The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-04-01
OCCULT fEATs EXPOSED
Mysteries Of the Basket Trick Of
India Laid Bare.
MAGIC WITHOUT ANY SPIRITS
Very simple Methods Used to Produce
Really Surprising Effscss-An Inter
esting Chapter Of Fully Revealed
Oriental WOuders.


The credit for the exposure of the oc-
cult art OF India belongs to A. Edwin
Rood. a nephew Of Hon. Henry Ballan-
tine. late American consul TO Bombay
Mir. Reed has lived many years in India.
and speaks Hindustanee as fiuently as
English. He devoted q great deal OF
time to studying the characters and
performances of the fakirs. He won
their confidence. He induced a company
around the world. giving exhibitions OF
their magic. They had great success
everywhere. before crowned heads and
heads that We're not crowned.
But he was sick of the business. The
fakirs became cantankerous and mu-
tinted two or three times. They are
hard to manage outside their own coun-
try, and Mr.. Rood is the only man who
has ever succeeded In doing anything
with them. They struck recently in
New York, all but the faithful Nathoo.
ard so Mr. Rood concluded to go out of
the business. That 10 why he happens
to be In Boston at present, and the other
evening at 2sl Columbus avenue he re-
moved the veil from Indian occultisln
for the benefit OF the Globe artist and
reporter.
First NathoO performed the tricks,
ana after he had left the room Mr. Rood
repeated them and showed the hocus
pocus IN each. Mr.. Rood says that the
reason why the Hindoos are such ex-
pert palmsters ls thai their hands are
formed unlike those Of any other human
beings, the base Of the thumb SO large
ana night that hey can hold any article
IN the palm. from pea to an egg with
out contracting a muscle, 70 that when
the back OF the hand Is turned toward
You 1t IL impossible to see that any ar
ticle Is concealed in the palm.
THE TURBAN TRICK,
The first performance was one that
has always been a poser to the amateur
Juggler. 1t was the famous trick Of cut
ting and burning the turban. Only in
this case the turban was a very long
strip of muslin cloth. Nathoo first cut
several pieces about five inches long
from one end. Then the strip was
FOLDED, and he appeared to cut through
the folds, thus making three or four
pieces OF the strip. In reality. however.
as MI. Rood subsequently showed, he
only cut of q small piece OF each end
But In order to accomplish this he gave
the cloth the appearance of having been
cut into three or four distinct parts.
The pieces were deftly rolled into a ball,
palmed and finally dropped into Nahoo' 3
bag III q moment when the spectators
attention Is attracted elsewhere. Then
the ends OF the cloth are set on fire. ap-
parently. although they are held In such
manner that in reality 1t Is only the
little pieces that are burned. When the
cloth Is unrolled it Is, OF course. found
to be intact. and no one ever thinks
OF measuring 1t to see whether 1t has
lost any Of it's length.
Then came the ''lota" or water trick.
In which a small metal vessel, looking
something like cuspidor, seemed to
contain an endless amount of water. The
deception Is caused by a partition
around the inside of the "lota" which
has small hole at the bottom to allow
the water to pass through, and when the
vessel Is upside down the water remains
around the side. BY blowing through
very small hole drilled in the side
Nathoo could cause a fountain like flow
from the mouth OF the vessel
Mr.. and Mrs. Rood then held an Or
dinary white sheet for Nathoo to per-
form the popcorn trick on. He threw
some dried raw corn upon the sheet. and
taking the ''supplee," which somewhat t
resembles q dustpan, he began stirring
the corn, all the while repeating his in
carnations. Apparently the corn began
to pop. and Hr. Rood subsequently
showed that Nathoo's "suplee" had a
double bottom by opening which the
nicely popped corn which had previously
been placed there came out upon the
sheet.
A MIRACLE EXPLAINED.
He then treated the spectators to the
miraculous appearance Of two live rab-
bits. and this is the explanation of the
miracle: Two rabbits We're placed In
a small cloth bag, loosely tied therein
and put en- the floor. The small basket
was then placed before Nathoo. who
put upon it his rahmsamee, made out of
cloth and leather, and resembling the
cross between q crocodile and boot
Jack.
After putting 1t on the basket. Nathoo
spread small cloth over, both. and
then, after chanting q hymn. he re-
moved the basket with his left hand,
with the cloth still over 1t, and while
calling attention to the fact that the
rahmsamee is still there, deftly picks
up the bag containing the rabbits with
the hand which he holds the basket
bringing them around In front of him.
quickly removes the rabbits. from the
| bag, places them under the basket
throws aside the cloth in which the bag
| is concealed. lifts the basket and as
tonishes his spectators with the sight
| Of the rabbits.
| After this came the famous mangOe
| trick. OF which every one has heard. 1t
| loked very strange and mysterious, but
, the explanation makes one feel like
kicking himself for not having discov-
| cred 1t himself. Nathoo took a small
| flower pot nearly filled with earth, and
! over 1t placed a cloth. and showed in
the earth small, green sprout. which
he had quickly put there by clever
palming
The pot was again covered with the
cloth, and Natho0 prayed some more to
his little god, played OH his hornpipe.
beat his tom-tOm. grasped u small bag,
| in which the mangOe bush was con-
cealed. brought 1t around in front of
him, removed the bag. stuck the bush
into the earth, took away the cloth
cover, and there was the miracle right
before us. 1t was all exasperatlngly
simple when Mr.. Rood later did the
| trick very slowly.
THE BASKET MYSTERY.
Nathoos last miracle" was the great
| basket mystery, which he successfully
performed with Mr. Rood's assistance
This is said to be performed by the aid
| of the mahatmas. and In India Is con-
sidered nothing short OF supernatural.
This trick consists of putting u man
into net. in which he is tightly tied,
! and then laid across the top Of bas-
ket, about three feet long, eighteen In,
ches wide and two feet deep. A sheet /.
then placed over all. and within ten sec
onds the net Is thrown out from under
meath the sheet. In which is inclosed the
turban of the juggler, who has appilr
emily disappeared from the basket. A
moment later the cover Of the basket IL
removed by the conjurer who Is per-