LIFE AND HISTORY

HARDEEN I

20 Years of an Eventful Career on the StageFULLY ILLUSTRATED

Containing Numerous Tricks and Secrets

ESPECIALLY COMPILED BY

HARDEEN

HARDEENThe Sensation of Both Hemisphers. The Man Who Has Baffled the

Police Departments of the World.

THEO. WEISS HARDEENBROTHER OF THE FAMOUS HOUDINI

Hardeen, the wonderful performer, known throughout thecivilized world as being able to escape from the strongesthandcuffs and bonds devised by the police, has combinedshowmanship with ability, and presented to the theatre-goingpublic a performance which will be talked of by the grand-children of those who have had the good fortune to havewitnessed his act.

He is an American, born in the city of Appleton,Wisconsin, on February 29, 1876, which day, falling on a leapyear, gives him only one chance to celebrate his birthdayevery four years.

He is the son of the learned scholar Rev. M. S. Weiss,LX.D., Ph.D., and the brother of The Famous Houdini.Other members of his family have gained prominence in theirrespective professional and business pursuits.

While still a youth, at the age of seventeen, in 1893, hemade his debut as an artist before the American public inconjunction with his brother, both being known as theBrothers Houdini. He only performed a short time, then re-tired and followed a cemmercial pursuit for five years, duringwhich time his brother, Houdini, had traveled the world over,gaining fame and fortune, and was eventually conceded to bethe greatest international drawing card ever exploited. Themanagers clamored for Houdini, but he was unable to fulfillall the offers made to him, so they then started to look forsomeone to duplicate his performance, but were unsuccessful,until one day a progressive manager from Magdeburg,Germany, having heard that Houdini, a few years back, per-formed with his brother, sent a representative to America toengage him, and a few weeks later, the whole of Germanywas wrought up to a state of enthusiasm with the sensationalexploits of the newly arrived American HARDEEN, whowas appearing before the German public, for the youngerbrother, not wishing to confuse the public by adopting thesame name as his older brother, had coined the nameHARDEEN, which now is known throughout every countryin the civilized world.

A brief summary of the marvelous and sensational thingsHARDEEN has accomplished, and some newspaper accountsof these exploits will surely prove of interest to the reader.

THBO. WEISS-HARDEEN HARRY WEISS-HOUDINI

As they appeared in 1893, when they called themselves theHoudini Brothers.

An example of numerous exploits with the chiefs ofpolice in the large cities he has visited is well illustrated inthe following newspaper article from the Grimsby, England,Daily Telegraph, of J anuary 9, 1902:

CHIEF OF POLICE STIRLING BAFFLED

"To the casual observer a glimpse of the proceedings inthe Borough police office last night would have given one theimpression that a truly desperate character had been captured,for in the center of a group of officers, sergeants, inspectors,and detectives, a man with his wrists held together by severalpairs of handcuffs was to be seen. No arrest had been made,

Hardeen, as manacled hand and foot by theChief of Police Stirling.

however, for the man who was so securely bound was Theo.Hardeen, the Handcuff King, who had come to demonstrateto the police force and Chief Constable Stirling that he couldrelease himself from any regulation handcuff that they couldproduce. Bracelets of all kinds, sizes, shapes and degrees ofstrength were brought out for trial, and locked upon him.

Hardeen retired into the Chief Constable's office, and, after alapse of 26 minutes, emerged therefrom with the bracelets inhis hands with the locks undone, and himself bathed inperspiration. The Chief Constable, on congratulating Hardeen,acknowledged himself baffled."

THE MURDEROUS INSANE STRAIT-JACKETCHALLENGE

While playing in London, England, two police constables,finding that Hardeen escaped from the police manacles withthe greatest of ease, determined further to test his ability,and one night brought to the theatre a strait-jacket, which

Hardeen, strapped in the strait-jacket as used on the murderousinsane. Front and back view.

is used to restrain the murderous insane, and challenged himto allow them to strap it upon him.

An account of the result is herewith reprinted from one ofthe local newspapers:

"HARDEEN AND THE STRAIT-JACKET."

AN EXCITING SCENE AT THE EMPIRE.Success After Quarter of an Hour's Tussle.

"With hair dishevelled, and collar and front crumpled,Theo Hardeen, 'the handcuff king,' emerged in a state ofevident distress from a cabinet at the Empire on Wednesday

evening; and a large assembly looked on amazed. The famous'iron bracelet' manipulator had accepted a challenge fromtwo police constables, who undertook to secure him in a strait-jacket of the most up-to-date construction, and now after astruggle extending over a quarter of an hour he was free!

"The indep.endent committee who appeared on the stageseemed at a loss to understand what had happened, whileHardeen himself left the stage at once, the feat having testedhim severely. The jacket in which he was fastened is similarin every respect to those used to secure the murderous insane,the arms being folded across one another and strapped securelybehind. To the onlooker Hardeen's plight was absolutelyhopeless, and while he was hidden from view, two policemenkept the cabinet under close observation. Throwing discretionto the winds, one tried to peep inside, and when he was forcedback the audience did not seem at all pleased.

"As time went on people grew indignant, and on one ortwo occasions there was some hooting. When at lengthHardeen walked, or rather staggered out, his exit was viewedwith mixed feelings. One policeman stepped to the front ofthe stage, and remarked that they were not at all satisfied,because they were convinced that nobody could escape fromthe jacket unassisted. He invited Hardeen to submit himselfto being secured in the jacket again, but naturally the artistewas not at all anxious to do the trick twice the same evening.

"Mr. Hardeen has since publicly announced that in viewof any dissatisfaction that may exist, and to prove that hehas no confederate to assist him to escape from the appliance,he will on Friday evening, at the second performance, permithimself to be fastened in a similar manner, in the same strait-jacket, and will free himself in full view of the audience with-out using any cabinet."

The following is another account from the same news-paper, which appeared a few days later.

"HARDEEN CONVERTS THE SCEPTICS."

"STRAIT-JACKET REMOVED IN VIEW OF THEAUDIENCE."

"A Remarkable Scene at the Empire."

"An entertainer, who accomplishes what to the averageindividual is impossible, cannot reasonably complain when he

finds his methods criticised. When Theo. Hardeen, the hand-cuff king,' liberated himself from a strait-jacket of the typeused to secure the murderous insane, at the Empire a fewevenings back, the bulk of those who saw him emerge freefrom the cabinet refused to believe that he had extricatedhimself without assistance. There was talk of trap doors andother contrivances, and Hardeen, instead of gaining applause,had to put up with something in the nature of a little demon-stration.

"But his chance to retaliate came with a vengeance on

H HWOCn HAS SCREED TO mUUiHHSUF r m l 1 H E ' «TO SANS STRS1T JACKET ,

1 IN PULL VIEW OF-AUDIENCE

1 • 2 N H W FRIDAY 11 TO PROVE™"1 —TRICKERY J |

Billing matter used by Osward Stoll, Bsq., during themany years he used Hardeen, as his feature act.

Friday evening, for, as the result of a second challenge, heundertook to get out of the same strait-jacket in full view ofthe audience. Having been securely strapped into the strait-jacket, the famous performer remarked good-humoredly thathe would expect an apology from those gentlemen when hehad freed himself; and an admiring assembly cheered lustily.To attempt to faithfully describe how Hardeen removed thejacket would be next to impossible, for, surprising as it mayappear, he undid the bulk of the straps with such rapid move-

ments that nobody seemed able to follow him. Rolling onthe stage and turning somersaults, Hardeen appeared to con-tract certain muscles, and having freed one of his arms bya dislocation which would have shattered the bones in thelimbs of any ordinary individual, his task was simplified. Thebuckles at the back of the jacket were undone last of all, andHardeen, with hair and clothing disarranged, stepped to thefront of the stage to receive an ovation, the like of which hasseldom if ever been given at the Empire.

"Panting hard after his great exertion, he bowed hisacknowledgments."

HARDEEN APPEARS BEFORE A MIGHTY AUDIENCEOF EIGHTY THOUSAND PEOPLE.

Hardeen appearing at the Shrewsbury Gala before 80.000 people.

The managers noting that Hardeen's drawing powerswere so enormous that hundreds and often thousands of peoplewere turned away at every performance, eventually decided tohave him appear at the Shrewsbury Gala, where arrangementswere made for admitting an unlimited number of people, andthe result was that over 80,000 people witnessed Hardeen'sfirst performance.

This was the largest attendance the management hadever been able to get together.

Hardeen, as the feature act, continued touring Europe,being engaged and re-engaged for five years by Oswald Stoll,Esq., the most noted music hall director in the world, havingunder his control over forty houses, and being the managingdirector of an English syndicate capitalized at £30,000,000,or $150,000,000.

KING OSCAR OF SWEDEN SEES HARDEEN.

Director Jacobsohn, from the Olympic Hippodrome ofStockholm, Sweden, happened to be in England whenHardeen's exploits so widely enthused the public, that hecontracted for his performance in Sweden.

On his arrival in Stockholm, Sweden, some one determinedto ruin his reputation, and publicly declared him to be animpostor, and challenged Hardeen to escape from some hand-cuffs which he had specially made for him. All preparationswere made for the acceptance of the challenge at the specialmatinee in the theatre, and, on the appointed day, whenHardeen and the audience had assembled to witness the strife,the challenger failed to appear.

The newspapers of course devoted columns and columnsto this episode, and so much court comment was made aboutthe matter that King Oscar of Sweden determined to see thisstranger who had raised such furor of enthusiasm, and person-ally attended Hardeen's performance in company with theRoyal Family one evening during the month of April, 1901, atthe Royal Olympia Hippodrome, Stockholm.

KLAW AND ERLANGER ENGAGE HARDEEN.

When the Klaw and Erlanger firm determined to enteithe vaudeville field in America, they scoured the world inorder to bring feature acts to America, and decided to engageHardeen. He came to America in the summer of 1907, waspaid an enormous salary, and toured the country as the featureact of the most expensive bills which the American publicever had seen in one theatre.

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Police and Hardeen, before he Jumped, handcuffed, from a bridgesixty feet high, into the Ohio River, in L,ouisville, Ky.

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HARDEEN JUMPS HEAVILY MANACLED INTO THEOHIO RIVER FROM THE 18th STREET BRIDGE,A DISTANCE OF SIXTY FEET, INTO SIX FEET

OF WATER, AND RELEASES HIMSELFWHILE UNDER WATER.

Hardeen, handcuffed, jumping from the bridge into the Ohio River aheight of sixty feet. Viewed by a crowd of ten thousand people.

In order to stimulate interest in the fight which the Klawand Erlanger forces waged against the Keith faction in thevaudeville field, Hardeen determined to astound the Ameri-can public with his most dare-devil and death-defying featSo one morning on the twenty-sixth day of September, 1907.

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he allowed a number of police officials of Louisville, Kentuckyto securely fasten heavy handcuffs on him, and leap into theOhio River from the 18th Street Bridge, which is sixty feetabove the level of the water, and in a few minutes releasedhimself while under the water.

This feat caused much comment, and the newspapersgave so much space to this exploit, that the theatre-goingpublic created such a demand for his appearance in thecities throughout the country that the newly formed vaudevillehouses of Klaw and Erlanger were sold out as soon as it wasknown that Hardeen was to appear.

In order to keep the public's interest stimulated, Hardeenrepeated this bridge jump in many other cities, and alwayshad thousands of people present to witness this feat.

LIVES OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE JEOPARDIZED.

While performing in Norfolk, Va., in February, 1908, inthe midst of winter, while ice was floating in the ElizabethRiver, he jumped into the water while manacled by the localpolice, and released himself from the handcuffs while underthe water.

Fully twenty thousand people witnessed this feat andlined the river front in all directions, even the top of housesand river crafts were loaded with the sight-seers.

The jam on Crosby's dock, on the Atlantic River side ofthe bridge, was so intense that the dock collapsed, throwingmany into the icy waters and creating a panic which was onlystemmed when it became known that the people fell intowater which was only waist deep.

A brief account of the jump is herewith reprinted from atwo-column front-page account of the Ledger Dispatch of Feb.11, 1908:

"It was almost 12.30 o'clock before Hardeen made hisappearance on the big iron bridge in a bathing suit of blueand white. He was greeted with tremendous cheering, andhad two pair of handcuffs placed on his wrists by CaptainFord and Detective Cotton. He then mounted a rail andjumped into the river, disappeared for a second, and came upsmiling, with the handcuffs in one hand. He struck out forthe launch Julian, which had been placed near the bridge byCommodore Dodson, of the Hampton Roads Yacht Club, andwas soon inside, changing his wet clothing for drier and morecomfortable ones. The whole thing looked as easy for Hardeenas eating out of a spoon, and the people who saw it will talkabout it for a long time."

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HARDEEN ESCAPES FROM A PRISON CELL INAUBURN, NEW YORK.

Auburn, being noted throughout the world as an Ameri-can city which contains a jail noted for its strength in holdingprisoners, afforded Hardeen an excellent opportunity to tryhis ability, the result of which is herewith reprinted from theAuburn Citizen, at the time he presented his performance inthat city:

"HARDEEN GAVE POLICE PRIVATE EXHIBITIONOF JAIL BREAKING. OUT OF CELL IN EIGHT

MINUTES."Hardeen, the handcuff expert showing" at the Burtis

Opera house this week, gave a private exhibition for the

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members of the police and official circles at the City Hall thismorning, when, after being shackled and locked in a cell, hebade farewell to his friends for eight minutes and then re-appeared free of the nippers, leg-irons, etc., gaining a roundof hearty applause as he walked out of the jail and greetedthe party of spectators.

"Hardeen arrived at the police station at 11 o'clock and,after looking over the odorous jail, asked some one to designatea cell for him to occupy. A Citizen reporter humanely pointedout No. 7, near the open transome on the Market street side,where a breath of fresh air might be obtained, and, afterRoundsman Graney had placed leg-irons on his ankles and afine new pair of Maltby handcuffs on his wrists, everythingwas ready.

"Hardeen, however, asked for more, and Chief Bell pro-duced an old-fashioned pair of 'bean-cuffs,' which were alsoplaced tightly on his wrists. Having displayed what is knownas 'thumb-cuffs,' two small claw-links that grip the thumbslike a vise, to one of the spectators before the arrival ofHardeen, Chief Bell was asked to place them on the man'sthumbs.

" 'Let's see them first,' said Hardeen when the suggestionwas made.

" 'Oh, you've got all you can handle to get away withthose now on you,' replied Chief Bell.

"Hardeen was insistent, however, and, after taking a lookat the little vest-pocket affair, said, 'Put them on.' They wereaccordingly placed snugly on his thumbs, and he was shovedinto cell No. 7, and the spectators withdrew to the locker roomin the police station.

"It was exactly 11,12 o'clock when Roundsman Graneylocked the cell door on the shackled prisoner, and eightminutes afterward he walked out into the locker room carry-ing the opened cuffs, irons, etc., in his hands, and handed themback to the police officers. He was loudly applauded.

" 'I advise you, chief, to get a new cell; that one is easy,'he remarked as he stepped out. He admitted that he spentseven out of eight minutes in getting out of the little "thumb-cuffs.' "

1

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HARDEEN'S ACT WAS THE FIRST ACT TO BEHONORED WITH A RETURN ENGAGE-MENT ON THE KLAW AND ERLANGER

VAUDEVILLE TOUR.

The distinction of being the first act to play a returnengagement on Klaw and Erlanger Vaudeville tour belongsto Hardeen.

Hardeen advertising; matter as employed byKlaw & Brlanger on moving vehicles

The firm of Klaw and Erlanger were looking to pack theirnew vaudeville theatres, and when they saw how successfullythis object was accomplished when Hardeen appeared at atheatre (even though they had so many hundreds of featureacts engaged), they found it more advantageous to theirinterests to have him appear a second time in many of thetheatres at which he had appeared but a few weeks previously.

HUNDREDS BUY STANDING-ROOM ON THE STAGE.

The theatres were so packed at his return engagementsthat when the management informed the public that the houseswere sold out, the people clamored to buy standing room onthe stage, in order to see Hardeen, and so every matinee andnight, during his appearance, hundreds of tickets were soldadmitting people on the stage during Hardeen's performance..

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When the Klaw and Erlanger and Keith strife wasbrought to a close, the Keith interests immediately took over

As billed on the Poli Circuit

the Klaw and Erlanger contract with Hardeen and gave himan extended contract over their tour for the following year.

ENGAGED AND RE-ENGAGED FOR THE PACIFICCOAST THEATRES.

Having played both in the eastern and western parts ofthe United States, and as the managers on the extreme Pacificcoast had long negotiated for Hardeen, and as his contractsnow allowed him some spare time, he agreed to play some ofthese theatres for a short time.

His reputation had so far preceded him that, long beforehe made his appearance, the houses had been sold out duringhis engagements. Following in the course of his footsteps ofhis entire American engagements, hundreds of seats weresold on the stage at every one of his performances, and inSpokane, Washington, an extra night show was given on aFriday, which was the first time this had been done since thetheatre had been erected. When he completed the tour andreturned to New York, he at once was telegraphed for andengaged, at an increased salary, to return immediately andperform over the same tour he had just completed.

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I

THB FAMOUS HOUDINI

Notwithstanding all statements to the contrary, Houdini isthe full brother of Hardeen and but two years his senior.

The above picture is an excellent likeness of Houdiniand the striking family resemblance may be

readily noticed.

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JEW YORK, ever hungering for sensation, hascertainly got one in H a r d e en, the handcuffking and marvelous jail-breaker, at the PlazaMusic Hall this week. Audiences have prob-

ably never been so spellbound as when this wonderfulm a n all°ws himself to be placedin an iron milk can filled witnwater, his hands securely mana-cled with regulation handcuffsand the lid pla'ced on and securedby padlocks. Failure to releasehimself means death by drown-ing. Can you imag ine such a

thrilling attempt and rightm your full view, too? You

just feel like restrain-ing the daring Har-deen when he tellsyou that if he fails tomaxe his appearance

the alert attendant will knock a hole inthe can with a_ conveniently placed axe—the only thing which may save hislife. With your heart in your mouthyou count the dragging seconds. Canhe possibly get out?- When all of asudden—well, the rest has just got tobe seen, and see it vou may by visiting

N e w York's Music'Hall de Luxe thisweek. There are nine other star acts, every one a wipner.

PLAZA MUSIC HALLWhen William Morris went into the direct opposition to the

United Booking Offices in 1909, Hardeen was again oneof the first headliners selected. The above plate

will indicate the manner in which Morrisbilled Hardeen.

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Interior the Majestic Theatre, Pittsfield, Mass.

During the engagement of Hardeen in Pittstield the house wascompletely sold out and thousands turned away at every perfor-mance. Special police were engaged to clear the street in frontof the house so that cars could run past the door.

Famous Circuits that have featured HARDEEN

Klaw & Erlanger, Advanced Vaudeville,Win. Morris,Marcus L,ow's Circuit,Orpheum Circuit,Keith's Circuit,Sullivan & Considine's Circuit,Pantages' Circuit,Miles' Circuit,

Barrasford Circuit,Brill & Graydon's,Mac Naughton's,Livermore Circuit,Moss & Thornton's,Stoll Circuit,and all Continental

Theatres.

HARDEEN was re-engaged everywhere.

20 21

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From Daily News, Bangor, Maine, December 11, 1913.IRON BARS COULD NOT HOLD HIM.

Handcuff Wizard solved tramp chair problem before BijouTheatre Audience Tuesday night.

Between 2,500 and 2,600 peoplesaw HARDEEN, the HandcuffWizard, step from the "TrampChair" at the Bijou Theatre Tues-day night at the first performance.After he accomplished it in elevenminutes he made a great hit withhis audience.

The ability of the man to do thisthing caused everybody to marvel,and the question uppermost in theminds of all was: '' How is it allaccomplished ?''

The "Tramp Chair" used inBangor years ago for haulingtramps through the city streets, wasplaced in the middle of the stage.A committee from the Bangor CityDepartment, consisting of F. H.Moulton, Melvin Ellis,T.B.Cowan,Walter Pree and Fred. M. Howdy, put shackles on Hardeen'sankles. He was then seated in the formidable appearing ironchair. The door was locked and barred, after his ankles hadbeen shackled to each other and to the chair.

One of the committee said: "There, when you get out ofthat scrape you will be ready for breakfast." Hardeen smiled.The chair rolled under the canvas. While the orchestra played,the Wizard worked in there in silence. The committee stoodabout the canvas and they were satisfied that Hardeen wasreceiving no assistance. In just eleven minutes he camefrom the chair in smiles, and the audience greeted him withgreat applause. Afterward, while removing his limp linenin his dressing room, Hardeen told a reporter that he hadnever seen such a chair as Bangor's famous "Tramp Chair.""I saw^ that the_ shackles were strong and old-fashioned, notat all like anything I had ever tried to get out of, and I knewI would be bothered considerably by this new sort of imprison-ment. But I found it easier than I had expected. Nothinggave me much trouble but the Yale Lock."

To the committee and the reporters on the stage and inthe wings Hardeen's feat of Tuesday was as mystifying asthey were to the magnificent audience. How does he do it?Echo answers, "It's only a trick, says one." Yes, and it'sa very clever one.

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SOME OF THE PRINCIPAL HANDCUFFS USED BYTHE POLICE DEPARTMENTS THROUGHOUT

THE WORLD.

a• L

• •

Lisac

QSi

1i

D is the American Bean Handcuff.E is the American Bean Giant Handcuff.F is the Bean Prison Leg-iron.

G is the American Army Handcuff.H is the American Prison adjustable Leg-iron.I is the American Guiteau Handcuff.J is the American Jersey Handcuff.K is the American Lilly Iron.

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L The French Handcuff with letter lock.M The Russian Leg-irons.N The Egyptian Hand and Leg-iron.O The Latest Russian manacle.

P is a South German Handcuff.Q is the Berlin Handcuff.R is the Houdini bell lock handcuff. It contains a bell which

rings when the handcuff is locked or unlocked.S is a Spanish pair of manacles.T are a pair of thumb screws which were used in the Bastile

in Paris.

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SOME HANDCUFF SECRETS EXPOSED.One of the means employed of imitating the handcuff per-

formance is to allow members of the audience to hand up lockson specially prepared neck, wrist or ankle irons, the secret ofwhich is that the performer does not have to unlock any of

the locks, but simply removes a false rivet and so releaseshimself. A glance at the accompanying diagram will quicklyexplain everything. The dotted line A shows where the rivetis held in place, and it is so constructed that it can only belemoved with the use of a pair of pliers.

English Regulation Handcuffs

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The easiest handcuffs to open are the regulation Englishhandcuffs. With but one exception, these handcuffs havespring locks, and are opened by simply inserting the key whichis screwed into place until the lock opens. In the accompany-

ing illustration several styles of the handcuffs are shown,and if you will equip yourself with a split key as per illustra-tion, you will be able to open almost every English regulation,screw snap handcuff.

TO PRODUCE A LIGHTED CANDLE FROM YOURPOCKET.

Take an ordinary candle and remove about an inch ofthe wick from the end which is to be lighted, and carefullyinsert a wax match in the space formerly occupied by thewick.

Next sew a strip of emery cloth or sandpaper in the pocketfrom which you wish to produce the lighted candle. Thenplace the prepared candle in the prepared pocket, resting thehead of the match against the emery cloth or sandpaper.

When you wish to produce the lighted candle all you haveto do is to reach into the pocket and while taking out thecandle rub the match head against the emery cloth or sand-paper, thereby igniting the match and so producing a lightedcandle.

You can produce candles from a number of pockets if youprepare them as you did the one described above.

Comedians modify this trick by placing the emery clothor sandpaper with matches in a number of pockets, andattempt to light a cigar that stubbornly refuses to allow itselfto be lighted even though matches are applied to it which areproduced lighted from an innumerable number of pockets.

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SIMPLE METHOD OF EXCHANGING A MARKEDCOIN.

In case you have to exchange a genuinely marked coinin the course of your performance, the reader can try the fol-lowing method once, and he will find that it is most effective,and no false movements are required. There are lots ofmethods of exchanging coins, but this is the cleanest andsimplest we know.

First of all take two ordinary playing cards, and placethem face to face; now place them in this position on a tableor chair, with the coin that you are going to exchange forthe borrowed one underneath, in such a position that you caneasily pick it up. Advance to the audience, ask for (let ussay) a half dollar, as that is the magician's favorite coin size.

When you have been offered the coin, say "I have nowish to touch the coin, as 1 wish it marked before it leavesthe loaner's hands." You look about for a plate, and not see-ing one, (for the simple reason you have no wish for one)accidently on purpose spy the playing card; walk deliberatelyup to it, pick it up and say that you will ask the gentlemento place the coin on the card, and ask them to watch it verycarefully. When the marked coin is placed on the card simplyhold it on its place by using only your thumb. The concealedcoin you are now holding with only your index finger as youshow the audience the coin on top. With a slight movementturn the card around and show the coin under your indexfinger. You can now go ahead with your trick, as it is hardlypossible that it is suspected you are deliberately and boldlydeceiving them right in front of their eyes.

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THE SPELLING BEE CARD TRICK.A clever little trick which will be useful in parlors and

small circles is to take thirteen cards and arrange them insuch an order as to enable you to spell out the cards insequence from 1 (ace) to the king, by simply holding the13 cards in your hand with face downward and removingone card from the top with each letter you spell.

Preparation. Arrange the cards in the following sequence:3-8-7-1-K-6-4-2-Q-J-10-9-5

which arrangement with face downward makes the 3 the topcard and the 5 the bottom card.

Explanation. Commencing at the top, you remove onecard with each letter you spell, but be careful not to disarrangethe sequence of the cards as previously prepared: viz., O-N-E,one; having removed one card with each letter, you turn overthe fourth card when you pronounce the word one, and it willbe found to be the ace. This you will place on the table, asyou have no further use for the card and if it is returned tothe pack it will break up your previously arranged sequence.

Next spell T-W-O, two, and the fourth card will be againturned up and discarded upon the table and will be found tobe the two, or deuce card. Next, T-H-R-E-E, three, is speltand with the pronunciation of the word three, the card isturned up, discarded upon the table and will be found to bethe three. Continue in this way to spell, F-O-U-R, four;F-I-V-E, five; S-I-X, six; S-E-V-E-N, seven; E-I-G-H-T,eight; N-I-N-E-, nine; T-E-N, ten; J-A-C-K, jack;Q-U-E-E-N, queen, and K-I-N-G, king.

The trick affords excellent pasttime and is very simple ifyou will only remember not to disturb the sequence of thecards, and be sure not to place the card back into the packwhen it has once been spelt and discarded.

Should you prefer to spell the Jack by its other name,K-N-A-V-E, the sequence is as follows:

Q-4-1-8-K-2-7-5-10-J-3-6-9,and it must be remembered that the card to be spelt must beturned up and discarded with the last letter name of theletter spelt, viz., O-N-E-, as the E is named the card is turnedup and will be found to be the ace; T-W-O, as the O is namedthe card is turned up and will be found to be the two;T-H-R-E-E, as the E is named the card is turned up and willbe found to be the three, and so continue to spell each number,turning up the spelt card with the naming of each last letter,and remembering not to break the prearranged sequence andnot to return the spelt card to the pack.

The first method is the preferable one; st:il, both aregiven for the reader's benefit.

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SPIRIT TABLE LIFTING.A Clever Little Trick Which Can Be Done With Great Success

Preparation.—Cut a slot in a ring which you can place onone of your fingers as is depicted in the accompanying illustra-tion. Then drive a common pin into a small, light weighttable, (as per illustration), which you intend to lift. By slip-ping the slot of the ring behind the head of the pin you areable to get quite a firm hold on the table and so can lift itfrom the floor.

Execution.—Place your hand on the table and casuallyslip the slot of the ring behind the head of the pin and slowly

and carefully raise the table, which will make it appear tothe audience as if you lifted it with your finger tips.

To add effect to this, you can spread a silk handkerchiefover the top of the table to show there is no preparation, forit will not prevent you from slipping the slot of the ring overthe head of the pin. You can now lift the table and move itabout to the accompaniment of music, and with the last move-ment remove the pin and hand the table around for examina-tion.

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THE JAPANESE BUTTERFLY TRICK.

Effect.—The performer walks toward the footlights withtwo butterflies in his left hand and a fan in his right hand.He commences to fan the butterflies and they start to flyaway, but hover about him wherever he goes. Eventually hestops fanning them and they alight on a bouquet of flowerswhich the performer has taken from a table near at hand.

Preparation and Explanation.—Take two pieces of silkpaper, a little larger than the ordinary sheet of cigarette paper,fold them as shown in Fig. 1, and cut them as near as possibleinto the shape of a butterfly, as depictured in Fig. 2. Turnthe points, which represent the heads a little, and fasten toeach point, or head, an end of a lady's blonde hair about twoand one-half to three feet in length.

In the center of this hair connecting the two heads ofthe butterflies, tie an end of another blonde hair, of a longerlength if possible than the first, as depictured in Fig. 3, at A,and at the other end, B, place a small piece of wax.

Be careful not to entangle the two butterflies, and for thisreason it is advisable to fasten them on the wall by meansof the wax until you are ready to go on the stage to presentthis trick.

When you are ready to present the trick, fasten the waxedend, B, on your forehead under your hair where it will notbe seen, as depictured in Fig. 4, hold the butterflies in yourleft hand between your thumb and middle finger, take a fanin your right hand, address your audience by words or panto-mine, and as you commence to walk backward, release onebutterfly at a time and fan them from underneath.

The fanning keeps the butterflies in the air, and the hairattached to your forehead causes them to follow you where-

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ever you go. When you wish them to alight, stop fanning andthey will fall on whatever object you have prepared for thispurpose. You can let them alight on the fan, but the effect

is prettier if you have a bouquet of flowers on your table,which you take in your left hand and allow them to alighton this as you stop using the fan.

As the hair is imperceptible to the audience this trick liasa most pleasing and mysterious effect. Amateurs should care-fully practice it in private ere presenting it in public.

A MIND READING TRICK.

Effect.—Lay two cards, coins or any two small objectson a table, and instruct a member of the assemblage to placea hand on one of the objects, while you are blindfolded andwhile your back is turned to the table, and ask him to raisethe object in his hand to the level of his forehead, and intentlythink of it while he slowly counts twenty. Then he is to layit back on the table, and you will turn around, gaze intentlyinto his eyes, and announce the particular card, coin or objecthe has selected, and is at present thinking of.

Explanation.—When performing the trick, make theselected member of the assemblage place both hands on thetable at the same time, ere you commence the trick. Theninstruct him to select the card, coin or object while your backis turned, and hold it up on a level with his forehead; thiscauses the blood to flow from the hand and makes it appear

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whiter than the hand which has not been used and whichremains on a low level on the table, retaining its naturalcolor.

Naturally when you turn around and look into the eyesof the committee, you manage to look for the paler hand,and select the coin, card or object located on the same sideof the table with the paler hand.

If you wish to use a confederate all that is necessary isfor him to hold a toothpick in his mouth, and move it eitherto the left or right side, to correspond with the object thathas been selected. In fact, it adds a little to the effect ifthree objects are placed on the table, and if the middle oneis selected he moves the toothpick to the center of his mouth.

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394 Kenmore Place, Flatbush, N. Y.

T H E S E N S A T I O N OF BOTH HEMISPHERES This marvellous man hasbeen handcuffed Hyail the Principal Police Departmenls.of the World.and has managed tobafflethemall