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All that is now wanting is the patronage of the Public : This may or may not be the reward of your great expense and labour.
I have seen and conversed with Mr. R. The feats he performs fully equal your description ; and as you seem very much surprized, and appear to be unacquainted with the Art of Legerdemain, I will detail to you how such deceptions are performed.
1st. The Philosophical Swan. —The bason in which the Swan is exhibited must be made of tin, with a rim projecting two or three inches beyond the circumference : This rim, (the cards being painted thereon) must have two rabbits underneath, forming a frame, capable of receiving a brass hoop within it, made to turn perfectly easy in its respective rabbits : To this hoop dove-tail a magnet, with the attracting point inwards. To this magnet fix a brass pin, projecting over the face of the frame underneath, so that you may easily turn the magnet to that part of the bason occasion may require. The choice of the card being made, turn the hoop, by the help of the projecting pin, with your thumb or finger, which must shift the magnet to a similar one painted on the rim. To avail yourself
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of a seasonable opportunity, expostulate on the great curiosity you are about to exhibit ; and at this instant, while you are diverting the attention of the company, shift the magnet. The Swan being placed on the water, whose body may be cork, and whose bill must be steel, will immediately swim to the point of attraction, which the Exhibitor has thus contrived to be under the card contemplated.
2d. How to catch a Ball discharged from a Gun on the point of Dagger. —Let there be a small semicircular iron tube, about three inches in length, firmly secured on the inside the barrel next to the touch hole : This tube you must charge with a small quantity of powder previous to the performance : At this breech have a door to turn similar to the covering of a key-hole : This door must be sawed out of the breech and shut with a spring : Through this aperture, opening the door, there must be free access for the ball to that part of the stock opposite the lock. The brass ornament, through which the screws pass to secure the lock, must be detached from the screws, and open and shut with a spring. Let the Audience examine and mark the ball ;
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any one may put the same into the barrel, the Performer holding the gun in such a position as to favour the descent of the ball to the breech. Then with your ram-rod make sure of its passing the tube, secretly opening the door in the breech to give it free passage into the stock. This done, all is secure. I need not tell you to ram in a piece of paper under pretence of securing the ball. Now taking the ball from the stock which will readily fall into your hand, by secretly opening the brass ornament, retire in order to fetch the dagger. Your dagger must also be prepared for the business : The blade must have two points exactly similar : The handle must be half the length of the blade : On the one point fix your ball, which point and ball being pressed into the handle, the other half is forced through the handle, being hollow, both ends of which (to carry on the deception) are exactly similar. Then you retire to the one end of the room, and the gentleman who discharges the gun to the other. It is well enough to hold the candle in one hand, under pretence of seeing the ball, as the bottom of the candlestick is a convenient place to strike the dagger against, in order to force that end from the handle which is already
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furnished with the ball ; turning your hand towards the gun the instant of the report. Then, with an air of self-approbation, shew the ball on the dagger. It is well enough, after shewing, to take it from the point and throw it on the table, telling the Company they may look for their mark ; then retire taking the gun and dagger to prevent further examination.
The explanation of the third, fourth and fifth Deceptions, will be the subjects of my next. Till when, with cordial esteem,
Yours, &c.
W. F. P.
LETTER XVI.
From A. B. to W. F. P.
Sir,
The receipt of yours gave me great pleasure, and contained as usual much philosophical information ; the knowledge of which I am continually searching after, and which has become my chief study. The disinterested friendship which on every occasion you appear to have imbibed for me, is a circumstance
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peculiar only to good men. It is a happiness to reflect that nature bestowed a genius, and blended in the same composition those generous feelings that ornament her work, and stamp the man.
I am, with due sentiments of esteem,
Yours, &c. A. B.
LETTER XVII.
From W. F. P. to A. B.
Sir,
I am afraid you have undertaken to flatter me. Your letter intimates more in my praise than any instances of my life admit of recollecting. Flattery is of all delusions the most detrimental to the human understanding ; it retards that improvement which is ever to be made by the most meritorious of mankind, by implanting in the breast sentiments of pride and self-sufficiency ; poisons the mental faculties ; and many valuable persons have fallen ridiculous victims to its fascinating power ; therefore the person who uses flattery with a bad intention, not meaning as he speaks, is a dangerous companion ;
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but he who ingenuously gives due credit to another is a well-wisher, and a candid man ; such am I convinced is my friend : I do not accuse you of such insinuations, but consider my conduct as approved, and the overplus of praise to be merely the overflowings of a warm and friendly heart.
According to my promise, I will now proceed to explain the third, fourth and fifth Deceptions.
3d. The manner how a Card fastened to a table changes its situation. —Let any of the Company choose a card from a number you present them. Be careful they are all of one sort, remembering that spotted cards are the most suitable : As for instance, supposing the cards presented be the five of hearts, request the person who draws from these to return the card drawn to you : Instantly substitute another, which you must have handily in your pocket, with false spots, resembling hearts, and which in reality is only the five of clubs. Then take a pack of cards, and, giving them to the person who drew the five of hearts, request him to look for the five of clubs which must not be in the pack. You then shew him a card which resembles the five of clubs on
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your fork, but which in reality is the five of hearts. Now request the gentleman to permit you to replace the substituted five of hearts, which in reality is the five of clubs, Secretly shifting off the false spots as he receives it into the pack ; consequently he has instead of the five of hearts the five of clubs, and you on your fork in place of the five of hearts, as to appearance, have the five of clubs, the spots of which must be shifted as may seem to you most convenient to deceive the Company. Recollect that the face of the card pinned to the table must be downwards, as will naturally be the case after you have shewn it.
4th. The manner how he swallows knives and forks. —Produce a knife and fork for the examination of the Company, secured to the handle ; and after they have examined and returned the same to you, under some pretence you may retire, and return with another knife and fork appearing like the former, but constructed as follows : The handles must be made of a sufficient length to admit the blades, and tines, then pressing the blade or tine against your teeth with your right hand before your lips it will appear to go into your mouth when it is only returning to the handle.
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This done, convey your handle to your sleeve, bosom, or pocket, as may be most convenient, and it will seem as though you actually swallowed the same, making grimaces and gestures suitable for swallowing and digesting such delicate food.
5th. The manner how he breaks a Watch, and restores it to its former state. —The bag must be made in the form of a pillow-case, with both ends entirely closed, one end of which being entered into the other, renders it a bag and double ; then from its being so formed, he may seemingly turn the inside outward, yet the real inside remain undiscovered. In this aperture there is a slit, leading to a pocket situated near the middle of the bag ; in this pocket a watch is already disposed, for the purpose of being broken. He then requests the Company to favour him with a watch, under pretence of breaking it. Thus accommodated, he secretly places it in the pocket above mentioned, and removes the one before deposited, letting it fall to the bottom of the bag within the real inside so instantaneously that it appears as though it were the borrowed watch. He then takes the bag, and placing the watch intended to be broken at
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one corner, suffers the Company to break this watch in any manner they please, whilst the borrowed one remains safe in the pocket in the centre of the bag. Succeeding thus far, he then turns the bag inside out, and shews the Company there are no pieces of the broken watch to be found ; and at this time clapping his hand into the pocket mentioned, turns the borrowed watch into the seeming bag, whilst the pieces of the broken watch remain unobserved between the inside and outside the bag.
The sixth and seventh Deceptions, with my opinion concerning Ventriloquism, will be subjects for my next ; till when,
Yours, &c.
W. F. P.
LETTER XVIII.
[On the subject of the last Letter.]
From W. F. P. to A. B.
Sir,
In my last I explained to you the third, fourth and fifth Deceptions, with a promise to explain the sixth and seventh, and give you
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my opinion on Ventriloquism in my next. I now proceed, agreeably to my promise.
6th. How Eggs are transformed into Pan-cakes. —Take the number of eggs you mean to transform, and divest them of their yolks, preserving the shell as entire as possible ; then make as many small pan-cakes. These prepared, proceed as follows : Admit you mean to transform six, present nine to the Company, six of these divested of their yolks, and three unblown. After borrowing two hats, request some person to hold one of these hats upon his head with the bowl upwards, into which you must break the empty eggs, making it appear as though they were real ones. The pan-cakes mentioned at the time of borrowing one of these hats are easily flipped in to the hat, as previously they are wrapped together in a small compass. With the other hat cover this, the two rims touching each other. Then shaking the hats, it will appear as though it were the yolks of the eggs that were shaking, when at the same time it is only the pan-cakes. After shaking, separate them with your metempsychostical stick ; the three eggs with their yolks remaining by you untouched, in order that if any of the Company
