Water Wizardry: A collection of tricks in which water is the chief agent

by Arthur Ainslie

CHAPTER II

LITTLE TRICKS—(continued)

I have often thought that many conjurers—amateur and professional—take themselves and their conjuring far too seriously. It is just as well to unbend occasionally, and as a little change from tricks to spring a simple catch on your audience. Here is one.

Pour some water into a glass and cover it with an opera hat. Throw a large cloth over the hat.

"Now then," you say to your audience, "do you think that I can drink the water without lifting the hat?" The answer is in the negative, as they say in the House of Commons when they mean "No."

Hold up the cloth so that it hides your face. The audience see both hands on the top edge of the cloth and therefore are convinced that you are not removing the hat. Make the sound of a man drinking from a glass. (I confess that this part of the experiment is not all it ought to be!) Then announce that you have performed the feat and drop the cloth. Somebody will be sure to pick up the hat to see if the water is in the glass; then you drink the water. You have performed the feat of drinking the water without lifting the hat.

Topsy Turvy

A more difficult experiment—until you know the secret. Ask someone to put water into a glass when the glass is held upside down. Naturally, they give it up. Then:

Pour some water on a plate. Crumple up a small piece of paper, light it and drop it into a tumbler; let it burn for a second or two and then invert the glass over the plate. You will see the water rush into the glass. You have kept your word and have put water into the glass when the glass has been upside down.

A Sporting Offer

Bend a wooden match into the form of a capital V, taking care not to break the match. Lay the match on the top of a bottle and just at the angle of the "V" place a threepenny bit. Tell someone that they may have the coin if they can get it into the bottle, but they must not touch the match, or the coin, or the bottle, or the table on which the bottle is standing, and they must not blow the coin into the bottle.

You have probably guessed—since this book has to do with water tricks—that water must be used in this trick in some way. In that case you are right. Drop a little water on the angle of the match; the wood will expand, the "V" will open and the threepenny bit will drop into the bottle.

A Feat of Dexterity

Pour some water into a tumbler and balance two pennies on the edge of the tumbler; the coins should be opposite to each other.

The trick is to remove the coins together, using only a thumb and one finger.

To do this place the thumb on one coin and the first finger on the other. Quickly slide the coins down the sides of the glass and bring the first finger and thumb together, taking the coins with them.

This is a feat of dexterity; it is not difficult, but you will not do it at the first attempt. The water helps to steady the glass.

More Than Full

If a glass is full of water it will not hold anything else; that is obvious. But——

Fill a glass with water. Stand it on a level surface. Wipe the edge of the glass very carefully, because for the purpose of this experiment it must be quite dry. Then, with a steady hand bring the edge of a sixpence to the surface of the water and let the coin go. If you are careful you can put a dozen sixpences into the glass without causing the water to run over the brim.

The Obedient Corks

For this little experiment you want a nice large rose bowl, full of water, and seven corks. The trick is to put the corks into the water and to cause them to float in a perpendicular position.

This is how you do it. Grasp all the corks in one hand, and hold them under the water until they are thoroughly soaked. Then hold them in the position you wish them to assume and let them go; they will remain close together and in an upright position.

A Peculiar Egg

The peculiarity of the egg used in this experiment is that it neither floats on the top of a large glass of water nor sinks to the bottom, but merely remains an inch or two under water all the time.

Make a saturated solution of salt and half fill a big tumbler with it. Then, with a spoon fill up the tumbler with ordinary water, putting it in very steadily so that it does not mingle with the brine at the bottom of the glass. Now if you drop an egg gently into the liquid—which looks like ordinary water—the egg will sink down through the water, but will come to a standstill on to the top of the brine.

The Suspended Mug

This is an easy catch—more suitable for the garden than for the drawing-room.

Tie a piece of string to the handle of a mug. Hold the other end of the string, so that the mug is suspended, and pour in all the water it will hold in that position.

Stand on a chair and ask for the services of an assistant. You tell your assistant that you are going to cut the string, and it is his job to catch the mug without spilling a drop of the water. The first assistant naturally fails because you cut the string when he is not expecting the mug to fall. Another assistant tries his luck; he probably holds his hands just under the mug. You protest that that is not fair, but you will try the trick, nevertheless. While talking you quietly move the string until the mug is just over your victim's head, and then you cut the string quickly. (Note. Don't try this trick with a bad-tempered person, or you may spoil the party, and, obviously, the man must be wearing a hard hat or the mug will hurt him badly.)

You can keep the game going for quite a little time if you can induce enough brave spirits to take a hand, but sooner or later someone is sure to suggest that you try the trick yourself. You at once consent, and you tell your audience that if they will cut the string you will most certainly catch the mug directly it falls. While making this apparently rash promise you quietly tie a little loop in the string and keep it hidden with your hand for a moment. When your assistant is holding one end of the string and everyone is prepared to see you get a ducking you take your hand away from the loop, tell your assistant to cut the string "just there" pointing to the loop, and you will catch the mug directly it falls; of course, it will not fall.

All this is only a catch, something to amuse people at a juvenile garden party. To go to the opposite extreme, here is a little trick which will "want doing" if it is to be done well.

The Sticky Glass

Pick up a wineglass and fill it with water; while doing so say something about the state of the glass; you can say that the stem feels a little sticky, but perhaps it will do for the trick. Dip a small square piece of paper into the glass of water and take it out again. This action naturally spills a little of the water, so you fill up the glass once more. Then you place the piece of wet paper on the top of the glass and turn the glass over, and take the hand away. The paper remains over the glass, and the water does not run out.

If there is a schoolboy present he will be sure to tell you that there is nothing in that; anybody can do it. It is even probable that the boy will explain to you that the pressure of the air on the under surface of the paper is greater than the pressure of the water in the glass. Hence the apparent miracle. Let the dear boy prattle on. Then tell him that you have not done the trick yet.

Slowly take the paper away from the glass. The water remains. Put the paper back again; turn the glass right end uppermost, remove the paper, and show that you have nothing in your hands except the paper and the wineglass of water.

This is a capital little trick, but it needs practice. The edge of the top of the glass should be ground perfectly flat, and the base should be rather larger than the top. You also need a disc of celluloid with the edge slightly sunk so that when the disc is placed on the glass it fits there and cannot easily slip off sideways.

Fig. 4

Before commencing the trick dip this celluloid disc into some water and place it under the base of the glass, the sunk edge being against the glass. The water will cause the disc to adhere to the glass, and therefore when you show the glass you have nothing concealed in your hands. Fill the glass with the water and dip in the piece of paper. This causes some of the water to overflow and you naturally want to pick up the jug to fill it up again, but you are holding the glass in the left hand and the wet paper in your right. To get the right hand free you place the paper under the base of the glass and therefore under the celluloid disc while you fill up the glass with water. Then, in putting on the paper again you take the disc away with it and the disc goes quietly on the top of the glass. It is advisable to make the water overflow in the first place because you want to get the edge of the glass wet.

Press down on the paper and shape the paper round the glass and you need not worry about the rest; the celluloid disc will adhere tightly and you can wave the glass about after you have taken the paper away. You have said something in the first part of the trick about the glass being sticky, and you now mention that it must be very sticky, since all the water has stuck to it.

In replacing the paper on the top of your glass get your thumb nail under the disc and lift it up. Then remove the paper with the disc under it, place both under the glass, take away the paper, leaving the disc stuck to the base of the glass and the trick is over.

A similar trick is done with a tumbler, but as the base of an ordinary tumbler is smaller than the top the disc of celluloid cannot be hidden under the tumbler; it is usual to have it on a tray, and after wetting the paper to place the paper over the disc and pick up both together.

The tumbler used for this trick usually has a small hole made in one side (if there can be any side to a round tumbler). At the beginning of the trick the hole is closed with wax, and to conclude the trick the conjurer holds the inverted glass with the paper on it over a glass bowl, scrapes away the wax, thus admitting air, and the water rushes out, carrying the paper and disc with it into the bowl.

For a very much finer trick of this kind the reader is referred to Chapter III, "The Hydrostatic Tube."

We now return, for a moment, to our wineglass which was left at the conclusion of the trick, with a celluloid disc adhering to its base. The conjurer will naturally want to get rid of this disc at the earliest opportunity, and so he provides his own opportunity by performing this

Feat of Dexterity

First of all, the conjurer says that the base of the glass is wet. He takes out a clean handkerchief to dry it and in so doing wipes away the celluloid disc and puts it into his pocket. He pours a little of the water out of the glass, which should not be more than about half full, especially during the first rehearsals!

The feat consists in looping the loop with the glass, by swinging it right round with the hand, without spilling the water. It is as well to rehearse the feat in the garden!

Pick up the glass by holding the back of the hand towards the table and getting the stem of the glass between the second and third fingers. Extend the arm and then, with a quick semicircular sweep of the arm, which should be held stiffly, bring the glass right round and deposit it on the other side of the table. You want a little nerve, and the feat is not difficult, but it appears to be.

Fig. 5

Japanese performers present a very spectacular feat of this kind in which they use two large buckets tied to the ends of a rope. The buckets are swung about at an alarming pace and in "impossible" positions without a drop of water being spilled; centrifugal force explains the mystery.

The Floating Pin

This is a "quieter" trick. Give someone a bowl of water and ask them to lay a pin on the surface of the water and leave it there. The pin naturally sinks to the bottom of the bowl, whereupon you complain that your directions have not been carried out properly; they are not likely to be unless the person to whom you hand the pin happens to know the secret of the trick.

Lay a cigarette paper gently on the top of the water and put the pin on the paper. In a few moments the paper will sink, leaving the pin floating on the surface of the water.

Washing a Card

You can begin this trick by asking someone if they have ever tried to wash a playing card with water; if so, have they noticed the effect. You ask for a pack of cards and begin the experiment by holding the pack in the left hand, with the fingers on the lower side and the thumb on the other.

There is no harm in saying that the experiment is most successful with a five-spot card, and you put, say, the five of clubs on the bottom of the pack and therefore hold the pack with that card facing the audience. Then, this is what you apparently do.

Dip a finger into some water and rub on the pip at the lower corner nearest to you. To dry the card you take your handkerchief from your pocket and dab the corner. The audience see that you have apparently washed away one of the pips.

Turn the cards over in your hand, so that the blank corner is now at the top and repeat the experiment with the pip which is now in the position occupied by the first. This action reduces the number of pips on the card to three, arranged diagonally across the face of the card.

Repeat the experiment, but this time wash away the two corner pips at once, leaving only one pip in the centre of the card. Then wash away this pip and you have a blank card, which you hand out for examination.

Fig. 6

To begin with, the request for the loan of a pack of cards is not quite what it seems. You arrange with a kind friend in the audience to "find" a pack of cards when you ask for one, and that person has no difficulty in "finding" the pack which you have prepared for the trick and placed in some convenient hiding-place in the house.

The disappearance of the first pip is easily managed: You dip a finger into the water, shake it, and rub the corner with a dry finger. Then shake the pack as though you were trying to dry the card; this action enables you to turn the pack, in a natural way, with its face towards the floor and thus the audience do not see that the pip is still on the card. Then you take your handkerchief from your pocket, and in so doing secretly take out a five of clubs with one spot missing behind the handkerchief. It is not a difficult matter, under cover of the handkerchief and while pretending to dab the corner of the card, to slip the prepared card on the face of the pack. Having done that, show your hands and the handkerchief to your audience, to let them see that you have not merely slipped the pip off the card, but have apparently dissolved it in water and removed all trace of it.

Directly after you have shown this card on the bottom of the pack turn the pack over in the hand, so that the blank corner is now at the top. Now if you bend the third and little fingers of the left hand slightly they will conceal the pip at that corner, but before you bend the fingers let the audience see the card. Now you have to exchange that card for another with only three pips on it, the pips being diagonally across the card.

This prepared card is at the back of the pack. While you are talking bring the right hand to the front of the pack, push up the back card with the first finger of the left hand, extend the fingers of the right hand and push the card to the tips of the fingers of the right hand, at the same time slide the card down on to the face of the pack.

This movement takes a long time to explain in print, but it is done in the fraction of a second. All you apparently do is to bring the right hand up to the pack to square up the cards.

Directly you have the "three card" at the face of the pack, bend the third and little fingers slightly and thus hide the place where the missing pip ought to be. The card is now apparently the same card which the audience saw before—a five spot with one spot missing.

This time, when you dip a finger into the water and pretend to wash away a spot you must work rather quickly, and as you take away the tips of the third and little fingers to enable you to wash away the pip which is supposed to be there, you must bring the right hand over the spot at once, otherwise the audience will see that the spot is not there! This time you have the advantage of being able to show the blank corner directly you take away your right hand. Take out your handkerchief, dab the corner with it and return it to your pocket.

Now tell your audience that if you wish to rub away two spots at once you have to use both hands. Take the cards in the right hand for a moment while you dip a finger of the left hand into the water. In the act of passing the cards from one hand to the other you slide the next card from the back to the front; this card has one pip in the centre. (If your cards have no index corners you can use the ace for this card.)

While you dip the finger of the left hand into the water you must hold the pack with the face card downwards; take it, in the same position, in the left hand, while you dip a finger of the right hand into the water. Then rub first one corner with the left hand and then the other corner with the right hand and bring up the pack with the card facing the audience, but hold the pack in both hands with the hands at the corners (top and bottom) as though you were merely hiding the pips there. Someone is sure to tell you to "take away your hands," and, apparently reluctantly, you do so, disclosing the card with the single pip in the centre. The laugh will then be in your favour, and you take advantage of this temporary diversion to slip the next card from the back to the front of the pack. Then hold the pack by the sides in the right hand with the fingers right over the centre, and the audience will think that the single pip is still there, being hidden by the fingers.

To conclude the trick you can say that your fingers are damp enough to manage one pip and you pretend to rub it off the face of the card, which is thus blank.

Take this card away in your right hand, and offer it to someone on your left hand for examination, taking care to turn the pack down with its face to the floor as you remove the blank card, otherwise the audience will see the next card, which is the one-pip card.

The object of handing the blank card to someone on your left is to enable you to turn in that direction in a natural way, because directly you have turned you drop the pack you are holding in the left-hand pocket of your coat (or dinner jacket) and take from it another pack, from which the five of clubs has been abstracted. This is important because a juvenile audience is merciless to an amateur conjurer as a rule and someone is sure to say: "Let us have a look at the cards." Don't be in too great a hurry to hand them out for examination; always "play" with the younger members of your audience when you get the chance to do so. Of course, if the children are so exceedingly well behaved that they do not ask to see the cards you must suggest that "perhaps you would like to have a look at the cards," but I hope for your sake that the children are not of that kind. An audience of very prim and proper children may be easy to a conjurer, because they do not attempt to catch him out, but in another sense they are very difficult because it is by no means easy to engage and hold their attention. I much prefer an audience of children who are quite natural and who are therefore always eager to pounce upon any little weak point—or point which they think is weak—in a trick.

The preparation of the trick cards required for this trick is not a difficult matter. If expense is no object the best plan is to buy several packs of cards, with the backs all alike. A blank card usually goes with each pack. If the cards have no index corners you need prepare only two trick cards—one with four spots on it and one with three. To get the spots, put a ten-spot card in cold water and let it soak until you can peel away the face of it. Dry it on clean blotting paper. Then cut out the spots very neatly and paste them on two of the blank cards, taking care to get the pips at the corners in the right positions.

The other method of preparing the cards (presuming that you do not wish to invest in several packs) is to float off the backs of a couple of cards, dry them, paste white paper on them and then stick pips on the paper. The drawback to this method is that the paper will probably not match the paper on the faces of the other cards in the pack.