Published 1800-1899 in Magic & Mentalism

From the pen of a noted world renowned European Fakir, generally known as the Talking Wizard. Revised from the original manuscript, together with footnotes, by Prof. W. J. Judd, manufacturer of magical apparatus in New York.

• Preface
• Opening Speech
• Short Opening Address
• Obedient Ball
• Watch Mortar
• The Inexhaustible Hat
• Tape Cutting Illusion
• Bonus Genius
• Mechanical Watch Target
• Egg Bag
• Ink
• Walking Cards
• Bell And Bushel
• A Glass Of Water
• Multiplying Coins
• Cake In Hat
• Mysterious Parasol
• Voizin's Caddy And Enchanted Vase
• The Wonderful Vase Of Bran
• A Card Speech
• The Magic Windmill....

... or the art of entertaining.

Being a volume intended to amuse everybody, and enabling all to amuse everybody else. Home amusements; Instructions in Acting Proverbs, Charades, Tableaux, Parlor Games, Forfeits, Burlesques, Riddles, Puzzles, Tricks, Sleight-of-Hand, Card Tricks, Scientific Recreations, Parlor Magic - in fact, a regular Encyclopaedia of social evening entertainment.

This is a later partial version of The Art of Amusing. I have not made a word-for-word comparison, but it appears to be simply a subset of chapters from the earlier book.

1st edition 1878; PDF 105...

How the mediums produce their "manifestations".

In this article from 1893 from the Chicago Tribune, August Roterberg explains some of the tricks and techniques used by fraudulent spirits.

• Mediums Have an Easy Thing
• Other Ways of Doing the Trick
• How Spirit Questions Are Answered
• People Easily Deceived
• Mediums Exchange "Tests"
• Example of Cool Effrontery
• Uses of Luminous Paint
• Conjurers Only Need Natural Means

1st edition 1893, PDF 6 pages.

A practical treatise on mind reading, according to Stuart Cumberland and the late Washington Irving Bishop. Ventriloquism as practiced by Valentine Vox and others. Sleight of Hand secrets and methods of performing many marvelous mysteries, such as have astonished the public of all nations.

• CHAPTER I. GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
  • The Mystic Wand
  • The Magician's Clothes
  • Magic Tables
• CHAPTER II. SIMPLE TRICKS WITH CARDS
  • United By A Single Cut
  • To Discover The Value Of Certain Cards On The Table
  • Cards Change Places At Command
  • To Name Successively All Cards In Pack
  • To Tell Whether The Number...

or a full explanation of the principal and most interesting performances of legerdemain as exhibited by Monsieur Adrian and other performers, which of late has excited so much curiosity in the public mind, in Philadelphia and other cities of the United States and elsewhere. With amusing dialogues and original and true Yankee stories.

• GENERAL DIRECTIONS TO BE OBSERVED BY THE PERFORMER
• PREFACE
• EXPERIMENT NO. 1. To make a person disappear in a sack.
• EXPERIMENT NO. 2. To produce oranges or apples apparently in an empty box.
• EXPERIMENT NO. 3. To change a glove into sugar plums.
• EXPERIMENT...

Containing anecdotes, explanation of tricks and a sketch of the life of Alexander Herrmann.

• To The Reader
• The Art Of Magic
• Healing By Words
• Hands
• Talismans
• Aeromancy
• Alectryomancy
• Aleuromancy
• Alomancy
• Anthropomancy
• Apantomancy
• Arithmomancy
• Astrology (Judicial)
• Axinomancy
• Belomancy
• Botamancy
• Capnomancy
• Cartomancy
• Catoptromancy
• Cephalomancy
• Ceromancy
• Chiromancy
• Cleromancy
• Cledonism
• Coscinomancy
• Dactylomancy
• Extispicium
• Gastromancy
• Geomancy
• Hydromancy
• Onomancy
• Oneirocritics
• Onychomancy
• Ornithomancy
• Pyromancy
• Psychomancy, Or Sciomancy
• Rhabdomancy
• Sibyls ...

Excerpt from the preface:

• Preface
• Chapter I The Need For A Theory Of Gambling
• Chapter II The Act Of Gambling Analyzed
• Chapter III The Economic Nature Of The Act
• Chapter IV The Moral Quality Of The Act
• Chapter V The Element...

The year 1893 was a milestone in the history of puzzle literature. Until then few, if any, books had been devoted to any great extent to mechanical puzzles. But in late 1878 or early 1879 an event occurred that took the world by storm. A little puzzle - called the "Fifteen" or "Boss" puzzle - with its 15 numbered square blocks that had to be slid into their correct order in a box, captured the imagination of the public. The resulting craze was as exciting as the one caused by the Rubik's Cube.

Whilst the "Fifteen" puzzle craze died down after a few years, it spawned a whole variety of mechanical...

A short account of its rise and progress, with some exposures of so-called spirit media.

Excerpt from the preface:

This is a large collection of small experiments and magic tricks to educate and entertain.

Excerpt from the Preface:

This work includes the first printed Punch and Judy script which describes the humorous adventures that befall both him and his spouse, including Punch's final triumph over the devil. It was written by John Payne Collier and illustrated by George Cruikshank and was based on Giovanni Piccini's Punch show that had been performed in England in the early 1800s. Collier presents the history of Punch, whose original name was Pulcinello, from the date of his first appearance in Italy, about the year 1600, to the early 19th century.

• Introduction
• Chapter I. Origin Of Punch In Italy
• Chapter II. Origin...

Containing a complete disclosure of the secrets of the art, as practiced by professional gamblers.

The author only identifies themselves as 'An Adept'. It covers a wide range of gambling scams, and crooked card games, including card table artifice. The information is relevant today and describes the multivarious ways marks are separated from their money.

• The Game of Faro
  • Side Strippers
  • The Capper
  • The Chopping Deal
  • Expose of the Dealing Box
  • The Screw Box
  • Sanding the Cards
  • Rakes
  • Hollows and Rounds
  • Fifty Threes
  • The Cat Hop
  • Snaking Cards
  • How Cards are Snaked
• Roulette
• Chucker...

Or the life, adventures, and personal experience of Jonathan H. Green.

It commences at his parentage and gives the whole history of the Life of the Reformed Gambler from the time of his birth until his reformation and conversion. It is a book designed as a warning to the young men of this country and is one that all should read and take warning and advice from. Beautifully illustrated from various scenes in the course of his life.

• Preface
• The Gambler's Life
  • Prentage
  • Elopement
  • Bad company
  • Game of Thimbles—Stool Pigeon—Betting
  • A Mother's Dying Charge
  • Mental Agony from Unjust...

This is Dr. Lynn's autobiography describing his travels in Australia, China, Japan, Hong Kong, India, and other countries. He was the earliest Western magician to perform in China and Japan. He had a long-lasting rivalry with J. N. Maskelyne appearing a week before Maskelyne in the Egyptian Hall in London in the spring of 1873.

In the "How It's Done" section he provides mock descriptions of some of his tricks.

• TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES OF DR. LYNN
• HOW IT'S DONE
  • The Mysterious Spirit-writing
  • The Blood-writing on the Arm
  • Time in a Fix
  • The Pomaceous Puzzle
  • The Ornithological Inexplicability
  • The...

A complete handbook of legerdemain, containing all the latest optical, chemical, mechanical, and magical tricks and deceptions, amusing transmutations, astonishing sleights and subtleties, together with all the noted tricks of modern magicians and prestidigitators.

If you always wanted to make a mouse come out of a pack of cards, change salt to sugar, or make fire burn under water, this may be just the book for you. The author only identifies himself as 'An Old Conjuror'.

Excerpt from the publisher's preface:

After a lengthy introduction, it describes and explains the performances of the muscle-reader Mr. Brown. It also describes and explains the performances of the brothers Outerbridge whose purpose it was to prove that these types of experiments are based on muscle-reading and not any other mysterious mental forces.

This talk was given before the Social Science Association on May 12th, 1875.

Persifor Frazer was an interesting character. For example, he was internationally respected as an expert on handwriting. He devised a process for detecting forgeries through composite photography, leading...

A collection of graceful arts, merry games, and odd tricks, intended to amuse everybody and enable all to amuse everybody else. Full of suggestions for private theatricals, tableaux, charades, and all sorts of parlor and family amusements. With nearly 150 illustrative pictures.

In the days without the Internet, TV, or even radio, people entertained themselves. This book covers all kinds of things one can do from arts and crafts, little plays, simple conjuring tricks, and other activities.

• CHAPTER I: Something censorious; Declaration of Independence; Card puzzle; The magic coin; A hoax;...

Familiar and scientific explanation of legerdemain, physical amusement, recreative chemistry, diversions with cards, and of all the minor mysteries of mechanical magic, with feats. As performed in public by Herr Alexander, Robert Houdin, "The Wizard of the North," and distinguished conjurors of all ages and nations.

• PUBLISHER'S ANNOUNCEMENT.
• PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTION.
• PART FIRST. MINOR TRICKS FOR SOCIAL COMPANY.
  • SECTION FIRST. Arithmetical ingenuities.
    • I. How to divine the numbers remaining in a sum which some person has thought of.
    • II. How To Find 6 Times 13 In 12
    • III. A comic dilemma.
    • IV....

Reminiscences of the life of humorist Artemus Ward (Charles Farrar Browne) and pictures of a showman's career in the Western world.

A wonderful account of show business by the example of the humorist Artemus Ward during the 19th century. In particular, it describes how performers had to travel through the US during the 1860s, how they had to advertise and promote their shows, including the characters they encountered and the situations they had to master.

For conjurers most interesting is chapter 25: Spiritualism And Conjuring. This tells of how Hingston and Browne helped a conjurer by...

An account of the author's professional life; his wonderful tricks and feats; with laughable incidents, and adventures as a magician, necromancer, and ventriloquist.

Excerpt from the Preface:

100 tricks for the drawing room.

Containing an extensive and miscellaneous collection of conjuring and legerdemain; sleights with dice, dominoes, cards, ribbons, rings, fruit, coins, balls, handkerchiefs, etc. All of which may be performed in the parlor or drawing room. Without the aid of any apparatus; also embracing a choice variety of curious deceptions which may be performed with the aid of simple apparatus.

• PART I. TRICKS OF LEGERDEMAIN, CONJURING, SLEIGHT OF HAND, AND OTHER FANCIES, COMMONLY CALLED "WHITE MAGIC"
  • Preliminary Observation
  • Palming Coin
  • The Magic Coin
  • To Untie a...

This is a lovely old-school children's story about a pig named Grunter Growler, his life on a farm, his animal as well as human friends, and his success winning 1st prize as the most beautiful pig in the country.

The interesting part for conjurers is that Grunter meets Toby the Learned Pig which includes a description of a typical performance of Toby. Those who study and research learned pigs might find it interesting. All learned pigs in England were named Toby. It is therefore not clear which Toby was the model for this description.

• Preface
• Chapter I. Introductory
• Chapter II. Our...

John Henry Pepper took a projection invention of Henry Dircks, called The Ghost, with his permission, and made it practical so that it could more easily be performed. He earned a lot of money staging it. Even though Dircks did not want any payments from Pepper, there was a falling out between the two because the invention became known as Pepper's Ghost. Dircks wanted to have his name associated with it. This prompted Dircks to write The Ghost. Pepper's answer to that publication and dispute came almost 30 years later in this work The True History of the Ghost.

He also includes the history and working of Metempsychosis...

As produced in the spectre drama, popularly illustrating the marvellous optical illusions obtained by the apparatus called the Dircksian Phantasmagoria being a full account of its history, construction, and various adaptations.

Henry Dircks was the first who came up with the stage illusions that later became known as Pepper's Ghost. He had an arrangement with Pepper, they took out a patent in both their names, and Dircks did not want any monetary remuneration for it. John Henry Pepper improved the configuration to make it more practical and successfully staged it earning quite a lot of money with it. However,...