The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1888-05-11
ThErALE.rALE HEART.
Tit Wore Worn on tho sIeovo There
Would bo no BIusfing at Poker.

u
Some years no. on the frontier, in
n little den, hall hotel and half gam
bling house, saw 10 most astounding
teat performed.
1t was done by II gambler named
Paxton, IL tall, cadavrrous, nervous
known in the West, partly through
his professional dexterity and partly
through Il cert ain facility III applying.
his index finger to thein>trument that
has immcrtnlizrd Mr.. Colt. think
he is at present i'll Dodge city, Ran
sas.
The way it came about was this: I
met PaNtona ut the supper table and fell
into conversation with him. lie had
been keen observer throughout a.
very checkered career, and intcrM owe
IL running description OF the country
and some very free.hand portraits OF
prominent citizens with II vein OF sar.
donic philosophy that was extremely
enter. aiming. In short. WANTED to see
more of him, and in the course of the
evening dropped into the bnrroom
where lie was the presiding genius 1t Il
faro table. for the particular purpose
OF drawing him out. Presently the
game dwiniled down to nothnaness,
ana pushing back his chair he picked
up the thread OF our talk, and 50 it
drllt"d on from one topic to another
until something was said about cool
ness i'll trying positions.
Goodness is like beauty" said Pax
ton: ITS only skin deep. No man is
really cool in the presence of great
danger, but ii he can appear to he
and carry it off that is all that is
necessary. And, by the way" he
added, "that reminds me of some
thin. that may interest you. Just
run your eye over that faro layout,
and pick out IL card, in your mind"
did not exactly see the connection,
but did as he told me-. Tn the layout,
or board. were pasted, face upward,
the cards Of one suit, from ace to
king: mentally selected the lack.
NOW then" he said. layin. his
hand imprcssively on mine, lets SIZE
it ] can read which it was. Bat 1t
seems to me you have forgotten |
assured him remembered perfectly.
".A!l tlsht," lie continued, "think lust
how ii looks"
pictured wildly in my minds eve
the idiotic ctl.y on the rack. and he
BEGAN TO count: "Ace. deuce, tray,
four, five, six, seven. eight, nine, ten,
lack, queen, king. 1t was the lack"
he said.
was a good deal surprised, and
protested that it must he a guess.
"All right" he StM, Select ancth-
or " I ,,I,r I.,f l..
again. "Ace. deuce. tray, four-that's
1.-THE Jour"
On course there was no room for the
guess theory after that, and went
away completely mystiiied 1t seemed
to hc Il perfect example OF mind read.
inn, pure and simple. much more
clever ah'l ol"n than anything done
by Browne. Bishop had not then
come to the front. A few days after.
ward PaSton became so fond OF me
that he told me how lie did it.
ITS all in the heart" he said.
You may stiifrn up your face. wall
your eyes. aud not move IL muscle.
but all the while your heart, which
YOU can't control. is throb, throh,
/ t'irn'in:: away. blabhing cveryt hin. it
knows. When put my hand on yours
dropped my finger on your pu,se.
and wll'n | named the right card it
ave Il little quaver. as plain rs day.
] lie talk about your forgetting he
T; card WIS simply to make you think
| about 1t as hard as possible"
| The pulse trick that Paxton show.
ed me Is simple and easily performed
by amy one OF reasonably sensitive
touch. ] have done il over IL hundred
times with as many different people,
and never made single failure alter
the first lew attempts when | was .rt.
tim; 'h" lang OF it. The j", or unavrr
OF TIL pulse is very characteristic and
quite ummistakitjle. AMI the tric:;
forms Il neat and effective purlor iii;,-
sion. vi course faro iayout, aye not
supposed to be accessible, bu, a deck
OF cards or blocks ettcrt,l
with the alphabet will answer. have
found in most eases, particular.
~ with ladies who are delcatcly or
gained, it can he done by simply re-
qucstln. the subject to think OF u
number or letter, but to insure sue
cess 1t is better to have visual OH
iect on which the mind can be more
readily concentrated.
Following out this line several other
thin-,s suggested themselves which ale
/! pretty experiments and easily per-
formed. Here are q coupl,. OF them:
Take Il sheet OF foosc;lp and rule it
rroSsways into six spaces OF equal
with. Then number the spaces. and
request the subject to think intently
OF one OF them. While he is doing so
let Linn take Il pen by the tin OF the
+, holder and ;lraw n line from right to
/, lett across the sheet, and the line wllan
/; II enters the space on which his mind
WITS fixed, will almost invariably in
| cline toward the body. Furthermore,
it will show. on close Inspection, n
trrniious edge, while the balance OF
it is firm.
Another and more strikin. test
may he performed as follows: Lay
the ace. deuce, tray, and four OF orli
nary playing cards lace up ina square
nn the table. Then let the subject
hn',: a pen suspended by u short
s,r.n. tied to the end, above the CEN
tire .! the square, and tell him to sIiu,
hla eyes and think OF one of the c;lrGls.
In IL lew seconds the pen will begin TO
osclllate toward the ON. and finally
swing directly over it. Neither OF hesr
experiments should u" explained ba,
furrhnnh. as in that case the subject
will probably exert his will power to
defeat them. and they may fail.
In connection with This curious ten.
dcncy OF the heart aud muscles to be
tray 'licmselvr, | had my attention
called Son,n I lime since to an article III
he hrvuc Scirmtiiiune paris lrscr;b.
in@ an apparatus to do on II LARGE
scale what Paxton did on IL small. Ii
was HE invention ut Prof. Mnsso and
consisted! ol II table on which u nlnn
could stretch ut full length and. hav-
in. an cuui!,osn SO delicate that the
slightest disturbance of his centre OF
gravity would cause IL large int.icn. in.
needle below to move to one
si,le or the other. 1t was de-
signed TO show how the heart aud CIR
cu',i ion ar, instantly affected by the
mind, and som" strange things were
done on it. lii" slightest emotion
would ;';,!l:.r Inc nc"iln 10 incline to.
wa.d he. h;,d, aud ii; would dart il,
INT direct ION even when the n,an on
the rahi.. WAS asleep and IL noise VS..
nii;de III he room. tnouai, not @uii.
ci'm.i: loud to awaken him. Nj, 80
re;atrs that nn Italian professor s,ip-
mlttr! tn the "%l"'rl'n"n; and. rc.'ii,i-
in: at lu!l ien..,i, read To- himself iron
two books, II poet i'll his own language
] and lIonir in the original. The