Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-11-30
MAGUIANS, ARTFUL WAYS.
ventrilOqufSts and Punch-and-Judy
shows in Demand.

ETTEs BECOMING P0PULAR-TRICks SELLING
Low.
From the New York Sun.
1.-The regular magical business is not SO good
as 1t once was. Tricks cost less secrets are few.
ana there is less interest i'm sleight of hand than
there used to be-" Prof w. J. Judd the manu-
facturer of magicians supplies. said But
there is great activity in ventrioquism and the
Punch-and-Judy business. / never saw such a
demand for ventriloqusts' figures as there is
now. We used to be able to keep the figures in
stock. but now it is as much as we can do to
keep up with orders"
Has any novelty been introduced that has
caused this popularity"
NO new figures have been brought out. but
the old colOred man and the Irishman are still the
most popular and an old man or an old woman
come next. The Chinaman was introduced aud
ii was thought that he would do we'll especl-
| ally for frontier business. but he doesn't take
| very well somehow. and some Of nv customers
who took a Chinaman have painted his face
oiack. The negro i'm fright is big attraction.
| Let me show him TO YOU"
three-foot puppet was shown. 1t had jet
black skin. expansive eye-whites and spaci-
| Gus Vermiiion mouth. The pull of wire made
each particular lock of hair to stand on end.
mat catches them down south, the profess
sor SAID when Paddy here (pointing to AIRED
headed puppet in green coat threatens to
WHIP Sainbo, up goes his fright wig, his eyes
roll, MS jaw drops. and the people tumble on
the benches a-laughng. These are all good fig
uIes-fegular Kid mouths. You see"
Inc ola style OF figures had a detached Jaw
that worked into a cleft to represent talking.
Figures are now made with Kid Jaws over the
| wooden Jaw bone. so that the motion of the
mouth resembles human action.
| Ihe lar west and the south are the best
| fields for yentriloquisism and Punch and indy
business. the Professor went on There are
men makinga good deal of money by going
around from one mining camp to another with
colored man. an Irishman. and few Punch
and Judy figures. They make the figures talk
mining slang and they don't often strike a
bind lead or worked-out vein. know of
one yentriloquist who makes a good bit of
money with only one figure. The travelling
quack doctors down south make use of ven
triloquial performances great deal. Some
| years ago they used to get a man who could
pick the banjo and sing a song. Now they get
a Ventrlloqulst, and when he draws a crowd
they sell their medicines When the crowd
thins, the ventrilOquist begins again. You see
the ventriloqust can do SO much advertising
Paddy or SambO get sick and complain a great
deal. The doctor gives some of his medicine.
| and they get well and tell how much good the
medicine has done them. The crowd laughs at
their funny talk and gesture, and the doctor
cuts in with. Now who'll have another bottle?'
These doctors pay from S15 to $50 week and
expenses. Every now and then get letter
from some one OF them to engage yentrilo-
quist They go from town to town, hire a car
rage and go through the streets, and guess
they make good deal of money
punch and Judy business never grows old
Outfits cost from $50 to SIS. Two or three men
are enough to work show, and they can make
money in places that could not support theater
companies or regular shows. A full Punch and
Judy outfit now includes great many figures.
There are Punch, Judy. the baby the ghost,
Scaramouch the kicking horse. the DOCTOR a
negro, negress, Dutchman. an Irishman
pretty Polly. Jack ketch. the devil. and the
snake. 1t is only of late years that crowds
would stand anything happening to Mr. Punch
ana the act in which he is finally punished for
his misdeeds. was gotten up i'm this country
You know Punch is fellow of intimate mirth
and caous heart. He kills his wife, his baby
the DOCTOR ScaramOuch. and nearly everybody
else. and yet the spectators always laugh over
his crimes. Then when Jack Ketch comes to
hang him they roar to see him hang Jack
ketch instead, and even at church fairs the peo-
pie shout with delight when he whips the devil
Some Snowman thought it would be only right
to have the devil carry of Mr.. Punch but the
people wouldn't haveit. At last an act was in
vented in which Mr.. Punch buys a mysterious
DOX IRON foreigner and a big snake comes
out of the box and swallows him alive. The
audience rOars when MIR. Punch goes scream
ing down the red throat.
Punch and Judy shows go everywhere
There is man with headquarters at Mauch
Chunk who has regular circuit through the
Pennsylvania mining regions. No church fair is
complete nowadays without Punch and Judy
show. a fine show was given at a Newark
church fair not long ago. The price for a
church entertainment is from 80 to S45 The
price paid for the Punch and Judy show at DR.
Tyngs church some time ago was $50 During
the summer big business was done 10y Punch
and Judy men in circus side shows During
the fall county fairs gave them harvest; now
church entertainments are good fields. Punch
takes everywhere. l send outfits as far away
as Australia, some to Cuba, and even to South
America. 1t takes little practice to learn to
use the squeaker, which is held i'm the mouth to
give MIR. Punch's talk and songs their charac-
teristic shrill tone; but clever, dexterOus man
soon learns to manage the puppets.
''Maiionettes are becoming popular again. and
are used good deal i'm connection with Punch
and Judy shows when a hall is used. The Babes
in the Wood are good attraction now for
church entertainments. There are puppets rep
resenting the cruel uncle. the ruffians the two
children the birds who cover them with leaves.
and finally the angels who bear them to heaven
AS the puppets move the story is repeated from
behInds the scenes. 1t comes in very effectively
as pathetic interlude between the acts of Mr..
Punchs diabOlicai revelries Living marionettes
have been recently brought out. In this the per-
former puts his head through slit in a velvet
screen and puppet body is attached which
gesticulates as he talks or sings.
There are great many regular magicians
travelling about. and, while business is not
what it used to be, many of them make great
deal of money. The Troy Opera House is
owned by magician who says he made all his
money out of nine tricks magician of con-
siderable celebrity out west, Prof. NJ. Williams.
is deaf mute. One would think it would be
the last business in the world for man to IN
dertake who cannot talk or hear but he has
man to talk for him while he does the tricks
The last beard of him he was at Leadville. The
tricks saown now are mostly mechanical, as the
finer sleight of hand tricks which demand the
greatest skill are not snowy. The prices of
tricks are low in comparison with what they
have been. The time has been when as much
as $500 would be charged to teach man the
Indian box trick, and now the price of it is only
So. Mechanical tricks are generally variations
of a few pieces of mechanism"
The professor showed a small wooden box. Of
size convenient to hold in the hand. To all
appearances it was an ordinary box. closing
with lock. One way in which it is often used
is for the magician to borrow watch have one
person put the watch in the box, and lock it.
taking the key. The magician hands it to another
person to hold. "DO you hear the watch tick
ing the magician will ask, and the person
holding the box will hear it distinctly by put
ting his ear to the lid. Finally the watch ap-
pears around pigeons neck. or hanging to q
chair back, after pistol has been fired, or one
OF many ways, according to the fancy of the