THE EDUCATED FLY.
While the glasses were being collected, Frank prepared for the next
feat.
The wineglass trick had been cleverly performed, and yet it was done in
a very simple manner.
The coat which Merry wore while doing this trick had three little inner
pockets on either side, made to hold the six glasses of wine produced
from behind the borrowed handkerchief. The glasses were filled, and
then over the top of each a rubber cap was stretched, to prevent the
wine from spilling. This done, the glasses were placed in the little
pockets, and Merry knew which pockets contained the different kinds.
He was careful to secure a large handkerchief. When he performed the
trick, he spread the handkerchief out over his breast, and, beneath
its cover, reached in and took the glasses of wine from the pockets,
deftly removing the rubber caps as he took them out. Then it was easy
to pretend to draw the brimming glasses of wine from the handkerchief,
and the very fact that the glasses were full to the edge made the feat
seem all the more marvelous.
Fortunately the audience had called for the very kinds with which he
had provided himself, with the exception of the Rhine wine. No one
called for that, but Merry pretended to hear some one call, and forced
the wine on a spectator, getting rid of it in that manner.
When he went off the stage to get the trick bottle, he hastily took
off his coat and hung under his right arm a rubber bag containing
port wine. From this bag a rubber tube ran down his sleeve to his
hand. There was a hole in the bottle near the bottom. When he rinsed
the bottle in the presence of the audience, he kept his thumb over
the hole. While drying the bottle with the towel, he inserted the
rubber tube in the hole. Then it was an easy thing to go down into the
audience and pour wine from the bottle, which seemed inexhaustible.
Whenever he wished to pour out some wine he would press against the
rubber bag with his arm, and the wine was forced out through the tube
into the bottle.
The glasses were of special make and of very thick glass, making a
bulky appearance, but holding a very little wine, so that the marvel
was not nearly so great as it seemed.
The "Talking Head" trick was the next one Frank decided to perform.
This illusion was made effective by means of a set of mirrors which
made it seem that the audience could look right through beneath the
table on which the "severed head" seemed to rest, while, in fact, the
mirrors hid the body to which the head was attached.
A clever assistant is much needed in performing this trick, and
Merry had a good one in M. Mazarin. The business was carried through
successfully.
Then came the "Spirit Mysteries," which were a series of cabinet
tricks, none of them exactly new, but all of them performed well enough
to satisfy the now thoroughly good-natured audience.
The final trick of the evening was announced--"The Educated Fly."
This was something new, and the audience was interested.
Frank had attempted none of the feats requiring extraordinary skill
and a large amount of practice, thus escaping the pitfall into which
Thaddeus Burnham had feared he would stumble.
Yet he had given an hour of genuine pleasure to the wondering audience.
"Ladies and gentlemen," said Frank, "I will now show for the first
time in this place Prof. Zolverein's wonderful 'Educated Fly.' Up
to this time there have been plenty of educated cats, dogs, pigs,
birds and mice, but I believe this is the first time on record that
a genuine educated fly has been on exhibition. Of course this is not
an ordinary fly. It is a native of South America, and was captured in
Ecuador, near the headwaters of the Amazon. There, far in the mighty
tropical forests, the flies grow to an immense size, so that even the
famous Jersey mosquito in his highest state of development is a mere
pigmy beside them. These flies are not easily kept in captivity, as
they almost invariably refuse to eat and pine away and die as soon
as they are taken from the fastnesses of the wild forests where they
abound. They love their native forests. These flies are possessed of
a wonderful intelligence, and they might be readily trained if they
did not almost invariably starve themselves to death when held in
captivity. Prof. Zolverein was fortunate in securing one of the flies
which had become accustomed to captivity, and he was able to teach the
tiny creature many astonishing feats. Among other things, the fly is a
ready reckoner, as you shall see. Prof. Pombal will entertain you while
the stage is being made ready for the final exhibition."
As Frank finished, a voice in the back of the hall cried:
"Rats!"
Merry looked in the direction from whence the sound seemed to come.
"I have no educated rats," he said, quietly; "but if the person who
called for them will come forward, I will show the audience an educated
monkey."
This caused a laugh, and several persons in the rear of the
theater turned to look toward the one who had uttered the cry, a
flashily-dressed youth who had entered a few minutes before.
This person grinned a bit, but did not accept Frank's invitation to
come forward.
Merry retired, and the curtain was dropped for a few moments.
When the professor finished playing on the piano, the curtain rose
swiftly, showing on the stage an easel, against which rested a large
mirror in a gilt frame. This mirror was about four and a half feet
wide, and three feet high.
Frank walked out briskly upon the stage.
"You will see, ladies and gentlemen," he said, "that I have had this
mirror placed in a position where the light falls strongly upon it, and
I think you will be able to follow the movements of the fly from any
part of the house. First, I wish to show you the mirror."
He then took the mirror down from the easel, and, having shown both
sides to the audience, rested it on the floor, leaning it against the
easel.
Next he took the glass from the frame and showed that to the audience.
"It is just an ordinary mirror, as you can all see," he said.
Having shown the glass, he rested that against the easel, and took up
the frame, which had a wooden back, and showed that to the audience.
Then the frame was placed on the easel in its proper position, while
the glass still leaned against the bottom part, which it covered up as
far as the lower edge of the frame.
As it stood thus, Frank talked glibly a few moments, then he picked up
the glass and returned it carefully to the frame.
"Now," he said, taking a piece of soap, "I am going to divide this
mirror into twenty-eight even squares."
He proceeded to do so.
"Next," explained Merry, "I will number twenty-six of those squares in
order as they come, like this."
He numbered them from one to twenty-six.
"The next square I will mark zero--thus. The last one I will leave
blank. That shall be a starting point. Now we will letter those squares
in the same manner from 'a' to 'z.'"
This was quickly done.
"At last," he smiled, "we are ready for the wonderful fly."
He stepped toward a small stand, on which rested something covered by a
cloth. Removing the cloth, a small cage with very close wiring was seen.
Frank opened a door in one side of the cage, chirping and murmuring
something. He put in his hand carefully, and took something from the
cage.
By this time the audience was literally throbbing with interest and
expectancy.
"What is it?" whispered one.
"It's the fly," said another.
"Fly! Never! Why, it was in a bird cage."
"Well, it's large."
"But not large enough for---- Great Scott!"
Merry had placed the fly in the blank corner of the marked mirror, and
everyone was astonished by its appearance.
"It's large as a humming bird!" shrilly hissed a boy. "My! but that's a
corker!"
"That can't be a fly!" declared a man.
Then the amazing insect was seen to start to crawl across the face of
the mirror.
"Here! here!" laughed Frank, gently catching it and restoring it to the
blank place in the lower right-hand corner. "Don't be in a hurry to get
to work."
"There is one amazing thing about this fly," he said, turning to smile
on the audience. "It is never afraid of working overtime, and it really
seems anxious to earn its salary."
The fly moved restlessly in the corner, starting several times as if to
creep away, but turning back.
"It is a fly!" said a man's voice in the midst of the audience.
"Now," said Merry, "we are ready to give you one of the most
astonishing exhibitions on record. Before you, ladies and gentlemen,
you behold a fly that actually thinks and reasons."
"Rats!"
Again that voice from the rear of the hall.
Frank looked keenly in that direction, hoping to discover the person
who uttered the derisive cry.
"I will prove to you that I am not making an unfounded claim," the
young magician asserted. "Will some person in the audience be kind
enough to call one of the numbers marked on the mirror."
"Number one," cried a voice.
"Number one," repeated Frank. "Very well. Now, Solomon," addressing the
fly, "will you please show the ladies and gentlemen where number one is
located?"
Immediately the fly started and crawled across the face of the mirror
to the upper left-hand corner, where it stopped on the number called.
All over the theater there was a flutter.
"Marvelous!" said one.
"Astonishing!" spoke another.
"There must be some trickery about it!" a little man in spectacles was
heard to declare. "No fly could be taught to do such a thing."
"Fake!" cried the voice that had twice before shouted "rats."
Frank laughed as if amused.
"Wait," he said, quietly. "This is merely the beginning. What is to
follow will astonish you still more. Back, Solomon."
Back to the unmarked square crept the huge fly.
"Some person call a letter, please, requested Frank.
"E," said a woman in the third row.
"E is the letter," said Frank. "Now, Solomon, find it."
The fly started to creep along the bottom of the mirror, hesitated,
turned about, started back, stopped.
"Ha! ha! ha!" came a derisive laugh. "The old thing is off its trolley!
It's lost."
"Come, Solomon, come," smiled the magician; "they are making sport of
you. Are you going to stand that? Find the letter E, and hurry up about
it."
Slowly the fly turned, and then it ran swiftly up the face of the
mirror till it stopped on the letter E, directly under the figure five.
There was a burst of applause.
"It is the wonder of the age!" excitedly declared a big, fat man whose
flushed face seemed to indicate that he had been indulging too freely
in liquid refreshments.
"Good enough, Solomon," complimented Merry, in a caressing tone of
voice. "You are all right."
"Fake!"
Again that hateful cry.
Now several of the audience were aroused. Men began to look for the
disturbing person.
"Put him out!" exclaimed two or three, angrily.
"He has no right to disturb the show," declared a man in the right-hand
proscenium box. "I am near enough to see, and this thing is all right."
It happened that the speaker was the mayor of the town, and his words
made an impression.
"Whatever Mayor Durgin says is all right must be all right," was the
general decision.
Frank ordered the fly back to the starting point.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen," he said, calmly, "I will show you that
Solomon is able to reckon, as well as think. Will some person call
two of the numbers on the mirror, which added together will not amount
to more than twenty-six? Anyone present. I wish you to understand
that this is not arranged in advance. So I would like to have some
well-known lady name the numbers."
"Mrs. Durgin! Mrs. Durgin!" called several.
The mayor in the box turned and bowed to his wife, smiling. The lady
blushed and seemed confused, but she quickly recovered. Then she leaned
on the rail of the box, distinctly calling:
"Seven and eleven."
"Come seben, come eleben," laughed a youngster, and that produced some
amusement.
"Solomon," said Frank, slowly and distinctly, "I wish you to find the
numbers seven and eleven, add them together, and indicate the sum
acquired."
"That's getting into pretty deep water," whispered somebody.
Straight up the side of the board ran the fly, stopping on the figure
seven.
"All right so far," assured Merry. "Go ahead."
The fly paused a moment, and then crept downward to the left till it
rested on the eleven, where it stopped again.
There was a great hush of expectancy.
"Seven and eleven," said Frank. "That is correct. Added together, seven
and eleven make how many?"
The fly slowly faced in several different directions, and then it
seemed to hop down one square, alighting on the eighteen!
It was not surprising that the audience burst into such a round of
applause as had not been previously heard that evening.
Smiling triumphantly, Frank bowed in graceful acknowledgment.
When the applause was over, he ordered the fly back to the starting
point.
"I will next show you that the fly can subtract as well as add,"
he said. "If any person will name two numbers, Solomon will deduct
the lesser from the greater, and then will indicate the number that
remains. All ready."
"Twenty-two and nineteen," said the red-faced man, arising so all could
see him. "I think I am pretty well known here, and it will be evident
that I am in no way connected with this show."
Then he sat down.
Frank gave his orders to the fly, which started out in a rambling way,
pausing slightly several times.
"He's gettin' tired," piped a boy.
"This subtraction is too much for him," cried another.
"What do you think about it Solomon?" asked Merriwell, quietly. "Are
you going to let them think you're about to throw up the job? Get down
to business. Come, come!"
Thus urged, the fly started forward again, creeping directly to the
twenty-two.
"That's the first one. Go on."
The fly turned about and crept upward at an angle till it rested on
nineteen.
"Now show them how much is left when nineteen is taken from twenty-two."
Upward again at an angle in the opposite direction went the marvelous
fly, and it finally stopped on three.
"Nineteen from twenty-two leaves three," called Merry, with
satisfaction. "That is right!"
"Hooray!" shouted the red-faced man. "I'm going to start catching flies
and teaching them to reckon! There's money in it!"
Next Frank had the fly do a sum in multiplication, following with one
in division.
These feats were performed perfectly.
"If some person present will name a word containing not more than four
letters, Solomon will spell it out for you," announced Frank.
"Yale."
It was the voice that had called "rats" and "fake."
"Yale it is," said Frank, who was not a little surprised. "Come on,
Solomon."
From letter to letter the fly ran, swiftly spelling out the word.
"It is evident to me," said Merry, "that the person who gave that word
knows me. I would like to know who the individual is. Will he please
come forward?"
No one stirred.
There was a loud buzzing sound, and the fly was seen fluttering about
excitedly.
"What is the matter, Solomon?" asked Frank.
"Buz-z-z-z! buz-z-zz!" came from the fly, so loudly that everyone in
the theater could hear it.
"Are you trying to talk, Solomon?" laughed Merry.
"Buzz! buzz! buzz!"
"You do not know the name of the person, do you?"
"Buzz! buzz! buz-zz-zz-zz!"
Now the fly was greatly excited. It made short jumps in several
directions.
"Don't be trying any of your nonsense," warned the young magician. "If
you are fooling me, I shall be offended."
If possible, the insect buzzed louder than before.
"Well, if you know the name of the person, be good enough to spell it
out, so I may know who has several times disturbed the performance. Go
ahead, Solomon."
Now the spectators lifted themselves in their seats and stared, for
the fly fairly darted out on the mirror. As the insect paused on each
letter, Frank spelled out the name.
"S-p-o-r-t. That spells 'Sport,' Solomon. Are you making sport of me,
or are you giving me a name? Go on. What is the rest of it?"
Away darted the fly, and Frank spelled:
"H-a-r-r-i-s--Harris! Why, that is 'Sport Harris!' A fellow by that
name was my worst enemy at Yale College. Do you mean that he is here in
this theater?"
Like a flash the wonderful fly spelled one word:
"Yes!"