Mr. Bellman has sent me many of his ideas. These I have sifted, adapted and eliminated so you get the cream. My own effects have passed through the same purging process with the result that every trick in this book is one you can work. Do not be satisfied with the mere reading of this book; follow it by practice. An effect that seems dead in the cold light of the formality of words often bursts into a flame of burning amazement when translated into Action. The true test of a trick is not how artistically it can be described, but the effect upon the non-magical onlooker.
I have tried to put some of my best effects into this book and hope that the reader will find several useful things. I say this not out of any consideration for the reader, but simply because if he likes this book he will be more likely to purchase another if I should ever write or co-write another.
