Encyclopedia of Self-Working Card Tricks
by Glenn G. Gravatt

This is a marvelous compilation of mostly easy and sleightless, or as it is usually called self-working, card tricks. Some effects do require moves such as palming, and a good false shuffle and false cut will go a long way to make many otherwise sleightless effects much stronger. But for the most part no sleights are necessary to perform the vast majority of effects taught.

From the Introduction:

A good part of this book was included in Jean Hugard's Encyclopedia of Card Tricks, but not everything. A comparison of what has been included in Hugard's work and what not can be found in A Comparison of the Gravatt and Hugard Encyclopedias of Card Magic by William Rugh.

This is one of the harder to find and quite expensive books on card magic, because only a small run of mimeographed copies was ever offered for sale. As the author himself admits, the original books are of poor quality rendering many pages very hard to read:

This digital edition remedies this problem, because everything has been reset in new type making it readable and searchable. A few errors and typos have been corrected along the way. We have also translated one effect, which was only given in German, to English.

• Introduction
• Chapter One: Putting The Best Card Secrets To Work (Part One)
  • Sleight Of Foot
  • The Card Miracle - "Certain"
  • Gravatt's Great Divino Card Trick
  • Gravatt's Divino With Two Decks
  • Eastman's Deck Exchange
  • The Spirit Mathematician
  • Card And Crystal Ball
  • Coincidence Extraordinary
  • Modernism In Mentalism
  • Parade Of The Queens
  • Buried Alive
  • Out On Location
  • U Bite
  • Sure Locator
  • The Magic Thrust
  • Psychic Card Feat
  • Naming The Card In The Dark
  • Midnight Marvel
  • Up Your Sleeve
  • Sterotyped
  • Mindreading With Cards
  • Mediumistic Stunt
  • Telepathic Control
  • Long Distance Telepathy
  • Hokus Pokus Card
• Chapter Two: Putting The Best Card Secrets To Work (Part Two)
  • Four To One Detection
  • Excello Card Discovery
  • New Card Discovery
  • Keystone Card Discovery
  • Impenetrable Stop Trick
  • The Nifty Key
  • Mephisto's Prediction
  • The Sequel
  • Infallible Detection
  • Upside Down
  • Surpasso
  • Five Card Mental Force
  • "Just Think" Mental Card Mystery
  • Matching The Aces
  • A Couple Of Cards Get Together
  • A Card And A Number
  • Impossible Card Discovery
  • The Finger Points
  • The Mentalist's Card Staggerer (Thought Card In Pocket)
  • Miracle Card Location
  • Super Card Prediction
  • Automatic Second Deal
  • Mental Masterpiece (Carbon Card Case)
  • The Guessing Contest
  • Telepathic Selection
  • Alpacka
  • Magicardo (Card Automatically Produces Itself)
  • Find The Queen
• Chapter Three: Sailing The Miscellaneous Card Tricks Into Port
  • In The Dark
  • In His Pocket
  • Card Stabbing (Faked Newspaper)
  • Simplicity Four Ace
  • Simplicity Four Ace Number Two
  • Do It Yourself Discovery
  • Count Down Mystery
  • Neat Card Detection
  • Self Control
  • Pick The Queen
  • Card Detected By Pulse Beat
  • Wrinkle For Card Manipulators
  • Master Mental Mystery (A Peculiar Perception)
  • Get It
  • Improved Satan's Prophecy
  • The Vanishing Pair
  • The Unknown Leaper
  • Assistance Card Trick
  • The Flush Trick
  • Stampedo
  • Hourglass Cards
  • The Magi's Detection
  • Wonderful Color Divination
  • Demon's Detection
  • The Poker Shark
  • Incomprehensible Destroyed Card
  • Easy Card Discovery
  • Psychic Card Test
  • Naming Chosen Card
  • Ideal Card Divination
  • Number Of Cards Divined
  • The Whispering Queen
  • Egg And Card Mystery
  • Mental Telepathy
  • Williams' Card Trick
  • Knockout Counting Trick
  • Divining Pack
  • Card And Number
  • Great Psychic Card Feat
• Chapter Four: Trailing The Double Backed Card To Its Lair
  • Repeating Card Turnover
  • Easy Coin Switch
  • Initialed Card Transposition
  • Initialed Card Telepathy
  • Turnover
  • Reversi!
  • Seership Predicto Or The Double Card Prediction
  • The Perfect Force
  • A Double Surprise
  • Transposition Supreme
  • The Red And Blue Transposition
  • Double-Backed Card Routine
  • Double Card Force
  • Single Card Force
  • Comedy Relief
  • Satan Behind You
  • Chameleon Backs
  • Remote Control
  • False Faces
  • Transposition Extraordinary
  • Grant's Giant Acrobatic Cards
• Chapter Five: You Do As I Do
  • A Peculiar Coincidence
  • You Do As I Do
  • Identical Thought
  • You Do As I Do, Or Two Souls With A Single Thought
  • Follow Me
  • Miscellaneous Remarks
  • A Close Work Discovery
  • The Follow Up
  • Coincidence
  • Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
  • "You Do As I Do" Again
  • Another "You Do As I Do"
  • A Strange Coincidence
  • Coincidence, Again
  • Sympathetic Sympathy
  • Synthetic Sympathy
  • Backs Up
  • Mental Coincidence
  • Coincidence
  • Another Marvelous Coincidence
  • A Card Sympathy
  • You Do As I Do — In The Dark
• Chapter Six: Rocking The Diachylon Card To Sleep
  • Mesmerized Cards
  • Melrose
  • Two Viewpoints
  • Diachylon Stop Trick
  • Diachylon Super Color Change Force
  • Reversed Color Surprise
  • Card In Pocket
  • Diachylon Does "You Do As I Do"
  • Ace Transposition
  • Remote Control Improved
  • Remote Control
  • A Real Magical Vanish
  • The Queen Turns Over
  • The Acme Spirit Test
  • Diachylon Book Test
  • The Diachylon Force
  • Another Diachylon Force
  • Number Please
  • Sympathetic Pair (NO. 1)
  • Sympathetic Pair (No. 2)
  • Sympathetic Pair (No. 3)
• Chapter Seven: Seating The Slick Card King On His Throne
  • Half Moon Location
  • Location Plus
  • Everybody's Choice
  • Stage Location
  • The Master Card Speller
  • Mystic Cut
  • Counting By Eye
  • Odd Or Even
• Chapter Eight: Tracking The One Way Back To Its Doom
  • Five Card Stabbing Mystery
  • Thought Card Prodigy
  • The Five Senses
  • Divination Supreme
  • Premo Detection
  • Thought, In Person
  • Think Stop
  • The Deck That Isn't
  • Twentieth Century Sorcery
  • The Four Pile Location
  • The Cut Deck Location
  • A Card Is Found Once More
  • Odd Or Even
  • The Alternate Detection
  • A New Kink
  • Eight In A Row
• Chapter Nine: Tracking The One Way Back To Its Doom (Part Two)
  • Red Or Black
  • Challenge Of The Year
  • Mind In Retrospect
  • Card Location Supreme
  • Hummer Detection
  • The Phantom Stab
  • Your Card, Your Number
  • Instant Mindreading
  • Wrinkles
  • Reading The Cards After A Genuine Shuffle
  • Ne Plus Ultra Card Location
  • One To Ten Detection
  • Different Reversible Backs
  • Incomprehendo
  • Transcendental Vision
  • A Reverse Move
  • Concluding Remarks
• Chapter Ten: Decoying The Stacked Deck From Its Den (Part 1)
  • One In Fourteen
  • Count Your Card
  • Red And Blue Back Mixup
  • Fathomed Thought
  • Two Person Location
  • Fair And Square
  • Dual Sympathy
  • Another Sympathetic Mystery
  • Your Card
  • A Quaint Happening
  • The Great Card Location
  • Another Marvel
  • Read Them Off
  • The Fifteenth Card
  • Stop And Think
  • Reading The Cards
  • Lip Reading Test
  • Master's Touch
  • Hers's Your Card
  • Perfect Card Divination
  • Unique Telephone Test
  • Psychological Discernment
  • Eyes All Around
  • Note
  • Super Count Down
  • Poker Demonstration
  • Card Divination
  • Card Memory
  • Sensitive Thoughts
  • A Possible Impossibility
  • Pythagoras
  • The Great Detection
  • Thought Foretold
  • Fate And The Joker
  • Diabolical Transposition
  • Prophesied Spot Total
  • Wizard's Dream
  • Wizard's Will
• Chapter Eleven: Decoying The Stacked Deck From Its Den (Part 2)
  • Mephistopheles' Touch
  • Cagliostro's Vision
  • New X Ray Trick
  • Shark Food
  • Quadruple Deck Mystery
  • Psycholia
  • Cremo Card Restoration
  • Psychic Prediction
  • Mysterious Detective
  • Count The Cut
  • Discard Trick
  • Ready Reckoner
  • The Pair Detection
  • Dead Easy Location
  • Take A Peek
  • Strange Coincidence
  • Excello Card Discovery
  • The Wonder Force
  • Improved Marvelous Divination
  • Odd Or Even
  • Premier Book Test
  • Controlled Coincidence
  • Cut
  • Poker Player's Dream
  • Novel Card Discovery
• Chapter Twelve: Coaxing The Spelling Bee From Its Hive
  • Joker Spelling Routine
  • I'm A Son Of A Gun
  • Thought Spelling
  • You Selected The —
  • Lazybones
  • Thought Card Spelling Effect
  • Card Spelling Deluxe
  • Knockout Speller
  • Improved Chevalier
  • Incomprehendo Speller
  • Think Of A Card
  • Kater's Improved Spelling Trick
  • Seller's Joker Spelling
  • Perfect Spelling Pack
  • Seller's Whispering Speller
  • Duplex Comedy Speller
  • Think It Spell It
  • Perfection Speller
  • Farelli's Impromptu Speller
  • The Double Speller
  • Spellino
  • Jordan's Wizard Spelling Master (With Improvements)
  • Shuffled Spelling Bee
  • Spell It Yourself
  • Cannel's Spelling Bee
  • Howard's Simplex Speller
  • U Spell Your Card
  • The Spelling Bee Manuscript (Containing 9 Different Methods)
  • The Spelling Trick Effect
  • Seller's Speller Idea
  • An Easy Spelling Trick
  • Gwynne's Speller
  • Quadruple Speller
• Chapter Thirteen: Luring The Svengali Deck From Its Haunts
  • The Svengali Wonder
  • The Master Forcing Pack
  • Prediction Effect with a Svengali Force Deck
  • The Cards And Dice
  • Mindreading
  • Thought Transmission
  • The Prize Winner
  • The Mirage Principle
  • The Eye Popper
  • Mental Control
  • Say Stop
  • Mirage Cards
  • Mind Reading
  • The Mystery Problem
• Chapter Fourteen: Stalking The Mene Teckel Deck In Its Hideout
  • Card And Slates
  • Coincidence
• Chapter Fifteen: Scaring The Stripper Deck Off Of Its Roost
  • Directions For Using The Wizard's Pack
  • To Separate The Red Cards From The Black
  • The Four Ace Trick
  • To Find A Card In Any Position
  • To Make A Selected Card Pass Through A Handkerchief
  • The Turned Card
  • To Allow A Number Of Persons Each To Select A Card, And To Pull Them Out Of The Pack, One After The Other Or All At Once
  • To Allow All The Cards To Fall Except The One Drawn
  • To Bring The Four Kings Together After Being Separated And Shuffled
  • To Pass A Selected Card Through A Table
  • The Animated Card
  • General Instructions
  • Sense Of Touch
  • Cutting The Chosen Card
  • Precipitation
  • The Blow Card
  • Fabled Cads
  • The Pocket
  • The Cut
  • Card And Glass
  • With A Confederate
  • Court Cards
  • Calling The Cards
  • Magnetism
  • At Any Number
  • Card Through Handkerchief
  • The Four Kings
  • Divining Knife
  • Card In Hat
  • The Fixed Card
  • Reunion
  • Satan's Mail
  • Card And Plate
  • Rising Cards
  • More Rising Cards
  • Startling Card Trick
  • Cards From The Air
  • Acrobatic Jacks
  • The Captain Card
  • Flying Card
  • Educated Die
  • Rising Card
  • Penetration
  • Reversible Cards
  • Three Card Reverse
  • Finding Three Cards
  • Card Divination
  • Lifting Any Number Called For
  • Four Ace Trick
  • Some Remarks About Shuffling Strippers
  • The Shuffled Speller
  • Like Thoughts
  • Positions Unknown
  • Just The Reverse
  • Sympathetic Numbers
• Chapter Sixteen: Bringing The Dealers' Secrets Into The Open
  • Card Tearing Feat
  • Transposition Card Trick
  • Card And Orange Trick
  • The Slap Trick
  • The Magnetized Cards
  • The Conjuror's Touch
  • Princess Card Trick
  • The Mystic Circle
  • Sensational Card Mystery
  • The Divining Rod
  • Paint Brush Color Change
  • Improved Penetrating Card
  • The Great Pearl Mystery
  • Card Telegraphy
  • The Eclipse Vanish
  • Thought Card From Pocket
  • The Trend Of The Times
  • New Reverse Card
  • Banner Card Discovery
  • The Dream
  • Inseparable Aces
  • Like Seeks Like
  • Improved Pocket To Pocket
  • Master Riddle
• Chapter Seventeen: Enticing Some Impromptu Card Tricks From Home
  • Satan's Mail
  • Four Ace And Envelope Trick
  • Sellers Card And Envelope
  • Mental Card Mystery
  • Mental Card Mystery No. 2
  • Gravatt's Card And Envelope
  • Tuned Minds
  • Unique Thought Card Discovery
  • Odd Or Even
  • Slates And Aces
  • The Two Card Slate Prophecy
  • Gravatt's Sympathetic Prediction
  • The Life Saver Principle
  • "Faces Or Backs, Which?"
  • The Life Saver
  • And There You Are
  • The Pointer Cards
  • Pick And Choose
  • Mckay's Card Transmission
• Chapter Eighteen: Conclusion
  • Kli Ban's Card Trick Number One
  • Kli Ban's Card Trick No. 2
  • Impromptu Poker Deal
  • Number, Please!
  • A Card Trick Without Cards
  • Watch His Elbow
  • The Piles
  • The Voice Of The Spirit
  • Unique Rising Card
  • The Blue Intruder
  • Svengali Force
  • Subtle Card Force
  • The Fooler
  • Hull's Joker Spelling Trick
  • The Buddha Whispers
  • Master Card Location
  • Follow Me
  • The Merry Mix Up
  • Triple Card Mystery
  • Infallible Prediction
  • Neyhart Rising Cards