
every endeavour must have a beginning, and this rebus bears the marks
of a practised hand.
Subjoined are further examples of the Rebus enigma:--
^a A gatherer of honey; ^b a form of supplication; ^c a fruit; ^d a
bird; ^e a title; ^f a fish oft found on the breakfast-table; ^g one
of Ireland's emblems; ^h a forest tree; ^i a county in the north of
England.
If these words you rightly puzzle out,
'Twill prove you know what you're about
Join their initials, 'twill produce a word
Which if applied to you would be absurd.
_Answer_: ^a Bee; ^b Litany; ^c Orange; ^d Canary; ^e King; ^f Haddock;
^g Emerald; ^h Ash; ^i Durham.--BLOCKHEAD.
(_a_) The flower that vies in beauty with the rose;
(_b_) An emblem of peace;
(_c_) A dark blue flower, with green leaves, which blooms in shelter;
(_d_) The sweet briar will recall my name.
These joined together, as above,
The word will surely rhyme with dove.
Answer: ^a Lily; ^b Olive; ^c Violet; ^d Eglantine.--LOVE.
First in the path of Duty, (D)
And ranking first in Art, (A)
Foremost in Virtue and in Vice, (V)
Leading all in Immortality, (I)
And foremost in Devotion. (D)
Pore over these with studious care,
A kingly name is hidden there.
_Answer_: DAVID.
Eleven letters I contain;
And if you now would find the same,
Know that a figment of the brain
Will straightway help you to my name.
My 2, 3, 6 is a human being; my 4, 5, 6 is a snare; my 2, 3, 4 is
a contraction of a girl's name; my 6, 7, 8 is a contraction of a
boy's name; my 8, 10, 11 is the name of a weight; my 11, 10, 8
implies negation; my 4, 10, 8 the past tense of a verb signifying to
acquire; my 2, 3, 8 is a web of rope yarn; my 1, 6, 11 is a place
of entertainment for man and beast; my 2, 1, 6, 8 is the name of an
aromatic plant; my 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 is an immense combination of
people.
_Answer_: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
I m a g i n a t i o n.--IMAGINATION.
ARITHMOREMS.
The Arithmorem is, perhaps, the most modern of all riddles, and
will, we anticipate, be a novelty to many of our readers. In its
construction, figures are substituted for Roman numerals, and letters
are added to complete the word it is desired to disguise. These
letters, however, may be, and indeed should be, transposed out of
their proper order, so that the solution of the riddle may be the more
difficult. For example, "54 and e," written as follows, by substituting
the Roman numerals LIV. for the figures 54, give LIVE. That is an
Arithmorem in its first stage and simplest form. Our examples will
illustrate its fuller development. It must, however, be understood that
in the solution the words used are to be looked upon only as so many
letters and treated accordingly, as is the case in anagrams.
(1) (_a_) 602 and fee (a handsome structure).
(_b_) 201 " orant (a medicine to produce sleep).
(_c_) 1550 " osage (to be happy and joyous).
(_d_) 57 " ten song (a famous traveller).
(_e_) 151 " egan (partaking of a celestial nature).
(_f_) 56 " stone (an author or authoress).
(_g_) 556 " e (the incarnation of evil).
The initials will name a country dear to all lovers of liberty and
freedom:--
_Answer_: (_a_) 602 = D C I I and F E E, or Edifice.
2 6 3 5 4 7 1
(_b_) 201 = C C I " O R A N T, " Narcotic.
4 8 7 5 3 2 1 6
(_c_) 1550 = M D L " O S A G E, " Gladsome.
7 4 2 6 5 3 1 8
(_d_) 57 = L V I I " T E N S O N G, " Livingstone.
1 3 2 4 8 11 10 7 9 5 6
(_e_) 151 = C L I " E G A N, " Angelic.
7 5 6 4 3 1 2
(_f_) 56 = L V I " S T O N E, " Novelist.
5 3 6 7 8 2 1 4
(_g_) 556 = D L V I " E " Devil.
1 5 3 4 2
--ENGLAND.
Arithmorems may be elaborated so as to partake of the nature of double
acrostics, as in the next examples:--
(2) (_a_) 751 and e pay one (a book of reference).
(_b_) 550 " a no go (a Venetian mode of conveyance).
(_c_) 100 " thy ear (an amateur sailor).
(_d_) 6 " spoor (a conditional stipulation).
(_e_) 1050 " e satan (an improvised juror).
The initials and finals read downwards will name, the former the
country from which the latter assisted a whole nation to emigrate:--
_Answer_: (_a_) 751 = D C C L I and E P A Y O N E, or E ncyclopedi A.
(_b_) 550 = D L " A N O G O, " G ondol A.
(_c_) 100 = C " T H Y E A R, " Y achte R.
(_d_) 6 = V I " S P O O R, " P rovis O.
(_e_) 1050 = M L " E S A T A N, " T alesma N.
--EGYPT, AARON.
(3) (_a_) 51 and u bath (a large flat fish).
(_b_) 51 " a nob (a name given to persons whose hair
is not of a natural colour).
(_c_) 5 " ber (a part of speech).
(_d_) 551 " asu ana (a Spanish province).
(_e_) 201 " ran to (a stupefying drug).
(_f_) 102 " r n t (an acid).
(_g_) 250 " uoapa (a town on the Mexican coast).
The initials and finals, read as before, will resolve themselves
respectively into the name of a well-known town in the West Indies, and
the chief product for which it is celebrated:--
_Answer_: (_a_) 51 = L I and U B A T H, or H alibu T.
(_b_) 51 = L I " A N O B, " A lbin O.
(_c_) 5 = V " BER, " V er B.
(_d_) 551 = D L I " A S U A N A, " A ndalusi A.
(_e_) 201 = C C I " RANTO, " N arcoti C.
(_f_) 102 = C I I " RNT, " N itri C.
(_g_) 250 = C C L " UOAPA, " A capulc O.
--HAVANNA, TOBACCO.
Without giving the full details, as above, showing how the puzzles
are to be worked out, we will now give some examples of Arithmorems
which form the names of persons who have, in their different ways of
life, made those names illustrious and honoured. Afterwards will be
found the titles of books, names of birds, beasts, and fishes. These
various examples will show what a vast source of entertainment is here
disclosed for the display of wit, ingenuity, and knowledge.
1.--1,051 and _run the tar_. Is honoured as a reformer.
2.--550 " _after the rage_. Is honoured as a kingly king.
3.--1,251 " _shout brush rope_. Is honoured as a discoverer.
4.--102 " _no east warns_. Is honoured as a mathematician.
5.--701 " _H. larks seen_. Is honoured as a novelist.
6.--150 " _hat, robe or tent_. Is honoured as a novelist (lady).
7.--550 " _Yes, fear not, n.n._ Is honoured as a poet.
8.--1,506 " _Ad hue._ Is honoured as an historian.
ANSWERS.
^1 Martin Luther,^2 Alfred the Great, ^3 Christopher Columbus, ^4
Sir Isaac Newton, ^5 Charles Dickens, ^6 Charlotte Bronte, ^7 Alfred
Tennyson, ^8 David Hume.
_Puzzles._ _Answers._
101 and Or burn nose so. Robinson Crusoe.
657 " Few fear oak. Vicar of Wakefield.
1,552 " Ah! for that one. Heart of Midlothian.
151 " A pen. Pelican.
1,001 " Pat rang, Ptarmigan.
1,100 " Roar not. Cormorant.
50 " A pet one. Antelope.
550 " Opera. Leopard.
1,500 " Or ye dar. Dromedary.
105 " No hay. Anchovy.
2 " Bet what. Whitebait.
651 " Harp. Pilchard.
50 " On port lent a hoy. Anthony Trollope.
551 " In jam is bee ran. Benjamin Disraeli.
5 " Cors nil ort mem. Mortimer Collins
101 " Sink oil well. Wilkie Collins.
100 " Nor real meat fry. Florence Marryat.
105 " To pay more rent. Coventry Patmore.
1,500 " For jaunty he on sea. James Anthony Froude.
It will afford a capital exercise in the use of the Roman numerals if
our young readers will amuse themselves by working out the details of
the solutions of the aforesaid puzzles and answers.
DIAMOND PUZZLES AND WORD PUZZLES OF VARIOUS SHAPES.
These puzzles are formed upon the same general principle as described
in "Word Squares." The peculiarity of the different puzzles is
disclosed in the names, and we will proceed by giving one example of
each.
The _Diamond Puzzle_ is arranged by selecting letters or words that may
be set forth in the shape of a diamond, thus:--
_Puzzle._ _Answer._
1.--A letter that is both vowel and consonant. W
2.--A Jewish tribe. dAn
3.--A Trojan woman. heLen
4.--A character in "Guy Mannering." berTram
5.--A Grecian hero. agamEmnon
6.--A novelist and poet. walteRscott
7.--A character in _The Tempest_. sebaStian
8.--A character in _Love's Labour's Lost_. merCade
9.--Effervescence. frOth
10.--A letter of the Greek alphabet. eTa
11.--A consonant. T
The central letters read downwards or horizontally name a great
novelist and poet--Walter Scott.
The following is an example of a _Diagonal Puzzle_:--
_Puzzle._ _Answer._
1.--My first is a ticket. LabeL
2.--My second is a voice in music. tEnOr
3.--My third is a water-bird. diVer
4.--My fourth is an expensive ornament. jEwEl
5.--My last is a sharp instrument, useless to boys, RazoR
but often longed for by boys.
Read from left to right, diagonally, and vice versâ, as shown by
the capital letters, and discover the names of two Irish writers of
rollicking humour--Lever and Lover.
The _Conical Puzzle_ is arranged in this manner:--
_Puzzle._ _Answer._
1.--A consonant. B
2.--An English river. wYe
3.--An island builder. coRal
4.--Furrows cut by a tool. groOves
5.--A lover's message. valeNtine
The central letters read downwards as in the Diamond Puzzle will give
the name of one of England's greatest poets--Byron.
The next example is of an _Oblique Puzzle_:--
_Puzzle._ _Answer._
1.--Malicious retaliation. R evenge.
2.--A musical term. O ctave.
3.--An ecclesiastical assembly. S ynod.
4.--A Scottish river near Elgin. S pey.
5.--The pen's close companion. I nk.
6.--A negative. N o.
7.--A personal pronoun. I.
The initials form the name of a celebrated composer of music--Rossini.
The next form given is _Pyramidal_:
_Puzzle._ _Answer._
1.--A consonant I serve to name, P
2.--A portion of the human frame, eYe
3.--A title of nobility, baRon
4.--Similitude behold in me, parAble
5.--A town that may in Wales be found, beauMaris
6.--With blood I ever do abound, sanguIneous
7.--And I an English town proclaim. barnarDcastle
In Durham you may find the same.
Now take the centres, which are meant
To tell you what I represent--Pyramid.
The last form we give is that of a _Cross_:--
A female name. aMy
Hostility. wAr
Metal. oRe
Partaken of food. aTe
The mind satisfied by evidence. convInced
A contract. indeNture
Equidistant. ParaLlels
The official residence of a consul. consUlate
Food consumed. aTe
A pronoun. sHe
A beverage. tEa
A period of time. eRa
The central letters give the name of a reformer--Martin Luther.
CRYPTOGRAPHY.
This word, being derived from the Greek, "cryptos," a secret, and
"graphein," to write, almost explains itself.
Cryptographs are formed by a substitution of one letter for another
throughout a sentence, or by using figures, signs, &c., in the place
of letters. Cryptography as a science is supposed to enter largely
into State diplomacy, secret correspondence being maintained by its
means with the various State officials scattered over the globe. In the
commercial world it is a fact that such correspondence is transmitted
by telegraph with much saving of labour and money and with perfect
secrecy, each correspondent possessing a key which enables him to
translate into plain words and sentences the otherwise unintelligible
jumble of signs. The "agony column" of the daily papers often contains
specimens of cryptographic writing, most mysterious to the general
reader, but plain to those for whom it is intended. It is, however, as
a means of amusement that Cryptography here finds a place.
The first requisite is to provide ourselves with a key. The following
will serve as an example:--
A. B. C. D. E. F. G. H. I. J. K. L. M.
8. z. w. t. 3. s. r. v. 4. p. n. m. l.
N. O. P. Q. R. S. T. U. V. W. X. Y. Z.
a. 5. e. i. o. u. f. 2. h. 6. g. x. d.
Shakspere's "Seven Ages" will then read thus:--
8mm fv3 65omtu 8 uf8r3,
8at 8mm fv3 l3a 8at 65l3a l3o3mx em8x3ou.
fv3x v8h3 fv34o 3g4fu 8at fv34o 3afo8aw3u,
8at 5a3 l8a 4a v4u f4l3 em8xu l8ax e8ofu,
v4u 8wfu z34ar u3h3a 8r3u.
In the solution of this and kindred puzzles the student should examine
very carefully to find out the letters, figures, or signs that most
often recur--they will be found to stand for _t_, _s_, and the vowels,
and as soon as these letters are discovered the translation is easy. We
will vary the key, and still this suggestion will hold good.
A. B. C. D. E. F. G. H. I. K. L. M.
e. k. w. m. t. b. c. o. a. s. r. f.
N. O. P. R. S. T. U. V. W. Y.
s. l. i. y. d. n. h. j. p. g.
A few lines from Byron's "Childe Harold" will then read thus:--
Notflysadhieceasnotmtpgflys,
Panokytenoerraswtsdtesmpanowottserrkrllf.
Rehcoascnotwrlhmdepegpanoiregbhrdwlys,
Esmrajascedabteynowlsneas'mslnlfk,
Esmcrlpascasnlmeg.
* * * * *
Below is a love letter, which requires much deciphering, but which is
followed by a translation:--
H.
20 cwt., Half Moon,
MOST EXPENSIVE HELPER, _Initial walking month_.
A small obligated beefsteak headcovering the pawnbroker's purchase
6 exclamation timepiece correctly. Myself design taking thee 2
the dried grass place-of-sale house of amusement 2 the ocean
testament-myself-the-thigh-shiver-pointed weapons pastime of a village.
With kind Cupid,
Myself cured pork always thine,
MALE CAT DONKEY.
TRANSLATION.
Hoverton Crescent,
DEAREST ADA, _1st March_.
We must meet at uncle's by 6 o'clock precisely. I intend taking you to
the Haymarket Theatre to see William Shakspere's play of "Hamlet."
With kind love,
I am, ever yours,
THOMAS.
CHRONOGRAMS.
A chronogram is a sentence or inscription in which occur words,
containing, as initial letters or otherwise, letters that represent
the Roman numerals. In some chronograms the initial letters only are
counted as forming the solution of the puzzle, but in others all the
letters contained which may be used as Roman numerals are taken into
account. History supplies us with many first-rate chronograms; in fact,
it was once the custom to strike medals with chronogrammatic sentences,
in which the date of the occasion commemorated was set forth by the
initial letters of the superscription.
Queen Elizabeth died in the year 1603, and the following chronogram
relating to that event has come down to us:--
"My Day Is Closed In Immortality."
The initial letters of this sentence are M = 1000; D = 500; I = 1; C =
1 2 3 4
100; I = 1; and I = 1; or, MDCIII = 1603.
5 6
Gustavus Adolphus, Sweden's great hero, commemorated one of his
victories, obtained in the year 1632, by a medal on which was struck
the following chronogrammatical inscription:--
C h r I s t V s D V X; ergo T r I V M p h V s.[3]
3 6 4 2 4 5 6 4 1 4
In this chronogram all the letters representing the Roman numerals have
been brought into use, which arranged in the order set forth by the
figures printed beneath them, read as MDC = 1600; VVVV or 4 × 5 = 20; X
= 10; and II or 1 × 2 = 2; or, 1632.
These illustrations afford a fair insight into the construction and
design of the Chronogram proper. A few illustrations of this riddle in
its more modern form now follow:--
Write one thousand down, quite plain,
Then half of two, then add again
Fifty and one's final letter;
You can then do nothing better
Than, after every evening meal,
Walk the distance I reveal.
_Answer_: M (1,000), I (half of two), L (fifty), E (onE's final
letter)--MILE
"After supper walk a mile."--_Old English Proverb._
_Puzzle._ _Answer._
A famous English warrior duke, } MARLBOROUGH.
Whose battles are renowned; }
A celebrated admiral, } DRAKE.
Who first the globe sailed round; }
A navigator who was killed } COOK.
By savage treachery; }
A noted voyager who first } CABOT.
America did see; }
A sailor second in command } COLLINGWOOD.
In great Trafalgar's fight; }
The vessel in which Nelson fell, } VICTORY.
In his struggle for the right. }
The initials of these six words take,
And place them side by side;
Then they will name, as thus arranged,
The year when Nelson died.
_Answer_: M = 1,000; D = 500; CCC = 300; V = 5; or, 1805.
To half-a-dozen add six, and to the result add five hundred. The whole
will represent a word signifying clear, lucid, bright, or glowing.
_Answer_: (Half-a-dozen), VI; (six), VI; (five hundred), D; or, VIVID;
or, Vivid.
_Puzzle._ _Answer._
A poet who in blindness wrote } MILTON.
His work of greatest fame; }
Another who, in Charles's reign, } DRYDEN.
Did make himself a name; }
Then he who's often Father called } CHAUCER.
Of our English poetry; }
The far West claims this modern bard, } LONGFELLOW.
So rich in symphony; }
The scolding wife of Socrates, } XANTIPPE.
Her name you surely know; }
The Prince of Latin poets last, } VIRGIL.
We call on you to show. }
The initials of these names you'll find In order written down,
Will give the date in which the Plague Did rage in London town.
_Answer_: MDCLXV; or, 1665.
If from five you take five, you may leave a word denoting contempt or
dislike.
_Answer_: FIVE; V (or 5) taken away, leaves FIE, or fie!
One thousand two hundred and nothing and one,
Transposed, give a word expressive of fun.
_Answer_: M (one thousand), CC (two hundred), O (nothing), I (one) =
M C C C O I; or, COMIC.
3 5
A thousand and fifty and one transpose,
'Twill produce a fruit in Spain that grows.
_Answer_: M (a thousand), L (fifty), and ONE; or,
M L O N E transposed.
1 3 4 5 2
LOGOGRAMS.
As its name implies, a logogram is a puzzle in which a word is made to
undergo several transpositions, by the addition, subtraction, reversion
of order, or substitution of a letter or letters.
To Lord Macaulay we are indebted for some of the choicest specimens of
this class of word puzzling. One of his logograms has been selected,
and is given here, because it so clearly displays all the peculiarities
of this class of riddle, and because it is also such a marvel of
ingenuity and skill, and at the same time is so happily expressed.
"Cut off my head, how singular I act!
Cut off my tail, and plural I appear;
Cut off my head and tail--most curious fact!
Although my middle's left, there's nothing there!
What is my head, cut off? A sounding sea!
What is my tail, cut off? A flowing river!
Amid their mingling depths I fearless play,
Parent of softest sounds, though mute for ever."
The answer is, Cod; and every line reveals a fresh play upon the word.
Cut off its head, and it is _od_ (odd), singular; its tail, and it is
plural, Co. (the abbreviation for Company); cut off its head and tail,
and it is O (nothing); the head cut off, is a sounding Sea (C); its
tail, a flowing river--Dee (D). Amid their (the sea and the Dee) depths
the _Cod_ may play, parent of softest _sounds_ (the air bladder of the
cod, a favourite delicacy to many), yet mute for ever.
Charles James Fox, the history of whose early life has been written
by Mr. G. O. Trevelyan, is to be credited with the following clever
logograph:--
"What is pretty and useful, in various ways;
Though it tempts some poor mortals to shorten their days;
Take one letter from it, and then will appear
What youngsters admire every day in the year;
Take two letters from it, and then, without doubt,
You are what that is, if you don't find it out."
_Answer_: Glass, Lass, Ass.
Our next example is rather a long one, but claims a place of honour
wherever logograms are treated. This was also written by Lord Macaulay.
"Come, let us look close at it: 'tis a very ugly word;
One that should make us shudder whenever it is heard;
It may not be always wicked, but it must be aways bad,
And speaks of sin and suffering enough to make one sad.
Folks say it is a compound word, and that is very true;
But then they decompose it, which of course they're free to do.
But why of the twelve letters should they take off the first three,
And leave the nine remaining, as sad as they can be?
For while they seem to make it less, in fact they make it more,
And let the brute creation in, that was left out before.
Let's see if we can't mend it; 'tis possible we may,
If only we divide it in some newer-fashioned way.
Suppose, instead of three and nine, we make it four and eight;
You'll say, ''Twill make no difference--at least, not very great.'
Yet only see the consequence; that's all that needs be done
To change the weight of sadness to unmitigated fun.
It clears off swords and pistols, conscriptions, bowie knives,
And all the horrid weapons by which people lose their lives.
The native voice of merriment's compressed into one word,
Which chases away sorrow whenever it is heard.
Yes, four and eight, my friends, let that be yours and mine,
Though all the host of demons may exult in three and nine."
_Answer_: Man-slaughter, Slaughter, Man's-laughter.
The next specimen we give is by William Pitt, first Earl of Chatham.
"To discover the name that my verse would express
A letter you'll first from the alphabet guess;
Which letter, by this may be easily known,
Its shape is the very reverse of your own.
My next, if a fair one too rashly exposes
A beauteous complexion of lilies and roses,
What the beams of the sun will infallibly do
To deaden their lustre and sully their hue.
Add to these, what induces the amorous swain
To persist in his vows, though received with disdain.
These, joined all together, will make up the name
Of a family known in the annals of fame."
_Answer_: S-tan-hope (Stanhope).
Robert B. Brough, the dramatist, was in early life most sensitive
to criticism, and gave vent to his spleen in this somewhat bitter
logogram:--
"Cut off my head, and you will quickly see
Something disliked by you and me;
Cut off my tail, and then it is clear
The past of a verb will quickly appear;
Cut off my head and my tail also,
You'll have a conjunction then, I trow.
Whole, I'm an insect, not over clean,
Dreaded at picnics in meadows green;
To critics, to publishers, intimate friends,
My name a most delicate piquancy lends;
When they smile in their guile, and hiss as they sing,
And hide under flatteries a venomous sting."
_Answer_: Wasp, Asp, Was, As.
The following words will be found suitable for use in puzzles of this
nature:--
Span. (Snap, spa, asp, pan, nap.)
Price. (Rice, ice, rip, rep.)
Lady. (Lad, day, lay.)
Angel. (Angle, glean, leg, glen, lane, gale, Lea.)
Degrade. (Grade, dare, dear, ear, are, dad, gear.)
Legate. (Eaglet, eagle, gale, lag, gat, get, let.)
Copper. (Pope, Poe, Po, core.)
METAGRAMS.
This riddle is formed by changing the initial letter of a particular
word again and again, so as to produce as many words as possible of
different meanings. Our first example affords a good illustration of
the process to be pursued.
Well known to all as a covering for the head; Cap.
Change my initial, a doze I mean instead. Nap.
Once more, and an opening you will see; Gap.
Exchange again, I'm found inside a tree. Sap.
Once more, I mean then to befall. Hap.
Again, I'm used by travellers, one and all. Map.
Again, in this my mother often nursed me. Lap.
Exchange again, and this my food would be. Pap.
Again, and a sharp blow you've spelled. Rap.
Once more, and a blow that's hardly seen or felt. Tap.
The following clever Metagram is from the pages of the "Modern Sphinx,"
a book which contains upwards of a thousand different examples of the
various kinds of riddles and puzzles in existence:--
There's a word, you'll agree, commencing with B }
That expresses a cool pleasant shade; } BOWER.
But remove letter B and substitute C, }
Apprehensively shrinking 'tis made; } COWER.
Take away letter C, replace it by D, }
It will name what's bestowed on a bride; } DOWER.
Now if D is erased and by G replaced, }
A Welsh word, meaning crooked, is spied; } GOWER.
Thus far very well, now substitute L, }
We are going down now you will say; } LOWER.
Letter L shall be gone, and M be put on, }
There's a man cutting grass to make hay; } MOWER.
But when M shall have fled put P there instead, }
It will name what is mentioned of steam; } POWER.
Pray just now P erase, put R in its place, }
There's a man gliding down with the stream; } ROWER.
But now take R away, put S there, we say, }
That a farmer at work then it names; } SOWER.
If for S you put T you surely will name }
A noted place close by the Thames. } TOWER.
The following is a good specimen metagram:--
Of letters four, I do denote
A man of wisdom great,
But cooks do often me devote
To share--alas!--a goose's fate;
But change my head, and then, instead,
Part of a book you'll find;
And if again I'm carefully read,
A youth who walks behind;
Change once again, and then you will
A furious passion see,
Which reason vainly tries to still,
Keep far removed from me;
Another change, and you will then
See I'm remuneration
Earned by all grades of working men
Throughout the British nation;
But change my head once more, and then
A prison I appear,
From which sweet sounds oft issue forth
That pleasant are to hear.
_Answer_: SAGE. PAGE. RAGE. WAGE. CAGE.
Below is a list of some words suitable for Metagrams, together with the
various changes which each word allows:--
Bear, Tear, Lear, Gear, Wear, Hear, Pear, Year, Rear, Fear, Sear,
Dear, and Near.
Book, Cook, Hook, Look, Nook, Rook, Took.
Waste, Taste, Paste, Caste, Baste.
Bine, Fine, Kine, Dine, Line, Mine, Nine, Pine, Vine, Wine.
Bound, Found, Hound, Mound, Pound, Round, Sound, Wound.
Cork, Pork, Fork, York.
Dame, Fame, Game, Came, Lame, Name, Same, Tame.
Cake, Lake, Rake, Sake, Take, Wake.
Tent, Rent, Lent, Kent, Dent, Cent, Bent.
Vast, Mast, Last, Fast, Cast, Past.
Heather, Feather, Leather, Weather.
Palter, Falter, Salter, Halter.
Basket, Casket, Gasket.
WORD CAPPING.
Word puzzles under this name are to be found in some old riddle books,
but such puzzles are now usually known, and have been here described
under the more modern name of Metagrams. (_See_ previous page.)
PARAGRAMS.