The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1886-06-17
HINDOO LEGERDEMAIN.
What S. f. Robinson Saw in India-Mar-
yeIous Sleight-of-Hand.

When he entered the room he spread
a white cloth upon the floor and sat
down upon it with his back TO the wall,
the door of the room being on his right
hand. His spectators were disposed in
the following fashions: Mr.. Smyth sat
on q chair nearly in the middle of the
room. / was sitting on a sofa near the
door, the Parsee merchant stood in the
doorway about arms length from me.
The servants stood about in groups, the
largest group being between the door
and the coniurer. As soon as he had
settled himself he turned to the Parsee
and asked for the loan of 4 rupee. The
peddler at first demurred little, but on
being guaranteed against loss he pro-
duced the coin. He was going to put it
into the conjurer's hand, but the latter
refused and told the Parsee to hand it
to Mr.. Smvth's bearer. The bearer took
1t and declared it to be really rupee.
The coniurer then told him to hand it to
his master Mr.. Smyth took it, and
then followed this dialogue:
Conjurer-Are you sure that is a
rupee?
Smyth-Yes.
Coniuror-Close your hand and hold
| it tight. Now think of some country in
Europe, but do not tell me your thought.
Then the conjurer ran over the names
| of several countries, such as France,
Germany, Russia, Turkey and America
for the native Indian is under the i'm
preston that America is Europe. After
a moments pause Mr.. Smyth said he
had thought of country.
Then open your hand" said the
juggler, '.see what you have got, and
tell me if it is coin of the country you
thought Of"
1t was 5-franc piece, and Mr.. Smyth
had thought of France. He was going
to hand the coin to the conjurer, but
the latter said:
mo; pay it to the other sahib."
Mr.. Smyth accordingly put the 5-franc
piece into my hand. l looked closely
at it, then shut my hand and thought of
Russia When i opened it found. not
Russian, but a Turkish silver piece,
about the size of the 5-franc piece, OF of
our own crown piece. This handed to
Mr. Smyth and suggested that he should
name America, which he did, and found
IL Mexican dollar in his hand. The
| coin, whatever it was, had never been
in the conjurers hand from the time the
rupee was borrowed from the Parsee
merchant Mr.. Smyth and his bearer
had both closely examined the rupee,
and Mr. Smyth and turned over sever
al times the 5-franc piece, the Turkish
coin and the dollar; so the trick did not
depend ON the reversible coin. Indeed,
it could not, for the coin underwent
three changes, as has been seen. need
only add, for the information of readers
who know not India, that a rupee is
only about the size of Il florin, and there
fore about half the weight of 5-franc
! piece.
He did another trick almost equally
as wonderful. AS before, he was seated
upon white cloth borrowed from the
mess sergeant. He asked some one pre-
sent to produce rupee and to lay it
down at the remote edge of the cloth.
The cloth being three or four yards in
length, the conjurer could not have
touched the coin. and, in fact did not
touch it. He then asked for a signet
ring. Several were offered him, and he
chose out one which had a very large
oval seal. projecting well beyond the
gold hoop on both sides. This ring he
tossed and tumbltd several times in his
hands, now throwing it into the air and
catching it, then shaking it between his
hands, all the time mumbling half inar-
ticulate words in some Hindoostanee
patois. Then, setting the ring down on
the cloth at about half arms length in
front of him. he said slowly and distinct
ly in good Hindoostanee:
Ring. rise up and go to the rupee. u
The ring rose, with the seal uppermost,
and, resting on the hoop, slowly, with
a kind of dancing or jerking motion, il
passed over the cloth until it came where
the rupee was on the remote edge, then
it lay down on the coin. The conJurel
then said: '.Ring, lay hold of the rupee
and bring it to me-" The projecting
edge of the seal seemed to grapple with
the extreme edge of the coin; the ring
and the rupee rose into kind of wrest,
ling attitude. and with the same dane
ing or jerking motion the two returned
to within reach of the juggler's hand.
have no theory to explain either oi
these tricks. should mention, how.
ever, that the juggler entirely disclaim.
ed all supernatural power, and alleged
that he performed his tricks by mere
sleight of hand. 1t will be observed
that he had no preparation of his sur
roundings, no machinery and no con.
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