MAGICIAN’S MISTAKES

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 23 January 1926, Page 9

MAGICIAN’S MISTAKES

WHEN THINGS WENT WRONG

'yjyHEN Robert Houdin, the great conjurer, was asked on what he would judge the ability of a conjurer, he remarked : “Not by any particular trick, however wonderful, but by the way he gets out of a difficulty.” The “magic men” —illusionists, conjurers, card manipulators—never can be certain that- everything is going to go right when they 'present a trick (writes Jasper Maskelyne, in the Sunday Chroyit-le). Hence every conceivable mistake must be carefully thought 'out and rehearsed. Tims was my grand-, father’s great .principle; my father followed it, and I make it my guiding rule. But a ready wit is just as necessary.

Bertram, one of the greatest conjurers, who joined the Maskelyne and Cooke show at the old Egyptian Hall in Piccadilly forty years ago, tells a good story of how be extricated himself from* a very nasty hole. He was doing the “rising card” trick. Three chosen cards are made to rise up out of a glass at the command of the persons choosing them. A king of diamonds, a nine of clubs, and an eight of hearts had been chosen, and Bertram had an extra eight of hearts, which he had arranged to jump out of the pack. The king of diamonds was intended to rise first, lbut to Bertram’s- horror, when the command was given up rose the eight of hearts. He knew he must get the two eights out of the way now before lie could get at the king, so he coolly put the first eight back and told the lady to try again. Again she bade the king rise, and this time the second eight of hearts card rose. Bertram .pretended to be very embarassed. Then lie tapped lii-s forehead as ii saying to himself “fool!” and produced his magic wand. “Of course,” he said, “J forgot to give you this.” But being still a bit uncertain about the king, he gave the wand to lady No. 2, who commanded her card, the nine of clubs, to appear. Up rose the nine. Three thousand people applauded rapturously. Then Bertram, certain now that the king was clear, handed the wand to lady No. 1, who commanded the king to rise, with complete success. Everyone thought the ghastly mistake was a clever bit of showmanship, and Bertram always had two cards rise out of their order after that. But mistakes do not always end so happily. One conjurer j know was going to make a lady in a chair disappear. He made a great palaver, strode about the stage, waved his wand—and

suddenly himself vanished! He had trodden on an insecurely bolted trap used in the vanishing trick. Then there was another illusionist who saw my father’s great levitating trick, in which a person lies down, the conjurer makes mysterious passes, and up rises the body steadily as if drawn by some mystic force. The illusionist in question thought he could do it as well. He would, he told the audience, levitate a man standing. The man. came'on, the illusionist made his passes—and up rose both men several lect in the air!

One well-known conjurer had! an odd piece of bad luck at the old Egyptian Hall. He made a magic omelette, niix 7 ing in a. gold ring which he borrowed from a lady in the audience. Then he turned the' omelette into a dove with the identical ring on a ribbon round its neck. It was a striking trick, and the audience applauded loudly. But the •sudden clapping alarmed the dove, which flew up and out of all open window into Piccadilly. The ring went with it.

This was a trifle, however, compared to the mishap of a eojurer who successfully “disappeared” a lady from a basket—and then, in the midst of his bou J to the gratified audience, suddenly saw her roll on to the stage again from the back of the basket where she had beer secreted. One of the neatest and wittiest escapes from an awkward predicament 1 know was in connection with the wellknown trick of making a Welsh- rarebit in a hat and turning it into a rabbit. The assistant, new to the job. accidentally left the rabbit at home. Being a tail of resource, however, he found a kitten and used it instead.

The conjurer cut up Iris cheese with gusto, and worked up to the grand finale where he was to produce a rarebit (rabbit) from the saucepan. He produced a kitten. Head silence. -“Ah.” remarked the conjurer, gazing in sorrow at the furry bundle and shaking his' head, “a pure Cheshire. Why didn’t you tell me you have given me Cheshire cheese?” he demanded of his assistant The audience roared.

One conjurer had his effect spoiled by a small urchin whom lie had induced to come up to have eggs produced from his hair, nose, ears,, all oyer-, kil t.. “There,” said the conjurer proudly, glancing at the audience, -“pity your mother can’t get eggs that way. If sho wants eggs, you know, she had to keep fowls.” “Oh, no she don’t!” retortedthe boy. “She keeps ducks.”