The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-01-01
BUTTE News.
TRICKS Of 4 MAGICIAN
Ksllsr Gives Away Some Of His
Secrets.
THE CABINET DELUSION
Some Of the Easy Things by Which IN
Amateur Dan Make an Evening
Pas Pleasantly-Both Sim
pie and Clever.

When Harry Keller. the great ma
opera house recently. he presented so
many new tricks that they kept his
auditors guessing. and some of them
are still figuring on them. A few days
g Keller wrote an article for the San
Francisco Examiner. in which he cx-
plains many of his minor tricks. but
the readers of that article will look in
yet simplest delusion-the suspended
cabinet trick. The trick is to put a
young girl into a cabinet, close 1t. and
upon opening 1t again h girl has dis
appeared. The cabinet is then suspend
ed above the stage floor n another Is
brought out. into which apparently the
same girl Is again placed and is trans
ferred to the suspended cabinet. An
explanation of the trick Is that Keller
has. of course. two girls. dressed alike
n resembling each other. The back
of the stage, as in all entertainments
OF magic, is hung with a dark curtain.
The performers cabinets are hung on
the inside with curtains of a different
shade. but behind those curtains. In
the rear OF the cabinet. Is a narrow
apartment. just wide enoueh to conceal
n or two persons. This apartment
is fitted with curtains of the same
shade as the large curtain at the back
of the stage. SC that when the lighter
shaded curtains in the Dir are
raised the people in the audience i'm
agine that they look through the APP
parently open cabinet when really they
are looking only against the dark cur
tain which conceals the persons in the
narrow apartment. Thus the person in
the cabinet can appear and ~reappear
and accomplish some of the most as
tonishing manifestations" All of KEEL
ler's cabinet tricks are explained in the
same way. In his article in the a
Francisco paper, the great magician
says:
I have been asked scores of times
by friends to explain how some OF the
small tricks are done. which are in
cfuded in my programme of small
magic. and which can be performed by
almost any one with a little practice,
as they do not require that degree of
digital dexterity necessary TO the ac-
co~mplishment OF the more intricate eX-
periments in sleight of hand, which can
only be perfectly rendered after long
and careful practice.
Wherever an evening company Is
gathered, amusements of all sorts are
popular: but the amateur magician. II
he present new tricks n executes
them even passably well, is always re-
ceived with delight.
For our first experiment. let us i'm
agine a parlor gathering. ready to be
entertained. The company Is grouped
at one end of the room, and. of course,
the larger space, the better for the per-
former. We will select one of the
lighter chairs. a frail, light. ornamental
gilt chair. for instance. and will an
nounce that the chair Is a past master
~ tho .tarnfaehnraan art. that n will
waltz 10 the magical of the
wizard, and continue entirely across
the room. perhaps. to the. enhancing
strains of the waltz. played by one of
the young ladies. This promise can be
readily carried out. Around the legs
of the chair are wound several coils OF
fine silken thread. the end of which Is
hooked over a headless pin near one of
the feet. When the music begins, and
the gyrating motions of the young ma
gician's arms apparently contribute in
visible force to the inanimate furniture,
a confederate. lounging in the hallway.
Just beside the door. pulls the string.
The chair naturally rotates as the
thread Is unwound, although in an APP
parently inexplicable manne
over by the music rack, we will. sup
pose there Is a small table. lightly con.
structed and dark in color. III there
isn't, the operator may furnish one fol
himself, which Of course must be exam
lned by all who care to take the trouble
Announce that the table will follow the
performer wherever he wills. and ther
proceed to make II obey. To the as
constituent OF every one. the table. after
having been examined and placed upor
the floor, moves after the magician
as he passess to and fro, waving his
hands in a highly mesmeric attitude
This. also. is simply accomplished. Tt
the inside seam Of either leg of his
--..--- - IAx-a the It.na N htanl
silk thread has been fastened, so as Il
allow a loop to fall to the floor. This
in no way hampers the movements 81
the performer, who, after receiving
the table from the hands OF one of hi
audience, is careful to place IL so tina
one leg goes through the looped thread
His own movements. after slight prac'
tice, will cause the table to move aftel
him In a seemingly miraculous man
ner.
The cork in the bottle trick will af
ford much amusement, especially III 70,
can get the ladies interested. The tricl
consists in blowing a small piece or corl
as large as a pea into an empty bottle
laid upon a table horizontally. TIT
ladies will blow delicately at first, ant
when the cork won go in they vii
blow until they get red In the face. Tn
persistence of some ladies. you know. Il
remarkable. and when you get a goot
one started she will blow hard enough
to burst the bottle. but that impertin
ent piece of cork will only fly out ant
hit her in the face. After as many a
care to la tried the trick. tell then
that IL Is as easy as rolling on the pro
verbal log, and show them how to do IL
by placing a lemonade straw close Il
the cork n by blowing very gently
roll the cork into the bottle. The tricl
will cause no me of amusement.
Another neat experiment Is to drive 1
cambria needle through a copper cen
with q hammer. To accomplish this
break the needle in half and force tn
pointed half almost through a cork
Place the coin on a cube of lead anC
then place the cork with the needle IL
il upon the coin. A sharp blow upor