described under the title of “The Congress of Court Cards,” i.e., you place a card of each suit in the top row; you commence each row with a card of the suit with which the row above ended; you make the second of each row the same suit as the first of the row above, and the third the same suit as the second of the row above, and so on. Thus, if your top row be club, diamond, heart, spade, your second will be spade, club, diamond, heart; your third, heart, spade, club, diamond; your fourth, diamond, heart, spade, club; your fifth, club, diamond, heart, spade; your sixth, spade, club, diamond, heart; and your seventh, heart, spade, club, diamond. You now gather up the cards as directed in the trick already mentioned, i.e., in vertical rows, from the bottom upwards, commencing at the right-hand bottom corner. The pack thus arranged may be cut any number of times, but, if dealt in four heaps, all the cards of each suit will be found to be together.
So far, the trick is ingenious rather than astonishing, although, the arrangement of the cards having reference only to the suits, and not to individual cards, the cards do not at first sight appear to be specially arranged; and if you are rapid and apparently careless in placing them, the spectators will in all probability believe that they are placed hap-hazard. If you can induce this belief, you will greatly heighten their surprise at finding the different suits regularly sorted after the deal. But the trick is not yet finished. You again place the cards as before, remarking that the trick is simplicity itself when once the principle is known, and on this occasion you draw special attention to the necessary arrangement of the cards. Having completed the trick for the second time, you invite some of the audience to try their hands, which they do, and of course succeed, there being really no difficulty in the matter. When one or two have tried and succeeded, they will probably disparage the trick, as being absurdly easy. “Pardon me,” you say, “you have succeeded so far, because it was my will and pleasure that you should do so. You seem incredulous, but I am perfectly serious. To prove that I am so, I give you warning that the next person who attempts the trick will fail. Come, who accepts the challenge?” Some one is sure to respond, and in all probability to offer you a bet that he will succeed. “Sir,” you reply, “I never bet on certainties, or your money would be already lost. I have said that you shall fail, and you cannot, therefore, possibly succeed.” You have, meanwhile, secretly palmed the four cards which you pocketed before beginning the trick, and have watched your opportunity to replace them on the table with the rest of the pack.
Your opponent may now try as much as he pleases, but he cannot possibly succeed, the fact being that the process above described produces the desired effect with twenty-eight cards, but will not do so with thirty-two. The first thought of your audience is sure to be that you have abstracted some of the cards in order to make the trick fail, but on counting they find the number correct. Not one in a hundred will suspect that the reverse is the case, and that when you performed the trick the pack was incomplete.
By the time three or four of the company have tried and failed, you will probably have found an opportunity of again pocketing a card of each suit; and you may then announce that, having sufficiently proved your power, you will now graciously condescend to remove the prohibition, and allow the next person who tries to succeed. This, of course, he will do; and the trick may very well end here, with the satisfaction on your part that you have kept your secret, and that, even when removed from the sphere of your adverse influence, your pupils will fail in performing the trick, making the attempt, as they naturally will, with the full piquet pack. But it is just possible that a contretemps may arise, for which it will be well to be prepared. Some one of the audience, more acute than the generality, may suggest again counting the cards, to see if all are there when the trick succeeds. Even in this case you need not be discomfitted. At once offer yourself to count the cards, and, gathering them up for that purpose, add to them the four which you removed, which you should again have palmed in readiness. Count them deliberately on to the table, and, when every one is satisfied that the pack is complete, announce that you will once more perform the trick, in order to let every one see that you actually use no more and no less than thirty-two cards. Place the cards as before, counting aloud as you do so, till the whole thirty-two cards are placed. So far you have not varied your method of proceeding, but to succeed with the whole thirty-two cards you must secretly make a slight variation in the manner of picking up. You will remember that the cards were picked up face upwards, beginning from the bottom of the right hand row, placing the cards of that row on those of the next row, and so on. Now, to perform the trick with thirty-two cards, the bottom cards of each row must be gathered up all together, and placed on the face of the pack. Thus, if the bottom card of the first or left hand row be the knave of spades, that of the second row the ten of diamonds, that of the third row the ace of hearts, and that of the fourth row the seven of clubs, those four cards must be picked up as follows: The knave of spades must be placed (face upwards) on the ten of diamonds, the ten of diamonds on the ace of hearts, and the ace of hearts on the seven of clubs, which will occupy its own place on the face of the cards of the last or right-hand row. For convenience of picking up, it will be well to place the four rows very near together, slightly converging at the bottom, when it will be tolerably easy, by a bold, quick sweep of the left hand from left to right, to slide the three other cards in due order, on to the bottom card of the last row; while the performer, looking not at the cards but at his audience, diverts their attention by any observations which may occur to him. The trick in this form requires considerable address, and the performer should not, therefore, venture upon it until, by frequent practice, he can be certain of placing the four cards neatly with his left hand, and without looking at his hands, which would infallibly draw the eyes of the audience in the same direction, and thereby spoil the trick.
To Distinguish the Court Cards by Touch.—This trick is performed by means of a preliminary preparation of the court cards, to be made as follows: Take each court card separately, edge upwards, and draw a tolerably sharp knife, the blade held sloping backwards at an angle of about 45°, once or twice along the edge from left to right. This will be found to turn the edge of the card, so to speak, and to leave on each side a minute ridge, not noticeable by the eye, but immediately perceptible, if sought for, to the touch. Prepare the opposite edge of the card in the same way, and again mix the court cards with the pack, which is now ready for use.
Offer the prepared pack to be shuffled. When the pack is returned to you, you may either hold it above your head, and, showing the cards in succession, call “court card” or “plain card,” as the case may be, or you may offer to deal the cards into two heaps, consisting of court cards in one heap and plain cards in the other, every now and then offering the cards to be again shuffled. You can, of course, perform the trick blindfold with equal facility.
You should endeavour to conceal, as much as possible, the fact that you distinguish the court cards by the sense of touch, and rather seek to make your audience believe that the trick is performed by means of some mathematical principle, or by any other means remote from the true explanation. This advice, indeed, applies more or less to all tricks. Thus your knowledge of a forced card depends, of course, on sleight-of-hand; but you should by no means let this be suspected, but rather claim credit for some clairvoyant faculty; and vice versâ, when you perform a trick depending on a mathematical combination, endeavour to lead your audience to believe that it is performed by means of some impossible piece of sleight-of-hand. Further, endeavour to vary your modus operandi. If you have just performed a trick depending purely on sleight-of-hand, do not let the next be of the same character, but rather one based on a mathematical principle, or on the use of special apparatus.
To name any Number of Cards in succession without Seeing Them.—First Method.—This trick, in its original form, is so well known that it is really not worth performing; but we describe it for the sake of completeness, and for the better comprehension of the improved method. The performer takes the pack, and secretly notices the bottom card. He then announces that he will name all the cards of the pack in succession without seeing them. Holding the pack behind him for an instant, he turns the top card face outwards on the top of the pack; then holding the pack with the bottom card towards the audience, he names that card. From the position in which he holds the pack, the top card, which he has turned, is towards him, and in full view. Again placing his hands behind him, he transfers
