The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-09-23
SECRETS OF FAMOUS
TRICKS LAID BARE
Peeps Into Occult in Little New
York Shop
.HELLER'S SECOND SIGHT
Dekolta's Disappearing Bird Cage.
Apparatus Supplied to East Indian
conJurors-stage Magic Is
still Quite Popular.
.HELLER'S SECOND SIGHT

From the New York Sun.
Thee Is a modest little shop on Sixth
avenue, with playing cards. goblets,
boxes and other innocent loking objects
in the window, in which is manufactured
most of the magicans apparatus used in
North and South America and a good deal
of that used in Europe and the orient.
Persons Interested in the occult would be
surprised to see on the books of the es-
adjustment the orders from India itself
for apparatus to be used in conjuring
tricks by native Indians.
The little shop is the headquarters of
magic in America. The walls are covered
with portraits of famous performers, the
place is full of souvenirs Of them, and the
proprietor can tell stories of them and
their art.
He has, for instance, the vanishing cage
of Buatier de Kolta, which Mrs. de Kolta
presented to him after the death of the
conjurer Seght Of hand men declare
that de Kolta was the greatest prestigi-
tator that ever lived. He never used
trick invented by any other person, and Is
said to have invented more tricks which
have been copied by other performers
than any other man.
This vanishing cage was a favorite.
1t was simply a bird cage, containing a
live canary which he held out in plain
view of the audience. Then the whole
thing disappeared.
That was all there was to 1t, but it was
most mysterious. The cage was collapse
BILE and disappeared up de Kolta's sleeve.
The are consisted in making 1t disappear
invsibly and without hurting the canary.
De Kolta made his cage with his own
hands. Most prestdigitators have been
expert mechanlcians. Many of them have
originally been watchmakers or optical
instrument manufacturers The next most
prolific sources of supply have been the
professions of chemistry and medicine.
Herrmanns Favorite Trick.
A souvenir Of Alexander the Great
Hermann shows the pleasure which that
prince of art took in his own hocus pocus.
This was too small a trick to use on the
stage and he invented 1t merely to amuse
his friends in his own home.
1t is a little cabinet of ebony, inlaid
with mother of pearl containing thirty
two small drawers, just the size of
playing card, all numbered. The observer
was asked to choose one of thirty-two
cards and to name the drawer In which
he would have 1t appear. The card al
ways appeared in the right drawer.
The conjurers art lay In compelling the
selection of the right card. The drawers
| had false bottoms and springs, and a
| card like that selected had been previous
| ~ concealed in all of them, waiting for
a deft pressure to bring 1t to light in the
drawer selected
Visitors to the proprietor of this little
shop of magic sometimes sit down UNI
awares upon a plain, old fashioned sofa
| which they are surprised to learn was
| once the throne of a high priestess of oc-
/ cult, Miss Haidie Heller, in her famous
| second sight act with Robert Heller This
| trick awakened wide interest thirty years
| ago 1t seemed most mysterious and in
explcable and puzzled even those who
| knew that 1t was trick.
Miss Heller sat upon the sofa blindfoded
| and with her back to the audience. Heller,
| in the audience. borrowed objects from
spectators and Miss Heller described them
| sometimes. Not a word was spoken by
Heller, nor could she see him to get her
cue by his gestures.