Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1886-06-04
Hindu Legerdemain.

Hindu Legerdemain.
WHAT MR.. S. E. ROBINSON SAW IN
INDIA.
When he entered the room he spread
white cloth upon the floor and sat
down upon it with his back to the
wall, the door Of the room being on
the right hand. His spectators were
disposed in the following fashion:
Mr.. Smvth sat on a chair nearly in
the middle of the room. | was sitting
on sofa near the door; the Psrsee
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
conjuror. As soon as he had settled
himself he turned to the Parsee and
asked for the loan of rupee. The
pedder at first demurred little, but
on being guaranteed agrinst loss he
produced the coin. He was going to
put it into the conjuror's hand, but
the latter refused, and told the Parsee
to hand it to Mr.. Smyth's bearer.
The bearer took it. and at the request
of the conjuror, looked at it and de-
clared it to be really a rupee. The
coljuror then told him to hand it to
his master. Mr.. Smyth took it, and
then followed this dialogue:
Coniuror-Are you sure that is
rupee?
Smyth-Yes.
Conjuror-Close your hand and hold
it tight Now think of some c'untry
in Europe, but do not tell ME your
thought.
Then the conjuror ran over the
names of several countries, such as
France, Germany, Russia, Turkey and
Amortization the native ludian is
under the impression that America is
in Europe After a moments pause
Mr.. Smyth said he had thought of Il
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 . five franc piece, and MIR.
Smyth had thought Of France. He
was going to hand the coin to the con-
juror, but the latter said:
NO; pay it to the other sahib."
| Mr.. Smyth accordingly pat the five
franc piece into my hand. | looked
closely at it, then shut my hand and
thought of Russia. When | opened it
found, not Russian, but a Turkish
silver piece, about the size of the five
franc piece, or of our own crown piece.
This | handed to Mr.. Smyth, and
suggested that he should name Amer
/ ica, which ne did, aud found Me1ii.
can dollar in his hand. The coin,
whatever it was, had never been in the
coujuror's hand from the time the
rupee was borrowed from the Psrsee
merchant. Mr.. Smyth and his bearer
had both Of them closely examined
the rupee, and Mr..Smyth and turn
ed over several times the five franc
piece, the Turkish coin, and the dol
lar; 80 the trick did not depend on a
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 rupee is only
about the size of a form, and there
fore about half the weight Of five
frame pl ce.
He did another trick almost equally
as wonderful. AS before he was seated
on white cloth. which this time, |
think, was tablecoth borrowed from
the mess sergeant. He asked some
one present to produce a rupee and to
lay it down at a remote edge of the
cloth. The cloth being three or four
yards in length, the conjuror could
not have touched the coin, and, in
fact, did not touch it. He then asked
for signet ring. Several were offered
him, and he chose out one which had
a very large oval seal, projecting we'll
beyond the gold hoop on both sides.
This ring he tossed aud tumbled
! several times in his hands. now throw
ing it into the air and catching it,
then shaking it between his clasped
hands, all the time mumbing half in
articulate words in some Hindostanee
patois. Then, setting the ring down
on the cloth at about halfarms length
in front of him, he said slowly and
distinctly in good Hjndostanee:
"Ring, rise up and 60 to the rupee"
The ring rose, with the seal upper
most, and resting on the hoop, slowly,
with a kind of dancing or jerking
motion, it passed over the cloth until
it came where the rupee was on the
remote edge, then it lay down on the
coin. The conjuror then said: "Rlng,
lay hold Of the rupee and bring it to
me-" The projecting edge of the seal
seemed to grapple with the edge of
the coin; the ring and the rupee rose
into kind of wrestling attitude, and
with the same dancing or jerking mo-
tion the two returned to within reach
of the juggler's hand.
| have no theory to explain either
OF these tricks. | should mention,
however, that the juggler entirely dis
claimed all supernatural power, and
alleged that he performed his tricks
by mere slight of hand. 1t will be
observed that he had no preparation
of his surroundings, no machinery,
and no confederate.
Any one who is quick at repartee