FAMILY FUN

New Zealand Tablet, 11 February 1915, Page 62

FAMILY FUN

TRICKS, ILLUSIONS, AND INDOOR AMUSEMENTS.

(Special to the N.Z. Tablet by Mahatma.)

A Balancing Feat. —A little juggling introduced among some sleight-of-hand tricks almost invariably has a good effect. Here is a little bit of pretended jugglery, which may be worked as a clever ‘ sell ’ simply to raise a laugh. The feat consists of balancing ‘ end on’ a number of match-boxes (full or empty), and * topping-off ’ with some other article even more unmanageable, such as a billiard ball or an egg. To appreciate the difficulty of this just try it with eight empty match-boxes, and you will be surprised how very unlikely you are to succeed hr it. The secret is, however, ludicrously simple. Ihe boxes are really placed in such a manner that they cannot fall. In placing the first box in the light hand you stand with the right side of your body to the audience, so that the back of the hand masks the bottom of the box. The next box is now built on the first, end to end, and in seeming to adjust it carefully on the lower one, the middle finger of the left hand pushes the drawer down about one and a-half inches. This necessarily pushes out the drawer in the bottom box to the same extent, but the back of the right hand prevents the spectators seeing it. By the same ruse the rest of the boxes may be balanced, and if any heavier object is balanced on the top it rather makes the whole affair steadier than anything else. In unbuilding the boxes, the left hand should reach up to the topmost oneapparently the object being to steady them —and at the same time the right hand should exert pressure upon the drawer protruding from the lowest box, and shut up all the boxes in one motion, the left hand assisting in this by pressing down upon the top box by way of resistance. They may then bo dropped all over the place to show they are separate and not faked in any way. If the sell is to be given away at the most critical moment of the supposed balance a slight shake is given to the whole erection, causing the affair to lean in a beautiful curve over the performer’s shoulder, in which condition the structure may be carried from the platform.

The Spanish Prisoner.—The performer needs for this a small piece of paper and a box of matches. The paper he rolls into a small ball, telling the company that it represents a Spanish prisoner—a dangerous prisoner, so dangerous that the authorities found it necessary to enclose him in a cell with four strong walls. He illustrates this by making a square with four matches enclosing the pellet. Then he continues; The prisoner, however, was so dangerous that this was not sufficient, and it was necessary to have four warders one at each corner of the cell —to see that their prisoner did not escape. The warders are then represented by four more matches placed one at each corner, and the narrative continues: The four warders having been on guard all day, it was necessary for their wives to bring them food. The four wives are next represented by another four matches, one being placed beside each warder. Once more the story goes on: wives, however, could not carry all the food, so they had to bring four donkeys, laden with parcels. The matches are again added, but this time only three, and the performer pretends to continue, saying Now we have the prisoner, the four walls, the four warders, the four wives, and the four donkeys. By this time one of the onlookers is sure to have pointed out that there are only three donkeys. The reply is ‘ The fourth place, sir, is reserved for you.’ *