Modern Magic
by Professor Hoffmann

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Every generation a magician comes along, whose intention is to record magic in an encyclopedic fashion. Professor Hoffmann was the first in recorded history to attempt such a feat with his trilogy Modern Magic, More Magic, and Later Magic. Certainly many magic books have been published before him, mostly copying from each other. But none reaches the depth and breadth of Prof. Hoffmann's work. The material in these three books records the state of the art of magic in the late 19th century. Today we know more tricks and we have also refined our techniques and methods. But it is astounding how much was already known at that time. Reading carefully you will discover several clever methods which have been forgotten or have fallen out of fashion with today's popular magicians. If you really want to fool your magic friends the next time, read this book and perform one of its many not so well known secrets.

This book was rated one of the ten basic books for a working library of conjuring by H. Adrian Smith, historian, collector and owner of the largest private magic library in his time. Other books in this top 10 list are

Magicians' Tricks by Henry Hatton and Adrian Plate
The Expert at the Card Table by S.W. Erdnase
The Art of Magic by T. Nelson Downs
More Magic by Prof. Hoffmann
Later Magic by Prof. Hoffmann
The Modern Conjurer by C. Lang Neil
Our Magic by Maskelyne and Devant
Tarbell Course by Harlan Tarbell
Greater Magic by John Northern Hilliard

1st edition, 1876, Routledge; 1st US edition, 1882, Routledge; reprinted many times by various publishers; 563 pages.

CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION.
1. Introductory Observations
2. The Magic Wand
3. The Magician's Table
4. The Magician's Dress
5. Profondes
6. Pochettes
7. "Loading" Pockets
CHAPTER II. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF SLEIGHT-OF-HAND APPLICABLE TO CARD TRICKS.
1. The Cards
2. To "Make the Pass"
3. To "Force" a Card
4. To Make a "False Shuffle"
5. To "Palm" a Card
6. To "Ruffle" the Cards
7. To "Change" a Card
8. To Get Sight of a Drawn Card
9. To "Slip" a Card
10. To "Draw Back" a Card
11. To "Turn Over" the Pack
12. To Spring the Cards from one Hand to the Other
13. To Throw a Card
14. The "Bridge"
CHAPTER III. CARD TRICKS WITH ORDINARY CARDS, AND NOT REQUIRING SLEIGHT-OF-HAND.
1. Simple Modes of Discovering a Given Card
2. Various Modes of Disclosing a Discovered Card
3. To Make a Card Vanish from the Pack, and be found in a Person's Pocket
4. To place the Four Kings in different parts of the Pack, and to bring them together by a simple Cut
5. The Four Kings being placed under the Hand of one Person, and the Four Sevens under the Hand of Another, to make them Change Places at Command
6. Four Packets of Cards having been formed face downwards on the Table, to discover the Total Value of the Undermost Cards
7. To Name all the Cards of the Pack in Succession
8. The Cards being Cut, to tell whether the Number Cut is Odd or Even
9. The Whist Trick. To deal yourself all the Trumps (see also page 119)
10. To allow a Person to think of a Card, and to make that Card appear at such Number in the Pack as another Person shall Name
11. The Cards revealed by the Looking-glass
12. To Guess Four Cards thought of by Different Persons
13. The Pairs Re-paired
14. The Magic Triplets
15. Another Mode of Discovering a Card thought of
16. To Guess, by the aid of a Passage of Poetry or Prose, such one of Sixteen Cards as, in your Absence, has been Touched or Selected by the Company
17. To Detect, without Confederacy, which of Four Cards has been Turned Round in your Absence
18. To Arrange Twelve Cards in Rows in such a manner that they will Count Four in every Direction
19. To Place the Aces and Court Cards in Four Rows, in such a manner that neither Horizontally nor Perpendicularly shall there be in either Row two Cards alike, either in Suit or Value
20. The Congress of Court Cards
CHAPTER IV. TRICKS INVOLVING SLEIGHT-OF-HAND, OR THE USE OF SPECIALLY PREPARED CARDS.
1. The "Long Card"
2. Biseaute or Tapering Cards
  Tricks Performed by the Aid of a Long Card, or biseaute Pack:
3. A Card having been Chosen and Returned, and the Pack Shuffled, to produce the Chosen Card instantly in various ways
4. To Cut at the Chosen Card
5. To Let all the Cards fall, save the One Chosen
6. To Pick out the Card, the Pack being placed in a Person's Pocket
7. To Fling the Pack in the Air, and Catch the Chosen Card
8. To Change a Card drawn hap-hazard to the Chosen Card
9. To Divide the Pack into several Packets on the Table, allowing the Company to stop you at any Moment, and to cause the Top Card of the Heap last made to Change into the Chosen Card
10. To Teach the Company a Trick which they Learn without Difficulty; then to allow them to Succeed or cause them to Fail at your Pleasure
11. To Distinguish the Court Cards by Touch
12. To Name any Number of Cards in Succession without Seeing Them
13. To Make Four Cards change from Eights to Twos, from Black to Red, etc.
14. A Card having been Drawn and Returned, and the Pack Shuffled, to make it Appear at such Number as the Company choose
15. The same Trick with several Cards, and by a Different Method
16. The "Three Card" Trick
17. To Nail a Chosen Card to the Wall
18. The Inseparable Sevens
19. The Inseparable Aces
20. Having placed the Four Aces in different positions in the Pack, to make the two Black change places with the two Red ones, and finally to bring all Four together in the Middle of the Pack
21. A Card having been thought of, to make such Card Vanish from the Pack, and be Discovered wherever the Performer pleases
22. To cause a Number of Cards to Multiply invisibly in a Person's keeping
23. The Pack being divided into two Portions, placed in the keeping of two different Persons, to make Three Cards pass invisibly from the One to the Other
24. To allow several Persons each to draw a Card, and the Pack having been Shuffled, to make another Card drawn haphazard change successively into each of those first chosen
25. To make Four Aces change to Four Kings, and Four Kings to Four Aces
26. Having made Four Packets of Cards with an Ace at the bottom of each, to bring all Four Aces into whichever Packet the Company may choose
27. To Change the Four Aces, held tightly by a Person, into Four Indifferent Cards
28. The Shower of Aces
29. Several Persons having each drawn Two Cards, which have been Returned and Shuffled, to make each Couple appear in Succession, one at the top and the other at the bottom of the Pack
30. To make Two Cards, each firmly held by a different Person, change places
31. To change Four Cards, drawn haphazard, and placed on the Table, into Cards of the same Value as a Single Card subsequently chosen by one of the Spectators
32. Two Heaps of Cards, unequal in Number, being placed upon the Table, to predict beforehand which of the two the Company will choose
33. A Row of Cards being placed Face Downwards on the Table, to indicate, by turning up one of them, how many of such Cards have during your absence been transferred from one end of the Row to the other
34. Several Cards having been freely chosen by the Company, Returned and Shuffled, and the Pack placed in a Person's Pocket, to make such Person draw out one by one the chosen Cards
35. The Cards having been freely Shuffled, and cut into three or four Heaps, to name the top Card of each Heap
36. To allow a Person secretly to think of a Card, and, dividing the Pack into three Heaps, to cause the Card thought of to appear in whichever Heap the Company may choose
37. To allow a Person secretly to think of a Card, and, even before such Card is named, to select it from the Pack, and place it singly upon the Table
38. A Card having been secretly thought of by one of the Audience, to place two Indifferent Cards upon the Table, and to change such one of them as the Audience may select into the Card thought of
39. A Card having been Drawn and Returned, and the Pack shuffled, to divide the Pack into several Heaps on the Table, and to cause the Drawn Card to appear in such Heap as the Company may choose
40. To change a Drawn Card into the Portraits of several of the Company in succession
41. A Card having been Drawn and Returned, and the Pack shuffled, to place on the Table six Rows of six Cards each, and to discover the chosen Card by a throw of the Dice
42. A Card having been withdrawn and replaced, to call it from the Pack, and to make it come to you of its own accord
43. Mode of Preparing specially adhesive Wax for Conjuring Purposes
44. The Whist Trick. (Improved Method.) To deal yourself all the Trumps, the three other Players holding the usual mixed Hands
CHAPTER V. CARD TRICKS REQUIRING SPECIAL APPARATUS.
1. The Magic Sword. A Card being drawn and replaced, and the Pack flung in the Air, to catch the chosen Card on the point of the Sword
2. The Rising Cards. Several Cards having been drawn, returned, and shuffled, to make them rise spontaneously from the Pack
3. The Jumping Cards. Two or three Cards having been drawn, returned, and shuffled, to make them jump out of the Pack
4. To make a Card stand upright by itself on the Table
5. "Changing" Card-boxes, and Tricks performed with them
6. The Mechanical Card-box
7. The "Card and Bird Box"
8. The Card Tripod
9. The "Torn Card"
10. Mechanical Changing Cards
CHAPTER VI. PRINCIPLES OF sLEIGHT-OF-HAND MORE ESPECIALLY APPLICABLE TO COIN TRICKS.
1. Palming
2. Passes
3. Changes
CHAPTER VII. TRICKS WITH COIN WITHOUT APPARATUS.
1. A Quarter being spun upon the Table, to tell blindfold whether it falls head or tail upwards
2. Odd or Even, or the Mysterious Addition
3. To change a Quarter into a Penny, back again, and then to pass the same invisibly into the Pocket of the Owner
4. To make a marked Quarter and Penny, wrapped in separate Handkerchiefs, change places at Command
5. To make two marked Coins, wrapped in separate Handkerchiefs, come together in one of them
6. To pull Four Quarters or Half-crowns through a Handkerchief
7. To pass a marked Quarter (or Half-crown) into the Centre of two Oranges in succession
8. The Flying Money. To make a Coin pass invisibly from the one Hand to the other, and finally through the Table
9. To rub One Sixpence into Three
10. The Multiplication of Money
11. To Make a Marked Sixpence vanish from a Handkerchief, and be found in the Centre of an Apple or Orange previously examined
12. The Travelling Counters
13. The Wandering Sixpence
CHAPTER VIII. TRICKS WITH COIN REQUIRING SPECIAL APPARATUS.
1. The Heads and Tails Trick
2. The Magic Cover and Vanishing Halfpence
3. The Animated Coin, which answers Questions, etc.
  Appliances for Vanishing Money
4. The Vanishing Halfpenny Box
5. The Rattle Box
6. The Pepper-box
7. The Brass Money-box
8. The Brass Box, known as the "Plug-box"
9. The Handkerchief for Vanishing Money
10. The Demon Handkerchief
11. The Davenport Cabinet
  Appliances for Re-producing Vanished Money
12. The Nest of Boxes
13. The Ball of Berlin Wool
14. The Glass Goblet and Cover
15. The Glass without Cover
16. The Miraculous Casket
17. The Half-Crown or Quarter Wand
18. The Shower of Money
19. The Vanishing Plate, or Salver
20. The "Changing" Plate
21. The Tray of Proteus
CHAPTER IX. TRICKS WITH WATCHES.
1. To indicate on the Dial of a Watch the Hour secretly thought of by any of the Company
2. To Bend a Borrowed Watch Backwards and Forwards
3. The Watch-mortar and the Magic Pistol
4. The "Snuff-box Vase"
5. The "Watch Box"
6. The "Watch Target"
7. The Mesmerised Watch. (To Make any Watch a Repeater)
CHAPTER X. TRICKS WITH RINGS.
1. The Flying Ring
2. To Pass a Ring from the one Hand to either Finger of the other Hand
3. To Pass a Ring through a Pocket-handkerchief
4. To Pass a Ring through the Table
5. To Pass a Ring invisibly upon the Middle of a Wooden Wand, the Ends being held by two of the Spectators
6. The Magic Ball and Rings
7. To Pass a Borrowed Ring into an Egg
8. The Magic Rose
CHAPTER XI. TRICKS WITH HANDKERCHIEFS.
1. Introductory Remarks
2. The Handkerchief that cannot be Tied in a Knot
3. The Handkerchief that will not Burn
4. The Vanishing Knots
5. To Exchange a borrowed Handkerchief for a Substitute
6. The Locked and Corded Box, and the Washerwoman's Bottle
7. The Reversibel Canister
8. The Burning Globe
9. The Transformed Handkerchief
10. The Handkerchief cut up, burnt, and finally found in a Candle
11. The Shower of Sweets
12. The Feathers from an Empty Handkerchief
13. The Flying Plume
14. The Magic Laundry
15. The Egg and the Handkerchief
16. The "Hand-Box," for Vanishing a Handkerchief
CHAPTER XII. TRICKS WITH DOMINOES AND DICE.
1. To Arrange a Row of Dominoes face downwards on the Table, and on returning to the Room to turn up a Domino whose points shall indicate how many have been moved in your absence
2. To Allow any Person in your absence to arrange the Dominoes in a Row, face downwards, and on your return to name blindfold, or without entering the Room, the end numbers of the Row
3. To Change, invisibly, the Numbers shown on either Face of a Pair of Dice
4. To Name, without seeing them, the Points of a Pair of Dice
CHAPTER XIII. THE CUPS AND BALLS.
1. Introductory Remarks
  Principles of Sleight-of-hand applicable to Ball Tricks
2. To Palm the Ball
3. To Reproduce the Palmed Ball at the End of the Fingers
4. To Secretly Introduce the Palmed Ball under the Cup
5. To Simulate the Action of Placing a Ball under a Cup
6. To Produce a Ball from the Wand
7. To Return a Ball into the Wand
8. To Pass one Cup through Another
9. Burlesque Address to the Spectators
10. Pass I. Having Placed a Ball under each Cup, to draw it out again without Lifting the Cup
11. Pass II. To make a Ball Travel invisibly from Cup to Cup
12. Pass III. Having placed a Ball under each of the end Cups, to make them pass seccessively under the Middle Cup
13. Pass IV. Having placed two Balls under the Middle Cup, to make them pass under the two Outer Ones
14. Pass V. To pass three Balls in succession under One Cup
15. Pass VI. To place three Balls one after the other upon the top of one of the Cups, and to make them fall through the Cup on to the Table
16. Pass VII. To pass three Balls in succession upwards through the Table into one of the Cups
17. Pass VIII. To pass two Balls in succession from one Cup to another without touching them
18. Pass IX. To make three Balls in succession pass under the Middel Cup
19. Pass X. The "Multiplication" Pass
20. Pass XI. To Transform the Small Balls to Larger Ones
21. Pass XII. To again Transform the Balls to still Larger Ones
CHAPTER XIV. BALL TRICKS REQUIRING SPECIAL APPARATUS.
1. To Palm a large Ball
2. To Vanish a Large Ball with the aid of the Table
3. The Ball Box
4. The Red-and-Black-Ball Vases
5. Morison's Pill-box
6. The Ball which changes to a Rose
7. The Obedient Ball
CHAPTER XV. HAT TRICKS.
1. The Cannon-balls in the Hat
2. Multiplying Balls
3. The "Hundred Goblets" from a Hat
4. A Dozen Babies from a Hat
5. The Magic Reticules
6. The Drums from the Hat
7. The Birdcages from the Hat
8. The Cake (or Pudding) in the Hat
9. The Welsh Rabbit
CHAPTER XVI. MISCELLANEOUS TRICKS.
1. The Cut String Restored
2. My Grandmother's Necklace
3. The "Bonus Genius," or Vanishing Doll
4. The Dancing Sailor
5. The Bottle Imps
6. The Vanishing Gloves
7. The Egg Bag
8. To Produce Eggs from a Person's Mouth
9. The Pillars of Solomon, and the Magic Bradawi
10. The Magic Coffers
11. The Bran and Orange Trick
12. The Rice and Orange Trick
13. The Magic Whistle
14. The Magic Mill
  Pieces of Apparatus of General Utility
15. The Drawer-Box
16. The Dissecting Drawer-Box
17. The Changing Card-Drawer
18. Changing Caddies
19. The Magic Vase and Caddy
20. The Cover, to pick up and replace any Article
21. The Changing Cover
22. The Changing Ladle
23. The Cone, or Skittle
24. The Cone and Bouquet
25. The Flying Glass of Water
26. The Bowls of Water and Bowls of Fire produced from a Shawl
27. The Bowl of Ink changed to clear Water, with Gold Fish swimming in it
28. The Inexhaustible Bottle
29. The Bottle and Ribbons
30. The New Pyramids of Egypt, or Wine and Water Trick
31. The Mysterious Funnel
32. The Box of Bran transformed to a Bottle of Wine
33. The Bran Bottle
34. The Bran Glass
35. To Fire Borrowed Rings from a Pistol, and make them Pass into a Goblet Filled with Bran and covered with a Handkerchief, the Bran disappearing, and being found elsewhere
36. The Domino-Box (sometimes called the Glove-Box)
37. The Coffee Trick
38. The Inexhaustible Box
39. The Japanese Inexhaustible Boxes
40. The Feast of Lanterns
41. The Butterfly Trick
42. The Wizard's Omelet
43. The Rose in the Glass Vase
44. The Chinese Rings
45. The Charmed Bullet
46. The Birth of Flowers
47. The Mysterious Salver
48. The Vanishing Die
49. The Die Dissolving in a Pocket Handkerchief
50. The Die and Orange
51. The Vanishing Canary Bird and Cage
52. The Crystal Balls
53. The Flags of all Nations
54. The Umbrella Trick
55. The "Passe-Passe" Trick
CHAPTER XVII. STAGE TRICKS.
1. The Tables in use in Stage Tricks
2. The "Plain" Trap
3. The "Wrist" or "Pressure" Trap
4. The "Rabbit" or "Dove" Trap
5. "Changing" Traps
6. The "Money" Trap
7. "Pistons" (for working mechanical apparatus)
8. "Bellows" Tables
9. The Rabbit Trick
10. The Fairy Star
11. The Card Bouquet
12. The Demon's Head
13. The Magic Picture Frame
14. The Flying Watches and the Broken Plate
15. The Magic Picture and the Chosen Cards
16. The Magic Portfolio
17. The Glove Column
18. The Vanishing Pocket-handkerchief, found in a Candle
19. The Sphinx
20. The Cabinet of Proteus
21. The Indian Basket Trick
22. Electrical Tricks
23. The Light and Heavy Chest
24. Spirit-Rapping
25. The Magic Bell
26. The Crystal Cash Box
27. The Magic Drum
28. The Aerial Suspension
CHAPTER XVIII. CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS.
1. Hints as to Working up Tricks
2. Arrangement of Programme
3. Stage Arrangements
4. Parting Counsels
APPENDIX
- CHAPTER I.
  1. Introductory
- CHAPTER II. KEMPELEN.
  1. Kempelen's Speaking Figure
  2. Its Construction
  3. Houdin
  4. His Talking Figure
  5. The Magic Harlequin and its Construction
  6. The Magic Clock
  7. The Performing Clown
  8. The Cook of the Palais Royal
  9. The Orange and Rose Trees
  10. Electric Bell and Drum
  11. Suspension in the Air
- CHAPTER III. THEODIN.
  1. Theodin
  2. Robin and Anderson
  3. The Magic Windmill
  4. Anderson's Old Man
  5. Col. Stodare's Living Head
  6. Pepper and Tobin
  7. Proteus; or, We're Here and Not Here
  8. Fatima
- CHAPTER IV. AUTOMATA: PSYCHO
  1. Automaton of Messrs. Maskelyne and Cooke
  2. Psycho and its Imitators
  3. Zoe
  4. Fanfare
- CHAPTER V. MARIONETTES.
  1. Taking a Man to Pieces
  2. The Living Marionettes
- CHAPTER VI. CLAIRVOYANCE.
  1. Clairvoyance, or Second Sight
  2. The Clairvoyance of the Superstitious Ages and the Clairvoyance of the Day
  3. Questions and Answers
  4. The Reading of Concealed Writing
  5. The Addition of Unseen Figures
- CHAPTER VII. SPIRITUALISM.
  1. Spiritualism
  2. Mediums and their Pretences
  3. Their Tests
  4. Various Tying Tests
  5. The Sealed Accordion
  6. Floating in the Air
  7. Floating Tambourines, Guitars, etc.
  8. The Spiritual Musical Box
  9. Writing on the Ceiling
  10. Invisible Writing
  11. The Floating Table, etc.
- CHAPTER VIII. PARLOR MAGIC.
  1. Parlor Magic
  2. A Surprise
  3. Indian Sand Trick
  4. The "Q" Trick
  5. The Bleeding Thumb
  6. The Marked Florin in Oranges
  7. The Chinese Pictures
  8. Bautier's Great Ink-and-Water Trick
  9. Carrying Fire in the Hands

word count: 210249 which is equivalent to 840 standard pages of text

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